What Dharmas Do Manas and the Eighth Consciousness Perceive Respectively?

The manas follows the eighth consciousness moment by moment and cannot be separated from it, while the eighth consciousness also accompanies the manas moment by moment; the two are inseparable. Without the manas, the eighth consciousness cannot manifest any dharma; separated from the eighth consciousness, the manas ceases to exist, and no dharma can be perceived. Therefore, all dharmas perceived by the manas originate from the eighth consciousness and are perceived by relying on the eighth consciousness. As long as the eighth consciousness manifests a dharma, the manas, relying on it, can perceive it. The question then arises: what exactly does the manas perceive? Is it the same as what the eighth consciousness perceives?

We should understand that the eighth consciousness belongs to the ultimate truth, while the manas belongs to the conventional truth. Therefore, what the eighth consciousness perceives does not pertain to the essence of conventional dharmas and differs from what the manas perceives. Moreover, the manas cannot perceive the essence of the dharmas seen by the eighth consciousness. Their identities and statuses differ, their functions and roles differ, and consequently, their perspectives, levels, sequences, and understandings of dharmas are all different.

Their functions in giving rise to dharmas also differ. After perceiving dharmas, their roles in discerning dharmas differ, and after discernment, their ways of handling dharmas also differ. Overall, the manas and the eighth consciousness differ in their attention, contact, sensation, perception, and volition regarding dharmas. Because the manas belongs to the conventional truth and the eighth consciousness is the ultimate faculty, the conventional represents ignorance and afflictions, while the ultimate truth represents the absence of ignorance and afflictions. Thus, the manas has ignorance and afflictions, while the eighth consciousness has no ignorance and no afflictions.

Since the manas perceives conventional dharmas, it gives rise to afflictions and manifests the sense of self. The eighth consciousness does not perceive conventional dharmas, so there are no conventional afflictions to speak of; it is pure, unconditioned, and without self. Therefore, if we teach the Dharma without dwelling in conventional appearances, we, like the eighth consciousness, will not give rise to self, will not generate afflictions, and the mind will become pure, radiating great light.

What exactly does the manas perceive? Since the manas cannot perceive what the eighth consciousness perceives yet relies closely on the eighth consciousness to perceive conventional dharmas, after the eighth consciousness perceives a dharma, it continuously propagates, manifests, and transforms it. The dharmas transformed by the eighth consciousness become conventional dharmas, and this part is what the manas can perceive.

What the eighth consciousness perceives are the most primordial dharmas, the most fundamental dharmas, untouched and unprocessed by the seven consciousnesses, which the seven consciousnesses cannot reach. After the eighth consciousness perceives the primordial dharma, it absorbs the four great elements within the dharma and begins to propagate them, forming an image, which belongs to the conventional dharmas. The manas perceives this image. During the propagation process, the eighth consciousness passes through some intermediate media, partially obscuring the four great elements, and thus the dharmas propagated by the eighth consciousness undergo partial changes. No matter how many changes occur to the dharmas propagated by the eighth consciousness along the way, the manas can always perceive based on them, until the dharma settles in the ultimate faculty at the back of the brain; the manas can perceive continuously throughout. Therefore, what the manas perceives are the various levels of conventional dharmas transformed by the eighth consciousness after it perceives the primordial dharma. The manas can perceive all the dharmas propagated by the eighth consciousness along the way, so the manas can comprehend the entire process of changes in the dharma. For the sixth consciousness (mind consciousness), the manas is called prescient, known as premonition and inspiration. Without language, words, or thought, it can know all dharmas and judge everything, often beyond the ability of the mind consciousness to refute or resist.

What are the primordial dharmas perceived by the eighth consciousness? They certainly consist of the four great seeds that constitute dharmas—the structure, appearance, proportion, and composition of the seeds. This part does not cause the eighth consciousness to generate afflictions. If the seven consciousnesses only perceived this content, they likewise would not generate any afflictions, because it is not conventional dharma and holds no worldly benefit or utilitarian value.

After the eighth consciousness perceives the primordial dharma and transforms it into conventional dharmas, does it still perceive them? Of course, it perceives them continuously; otherwise, the manas would not be able to perceive them. However, although the eighth consciousness can also perceive the dharmas seen by the manas, it never dwells in conventional appearances. The eighth consciousness does not perceive the conventional aspect of dharmas; it perceives all dharmas as the ultimate truth aspect, which is the seed content contained within the dharmas. Therefore, the eighth consciousness perceives all dharmas throughout the great chiliocosm without exception, yet it has no afflictions, no ignorance, no unknowing. It illuminates the great chiliocosm with brightness, yet does not desire to possess it; it has no sense of self, no greed, and no hatred.

The conventional dharmas perceived by the seven consciousnesses are all misperceived; they are not the true reality. Due to ignorance, afflictions arise. What is the true reality of dharmas? It is precisely the seed essence perceived by the eighth consciousness—nothing other than seeds, nothing else. All seeds belong to the eighth consciousness; thus, the eighth consciousness is the great wealthy elder. It has no need to possess anything, let alone covet anything. Only the poor have greed; those who are impoverished inevitably hope to gain something, and only those whose minds are impoverished are insatiably greedy.

The eighth consciousness is content, yet it does not express contentment, for it has no mental state, no feelings, never marveling at the myriad things; it is tranquil and serene.

The eighth consciousness is the original Dharma, the original Buddhism. Without the eighth consciousness, no dharma exists—not even the manas, let alone the six consciousnesses or the five aggregates. Without the eighth consciousness, the seven consciousnesses cannot perceive any dharma. Not studying the eighth consciousness and only extracting an extremely small part of the dharmas derived from it is ignorance. Therefore, the Buddha said that Arhats are foolish and ordinary beings are deluded.