Language And Truth In Hua-Yen Buddhism

·期刊原文

Language And Truth In Hua-Yen Buddhism

Dale Wright

Journal Of Chinese Philosophy

Vol. 13, 1986 Pp. 21-47

Copyright @ 1986 by Dialogue Publishing Company, Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.A.

P.21

It has been observed in contemporary Buddhist studies that
new and distinct ways of upressing Buddhist "ultimate truth"
and its relation to ordinay truth and experience began to
emerge in the Chinese Buddhist tradition in the sixth and
seventh centuries A.D. During this period of Chinese history,
several systems of Buddhist thought arose that seemed to
mitigate the primacy of negative language in references to
'ultimate truth" and the predominantly negative evaluation of
conventional truth and experience that had dominated the
tradition previously. This development has been noticed
especially in the Sui/T'ang systems of Buddhist thought,
T'ien-t'ai and Hua-yen, as well as in later Ch'an thoght and
practice.
This tendency and movement in Chinese Buddhism attained
its most articulate theoretical expression in the Hua-yen
school of thought. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the
understanding of language and truth that is expressed in the
thought of Fa-tsang(a) (643-712), the third patriarch and most
widely known proponent of the Hua-yen school of Buddhism.
In dealing with the question of truth, Fa-tsang and the
Hua-yenua-yen Buddhists adopted basic terms and structures of
thought from the Buddhist tradition that had been brought
from India and established in China by that time. The most
important distinction that this tradition had made with
respect to the question of truth was that between two kinds
of truth, qonventional truth (samvrti-satya/ su-t'i(b) )and
ultimate truth (paramaartha-satya/ chen-t'i(c) ) .
Conventional truth consists of the entire corpus of ideas,
values, and customs that come to be presupposed or regarded
as truth by the "common sense" of a community. It includes
any truth about oneself or the world that can be propositionaly
formulated and expressed in language. Ultimate truth, which
is manifest in the experience of enlightenment (bodhil
p'u-t'i(d)), transcends and negates the norms of conventional
truth, and cannot be conceptually grasped or expressed in
language. Conventional truth came to he regarded as the basis
of life as samsara, life characterized by ignorance

p.22

and suffering. Ultimate truth referred to the wisdom of
Buddhas and bodhisattvas, the exalted being who had
transcended the ignorance and suffering of samsara in the
experience of enlightenment.
This fundamental distinction between two kinds of truth
was in the final analysis a way of denying the thuth of
"conventional truth." Conventional truth was true only for
those who lived in ignorance of ultimate truth. Ihe
"perfection or wisdom" then, was the perfection of one's
ability to see thlrough the illusions of what is
conventionally regarded as true, such as the existence of the
"self' and worldly entities each possessing their "own-being"
(svabhaava). Fa-tsang and other Hua-yen Buddhists understood
and accepted this formulation of the nature of truth, but
began to reformulate and extend their undefstanding an the
basis of their own insights and heritage. This process, which
by this time had already been taking plaee for several centuries
in China, inevitably produced innovationn and transformations
of Buddhist ideas and resulted in a new way of expressing the
Buddhist understanding of truth.
One of the most significant transformations that took
place with respect to the question of truth was that Fa-tsang
and the Hua-yen Buddhists were more inclined to reflect on
and to clarify the nature and function of "conventional
truth" and its relation to "ultimate truth", an inclination
that also involved a re-thinking of the relation between
language and truth. This re-evaluation led eventually to a
system of Buddhist thought that gave greater importance to
conventional truth, especially in so far as it could (1) lead
to an ontological analysis of the status of conventional
truth, (2) show how conventional truth relater to ultimate
truth and necessarily functions in the quest for ultimate
truth, and (3) stipulate that the awakening of ultimate truth
does not entail a complete denial of the forms and structures
of conventional truth.
This essay will describe an understanding of how
Fa-tsang's Hua-yen Buddhist system accomplishes that
re-evaluation, how it deals with language and conventional
truth in relation to ultimate truth and the experience of
Buddhist enlightenment The essay will be structured in terms
of a sequence of quertions that are intended to direct us to
the principal issues and problems. The questions will be
answered and discussed on the basis of relevant portions of
Fa-tsang's writing and a general interpretation of his
formulation of the Hua-yen system of thought.

p.23

I. WHAT IS CONVENTIONAL TRUTH AND
HOW IS IT RELATED TO LANGUAGE?

Conventional truth is the thought and form of truth that is
conventionally accepted as valid and efficacious in the
practical matters of daily life. For this reason it is also
called "worldly truth"(shlh-t'i(e) ) . It reflects the
ordinary mode of awareness through which.one conducts
everyday affairs. Since, according to Buddhists, conventional
truth expresse the mental perspective of all but enlightened
beings, this form of truth would necessarily include various
and diverse intellectual positions, as well as kinds and
qualities of awareness and is, themfore, an extremely broad
designation. But what primarily defines this kind of truth is
the assumption, in all one's thinking, that objects of
thought have own-being or self-nature
(svabhaava/tzu-hsing(f)). In conventional thought and truth
one pre-supposes that objects of experience are real and
substantial entities in themselves independent of all other
objects and of one's thinking about them. They are assumed to
possess. their "own-being" or permanent "self-nature."
In accordance with the conventions of worldly truth, the
self-nature of each entity is known through its own unique
characteristics or form (hsiang(g) ). These distinctions
(fen-pieh(h)), that are made in thought, establish the
differences and the boundaries between distinct and
autonomous entities. Thinking that differentiates and
estabishes objects of experience follows the rules of logic,
a fundamental component of conventional truth.
Thinking that is governed by the pattems of conventional
truth attributes "self-nature" not just to objects, but to
the subject also. Conventional truth is based on the
assumption that the subject or self has an autonomous and
permanent being independent of the world of relations in
which if exists. In ordinary thought and experience one
presupposes the self-nature of the subject or self so that
the question of its true status rarely arises. The structures of
conventional tnrth are deeply ingrained in human existence by
way of presupposition.
All of the structures of conventional truth are
understood by Hua-yen Buddhists to be embedded in language.
The link between language and conventional truth is more
fundamental than the simple fact that conventional truth is
expressed in a linguistic form. Language carries the
structures of conventional truth in such a way that to
participate in a common language

