No Ignorance and Also No Ending of Ignorance

What the Heart Sutra says—that there is no ignorance and also no extinction of ignorance—means that the eighth consciousness has no ignorance; therefore the eighth consciousness does not need to cultivate, does not need to eliminate ignorance, does not need to sever afflictions, does not need to attain liberation, nor does it need to become a Buddha. The seven consciousnesses and the five aggregates (pañcaskandha) cannot be like this: the seven consciousnesses and the five aggregates have ignorance, and so they need to cultivate in order to eliminate ignorance, to exhaust ignorance completely, to attain purity and great freedom, and to gain liberation. In the process of eliminating ignorance, one needs to cultivate, needs to keep the precepts, needs meditative concentration (samādhi), needs to study the wisdom of prajñā, needs to investigate Chan and awaken to the Way, needs to sever afflictions, needs to realize awakening, and needs to become a Buddha.