The Wisdom of the Tathagata Is Within All Beings

Disciple of the Buddha, the wisdom of the Tathagata is omnipresent; there is no place it does not reach. There is not a single being who does not possess this wisdom, yet they fail to realize it because they follow delusion, inversion, and attachment. If they were to cast aside these delusions, all-knowing wisdom, spontaneous wisdom, and unobstructed wisdom would instantly manifest.

The wisdom of the Tathagata is likewise boundless and unobstructed, fully capable of benefiting all beings, and it exists complete within every being. Yet, ignorant beings, lost in their own delusions and attachments, remain unaware and unawakened, and thus receive none of its benefits.

How strange! How strange! Why do these beings, possessing such Tathagata wisdom, remain so lost, deluded, and unseeing? I shall teach them the Sacred Path, that they may forever sever these delusions and attachments, and within themselves, behold the vast wisdom of the Tathagata—no different from that of the Buddhas themselves.

The Buddhas, in their great compassion, appear in this world to lead beings to eradicate delusion, thus manifesting this wisdom to bring benefit to all Bodhisattvas.

— Adapted from the Avataṃsaka Sūtra (Huayan Jing), Chapter 37, “The Appearance of the Tathāgata”

Master: “Read these words daily. Reflect upon them. Consider how foolish it is to pledge your loyalty to delusions and attachments that offer nothing but harm, all while casting aside the very wisdom that is already complete within you. The greatest tragedy is that such fools do not even recognize their own folly; they truly believe they are doing quite well.”