p.24

is to participate in conventional truth.
Hua-yen Buddhists make this connection between
conventional truth and language when they.characterize
conventional truth in terms of "name and form" (ming
hsiang(i)). It is language ("name''-ming) and the mind's
inclination to distinguish form (hsiang) that lie at the
basis of conventional truth. As ons learns a language and
learns to make conventional distinctions in thought,
one begins to live in a world that is structured in
terms of conventional truth. Language and conventional truth,
however, are regarded by Buddhists as misleading and
unsatisfactory in view of enlightened awareness. Conventional
truth is, in the final analysis, regarded as an illusion,
but, for Hua-yen Buddhists,as an illusion that is real and
grounded in reality. In order to address the origins and
ontological status of conventional truth and language,
Fa-tsang turns to another set of Buddhist concepts.
In his effort to place conventional and ultimate truth
ontologically, Fa-tsang has employed a group of related
dieas,drawn from the text, Treatise on the Awakening of
Faith in the Mahaayaana(1), that revolve around the doctrine
of the One Mind (i-hsin(j)). In working with this idea in his
influential commentary on the Awrkening of Faith(2), Fa-tsang
clarifies the nature of the two truths. This is accomplished
in the implication that the two truths have a common basis,
the One Mind(i-hsin) . After introductory remarks, the
Awakening of Faith begins:

On the basis of the Dharma of One Mind, there are
two aspects. What are these two? The first aspect is
Mind as true suchness. The second aspect is Mind as
origination and cessation(samsaara/sheng-ssu(k)).(3)

If we take these two aspects to correspond to ultimate
truth and conventional truth respectively, we can see that
the two truths are both based on the One Mind. The One Mind
(i-hsin) is the unchanging (pu-pien(l)), undifferentiated
(pu-i(m)), .non-dual (wu-erh(n)) basis of all experience,
deluded and enlightened. The One Mind is emptiness
('suunyataa/k'ung(o))(4) non-dual (wu-erh(n) )basis of all
experience, deluded and enlightened. The One Mind is
emptiness ('suunyata/k'ung(o) ) (4) , and lacks all
differentiated and autonomous form. Although it transcends
all form (hsiang), the One Mind is described as the source
(yuan(p)) and the basis or root (pen'(q)) of all form. For
this

p.25

reason Hua-yen masters were more inclined to identify the One
Mind with non-existence (wu(r)) than with existence (yu(s)).
Existence (yu) is conditioned and temporal. The One Mind
precedes time and is unconditioned (wu-wei(t)). The One Mind
is not an existent being: it is ontologically more
fundamental than existence. Rather, it is the ground (pen)
and source (yuan) for the existence of anything at all.
The One Mind or emptiness is the prereflective, original
awareness (pen-chio(u)) that grounds all modes of awareness.
It is fundamental in that it precedes all differentiation
that arises in ordinary experience, language, and thought.
Tne One Mind cannot itself be grasped as an object of
awareness, yet it is presupposed and already present when any
differentiated object is grasped. his original consciousness
is one of pure identity and emptiness, yet, from this
foundation all distinctions emerge and take form in time and
space.
According to the Awakening of Faith, the One Mind is
comprised of two aspects, "Mind as true suchness'. and "Mind
as samsara."(4) Furthermore, it says that "these two aspects
each universally include all moments of experience
(dharma/fa)."(5) These two aspects correspond to the two
kinds of truth. "Mind as true suchness" is ultimate truth or
reality as it appears to enlightened awareness; "Mind as
samsara" is conventional truth, or reality as it appears to
ordinary awareness. Both kinds of truth or awareness arise on
the basis of the One Mind; they share a common foundation.
But at this point the crucial question is, how does
conventional truth arise out of and relate to the One Mind?
The second aspect of Mind, "Mind as samsara," refers to
the differcntiation and movement of Mind in which the forms
of conventional awareness are created.(6) Under the influence
of the "winds of ignorance, "(7) the One Mind, while
simultaneously retaining its pbn identity, creates the world
of conventional truth and samsara, the continual origination
and cessation of phenomena or form.(8) In this process,
unconditioned Mind appears in the form of conditioned
phenomena that an differentiated temporally and spacially in
terms of their self-nature (tzu-hsing). The origination of
distinct phenomena is coterminus with the rise of language
and thought through which the differntiation of Mind is
conceived.
Undifferentiated consciousness, the One Mind, or
emptiness, is the foundation from which all distinct form
arises. Although it remains as it

p.26

is, unformed and unconditioned, the appearance of distinct
form obscures its underlying presence. The One Mind or primal
awareness (pen-chio) is hidden by the structures and forms of
conventional truth. Hua-yen texts often describe the relation
between the two as being analogous to the relation between
the root(pen)and branches(mo(v))o f a tree. The One Mind in
its pure identity in the original foundation or root (pen) on
which the derivative branches (mo),i.e., phenomena and form,
an established.(9),(l0)
In the Awakening of Faith, the differentiation of the One
Mindis caused by what appears to be an external influence.
The "winds of ignorance," the tendency to distinguish form in
terms of its self-nature, are said to obstruct the pure
identity of Mind. But the Awakening of Faith does not go on
to deal with the further question of the origins of
ignorance. What is the relation between the One Mind and the
"winds of ignorance" that cause the differentiation of Mind?
Despite the fact that one of the primary objcctives of the
text is to overcome the split between samsara and nirvana, the
awakening of Faith retains a subtle form of dualism in its
inability to unite the 0ne Mind and ignorance(wu-ming(w)).
Fa-tsang's version of the One Mind doctrine, however,
very carefully avoids setting ignorance apart from Mind,(11)
a fact that had significant implications for his
understanding of truth. In Hua-yen texts,the One Mind and
ignorance an ultimately inseparable, so that phenomena and
form are understood to derive from Mind itself without the
aid of an external influence. The positing of form and
conventional truth is the activity of the One Mind itself and
not an extrinsic conditioning of Mind.(12) In this
interpretation lies the potential to understand phenomena not
simply as the illusory obscuration of true reality, but also
as conditioned expressions of unconditioned reality. Whatever
forms of consciousness appear can be seen to derive suchness
itself.
The "creation" (tso(x)) of phenomenal form by the One
Mind must not be considered, however, as a singular act at
the beginning of time. According to Fa-tsang, both ignorance
and form are "beginningless" (wu-shih(y) ) .(13) The
differentiation of Mind cannot be understood in terms of a
temporal transition. The One Mind and its derivatives are
mutually dependent (hsiang-i(z)).(14) Although the dichotomy
between pen (origin) and mo (derivative) may suggest a
temporal sequence, what seems to be implied is that the One
Mind is ontologically more fundamental than the forms in
which it

