Tathāgatagarbha Is Apart from the Nature of Seeing, Hearing, Awareness, and Knowing

Right where seeing occurs, there is that which does not see; dwelling in the field of seeing and hearing, yet not reached by seeing and hearing; dwelling in the realm of thought and speech, yet beyond thought and speech. These three sentences all state that the tathāgatagarbha is characterized by being apart from seeing, hearing, awareness, and knowing, and that the seeing, hearing, awareness, and knowing of our six consciousnesses also do not touch the tathāgatagarbha. This precisely accords with the emptiness (śūnyatā) nature of the tathāgatagarbha as taught in the Heart Sutra.

The first sentence: right where seeing occurs, there is that which does not see. At the place where our eye faculty contacts material sense-objects, when the eye consciousness sees the material sense-object, there is a tathāgatagarbha that does not see the material sense-object, existing there. Our eyes cannot see the tathāgatagarbha, and the tathāgatagarbha, having no eyes, also does not see material sense-objects.

The second sentence: dwelling in the field of seeing and hearing, yet not reached by seeing and hearing. When our six consciousnesses discriminate the six sense-object realms as we see forms and hear sounds, there is a tathāgatagarbha that we cannot reach by seeing and hearing, cannot discriminate, because the tathāgatagarbha has no characteristics of the six sense-objects; the eye consciousness cannot see it, and the ear consciousness cannot hear it.

The third sentence: dwelling in the realm of thought and speech, yet beyond thought and speech. When we think, recollect, and imagine various realms of mental sense-objects, there is a tathāgatagarbha that our six consciousnesses cannot fathom or imagine through thought and speech, because the tathāgatagarbha is inconceivable and cannot be guessed at or imagined through sentimental thinking and intellectual interpretation. Only by investigating in accordance with the Dharma and reason, following definite principles, and diligently searching with careful attention can one realize the tathāgatagarbha.