At the outset of the sutra, Subhūti inquires about how one should dwell calmly the mind after initially making the aspiration for practicing. This is also a common concern for beginners on the path and verify in the Dharma: how can one achieve Buddhahood when the mind is disturbed and restless, unable to settle peacefully on the Bodhisattva path? Naturally, practitioners focus on finding a “method of practice” that will calm and steady the mind.
The Buddha tells you not cling to various appearances, as all forms are illusory. In this way, disciples practicing the Bodhisattva deeds of almsgiving, patience, and so on will gradually direct the merit of these practices toward the emptiness. However, the Buddha sharply redirects the disciples’ attention to the root of the question itself. If one aspires to attain the unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness, the Buddha asks, “If there is no self, then who is it that is making this aspiration?” He directly affirms that no such self exists. Were there a “maker of the aspiration”, it would imply a concept of “self” and “sentient beings”, and one would expect a future Buddha’s fruit and appearance — something to be obtained and something to achieve. This perception is the core realization when making the aspiration for Buddhahood: when the aspiration is made, it is already “with no self”. Thus, as the wisdom of Prajñā teaches, the Avatamsaka Sutra states: “The Bodhisattva, upon first making the aspiration, immediately attains complete awareness.”
This Segment of the Diamond Sutra always brings to my mind the story of the Second Patriarch of Chan, Huike, seeking the Dharma from Bodhidharma. When Huike, after enduring the pain of severing his own arm, knelt in the snow and asked Bodhidharma, “My mind is not at peace. Please, teach me the method to pacify my mind,” Bodhidharma responded by glaring with wide-open eyes and loudly declaring, “Bring me your mind, and I will calm it for you.” After three days and nights of kneeling in the snow, having severed his arm, Huike’s mind must have been struck by the profound words of Bodhidharma. In that moment, his body and mind became as vast and empty as the boundless, silent earth. Softly, he whispered, “The mind sought cannot be found.” These words echoed in the vast emptiness of his body and mind, like the echo in an empty valley — having neither a place of origin nor a place of extinction, lingering but leaving no trace. Bodhidharma said definitely, “I have already settled your mind.” Similarly, the Buddha asks, “Who is the one aspiring for the unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness?” This inquiry mirrors Bodhidharma’s words: “Bring me your mind, and I will settle it for you.” Upon hearing this, the disciples immediately turned inward and found it impossible to locate any “self” or any entity capable of “making the vow”. The Crown Prince Zhao Ming, who was criticised for dividing the Diamond Sutra into Segments, aptly named this Segment “Chapater of ultimate Non-Self.” In the previous dialogues between the Buddha and Subhūti, much has been said about not clinging to the concept of “self”, but in this Segment, we encounter the essence of ultimate non-self.
The Buddha then uses his own past experience of learning the Dharma from the Buddha Dipankara to further illustrate his point. He asks Subhūti, “Is there an entity attains the unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness at the place of the Buddha Dipankara?” This entity could be a person, a mind, or a state or everything you conceived. Subhūti responds, “There is no an entity attains the unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness at the place of the Flame Lamp Buddha.” At this point, Subhūti has realized the formlessness and non-self of the Tathāgata, understanding that in the realm of true emptiness, there is no a single thought. So, he responded immediately.
The Buddha affirms Subhūti’s answer, saying, “Yes, that is correct. If there were an heart, a thought, or a state through which I attained unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness at the place of the Flame Lamp Buddha, then I would not have dwelled calmly in the true emptiness. Had such an ‘entity’ existed, the Flame Lamp Buddha would not have predicted that, in a future life, I would become a Buddha and be called Shakyamuni.
It is precisely because I dwelled calmly in the state of ‘all phenomena are empty’, unshaken, and diligently practiced the six perfections, that the Flame Lamp Buddha made this prophecy, stating that I would become the Buddha, with the name of Shakyamuni in a future life.”
In this passage, the Buddha recalls the countless eons ago when He practiced the Bodhisattva path under the guidance of the Flame Lamp Buddha. The Flame Lamp Buddha, recognizing that His disciple had firmly established himself in the Buddha’s right perception, saw that although he had made a vow to liberate all beings, there were, in fact, no beings to liberate. This Bodhisattva was not attached to the notions of self, and sentient beings. He practiced patience, understanding that there was no real insult to endure, and no anger to arise. His almsgiving was not tied to the giver, the receiver, or the gift, nor to any concept of merit, dharma, or the attainment of Buddhahood. Through this right perception of the Buddha’s teachings, He purified delusions such as greed, hatred, ignorance, pride, doubt, and desire — delusions that had caused Him to be ensnared by his past habitual tendencies. So, the Flame Lamp Buddha gives Him the prophecy that He would, in a future life, attain Buddhahood and the full realization of the Buddha’s fruit(The prophecy means an assurance of Buddhahood).
However, there is no an entity that generates the aspiration for unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness, there is also no an entity that can receive the prophecy from the Flame Lamp Buddha. All phenomena are with no self, and this is the true meaning of the Tathāgata. Therefore, the Buddha continues, “The Tathāgata is the muchness of all dharmas” —all phenomena, is as it is.
The teachings the disciples have heard so far — namely, that all phenomena are illusory and devoid of true substance, one should not cling to any form — these are expressions of the Buddha abiding in the “Tathāgata’s realm”. However, for the disciples who have not yet directly realized it, this “Tathāgata’s realm” is merely a conceptual image in their minds. It may appear as an emptiness or a state that remains after rejecting or negating everything, but these are not the true “Tathāgata’s true emptiness”. Therefore, the Buddha continues to expound the disciples about the “Tathāgata’s realm”. Here, the Buddha summaries: “The Tathāgata is the muchness of all dharmas.” This means that the Tathāgata’s realm is the original state of all phenomena; it has always been this way, and all phenomena are inherently without self-nature. When we relinquish our distinctions and attachments, what is revealed is the true nature of the Tathāgata.
The Buddha then continues, “If someone says that the Tathāgata has attained the fruit of unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness, you should know, Subhūti, that in reality, there is no one that generates the aspiration, nor is there an ‘attainer of the fruit’. It is precisely because of this that the Buddha has attained unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness.”
At this juncture, one cannot help but smile knowingly. There is no “one” that generates the aspiration, nor is there an “attainer of the fruit”. Only when the seeking mind ceases, and the grasping mind that pursues and claims attainment fades, can we achieve unsurpassed, complete equal and complete awareness. In the world, in the pursuit of worldly knowledge or skills, there is always a learner, and ultimately, a measurable, visible achievement. However, in the study of the Buddha Dharma, it is precisely when we fully realize the emptiness of all phenomena — when the seeking and grasping mind no longer arises — that we attain the highest and most complete awareness and wisdom, a wisdom that is formless.