p.27

expresses itself. Neither, however, an independent of the
other. Creation is a continuous activity that takes place
throughout the dharmadhaatu in every instant. But in that
process, form and its foundation are slmultaneously
present. The world of form constantly arises
(heng-ch'i(aa)), and this activity, which constitutes samsara
and conventional truth, is without begining(wu-shih).(15)
The simultaneity of Mind (or emptiness) and form derives
from their ultimate non-duality. The essence (t'i(ab)) of
Mind andits function (yung(ac)), root (pen) and branch (mo),
emptiness and form are non-different(pu-i(ad))(16)

Mind is not separate from the appearance of samsara.
Therefore, as to the appearance of samsara, there is
nothing that is not ultunate truth. Samsara is not
separate from the characteristics of Mind. If they
are not separated in this way, then it is called
united.(17)

As to non-samsara, this is the tathagatagarbha pure
Mind. Moving, it creates samara, but is not separate
from it. Therefore it is called united. It does not
refer to another existence; samsara is united
together with the true. Referring to the Mind of
smsara and the samsara of Mind, there are no dual
characteristics.(19)

If we understand the original identity or emptiness of
Mind to be a prereflective awareness that underlies and
provides the basis for all linguistic, conceptual, and
experiential differentiation, then the identity between the
two can be seen in the fact that what is differentiated is
Mind itself. The differentiated forms of conventional truth
are all "Mind only" (wei-hsin(ae))(19). Even though what
appears in the world of conventional truth appears separated
and differentiated, they are differentiations or expressions
of one essence (t'i). Fa-tsang states this clearly: 'The mind
of samsara arises from original awareness (pen-chio), and
their non-dual essence is not mutually separated."(20)
But, according to Hua-yen thought, even though the
essence of one's experience is Mind or emptiness, the nature
of conventional truth does not readily perrmt one to realize
that. Conventional truth is samsara in that it

p.28

alienates ons from the source and truth of all existence. It
is I form of truth that in itself leads only to suffering and
induces one to seek a liberating form of truth.

II. WHAT Is ULTIMATE TRUTH AND
HOW DOES IT BELATE TO LANGUAGE?

Ultimate truth (paramaartha-satya/chen-t'i) is the form of
truth that cor- responds to the Buddhist pale of freedom,
realization, and enlightenment. Ihe realzation of ultimate
truth also entails release from the ignorance and suffering
that characterize life lived strictly within the limits of
conventional truth and romurm The experience of ultimate
truth overcomes the negative and alienating implications of
conventional truth by establishing a renewed and enlightened
mode of being.
But according to Fa-tsang, this experience is
"unfathomable" (p'o-ts'e(af) ) to anyone who thinks and
experiences reality within the limitations imposed by the
linguistic and logical structures of conventional truth.
Because ultimate truth "cannot be spoken" (pu k'e shuo(ag)),
it will therefore necessarily elude any description given
here or in the writings of Hua-yen masters. In spite of that
claim, however, ultimate truth is articulated in numerous
ways in those texts so that one's discussion can focus both
upon those descriptions and the claim that one must also
trsrucend those dcscriptions.
One of Fa-tsang's methods of articulating the notion of
ultimate truth is to refer to it as a "return to the source'.
(kuei-yuan(ah)). Enlightennent is the process in which one
retums to an awareness of the source of reality (One Mind,
emptiness) from one's alienation in conventional truth. Just
as one's experience of individuality and self-nature in
conventional truth constitutes a negation of one's original
nature (pen hsig(ai)), the experience of ultimate truth
entails a negation of conventional truth. This "return"
(kuei), therefore, is a dialectical return that involves a
double negation. Samsara or conventional truth is posited
within and upon emptiness in an initial negation; and one
returns to the source of all form through its negation in
emptiness in the experience of enlightenment.
In this context of the discussion of enlightenment,
Hua-yen Buddhists

p.29

generally employ the traditional Mahayana idea of the
tathaagatagarbha (ju-lai tsang(aj) ) , the "womb of the
tathagata." Although interpretations of the tathaagatagarbha
vary, the meaning that is essential to most accounts is the
innate potential for enlightenment within all human beings.
Fa-tsang correlates this doctrine with the idea of the One
Mind by referring to the tathaagatagarbha, the innate
potential for enlightenment, as the eternal presence of the
One Mind underlying the conventional awareness of form and
differentiation. Although the One Mind is alienated from
itself in unenlightened human consciousness, the potential
for enlightenment, or the 'return" to pure Mind, is still
present in consciousness as the underlying tathaagatagarbha,
emptiness, or the Ons Mind. Emptiness or suchness that lies
hidden beneath ah discrimination of form is the eternal
presence of the Buddha within. The return of Mind to itself or
the process of enlightenment, is brought about on the basis
of this innate presence of the Buddha, the tathaagata
garbha.(21)
Neither the ultimate truth that becomes manifest in the
experience of exptiness nor that to which one "returns" is a
metaphysical reality in the sense of a transcendent, ideal
realn existing beyond the precent world of experience.(22)
Rather, it is a prereflective level of awareness that grounds
the structures of conventional awareness. Ultimate truth is
an immediate and direct experience of emptiness, the root
(pen) and essence (t'i) of all differentiated experience.
Although the conventional use of Ianguage objectifies
that to which if refers, Fa-tsank msintairs that the ultimate
truth of "emptiness" is neither abjective (so(ak) ) nor
subjective (neng(al)), but the source (yuan) and basis (pen)
of both subject and object. On that basis, enlightenment is
understood as the elimination of all opposition and conflict
between subject and object. The realization. of emptiness and
one's identity in the One Mind is the realization that
subject and object am not simply polar opposites, but are
essentially interrelated aspects of the One Mind. The
enlightened "self" is the medium through which the One Mind
realizes and expresses itself. In the unfolding of
enlightenment, the individual "self' releases all attachment
to individualily and self-nature and in so doing becomes
aware of the Buddha, or the One Mind, as his true nature or
self.(23)
With respect to the question of how this is experienced,
the primary claim must be that it a "sudden realization"
(tun-chueh(am)). Ultimate

