The Supreme Dharma Transcends Verbal expression and Can Only Be Intuitively Apprehended

Realization is the experiential proof through the mind-root, while verbal transmission is the explanation using the language of consciousness. The supreme and wondrous Dharma is the highest and most sublime Tathagatagarbha Dharma, which requires each individual to personally realize and experience it firsthand. Guidance and hints provided by others through language cannot substitute for one's own experiential realization. Experiential realization requires numerous conditions and causes to be fulfilled, including the complete cultivation of precepts, concentration, and wisdom, as well as the accumulation of merit and virtue. Moreover, one must have already generated profound doubt and be able to persistently investigate with unwavering focus, applying effort until it reaches the level of the mind-root. Only then can one experientially realize the wondrous Dharma of Tathagatagarbha. Verbal transmission can only initially land in the conscious mind; if the effort has not reached the level of the mind-root, it cannot stir the mind-root. Therefore, verbal transmission cannot replace the pondering and investigation of the mind-root and ultimately cannot lead to personal realization.

When the depth of meditative concentration and investigative effort is insufficient, one should concentrate on applying the practice without listening to others' views or referencing Buddhist scriptures and others' theoretical knowledge, as this can obstruct personal experiential realization. Matters of spiritual practice are entirely personal, just as eating food satiates only the one who eats it. The Dharma is personally realized only by the one who investigates it; without investigation, there is no realization. Dharma heard from others is like something stolen—it does not belong to oneself. Samadhi states can only be initiated by oneself; wisdom arises from within one's own mind. Studying the Tripitaka and the twelve divisions of scriptures will never equal one's own awakening. Practitioners should be like great heroes, courageously upholding the practice, personally engaging in it with their own effort, and resolutely rejecting all attempts to take shortcuts or seek clever tricks.

The supreme wondrous Dharma cannot be transmitted verbally for another reason: the Tathagatagarbha, this subtle and profound Dharma, cannot be expressed through language. No matter how one tries to speak of it, what is spoken is not It. Nothing can convey or demonstrate It; what is pointed out is never It. No matter what, It does not emerge, does not manifest, does not speak, and does not act—It is humble and selfless, without any display. How then should one approach such a Dharma? Only through experiential realization, personal proof, and direct awakening can one behold Its true face. What is heard or seen is not It; no one can transmit this Dharma to you. So, do you still need to listen to others' instructions?