All Dharmas Have Neither a Sovereign Nor a Creator

The Buddha Speaks the Sutra of the Ten Wholesome Paths, Original Text: All dharmas arise and assemble. Ultimately, there is no master, no self-nature, and no belonging to a self. Although each arises according to its own karma, the manifestations differ. Yet truly, within them, there is no creator. Therefore, all dharmas are inconceivable; their intrinsic nature is like an illusion.

Explanation: The accumulation and arising of all dharmas in the world ultimately have no sovereign, no master, no self-nature, and no belonging to a self. Although these dharmas arise according to their respective karmic seeds and conditions, the manifested dharma appearances differ. Yet in the process of these dharmas arising and ceasing, there is indeed no creator. Thus, it is said that all these dharmas are inconceivable; the self-nature of dharmas is like something conjured by illusion.

Dharma assembly refers to karmic actions gathering together, forming karmic seeds. When the karmic seeds ripen, aided by karmic conditions, the dharmas are born. Yet the birth of dharmas has no one presiding over it, no one controlling the birth, abiding, changing, and cessation of dharmas—there is no controller. These dharmas have no self-nature; they are without self and do not belong to me. For example, regarding the aggregation of the form skandha: who causes the form skandha to aggregate? The Tathagatagarbha has no mind to aggregate; it does not govern the form skandha. Manas is also illusory; it does not govern the form skandha. Karmic seeds and conditions are also illusory; none have a mind to aggregate, yet the form skandha inexplicably appears. Is the form skandha the self? It is not the self, for it lacks autonomy and is empty. Does the form skandha belong to me? It does not belong to me, for it is empty. The same applies to the feeling skandha, perception skandha, volition skandha, and consciousness skandha, as well as the six sense bases, six sense objects, and six consciousnesses.

Beings A, B, C, and D, although each appears in the six realms of rebirth according to their respective karmic actions and karmic seeds, the manifested appearances—such as form, identity, status, blessings, race, and so forth—differ greatly. Yet truly, within these manifestations, there is no creator; no one fabricated the appearances of beings in the six realms. Thus, being A’s heavenly appearance is inconceivable; the self-nature of the heavenly appearance is like an illusion, without a substantial heavenly being. Being B’s human appearance is inconceivable; the self-nature of the human appearance is like an illusion, without a substantial human. Being C’s hell appearance and being D’s hungry ghost appearance are all the same—inconceivable, their nature illusory, without substance.

Understanding these dharmas with the conscious mind may not be too difficult, but consciousness can only grasp a rough outline; it cannot know the internal details. That is to say, consciousness cannot know the specific causes and the specific operational circumstances of the dharmas. It is like viewing flowers through mist—blurred and indistinct. Only by deeply contemplating with manas in meditative concentration can one fully penetrate them, seeing all details exhaustively, knowing the reasons why, and thereby realizing the dharmas empirically, reaching the very source of dharmas. Then one will never again view flowers through mist or scratch an itch from outside the boot. For any dharma, the more manas contemplates it, the more fascinating it becomes, the more one wishes to investigate it clearly, the more wisdom one gains, and the deeper one’s meditative concentration becomes. The whole person becomes intoxicated—this is the joy of exploring truth. Abandon the shallow understanding of consciousness; learn the deep contemplation of manas, and one will grow increasingly wise. The mind’s reasoning and logic will become clearer and clearer; the person will become increasingly composed and insightful. All difficult problems will cease to be difficult; they will resolve themselves.