眾生無邊誓願度
煩惱無盡誓願斷
法門無量誓願學
佛道無上誓願成

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Dharma Teachings

20 Nov 2019    Wednesday     2nd Teach Total 2046

Does an Arhat's Entry into Nirvana Equal Entry into Tathagatagarbha?

The entire seven consciousnesses and five aggregates of the Arhat are born from and sustained by the Tathagatagarbha; there has never been a single moment when they could exist apart from the Tathagatagarbha. Therefore, the Arhat never exists outside the Tathagatagarbha, much less enters into it. Otherwise, the Arhat would also be an inherently existing, unborn and undying dharma essence without cause or condition, equivalent to the Tathagatagarbha. Thus, when an Arhat enters Nirvana, it is not an entry into the Tathagatagarbha. Nirvana is a state where only the Tathagatagarbha exists, devoid of the seven consciousnesses and five aggregates. Although in this state only the Tathagatagarbha exists, with no other dharmas present, it is still the solitary state of the Tathagatagarbha uncombined with the seven consciousnesses and five aggregates. If Nirvana refers to qualities such as being unborn and undying, neither increasing nor decreasing, pure and undefiled, etc., then the Tathagatagarbha possesses the nature of Nirvana. However, the Tathagatagarbha is not equal to Nirvana, because the Tathagatagarbha has many other qualities and exists in other states; Nirvana is not entirely equivalent to the Tathagatagarbha. The Tathagatagarbha is the essence, while Nirvana is the nature and state of that essence.

——Master Sheng-Ru's Teachings
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The Shurangama Sutra, Volume V: The Dharma Gate of Perfect Penetration of the Twenty-Five Sages — The Two Dharma Princes, Medicine King and Medicine Superior

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Can a Lay Practitioner Attain the Fourth Stage of Arhatship?

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