Buddha-nature: Meaning (information, definition, explanation, facts)

Buddha-nature is the eternal potential, present in all sentient beings, for awakening and becoming Enlightened. The possession by sentient beings of the innate buddha-mind, which is, prior to the full attainment of buddhahood, not fully actualized. Buddha-nature is considered to be incorruptible, in that no matter what the outward appearance or history of a particular sentient being, buddha-nature is always latently existent. The development of the Buddha-nature doctrine is closely related to that of tathagatagarbha ('womb of the thus-come one'). The belief in this concept was not universally accepted in Indian Buddhism, but did become a cornerstone of East Asian Buddhist soteriological thought in terms of the essence-function paradigm, as explained in texts such as the Buddha-nature Treatise.

Buddha-nature vs. atman

Unlike the Western concept of "soul" or the Indian "atman", Buddha-nature is not considered to be an isolated essence of a particular individual, but rather a single unified essence shared by all beings with Buddha-nature. However in the Mahayana version of the Mahaparinirvana Sutra Tathagatagarbha is equated with Atman in direct contradiction of the Buddhist doctrine of anatman. The Sutra contains many Hindu elements and is thought to have been composed during the Gupta Period which coincided with a Hindu revival in India.