Unveiling the Operational Mechanism of the Five Skandhas in Conjoined Twins

There is a pair of conjoined twin sisters who share a significant portion of their body. The parts above the heart are separate for each individual, with each having one arm and one leg. They share parts of the middle and lower jiao, with approximately one-half to two-thirds of their total body being independent for each sister. Their spines are fused at the pelvis, and they share part of their nervous system and a single set of reproductive organs. They can ride bicycles, play ball, swim, and drive a car together.

Both entered and resided in the womb together. Within the mother's womb, their Tathagatagarbhas jointly transformed, based on shared karmic seeds, to create both the shared parts of the body and their distinct individual parts. Naturally, they possess shared karmic seeds, having performed common karmic actions in the past. Their relationship in previous lives was so close, involving sharing so many things, that in this life they must share one body and live together in tight cooperation. Without this cooperation, neither could survive. This is karmic obstruction – a very unfree and dependent karmic obstruction. Therefore, relationships between people should maintain an appropriate distance; do not become too intimate, nor swear oaths about how you will be together in future lives. When that future life actually comes to pass, it may not be joyful, but could even be very painful.

Based on identical karmic seeds, the two Tathagatagarbhas output the four great elements (earth, water, fire, wind) to become shared elements, which harmoniously operate to create the common parts of the body. The independently distinct parts, however, are formed by their respective Tathagatagarbhas individually outputting the four great elements. When the material body (rūpakāya) became slightly more complete, each Tathagatagarbha gave rise to its own consciousness, resulting in two distinct awarenesses. When the gestation period was complete, they were born together as conjoined sisters. Fortunately, they are of the same sex; if they were different sexes, living together would be very awkward.

Their hands, legs, and feet require coordinated cooperation. Activities involving the five aggregates (skandhas), such as eating, dressing, walking, etc., demand mutual coordination and consistency from both sisters. Their minds think independently, their habits and preferences are different, and their personalities, temperaments, and dispositions vary. Being joined together necessitates mutual accommodation and compromise; otherwise, life would be very unpleasant. They each have their own breathing and heartbeat. Food and drink enter their respective stomachs – each eats their own food and satisfies their own hunger. However, below the stomach, the digestive system has shared parts, so they digest the food together and then excrete it using a shared excretory system. Although each eats their own food, they still influence each other. If one is sick, the other can take medicine on their behalf.

They share part of their nervous system, so their stress responses to the external environment are relatively consistent, and their coping methods are similar. Although their manas (seventh consciousness) have different temperaments, because of their wholesome karmic connection, when dealing with common people, things, or events, they cooperate and accommodate each other. From this, it appears that the division of labor and cooperation between the two Tathagatagarbhas is incredibly subtle and profound. The Tathagatagarbha is omniscient, so as long as the karmic seeds permit, the Tathagatagarbhas will definitely cooperate closely, completing the coordination work without words or mental deliberation – it is inconceivable.

Among the six consciousnesses, the physical consciousnesses (kāyavijñāna) of the two sisters require the most mutual cooperation, almost constantly, otherwise they cannot accomplish anything, because their nervous systems are interconnected and they can perceive each other. Their visual faculties (eye bases) are on their respective heads; each uses their own eye consciousness. However, because they are on one body, the objects they face cannot be too far apart, limiting their field of vision. Their auditory faculties (ear bases) are on their two heads, each with their own ear consciousness, hearing their own sounds. Their olfactory faculties (nose bases) are on their respective heads, each with their own nose consciousness, able to smell their own scents. Their gustatory faculties (tongue bases) are on their respective heads, each with their own tongue consciousness, able to taste their own flavors. Their manas (mental faculty) are separate, so their mental consciousnesses (manovijñāna) reside in their respective subtle material bases (indriyas), cognizing and discerning different dharmas.

When the physical bodies (rūpa skandha) of the two need to move, both sets of eight consciousnesses must cooperate closely with each other, each with its own division of labor. This is equivalent to sixteen consciousnesses dividing labor and cooperating, which is far more complex than just eight consciousnesses. The lower jiao in the abdomen has many shared parts, almost entirely shared. Therefore, during digestion and excretion, their minds must unite, share common intentions, share common feelings, and cannot be separate. When ill, it's as if both are sick. When in pain, both feel pain simultaneously, but their respective physical consciousnesses and mental consciousnesses perceive the illness and pain separately, so the sensations have some differences.

Among the seven consciousnesses, the most closely connected is the cooperation of the two physical consciousnesses. Sharing one body allows for extremely rapid, almost seamless cooperation, without any sense of disharmony or strain. The most crucial aspect is the operation and direction of the two manas. If both have strong ego-attachment (ātma-grāha) and their habits are completely opposite, they would frequently argue. As they have a wholesome karmic connection, although their personalities, moods, habits, and preferences differ, they can still coordinate very well, unite their minds, care for each other, and thus both attain the greatest benefit.

When lying down to sleep, both manas jointly decide to lie down and cannot move the body casually for fear of disturbing the other. If one falls asleep, her six consciousnesses cease, and her physical consciousness also ceases. If the other has not yet fallen asleep and moves her body, it will prompt the other's mental consciousness and physical consciousness to arise, causing her to wake up. If one thinks too much mentally, it can also affect the other's sleep, because of the shared nervous system. Even without that, the power of mental thoughts and magnetic fields can influence the other person. This involves many secrets here.

If one sister's body gradually becomes unusable or if she dies, the functions of the material body belonging to that person cease to operate. Her head no longer functions, her subtle material base is destroyed, her one arm and leg become useless, her heart stops beating, and her internal organs cease to function. While the other sister is still alive, she will struggle to use the incomplete body, and her functions will be greatly affected and restricted. After all, the deceased part of the body cannot be completely removed and may transmit diseases. Even if disease transmission can be prevented, the loss of certain functions greatly hinders the surviving sister's five-aggregate functions, making life quite inconvenient, drastically reducing her quality of life, and her lifespan will not be very long.

Where there is life, there is suffering. Moreover, this is not a normal life; a life with two bodies joined together entails even greater suffering. However, because sentient beings cling to life, they might not feel the suffering and instead constantly pursue pleasure, even finding joy in suffering. Sentient beings are thus ignorant and foolish, burdened with heavy greed. No matter how much they suffer, they have no thought or pursuit of liberation from suffering. With wisdom and without ignorance, there would be no craving. One would recognize suffering and seek to sever and depart from it. Therefore, the fundamental basis for liberation lies in wisdom.