The Surangama Sutra: Twenty-Five Means to Enlightenment, Session Six, Part 3 of 7 April 8, 2019, Hsihu, Taiwan (Formosa)

He explained from the beginning of our worldly existence already, how it came to materialize. It came only from emptiness, from nothing, and the thought also came from nothing. And the body, the form also came from emptiness. Therefore, he said like that first before he analyzed which method is OK, which is not. So, he said now. “Form and thought combined become the ‘dust.’ Their essence is not discernible. How can one use what lacks clarity, And expect to gain perfect penetration?” Because many of the Bodhisattvas beforehand, they said they used the touch or the water or whatever. So, he said any form, anything that has form or mental quality, is dust, is nothing. You cannot rely on them. They’re not reliable for you to have a perfect concentration. If you cannot concentrate well, then you cannot enter samadhi, that’s what he meant My calendar says so.