The Unarising and Unceasing Nature of Tathāgatagarbha

The true mind of the tathāgatagarbha cannot be obtained, nor can it be lost. What does "neither lost nor obtained" mean? It means neither arising nor ceasing. Because it does not arise, it cannot be obtained, for it exists from the very beginning; because it does not cease, there is no need for it to arise, and thus there is nothing to obtain. The true mind itself is an unconditioned dharma (asaṃskṛta-dharma); you need not cultivate anything to attain such unconditionedness. An unconditioned dharma that is cultivated out is the unconditionedness of the seventh consciousness, and it still has a time of ceasing, so it remains a conditioned dharma subject to arising and ceasing.

Suchness in its unconditionedness neither arises nor ceases, accompanying the tathāgatagarbha like a shadow following its form. The tathāgatagarbha is formless and without marks; they mutually contain one another and mutually cooperate, together accomplishing all dharmas. Yet even in mutual containment there is no mark of containing—they simply do not repel one another. It is the same with the Buddha's tathāgatagarbha and sentient beings' tathāgatagarbha: they mutually cooperate and mutually contain one another. Therefore, the tathāgatagarbha of sentient beings need not merge into the Buddha's tathāgatagarbha. The tathāgatagarbha is not material form; it has no inside and no outside, so they cannot enter into or merge with one another. Only material forms can mutually merge into and enter one another.