Quotes About Tathagata

The dharmakaya of all buddhas, the Tathagata, the noble truth, and the absolute nirvana are but synonymous terms, being just different aspects that have the same essence.

This element is only explained as being of different kinds inasmuch as there are three phases: the unpurified phase, the partly unpurified and partly purified phase, and the utterly purified phase. These are identified by means of the three names "being," "bodhisattva," and "tathagata." With regard to the essence of the subject, however, there is not the slightest difference.

In a place where there is something that can be distinguished by signs, in that place there is deception. If you can see the signless nature of signs, then you can see the Tathagata.

Bhikshu, you should know that the Tathagata is the Dharma King. If the Tathagata says something then those words are not false, they are always true. If the Tathagata says something exists, that is true. If the Tathagata says something does not exist, that is also true. If the Tathagata teaches the Mahayana, it is true. And if the Tathagata teaches the Hinayana, it is also true.

So: an epic novel of the Tathagata? Yes, but not a very good one. Kerouac would have done better.

In brief, all the teachings of the Tathagata, all the unhindered, divine powers of the Tathagata, the hidden core of the whole storehouse of the Tathagata, and all the profound matters of the Tathagata are proclaimed, demonstrated, revealed, and preached in this sutra.

To enter the room of the Tathagata is to have great compassion for all living beings. To wear the robe of the Tathagata is to be gentle and patient. To sit on the seat of the Tathagata is to contemplate the emptiness of all things. One should dwell in peace with all three and then, never becoming lazy or careless, teach this Dharma Flower Sutra everywhere to bodhisattvas and the four groups.

It was Buddhist and Shinto priests who were recruiting and training the suicide bombers, or Kamikaze (Divine Wind), fanatics, assuring them the emperor was a Golden Wheel-Turning Sacred King, one indeed of the four manifestations of the ideal Buddhist monarch and a Tathagata, or fully enlightened being, of the material world.

What is the significance of this? It was simply a demonstration of Parental Mind. The Tathagata did not do this in expectation of some reward or fame. He did it unconditionally, without thought of profit or gain.

Marvelous, marvelous! All sentient beings have the Tathagata's wisdom and virtue, but they fail to realize it because they cling to deluded thoughts and attachments.