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Mind-Only Teachings 11
When transitioning from the domain of the eighth consciousness to the seventh consciousness, in reality, one cannot be separated from the store consciousness (ālaya-vijñāna) due to the interbeing and interpenetration of the consciousnesses. This requires practice so as not to use concepts that divide reality into separate fragments, to avoid being misled by words, and at the same time, to consult the Thirty Verses, the Verses on the Structure of the Eight Consciousnesses (Xuanzang), and the Trimśikā (Vasubandhu) to recognize the roots of the verses.
The sixteenth verse presents how the seed of delusion (ignorance) and the fetters of attachment (saṃyojana) lie deep within the store consciousness. When conditions are sufficient, they manifest as deluded consciousness and become active as name-and-form. This process recalls the stream of the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination:
- ignorance conditions formations
- formations condition consciousness
- consciousness conditions name-and-form
From verses 17–18, the manas consciousness is regarded as an evolving consciousness relying on the store consciousness; it is both a consciousness and a base for the arising of mental consciousness (manovijñāna). Each consciousness has three aspects:
- the perceiving part (the aspect that perceives)
- the perceived part (the aspect that is perceived)
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the self-nature part (the foundational nature)
Manas only takes on the function of mentation (thinking, measuring) and clings to the store as self, directing itself toward the object of the self-image with substance—a self-created image of self, not the true nature of reality.