འཕགས་པ་དགངས་པ་ངས་པར་འགྲལ་པ་ཞས་བྱ་བ་ཐག་པ་ཆན་པའ་མད 32

32

primordially in the state of peace, and naturally in the state of nirvāṇa.’¹³⁹

“Para­mārtha­samud­gata, the essencelessness of all phenomena has three aspects. Having in mind essencelessness regarding defining characteristics, essencelessness regarding arising, and essencelessness regarding the ultimate, I thus taught what is called the essencelessness of all phenomena.

“Para­mārtha­samud­gata, what is the essencelessness of all phenomena with regard to defining characteristics? It is the imaginary defining characteristic [of phenomena]. Why? Because as much as this defining characteristic is nominally and conventionally posited, it is not posited¹⁴⁰ on the basis of an essence or a distinctive [characteristic].¹⁴¹ Therefore, it is called the essencelessness of all phenomena with regard to defining characteristics.

“Para­mārtha­samud­gata, what is the essencelessness of all phenomena with regard to arising? It is the other-dependent defining characteristic of phenomena. Why? Because this is [the defining characteristic] arising on account of causes other [than itself] and not by itself. Therefore, it is called essencelessness with regard to arising.

“Para­mārtha­samud­gata, what is the essencelessness of all phenomena with regard to the ultimate? Phenomena arising in dependence upon causes, which lack an essence on account of lacking an essence in terms of arising and also lack an essence on account of lacking an ultimate essence. Why? Because, Para­mārtha­samud­gata, I showed that the referential object conducive to purification within phenomena is the ultimate, but the other-dependent defining characteristic is not the referential object conducive to purification. Therefore, this essencelessness is called essencelessness with regard to the ultimate.

“Moreover, Para­mārtha­samud­gata, the actual defining characteristic of phenomena should also be referred to as essencelessness with regard to the ultimate. Why? Because, Para­mārtha­samud­gata, the selflessness of phenomena is called the essencelessness of phenomena, which is the