Sūtra of the Āgama Oral Explanation of the Twelve Links of Dependent Origination

(Three) Original text: 十二因缘本从身十事。出身十事。七事从一。三事从四。七事从一者。杀盗淫。两舌恶口。妄言绮语。共从色为一。三事从四者。嫉嗔恚痴。从痛痒思想生死识。是十事合为五阴。便为十二因缘。地名痴行为盛阴。便作生死行。自种栽名为行。已有行便有识。受身生死。有识便有名色。 

Explanation: The twelve links of dependent origination originally manifest as ten phenomena on the body of the five aggregates. Seven of these phenomena manifest from the material form (rūpa) of the physical body, and three phenomena manifest from the four mental dharmas of feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness. Nāma-rūpa constitutes the five aggregates, and the ten phenomena on nāma-rūpa constitute the five aggregates. The seven phenomena are killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, divisive speech, harsh speech, frivolous speech, and false speech, all unified on the physical body; the three phenomena are jealousy, anger, and ignorance, which manifest from feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness. The ten phenomena combined constitute the five aggregates, which are the twelve links of dependent origination. Ignorance is likened to the earth; when there is mental activity, there is the five aggregates of clinging, and the five aggregates of clinging operate within ignorance. The karmic seeds of the five aggregates of clinging are born within the earth of ignorance and delusion, and thus there is mental activity; after mental activity arises, there are the six consciousnesses to undergo the birth and death of the body of the five aggregates, and with the six consciousnesses there is the arising of nāma-rūpa. 

Original text: 身复作十事。成已五阴。已有名色便有六入。复作盛阴。行种栽后当复受转相。因缘生死故名为因缘。身十事为十二因缘者。嫉为痴。嗔恚为生死。精疑为识。杀为名色。盗为六衰。淫为更。两舌为痛。妄言为爱。恶口为成。绮语为愿。生有无故为有十二因缘。 

Explanation: The physical body again performs ten kinds of actions; with the above ten phenomena present, it becomes the body of the five aggregates, and after nāma-rūpa appears there are the six sense bases. The six sense bases then further drive the bodily, verbal, and mental activities of the five aggregates; after seeds are planted, the operation of the body of the five aggregates continues in future lives, thereby becoming the causes and conditions of birth and death, and thus it is called the dharma of dependent origination. The ten kinds of actions performed by the physical body are precisely the twelve links of dependent origination: jealousy is ignorance; anger is birth and death; mental doubt is the six consciousnesses; the karmic action of killing is nāma-rūpa; the karmic action of stealing is the six sense bases; the karmic action of sexual desire is contact; the karmic action of divisive speech is feeling; the karmic action of false speech is craving; the karmic action of harsh speech accomplishes the five aggregates of clinging; the karmic action of frivolous speech is the action of aspiration, which enables existence in future lives; the existence or non-existence of life represents the twelve links of dependent origination. 

Original text: 何以故。淫为痴。嗔恚为生死。精疑为识。内三事为本。已有三事。便有七事。成五盛阴。嫉为五阴本故为疑。五阴行可意善。不可意嗔。便作生死精十事。外从身内意故。疑谓不分别白黑。不识生死故为识。道人欲断十二因缘。当先断身十事。便为痴。从痴五阴灭。 

Explanation: Why is this said? Sexual desire is ignorance; anger is birth and death; mental doubt is the six consciousnesses. These three internal matters are the root of the five aggregates; once there is this root, there will be the seven matters—killing, stealing, sexual misconduct, false speech, divisive speech, frivolous speech, and harsh speech—which accomplish the karmic actions of the five aggregates of clinging. Jealousy is the root of the actions of the five aggregates, and therefore belongs to the category of mental doubt. When the actions of the five aggregates are agreeable to the mind, they are wholesome; when disagreeable, anger arises; thus the ten karmic actions of birth and death are created. External dharmas manifest from the physical body, reflecting one's own mental intention; mental doubt means the mind cannot distinguish black from white, right from wrong, and that which cannot discern birth and death is the mind of the six consciousnesses. If a practitioner wishes to sever the twelve links of dependent origination, he should first sever the ten karmic actions on the body of the five aggregates; thereby ignorance is severed, and once ignorance and delusion are severed, the body of the five aggregates will cease entirely.