I don’t believe the Buddha had a detailed metaphysical theory that he sought to impose on the world irrespective of whom he was addressing. He was a situationalist. His teachings were given to specific people in specific situations at specific times in their lives. He considered himself a physician, and his dharma a medicine. He prescribed different treatments to different people in different situations. That is the great message of the Buddha’s teaching. It is not dogmatic or doctrinaire but therapeutic and pragmatic.
