The Inner Object-Aspect's Image Changes with the Change of the Outer Object-Aspect's Original Object.

The material world (bhājana-loka) is also divided into the external material world and the internal material world. The external material world is jointly manifested by the tathāgatagarbhas of sentient beings who share common karma, and all sentient beings live within it, each having a share in it. What sentient beings' six consciousnesses can contact is the internal material world, which is transformed again by one's own tathāgatagarbha in reliance upon the external material world — this is a twofold manifestation, entirely a shadow, without any essential material form. When sentient beings change the internal material world within their own minds, they necessarily do so in reliance upon the external material world; if the external material world does not change, the internal material world cannot be changed.

For example, when I fell a large tree, it must be that the external essential realm — the large tree — falls down first, and then this is transmitted into the supreme faculty (indriya) at the back of the brain; what the six consciousnesses see is the fallen large tree, or the large tree slowly falling down, which belongs to inner sense-objects. Another example: when we build a building, it is certainly the external building that is being completed bit by bit, and our six consciousnesses can then see the internal object-aspect (nimitta) of the building being completed bit by bit. All such examples show that the external object-aspect exists or changes first, and the internal object-aspect exists or changes afterward; without the external object-aspect there would be no internal object-aspect.

The five sense-faculties and the body themselves are also accomplished from the four great elements, and are also an essential realm. In actuality they are insentient objects, merely the conditions relied upon for the operation of the seven transforming consciousnesses, and are held and sustained by the tathāgatagarbha. When the seven transforming consciousnesses give rise to thoughts and engage in activity, the tathāgatagarbha can use this five-aggregate body to change the material world. When the essential realm of the material world changes, the marks of the six sense-objects, both internal and external, all change. When a doctor cures a patient's illness, the patient's material body changes. To the doctor, the patient's material body is the external object-aspect — the essential realm of the patient — while what the doctor's six consciousnesses see is the image of the patient within his own supreme faculty. So does the doctor actually change the external object-aspect patient or the internal object-aspect patient? If only the internal object-aspect patient were changed, the patient himself would not have his illness cured; it must be that the patient's own material body outside the mind has changed. If a change occurs, does the patient himself change first, or does the image of the other person within one's own mind change first? The image arises from changes in the external object-aspect essential realm and is a shadow of the external object-aspect; therefore it is the patient's own material body that changes first, and the image changes afterward.

There is a difference between the five-aggregate body and the essential realm of the material world: one pertains to common karma, the other to individual karma; one is jointly created and transformed, the other is created and transformed individually. The essential realm of a person's material body is mainly held and sustained by that person's own tathāgatagarbha, but other tathāgatagarbhas can also change this material body. Treating someone's illness is one's own tathāgatagarbha taking one's own material body as a condition to change the essential realm of another person's material body. Changing the external environment constitutes the creation of karma, which has cause and effect: creating wholesome karma yields wholesome results, creating unwholesome karma yields unwholesome results; if you change another person's cause and effect, you yourself must bear the cause and effect. For a person with strong meditative concentration (samādhi), if he contemplates and visualizes killing the image of another person within his mind, will that person himself on the outside be affected? If he is affected, there will be karmic results; this belongs to killing by mind, not killing by body and speech. Killing by body is not permitted by worldly law, while killing by speech and killing by mind are beyond the reach of the law, but cause and effect will certainly follow. However, only one's own tathāgatagarbha can change oneself; there is no second channel. When others change you, it is also through your own tathāgatagarbha — it is still your own tathāgatagarbha that changes you.