p.30

truth becomes "suddenly manifest" (tun-hsien(an)) in the form
of. a breakthrough. Emptiness breaks through the structures
of conventional truth as the negation or denial of the
self-nature of form. The experience is sudden because what is
realized, Buddha-nature, emptiness, need not be created; it
In already there, fully complete, as the One Mind underlying
all individual minds, as emptiness within form, or as the
tathaagarbha the ever-present Buddha within individual
beings.(24)
Ultimate truth becomes actual in a radical breakthrough
because it is nor a form of knowledge like all conventional
truths that can be accumulated and compounded sequentially.
"Suchness" (tathata/chen-fu(ao)) is indivisible and non-dual,
It is not knowledge, but rather I direct awareness of the
ground or foundation of all knowledge which is immediately
present whether one ir aware of it dr not.(25) And when it
does become present to awareness, it breaks through the forms
of conventional consciousness in an overpowering, immediate
experience.
The immediate impact of the breakthrough is that all
conventional experience of form and self-nature is destroyed
(mieh(ap)) and exhausted (chin(aq)).(26) In this experience
one's awareness is not conditioned by the distinction between
subject and object, (27) nor by the dirscrimination of
selfnature In any entity. What breaks through is non-dual
(wu-erh) awareness(28) in which all conventional truth is
perceived as empty. The experience of the negation of
conventional truth brings all ordinary forms and structures of
awareness to quiescence(chi(ar)).(29) Fa-tsang refers to the
experience as the awareness of identity or "formless
samadhi" (wu-hsiang t'ing(as) ) in which all autonomous
difference is eliminated (wang(at)). That the experience of
ultimate truth entails a negation of conventional truth can
be seen in the predominance of negative language used to
describe the experience (aside from traditional symbols like
nirvana, emptiness, etc.). Destruction (mieh), cessation
(chih(au)), non-existence (wu), elimination(wang), exhaustion
(chin) - all give negative description to the experience. The
meaning of these terms is that the experience of ultimate
truth is, in some significant sense, not in continuity with
conventional truth and experience. The negation of
conventional truth entailed in the experience of ultimate
truth in not, however, a negation of reality nor of
experience, which in the experience, become manifest
(hsien(av) ) in essence (t'i) and truth. Fa-tsang
distinguishes his interpretation of "true emptiness", which
includes empty form, from what he

calls nihilistic concepts of emptiness (tuan-k'ung(aw)).(30)
Hua-yen texts characteristically refer to the experience
of ultimate truth as unspeakable (pu-k'e shuo) and mysterious
(hsuan(ax)).(31) Whatis mysterious is that the manifestation
of truth does not take place through the structures of
ordinary knowledge and does not yield knowledge in the
conventional sense. Furthermore, the true mystery cannot be
expressed in conventional language.(32) Ultimate truth is
"unfathomable" (p'o-ts'e) in that it is empty of all "name and
form" (ming hsing) i.e., language and conventional
experience. The experience of emptiness discloses and
transcends the limits of conventional truth; conventional
truth is inadequate to grasp the ultimate truth of
emptiness.(33) By referring to it simply as "suchness"
(tathataa/chen-ju), the texts reem to imply that no content
is conceptually graspable in the experience, and also that
what becomes manifest is and always was immediately present.
Given these restrictions, it is clear that there is a
quite different concept of truth applicable in ultimate truth
than seems to obtain for conventional truth. Truth in the
conventional sense generally implies a correspondence between
one's concept of reality and the reality that the concept
attempts to grasp. But the implications of the Hua-yen
notions of emptiness and interrelatedness render such
correspondence impossible in ultimate truth. Both thought and
reality are impermanent and co-relative. All objects of
experice and all concepts, including the concept emptiness,
are empty. Each interrelated aspect of reailty lacks its
"own-being" and attains its relative existence only within
the infinife network of dependent co-origination.
Ultimate truth, therefore, cannot be attributed to a set
of propositions about reaity, but rather must designate an
immediate awareness of the depth of reality. The emergence of
this awareness generates a new mode of being in the world
that maintains the emptiness of the structures of
conventional truth. Enlightened awareness does not assume the
final separation of the existing self from the world. In this
mode of being, to be in the world is to see the infinite
relatedness that unites and grounds reaity beyond the
separation of self and world. for the Hua-yen Buddhist,
therefore, the sudden break-through of enlightenment does not
involve the disclosure of any absolute doctrines or
principles. Utimate truth is not conditioned by any form or
conceptual structure implied in conventional truth. The
enlightenment experience renders all doctrines and principles
empty (k'ung); none are

p.32

ultimately true.

III. WHAT IS THE RELATION BETWEEN CONVENTIONAL TRUTH
AND ULTIMATE TRUTH?

Having discussed the nature of conventional truth and
ultimate truth, it is now possible to address the question of
the relation between them. The most obvious aspect of their relation
is that each constitutes a different perspective on reality
and mode of being in the world. For one who lives in
conventional truth, ultimate truth is not perceived.
Conventional truth or samsara is life unaware of emptiness or
suchness. And one to whom ultimate truth is manifest no
longer lives within the structures of conventional truth
wherein ons assumes the self-nature of form, the separation
of subject and object, and so on. Fa-tsang's manner of
describing this aspect of their relation is to say that each
conceals or hides (yin.(ay)) the other. The conventional
truth of form conceals the ultimate truth of emptiness and
vice versa.(34)
But this initial observation, however true in
itself, is not complete because in some very important sense
Hua-yen Buddhistr claim that the two kinds of truth are also
non-different (pu-i). That is to say that there in an
identity within the difference between conventional and
ultimate truth. That identity can be specified through
reference to 1 variety of symbols and concepts. Employing the
idea of the One Mind, one would say,from the side of
conventional truth, that conventional truth is Mind, that all
the forms and mental distinctions of conventional truth are
expressions of One Mind. What one experiences in the
conventional mode of being is Mind, but Mind in alienation
from itself, Mind in ignorance of itself as such. Hua-yen
Buddhists therefore claim that there is an ontological
identity concealed beneath oneself and the world. Ultimate
truth, in this mannr of expression, is the experience of the
identity of all differentiated beings within One Mind.
In the experience of ultimate truth, one realizes the
common ground between the two truths without obscuring the
difference. Another way of expressing this identity is the
well-known claim that "form is emptiness and emptiness is
form." On the side of conventional truth, the texts claim
that the origin (pen), essence (t'i), and true nature
(hsing(az) ) of form is emptiness. Conversely, the
actualization of ultimate truth is the experience of
emptiness

p.33

in and through form. "True emptiness" (chen-k'ung(ba)), one
of Fa-tsang's moat common expressions for ultimate truth,is
the awareness of form in emptiness and emptiness in form.

