Selected Lectures on the Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra

Furthermore, there are three kinds of sentient beings who take desire as the fundamental basis for their actions and practices, seeking the goal of liberation. The first desire is that sentient beings practice to attain the supreme reward, to realize the fruition of the Mahayana Bodhisattva and achieve Buddhahood. This is the most supremely excellent, incomparable path, called the Unsurpassed Dharma (Anuttara Dharma), and the reward is the Unsurpassed Fruition (Anuttara Phala).

The second desire is that sentient beings practice to obtain superior sensual pleasures and greater blessings. As a result, they may be reborn in the heavens to enjoy blessings, but when the blessings are exhausted, they fall again. The karmic result for the form body is attaining the form body and state of existence of a heavenly being, yet the outcome is still bondage within the cycle of life and death.

The third desire is that sentient beings, through practice, ultimately seek to attain the supreme liberating fruition of transcending the Three Realms. As a result, they can transcend the Three Realms and achieve temporary liberation, but they cannot attain the ultimate liberation of Buddhahood.

Desire is the cause of life and death, yet the pursuit of the Mahayana path to Buddhahood can lead to not entering Nirvana without residue (Anupadhiśeṣa Nirvāṇa), instead remaining forever within the Three Realms to broadly benefit sentient beings. The six consciousnesses have desires, but the manas (mental faculty, 意根) has even stronger desires. It is primarily because of the desires of the manas that life and death are unceasing and the cycle of rebirth does not stop.

If only the six consciousnesses had desire, and the manas had no desire, the desires of the six consciousnesses would also be ineffective; they would cease as soon as they arose, and life and death would certainly end. If only the six consciousnesses severed desire, but the manas did not sever desire, the manas would inevitably take charge and have cravings, the six consciousnesses would inevitably create karmas of greed, life and death would certainly not end, and the cycle of rebirth would not cease.

If the manas has desire for the Three Realms, it certainly cannot abandon attachment to the Three Realms and certainly cannot transcend them. Arhats, because they have severed the self-view (ātma-dṛṣṭi) of the manas, abandon attachment to the Three Realms, which means they abandon desire for the Three Realms, and thus can transcend them and enter Nirvana without residue. If an Arhat turns his mind towards the Mahayana, because he develops a fondness and delight for the Mahayana Dharma and has desire for it, his manas is bound by this desire. At the end of his life, he certainly will not enter Nirvana without residue; he will certainly have a desire-realm form body (rūpa-skandha) and continue to study and practice the Mahayana Dharma, seeking to realize the Mind (明心) and see the Nature (见性, i.e., Buddha-nature, Tathāgata-garbha) and achieve Buddhahood. This is the wholesome desire (kuśala-chanda) of the Universal Teaching Bodhisattva (通教菩萨).

If only the consciousness (mano-vijñāna, the sixth consciousness) has wholesome desire, but the manas does not, then the manas is not bound by the wholesome desire, has no desire or seeking for the dharmas of the Three Realms, and at the end of life will certainly attain Nirvana without residue.

If the manas has already severed desire for food and drink, even if the consciousness pays more attention to or looks more at delicious food in the desire realm, the manas will not give rise to greed, nor will it want to greedily eat the delicious food; it will merely follow conditions. If the manas has already severed desire for the opposite sex, even if the consciousness looks more at the opposite sex, there will be no subsequent mental activities, because the manas, taking charge, does not grasp or crave, and the consciousness cannot have superfluous thoughts or desires. If the manas has already severed greed, not craving food, clothing, shelter, or possessions, even if the consciousness encounters a luxurious living environment, it will not produce greed. His eating, clothing, shelter, and use of things will still follow previous habits. These are the habits of the manas. The bodily, verbal, and mental actions related to eating, clothing, shelter, and use are governed by the manas and will certainly conform to its habits.

Wanting to become a Buddha is supreme aspiration (胜欲); wanting to realize the Mind and see the Nature is supreme aspiration; wanting to sever the view of self and realize the fruition of liberation is supreme aspiration. If only the consciousness has this supreme aspiration, but the manas does not, then the manas will not take the initiative to diligently practice, will not actively practice the threefold training of non-outflows (śīla, samādhi, prajñā), will not actively uphold precepts, will not actively cultivate concentration, will not actively read sutras and contemplate, much less give rise to the mind for contemplation practice and investigation of Dharma principles, and likewise will not be constantly focused on practice day and night, thought after thought. Only if the manas has supreme aspiration can it actively urge the six consciousnesses to practice, keeping the consciousness constantly focused on learning and practicing Buddhism, enabling the consciousness to find ways to eliminate all interference and obstacles and diligently practice.

After learning Buddhism, the consciousness subdues its greed for meat, knowing that eating meat creates negative karmic connections with sentient beings and has karmic consequences. However, if the manas has not subdued its greed for meat, when encountering meat, the consciousness knows it cannot eat it, but the manas somewhat wants to eat it. The consciousness then advises the manas, saying it cannot eat meat and should be vegetarian. The manas temporarily endures it. But after a while, if the consciousness stops advising and one is not careful, the manas decides to take a bite to satisfy the craving, and thus eats a bite of meat. The consciousness acquiesces to the manas, relaxes its vigilance, and the manas decides to eat another bite. If the consciousness does not reprimand the manas, the manas will indulge itself and keep eating. Finally, the consciousness can no longer control the manas and simply gives in, thinking, "Since I've already eaten, I might as well continue." The failure to quit smoking follows the same principle; failures to quit gambling or drugs are all due to this principle. The consciousness truly cannot manage the manas anymore; the habits of the manas far outweigh the reason of the consciousness, so the consciousness simply follows the manas.

Therefore, if only the consciousness practices and severs afflictions, but the manas does not sever afflictions, it is not true severing of afflictions. If the consciousness severs the view of self, but the manas does not sever the view of self, it is not true severing of the view of self. If the consciousness understands the principle, but the manas does not understand the principle, it is not true understanding. One cannot walk with only one leg; the two legs of consciousness and manas must move synchronously, or one following the other, to walk properly.

Almost every person whose mind inclines towards goodness has had the experience of the consciousness guiding and persuading the manas. Because the manas cannot think or discern good from bad, it requires the consciousness to do the work, to repeatedly guide the manas towards goodness. Only then can bodily, verbal, and mental actions become wholesome. The decisive authority of the manas as the sovereign, this single point alone, demonstrates the powerful function and role of the manas. Judging from various examples, if the manas has no seeking, no desire, then nothing is established, everything will disappear, and one will certainly abide in Nirvana without residue.