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

(31) Original text: 问。所有善有漏支。彼何故非学耶。答。堕流转故。若学所有善有漏法。彼与流转相违故。及用明为缘故非支。

Explanation: Question: Among the twelve links, why are the links that are wholesome yet defiled (sāsrava) not objects of training? Answer: Because wholesome defiled dharmas can still cause one to fall and transmigrate through birth and death. If all wholesome defiled dharmas were objects of training, that would contradict transmigration through birth and death; moreover, they would use illumination (vidyā) as their condition and thus would not be links. If illumination arises, it no longer belongs to the links of the twelve links of dependent origination. Therefore, it is said that among the twelve links there are no objects of training.

Original text: 问。预流果当言几支已断耶。答。一切一分。无全断者。如预流果。如是一来果亦尔。问。不还果当言几支已断耶。答。欲界一切。色无色界不定。问。阿罗汉当言几支已断耶。答。三界一切。

Explanation: Question: Of the twelve links, how many links has the stream-enterer (Srotaāpanna), the first fruit, severed? Answer: The stream-enterer has severed one portion of each of the twelve links; none of them has been severed in full. Like the stream-enterer, the once-returner (Sakṛdāgāmin), the second fruit, is also like this: each of the twelve links has been partially severed, with none severed in full.

Question: Of the twelve links, how many has the non-returner (Anāgāmin), the third fruit, severed? Answer: The non-returner has severed all the links belonging to the desire realm, while the links belonging to the form realm and the formless realm are indeterminate—some have been severed and some have not. Question: Of the twelve links, how many has the arhat severed? Answer: The arhat has severed all the links of the three realms.

All twelve links operate within the three realms and all belong to the links within the three realms. Only when the arhat has severed all dharmas of the three realms can he enter nirvāṇa without remainder (anupadhiśeṣa-nirvāṇa); then the twelve links are all severed without remainder. As for the non-returner of the third fruit, who possesses dhyāna at the level of the first dhyāna and above—that is, the meditative concentrations of the form realm and the formless realm—his mind no longer accords with the desire realm; he has severed the craving of the desire realm as well as ill will, and no longer engages in the dharmas of the desire realm. However, the dharmas of the form realm and the formless realm have not been completely severed; a portion still remains. As for how much of that portion remains, it varies from person to person. Therefore, the extent to which the links of the form realm and the formless realm have been severed is indeterminate.

Original text: 复次。于彼彼经中。由几种言说道理。说缘起耶。谓略说由六种言说道理。一由顺次第说。二由逆次第说。三由一分支说。四由具分支说。五由黑品说。六由白品说。

Explanation: Furthermore, in the various sūtras, from how many aspects of discourse is dependent origination expounded? Briefly speaking, there are six ways of expounding the dharma of dependent origination. The first is to expound dependent origination in accordance with the sequential order of the twelve links; the second is to expound dependent origination in reverse order of the twelve links; the third is to begin expounding from a single link and gradually extend to the other links; the fourth is to expound dependent origination from the perspective of the complete twelve links; the fifth is to expound dependent origination from the perspective of unwholesome dharmas; the sixth is to expound dependent origination from the perspective of wholesome dharmas.