Why Are the Five Aggregates Devoid of Self and Ownership?

The faculty of perception is the mind consciousness, which comprises eight aspects. If the mind consciousness is the self, then when the mind consciousness ceases, where does the self go? That which ceaselessly arises and ceases is an illusory, transient phenomenon, lacking inherent autonomy; therefore, it is not the self. For example, when a pile of wood, earth, and water are combined according to certain principles, they form a house. This house is an illusory, arising-and-ceasing phenomenon without autonomy; it disintegrates when conditions change and cannot be regarded as an independently existing entity to be grasped as "a house."

Similarly, the so-called "self" composed of the five aggregates is also formed by the combination of the seven fundamental elements. It, too, is an impermanent, unreal phenomenon, devoid of autonomy and self-mastery. It cannot be regarded as the self nor as belonging to the self. Therefore, the five aggregates are neither the self nor the possessions of the self. Since there is no self or possessions of the self, there is no need for attachment or grasping. Do not mistake phenomena assembled from various components as a self that can be relied upon or depended on. What, then, happens when one ceases to depend on or rely upon phenomena formed by aggregation? One no longer clings to the five aggregates and the eighteen realms. What remains after that? If such a thought arises in the mind—wondering what remains—then the self-view has not been fully eradicated. There is still clinging, still seeking, and thus there remains birth and death, and suffering.

If the "self" in the context of severing self-view is not clearly understood, one cannot genuinely sever self-view. If one arrives at a conclusion stating that the five aggregates are neither the eighth consciousness nor different from the eighth consciousness, this is merely conjecture and reasoning—not even emotional reasoning—let alone genuine insight. Naturally, self-view remains unsevered, and there has been no true, reasoned contemplation of the five aggregates and the eighteen realms as they truly are. The notion of a "self" composed of the five aggregates and the eighteen realms still persists in the mind; the "self" of the five aggregates and the eighteen realms has not been relinquished. It is merely the conscious mind believing that the five aggregates and the eighteen realms are not the eighth consciousness. The meaning of "emptiness" is profoundly important. Through contemplation to the end, one realizes that the five aggregates and the eighteen realms are empty. What is emptiness? Ultimately, emptiness means "no-self." If something were not empty, there would be a self. Who could regard an empty phenomenon as the self? Unless one has not yet realized the emptiness of the five aggregates.