The Discriminative and Non-Discriminative Nature of the Eighth Consciousness

Since the eighth consciousness does not discriminate, how does it discern the mental activities of sentient beings? The eighth consciousness itself both discriminates and does not discriminate—it depends on what He discriminates and what He does not discriminate. There are some dharmas He can discriminate, and some dharmas He cannot. His non-discrimination is within the myriad dharmas of the three realms: He cannot discriminate the specific contents and objects of the six sense objects and the myriad dharmas—these are the contents and objects discriminated by the deluded minds of the six consciousnesses. The eighth consciousness does not discriminate the six sense-object realms of form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharmas, does not discriminate worldly dharmas, and does not discriminate various names and concepts. Because of this non-discriminating nature, He does not know what the six sense objects are, and thus does not know their good or bad qualities. Therefore, when the eighth consciousness faces the six sense objects, He gives rise to no mental activity at all, able to remain mindless toward objects, with a mind-ground of extreme tranquility (praśama), without defilement, without the afflictions of greed, hatred, and delusion. 

On the other hand, the eighth consciousness also has a discriminating nature. What He discriminates is: discerning the mental activities of sentient beings, discerning the karmic seeds of sentient beings, discerning the six faculties of sentient beings, discerning the universe and the material world (bhājana-loka), and discerning the eighteen realms of sentient beings. Discerning the mental activities of sentient beings—mental activities refer to the mental factors (caittas) of the seven consciousnesses. When He transmits the consciousness-seeds of the seven consciousnesses outward, the seven consciousnesses are formed, the mental factors of the seven consciousnesses begin to operate, and all the activities of mind consciousness are produced. The entire process of the operation of the mental factors of the seven consciousnesses, as well as the contents discriminated by the seven consciousnesses—He knows them all.

The eighth consciousness, in accordance with the attention (manaskāra) and deliberation (manasikāra) mental factors of the seven consciousnesses, cooperates with the seven consciousnesses to produce the myriad dharmas. When the seven consciousnesses operate, that is when karmic actions are being created; at the same time karmic actions are being created, karmic seeds are stored into the eighth consciousness at any moment. Because the consciousness-seeds, once produced, return to the eighth consciousness, the eighth consciousness knows whatever karmic actions the seven consciousnesses have created, and the karmic actions are stored as seeds. Therefore, there is nothing we have done that the eighth consciousness does not know, nothing He does not record.

The eighth consciousness can also discern the body faculty of sentient beings. The body faculty includes the eye faculty, ear faculty, nose faculty, and tongue faculty—these five faculties. Because these five faculties, together with the manas, are personally held and sustained by the eighth consciousness, the appearance of the body faculty is manifested at all times by the eighth consciousness according to karmic seeds. Whatever situation arises in the body faculty, and whatever situation should arise, the eighth consciousness knows. Because the situation that should arise, the situation currently arising, and the situation that has already arisen are all inseparable from cause and effect—that is, inseparable from the holding and manifestation of the eighth consciousness. As for the various situations that arise in the body faculty and the various situations that are about to arise, the seventh consciousness can come to know them through the perceiving-aspect (darśana-bhāga) of the eighth consciousness, and the seven consciousnesses will give rise to thoughts of protecting the body faculty; the eighth consciousness will then, according to the karmic seeds, cooperate with the minds of the seven consciousnesses to alter and maintain the five-faculty body.

The eighth consciousness discerns the universe and the material world. The material world is jointly manifested and held by the eighth consciousnesses of sentient beings with shared karma. The eighth consciousness can personally condition upon the material world, continuously participating in its manifestation; hence there is the formation, abiding, decay, and emptiness of the universe and the material world. What state the material world was in previously, what state it is in now, and what state it should be in in the future—the eighth consciousness can have some knowledge of all these according to the karmic seeds. After He knows this, the manas, the seventh consciousness, relying on this, can know what events are going to occur; some sensitive sentient beings will inwardly perceive and have a premonition of them, and consider taking countermeasures in advance.

The eighth consciousness discerns the eighteen realms. The six faculties and the six consciousnesses have already been discussed; there remains the six sense objects. Because the eighth consciousness cannot discern the specific contents of the six sense objects, yet the six sense-object realms are, after all, personally manifested and held by the eighth consciousness—since He can discern the seeds, what the six sense objects were like previously, what state they are in now, and what they should become later, He can have some knowledge of all these based on the seeds and the records. He manifests the six sense objects according to the seeds; although He can manifest the six sense objects, He does not know what the specific forms, sounds, smells, tastes, tangibles, and dharmas actually are—He only knows to manifest them, and knows what state they will become, but does not know the contents; then He holds and sustains the six sense objects He Himself has manifested.

In this way, the entire world is within His single-handed control. On the surface, the manas seems to be able to act as the master, but in reality, the one who can master all dharmas is this "Master of the House." Although this Master of the House appears able to master all dharmas, in fact He has no mind of mastery; He has no mind toward all dharmas, completely according with the manas and according with the karmic seeds, presenting things faithfully according to the appearances the world should have, without the slightest opinion or view of His own, because He has no self-nature and does not act as master.

Through this analysis, we should now know what the eighth consciousness can discriminate and what it cannot, and know whether He truly has a discriminating nature. After realizing the eighth consciousness, when various wisdoms arise, one can gradually observe Him from various aspects. Without realizing the eighth consciousness, one cannot observe Him, one will not know His many functions and characteristics, and our wisdom cannot grow step by step. Therefore, realizing and awakening to the eighth consciousness is extremely important, and this should be the initial goal of our practice.

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