Guide to the Cultivation and Realization of the Manas: Part One

Chapter Thirteen   Manas and Hypnosis

I. The Principle of Hypnosis (Part One)

Now, let’s discuss the principle of hypnosis, using the three hypnosis cases from yesterday as examples. In the first case, as soon as the hypnotist issued the command to sleep to the subjects, those individuals immediately collapsed together and fell asleep. Later, the master issued the command to wake up, and those people all awoke from deep sleep. After waking up, they had no awareness of having collapsed together while asleep.

Why did this happen? When we are normally awake, consciousness (vijñāna) and manas (the mental faculty) can trust, rely upon, and guide each other. Normally, manas obeys the guidance or control of consciousness, follows its commands, and is influenced by it. But in this case, manas was no longer influenced by its own consciousness. By whom was it influenced? By the hypnotist. The hypnotist’s role became equivalent to that of the subject’s own consciousness. Manas completely obeyed and trusted all the hypnotist’s instructions, believing whatever was said, obeying one hundred percent, surpassing its trust in its own consciousness. The hypnotist’s commands overrode those of its own consciousness. Therefore, whatever the hypnotist said, the subject’s manas believed, and once it believed, it could immediately act accordingly.

Why can it act as soon as it believes? Because manas is the sovereign consciousness; it has power. Whatever it wants to do, as long as there are no factors hindering it, it can accomplish it. The hypnotist told it to sleep. Since there was no consciousness to control or guide manas, manas obeyed, immediately decided to sleep, let go of all external conditions, and without consciousness participating, fell asleep instantly. In this sleep state, there were neither the five sensory consciousnesses nor the mental consciousness (manovijñāna). Therefore, while asleep and collapsed together, their own consciousness did not know it, and naturally, even after consciousness awoke, it still didn’t know. During sleep, consciousness ceases, so it does not know the state of its own sleep.

Why can one fall asleep so quickly under hypnosis, whereas normally it’s not this fast? Because when preparing to sleep normally, one needs to first cease the discriminations of the five sensory consciousnesses, then cease the discriminations and mental activities of consciousness; ceasing consciousness is slightly more difficult. Under hypnosis, consciousness directly ceases to function, so one falls asleep as soon as it’s suggested.

If each of us, through cultivation and meditation, enters deep samādhi, manas will perceive the objects of the six senses, perceive its own physical body, perceive all phenomena, finding them different from before. Because in deep meditative concentration, manas’s mind is concentrated, wisdom is developed, and it realizes that the physical body can be controlled by itself; it knows that phenomena are delusional, not so real, or it ceases to take phenomena seriously. Since there is no control from consciousness in deep samādhi, whatever manas wants to do, it can accomplish; if it wishes to manifest spiritual powers, it can activate wondrous functions.

For example, in the fourth dhyāna, if manas thinks: “I want to fly into the sky,” at that moment, without the interference of the six consciousnesses, without consciousness disturbing it, without the concept of sky or the obstruction of the physical body, it can immediately fly into the sky, traversing mountains and ridges. If manas thinks: “I want to hear distant sounds, or sounds from the heavens,” since there is no interference from consciousness, as soon as it thinks it, it can hear sounds from extremely far away. How does consciousness interfere? Consciousness constantly tells it this is impossible, that is impossible. Once it says it’s impossible, manas feels it truly is impossible, and the thing cannot be done.

Without interference from consciousness, manas says it wants to do something, and it immediately does it. When it acts, the underlying master (the ālaya-vijñāna) helps it accomplish it. Innumerable spiritual powers are developed this way. When there is interference from consciousness, consciousness relies on its life experiences and habitual tendencies to influence manas, saying this cannot be done, that cannot be done. Because consciousness has not seen the true reality, all its thoughts and considerations are incorrect, causing significant interference to manas. Without interference from consciousness, everyone’s potential for spiritual powers can be developed.

