Avatamsaka Basic Terms

1. The Dharma Realm.

The fundamental substance of all dharmas. “The Dharma” is equivalent to all dharmas. “The Realm”
contains the two meanings of “the nature” and “the methods.” To describe the Realm using phenomena
is what it means by “the methods”, for distinctions are made based on phenomena. To describe the
Realm using noumenon is what it means by “the nature”, for the nature of all dharmas do not change.

2. True Thusness.

“True” means real. “Thusness” means constant. The entity and nature of all dharmas is not illusory or
false; therefore it is real and permanent. It is also called: the inherent nature, the Buddha nature, the
Dharma body, the Thus Come One’s Treasury, the real mark, the Dharma nature, the Dharma Realm,
and the perfectly realized nature that is actual. These are different terms for the same thing.

3. The Three Sages of the Avatamsaka.

Vairochana Buddha: the Sanskrit word “Vairochana” means pervading all places. Mañjuśrī Bodhisattva:
“Wonderful Virtue”, in that he has the wisdom of all Thus Come Ones. His markless wisdom and virtue
are neither tainted by nor attached to any dharma. Universal Worthy Bodhisattva: “Pervasively
Auspiciousness.” He presides over all Buddha’s virtues derived from noumenon, samādhi, and practice.

4. The Oceanic Imprint Samādhi.

Like reflections of all things on the great ocean, all dharmas appear as crystal-clear reflections in the
Buddhas’ sea of wisdom.

5. The Contemplation of Arising of Conditions.

Since ordinary people are confused about noumenon when they encounter phenomena, sages name the
true noumenon to awaken the confused, letting all beings know that phenomena do not exist. When all
phenomena merge together without distinction, their true nature is realized. “I come to exist due to
conditions, thus ‘I’ is not substantive. Conditions come into being because of me, thus there is no
inherent nature to conditions.”
 6. The One Vehicle of the Unique Teachings.

The Avatamsaka Sutra hardly mentions the Three Vehicles to practitioners who are inclined toward the
Sudden [realization]. It reveals the One Vehicle directly. It is called the One Vehicle in that it is different
from other teachings. It is also called “the Door of Direct Revelation” rather than “the Door of Indirect
Revelation” (entrusting the Dharma of the One Vehicle to explanations of the Three Vehicles). This Sutra
is different than the Dharma Flower Sutra, which is geared for those who are inclined toward the
Gradual [realization]. The Dharma Flower Sutra combines the Three Vehicles into one vehicle that is
called “the One Vehicle of the Same Teachings.”

7. The Threefold Contemplation.

Originally the contemplation is that of the Four Dharma Realms, but the Dharma Realm of Phenomena is
not considered here because phenomena cannot stand alone. Were we to contemplate phenomenon by
itself, it would be insidious calculation rather than primordial wisdom that manifests. Therefore, an
analysis in principle contains four realms but only the threefold contemplation allows the self-nature to
manifest. These three are sequential and the highest of which is the most ultimate; each being more
subtle and mysterious than the previous one. There is no second or third outside the Dharma Realm.
Since they cannot be separated, the contemplation is threefold rather than in three distinct parts.

8. The Contemplation on the Arisal of Inherent Nature.

The inconceivable state that Thus Come Ones certify to in his enlightenment is the entity and the nature
of True Thusness, unrelated to outer conditions. “According to the Three Vehicles’ explanation of causal
conditions, phenomena exist when conditions gather; phenomena disappear when conditions disperse.
The explanation of causal conditions according to the One Vehicle is different, however. When
conditions unite, there is no existence; when conditions disperse, there is no disappearance.” “The
various dharmas that expound the emptiness of phenomena and the certainty of phenomena are from
the same source. As such, emptiness and the negation of emptiness are no different at their origin. This
is the Contemplation on the Arisal of Inherent Nature.”