The Medicine Buddha Sutra Demonstrates That Manas Possesses the Nature of Good and Evil

Original Text of the Sutra of the Medicine Buddha: During the period of the Semblance Dharma, there are sentient beings afflicted by various sufferings. They suffer from prolonged illnesses, becoming emaciated and weak, unable to eat or drink, with parched throats and lips. Everything appears dim before their eyes, and the signs of death manifest. Their parents, relatives, friends, and acquaintances weep and surround them. Yet, while their physical body lies in its original place, they see the messengers of Yama leading their consciousness to appear before the Dharma King Yama. However, all sentient beings possess an innate deity that records all their actions, whether sinful or meritorious, and presents the complete record to the Dharma King Yama. At that time, the king interrogates the person, calculates their deeds, and passes judgment based on their sins and merits.

Explanation: In the period of the Semblance Dharma, sentient beings have meager blessings. The seeds of evil karma planted in past lives and the present life ripen, trapping them in the retribution of evil karma. They lie ill for a long time, their bodies emaciated and weak, unable to eat, with dry mouths. Everything appears dim and gloomy, and the signs of death manifest. Their parents and family members weep and surround the body. Yet, while the patient's physical body lies ill in bed, their consciousness is escorted by the black and white impermanent ghosts to appear before King Yama. The patient's innate deity manifests all the sinful and meritorious karma they have created throughout their life and presents it to King Yama. At this time, King Yama interrogates the patient, judges the quantity of sinful and meritorious karma in their actions, determines their karmic retribution, and decides their destination.

All sentient beings possess an innate deity. This refers to the seventh consciousness, the manas (mind-root), the sovereign consciousness that has always existed and never perished. The impermanent ghosts who seize people also guide this sovereign consciousness, the manas, to King Yama. Before King Yama, the manas of every person automatically manifests all the meritorious and sinful actions they have committed in their lifetime. Because King Yama possesses supernatural powers, he knows with his mind all the various karmic actions the person has created, reviewing them swiftly as if watching images on a silver screen. After this, King Yama begins the judgment.

This demonstrates that it is the manas that creates sinful and meritorious karma, good and evil deeds. The judgment is of the manas. The consciousness (the sixth consciousness) from when the person was alive has long since perished and cannot follow to King Yama. What accompanies the manas is the temporarily arisen consciousness within the bardo body. This shows that the manas possesses the nature of good and evil; otherwise, how could good and evil karma arise? At this time, the consciousness has perished and is no longer functional. Even if it functions, it is merely a servant and assistant to the manas, aiding the manas in its tasks. King Yama does not concern himself with the consciousness but only seeks the manas to distinguish the sinful and meritorious karma and their retribution.

When a person dies or is half-dead or in a state of suspended animation, the consciousness almost ceases to function. Regardless of the circumstances, the manas is forever the sovereign of sentient beings, the sovereign consciousness. After death or suspended animation, the manas is pulled by karmic forces to appear before King Yama. After King Yama reviews the sinful and meritorious karma of the manas, if he sees that there remains a little unused merit and the person should not yet die, he returns the person's manas to their physical body in the human realm, and the person revives. Reviving signifies the manas returning to the physical body and then summoning the consciousness to resume activity.

King Yama judges the dead, knowing to seek the master of the dead, not the assistants or underlings. Debts have their masters; karma even more so has its master. Only the confused would seek subordinates, assistants, underlings, laborers, servants, or nannies. Therefore, the manas can create all kinds of good, evil, and neutral karma, possesses the nature of good and evil, and is endowed with mental factors (caitasika) of good and evil.