22-23. The Teaching on the Body & the Tathāgata's Body

Overall Teaching

The Buddha's true body is not the physical form seen by ordinary beings but the Dharma body, which is beyond physical characteristics and can only be realised through Samādhi. The Buddha's wisdom and the Dharma body are boundless, formless, and beyond ordinary perception, emphasising the need for bodhisattvas to transcend attachment to physicality and cultivate a deep understanding of the Dharma to attain true awakening.

Summary

Chapter 22 — The Teaching on the Body

•  A bodhisattva should not be attached to the body and must be willing to relinquish life; attachment to the body leads to engagement in unwholesome dharmas.

• A bodhisattva should understand both the form body (rūpa-kāya) and the Dharma body (Dharma-kāya): the Dharma body of the buddhas is not associated with the form body; buddhas manifest through the Dharma body, not through the form body.

Chapter 23 — The Teaching on the Tathāgata's Body

• A bodhisattva should:

  1. Practice what the buddhas practice.

  2. Seek and understand the Buddha's body and wisdom. His body arises from boundless merit.

  3. Uphold, recite, explain, and cultivate the teachings of this Samādhi Sūtra.

• The Buddha teaches that: 

  2. • All dharmas arise from causes and are free from all characteristics; are boundless, without limits; unwavering, non-dual, invisible, and inconceivable; unshakable, indescribable, without abode, and free from reliance; are beyond outflows (sensuality, rebecoming, and ignorance) and retribution.

• The mind, when firm and free from desires, anger, and ignorance, realises the emptiness of all dharmas. Therein, one realises that:

  2. • No arising exists as all arising is cut off; impermanence is a verbal designation; liberation's sound is beyond sound, unified through harmonisation; conventional and ultimate truth, freedom from afflictions, and nirvāṇa align with reality.

• One comes to realise that the Buddha's body is:

  2. • Unbroken, unconquerable, and free from conceptual fabrication; boundless, expressing merit, and subtlety; possessing great supernormal powers and unobstructed freedom; vast, with endless names, and rooted in great compassion.

• In verse, the Buddha teaches:

  2. • The inapprehensible nature of the Buddha's body and wisdom can only be understood through the cultivation of Samādhi. The Buddha's body is described as pure, radiant, and equal to empty space, with characteristics that are beyond ordinary perception. 

       • Although some beings claim to see the Buddha's golden, illuminating form, this perception is granted through the Buddha's empowerment and supernormal powers, rather than through ordinary vision.

     • The Buddha's essence and that of his kin (bodhisattvas) are beyond the grasp of fleshly eyes, indicating that the Buddha's body is not a physical form but is instead a manifestation of the Dharma, born from merit and wisdom. 

       • Name and form (nama-rūpa; mind and body) arise from thought; perceiving them in either gross or subtle terms influences one's experience of them. When there is no attachment to name and form, the mind and body become radiant, leading to a deeper understanding and liberation.

     • The Dharma body, being formless and beyond description, is powerful and heroic, born from the Dharma itself. Speaking of this body brings joy and shields one from Māra's influence. Hearing and understanding this profound Dharma without fear or slander is crucial for maintaining a correct view of the Buddha's bodhi. 

       • The Buddha's wisdom, as expressed through countless sūtras, serves as a guiding light for sentient beings, illuminating the path wherever they may be.

• In prose: 

  2. • The Buddha's characteristics and deeds are beyond comprehension and cannot be understood or described by reference to any colour, appearance, or physical quality. Its dimensions and all other measures are limitless and cannot be fathomed by ordinary perception.

• In verse:

  2. • Just as the drops of water in the ocean are incalculable, so is the Dharma-body. The Buddha's body, free from marks, reveals the profound and immeasurable Dharma body, which is inconceivable like space and beyond the grasp of ordinary perception or thought.

     • The number of sentient beings is more numerous than these drops of water, and the Buddha knows all who generate bodhicitta (aspiration for buddhahood) and arouse faith in a single moment. Those who truly understand the Tathāgata's body will attain Buddhahood and realise the inconceivable nature of the Buddha's body and the Dharma.

Commentary

In Thrangu Rinpoche's commentary, he characterises chapter 22 as emphasising the importance of not becoming attached to the ordinary body. Moreover, he highlights that obtaining a human body is extremely precious because only through it can we practise the Dharma. This implies that we should make full use of the human body and not let it go to waste, which is the essence of being willing to relinquish life in pursuit of the Dharma. Any other hardship we undertake will not yield real or meaningful results beyond this temporary life.

That being said, without attaining the bodhisattva stages, we cannot possess the boundless compassion required to make sacrificing our bodies for the sake of others effective (e.g. the bodhisattva feeding himself to a hungry tigress and her cubs). These are deeds of great bodhisattvas, not of ordinary beings like us. Therefore, we should protect our precious lives and use them to learn and cultivate the Dharma so that in the future, we will be able to truly benefit all beings.

In regard to chapter 23, Thrangu Rinpoche suggests that the essence of this chapter, which describes the Tathāgata's body, is to inspire faith and devotion in the Buddha. However, we should not be attached to the form body (rūpa-kāya) but should instead focus on the Dharma body, which is the collection of the Buddha's awakened qualities. This includes his twofold wisdom: the wisdom of the nature of all dharmas and the wisdom that perceives all things; as well as the three qualities of the Dharma body: perfect knowledge, perfect love, and perfect capability. The Dharma body is the source of the awakened body, speech, and mind of the buddhas.

Discussion

1. How does the distinction between the form body (rūpa-kāya) and the Dharma body (Dharma-kāya) challenge our understanding of the Buddha's presence and influence in the world? 

2. In what ways does this distinction guide a bodhisattva's practice, particularly in relation to non-attachment and the cultivation of Samādhi?