法苑珠林 70.47

70.47

Question: How are the abodes of the nine sentient beings differentiated? Answer: As stated in the Abhidharma, to the previous seven abodes of consciousness are added the Asamjñisattva heaven and neither-perception[-nor-non-perception]; these are the abodes of the nine sentient beings. If one asks why the bad destinies and the rest of the fourth dhyāna are not established as abodes of sentient beings, this is as explained previously in the treatise: If sentient beings love and delight in abiding there, an abode of sentient beings is established; where delighting in abiding is out of the question, none is established. That is to say, in those four bad destinies there is much suffering and affliction, so sentient beings do not delight in abiding in them. The five Śuddhāvāsa heavens of the fourth dhyāna swiftly delight in nirvāṇa, so they also do not delight in abiding there. The rest of the fourth dhyāna is as stated previously. Therefore, they are not established as abodes of sentient beings.