大乘百法明門論開宗義決 1.20

1.20

Regarding "wishing to perform wholesome actions and so on, yet matters all turn out contrary," and so forth: this means seeing sentient beings in the world, at the time of the cause, wishing to cultivate pure karma, yet failing to achieve their original intent and instead doing evil; at the time of the fruition, wishing to be born in good destinies, yet failing to achieve their original intent and instead falling into evil destinies; intending to experience pleasure, yet instead experiencing all kinds of suffering. Through seeing this, they make this thought: all things in the world must definitely have a distinct creator, generator, and transformer, who is the father of those things, called Maheśvara or another [creator]. One should ask them: does the power of transformation of the great Maheśvara use past karma, or does it not? If it uses past karma as its cause to arise, then only this capacity would use karma as its cause, and not the rest of the world, which is unreasonable. If it arises of itself without past karma, then only this capacity would arise without a cause, and not worldly things, which is unreasonable. Furthermore, ask you: is this Maheśvara subsumed within the world or not? If you say he is subsumed, then, being identical with the world, universally producing the world is unreasonable. If he is not subsumed, then something that is not a worldly dharma producing the world is unreasonable.