唯識三十頌 偈十六 意識常現·五位無心
連意識都會斷——五個沒有心的時候，誰把線接上？
前五識像水上的波，起的時候少；第六意識卻「常現起」——它「自能思慮·內外門轉·不藉多緣」，幾乎一直在，最容易被誤認作『那個一直在的我』。
但這一首偏指出：就連這條最連綿的線，也有五個完全斷掉的地方——「五位無心」：生無想天·無心二定（無想定·滅盡定）·極重睡眠·極重悶絕。在這五處，前六識（連意識）全斷。連意識都會斷，它就不是那個常住的我。
關鍵在斷處：六識全斷了，醒後、出定後又怎麼接得上？《成唯識論》答：「此顯六識斷已，後時依本識中自種還起」——靠本識（阿賴耶）裡的自種子再生。所以五位無心非但不否定識，反而正是阿賴耶非有不可的鐵證：能跨過無心空檔、把斷線重新接上的，唯有那條從不斷的本識。偈四說祂「恒轉如瀑流」——波會滅、線會斷，唯瀑流不斷。
至此第三能變（性相·心所·現起分位）圓滿，三能變全標；而『依本識自種還起』一句，已把腳跟釘回初能變。
Even the mind-consciousness is cut off — in five mindless moments, who rejoins the thread?
The first five consciousnesses are like waves, arising seldom; the sixth, mind-consciousness, "arises constantly" — it "can think of itself · turns by inner and outer gates · does not depend on many conditions," present almost without break, and so the easiest to mistake for "the self that is always there." Yet this verse points out: even this most continuous thread has five places where it is wholly cut off — the "five mindless states": birth in the no-thought heaven · the two mindless absorptions (no-thought and cessation) · extreme sleep · extreme swoon. In these five, the first six consciousnesses are all severed. If even the mind-consciousness is cut off, it is not the constant self.
The crux is at the cut: with the six wholly severed, how is the thread rejoined on waking or on emerging from absorption? The CWL answers: "this shows that, the six consciousnesses having been cut off, they later re-arise from their own seeds in the root consciousness" — revived from the seeds within the ālaya. So the five mindless states, far from denying consciousness, are exactly the conclusive proof that the ālaya is indispensable: only that ever-unbroken root consciousness can span the mindless gap and rejoin the severed thread. Verse 4 called it "ever-turning like a torrent" — waves subside, the thread breaks; only the torrent is unbroken.
With this, the third transformer (nature-and-mark · mental factors · arising-condition) is complete, all three transformers set out; and the line "re-arising from the root consciousness's own seeds" has pinned the heel back to the first transformer.
原典＝玄奘譯《唯識三十論頌》世親菩薩造（T31n1586）。釋論揉頌見《成唯識論》（T31n1585）。
本頌（玄奘 T31n1586）〔T31n1586 0060c07–08〕
意識常現起，除生無想天，
及無心二定，睡眠與悶絕。
偈十六明意識現起分位：第六意識所藉緣常具，故恒常現起；唯除五位無心——生無想天·無心二定（無想定·滅盡定）·極重睡眠·極重悶絕，於此五位前六識皆斷。 科判位：唯識相 · 廣辯 · 第三能變·六識現起分位（偈十五–十六）之意識分位。至此第三能變（偈八–十六：性相·心所·現起分位）圓滿，三能變全標。
The canonical text stands in Chinese only. This edition renders the essence, the plain reading, the exposition and the apparatus into English — never the sūtra itself. Switch to 漢讀本 or 並行雙語 above to read it.
