The Manas Possesses Beginningless Ignorance

Since beginningless kalpas, the manas has existed together with the eighth consciousness, with no point of beginning. At that time the manas was in a state of ignorance, and that is why it existed together with the eighth consciousness, so that ignorance was activated, prompting the eighth consciousness to give birth to the three realms of existence and the five-aggregate body. If the manas had no ignorance, then before beginningless kalpas there would have been no existence of the manas—there would have been only the eighth consciousness, which is the state of nirvāṇa without remainder (anupadhiśeṣa-nirvāṇa). Moreover, this nirvāṇa without remainder would be maintained forever, and no manas would ever again be born from that nirvāṇa without remainder; of course, no five-aggregate body would come into birth either. That state is the state of the originally existing Buddha; that is why it is said that sentient beings are originally Buddhas, and that mind is Buddha. But the actual situation is not like this: the eighth consciousness gave birth to sentient beings. Thus mind, Buddha, and sentient beings have a very close point of connection—the eighth consciousness. And the eighth consciousness is one; there is no difference between itself and itself, for their natures are identical.