The World of Black Boxes (13)

As for the internal manifestation aspect, that mountain is composed of the four great elements: earth, water, fire, and wind. When we wish to see it, our own Tathagatagarbha comes into contact with that external mountain, extracting the minute particles of its four great elements. Once these particles are extracted, they are transmitted all the way to our eye faculty, into the eyeball, through the vitreous body, into the optic nerve, and to the supreme sense faculties at the back of our brain. There, the Tathagatagarbha immediately transforms these particles into the manifest color of the internal manifestation aspect.

The external manifestation aspect of that mountain is collectively upheld by the Tathagatagarbha of sentient beings with collective karma. As for the mountain in our internal manifestation aspect? It is a manifested image produced by our own Tathagatagarbha based on the external manifestation aspect. The transformation of the external manifestation aspect into the internal manifestation aspect involves extremely profound mysteries, touching upon deep questions of wisdom in the Vijñaptimātratā (Consciousness-Only) tradition.

The mountain we see holds so many mysteries, and the entire process of seeing it contains even more profound secrets. How does the Tathagatagarbha uphold that external mountain? It is because the Tathagatagarbha of all sentient beings collectively, moment by moment, outputs the seeds of the four great elements to jointly transform, uphold, and alter that mountain. That mountain itself is also changing moment by moment. Therefore, after thousands or tens of thousands of years, that mountain will also change and disappear. This is the principle behind the saying that "seas change into mulberry fields, and mulberry fields change into seas."

The entire earth is undergoing change. Why does it change? Because it is summoned by the karmic conditions of sentient beings. Therefore, the Tathagatagarbha of all sentient beings with collective karma moment by moment outputs the seeds of the four great elements, collectively transforming and sustaining these external manifestation aspects composed of earth, water, fire, and wind—mountains, waters, the universe, the vessel world, and so on. The relationships here are exceptionally complex and difficult to articulate clearly.

When the Tathagatagarbha of an individual sentient being conditions that mountain, the Tathagatagarbha extracts the minute particles of the four great elements corresponding to that sentient being's own karma. If the sentient being has much wholesome karma, the manifested internal aspect will be relatively more complete; if there is much unwholesome karma, the manifested internal aspect will be flawed and defective. Each person's karmic obstructions are different. After extracting the minute particles of the four great elements of that mountain, because the extracted particles differ, the manifested internal aspect also differs. The internal manifestation aspect is also revealed based on the sentient being's karmic seeds and karmic force.

The mountains, rivers, and great earth seen in each person's eyes are all different. The same mountain may appear very beautiful to some and not beautiful to others. This is related to blessings, karma, mental state, and so on. When an Arhat enters Nirvana without residue, the portion of the external manifestation aspect of mountains, rivers, and the great earth that he participated in manifesting vanishes accordingly. However, sentient beings do not perceive the change in the external manifestation aspect, simply because the number of sentient beings participating in manifesting the external aspect is so vast. When the Arhat's Tathagatagarbha withdraws all of its own four great elements, the change in the external aspect is not obvious, and thus we do not perceive it. Only the Buddha and the great Bodhisattvas can perceive it.

Because the Tathagatagarbha possesses seeds of material form and personally participates in manifesting material phenomena, it is able to come into contact with the external manifestation aspect of the mountain, directly condition that mountain, and extract the minute particles of the four great elements. Once extracted, it can transmit them through some obstructing objects to the coarse physical sense faculties and the supreme sense faculties of the eye. Therefore, when we look at the external mountain through a window, we are able to see the internal manifestation aspect of the mountain.