本頌
意識常現起，除生無想天， 及無心二定，睡眠與悶絕。
白話
上一首講前五識『起的時候少』，這一首講第六意識——它正好相反，「常現起」，幾乎一直都在。
為什麼意識能常在？《成唯識論》說：第六意識「自能思慮」，又能「內、外門轉」（對外境、對內境都轉得起來），而且「不藉多緣」——不像前五識要等那麼多外緣湊齊。所以它所靠的緣幾乎沒有不具足的時候，於是幾乎一直現起。
但有五個例外——這五個地方，連意識都斷掉，叫「五位無心」：
- 「生無想天」：修無想定的人，靠『厭離粗想』之力，生到無想天，把不恒行的心和心所（前六識這一類）壓伏，以「想」滅為首，所以叫無想天。生在那裡的時候，前六識都斷。
- 「無心二定」：指「無想定」和「滅盡定」這兩種定。入這兩種定時，六識都沒有，所以叫「無心」。
- 「睡眠」（極重）：指極重的睡眠——疲累等緣引起的身體狀態，把前六識壓得都不現行。（注意：不是淺眠做夢，是沉到連意識都斷的極重睡眠。）
- 「悶絕」（極重）：指極重的悶絕（昏厥）——風熱等緣引起的身體狀態，也把六識壓得不現行。
除了這五位，意識都恒常現起。
這裡有一個關鍵： 五位無心時，前六識（連意識）全斷了——那斷了之後，怎麼又能再起來？《成唯識論》說：「此顯六識斷已，後時依本識中自種還起」——六識斷掉以後，是靠『本識（阿賴耶）裡的自種子』再生起來的。所以這五個「斷」的時候，正好證明：在六識全斷的當口，還有一個沒斷的本識（阿賴耶）撐著，六識才能斷而復續。
（講到這裡，第三能變——也就是六識——從性相、心所到現起分位，全講完了。加上前面初能變的阿賴耶、第二能變的末那，三能變就全部標出來了。）
The verse
意識常現起，除生無想天， 及無心二定，睡眠與悶絕。
the mind-consciousness arises constantly, except when born in the no-thought heaven, in the two mindless absorptions, in sleep and in swoon.
In plain words
The last verse said the first five consciousnesses "arise seldom." This verse takes up the sixth, mind-consciousness — and it is just the reverse: it "arises constantly," present almost all the time.
Why can the mind-consciousness be constant? The CWL says: the sixth consciousness "can think of itself" and can "turn by inner and outer gates" (it engages both outer objects and inner ones), and moreover "does not depend on many conditions" — unlike the first five, which must wait for so many outer conditions to gather. So the conditions it rests on are almost never incomplete, and thus it arises almost without break.
But there are five exceptions — five places where even the mind-consciousness is cut off, called the "five mindless states":
- "Born in the no-thought heaven": one who cultivates the no-thought absorption, by the force of "aversion to coarse ideation," is born in the no-thought heaven, suppressing the non-constant mind and mental factors (the first six consciousnesses), with "ideation"-cessation foremost, hence "no-thought heaven." While born there, the first six consciousnesses are all cut off.
- "The two mindless absorptions": the "no-thought absorption" and the "cessation absorption." Entering these two, the six consciousnesses are absent, hence "mindless."
- "Sleep" (extreme): extreme sleep — a bodily state induced by exhaustion and the like, suppressing the first six consciousnesses so none operates. (Note: not light dreaming sleep, but sleep so deep that even the mind-consciousness is cut off.)
- "Swoon" (extreme): extreme swoon (fainting) — a bodily state induced by wind-heat and the like, likewise suppressing the six consciousnesses.
Except for these five, the mind-consciousness arises constantly.
Here is a crucial point: in the five mindless states, the first six consciousnesses (the mind-consciousness included) are wholly cut off — so once cut off, how can they arise again? The CWL says: "this shows that, the six consciousnesses having been cut off, they later re-arise from their own seeds in the root consciousness." The six, once severed, are revived from the "seeds in the root consciousness (ālaya)." So these five "cut-off" moments are precisely the proof: at the very point where the six consciousnesses are wholly severed, there is still an unsevered root consciousness (ālaya) sustaining things, so that the six can be cut off and yet continued.
(With this, the third transformer — the six consciousnesses — is fully expounded, from nature-and-mark through mental factors to arising-condition. Together with the ālaya of the first transformer and the manas of the second, all three transformers are now set out.)
