Wonderful Metaphors in the Pure Land School
淨土宗妙喻
Metaphor 38: The Eight Aspects of Consciousness (continued)
Accordingly, the Verses Delineating the Eight Aspects of Consciousness by Master Xuanzang have this to say:
Accepting and influenced by past karmic habits sows the seeds for future bodies and material worlds.
The Alaya Consciousness is always the last to leave an aged body at death and the first to be present at birth, totally in control of the mind at all times.
This is an accurate description of the eighth consciousness. According to the first line of the verse, whatever one has perceived and conceived by the first six aspects of consciousness is sown like seeds in the Alaya Consciousness.
Over time, all of those seeds will grow into karmic fruits which one has to bear.
The meaning of the second line of the verse is this: at the end of one’s life, the Alaya Consciousness will stay with the body until the last moment, when the body has cooled to the core and completely died, i.e. when the first six aspects of consciousness have lost all their functions.
As to birth, the eighth aspect of consciousness is always the first to be present at the moment of conception, when the six sensory faculties are yet to develop. The Alaya Consciousness is the master of the mind, totally in control of it.
As I mentioned just now, the sixth aspect of consciousness works like a general manager giving orders from the head office. Now, let’s see the two ways by which it works – to accompany the five sensory aspects of consciousness and to work through its own consciousness.
38. 八識喻 (續)
慧淨法師
所以，玄奘大師《八識規矩頌》就有兩句話說：
受熏持種根身器，
去後來先做主公。
這就是在說第八識。
「受熏持種」：接受，而且把眼、耳、鼻、舌、身以及第六意識所看、所聽、所 想，形成一個影子、一粒種子，落在第八阿賴耶識的田地裏面、倉庫當中，而 成為未來的果報，所以說「受熏持種根身器」。
「去後來先做主公」：去最後，來最先。「去後」，也就是一個人死的時候，這 個第八識最後才離開，也就是說，身體先冷，逐漸逐漸地冷，如果沒有全部冷 的話，他還沒有死，他的阿賴耶識 — 第八識還在身體當中。必須要全部冷透 了，第八識最後才離開，這個人才稱為死亡。「來先」，也就是投胎的時候，它最先到，還沒有眼、耳、鼻、舌、身、意的時候，它已經到了。它是主人公。去 是最後，眼、耳、鼻、舌、身已經沒有作用了，但是它還沒有離開，它是最後才 離開的，所以「去後來先做主公」。
剛剛講總經理就是第六意識，第六意識是在家出主意的。它好像老闆一 樣。第六意識，有所謂「五俱意識」跟「獨頭意識」。
Namo Amituofo!
