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THE DIAMOND SUTRA

ing: "What think you? Can the Lord Buddha be perceived by means of any physical phenomena?" Subhuti replied, saying "Honoured of the Worlds! it is improbable that the Lord Buddha can be perceived by means of any physical phenomena.^[1] And why? Because, what the Lord Buddha referred to as 'physical phenomena,' are not in reality 'physical phenomena,' these are merely termed 'physical phenomena.'"

↑ "What think you then, O Subhuti, is a Tathagata to be seen (known) by the shape of his visible body? Subhuti said, not indeed, a Tathagata is not to be seen (known) by the shape of his visible body. And why? Because, what was preached as the shape of the visible body, the shape of the visible body indeed, that was preached by Tathagata as no-shape of the visible body, and therefore it is called the shape of the visible body.—The Vagrakkhedika. Max Muller.
Herein is exemplification of the surpassing excellence of spiritual phenomena: although outwardly possessed of the thirty-two primal signs of a Buddha, there were also the essential evidences of those marvellous spiritual perfections which constitute the real Buddha.—Chinese Annotation.

[1] "What think you then, O Subhuti, is a Tathagata to be seen (known) by the shape of his visible body? Subhuti said, not indeed, a Tathagata is not to be seen (known) by the shape of his visible body. And why? Because, what was preached as the shape of the visible body, the shape of the visible body indeed, that was preached by Tathagata as no-shape of the visible body, and therefore it is called the shape of the visible body.—The Vagrakkhedika. Max Muller.
Herein is exemplification of the surpassing excellence of spiritual phenomena: although outwardly possessed of the thirty-two primal signs of a Buddha, there were also the essential evidences of those marvellous spiritual perfections which constitute the real Buddha.—Chinese Annotation.

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