五識說過了，意識為何單獨拿出來講
上一首說前五識像水上的波，隨緣才起、起的時候少。這裡有個追問：那第六意識呢？我們最切身的經驗，就是這個『一直在想』的意識流——它好像從早到晚不曾斷過。它也是隨緣才起、起的時候少嗎？
《成唯識論》的答案是：不一樣。意識「自能思慮，內、外門轉，不藉多緣」，所以「唯除五位，常能現起，故斷時少，現起時多」（〔T31n1585 0037b01–03〕）。前五識要等作意·根·境一大堆外緣，意識卻幾乎不缺緣，所以幾乎一直在。正因為它太連綿，最容易被誤認作『那個一直在的我』。
五個地方，連這條最連綿的線也斷
但這一首偏要指出：就連意識，也有五個完全斷掉的地方——「五位無心」。
《成唯識論》一一點明：無想天——修無想定者，「厭麁想力，生彼天中……想滅為首」，故「六轉識於彼皆斷」（〔T31n1585 0037b04–06〕）；無心二定——「謂無想、滅盡定，俱無六識，故名無心」（〔0037b24–25〕）；極重睡眠與悶絕——「謂有極重睡眠、悶絕，令前六識皆不現行」（〔0038a22–23〕）。注意這裡的睡眠不是淺眠做夢，是沉到連意識都不行的極重位；悶絕也是昏厥到六識俱斷。
這一刀切下去，『有一個從不間斷的能知之我』就站不住了。你以為意識是條不斷的線，可它在無想天、在二定、在極重睡眠、在昏厥——五個地方，整條線都斷。連最連綿的意識都會斷，它就不可能是那個常住不變的我。
線斷了，誰把它接上：這正是阿賴耶非有不可的地方
那麼真正的問題來了：五位無心時，前六識全斷——斷了之後，怎麼又接得起來？ 醒過來、出定、捨無想天，意識又現了，它從哪裡再生？
《成唯識論》答得斬釘截鐵：「此顯六識斷已，後時依本識中自種還起」（〔T31n1585 0038b03–04〕）——六識斷掉以後，是依『本識（阿賴耶）中的自種子』再生起來的。
這一句，把這一首從「破我」推到「立阿賴耶」。設想：若除了六識再無別的識，那五位無心時心識全斷，斷處一片空白，醒後憑什麼接續前生的種習、認得舊事？正因為在六識全斷的當口，還有一個不在「五位無心」之列、念念不斷的本識（阿賴耶）撐著——祂持著六識的種子，過了無心位，再依種還起。所以五位無心非但不否定識，反而正是阿賴耶非有不可的鐵證：能跨過無心的空檔、把斷掉的線重新接上的，唯有那條從不斷的本識。本論偈四早說阿賴耶「恒轉如瀑流」——五識是水上時起時滅的波，意識是條較長但仍會斷的線，唯獨底下那條瀑流（本識），跨五位而不曾斷。
三能變到此全標
講到這一首，第三能變（六識）——偈八的性相（了境）、偈九至十四的五十一心所、偈十五至十六的現起分位（五識濤波·意識五位）——整個講完了。加上初能變的阿賴耶（偈二–四）、第二能變的末那（偈五–七），三能變全部標出。下面唯識相的「廣辯」將由「能變」轉向「唯識無境」（偈十七），正面立宗。而這一首留下的那句「依本識中自種還起」，已經先把腳跟釘回了初能變——識的相續、生死的接續，到頭來都繫在那條從不斷的本識上。
The five consciousnesses have been treated — why take up the mind-consciousness on its own?
The last verse said the first five consciousnesses are like waves upon water, arising only by conditions, arising seldom. A probing question follows: and the sixth, mind-consciousness? Our most intimate experience is this ever-thinking stream of mind — it seems never to break from morning to night. Does it too arise only by conditions, arising seldom?
The CWL's answer is: not so. The mind-consciousness "can think of itself, turns by inner and outer gates, does not depend on many conditions," so "except in the five states it can arise constantly, cut off seldom, arising often" (〔T31n1585 0037b01–03〕). The first five wait on a crowd of conditions — attention·faculty·object; the mind-consciousness scarcely lacks a condition, so it is almost always present. Precisely because it is so continuous, it is the easiest to mistake for "the self that is always there."
In five places, even this most continuous thread is severed
Yet this verse insists on pointing out: even the mind-consciousness has five places where it is wholly cut off — the "five mindless states."
