Why Is the Avalokiteśvara's Dharma Gate of Perfect Penetration Through the Ear Faculty So Difficult to Cultivate?

Question: In the Guanyin method of perfect penetration through the ear faculty, one empties all dharmas within meditative concentration, and finally enters a state of tranquil emptiness that cannot be emptied—this is the true mind. Since the true mind is tranquil emptiness, how does a flash of inspiration occur, whereby one awakens to this mind of tranquil emptiness?

Answer: The Guanyin method of perfect penetration through the ear faculty practiced by Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva in the Śūraṅgama Sūtra involves Avalokiteśvara contemplating emptiness (śūnyatā) within meditative concentration, continuously breaking through deluded dharmas. This mode of practice requires extremely deep meditative concentration (samādhi) and extremely strong prajñā wisdom; lacking either one, one cannot accomplish the Guanyin method of perfect penetration through the ear faculty. In this method of practice, one continuously eliminates within meditative concentration all arising-and-ceasing, unreal deluded dharmas, until there remains a so-called something that truly cannot be eliminated, truly cannot be emptied—that is the true mind, the tathāgatagarbha.

This method of practice is excellent, but most people—perhaps everyone—cannot cultivate to this degree. One reason is that they cannot attain such deep meditative concentration; another is that they cannot possess such deep prajñā wisdom of emptiness, and thus cannot realize this mind of emptiness within samādhi. When one cannot realize it, the misunderstanding of prajñā emptiness is very great. With the wholesome roots of us sentient beings in this Sahā world, we cannot succeed in this practice. One may have a similar understanding of prajñā wisdom, but meditative concentration is a hard criterion—the most actual cultivation of practice—and it cannot be achieved through mere understanding.

Therefore, eliminating all deluded dharmas within meditative concentration is something ordinary people cannot do. Not only must one empty the self of persons, one must also empty the self of dharmas. After all have been eliminated and emptied, what finally remains is a mind of tranquil emptiness that cannot be emptied. Nowadays it is impossible for anyone to cultivate to this degree. When only the mind of tranquil emptiness remains, one has realized emptiness. Then, who is it that realizes this mind of tranquil emptiness? Who is it that recognizes that true mind of tranquil emptiness? There still must be a "who"; without this "who" it will not work. This "who" is also empty and is also to be eliminated, but one must still make use of this empty "who" that should be broken through, in order to discover our inherently existing mind of tranquil emptiness—the true mind, the tathāgatagarbha. Such practice is to break through deluded dharmas, not to annihilate them; one simply does not regard them as real. Then, using the deluded, unreal mind consciousness and manas, one realizes the true mind that cannot be broken through. Without the deluded mind consciousness and manas, one cannot see one's true mind and attain enlightenment. Many people do not understand how enlightenment is realized, or who it is that needs to realize it.

Then, in our study of Buddhism, why do we need enlightenment? Because we are deluded and confused, with ignorance (avidyā). Now, who does this "we" refer to? This must be seen clearly and understood: this "we" refers to the two minds of the mind consciousness and the manas. Because these two minds are deluded and confused, having ignorance and not being enlightened, they have not awakened to the true reality of the dharmadhātu, have not awakened to the true mind, and do not know the true self—the ālayavijñāna, the tathāgatagarbha, the eighth consciousness. Therefore, the mind consciousness and manas, through cultivation, need to awaken to this true self, and only then can they realize the unreality of all dharmas and exhaust all ignorance. Only after realizing the eighth consciousness can this ignorance be exhausted through the three great asaṃkhyeya kalpas of stages of cultivation. If the sixth and seventh consciousnesses remain deluded and unenlightened, and do not realize this inherently existing true self, the eighth consciousness, then ignorance cannot be exhausted.

Then, who is it that needs enlightenment? It is the sixth and seventh consciousnesses; the sixth and seventh consciousnesses need to awaken and realize the eighth consciousness. Through what is it realized? Through contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā) within meditative concentration. One needs to understand the nature of the prajñā mind of tranquil emptiness, to have the wisdom of contemplative practice, to understand the coarse, superficial characteristics of prajñā, and to clearly understand the characteristics of the eighth consciousness, the ālayavijñāna, the tathāgatagarbha; then one must engage in contemplative practice and contemplative observation of this mind of tranquil emptiness within meditative concentration.

What does this mind of tranquil emptiness mean? It means that its essence is tranquil emptiness, formless and without characteristics: the eyes cannot see it, the ears cannot hear it, the hands cannot touch it, the body cannot feel it, the nose cannot smell it, and the mind consciousness can neither sense it nor conceive of it. What then should be done? Through studying the prajñā sūtras, one comes to understand the characteristics of the true mind and the features of its operation—and the true mind's operation is its functioning within the body of the five aggregates (pañcaskandha). After understanding this, one must, within meditative concentration, investigate within the operation of the body of the five aggregates, and thereby realize the true mind, the eighth consciousness.

The essence of the tathāgatagarbha, the eighth consciousness, simply cannot be found, because it is a mind of tranquil emptiness, a mind without any appearance; of course it cannot be found. It can only be realized through the functions and operations of the true mind. In the operations of this body of the five aggregates, one discovers that these modes of operation are the characteristics of the eighth consciousness. How does the eighth consciousness operate? It operates in this way within the five aggregates—operating like this. At this point, you have realized the eighth consciousness. But is the eighth consciousness not tranquil emptiness? Although its essence is tranquil emptiness, its operation is not tranquil emptiness; its functions and operations have characteristics and can be observed through contemplation. When you observe them, that is enlightenment.

In Elaborating on the Tathāgatagarbha, I once used wind as a metaphor: the mind of tranquil emptiness, like the wind, cannot be seen, yet we can still know of the wind's existence. Wind is also empty. Why is it empty? We cannot see the wind, hear the wind, touch the wind, feel the wind, or smell the wind. But how do we know the wind has come? When the wind comes, there are certainly all kinds of effects, and these effects act upon objects and upon space. The wind's effects on objects and its effects in empty space produce various signs and phenomena. Seeing these phenomena, we realize the wind—whether a gentle breeze, a great wind, a small wind, a fierce gale, or a tornado—from the phenomena appearing on objects we can determine which kind of wind it is.

The tathāgatagarbha, like the wind, is formless and without characteristics, but it can be found only through its operations upon the body of the five aggregates. Then, who is it that finds the wind? It is the minds of the sixth and seventh consciousnesses. Knowing that wind has arisen, the sixth and seventh consciousnesses together devise ways to take shelter and guard against the wind disaster. Likewise, when we realize the eighth consciousness, it is also realized jointly by the sixth and seventh consciousnesses, through the operations arising from the eighth consciousness, through the modes of its functioning within the body of the five aggregates. What are the functions of the eighth consciousness? All myriad dharmas are generated and sustained by it, and all myriad dharmas have its distinctive operation. How exactly the tathāgatagarbha operates needs to be investigated in the practice of Chan investigation; once investigated, one will clearly understand the five "how unforeseen is self-nature (svabhāva)" spoken of by the Sixth Patriarch.