The Aggregate of Perception Belongs to the Fusion and Penetration of Conceptual Proliferation

The skandha of perception belongs to coalescing delusion. Due to delusional thoughts manifesting certain states, the body undergoes changes accordingly. The body does not actually come into contact with the delusionally manifested states; it is merely that the mind thinks of them, and the body transforms. This demonstrates that the body moves according to the mind and is directed by the mind. How utterly illusory and unreal is this involuntary bodily movement! Who is it that commands and controls the body, like a magician conjuring and manipulating illusions? It is the mental faculty. The body and the conscious mind are interconnected; they can merge and fuse together. The power of mental thoughts can drive the body, determining its movements and changes. Which mental power is so great and forceful? It is the mental thoughts of the mental faculty that can dominate, possess strength, and alter the physical body. The mental thoughts of consciousness can only influence and change the mental faculty; they cannot directly operate or transform the physical body.

The skandha of perception primarily refers to the perception of consciousness, which is both governed and determined by the mental faculty, and can also influence the mental faculty. Understanding through thinking does not constitute realization. Many principles can be comprehended intellectually, yet they do not belong to experiential realization. Therefore, after understanding through thought, one must still proceed to experiential realization. Why, when joyful, do we dance for joy, or why does the body bow reverently in worship—what is the relationship between body and mind? When the conscious mind recalls sorrowful events, why do the eyes shed tears? When thinking of things that provoke anger, why do the hands clench into fists, and the heart pound rapidly? When the mood is depressed, why does the body fall ill? When the mood is joyful, why does the body recover from illness? All these phenomena of the skandha of perception belong to coalescing delusion, also categorized as wild fancies—utterly illusory, without any substantial reality. The world is fundamentally free of troubles; it is the ignorant who disturb themselves.