Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra, Volume 18

Original text: 云何无攀无住。所谓诸爱永尽离欲。寂灭涅槃。及灭尽定。所以者何。所言攀者。诸烦恼缠。所言住者。烦恼随眠。于彼处所二种俱无。是故说言无攀无住。此谓涅槃无攀无住。又想名攀，受名为住，若于是处二种俱无。即说彼处无攀无住。如是显示灭想受定无攀无住。今此义中意取灭定。

Explanation: What is called neither grasping nor abiding? It means that all craving is forever exhausted and one is free of desire; the mind is stilled and extinguished, entering the state of nirvāṇa, or one attains the cessation of perception and feeling (nirodha-samāpatti). Why is this said? Because "grasping" refers to the manas being entangled by the various afflictions, and "abiding" refers to the latent afflictive dispositions (anuśaya). Where both of these are absent, it is said to be neither grasping nor abiding. This is the meaning of nirvāṇa being without grasping and without abiding. Furthermore, perception (saṃjñā) is called grasping, and feeling (vedanā) is called abiding; where both of these are absent, that place is said to be without grasping and without abiding. Thus it is shown that the cessation of perception and feeling is without grasping and without abiding. In this context, the meaning intended is the attainment of the cessation of perception and feeling.

The state in which the six consciousnesses have ceased entirely and the manas has further eliminated the two mental factors of feeling and perception is the attainment of cessation (nirodha-samāpatti). Feeling is the meaning of abiding in dharmas: receiving sense objects is called abiding. Perception is the meaning of grasping: cognizing and apprehending is perception. Grasping means being entangled by afflictions: when the manas eliminates afflictions, it does not grasp; the elimination of afflictions is called the forever-exhaustion of all craving; the forever-exhaustion of all craving is precisely freedom from desire. When the manas is free of desire, all craving is forever exhausted and it no longer grasps; when the manas is free of desire, without grasping and without abiding, it enters nirvāṇa without remainder. That sentient beings do not realize nirvāṇa without remainder shows that the manas has grasping, has craving, has desire, has abiding, feels sense objects and perceives them, is entangled by afflictions, and the mind is not stilled and pure. In this way, the state in which the manas within the cessation of feeling and perception has neither grasping nor abiding is shown to be the attainment of cessation.

When the manas does not grasp at and does not abide in material sense objects, the eye consciousness and mind consciousness do not arise; when the manas does not grasp at and does not abide in sounds, the ear consciousness and mind consciousness do not arise; when the manas does not grasp at and does not abide in scents, the nose consciousness and mind consciousness do not arise; when the manas does not grasp at and does not abide in flavors, the tongue consciousness and mind consciousness do not arise; when the manas does not grasp at and does not abide in tangibles, the body consciousness and mind consciousness do not arise; when the manas does not grasp at mental sense objects, the solitary mental consciousness does not arise. When the manas has no feeling and no perception with regard to the six sense objects, extinguishing the feeling of sensation and the capacity to cognize, and has no desire to know the six sense objects, it abides in the attainment of cessation.

The logic of contemplation here is rigorous and impregnable. Bodhisattva Maitreya clearly states: if sentient beings' manas has desire and craving, then there is grasping and abiding, and they cannot attain the cessation of perception and feeling, nor can they enter the state of nirvāṇa and attain liberation; if sentient beings' manas is free of desire and craving, they can attain the cessation of perception and feeling, and can also attain nirvāṇa—this is called attaining liberation.

Freedom from desire means leaving behind all craving for the dharmas of the three realms' world, and thereby one can leave the three realms. Freedom from hatred means eliminating the manifest affliction of hatred; one must not only eliminate the mind consciousness's hatred, but should even more eliminate the manas's hatred. Bodhisattva Maitreya says that greed, hatred, and delusion are sentient beings' entrenched afflictions. "Entrenched" means difficult to eliminate and uproot—the afflictions are extremely deep. This refers not merely to the mind consciousness's greed, hatred, and delusion, but mainly to the manas's greed, hatred, and delusion. The mind consciousness's greed, hatred, and delusion are easy to subdue and eliminate; the mind consciousness is intelligent and wise, and through studying Buddhism it can be transformed. The manas is not intelligent, does not easily understand the Dharma or comprehend the Dharma, and cannot deliberate, so it is difficult to transform; the afflictions of greed, hatred, and delusion are deeply rooted and difficult to uproot.