The Inspiration and Creativity of the Manas

In all walks of life in the secular world, anyone who has achieved success possesses a considerable degree of meditative concentration (samādhi). In concentration, they focus single-mindedly on one thing, attending to nothing else, so inspiration and creativity easily arise, making them appear as geniuses and achievers in the eyes of others. The inspiration and creativity spoken of here generally come from the manas; initially there is only the mind consciousness's conception and emotional pondering and intellectual understanding, but in the end the mind consciousness can no longer exert any force, and instead the wisdom and potential of the manas are stimulated, and an outstanding work emerges. Thinking and creating within profound meditative concentration far surpasses the emotional pondering and intellectual understanding of the mind consciousness of ordinary people without meditative concentration—this is the distinctive trait that sets geniuses apart from ordinary people.