Diamond Sutra

By Victor M Fontane

Here is a very famous sentence in the Diamond Sutra

“All that has form is illusory. If you see that all forms are not forms, you will see the Tathagata.”

Partial explanation:

“All that has form”: Anything that has form, shape, and is manifested on the outside.

“All that is illusory”: All are illusory, not real.

“If you see all forms but do not accept them as real (that is, see without attachment).

“Immediately see the Tathagata”: Then you will see the Tathagata (that is, see the truth, see the true nature of all things).

In short:

All phenomena in the world are temporary, not permanent—from the body, property, fame, to the thoughts in the mind. When people do not cling to form, do not cling to things or emotions, they will see the true nature (the Tathagata), which is inherently pure, egoless, unborn and undying.