Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra, Volume Ten (The Twelve Links of Dependent Origination)

(18) Original text: 复次建立有支有二种。一就胜分建立。谓取所摄受业。如前已说。二全分建立。谓业及识。乃至受所有种子。取所摄受。建立为有应知。

Explanation: There are two ways of establishing the link of existence (bhāva). One is to establish the existence of the three realms from the perspective of the preeminent link, which belongs to the karmic function grasped and appropriated by clinging (upādāna), as previously explained that clinging is one of the three conditions for existence. The second is to establish the existence of the three realms in an all-encompassing way, including the seeds of all karmic formations, the six consciousnesses, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, and feeling—all of which are grasped and appropriated by clinging—and thus there arises the existence of future lives. 

The transmigration through the six destinies is the fruit of clinging, and is the manifestation of the preeminent link of the existence of the three realms; this is the meaning of establishing existence from the perspective of the preeminent link. All karmic formations and karmic functions leave behind seeds: the activities of the six consciousnesses have seeds, the arising, abiding, changing, and ceasing of name-and-form have seeds, the functioning of the six sense bases has seeds, contact has seeds, and feeling also has seeds. These seeds lead to the appearance of existence in future lives, and these seeds also fall within the scope of existence. Because of existence, there are these links, and these links also fall within the scope of existence; this is the meaning of establishing existence in an all-encompassing way. 

Original text: 问。是诸有支。唯有次第。与行为缘。乃至老死。更有余业用耶。答。即此业用。及于各别所行境中。如其所应。所有业用当知。是名第二业用。 

Explanation: Question: Do these links of existence only sequentially serve as conditions for the link of formations (saṃskāra), and so on, up to old age and death, or are there other karmic functions as well? Answer: This karmic function of serving as a condition for formations and so on up to old age and death, as well as the corresponding karmic functions within each of the respective spheres in which they operate—all such karmic functions should be known as the second karmic function. The first karmic function is birth; only after birth can there be karmic functions such as formations, consciousness, name-and-form, and so on, up to old age and death, within the existence of the three realms. 

Original text: 问。无明唯与行为缘。亦与余支为缘耶。答。无明乃至，亦与老死为缘。前言唯与行为缘者。但说近缘义。如是所余。尽应当知。 

Explanation: Question: Does ignorance (avidyā) serve as a condition only for the link of formations, or does it also serve as a condition for the other links? Answer: Ignorance serves as a condition not only for the link of formations, but also for consciousness, name-and-form, the six sense bases, contact, feeling, craving, clinging, existence, and birth, up to and including old age and death; all eleven links operate because of ignorance. The earlier statement that ignorance serves as a condition for formations refers only to the meaning of the proximate condition. The remaining conditions mentioned afterward should also be known: for example, the operation of the six consciousnesses takes ignorance as its condition and creates defiled karmic formations; name-and-form takes ignorance as its condition and has defiled fruits; the six sense bases take ignorance as their condition and give rise to defiled contact; contact takes ignorance as its condition and gives rise to defiled feeling; feeling takes ignorance as its condition and gives rise to defiled craving; craving takes ignorance as its condition and gives rise to defiled grasping; grasping takes ignorance as its condition and gives rise to unlovely existence; existence takes ignorance as its condition and gives rise to defiled birth; and birth takes ignorance as its condition and gives rise to unlovely old age and death. 

Original text: 复次后支非前支缘。何以故。如为断后支故。勤作功用。断于前支。由前断故。后亦随断。非为断前故。勤作功用。断于后支。是故当知。唯此为彼缘。 

Explanation: In the twelve links, a later link is not the condition for an earlier link. Why is this said? Because in order to sever a later link, one must sever the earlier link; therefore one diligently applies effort and thereby severs the earlier link. Because the earlier link is severed, the later link is also severed accordingly. It is not the case that in order to sever an earlier link, one diligently applies effort to sever the later link. Therefore you should know that only the earlier link is the condition for the later link, and not that the later link is the condition for the earlier link.