From this principle, it can be seen that as long as manas believes something – this belief is not ordinary belief, but very, very deep faith, unwavering faith, accepting whatever is said without any internal deliberation, without considering right or wrong, without consciousness to control it – since manas’s own ability to discriminate the objects of the six senses is relatively weak, it does not engage in discrimination. As long as it trusts the hypnotist, whatever the hypnotist says is taken as truth, whatever it is told to do is done. This is where manas’s wisdom is said to be inferior. If there is consciousness, which can think and discern right from wrong, it can take measures to control manas. But now, manas has no help from the six consciousnesses, no help from consciousness itself, lacking such strong discriminatory ability. When the hypnotist tells it to sleep, manas doesn’t need to deliberate at all; it can fall asleep immediately.

Now, the hypnotist’s role replaces that of consciousness. Whatever the hypnotist says, manas believes; whatever it believes, it can accomplish. Spiritual powers arise this way, and the principle of hypnosis is also like this.

II. The Principle of Hypnosis (Part Two)

The second hypnosis case: the hypnotist hypnotized a person, telling him to sleep. This person immediately entered a sleep state and fell asleep. After entering the sleep state, the hypnotist suggested to him, “You are now very, very hungry.” His manas believed it and thus felt very hungry. Why did manas believe it? Because it lacks detailed discriminatory ability; there was no consciousness to help it discern what the objects of the six senses truly are or whether the hypnotist’s words were reasonable and true. Therefore, manas believed whatever the hypnotist said; the hypnotist replaced his consciousness.

After suggesting hunger, the hypnotist asked him if he was hungry. He said yes. The hypnotist then said, “I’ll give you an apple to eat; take two bites and you won’t be hungry anymore.” As a result, the hypnotist handed him an onion, not an apple, but told him it was an apple. His manas couldn’t distinguish whether it was an onion or an apple; he believed this thing was an apple. Eating the onion, he felt it tasted like an apple. This is delusional discrimination and sensation.

The aggregate of perception (saṃjñā-skandha) and the aggregate of feeling (vedanā-skandha) involve such delusional discrimination and delusional sensation; there’s fundamentally no logic to it. All sentient beings’ perceptions and feelings regarding the secular world are similarly illusory and baseless; the cycle of birth and death holds no real meaning. Regarding the delusion of the perception aggregate, we can refer to the section on the perception aggregate in the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, where the Buddha spoke. What did the Buddha say in the Śūraṅgama Sūtra? The Buddha said a person sitting at home thinks of climbing high, imagines himself standing on a cliff. As soon as he imagines standing on the cliff, it’s as if he is standing there, and he becomes afraid of falling, his nerves tense, and he feels a sour, astringent sensation in the soles of his feet – the feeling of being afraid of falling.

Or, when someone thinks of a sour plum, without eating or seeing one, sour saliva comes out of the mouth. Why does sour saliva come out without eating any sour plum? It is the result of delusional thinking; the perception aggregate arises, producing a state corresponding to the thought. The objects of the six senses and the five-aggregate body are also delusionally conceived. The deluded mind produces delusional phenomena, then makes delusional discriminations and delusional reactions. The world of the five aggregates is like a summer heat haze or a mirage.

This hypnosis case can prove the Buddha’s teaching on the delusion of the perception aggregate. Therefore, everything in our daily lives, everything experienced by each person in every lifetime, is all conceived by the perception aggregate; it is all delusional, without reality, and without reason. We should all diligently study the Śūraṅgama Sūtra, which contains the Dharma taught by the Buddha for our awakening. Carefully read the sections on the delusion of the perception aggregate, the delusion of the feeling aggregate, the delusion of the volition aggregate, and the delusion of the consciousness aggregate. Then, proceed to actual contemplation and practice, and you will realize that all five aggregates subject to clinging are entirely delusional. Truly, the Śūraṅgama is the sutra for awakening.

Sentient beings, life after life, perform on the stage of the Three Realms, living delusively. Due to various thoughts – fantasies, delusions, illusory thoughts – they conceive an unreal, non-existent world out of nothing. Is the conceived world real? Absolutely not real. Yet we take it as real. Then, even more delusional phenomena appear, and we take these false phenomena as real again. Thus, there are delusional reactions of feeling, perception, and volition, and these reactions are also unreal.