The CWL names them one by one: the no-thought heaven — one who cultivates the no-thought absorption, "by the force of aversion to coarse ideation, born in that heaven … ideation-cessation foremost," so "the six evolving consciousnesses are all cut off there" (〔T31n1585 0037b04–06〕); the two mindless absorptions — "the no-thought and the cessation absorptions, both without the six consciousnesses, hence mindless" (〔0037b24–25〕); extreme sleep and swoon — "extreme sleep and swoon, suppressing the first six consciousnesses so none operates" (〔0038a22–23〕). Note the sleep here is not light dreaming sleep but the extreme state where even the mind-consciousness fails; swoon too is fainting deep enough that the six are all cut off.
This cut undoes "there is an unbroken knowing-self." You suppose the mind-consciousness an unbroken thread, yet in the no-thought heaven, in the two absorptions, in extreme sleep, in fainting — five places — the whole thread is severed. If even the most continuous mind-consciousness is cut off, it cannot be the constant, changeless self.
When the thread is cut, who rejoins it: this is exactly where the ālaya is indispensable
So the real question arises: in the five mindless states the first six consciousnesses are wholly cut off — once cut off, how is the thread rejoined? On waking, on emerging from absorption, on leaving the no-thought heaven, the mind-consciousness appears again — from where is it reborn?
The CWL answers without hesitation: "this shows that, the six consciousnesses having been cut off, they later re-arise from their own seeds in the root consciousness" (〔T31n1585 0038b03–04〕) — the six, severed, are revived from the "seeds within the root consciousness (ālaya)."
This single line carries the verse from "breaking the self" to "establishing the ālaya." Suppose there were no consciousness besides the six: then in the five mindless states the whole mind would be severed, the gap a blank, and on waking, by what would one continue the seed-habits of the prior moment, recognize old things? It is precisely because, at the point where the six are wholly cut off, there remains a root consciousness (ālaya) — not on the list of "mindless states," flowing on moment by moment — that holds the seeds of the six, passes through the mindless interval, and re-arises from the seeds. So the five mindless states, far from denying consciousness, are exactly the conclusive proof that the ālaya is indispensable: only that ever-unbroken root consciousness can span the mindless gap and rejoin the severed thread. Verse 4 of this treatise already said the ālaya is "ever-turning like a torrent" — the five consciousnesses are waves rising and subsiding upon the water, the mind-consciousness a longer thread that still breaks; only the torrent beneath (the root consciousness) spans the five states unbroken.
With this, all three transformers are set out
By this verse, the third transformer (the six consciousnesses) — its nature-and-mark (verse 8, discerning objects), its fifty-one mental factors (verses 9–14), its arising-condition (verses 15–16, the five consciousnesses as waves, the mind-consciousness with its five states) — is wholly expounded. Together with the ālaya of the first transformer (verses 2–4) and the manas of the second (verses 5–7), all three transformers are set out. The "detailed exposition" of the characteristic of Consciousness-Only now turns from "transformers" to "Consciousness-Only without object" (verse 17), establishing the thesis head-on. And the line this verse leaves — "re-arising from its own seeds in the root consciousness" — has already pinned the heel back to the first transformer: the continuity of consciousness, the relinking across birth-and-death, rest in the end upon that ever-unbroken root consciousness.
