འཕགས་པ་དགངས་པ་ངས་པར་འགྲལ་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད 28

28

or gold. Because people perceive it by mistake as a ruby, an emerald, or gold, they are deceived by it.

“Guṇākara, it is like this: You should consider the mental imprint of conventions in terms of an imaginary defining characteristic¹²⁸ upon the other-dependent defining characteristic to be just like the contact of colors with a pure crystal. Thus, you should consider the perception of an imaginary defining characteristic [superimposed] on the other-dependent defining characteristic to be just like the mistaken perception of a sapphire, ruby, emerald, or gold [superimposed] on the pure crystal.

Guṇākara, it is like this: You should consider the other-dependent defining characteristic to be just like this pure crystal itself. Thus, you should consider the actual defining characteristic as the permanent and immutable lack of any actuality or essence in the imaginary defining characteristic [superimposed] on the other-dependent defining characteristic,¹²⁹ just as there is permanently and immutably no actuality or essence in the defining characteristic of a sapphire, ruby, emerald, or gold [superimposed] on a pure crystal.

Thus, Guṇākara, bodhisattvas distinctly perceive¹³⁰ the imaginary defining characteristic on the basis of names denoting phenomenal appearances.¹³¹ They distinctly perceive the other-dependent defining characteristic on the basis of the erroneous conception¹³² [that superimposes] an imaginary defining characteristic¹³³ on the other-dependent defining characteristic.¹³⁴ They distinctly perceive the actual defining characteristic on the basis of the nonexistence of any erroneous conception [that superimposes] an imaginary defining characteristic on the other-dependent defining characteristic.

“Guṇākara, when bodhisattvas distinctly perceive the imaginary defining characteristic [superimposed] on the other-dependent defining characteristic of phenomena exactly as it is, they distinctly perceive the phenomena devoid of any defining characteristic exactly as they are.