When the bodhisottva contemplates form, there are
none that am not the perception of emptiness;
contemplating emptiness, then is nothing that is not
the perception of form. Without limit, without
obstruction, it constitutes Dharma of one
essence.(35)

The explication of "true emptiness" is carried out in
great detail by the Hua-yen patriarchs. The focal point of
this discussion is the principle (li(bb) ) of dependent
co-origination (pratiityasamutpaada/yuan-ch'i(bc) ) . In
Hua-yen thought, dependent co-origination implies
thoroughgoing interdependency. All elements (shih(bd)/fa(be))
intricate network of interrelations. At the basis of this
relational web is dependent co-origination, which is the
structure of relation by means of which ah nlative phenomena
are established. All existents participate in dependent
co-origination so that each conditions the existence of all
others.
The most important implication of dependent
co-origination, therefore, is that no entity exists
independent of other entities,which is the meaning of the
assertion that form is empty. The identity by means of which
entities are distinguished is not established through
self-relation or self-nature, independent of relntion to
other entities. It is not the case for Hua-yen Buddhists that
self-constituted entities enter into relation with other
self-established entities. Rather, according to this system,
particular existents are fundamentally correlative, and are
thus ontologically grounded in dependent co-origination. The
nature (hsing) of all beings is 'no self-nature" (wu
tzuhsing). Thoroughgoing interrelatedness makes individuality
and difference relative by linking all empty existents
together into a complex network of dependent co-origination
or emptiness.
Hua-yen Buddhism is best known for the extent to which
this analysis it carried out, extending emptiness into the
interoenetration (hsiang-ju(bf)') pervasion (pien(bg)), and
non-obstruction (wu-ai(bh)) of all phenomena. But this mon
limited account should be sufficient to establish the
identity

p.34

between form and emptiness and the common ground between the
two truths. That identity can be seen in the assertion that
emptiness is found only in form and form exist only within
emptiness. Given this assertion, it is clear that the
difference between form and emptiness, or samsara and
nirvana, or conventional and ultimate truth, is not the
difference between two metaphysical realms. The conventional
world of form is not a realm existing apart from emptiness
even though ons who dwells in the former may be unaware of
the latter.
Ultimate truth is both transcendent to and immanent
within conventional truth. It is transcendent in that one who
participates in conventional truth is not aware of emptiness
since emptiness is not a form like all other objects of
experience. Ultimate truth is immanent as the essence and
ground of conditioned form and is immediately present both in
oneself and in the nature of all phenomena. There is no
transcendent realm to which one must progress through a full
negation of conventional truth. Realization takes place in a
sudden break through rather than a gradual accumulation of
wisdom because what is to be reallred is the essence (t'i)and
true nature (hsing) of what is immediately at hand.
Fa-tsang clarifies this relation by employing the
analogous relation between pen and mo (rootlfoundation and
branch/derivative): Emptiness is the foundation, the ground
(pen), on which form, the derivative (mo) is established
(ch'eng(bi)).(36) Form, the derivative, depends on(i(bj)) its
fouodation in emptiness for its conditioned existence.(37)
Emptiness is that on which everything depends (so-i(bk))(38);
It is not itself dependent or conditioned (wu-wei). Form is
that which is dependent (neng-i(bl) (39) ;it has no
self-nature. Form and emptiness an identical in that ah form
is grounded in emptiness and emptiness exists only within
form.(40) There is no form that does not express emptiness
since ah individual form is empty. Yet, form and emptiness an
different in that emptiness, the foundation, is not itself a
derivative form(41) and cannot be a simple object of
experience. In this respect emptiness transcends form while
simultaneously being fully immanent within it.
It is significant for Hua-yen Buddhist thought that
emptiness is expcdenced through or by means of its presence
in form. This is equivalent to the claim that conventional
truth is the means or medium through which ultimate truth is
realized. Form and conventional truth not only conceal (yin)

p.35

ultimate truth, but also contain the potentiality of
revealing (hsien) ultimate truth.(42) In fact, ultimate truth
can only be realized or revealed in and through conventional
truth.
This particular claim has significant implications for
the quest for ultimate truth and enlightenment. Most
importantly it implies that the quest must seriously focus on
conventional truth rather than beyond it. But how in that
possible? Conventional truth implies ignorance and suffering
and itself constitutes one's alienation from ultimate truth.

IV. HOW DO LANGUAGE AND CONVENTIONAL TRUTH
FUNCTION TO REVEAL (HSIEN)
ULTIMATE TRUTH?

Ultinate truth cannot be discovered through an ordinary and
direct application of conventional thought and language.
According to Hue-yen Buddhists, ultimate truth is ungraspable
(pu k'e ch'u(bm)) within the structures of conventional
thought and language. But ultimate truth can be evoked or
elicited by means of methods and techniques that are
formulated and applied within conventional truth. The capacity
to use conventional truth in such a way that if bringsabout
an Experience of ultimate truth is traditionally known as
upaaya (fang-pien(bo)) , skill in means. It is through
skillful means that one uses ideas and techniques to
establish the possibility of a sudden manifestation of
ultimate truth.
The crucial question in the context of upaaya, therefore,
is not whether certain ideas and methods are true in the
sense of their correspondence with reality, but whether they
are efficacious in elicitmg this experience. Because they are
articulated within conventional truth, all "skillful means"
am empty, or relative, so that none have full identity with
or control over the experience of ultimate truth. Techniques
are preparatory in their attempt to provide the occasion for
the manifestation of truth, but truth itself transcends the
techniques and occurs, when it does, in an event that is
sudden and unpredictable. All techniques and means are
formulated within conventional truth, but must correlate in
some way with what they seek to reveal. The basis for the
capacity of particular techniques to elicit an rrperience of
ultimate

