What Determines Rebirth in the Favorable Realms or the Three Lower Realms After Death

Some say that when a person dies, the eighth consciousness naturally guides them to a favorable rebirth. But if the eighth consciousness can naturally guide one to a good path, then why is it that throughout beginningless kalpas, sentient beings have spent far more time in the three evil realms than in the three good realms? On what basis does the eighth consciousness guide the manas (mental faculty) of sentient beings into the good paths? Some say that as long as one cultivates wholesome dharmas, the eighth consciousness can guide one to a favorable rebirth. Yet there are very many people who cultivate wholesome dharmas, very many who cultivate the Buddha Dharma, and very many who cultivate correct Dharma principles. How many of them, at the time of death, can truly ensure they will not fall into the three evil realms and rely on the eighth consciousness to lead them into the three good paths? On what basis does the eighth consciousness guide manas into the good paths? It is by relying on the wholesome karmic seeds stored within the eighth consciousness that it can guide one to a good path. However, the eighth consciousness also contains countless unwholesome karmic seeds—seeds of karma left behind from committing unwholesome deeds throughout beginningless kalpas that have not yet manifested. What, ultimately, does the eighth consciousness rely on to guide manas into rebirth? This question is extremely important and crucial. The Buddha, in the sutras, guaranteed the conditions sentient beings must fulfill to avoid falling into the three evil realms after death: First, severing the view of self and cutting off the three fetters as taught in the Agama sutras; second, realizing the mind and seeing the nature as taught in the Mahayana sutras; third, the samadhi power of single-minded recitation of the Buddha's name at the time of death as taught in the Amitabha Sutra; fourth, accomplishing the third contemplation or higher among the sixteen contemplations in the Sutra on the Contemplation of Amitayus, along with the causal conditions for rebirth in the nine grades; fifth, the rebirth conditions taught in other Pure Land sutras; sixth, the wholesome karmic seeds that non-Buddhists must possess to be reborn in the heavens after death. 

These conditions illustrate that it is not simply by cultivating wholesome dharmas or the Buddha Dharma that one avoids the three evil realms and attains rebirth in a good path. Rather, it depends on whether the force of wholesome karma created in this lifetime is greater than that of unwholesome karma, whether the major unwholesome karmic seeds from beginningless kalpas ago have been eradicated, or whether the conditions for the manifestation of major unwholesome karma are present. At the time of death, whichever is stronger—the force of the wholesome karmic seeds or the unwholesome karmic seeds—the stronger force takes precedence. The eighth consciousness pulls sentient beings according to the strong karma. Where one goes after death is determined by the contest between the force of wholesome and unwholesome karma, not by the eighth consciousness. The eighth consciousness merely follows the force of the karmic seeds; it has no intention of guiding the destination of sentient beings. 

Countless people, although having the affinity to cultivate the correct Dharma and wholesome dharmas, still possess the afflictions of greed, hatred, and delusion in full measure, having neither severed nor subdued them at all. Clearly, the force of karmic afflictions remains very strong. At the time of death, they are naturally pulled by the afflictive unwholesome karma towards the three evil realms. Countless people, although cultivating wholesome dharmas, during the process of cultivation also commit the extremely grave unwholesome karma of slandering the Triple Gem (Buddha, Dharma, Sangha). The power of all their wholesome cultivation cannot overcome the force of this slanderous karma. Therefore, at the time of death, the eighth consciousness naturally follows the force of the slanderous karmic seeds and guides manas into the three evil realms. Even if one has not committed any major unwholesome karma in the present life, if the conditions for unwholesome karma from beginningless kalpas ago ripen, and the force of wholesome karma cultivated in this life is not strong enough—if the conditions are not mature and insufficient to change the conditions of the unwholesome karma—then the eighth consciousness will guide manas into the three evil realms based on the strong unwholesome karmic seeds and their conditions. 

If the power of cultivating wholesome dharmas in the present life is not strong enough—if it is weak and inferior, merely understood and comprehended by the conscious mind (mano-vijnana) but not cultivated down to manas, so that manas does not realize the wholesome dharmas and thus cannot transform them into the driving force for all bodily, verbal, and mental actions—then nothing in the five aggregates changes, or the change is minimal and insufficient to counteract the afflictive unwholesome karma. Such cultivation lacks power and cannot be stored as seeds in the eighth consciousness, or only a tiny amount is stored. Then it can have little effect, insufficient to oppose the force of afflictive karma, and cannot change the destiny of the three evil realms in future lives. All bodily, verbal, and mental actions of the five aggregates must be stored as seeds in the eighth consciousness. Countless people, although cultivating wholesome dharmas, do not change their bodily, verbal, and mental actions and still commit afflictive unwholesome karma of greed, hatred, and delusion. Consequently, what is stored in the eighth consciousness is afflictive karma of greed, hatred, and delusion. At the time of death, the force of this afflictive karma is extremely powerful and will pull manas into the three evil realms, preventing rebirth in a good path.

Who is in charge of the bodily, verbal, and mental actions of the five aggregates? It is, of course, manas that is in charge and creates them. If the wholesome dharmas cultivated by sentient beings in the present life do not penetrate the mind of manas, and manas does not realize the Buddha Dharma, then manas remains unwholesome and will not take charge of creating wholesome karma. Wholesome karmic seeds will not be stored within the essence of the eighth consciousness. How, then, could the eighth consciousness guide manas to be reborn in a good path? To summarize: Regardless of who cultivates wholesome dharmas, if it does not transform manas through cultivation, does not change the afflictive and defiled nature of manas, and does not alter the mental actions of manas, then manas will still take charge and create defiled karma. This defiled karma will be stored within the essence of the eighth consciousness as seeds, giving rise to unwholesome karmic retribution in future lives, and such a person cannot go to a good path upon death.