考據Apparatus
本偈明意識現起分位：第六意識所藉緣常具，故恒現起；唯除五位無心（無想天·無想定·滅盡定·睡眠·悶絕），於此前六識皆斷。其釋論《成唯識論》卷七釋之。至此第三能變（偈八–十六）圓滿。
一、科判定位
| 科判系統 | 此偈之位 |
|---|---|
| 護法略標（玄奘 T1586 頌本卷首·主錨） | 唯識相 → 廣辯 → 第三能變 → 六識現起分位（偈十五–十六）→ 意識分位。〔T31n1586 0060a21–24〕 |
| 成唯識論 釋文科段 | 意識常現起·所藉緣無時不具·唯除五位無心（無想天·無想定·滅盡定·睡眠·悶絕）（卷七） |
第三能變（六識·偈八–十六）：性相（偈八）·心所別釋（偈九–十四）·現起分位（偈十五五識·十六意識）——至此圓滿。前明初能變（偈二–四）·第二能變（偈五–七），合三能變全標。
二、古漢義理平行
《轉識論》T1587 僅作古漢義理平行，不作世親造、同本異譯或逐頌校本。
| 文本 | 逐字 | 出處 |
|---|---|---|
| 玄奘 T1586（本頌） | 意識常現起，除生無想天，及無心二定，睡眠與悶絕。 | T31n1586 0060c07–08 |
| 成唯識論 T1585（揉頌） | 「意識常現起，除生無想天，及無心二定、睡眠與悶絕。」 | T31n1585 0037a15–16 |
| 真諦《轉識論》T1587 | 問：此意識於何處不起？答：離無想定及無想天、熟眠不夢、醉悶、絕心、暫死，離此六處餘處恒有。 | T31n1587 0062b17–20 |
義理平行所見：玄奘本頌與成唯識論揉頌唯標點小異（本頌「二定，睡眠」一逗，揉頌「二定、睡眠」一頓），文同。真諦《轉識論》明意識『六處不起』（無想定·無想天·熟眠不夢·醉悶·絕心·暫死），與玄奘成唯識論「五位無心」大同；真諦別出「暫死」一處，成唯識論則判正死生「即悶絕攝」（最極悶絕位）——同一義之開合。
三、唯識義之釋據（眼）
（一） 意識常現·唯除五位——〔T31n1585 0037a26–b03〕：
第六意識雖亦麁動，而所藉緣無時不具，由違緣故，有時不起。〔T31n1585 0037a25–27〕
……〔第六意識〕自能思慮，內、外門轉，不藉多緣。唯除五位，常能現起，故斷時少，現起時多，由斯不說此隨緣現。〔T31n1585 0037b01–03〕
（二） 五位無心各釋——〔T31n1585 0037b03–0038a27〕：
五位者何？「生無想」等。〔T31n1585 0037b03–04〕
無想天：無想天者，謂修彼定，厭麁想力，生彼天中，違不恒行心及心所，想滅為首，名無想天。故六轉識於彼皆斷。〔T31n1585 0037b04–06〕
無心二定：「及無心二定」者，謂無想、滅盡定，俱無六識，故名無心。〔T31n1585 0037b24–25〕
睡眠與悶絕：「睡眠與悶絕」者，謂有極重睡眠、悶絕，令前六識皆不現行。〔疲極等緣所引身位，違前六識，故名極重睡眠……風熱等緣所引身位，亦違六識，故名極重悶絕〕除斯五位，意識恒起。〔T31n1585 0038a22–27〕
（三） 五位斷已·依本識自種還起——〔T31n1585 0038b03–04〕：
此顯六識斷已，後時依本識中自種還起。〔T31n1585 0038b03–04〕
→ 第六意識所藉緣常具（自能思慮·內外門轉·不藉多緣），故恒現起，唯五位無心暫斷。五位中前六識俱滅，而「依本識中自種還起」——六識斷而復生，必依本識（阿賴耶）所持自種為橋；此即五位無心成立阿賴耶之證（六識非結生相續識，能跨無心位者唯本識）。 → 承衍：本論回扣 v.2–4（初能變阿賴耶·恒轉如瀑流，跨五位無心而不斷）· 百法（六識·五位無心之心不相應行：無想定#75·滅盡定#76·無想報#77）。
四、諸家異釋（古德·標宗）
（一） 無想天『有無轉識』之辯——《成唯識論》並陳三說：「有義：彼天常無六識，聖教說彼無轉識故」／「有義：彼天將命終位，要起轉識然後命終……然說彼無轉識等者，依長時說，非謂全無」／「有義：生時亦有轉識，彼中有必起潤生煩惱故」。〔T31n1585 0037b06–22〕
（二） 正死生「即悶絕攝」之辯——《成唯識論》：「正死、生時亦無意識，何故但說五位不行？」並陳，末判：「應說死、生即悶絕攝，彼是最極悶絕位故」〔T31n1585 0038a27–b02〕——真諦別立「暫死」，成唯識論則攝入悶絕。〔諸說盡在釋論糅文。〕
五、術語
| 漢 | 古德傳梵（羅馬字·發音輔助） | 唯識精確義 |
|---|---|---|
| 意識 | mano-vijñāna | 第六轉識；自能思慮·內外門轉·不藉多緣，故恒現起〔0037b01〕 |
| 無想天 | āsaṃjñika | 修無想定·厭麁想力·生彼天·想滅為首；六轉識於彼皆斷〔0037b04〕 |
| 無心二定 | — | 無想定（asaṃjñi-samāpatti）·滅盡定（nirodha-samāpatti），俱無六識故名無心〔0037b24〕 |
| 睡眠（極重） | middha | 疲極等緣所引身位，違前六識〔0038a22〕 |
