Yogācārabhūmi Śāstra, Volume 10 (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 and defiled (sāsrava) not training grounds (śaikṣa)? Answer: Because wholesome defiled dharmas can also cause one to fall and transmigrate through birth and death. If all wholesome defiled dharmas were training grounds, they would contradict the transmigration of birth and death, and would also break through ignorance and give rise to knowledge (vidyā); once there is knowledge, they no longer belong to the links of the twelve links of dependent origination. Therefore it is said that among the twelve links there are no training grounds.

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 srotāpanna of the first fruit severed? Answer: The srotāpanna has severed a portion of each of the twelve links, but has not completely severed any of them. Like the srotāpanna, the sakṛdāgāmin of the second fruit is the same: a portion of each of the twelve links has been severed, but none has been completely severed.

Question: Of the twelve links, how many links has the anāgāmin of the third fruit severed? Answer: The anāgāmin has severed all the links belonging to the desire realm; of the links belonging to the form realm and the formless realm, some have been severed and some have not. Question: Of the twelve links, how many links 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 of the three realms. Only when the arhat has severed all dharmas of the three realms can he enter Nirvāṇa without remainder (Anupadhiśeṣa-nirvāṇa), and then the twelve links are all severed without remainder. The anāgāmin of the third fruit possesses meditative concentration (dhyāna) of the first dhyāna and above, that is, the form-realm and formless-realm concentrations; his mind does not accord with the desire realm, he has severed the greed of the desire realm as well as ill will, and no longer engages in desire-realm dharmas. However, the dharmas of the form realm and formless realm have not been completely severed, and a portion still remains; as for how much of that portion there is, it varies from person to person. Therefore, the extent to which the links of the form realm and formless realm have been severed is not fixed.

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 taught? Broadly speaking, there are six ways of teaching the dharma of dependent origination. The first is teaching dependent origination following the sequential order of the twelve links; the second is teaching dependent origination in reverse of the sequential order of the twelve links; the third is beginning the teaching from a single link and gradually expanding to the other links; the fourth is teaching dependent origination from the totality of the twelve links; the fifth is teaching dependent origination from the perspective of unwholesome dharmas; the sixth is teaching dependent origination from the perspective of wholesome dharmas.