Dharmadhatu (

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; attributively , ; nominally , , ) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in South Asia after its predecessor languages had diffused there from the northwest in the late ...

) is the 'dimension', 'realm' or 'sphere' (dhātu) of the

Dharma Dharma (; sa, धर्म, dharma, ; pi, dhamma, italic=yes) is a key concept with multiple meanings in Indian religions, such as Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Sikhism and others. Although there is no direct single-word translation for '' ...

or Absolute Reality.

Definition

Mahayana Buddhism ''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing bra ...

, dharmadhātu ( bo, chos kyi dbyings; ) means "realm of phenomena", "realm of truth", and of the

noumenon In philosophy, a noumenon (, ; ; noumena) is a posited object or an event that exists independently of human sense and/or perception. The term ''noumenon'' is generally used in contrast with, or in relation to, the term ''phenomenon'', which ...

. It is referred to by several analogous terms from Mahayana Buddhist philosophy, such as Tathata (Reality "as-it-is"),

emptiness Emptiness as a human condition is a sense of generalized boredom, social alienation and apathy. Feelings of emptiness often accompany dysthymia, depression (mood), depression, loneliness, anhedonia, wiktionary:despair, despair, or other mental/em ...

, dependent co-arising and

eternal Buddha In East Asian Buddhism, Shakyamuni Buddha of the Essential Teachings (Chapters 15-28) of the Lotus Sutra is considered the eternal Buddha. In the sixteenth chapter of the Lotus Sutra, Shakyamuni Buddha reveals that he actually attained Buddhahood ...

. It is the "deepest nature, or essence". Dharmadhātu is the purified mind in its natural state, free of obscurations. It is the essence-quality or nature of mind, the fundamental ground of consciousness of the

trikaya The Trikāya doctrine ( sa, त्रिकाय, lit. "three bodies"; , ) is a Mahayana Buddhist teaching on both the nature of reality and the nature of Buddhahood. The doctrine says that Buddha has three ''kāyas'' or ''bodies'', the ''Dharma ...

, which is accessed via the

mindstream Mindstream (''citta-santāna'') in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment continuum (Sanskrit: ''saṃtāna'') of sense impressions and mental phenomena, which is also described as continuing from one life to another. Definition ' (Sanskri ...

. When the

buddha-nature Buddha-nature refers to several related Mahayana Buddhist terms, including '' tathata'' ("suchness") but most notably ''tathāgatagarbha'' and ''buddhadhātu''. ''Tathāgatagarbha'' means "the womb" or "embryo" (''garbha'') of the "thus-gone ...

has been realised, dharmadhātu is also referred to as the

Dharmakāya The ''dharmakāya'' ( sa, धर्म काय, "truth body" or "reality body", zh, t=法身, p=fǎshēn, ) is one of the three bodies (''trikāya'') of a buddha in Mahāyāna Buddhism. The ''dharmakāya'' constitutes the unmanifested, "inconc ...

, the ''Body of Dharma Truth''. It is associated with

Vairocana Vairocana (also Mahāvairocana, sa, वैरोचन) is a cosmic buddha from Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Vairocana is often interpreted, in texts like the ''Avatamsaka Sutra'', as the dharmakāya of the historical Gautama Buddha. In East ...

Historical origin

Kang-nam Oh traces the origin of dharmadhatu to the

Avatamsaka Sutra The ' (IAST, sa, 𑀅𑀯𑀢𑀁𑀲𑀓 𑀲𑀽𑀢𑁆𑀭) or ''Buddhāvataṃsaka-nāma-mahāvaipulya-sūtra (The Mahāvaipulya Sūtra named “Buddhāvataṃsaka”)'' is one of the most influential Mahāyāna sutras of East Asian B ...

. It has been further developed by the Hua-yen school:

Understanding in Buddhist tradition

Indian Buddhism

Śrīmālādevī Sūtra

The Śrīmālādevī Sūtra (3rd century CE), also named ''The Lion's Roar of Queen Srimala'', centers on the teaching of the

tathagatagarbha Buddha-nature refers to several related Mahayana Buddhist terms, including '' tathata'' ("suchness") but most notably ''tathāgatagarbha'' and ''buddhadhātu''. ''Tathāgatagarbha'' means "the womb" or "embryo" (''garbha'') of the "thus-gone ...

as "ultimate soteriological principle". It states that the tathagata-garbha is the "embryo" of the Dharmadhatu and the Dharmakaya: In the Śrīmālādevī Sūtra, there are two possible states for the Tathagatagarbha: The sutra itself states it this way:

''Dharmadhātustava''

The ''Dharmadhātustava'' ("In praise of the Dharmadhatu"), attributed to

Nāgārjuna Nāgārjuna . 150 – c. 250 CE (disputed)was an Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thinker, scholar-saint and philosopher. He is widely considered one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.Garfield, Jay L. (1995), ''The Fundamental Wisdom of ...

though questioned, is a treatise on the dharmadhatu. According to the ''Dharmadhātustava'', the dharmadhatu is the ground which makes liberation possible: According to the ''Dharmadhātustava'', the dharmadhatu is seen when the afflictions are purified:

Chinese Buddhism

Mahaparinirvana Sutra

In the

Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra ''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing br ...

, the Buddha states of himself that he is the "boundless Dharmadhatu" - the totality itself.

Tibetan Buddhism

Five Wisdoms

The Dharmadhatu is comprehended by one of the Five Wisdoms: # Dharmadhātu wisdom, # Mirror-like wisdom, # Equality wisdom, # Discriminating wisdom, # All-accomplishing wisdom.

Dzogchen

In the

Dzogchen Dzogchen (, "Great Perfection" or "Great Completion"), also known as ''atiyoga'' ( utmost yoga), is a tradition of teachings in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism and Yungdrung Bon aimed at discovering and continuing in the ultimate ground of existence. ...

text ''Gold refined from ore'' the term Dharmadhatu is translated as 'total field of events and meanings' or "field of all events and meanings".

Notes

References

Sources

Published sources

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Web-sources

External links

Digital Dictionary of Buddhism
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''The Seeker's Glossary of Buddhism''
see: Dharma Realm, p. 190 {{Buddhism topics Buddhist philosophical concepts Nondualism Shentong