p.36

truth is the identity of form and emptiness or conventional
and ultimate truth. On this basis several types of technique
am possible. They can evoke the experience by illuminating
the identity of conventional and ultimate truth, or by
negating the difference between them, a both. But all
techniques must be employed "skillfully, " with the
understanding that all means an themselves empty and
relative.
The skillful means that is involved in the soteriological
function of conventional truth is the capacity to use
language fluidly and dynamically sc that one does not "settle
down" or became attached to any particular technique or
formulation of truth. For Hua-yen Buddhists, the key
meditstive technique incorporates the principle of dependent
co-origination. If as thoroughly contemplates the fact that
ah forms of existence are empty and originally dependent.on
all other forms of existence, then one begins to shift the
focus of attention from the self-nature of form to what
connects and grounds form, from their static existence to
their dynamic relations. The purpose of this type of
contemplation is to establish an openness within conventional
truth. This means that the bodhisattva must use conceptual
techniques in such a way that they remove or negate
themselves and in so doing refer beyond their own self-nature
to the non-conceptual basis of all concepts, emptiness.
Since no concept or method can grasp ultimate truth, a
concept that is informed by upaaya must lead one away from
all conventional concepts to an awareness that is
open to what lies beyond all conceptual formulation.
Fa-tsang illustrates this type of "skillful means" by
reference to the meditative concept of "suchness," the
meaning of which denies all formulations of truth in
preference for the experience of truth "such as it is."
Assuming the perspective of a doubting questioner, Fa-tsang
asks himwlf: If the goal of ultimate truth impies the
exhaustion and eradication of all "name and form," why do you
continue to contradict that goal by concentrating on the name
and form "suchness"?

The explanation in that the word "suchness" in the
ultimate extremity of speaking. After pronouncing
this one name, then there are no other names. If that
is the case then among all names, this is the
ultimate extremity...One causer words to abolish
words. Establishing this extremity of names causes
the

p.37

abolition of names. If this name did not exist, then
there would be no means to abolish names. However,
if this one name is retained, one still doesn't
abolish names. It is just like emitting the sound
"silence" If there were not this sound, then the
resi 1 of the sounds would not cease. But, if in
order to retain this round you repeatedly say
"silence," then you yourself are making noise. This
too fails to stop sounds.(43)

The concept "suchness" denotes the limits of all concepts
and refers one beyond all formulations of conventional truth
so that an openness to the presence of ultimate truth
is established. Fa-tsang refers to anything that demonstrates
this capacity as an 'illuminating cause" (Iiao-yin(bp)) of the
manifestation of ultimate truth.(44) The medium for the
experience, the "illuminating cause" can only act in this
capacity if it is handled in such a way
that it denies itself or negate and transcends its own
self-nature in order to evoke an experience of the
"fundamental nature" (pen-hsing) that lies concealed within
all form and sil conventional truth. The "illuminating
cause"operates as a medium only in so far as one does not
take it to be the ultimate truth in itself. The technique or
medium must enable an attitude of non-attachment to all
conventional formulations and an openness to the experience
of truth that may occur through thnn. The concept, symbol, or
technique, which is an aspect of convenuanal truth, is not.
therefore, ultimately We, but rather, the place where
ultimate truth may be experienced, or the locus for its
manifestation. The medium must be denied in itself(wu
tzu-hsing)so that ultimate truth may be experienced through
it. If the medium in taken to be ultimate truthin itself,
then that act of grasping or attachment is itself sufficient
to deny the presence of ultimate truth since the experience
of emptinesr is what enabler one to eliminate all such
attachment.
In this regard, Buddhist make special use of self-denying
concepts that deny their own ultimate truth in making their
The model for this kind of self-negation is the concept
emptiness, symbolizes the emptiness of all symbols, including
itself. Emptiness empty and is, therefore,not ultimate truth
in itself. me effect that this movement has is to force one
beyond all empty concepts to a to what transcends all
conceptuality and conventionaltruth. It

p.38

is a thought, articulated within the structures of
conventional truth, that designates the limits of thought and
conventional truth.
This sort of technique bears resemblance to the kung-en
(koan)of the Ch'an school of Chinese Buddhism. As meditative
devices pushing through conceptuality toward direct
experience, kung-an do not allow attachment to any
formulation o truth including their own form. In the mental
activity of working with a kung-an, one arrives at the
self-negation of thought, which is precisely the point at
which thought is open and receptive to the truth that
transcends thought.
When, through such techniques, ultimate truth is
"suddenly revealed". (tun-hsien), it is disclosed in a way
that is contradictory to conventional truth. That is,
emptiness and ultimate truth simultaneously establish(ch'eng)
and destroy (mieh) form and conventional truth. Pursuing this
leads us to a final question. What does it mean to say that
ultimate truth both establishes and destroys conventional
truth, and what is the status of Ermvcntional truth after the
experience of ultimate truth?

V. WHAT IS THE ENLIGHTENED STATUS OF LANGUAGE AND
CONVENTIONAL TRUTH?

The experience of ultimate truth renders an ambiguous
judgment with regard to language and coventional truth.
According to Fa-tsang, one becomes aware that emptiness
simultaneously establishes (ch'eng) and destroys (huai(bq)
form.(45) Form is established in that the experience of "true
emptiness" is the awareness of the ultimate truth of
emptiness in and through the various forms of conventional
truth, and the awareness of the ultimate truth of emptiness
in and through the various forms of conventional truth, and
the awareness of the source (yuan) and foundation (pen) of
form in emptiness. Form in established and grounded within
the context of emptiness, and form is the medium through
which emptiness is experienced, but it is simultaneously
destroyed (huai) or exhausted (chin) by the manifestation of
ultimate truth. Form is experienced as empty, relative, and
not ultimately true in itself.
What is destroyed in the experience is any notion of the
autonomy, independence, or self-nature of form,

