Selected Lectures on the Sūtra of the Collection of the Father and Son (Pitāputrasamāgamanasūtra) (66)

The six faculties include the eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind faculties. These six faculties are like illusions, manifested by the tathāgatagarbha; this is called "illusion-like." The sense objects are like dreams: the sense objects are the objects of form seen by the eye, the objects of sound heard by the ear, the objects of fragrance and stench smelled by the nose, the objects of sour, sweet, bitter, and spicy flavors tasted by the tongue, the objects felt by the body such as fatigue, tranquility, softness, comfort, hunger, satiety, and so on, and the objects of mental sense-data confronted by the manas. These sense objects appear to exist, but their existence is false existence, illusory existence, and is not real—just like the objects in a dream. In every way, the Buddha is revealing to us one truth: all dharmas are utterly empty and tranquil. This means that all dharmas are empty and tranquil.