རྟོན་པ་བཞི། | Glossary of Terms

A bodhisattva should (1) rely on the meaning, not the expression; (2) on the teaching, not the person; (3) on wisdom, not on normal consciousness; and (4) on discourses the definitive meaning, not on the interpretable meaning.

The reliance on the meaning but not on the letter, the reliance on wisdom but not on consciousness, the reliance on the sūtras of definitive meaning but not on the sūtras of implicit meaning, and the reliance on the true state of phenomena but not on the person.

To attain higher realizations and final enlightenment, the bodhisattva should rely on the meaning (of the teaching) and not on the expression (artha­pratisāraṇena bhavitavyaṃ na vyañjana­pratisāraṇena); on the teaching and not on the person (who teaches it) (dharma­pratisāraṇena bhavitavyaṃ na pudgala­pratisāraṇena); on gnosis and not on normal consciousness (jñāna­pratisāraṇena bhavitavyaṃ na vijñāna­pratisāraṇena); and on discourses of definitive meaning and not on discourses of interpretable meaning (nītārtha­sūtra­pratisāraṇena bhavitavyaṃ na neyārtha­sūtra­pratisāraṇena) according to the order in this sūtra. The usual order, “teaching-reliance,” “meaning-reliance,” definitive-meaning-discourse-reliance,” and “gnosis-reliance,” seems to conform better to stages of practice.

See UT22084-071-014-34.