  In explaining the relationship between volition and action,  Vasubandhu points to traces left by past volitions to demonstrate  that intentional acts are not entirely determined by the present  volition. For example, the intention to break a rule of conduct such  as not lying, is conditioned both by the present volition and by  traces left by similar volitional acts. In his Treatise on  Action (Karmasiddhiprakaraṇa, III, 2, 40),  Vasubandhu expands on his idea that impressions of past experience  are instrumental in effecting the karmic continuum that constitutes  the individual personality, by appealing to the notion of receptacle  consciousness (ālaya-vijñāna). A receptacle  consciousness (as the name suggests), can form the basis for the  reception of consciousness traces  (vijñānavāsanā), whereas a self, if  conceived as a singular and immutable agent, is incapable of  providing such a support. For Vasubandhu and all followers of the  Yogācāra theory of consciousness, the analysis of  intentionality cannot be properly conducted without reference to this receptacle consciousness, a subliminal form of cognitive awareness  that serves as a basis for all the propensities, habits, and  tendencies that inform and direct individual actions (see   §5.4).  