The tathāgatagarbha sūtras teach that all beings possess within them the nature of a buddha, obscured by defilements like gold in ore or a statue wrapped in rags. The idea shaped East Asian doctrines of buddha-nature and Tibetan teachings on the nature of mind, and was debated as close to the idea of a self.
Tathāgatagarbha
The womb or embryo of the Buddha: the teaching that every being contains the potential for buddhahood.
Also: Tathagatagarbha