The Alaya Consciousness Pervades All Realms

The eighth consciousness pervades all places; it is omnipresent throughout all dharmas within the world of the five aggregates. Wherever the dharmas of the world of the five aggregates exist, the eighth consciousness is necessarily present, upholding them. When the eighth consciousness ceases to uphold a particular dharma, that dharma perishes and ceases to appear.

The eighth consciousness neither arises nor ceases; it has no form or appearance, neither comes nor goes. It has no coming or going aspect within any dharma. However, by observing the arising and ceasing of phenomena within the world of the five aggregates, one can perceive the "coming" and "going" aspect of the eighth consciousness. When a dharma appears, it indicates that the eighth consciousness has "come" into that dharma; when a dharma perishes, it indicates that the eighth consciousness has "departed" from that dharma. In reality, it is not that the eighth consciousness actually comes into or goes out of dharmas. Rather, the eighth consciousness uses seeds to bring forth dharmas, and upon the dharma, the upholding function of the eighth consciousness manifests. When the eighth consciousness ceases to uphold the dharma and withdraws the seeds, the dharma then departs from the eighth consciousness and perishes.

Similarly, the eighth consciousness has never actually "come" into the five aggregates nor "departed" from them. Instead, the eighth consciousness uses seeds to bring forth the five aggregates, causing them to be inseparable from and connected to the eighth consciousness. When the eighth consciousness withdraws the seeds and ceases to uphold the five aggregates, the five aggregates vanish, perish, and become separated from the eighth consciousness. Throughout this process, the eighth consciousness never actually moves or engages in coming or going; it is the phenomena of the five aggregates within the world that come and go, gathering with and dispersing from the eighth consciousness. Therefore, it is said that the eighth consciousness neither comes nor goes; it transcends concepts of time, space, and distance.