The "warehouse" of life---the eighth consciousness
2024-06-21
Lecture by master Jing Jie
The eighth consciousness is equivalent to a warehouse for us. When our life ends, we return to the eighth consciousness; when our life begins, we start from the eighth consciousness. When we change from one life to another, it plays a very important transition point, " the last one leaves and the first one comes, be the host "
It usually has two functions: the causal ground contains seeds, and the fruiting ground realizes the Vipāka.
Let's put it this way, that is to say, if a person does business every day, after he goes out, he will come back with more or less things. Some things are harmful to the body, and some are beneficial to the body. After this sixth consciousness came back from doing business, he threw it into the warehouse. There are many things in the warehouse, some good and some bad. But he didn't want to deal with it, anyway, his heart just wanted to go out to climb the social ladder.
One day, when this person learns Buddhism, he knows that it is time to organize this warehouse and face it. Then he does two things: first, slowly reduce the bad things and slowly increase the good things, which is to deal with the karma first. But thoroughly, we must tear down this warehouse and destroy the ālaya consciousness, which means cultivating self-emptiness and dharma-emptiness, destroying the ālaya consciousness, and transforming it into Tathātā. This is thorough. We first seek to eliminate evil and practice good deeds at the beginning, and eventually enter the realm of transmutation and becoming a saint. This is the eighth consciousness.
The eighth consciousness itself does not create karma, nor is it good or bad in itself. It is neither good nor evil, but it will record good and evil, and it will preserve good and evil. It itself is neither good nor evil, it has no opinion at all. Therefore, when you are doing good deeds, it will not persuade you, nor will it hinder you. It will be waiting by your side, and it will collect all your function. It is a consciousness that is neither good nor evil.