p.39

Presuppostions that constitute conventional truth are
exhausted in the experience of the true nature (hsing) of
form. The ultimate truth of form is clarified or illluminated
(ming(br)) in the experience of emptiness (i i k'ung ming
shih(bs)), that is, form is taken out of its conventional
context and illuminated within the context of dependent
co-origination. The existence of form in experienced not in
and of itself but in and through its foundation in emptiness.
The realization that form is not different from emptiness
and vice versa establishes form in its identity with ultimate
truth, and destroys form in that form is experienced as empty
of self-nature. Form and emptiness are non-different in that
emptiness is immanent within form as its essence (t'i) and
nature (hsing) . The fact that Fa-tsang expresses this
identity between form and emptiness in ultimate truth in the
negative form of' "nondifference" (pu-i) clearly shows the
dialectical nature of the experience. The identity of form
and emptiness is a dialectical identity that includes their
difference. The experience of ultimate truth does not obscure
the differentiation and multiplicity of form in one's
experience of the world.
The nature of this identity can be clarified by reference
to the doctrine of the One Mind. The human mind
differentiates the conventional world of experience out of
the primal identity of emptiness or the One Mind. The
experience of enlightenment in which conventional truth is
negated is a "return to the source" (kuei-yuan), a return
(kuei) to an awareness of that original source or ground of
all differentiated expenence. The identity to whioh Mind
returns is not however, an original of formless identity.(46)
Mind returns to itself.. through its differentiation;
emptiness is realized through form. Enlightenment is not
the total obliteration of the forms and structures that one
initially came to experience in conventionaltruth. What is
negated in the "return" to Mind or emptiness is the false
assumption of own-being or self nature that is implied in
conventional truth and that eonstitutes "worldly experience."
Form is experienced as empty form, form lacking self-nature
but having relative existence upon the ground of emptiness.
The experience of enlightenment illuminates the identity of
all form in emptiness without destroyir,g its relative
difference. Rather than destroying form,the experiof ultimate
truth manifests its true and original nature.
The breakrthrough of ultlmate truth is also described as
an ecstatic

p.40

experience in which the conventional separation and autonomy
of subject and object are overcome. In the experience the
bodhisattva is directly aware of the unconditional foundation
of both subject and object in emptiness or Mind. Although the
subject/object opposition is overcome, they an not
experienced as merged together into an indistinguishable
identity. In the experience of ultimate truth one fully
realizes the situation of all entities, including one's
"self", within the infinite context of interrelations. The
alienation of the subject from the objective world is
overcome in the awareness of a fundamental identity between
them. One realizes that subject and object are not simply
isolated and independent entities, but are fundamentally
interrelated aspectsl of the One Mind.
The "self" is the medium through which enlightenment or
Buddhahood is realized and expressed. But in the
actualization of enlightenment, the individual self releases
all attachment to itself and its own self-nature, and in so
doing becomes aware of the Buddha as his/her true nature or
self(47) . Hua-yen texts depict the experience of the
tathaagatagarbha as the arising of the Buddha-nature within
oneself fulfilling the "self" by breaking down its false
barriers and limtattons. The "positive" teaching of the
tathaagatagarbha supplements rather than conflicts with the
"negative" doctrine of noself if we bear in mind that the
tathaagatagarbha is the innate potential in all human beings
to realize no-self. The nature of the tathaagatagarbha is"no
nature" (i wu-hsing wei hsing (bt)).(48) The tathaagatagarbha
comes to fruition as the awareness of emptiness in oneself
and one's world. But the Buddhanature is an identity that
fulfills one's relative identity rather than annihilating it.
Like the "self", the true nature of all interdependent
reality is "nonature" (wu-hsing) The emptiness of form breaks
down all rigid boundaries and exhausts all static attributes.
In the awareness of "suchness" there are no definite borders
and limits; everything extends to include and penetrate all
else. The line of differentiation between one phenomenon and
another la still present but simultaneously abolished. In
ultimate truth the unity and identity of all existence is
manifest without obstruction to multiplicity and difference.
Expressions that emerge from the experience of ultimate
truth are commonly paradoxical for Hua-yen Buddhists because
the norms of conventional truth have been relativized.
Awareness of suchness includes all

p.41

polarities and oppositions that in conventional awareness
cannot be united because Of the tension and obstruction
between them. In ultimate truth all oppositions are united
''withhout obstruction" (wu-ai). This is possible on the
basis of thoroughgoing emptiness and interdependency, because
in emptiness no phenomenal form has a self-nature that
permanently excludes other natures. All phenomena are
continually involved in the dynamic process of dependent
origination, each existing in a changing and relative form
that unites each phenomenon with all other.
This extension of the Buddhist concept of emptiness is
known in Huayen texts as "shih Shih wu-ai"(bu) , the
non-obstruction of all phenomena. The bodhisattva who Lives
in awareness of "non-obstruction" can "exist as he is"
(wan-jan(bv)) in the world. There is no need or reason to
escape or transcend the world because in this experience all
worldly phenomena are perfectly harmonious and expressive of
the ultimate truth of emptiness.(49) The bodhisattva who
experiences emptiness in form can be freely and creatively
involved amidst the plentitude of phenomenal form. But thisis
not form as conventionally understood. No attribution of
self-nature is made, no attachments formed..Phenomena Ohih)
are no longer just expressions of individual self-hood; they
reveal (hsien) the ultimate truth of emptiness.

