Within the Tathāgatagarbha, or Buddha-nature, tradition of Mahāyāna thought, the prevailing affirmation is that all sentient beings possess Tathāgatagarbha. Foundational scriptures such as the Tathāgatagarbha Sūtra and the Mahāparinirvāṇa (Nirvana) Sūtra explicitly declare that every sentient being has this Buddha-nature, and later treatises like the Ratnagotravibhāga elaborate this as the very basis for the possibility of awakening. This presence is not something to be newly produced; rather, it is regarded as an inherent essence or potential that is merely concealed. The obscuration is attributed to adventitious defilements, which veil but do not corrupt the underlying purity of this nature. Thus, even beings mired in confusion and suffering are said to carry, at their core, this latent Buddhahood.

Different Mahāyāna traditions and philosophical schools nuance this affirmation in distinct ways, yet they converge on the universality of Buddha-nature among sentient beings. Some interpret Tathāgatagarbha in close relation to emptiness or suchness, emphasizing that what is universal is the empty, thusness-nature of mind and phenomena. Others speak more evocatively of a naturally pure, luminous consciousness that is temporarily obscured, but never fundamentally stained. Debates arise around figures such as the icchantika, beings described in certain texts as having severed roots of goodness, yet later interpretations tend to preserve the principle that even such beings are not ultimately excluded from the scope of Buddha-nature. In many East Asian traditions, this universality is taken so seriously that the presence of Buddha-nature is extended to all sentient beings without exception, and some interpretations even gesture toward its relevance for all phenomena.

From a contemplative perspective, this teaching suggests that the spiritual path is less a matter of constructing something new and more a matter of uncovering what has always been present. The imagery of a jewel wrapped in dirty rags, or a luminous light hidden behind clouds, captures the sense that defilements are accidental rather than essential. Because Buddha-nature is understood as ever-present yet concealed, practice becomes an unveiling: the gradual removal of obscurations so that the inherent clarity and compassion of mind can fully manifest. This vision offers a profound confidence in the transformative capacity of every being, however lost or degraded they may appear, and grounds the bodhisattva’s resolve to work for the liberation of all.