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Perception and Transformation in the Mahayana Tradition
Chapter two examines the characteristics of dependent arising, that is, the forms of manifestation arising from seeds in the Alaya Consciousness. There are eleven main manifestations:
- the first manifestation is the physical body
- the second manifestation is the defiled mind, the false sense of self
- the third manifestation is the subject of reception (the six sense organs: eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, and mind)
- the fourth manifestation is the object of reception (the six sense objects: form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and objects of mind)
- the fifth manifestation is the subject of cognition (the six consciousnesses)
- the sixth manifestation is time
- the seventh manifestation is number (temporal idea and numerical idea)
- the eighth manifestation is space (the idea of location or place)
- the ninth manifestation is speech
- the tenth manifestation is the distinction between self and others
- the eleventh manifestation is the cycle of birth and death flowing through the six realms of wholesome and unwholesome destinies
All are contained within the eighteen elements – six sense organs, six sense objects, and six consciousnesses – which form the foundation for perceiving the world. Every manifestation is only a discriminative illusion; dependent arising has no separate self-nature. Understanding clearly the operation of the Alaya Consciousness and the characteristics of dependent arising helps us let go of attachment to self, see clearly the nature of impermanence and non-self, and live peacefully in the present moment.