The universe and the lives of sentient beings have originated from the mind, the eighth vijnana (tathagatagarbha), as taught by the Buddha. The intrinsic nature of the tathagatagarbha is permanent and neither arises nor ceases. The karmic seeds stored in the tathagatagarbha lie dormant, without expiration, and are indeterminate until their causes and conditions ripen according to the law of causality. The entire world, or rather the “phenomenal world,” is brought about by the collective karma of all sentient beings’ eighth vijnana. In other words, all phenomena are manifestations of the very mind, the tathagatagarbha.
The Buddha taught that to live a healthy, prosperous, and long life, one’s “storehouse consciousness” must store the karmic seeds of longevity, and that to collect the karmic seeds of longevity, one must actively practice virtuous deeds, such as the ones cited below.
1. Refrain from creating the karma of killing, whether physically, verbally, or even just mentally, and dissuade others from entertaining thoughts of killing and harming others and from carrying these out.
2. Eliminate all thoughts or actions of committing suicide, and never deliberately incite anyone to take his or her own life due to debilitating illness.
3. Praise the wholesome and pure deed of not killing.
4. When you encounter others who think of committing the act of killing, teach them to become aware of their selfish thoughts and warn them of the karmic consequences of entertaining these.
5. If possible, save the innocent ones from being killed, either assisting them in protecting themselves or liberating them, including animals.
6. Provide consolation to sentient beings and help them overcome afflictions and the fear of death.
7. Develop a clear mind that is free of prejudice, and undertake acts with the purest intentions of helping those who are suffering and helping them attain happiness.
8. Cultivate the mindset of discarding afflictions and avoid generating selfish desires but genuinely wish others well.
9. Regularly offer food to the needy with the intent of feeding and saving them.
10. Express sincere repentance for any act of killing you have committed, and vow never to kill again.
The tathagatagarbha will store the aforementioned wholesome karmic seeds of each individual, and individuals will receive the retributive fruit of longevity for multiple lifetimes in the future when the condition matures.
As the saying goes, “Birds of the same feather flock together.” Have you ever noticed that human beings who tend to share the same preferences or have similar interests, attitudes, and values tend to gravitate toward each other and pursue similar goals in life? The phenomenon speaks for itself. From another perspective, according to the Yogacarabhumi-sastra, physical objects like homes or personal property are of “individual karma” while geographical features such as rivers and mountains are of “collective karma.” Multiple individuals’ karmas come together to form and condition the shared physical habitat in which sentient beings live.
As the tathagatagarbha (which stores the karmic seeds of individuals) will bring forth the formation of the universe according to the collective karma of sentient beings, individuals with similar dispositions and affections and with equal merits will be brought together to constitute a new planet or even as small as to be in one family. The residents of the other planets in the universe do not necessarily possess the same tendencies as the human beings who inhabit Earth do. That is why they form other planets together elsewhere, such as that inhabited by heavenly beings.
When the causes and conditions ripen, the karmic seeds stored in the tathagatagarbha will ripen according to the law of causality. Hence, the true reality of life will be brought forth by the eighth vijnana (tathagatagarbha), and the universe will be formed by sentient being’s eighth vijnana that have similar collective karmas.
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