| 悶絕（極重） | mūrcchā | 風熱等緣所引身位，亦違六識〔0038a25〕 |
六、譬喻·修辭
本偈明意識分位，喻較疏；修辭在「五位無心」之列舉與『依本識自種還起』之斷而復續。真諦《轉識論》於此處別有二喻可參：明七識依阿梨耶而起，「如眾像影俱現鏡中，亦如眾浪同集一水」〔T31n1587 0062b16–17〕——鏡像喻七識同現一識體、眾浪同水喻轉識同依本識（與本論 v.15「濤波依水」同取水喻）。
七、互讀
- 三十頌 v.15：五識隨緣現·濤波依水——本偈意識（常現·除五位）與前偈五識（起少不起多）相對，合明六識現起分位。
- 三十頌 v.2–4：初能變阿賴耶·恒轉如瀑流——本偈五位無心，正賴本識（阿賴耶）跨無心位而不斷、斷已依其自種還起，成立阿賴耶之證。
- 三十頌 v.8：第三能變·了境為性相——本偈即第三能變現起分位之收結；至此三能變（初·二·三）全標。
- 百法明門論：心不相應行之無想定（#75）·滅盡定（#76）·無想報（#77）——本偈五位無心之百法位。
八、校本定位
- 玄奘 T1586（底本）：偈十六〔T31n1586 0060c07–08〕。
- 成唯識論 T1585（釋論骨幹·卷七）：意識所藉緣無時不具·遇違緣有時不起〔0037a26–27〕· 自能思慮·唯除五位〔0037b01–03〕· 五位者何〔0037b03〕· 無想天〔0037b04–06〕· 無想天有無轉識三說〔0037b06–22〕· 無心二定〔0037b24–25〕· 睡眠與悶絕〔0038a22–27〕· 正死生即悶絕攝辯〔0038a27–b02〕· 六識斷已依本識自種還起〔0038b03–04〕。
- 真諦《轉識論》T1587（古漢義理平行）：意識六處不起〔0062b17–20〕· 鏡像·眾浪喻〔0062b16–17〕。
- 窺基《成唯識論述記》T1830：意識常現與五位無心、無想天諍、死生攝悶絕〔T43n1830 0476b19–0484b23〕。
This verse states the arising-condition of the mind-consciousness: the sixth consciousness, its conditions ever-complete, arises constantly — except in the five mindless states (the no-thought heaven · no-thought absorption · cessation absorption · sleep · swoon), where the first six consciousnesses are all cut off. The CWL fascicle 7 expounds it. With this the third transformer (verses 8–16) is complete.
1 · Sectioning (科判定位)
| Scheme | Placement of this verse |
|---|---|
| 護法 brief statement (head of T1586 verse-text · primary anchor) | Characteristic of Consciousness-Only → detailed exposition → third transformer → arising-conditions of the six consciousnesses (verses 15–16) → the mind-consciousness condition. 〔T31n1586 0060a21–24〕 |
| CWL exegetical段 | the mind-consciousness arises constantly · its conditions are never not-complete · except in the five mindless states (no-thought heaven · no-thought absorption · cessation absorption · sleep · swoon) (fasc. 7) |
The third transformer (six consciousnesses · verses 8–16): nature-and-mark (verse 8) · the mental factors detailed (verses 9–14) · arising-condition (verse 15 the five consciousnesses · verse 16 the mind-consciousness) — complete here. With the first transformer (verses 2–4) and the second (verses 5–7), all three transformers are now set out.
