The Relationship Between Tathāgatagarbha and Memory (Part Two)

Yet sometimes we can still perceive certain information from past lives—how do we perceive it? This must rely on the tathāgatagarbha. When the karmic seeds within the tathāgatagarbha have already matured and all the conditions for their manifestation are complete, those karmic seeds will manifest. Regardless of whether the manas engages with them or not, the karmic seeds manifest and become mental sense-objects; when the manas makes contact with them, the mind consciousness gains a certain power of perception. Moreover, the manas can also draw out what was perfumed in past lives and let the mind consciousness discern it, so that when the mind consciousness encounters similar content again, it can understand and remember it very quickly, without any effort at all—like traveling a familiar road in a light carriage.

As for dharmas perfumed in past lives, once we come into contact with them in this life, we quickly resonate with them. For example, if in a past life we often recited the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, the karmic seed of reciting the Śūraṅgama Sūtra is stored in the tathāgatagarbha. In this life, as soon as we come into contact with the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, reading it feels very familiar and very smooth, and as we read along we can recite it from memory. This shows that we did not just begin reciting the Śūraṅgama Sūtra in this life; rather, it was already perfumed in past lives. Because the karmic seed of reciting the Śūraṅgama Sūtra exists from past lives, when the conditions ripen and the manas engages with it, the mind consciousness accordingly receives its benefit. Studying the Śūraṅgama Sūtra then becomes extremely fast—reading quickly and remembering firmly—and naturally one can recite it from memory, feeling that those sentences and their meanings are all very familiar. In this way, studying and cultivating the Buddha's teachings in this life is connected with the karmic seeds of past lives.

When we recite the Heart Sutra in this life until we can recite it from memory, this seed is also stored in the tathāgatagarbha. After we can recite it, when we recite the Heart Sutra again—"Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva, practicing deep prajñā-pāramitā..."—word by word, syllable by syllable, these mental sense-objects are all taken out of the storehouse of the tathāgatagarbha, passing through the manas, and the mind consciousness receives and enjoys them. This is what is meant by saying that the mind consciousness has the ability of memory and can recite the Heart Sutra from memory. What the mind consciousness learns and memorizes, it cannot store by itself, because it is itself subject to arising and ceasing, and it has no function of storing karmic seeds. Even if it could store them, when the mind consciousness ceases, they would be lost, because the mind consciousness lacks self-mastery and has no capacity for safekeeping. Therefore only the tathāgatagarbha can store them, because He never disappears; what is placed there is very safe and reliable, and there is no need to worry that the seeds will be lost when the tathāgatagarbha ceases—for it never does.

When the seeds stored in the tathāgatagarbha are needed by the mind consciousness, they must be taken out. At this point, the manas must be relied upon. When the mind consciousness wishes to recite the Heart Sutra from memory, this desire is conveyed to the manas; the manas, having known it, also decides to recite the Heart Sutra, and thus the mental factor of volition arises. When the tathāgatagarbha discerns the manas's mental factor of volition, it can deliver out the seeds of reciting the Heart Sutra. Once the mind consciousness discerns the mental sense-objects, it naturally can recite the Heart Sutra from memory, and the words and syllables come forth one by one.

If the Heart Sutra has not been read fluently and cannot be recited from memory, then there is no seed for recitation, and when one wishes to recite it, those words and syllables will not come forth. Perhaps one can recite the first word, the second word, the third word, the fourth word, but beyond that, nothing more comes out. Because we never stored them in, there is no karmic seed for recitation in the storehouse of the tathāgatagarbha, and the tathāgatagarbha cannot manufacture seeds by itself. If there is no stock in the storehouse, of course it cannot be taken out and enjoyed, and one has no choice but to open the book and read along.  

Yet sometimes we can still perceive certain information from past lives—how do we perceive it? This must rely on the tathāgatagarbha. When the karmic seeds within the tathāgatagarbha have already matured and all the conditions for their manifestation are complete, those karmic seeds will manifest. Regardless of whether the manas engages with them or not, the karmic seeds manifest and become mental sense-objects; when the manas makes contact with them, the mind consciousness gains a certain power of perception. Moreover, the manas can also draw out what was perfumed in past lives and let the mind consciousness discern it, so that when the mind consciousness encounters similar content again, it can understand and remember it very quickly, without any effort at all—like traveling a familiar road in a light carriage.

As for dharmas perfumed in past lives, once we come into contact with them in this life, we quickly resonate with them. For example, if in a past life we often recited the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, the karmic seed of reciting the Śūraṅgama Sūtra is stored in the tathāgatagarbha. In this life, as soon as we come into contact with the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, reading it feels very familiar and very smooth, and as we read along we can recite it from memory. This shows that we did not just begin reciting the Śūraṅgama Sūtra in this life; rather, it was already perfumed in past lives. Because the karmic seed of reciting the Śūraṅgama Sūtra exists from past lives, when the conditions ripen and the manas engages with it, the mind consciousness accordingly receives its benefit. Studying the Śūraṅgama Sūtra then becomes extremely fast—reading quickly and remembering firmly—and naturally one can recite it from memory, feeling that those sentences and their meanings are all very familiar. In this way, studying and cultivating the Buddha's teachings in this life is connected with the karmic seeds of past lives.

When we recite the Heart Sutra in this life until we can recite it from memory, this seed is also stored in the tathāgatagarbha. After we can recite it, when we recite the Heart Sutra again—"Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva, practicing deep prajñā-pāramitā..."—word by word, syllable by syllable, these mental sense-objects are all taken out of the storehouse of the tathāgatagarbha, passing through the manas, and the mind consciousness receives and enjoys them. This is what is meant by saying that the mind consciousness has the ability of memory and can recite the Heart Sutra from memory. What the mind consciousness learns and memorizes, it cannot store by itself, because it is itself subject to arising and ceasing, and it has no function of storing karmic seeds. Even if it could store them, when the mind consciousness ceases, they would be lost, because the mind consciousness lacks self-mastery and has no capacity for safekeeping. Therefore only the tathāgatagarbha can store them, because He never disappears; what is placed there is very safe and reliable, and there is no need to worry that the seeds will be lost when the tathāgatagarbha ceases—for it never does.

When the seeds stored in the tathāgatagarbha are needed by the mind consciousness, they must be taken out. At this point, the manas must be relied upon. When the mind consciousness wishes to recite the Heart Sutra from memory, this desire is conveyed to the manas; the manas, having known it, also decides to recite the Heart Sutra, and thus the mental factor of volition arises. When the tathāgatagarbha discerns the manas's mental factor of volition, it can deliver out the seeds of reciting the Heart Sutra. Once the mind consciousness discerns the mental sense-objects, it naturally can recite the Heart Sutra from memory, and the words and syllables come forth one by one.

If the Heart Sutra has not been read fluently and cannot be recited from memory, then there is no seed for recitation, and when one wishes to recite it, those words and syllables will not come forth. Perhaps one can recite the first word, the second word, the third word, the fourth word, but beyond that, nothing more comes out. Because we never stored them in, there is no karmic seed for recitation in the storehouse of the tathāgatagarbha, and the tathāgatagarbha cannot manufacture seeds by itself. If there is no stock in the storehouse, of course it cannot be taken out and enjoyed, and one has no choice but to open the book and read along.