Flaws in Old Yogācāra

In the Cheng Weishi Lun (Viṃśatikā-vijñapti-mātratā-siddhi), which Master Xuanzang translated or half-translated and half-authored, the nature of the manas is described as follows: the manas is of a neutral/indeterminate (avyākṛta) nature, neither wholesome nor unwholesome. At that time I did not dare to raise doubts about what Master Xuanzang taught, so I assumed that everything he said was correct and followed his explanation to understand this nature of the manas. Later, I gradually discovered that something was wrong and corrected the nature of the manas, which provoked opposition from some people.

When I first taught Yogācāra, my wisdom was insufficient, and I did not dare to question the Cheng Weishi Lun, nor did I dare to question Master Xuanzang, who enjoyed immense fame, or the other Yogācāra masters. As a result, I later discovered that something was wrong, and when I taught according to my own contemplative realization, it provoked opposition from those who rely on persons rather than on the Dharma, because the gap in fame was so great—if one did not go along with what others taught, quite a lot of trouble would arise.

In the book on the mental factors of the manas, in my exposition of the mental factors of the manas, I corrected quite a few points regarding the nature of the manas, which differs from the old Yogācāra teachings. At first I did not dare to publish this book publicly, fearing that the obstruction would be great and would cause unnecessary trouble. Later, as I taught more about the manas, many people came to have a correct understanding of it and were able to accept it, so I published it openly on the website for anyone to download and read freely.

Think about it: if the manas were of a neutral/indeterminate nature, neither wholesome nor unwholesome, would that hold up? Anyone with clear insight can see at a glance that the manas is a mixture of the wholesome and the unwholesome, and cultivation is precisely the cultivation of Him. If the manas does not eliminate the unwholesome and accomplish the wholesome, how can sentient beings become Buddhas? If the manas had no unwholesomeness, what would sentient beings need to learn Buddhism and practice for?

Because sentient beings are foolish and lack wisdom, they only know blind faith in those with great fame, especially the ancients, and are fundamentally unable to rely on the Dharma rather than on persons. The phrase "rely on the Dharma, not on persons" is merely circulated as a slogan, a formality gone through; hardly anyone can actually do it.

Master Xuanzang, by compiling and translating this treatise, trapped himself in it, leaving a stain on himself for wise people of later generations to judge—hardly worthwhile. In the past, when someone asked me about problems in the Cheng Weishi Lun, I would explain them, but when the explanation reached a certain point and I discovered an obvious error, I would stop explaining. I originally planned to lecture on this treatise, but after discovering its errors, I no longer dared to teach it, fearing that I would trap myself and end up pleasing no one on either side—not worth it.

In the past I read some of the works written by Master Kuiji, though not much, because shortly after I began reading them I found that the errors in them were quite obvious and moreover quite numerous, so I stopped reading. If the old Yogācāra teachings had no flaws or loopholes, why did they fail to be transmitted beyond the second generation, ending abruptly at Master Kuiji? That was still the Age of Semblance Dharma, an era in which the Dharma had not yet much declined and the indriya of sentient beings was still quite good.