2 · Ancient-Chinese thematic parallels (古漢義理平行)
T1587 is used only as an ancient-Chinese thematic parallel, not as evidence of Vasubandhu authorship, a common source text, or a verse-by-verse variant recension.
| Text | Verbatim | Loc |
|---|---|---|
| Xuanzang T1586 (root verse) | 意識常現起，除生無想天，及無心二定，睡眠與悶絕。 | T31n1586 0060c07–08 |
| 成唯識論 T1585 (redacted verse) | 「意識常現起，除生無想天，及無心二定、睡眠與悶絕。」 | T31n1585 0037a15–16 |
| Paramārtha 《轉識論》 T1587 | 問：此意識於何處不起？答：離無想定及無想天、熟眠不夢、醉悶、絕心、暫死，離此六處餘處恒有。 | T31n1587 0062b17–20 |
What the thematic parallel shows: Xuanzang's root verse and the CWL redaction differ only in punctuation (root "二定，睡眠" one comma, redaction "二定、睡眠" one enumeration-mark), the wording identical. Paramārtha's 《轉識論》 states the mind-consciousness "does not arise in six places" (no-thought absorption · no-thought heaven · dreamless deep sleep · drunken swoon · the cut-off mind · brief death), broadly the same as Xuanzang's CWL "five mindless states"; Paramārtha lists "brief death" separately, where the CWL judges proper death-and-birth to be "subsumed under swoon" (the most extreme swoon-state) — the same point opened or folded.
3 · The doctrinal grounding in the commentary (釋據 · the eye)
(i) The mind-consciousness arises constantly · except in the five states — 〔T31n1585 0037a26–b03〕:
第六意識雖亦麁動，而所藉緣無時不具，由違緣故，有時不起。〔T31n1585 0037a25–27〕
……〔第六意識〕自能思慮，內、外門轉，不藉多緣。唯除五位，常能現起，故斷時少，現起時多，由斯不說此隨緣現。〔T31n1585 0037b01–03〕
(ii) The five mindless states, each glossed — 〔T31n1585 0037b03–0038a27〕:
五位者何？「生無想」等。〔T31n1585 0037b03–04〕
No-thought heaven: 無想天者，謂修彼定，厭麁想力，生彼天中，違不恒行心及心所，想滅為首，名無想天。故六轉識於彼皆斷。〔T31n1585 0037b04–06〕
The two mindless absorptions: 「及無心二定」者，謂無想、滅盡定，俱無六識，故名無心。〔T31n1585 0037b24–25〕
Sleep and swoon: 「睡眠與悶絕」者，謂有極重睡眠、悶絕，令前六識皆不現行。〔疲極等緣所引身位，違前六識，故名極重睡眠……風熱等緣所引身位，亦違六識，故名極重悶絕〕除斯五位，意識恒起。〔T31n1585 0038a22–27〕
(iii) Cut off, then re-arising from the root consciousness's own seeds — 〔T31n1585 0038b03–04〕:
此顯六識斷已，後時依本識中自種還起。〔T31n1585 0038b03–04〕
→ The sixth consciousness has its conditions ever-complete (able to think of itself · turning by inner and outer gates · not dependent on many conditions), so it arises constantly, cut off only briefly in the five mindless states. In these five the first six consciousnesses all cease, yet they "re-arise from their own seeds in the root consciousness" — the six cut off and then revived must bridge across by the seeds held in the root consciousness (ālaya); this is the five mindless states' proof of the ālaya (the six consciousnesses are not the relinking-and-continuing consciousness; only the root consciousness can span the mindless interval). → Further connections: this treatise loops back to vv.2–4 (the first transformer, the ālaya · "ever-turning like a torrent," spanning the five mindless states unbroken) · 百法 (the non-associated formations of the five mindless states: no-thought absorption #75 · cessation absorption #76 · no-thought retribution #77).