The doctrine of "non-obstruction" (wu-ai) embodies the
dynamic qualitils of "no-stationing".
(pu-chu(bw)),"no-lodging"(wu-chi(bx))(50) and so on, that
are characteristic of the bodhisattva's enlightened mode of
being. For this reason it was incorporated into meditation
techniques by Hua-yen Buddhists. These contemplative
techniques (vipa'syanaa/kuan(by) ) deal freely with the
various forms and structures of existence, but in a way that
has been liberated from the constraints of conventional
truth. Contemplation (kuan) is meditation on form and
emptiness or empty form. These exercises express the revival
and liberation of thought that occurs in the Hua-yen reali-
zation of "true emptiness."(51) In the experience of ultimate
truth, the intellect is not forfeited; it is fully operative
through the realization of its own true nature. Ultimate truth,
therefore, is not the absence of thinking,(52) but rather the
presence of a kind of thinking that is free of attachment to
all empty forms of thought. It is thinking that takes the
realization of emptiness as its origin and point of
departure.
In traditional Buddhist thought, this ability to deal
with the complex

p.42

world of experence by mean of the "wisdom" of emptiness was
known as "skill in means"(upaaya/fang-pien). "skill in means"
can be interpreted as the capacity to maintain an awareness
of ultimate truth while living and working in the
conventional world. This is possible because, given their
common ground, the experience of ultimate truth involves the
reaffirmation of the reality of conventional truth. This is
not a reaffirmation of conventional furth as such, however,
but a reaffirmation of the reality and the unreality of that
experience seen as it truly is. The symbol of upaya.
expresses realization in the midst of the world, the perfect
conjunction of form and emptiness. It is the working
principle of the enlightened bodhisattva. Fa-tsang calls it a
"well-skilled mind."

This means that while one contemplates true
principle, it does not interfere with various
affairs and one skillfully cultivates the ten
thousand activities.(53)

What is implied in this aspect of "skill in means" is
that the bodhisattva regards conventional truth as
conventionally true and relative to a particular
situation. This allows one to focus on the usefulness of
language and truth on its efficacy in evoking an
awareness of ultimate truth while fully aware that no
doctrine or statement is ultimately true. One remains
detached and free of language and conventional truth in
the process of working with them. This is why the
bodhisatrva's mode of being is described in terms of "no
stationing","no grasping", "no attachment","no settling
down" in any particular formulation of truth. The
experience of ultimate truth ends all grasping for
ultimate truth, thereby establishing 1 receptivity to its
presence.

According to the Hua-yen masters, the awareness of
ultimate truth obviates the nacessity to limit the Buddhist
Dharma to doctrine and practices of negative character alone.
In fact, Hua-yen thought can be seen as an attempt to
synthesize positive and negative techniques, especially as
formulated inthe Tathagatagarbha and Madhyamira traditions.
Although negative techniques are crucial, especially in the
initial stages of practice " in order to cultivate an
awareness of the emptiness of self and world, with the sudden
manifestation of ultimate truth,the mind is directed back to
the world in a positive way as well. In this enlightened mode
of being, the

p.43

bodhisattva is freed from the constraints and obstructions
entailed in conventional truth and language(54) while still
working with conventional truth and Language in a positive
and cnative way. For Hua-yen Buddhists, the negative Language
that is essential in the preparation and actualization of
enlightenment is not an adequate representation of
enlightenment or the relation between the two truths. This is
so because the experience of ultimate truth does not "cut
off" or negate the world.

It is not the case that true essence cuts off the
dharmas of origination and cessation (samsara). They
have no self nature, therefore, they are not
different from suchness and don't have to be cut
off.(55)

The experience of ultimate truth does not abolish
language and logic which are the basis of conventional truth.
Language and Logic are negated because they an empty and not
directly expressive of ultimate truth, but also affirmed as
essential and useful for Life in the world. Furthermore,
Buddhist practice and realization presuppose language and
logic. Without language and conventional forms of awareness
there would be no conscious experience of ultimate truth.
Completely formless experience is no experience at all. The
identity of Mind can only be experienced through the negation
or differentiation of Mind. Conventional truth is the
inescapable medium for that awareness which has been
described as the experience of identity within difference or
emptiness within form.
Finally, it is helpful to conceive of the two kinds of
truth as two possible and alternative modes of being in the
world. For Buddhists, it is possible to live in the same
reality in at least two very different ways. Conventional
truth refers to a mode of being characterized by opposition
and alienation. Subjects are alienated from the objective
world, and the selfnatue of all entities is experienced as
excluding and obstructing all others. Ultimate truth
designates a made of being characterized by "non-
obstruction" because the "enlightened" being experiences all
beings as empty of a permanent and exclusive self-nature. The
bodhisattva is open and receptive to all form and to the
ultimate truth that is revealed through it. This mode of
being is not a negation of the world. On the contrary, to the
"true emptiness" of all form is to become a medium for

p.44

the infinite compassion of the Buddha, which is expressed in
care and respect for all worldly form and all beings.

OCCIDENTAL COLLEGE

NOTES

1. Ta-ch'eng ch'i-hsin lun T.32(1666).
2. Ta-ch'eng ch'i-hsin lun i-chi T.44(1846).
3. T.32, p.576a.
4. T.32, p.576a.
5. T.32, p.576a.
6. T.45, p.640a.
7. T.32, p.576c.
8. T.44, p.253a.
9. T.45, p.635b.
10. There are two similar analogies in Hua-yen texts.
Phenomenal form is
related to Mind as particular rings are related to the
gold substance from which they are formed (T.35 p.405b),
and as individual waves are to the one body of water out
of which they continually arise and disappear (T. 45,
p.652c).
11. T.45, pp.635c-636a.
12. T.44, p.254bc.
13. T.44, p.267a.
14. T.44, p.254b.
15. T.45, p.668b.
16. T.44, p.255a.
17. T.44, p.254c.
18. T.44, p.254c.
19. T.45, p.640a.
20. T.44, p.254c.
21. T.44, p.251ab.
22. T.45, p.639b.
23. T.45, p.640b.
24. T.45, p.639b.
25. T.44, p.253a.
26. T.45, p.634a.
27. T.45, p.651b.

p.45

28. T.45, p.628c.
29. T.45, p.628a.
30. T.45, p.656a.
31. T.45, p.637a.
32. T.45, p.630b.
33. T.45, p.636b.
34. T.45, p.639c.
35. T.45, p.651a.
36. T.45, p.635b.
37. T.45, p.652c.
38. T.45, p.652c.
39. T.45, p.652c.
40. T.45, p.652c.
41. T.45, p.653c.
42. T.45, p.653b.
43. T.44, pp.252c-253a.
44. T.45, p.673b.
45. T.45, p.653c.
46. T.44, p.253a.
47. T.45, p.640b.
48. T.45, p.631c.
49. T.45, p.652c.
50. T.45, p.633b.
51. T.45, p.654b.
52. T.45, p.629a.
53. T.45, p.651a.
54. T.45, p.653b.
55. T.44, p.253a.