Yogācārabhūmi Śāstra, Volume 10 (Twelve Links of Dependent Origination)

(Fourteen) Original text: 问。此十二支。几是烦恼道。几是业道。几是苦道。答。三是烦恼道。二是业道。余是苦道。问。几唯是因。几唯是果。几通因果。答。初一唯因。后一唯果。余通因果。又即于此问。更作余答。三唯是因。二唯是果。当知所余。亦因亦果。

Explanation: Question: Among these twelve links of dependent origination, how many links belong to the path of afflictions? How many belong to the path of karma? How many belong to the path of suffering? Answer: Three links belong to the path of afflictions, two links belong to the path of karma, and the rest belong to the path of suffering. The links of the path of afflictions contain the affliction of ignorance, which can give rise to karmic afflictions; the three links of ignorance, craving, and grasping belong to the path of afflictions. The path of karma refers to the links that bear karmic retribution; the two links of name-and-form and existence are karmic retribution. The path of suffering refers to the links that involve feelings of suffering; the seven links of volitional formations, consciousness, the six sense bases, contact, feeling, birth, and aging-and-death all involve feelings of suffering.

Question: Among the twelve links, how many links are only causes? How many are only effects? How many serve as both cause and effect? Answer: The first link, ignorance, is only a cause; the last link, aging-and-death, is only an effect; the remaining links in between serve as both cause and effect. To this question there is also another answer: three links are only causes, namely ignorance, craving, and grasping; two links are only effects, namely existence and aging-and-death; the remaining links serve as both cause and effect, namely the seven links of volitional formations, consciousness, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, feeling, and birth.

Original text: 问。几是独相。几是杂相。答。三是独相。行等是杂相。问。何故行有是杂相。答。由一种说故。谓能引爱非爱果故。及能生趣差别故。

Explanation: Question: Among the twelve links, how many links have independent characteristics, and how many have mixed characteristics? Answer: Three links have independent characteristics, namely existence, birth, and aging-and-death; the links of ignorance, volitional formations, consciousness, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, feeling, craving, grasping, and so forth have defiled characteristics. What is meant by defilement is that these links contain wholesome, unwholesome, and neutral (avyākṛta) natures, and can give rise to wholesome, unwholesome, and neutral retribution. Question: For what reason do the links such as volitional formations have such defiled characteristics? Answer: One explanation is that the links such as volitional formations can lead to lovely and unlovely retribution, and because the links such as volitional formations can give rise to the differentiations of the six realms of existence, therefore the links such as volitional formations are said to have defiled characteristics.

Original text: 问。何故识与名色六处。一分有杂相。答。由三种说故。谓依杂染时故。依润时故。依转时故。问。何故识乃至受与老死有杂相。答。由二种说故。谓别显苦相故。及显引生差别故。

Explanation: Question: Why is it said that the six consciousnesses, together with name-and-form and the six sense bases, have a portion of defiled characteristics? Answer: There are three explanations: One explanation is that when the six consciousnesses are defiled with wholesome, unwholesome, and neutral natures, the links of name-and-form and the six sense bases are said to have lovely and unlovely defiled characteristics; another explanation is that when the six consciousnesses are being moistened and perfumed, the links of name-and-form and the six sense bases are said to have lovely and unlovely defiled characteristics; another explanation is that when the six consciousnesses are transmigrating, the links of name-and-form and the six sense bases are said to have lovely and unlovely defiled characteristics.

Question: Why is it said that the links of the six consciousnesses, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, and feeling have defiled characteristics together with the link of aging-and-death? Answer: There are two explanations: one is that the links of consciousness, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, feeling, and so forth can distinctly manifest the characteristic of the suffering of aging-and-death; the other is that the links from consciousness through feeling, together with the link of aging-and-death, can manifest the differentiations of the aging-and-death link that is brought forth, and therefore the links such as consciousness are said to have defiled characteristics.