The Difference Between the Seeing Division and the Appearance Division

Question: What is the perceiving division within the Tathāgatagarbha's seven elements? How does it differ from the perceiving division of the sixth and seventh consciousnesses?

Answer: The sixth and seventh consciousnesses are both the perceiving division and the perceived division. The perceived division refers to the dharmas discerned by consciousness, while consciousness itself is the perceiving division. Consciousness itself and the mental faculty (manas) are also part of the perceived division. Any dharma that is discerned belongs to the perceived division, and the conscious mind that actively discerns is the perceiving division.

The "seeing" of the Tathāgatagarbha's seven elemental seeds is not the perceiving division; it is the seed of the perceiving element. The seed of the perceiving element forms the perceiving nature of the Tathāgatagarbha. The perceiving division of the Tathāgatagarbha operates through the functioning of the five universal mental factors (volition, contact, sensation, perception, and cognition), with perception being primary. Operating thus upon all dharmas, it discerns all phenomena. However, this discernment is entirely different from the discerning nature of the seven consciousnesses; it is not the kind of discernment of forms, sounds, smells, tastes, and tangible objects that sentient beings are familiar with through the sixth and seventh consciousnesses. Without the wisdom of consciousness-only, one cannot observe this through direct perception; even imagining it proves difficult.