How the Grasping at Self and Grasping at Dharmas Arise and Are Eliminated

Beginningless kalpas ago, there were only the manas and the tathāgatagarbha; there were no six consciousnesses, no five-aggregate body, and no world. At that time the manas already had ignorance (avidyā), and this ignorance had no karmic seeds, because there were no six consciousnesses to create karma on behalf of the manas. This is why the manas is said to be neutral/indeterminate (avyākṛta): He alone cannot create karma; He must have the tools for creating karma in order to create it. The manas rules from behind the curtain in the rear, merely wielding the baton and giving commands, while the fighting and killing on the front lines is left to the six consciousnesses. On the surface it appears that the six consciousnesses create karma, but in reality it is the manas who sits in command and directs everything; those who do not understand the inner workings attribute the merits and faults to the six consciousnesses.

Moreover, the self-grasping (ātma-grāha) and grasping at dharmas (dharma-grāha) also belong to ignorance and have no karmic seeds; they have existed since beginningless kalpas and were not created by karmic actions. However, the mind consciousness's postnatal conditioning by the environment can also increase the manas's self-grasping and dharma-grasping, reinforcing the manas's attachment to self. Only through cultivating the path can these ignorances be gradually eliminated. Because ignorance has existed since beginningless kalpas, it is due to ignorance that karmic formations are created for no reason; without ignorance, one would no longer wish to create karmic formations—except for the pure great vows of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas.

The karmic seeds formed through actions created out of ignorance are called the karma of ignorance, and this karma of ignorance can in turn condition and reinforce the manas's ignorance. These karmic formations of ignorance can be eliminated through experiencing their retribution, but ignorance itself must be eliminated through realizing the Path: whatever degree of the Path is realized, that degree of ignorance is eliminated.