[29] That Açvaghoṣa’s conception of the Âlaya varies with the view here presented may be familiar to readers of his _Awakening of Faith_. This is one of the most abstruse problems in the philosophy of Mahâyâna Buddhism, and there are several divergent theories concerning its nature, attributes, activities, etc. In a work like this, it is impossible to give even a general statement of those controversies, however interesting they may be to students of the history of intellectual development in India. The Âlayavijñâna, to use the phraseology of Samkhya philosophy, is a composition, so to speak, of the Soul (_puruṣa_) and Primordial Matter (_prakṛti_). It is the Soul, so far as it is neutral and indifferent to all those phenomenal manifestations, that are going on within as well as without us. It is Primordial Matter, inasmuch as it is the reservoir of everything, whose lid being lifted by the hands of Ignorance, there instantly springs up this universe of limitation and relativity. Enlightenment or Nirvâna, therefore, consists in recognising the error of Ignorance and not in clinging to the products of imagination. [30] For a more detailed explanation of the ideal philosophy of the Yogâcâra, see my article on the subject in _Le Muséon_, 1905. [31] “One mind” or “one heart” meaning the mental attitude which is in harmony with the monistic view of nature in its broadest sense. [32] These ten stages of spiritual development are somewhat minutely explained below. See Chapter XII. [33] The ten moral precepts of the Buddha are: (1) Kill no living being; (2) Take nothing that is not given; (3) Keep matrimonial sanctity; (4) Do not lie; (5) Do not slander; (6) Do not insult; (7) Do not chatter; (8) Be not greedy; (9) Bear no malice; (10) Harbor no scepticism. [34] Mahâyânism recognises two “entrances” through which a comprehensive knowledge of the universe is obtained. One is called the “entrance of sameness” (_samatâ_) and the other the “entrance of diversity” (_nânâtva_). The first entrance introduces us to the universality of things and suggests a pantheistic interpretation of existence. The second leads us to the particularity of things culminating in monotheism or polytheism, as it is viewed from different standpoints. The Buddhists declare that neither entrance alone can lead us to the sanctum sanctorum of existence; and in order to obtain a sound, well-balanced knowledge of things in general, we must go through both the entrances of universality and particularity. [35] The doctrine of Trikâya will be given further elucidation in the chapter bearing the same title. CHAPTER III NOTES.