法界次第初門 1.186

1.186

The reason the ten unwholesome actions are distinguished next after the afflictions, fetters, and anuśayas is that since afflictions are dharmas of delusion and disturbance, capable of driving the practitioner's mind and consciousness, they cause one to be inverted when encountering sense objects. If one indulges these delusive dispositions and gives rise to body, speech, and mind, then every movement deviates from the principle; hence, among what is generated by the three karmas, the ten unwholesome actions are fully present. That they are collectively termed 'unwholesome' means that 'unwholesome' has the meaning of deviating from the principle. These ten all arise in deviation from the principle, and are therefore called unwholesome. They are also called the ten unwholesome courses of action, because they are capable of leading to painful retributions and are therefore not wholesome courses.