The Essence of the Diamond Sutra

The essential purpose throughout the entire Diamond Sutra is to shatter attachments—shatter attachments, shatter attachments—to shatter all attachments, beginning with the shattering of the four attachments, shattering all phenomena-attachments. The scope of all these phenomena-attachments is vast, immeasurable, and boundless. Whatever sentient beings can touch, see, think, conceive, or discuss are all non-attachments. This includes all phenomena and all attachments within the three realms of the mundane world: the attachment to self, the attachment to person, the attachment to sentient beings, the attachment to lifespan; the attachment to the Śrāvaka, the attachment to the Pratyekabuddha, the attachment to the Bodhisattva, the thirty-two marks and the complete bodily marks of the Buddha, the attachment to the Tathāgata, the attachment to the great body; the attachment to lands, the attachment to dust motes, the attachment to worlds, the attachment to composite phenomena; the attachment to the minds of sentient beings, the attachment to the Bodhisattva's resolve for Bodhi, the attachment to the Bodhisattva's adornment of Buddha-lands, the attachment to the Bodhisattva's liberating of sentient beings, the attachment to the Buddhas' expounding of the Dharma, the attachment to the Buddhas' attainment of the Dharma, the attachment to the Buddhas' attainment of Bodhi, the attachment to the Bodhisattva's six pāramitās; even up to the attachment to the perfection of wisdom (prajñāpāramitā), the attachment to the Buddha-Dharma, the attachment to the true nature of all dharmas, and so on and so forth. All attachments are non-attachments, neither attachments nor non-attachments; they are neither phenomena nor non-phenomena.
And what is the basis for shattering all these attachments? The basis is the diamond-like mind, which is neither born nor extinguished. Because of this indestructible diamond-like mind, all phenomena-attachments that arise are non-attachments, or more comprehensively expressed, neither attachments nor non-attachments. Therefore, it is said that the Diamond Prajñā Mind is also known as the Great Dhāraṇī Dharma Gate of the One Mark of No-Mark, which holds all attachments, encompasses all dharmas, causing all dharmas to be without self-nature and without self-mark; all dharmas are neither phenomena nor non-phenomena; the world is empty, still, void, and illusory.
The process and result of shattering attachments in the Diamond Sutra resonate profoundly with the Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva's Dharma Gate of Perfect Penetration through the Faculty of Hearing, emptying all that can be emptied, leaving only the diamond-like prajñā mind on the other shore—neither the other shore nor not the other shore—solitary and without companion, yet it is the True Dharma Realm.

The Diamond Sutra also resonates deeply with all Prajñā scriptures and Mahāyāna scriptures, mutually verifying each other without the slightest discord. There is nothing but emptiness, emptiness to the ultimate end—neither emptiness nor non-emptiness. Can worldly people understand this? Can they realize it? If realized, would there still be attachments in the mind? Would there still be anything grasped? Of course, in between lies the path of realization spanning three great asaṃkhyeya kalpas to traverse, requiring the shattering of attachment after attachment, shattering completely to return to the origin, returning home to sit securely. Yet by then, there is no home to return to, no place to sit, and no body to sit securely. Is this not a Dharma Gate of great liberation, utterly naked and completely empty? May worldly people quickly discard one attachment after another! May they quickly escape the suffocating feeling of being bound! May they quickly cast off all burdens!