All these unreal phenomena are products of delusional thinking. Then, facing the delusional phenomena, we make unreal responses and reactions. Endlessly, we live and play meaninglessly like this. As a result, life after life, we deceive ourselves. Suffering always outweighs joy, and the joy isn’t even real joy. What is every sentient being truly doing in the world of the Three Realms? It’s like being a clown or an actor, yet not knowing one is in a play, not knowing one is acting, but still performing seriously. Isn’t this foolish? We should contemplate and ponder these matters and principles well in meditative concentration, carefully experience them with our minds, and we will feel that we are indeed too ignorant, too foolish. When will we awaken?

If we do not awaken, we will forever deceive ourselves, living April Fool’s Day every day, tormenting ourselves unbearably, yet still craving, still clinging persistently, still seeking. In the great drama of birth and death, we have played every kind of role, experiencing a mixture of flavors, every kind of feeling. Which of these things is real? None are real. From beginning to end, there isn’t a single real thing. The feeling aggregate and perception aggregate are not real. Fantasies, delusions, illusory thoughts – they are all pathological thinking. Where is the reality? Conjuring illusory phenomena, only to suffer the pains of birth and death within them – it’s utterly not worth it.

III. The Principle of Hypnosis (Part Three)

There was once a person who entered samādhi while meditating in his home meditation hall. After entering samādhi, he forgot where he was and what he was doing. In samādhi, he suddenly remembered something and immediately decided to go to the next room to find an object. The door was actually locked by himself, yet he directly passed through the wall into the next room. Upon reaching the next room, he immediately remembered he was meditating in the adjacent meditation hall. How did he get from that room to this one? The door was still locked; he came through the wall. He had forgotten he was meditating and walked straight to the next room, without considering that the meditation hall and the next room were separated by a wall, that the meditation hall room was locked. He forgot the situation of the two rooms, forgot about the wall, and with one step, walked into the next room.

At that time, consciousness did not analyze for manas that the two rooms were separated by a wall and he couldn’t go through, that he needed to open the door, exit this room, and enter that room. Consciousness did not give manas that hint. Manas had no concept of two rooms, no concept of a wall. What it wanted to do, it accomplished immediately. If there had been conscious thought, this could not have been done. Upon reaching the next room, when consciousness awoke, he thought, “How did I get here?” But when he tried to go back, he couldn’t. Consciousness has a kind of obstructive effect on manas. Manas understood the situation consciousness told it: “I am now in this room, I just came from that room.” The concept of two rooms emerged, the concept of the wall emerged. Manas, wanting to return to the original room, could no longer do so.

This is actually the same principle as hypnosis. Whether or not there is someone hypnotizing you, as long as manas believes – whether it believes the hypnotist, believes itself, or believes someone else – whatever it believes becomes reality, beyond doubt. Some people, from childhood, hypnotize themselves negatively, always thinking they are not good at this or that. Whenever they encounter anything, they say, “I can’t do it,” giving themselves negative hypnosis. Then, after a while, when they encounter anything again, they truly cannot do it. This is self-hypnosis.

Some people accept hypnosis from others. For example, when they intend to do something, someone tells them, “You can’t do it.” They believe they cannot and do not attempt it. When they encounter something else they want to do, someone tells them, “You can’t do it,” hypnotizing them into believing they cannot. After repeated occurrences over time, whenever they face any matter, they lack the courage to act. They truly believe they cannot, and their actions truly fail. This is hypnosis given by others. Since manas can accomplish whatever it believes, this characteristic is extremely powerful. Whatever the matter, whether true or false, it can certainly be accomplished, provided there are sufficient karmic seeds. Therefore, we should believe we are Buddhas – truly believe, correctly believe, and realize this belief. After mastering the theory of Buddhahood, in deep meditative concentration, let manas turn the theory into reality. Then, once we become a Buddha, we attain Buddhahood.

In samādhi, manas concentrates its mind contemplating the Dharma meaning, easily giving birth to wisdom, able to correct previous erroneous understandings of the Dharma. If it believes its body is fundamentally unreal, the body cannot obstruct it. If it believes the external mountains, rivers, and great earth are fundamentally unreal, they cannot obstruct it. Whatever it wants to do, it can accomplish. If there is no real mountain in front, it can pass through the mountain; the mountain does not form an obstruction, and it can pass through immediately.

