Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra, Volume Ten (The Twelve Links of Dependent Origination)

(15) Original text: 复次于缘起中。云何数往义。谓生已不住义。云何和合义。谓诸缘聚集义。云何起义。谓诸缘和合。之所引摄。新新生义。云何缘起。云何缘生。谓诸行生起法性。是名缘起。即彼生已。说名缘生。

Explanation: Within dependent arising, what is the meaning of repeated arising and passing? It means that after a dharma of dependent arising has arisen, it does not remain—it is ceaselessly changing, arising and ceasing without stop; after ceasing it will arise again, causing dharmas of dependent arising to undergo repeated arising, ceasing, and transformation, until ignorance ceases. Among the twelve links, all except the link of ignorance are like this. What is the meaning of combination? Combination means that all the conditions upon which a dharma's arising depends have gathered together, and then, when the causes and conditions are complete, the dharma is born. Among the twelve links, from consciousness through the following ten links are all like this. The link of formations requires relatively fewer conditions, so the link of formations is harder to sever than the other links.

What is the meaning of arising? Arising refers to the newly born dharmas that are induced and drawn forth after all the conditions have combined—dharmas coming into existence from non-existence. What is dependent arising? What is dependent origination? Dependent arising is the nature of being able to give rise to dharmas after all dharmas operate—the nature of causing dharmas to arise. When a dharma arises, the conditions give birth to that dharma; this is called dependent origination. The conditions can be the dominant condition (adhipati-pratyaya) and the object condition (ālambana-pratyaya).

Original text: 问。几支苦谛摄。及现法为苦。答。二。谓生及老死。问。几支苦谛摄。当来为苦。答。识乃至受种子性。问。几支集谛摄。答。所余支。

Explanation: Question: Among the twelve links, how many links are subsumed under the truth of suffering and are suffering in the present state? Answer: There are two links—the link of birth and the link of aging-and-death. Question: How many links are subsumed under the truth of suffering and can bring about future suffering? Answer: There are the seed-natures of five links—consciousness, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, and feeling; when the seeds for future lives ripen and manifest as dharmas, there will be suffering. Question: How many links are subsumed under the truth of the origin of suffering? Answer: All the remaining links are subsumed under the truth of the origin of suffering—there are five links: ignorance, formations, craving, grasping, and existence.

Original text: 问。无明与行。为作俱有缘。为作无间灭缘。为作久远灭缘。答。当知具作三缘。谓由无知。于随顺诸行法中。为俱有覆障缘。为彼彼事。发起诸行。又由恶见放逸。俱行无知。为无间灭生起缘。发起诸行。又由无知。为久远灭引发缘故。建立顺彼。当生相续。

Explanation: Question: Do the two links of ignorance and formations serve as the dominant condition (sahaja-pratyaya) for the birth of subsequent dharmas, or as the condition of immediate cessation (samanantara-nirodha-pratyaya), or as the condition for the far-future cessation of dharmas? Ignorance and formations are three kinds of conditions for the birth of dharmas in the chain of causes and conditions. Because of ignorance, in the process according with the operation of all dharmas, they serve as the dominant, obscuring condition for all dharmas, initiating and operating various endeavors. Furthermore, because of wrong views and heedlessness, ignorance accompanies the formations and serves as the condition for the uninterrupted ceasing and arising of all dharmas, inducing the operation of all dharmas. Furthermore, because of ignorance, they serve as the initiating cause for the cessation of all dharmas far in the future; according with ignorance, this causes all dharmas to continue unbroken in the present life.