All dharmas are originally neither causes-and-conditions nor natural nature

All dharmas are fundamentally neither conditioned by causes and conditions nor possessed of a natural nature. In the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, the World-Honored One negated those two possibilities for the arising of all dharmas—the nature of causes and conditions and the nature of naturalness—which leaves only one: all dharmas are the nature of the tathāgatagarbha, born and conjured forth by the tathāgatagarbha. Therefore all dharmas possess the nature of the tathāgatagarbha; this is the only conclusion one can draw. The non-Buddhist paths (tīrthikas) who do not know of or acknowledge the tathāgatagarbha all say that all dharmas either arise from various causes and conditions, or that they come about naturally, existing of themselves. But the World-Honored One said that they are all born of the tathāgatagarbha; without the tathāgatagarbha, no dharma whatsoever could be established.

The World-Honored One said that the five aggregates, the six faculties, the six sense objects, the six consciousnesses, the twelve sense bases, and the eighteen elements—each and every one of these dharmas has the tathāgatagarbha as its place of origin; they are not gathered from various causes and conditions, nor do they exist naturally; they arise from the tathāgatagarbha in accordance with various conditions. The World-Honored One explained this thoroughly, negating and blocking off all other places and sources from which all dharmas might arise; only the tathāgatagarbha can give rise to all these dharmas. The analysis in the Śūraṅgama Sūtra by the World-Honored One teaches sentient beings to engage in contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā) on the five aggregates, the twelve sense bases, and the eighteen elements, seeing that they are all false and illusory, all born after the fact, all subject to arising and ceasing, and all come from the tathāgatagarbha. On this basis, we too can engage in contemplative practice to eradicate the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi-prahāṇa), and then locate the tathāgatagarbha and understand the functions He performs—this is seeing the mind and realizing enlightenment. Therefore the Śūraṅgama Sūtra is fully sufficient to enable us to realize the tathāgatagarbha.