Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra, Volume 10: Exposition on the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination (11)

Q: Why is it that among the mutually conditioning factors (branches), there is no hetu-pratyaya (causal condition)?

A: This is because the hetu-pratyaya is revealed by the condition pertaining to the self-nature seeds (svabhāva-bīja).

Q: If there is no hetu-pratyaya among the mutually conditioning factors, then why is it said that dependent origination (pratītyasamutpāda) is established based on the nature of cause and effect?

A: It is said to be "cause" (hetu) because it relies on the stimulating cause (pravartaka-hetu), the projecting cause (ākṣepa-hetu), and the generating cause (janaka-hetu), which are encompassed by the sovereign condition (adhipati-pratyaya).

Explanation:

Q: Why is there no hetu-pratyaya in the mutual conditioning of these branches?

A: The so-called hetu-pratyaya is what manifests through the condition of the self-nature seeds of the branches.

Q: Since these branches mutually condition and influence each other without hetu-pratyaya, why is it said that dependent origination is established based on the nature of cause and effect? (The nature of cause and effect means that prior causes produce subsequent effects; the effect is the dependently arisen dharma.)

A: These branches rely on what is encompassed by the adhipati-pratyaya. The preceding branch serves as the pravartaka-hetu, ākṣepa-hetu, and janaka-hetu for the subsequent branch. It is conventionally designated as the "cause," while the subsequent branch is the "effect." Thus, it is said that dependent origination is established based on the nature of cause and effect.

The hetu-pratyaya is the most important among the four conditions (pratyaya). It is the direct cause that gives rise to dharmas. Seeds (bīja) belong to the hetu-pratyaya dharma. Seeds are in the causal stage, while the eleven branches (excluding ignorance) are in the resultant stage. Where there is a cause, there must be an effect. "Condition" (pratyaya) here also means "cause" (hetu), indicating that the seeds give rise to the manifestation of the eleven branches. These seeds refer to the karmic seeds left by the bodily, verbal, and mental activities of the six consciousnesses (ṣaḍ-vijñānakāya). This meaning is extremely profound. All self-nature seeds capable of producing the branches originate from the Ālayavijñāna (storehouse consciousness) and reside within it. In other words, these branches are all born from the Ālayavijñāna. The Ālayavijñāna and the self-nature seeds are the hetu-pratyaya for these branches.

Within the twelve links of dependent origination, only the birth of nāmarūpa (name-and-form) in the link "consciousness conditions name-and-form" has seeds. The seeds of the bodily, verbal, and mental activities of the six consciousnesses from the previous life are the hetu-pratyaya for the birth of nāmarūpa in this life. The birth of the subsequent branches after nāmarūpa, however, has no seeds. Each subsequent branch is produced solely by the preceding branch. That is to say, the preceding branch is the adhipati-pratyaya, or alternatively the samanantara-pratyaya (immediately preceding condition), or the ālambana-pratyaya (object condition) for the subsequent branch—but never the hetu-pratyaya. The same applies to "ignorance conditions formations" and "formations condition consciousness": there is no hetu-pratyaya, only samanantara-pratyaya, ālambana-pratyaya, and adhipati-pratyaya.

Dedication:

May the merit from all Dharma propagation and communal practice on our online platform be dedicated to all sentient beings throughout the Dharma realm and to the people of the world. We pray for world peace, the cessation of wars; the absence of conflict, the permanent cessation of hostilities; and the complete subsidence of all disasters! May the people of all nations unite in mutual aid, treating each other with compassion; may the seasons be favorable and the nations prosperous and the people at peace! May all sentient beings deeply believe in cause and effect and refrain from killing with compassionate hearts; may they widely form wholesome connections and cultivate wholesome karma; may they believe in the Buddha, learn the Dharma, and increase their wholesome roots; may they comprehend suffering, abandon its origins, aspire to cessation, and cultivate the path; may they close the door to the evil destinies and open the path to Nirvana! May the Buddha Dharma flourish eternally and the true Dharma abide forever; may the fiery abode of the three realms be transformed into the lotus paradise of Ultimate Bliss!