4 · Variant readings of the masters (諸家異釋 · standard-setting)
(i) Whether evolving consciousness is present in the no-thought heaven — the CWL lays out three positions: "有義：彼天常無六識，聖教說彼無轉識故" / "有義：彼天將命終位，要起轉識然後命終……然說彼無轉識等者，依長時說，非謂全無" / "有義：生時亦有轉識，彼中有必起潤生煩惱故". 〔T31n1585 0037b06–22〕
(ii) Whether proper death-and-birth is "subsumed under swoon" — the CWL: "正死、生時亦無意識，何故但說五位不行？" and concludes: "應說死、生即悶絕攝，彼是最極悶絕位故" 〔T31n1585 0038a27–b02〕 — Paramārtha sets up "brief death" separately, the CWL folds it into swoon. 〔All positions lie within the commentary's redaction.〕
5 · Terminology (術語)
| 漢 | Masters'-transmitted Skt. (pronunciation aid) | Yogācāra precise sense |
|---|---|---|
| 意識 | mano-vijñāna | the sixth evolving consciousness; able to think of itself · turning by inner and outer gates · not dependent on many conditions, hence arising constantly 〔0037b01〕 |
| 無想天 | āsaṃjñika | by cultivating the no-thought absorption · the force of aversion to coarse ideation · born in that heaven · ideation-cessation foremost; the six evolving consciousnesses all cut off there 〔0037b04〕 |
| 無心二定 | — | the no-thought absorption (asaṃjñi-samāpatti) · the cessation absorption (nirodha-samāpatti), both without the six consciousnesses, hence "mindless" 〔0037b24〕 |
| 睡眠（極重） | middha | a bodily state induced by exhaustion etc., counter to the first six consciousnesses 〔0038a22〕 |
| 悶絕（極重） | mūrcchā | a bodily state induced by wind-heat etc., likewise counter to the six consciousnesses 〔0038a25〕 |
6 · Simile and rhetoric (譬喻·修辭)
This verse states the mind-consciousness's arising-condition; similes are sparse. The rhetoric lies in the enumeration of the "five mindless states" and the "re-arising from the root consciousness's own seeds" — cut off, then continued. Paramārtha's 《轉識論》 has two further figures worth noting here, where it shows the seven consciousnesses arising upon the ālaya: "如眾像影俱現鏡中，亦如眾浪同集一水" 〔T31n1587 0062b16–17〕 — the mirror-images figuring the seven consciousnesses all appearing in one consciousness-substance, the many-waves-in-one-water figuring the evolving consciousnesses all depending on the root consciousness (the same water-figure as this treatise's verse 15 "waves upon water").
7 · Cross-readings (互讀)
- 三十頌 v.15: the five consciousnesses arising by condition · waves upon water — this verse's mind-consciousness (constant · except the five) set against the previous verse's five consciousnesses (arising seldom, absent often), together stating the six consciousnesses' arising-condition.
- 三十頌 v.2–4: the first transformer, the ālaya · "ever-turning like a torrent" — this verse's five mindless states rest precisely on the root consciousness (ālaya) spanning the mindless interval unbroken, and re-arising from its own seeds after the cut-off, a proof of the ālaya.
- 三十頌 v.8: the third transformer · discerning-objects by nature-and-mark — this verse closes the third transformer's arising-condition; with this all three transformers (first·second·third) are set out.
- 百法明門論: the non-associated formations no-thought absorption (#75) · cessation absorption (#76) · no-thought retribution (#77) — the hundred-dharma placement of this verse's five mindless states.
8 · Manuscript loci (校本定位)
- Xuanzang T1586 (base): verse 16 〔T31n1586 0060c07–08〕.
- 成唯識論 T1585 (commentary backbone · fasc. 7): the mind-consciousness's supporting conditions are never incomplete · obstructing conditions sometimes prevent its arising 〔0037a26–27〕 · able to think of itself · except the five states 〔0037b01–03〕 · what are the five states 〔0037b03〕 · no-thought heaven 〔0037b04–06〕 · the three positions on evolving consciousness in the no-thought heaven 〔0037b06–22〕 · the two mindless absorptions 〔0037b24–25〕 · sleep and swoon 〔0038a22–27〕 · the death-and-birth-subsumed-under-swoon debate 〔0038a27–b02〕 · the six cut off then re-arising from the root consciousness's own seeds 〔0038b03–04〕.
- 真諦《轉識論》 T1587 (ancient-Chinese thematic parallel): the mind-consciousness does not arise in six places 〔0062b17–20〕 · the mirror·waves simile 〔0062b16–17〕.
- 窺基《成唯識論述記》 T1830: the constantly arising mind-consciousness, five mindless states, no-thought-heaven dispute, and death/birth subsumed under swoon 〔T43n1830 0476b19–0484b23〕.