If it believes the sky has no reality, then it will be able to fly as high as it wishes. If it believes the ocean has no reality, it will naturally traverse mountains and cross the sea, passing over instantly without a drop of water touching it. If it believes time is not a real existent phenomenon, thinking of a future lifetime will take it there; wanting to return to a past lifetime will take it back. These are spiritual powers. Manas has such functions and capabilities. If mastered well, through cultivation, one can become a Buddha. If not mastered well, one remains an ordinary being life after life, revolving in the cycle of birth and death life after life, suffering life after life, continuing delusional thinking, delusional feeling, and delusional suffering within the cycle. We who study Buddhism should make good use of this principle, strive diligently in practice, not be ordinary beings, but become Buddhas.

IV. Sleepwalking Resembles Hypnosis

In a hypnotic state, manas completely obeys the hypnotist’s commands. Whatever the hypnotist says, manas accepts and believes; whatever it is told to do, it does, becoming completely like a puppet. Consciousness is numbed, losing its advisory role. After hypnosis, consciousness knows nothing, unaware of what it did during the hypnotic state. It’s like being under the influence of alcohol; one does not know what one did or said after waking up. Alcohol anesthetizes consciousness; manas remains normal. At this time, consciousness functions weakly, having no restraining effect on manas, completely submitting to manas. Things promised while drunk are forgotten upon waking; one does not acknowledge them.

The phenomenon of sleepwalking is also similar to the hypnotic state. Manas is clear, consciousness is confused, becoming manas’s puppet, completely obeying manas’s commands, having no will of its own. Manas follows its own habits, wandering north, south, east, and west, and consciousness complies. After sleepwalking ends, consciousness remains completely unaware, not knowing what it did during sleep. During sleepwalking, all five sensory consciousnesses function, primarily visual and bodily consciousness, while consciousness is the five-sense consciousness (accompanying the five senses), but this consciousness is not clear-headed, blindly following manas. The behavior in sleepwalking reflects the habits of manas.

I once thought about using hypnosis to help practitioners realize the fruit of severing the view of self (sakkāya-diṭṭhi) and realizing the mind (enlightenment). Now, I feel this is impractical. In a hypnotic state, even if manas complies with guidance and acknowledges that the five aggregates are without self, that the eighteen elements (dhātus) are without self and unreal, consciousness is not clear. After waking up, consciousness does not know that the five aggregates and eighteen elements are without self; it has not severed the view of self, so it’s equivalent to not having severed it. The so-called “obscuration between lifetimes” (隔阴之谜) refers precisely to the state where manas knows but consciousness does not. Severing the view of self under hypnosis, upon waking, is like the obscuration between lifetimes; consciousness has not severed the view of self, so it’s equivalent to not having severed it. Therefore, to sever the view of self and realize the mind (attain enlightenment), consciousness and manas must both understand the principle and realize it together. If one is lacking, the mental state and practice are incomplete.

V. Hypnosis is a Technique for Communicating with the Subconscious

Hypnosis is a technique that uses psychological suggestion to communicate with the subject’s subconscious. Because the subconscious mind’s function of doubting and resisting external information weakens, the hypnotist uses positive hypnotic suggestions, also called information, such as confidence, courage, and dignity, to replace the subject’s original negative information, also called experiences, such as anxiety, fear, and depression, thereby enabling the subject to enter a state different from the original one. What does the above article about hypnosis illustrate? Where do human thoughts and emotions come from? Especially those relatively hidden, difficult to perceive, difficult to handle, and difficult to overcome thoughts and emotions – where do they come from? Are these thoughts and emotions sensations (vedanā)? Are sensations very complex? Why are there sensations?

The article illustrates that human thoughts and emotions all originate from manas; they are manas’s reaction to objects, its sensation (vedanā) of phenomena, which is to say, feeling, perception, volition, and consciousness (vedanā, saṃjñā, saṃskāra, vijñāna). Because when encountering objects, phenomena are taken as real, one cannot be without mental activity, and thus sensations arise. Those thoughts and emotions are not enjoyable, not joyful, not comforting. That’s why one suffers from sleepless nights, trying every means to treat and eliminate those thoughts, emotions, and feelings, not wishing to maintain them. These sensations include pleasant sensations, painful sensations, and neutral sensations; it’s not just one type of sensation.