In "rely on the meaning, not on the words," what do "meaning" and "words" refer to respectively?

When the Buddha taught the Dharma, He told sentient beings to rely on the true meaning within the Dharma He taught, not on the surface language of His teachings. Language is the surface meaning, while the meaning is the hidden, true intent. So why did the Buddha, when teaching the Dharma, not directly state the true meaning, instead concealing His real intent beneath the surface meaning?

Language corresponds to the mind consciousness and stays at the shallow, surface level of meaning. But behind the language and words, there is a deeper meaning that the manas wishes to express. Under special circumstances, when some people speak or write, it is inconvenient, or they are unwilling, or it is very difficult to directly express their true thoughts, so they express them implicitly and indirectly; the listener must then listen for the overtones and understand the meaning behind what is not on the surface of the words. Sentient beings find it somewhat easier to understand the surface meaning, but after all, that is not the true meaning and is not ultimate; the deeper meaning is not easy for sentient beings to grasp, yet that is what the speaker truly wishes to express, the meaning they want to convey to us.

Therefore, when the Buddha was about to enter parinirvāṇa, He told His disciples to rely on the meaning, not on the words, so that sentient beings would rely on the ultimate meaning. The ultimate meaning is the true meaning the Buddha wished to express. If sentient beings only understand and expound on the surface of the language, they have not understood the Buddha's true intent and have distorted His real meaning.

When ordinary people speak, there is also explicit reference and implicit reference. Explicit reference is the surface meaning; implicit reference is the true meaning. Explicit reference is what the mind consciousness expresses through language and words; implicit reference is the true intention behind the language and words. Why not directly express one's true thoughts and intentions? On some occasions, some thoughts cannot be expressed directly. One reason is concern that the other party cannot accept or understand them, for fear of being misunderstood; another is a matter of method and strategy—inspiring a person to ponder deeply, so that the answer they arrive at through their own deep and careful deliberation is more readily accepted and yields deeper wisdom.

Those who are skilled in the art of language employ just such skillful means. Even when the Buddha taught the Dharma, at times He was rather indirect and did not directly express the true meaning in His heart. One reason was fear that sentient beings could not understand it or might develop misunderstandings; another was to guide sentient beings to contemplate more deeply and arrive at conclusions themselves, thereby increasing their wisdom and faith. Especially when sentient beings of different spiritual faculties (indriya) were mixed together, He could even less directly express the profound meaning.