The Significance of Realizing the Eighth Consciousness

The eighth consciousness is also a consciousness; it also has the nature of consciousness, possessing the capacity of knowing—only it does not know the six sense objects. But it knows karmic seeds, and it knows the mental activities of the minds of the seven consciousnesses. It has many kinds of knowing that differ from those of the seven consciousnesses; after enlightenment, one can clarify these contents bit by bit. The eighth consciousness has both unconditioned and conditioned aspects. The conditioned aspect is storing karmic seeds, outputting karmic seeds, coordinating with the activities of the five aggregates, transmitting the seeds of the seven consciousnesses, and producing all myriad dharmas. These are all the conditioned nature of the eighth consciousness. The conditioned nature of the eighth consciousness is a function inherent to Him.

Seeds are objects discerned by the eighth consciousness, objects processed and output by the eighth consciousness. Seeds themselves have no capacity of knowing, because seeds are not consciousness; only consciousness has the capacity of knowing. The mind-substance of the eighth consciousness has the capacity of knowing, and relying upon the mental factors (caittas), it can exercise the nature of discernment. The functions of the seven consciousnesses also depend on the mental factors of the seven consciousnesses in order to operate; but only when the eighth consciousness transmits the seeds of consciousness to the seven consciousnesses can the seven consciousnesses function in the form of mental factors, and only then can they discriminate and know the six sense objects and the myriad dharmas.

The eighth consciousness itself also has its own seeds of consciousness flowing forth. In the nirvāṇa without remainder of an arhat, the eighth consciousness itself still has seeds of consciousness flowing forth. The Buddhas' cultivation over three great asaṃkhyeya kalpas is precisely the cultivation of the deluded minds of the seven transforming consciousnesses, eliminating the ignorance of the deluded mind. Not understanding even a single dharma is ignorance; after ignorance is completely extinguished, there is not a single dharma in the mundane or supramundane world that is not understood—everything is fully known, possessing the wisdom of all aspects (sarvākārajñatā). And that upon which all dharmas depend is precisely the eighth consciousness. Therefore one must realize and awaken to the eighth consciousness and know the eighth consciousness; when all its contents are fully known, the ignorance of the seven consciousnesses is completely severed, and Buddhahood is accomplished. Therefore, studying the principles of the eight consciousnesses is right cultivation, and it is extremely important.