The Significance of Realizing the Eighth Consciousness

The eighth consciousness is also a consciousness; it possesses the nature of consciousness and has knowing faculty. It merely does not perceive the six dusts (objects of sense), but it knows karmic seeds and the mental activities of the seven consciousnesses. It possesses many kinds of knowing distinct from those of the seven consciousnesses. After awakening, one can gradually clarify these aspects. The eighth consciousness has an unconditioned aspect and a conditioned aspect. The conditioned aspect involves storing karmic seeds, outputting karmic seeds, cooperating with the activities of the five aggregates, transmitting the seeds of the seven consciousnesses, and producing all dharmas. These are the conditioned nature of the eighth consciousness. The conditioned nature of the eighth consciousness is its inherent functional activity.

Seeds are the objects recognized by the eighth consciousness, the objects processed and outputted by the eighth consciousness. Seeds themselves lack knowing faculty, because seeds are not consciousness; only consciousness possesses knowing faculty. The mind-substance of the eighth consciousness possesses knowing faculty; relying on mental factors, it can give rise to discriminative function. The functions of the seven consciousnesses also depend on their respective mental factors to operate. However, it is necessary for the eighth consciousness to transmit consciousness-seeds to the seven consciousnesses; only then can the seven consciousnesses operate in the form of mental factors, enabling them to differentiate and know the six dusts and all dharmas.

The eighth consciousness itself also has its own flow of consciousness-seeds. In the nirvana without residue of Arhats, the eighth consciousness itself has a flow of consciousness-seeds. The cultivation over three great kalpas by all Buddhas is the cultivation of the deluded minds of the seven evolving consciousnesses, eliminating the ignorance of the deluded minds. If there is any dharma not understood, that is ignorance. After exhausting ignorance, there is not a single dharma in the mundane or supramundane realms that is not understood; all are fully known, and one is endowed with the wisdom of all modes. The very foundation upon which all dharmas rely is the eighth consciousness. Therefore, to realize the eighth consciousness, to know the eighth consciousness, is to know all content exhaustively. When the ignorance of the seven consciousnesses is completely severed, then Buddhahood is attained. Thus, studying the principles of the eight consciousnesses is the correct practice; it is extremely important.