Why Are All Dharmas Ultimately Pure (2)

Original text: 众生国土。同一法性。地狱天宫。皆为净土。有性无性。齐成佛道。一切烦恼。毕竟解脱。法界海慧。照了诸相。犹如虚空。此名如来。随顺觉性。

Explanation: Sentient beings and insentient lands share the same dharma-nature; both are of the nature of the tathāgatagarbha dharma. The combined body of sentient beings' material form and mind is accomplished by the tathāgatagarbha through the seeds of the seven great elements, while lands are material form, accomplished by the tathāgatagarbha through the seeds of the five great elements; both are accomplished through the tathāgatagarbha's perfected nature (pariniṣpanna-svabhāva). The hells and the heavenly palaces are all lands of bliss, all born and manifested by the tathāgatagarbha, all perfectly accomplished by the tathāgatagarbha, all things within the pure tathāgatagarbha mind, all within the pure land of the tathāgatagarbha.

Sentient beings possessing buddha-nature and insentient things lacking buddha-nature will together accomplish the buddha path, because those with buddha-nature and those without are originally the Tathāgata Buddha, all born and manifested from the tathāgatagarbha, all perfectly accomplished by the tathāgatagarbha. All afflictions are ultimately liberated, because all afflictions are born and upheld by the tathāgatagarbha, all perfectly accomplished by the tathāgatagarbha, all of the nature of the tathāgatagarbha; and since the tathāgatagarbha is intrinsically liberated, all afflictions are ultimately liberated.

The tathāgatagarbha of the dharma realm, with wisdom vast as the great ocean, illuminates all dharmas' marks, and all dharmas are like empty space. Likewise, the Buddhas' wisdom of the nature of the dharma realm (dharmadhātu-svabhāva-jñāna) also possesses wisdom like a great ocean; seeing the marks of all dharmas, they are likewise like empty space, unobtainable, utterly empty, because the Buddhas have realized that the essence of all worldly dharma-marks is empty just like empty space. All of the above is the Tathāgata's accordance with awakening (tathāgata-anuloma-bodhi), which bodhisattvas and ordinary beings cannot realize; they can only understand, deliberate, and imagine it. Yet as long as there is dharma to rely upon, understanding seems not too difficult, whereas actual realization requires three great asaṃkhyeya kalpas. The above is the perfected nature (pariniṣpanna-svabhāva) of the tathāgatagarbha, the nature that perfectly accomplishes all dharmas.