Take for example the familiar Sabba Sutta- "The All".alan wrote:Hi Dexing
Well now I guess you're going to have to show us where these ideas are implicit.
Take care not to slander!
"Monks, I will teach you the All. Listen & pay close attention. I will speak."
"As you say, lord," the monks responded.
The Blessed One said, "What is the All? Simply the eye & forms, ear & sounds, nose & aromas, tongue & flavors, body & tactile sensations, intellect & ideas. This, monks, is called the All. Anyone who would say, 'Repudiating this All, I will describe another,' if questioned on what exactly might be the grounds for his statement, would be unable to explain, and furthermore, would be put to grief. Why? Because it lies beyond range."
So "the All" is the sense organs and their objects. We have already seen that these objects (color, sound, fragrance, etc..) are subjectively created by consciousness. Some would like to suggest however that what stimulates these conscious experiences are some external objects.
That however would "lie beyond range". There is no grounds for such a statement.
Now this doesn't explicitly state that "external objects" are unreal, illusory, non-existent, etc.. It is however stated implicitly here as this is explained to be "the All" and only lists subjective appearances.
Later (Mahayana) teachings then explicitly state this and explain it in very minute detail.
I have not found where Pali Suttas explicitly state the reality of any such phenomena. They are taken for granted in order to teach Dependent Origination, aimed at ending attachment to phenomena, but never explicitly affirmed. Rather it is implicitly denied. And later explicitly explained in Mahayana teachings.
My point in this thread is that to attain the Bodhisattva Path one must arrive at this insight. However, Theravada teachings only state it implicitly so that we don't fall into Nihilism without knowing the reality of the state of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. And since the fundamental ignorance and attachment of Ordinary Beings to phenomena is sooo strong and has been growing since time without beginning, it is not possible that one will come to this insight upon studying the Pali Suttas, until their accomplishment is more thorough and they are taught explicitly and can confirm it.