When Is Manas Most Easily Permeated?

A dream cannot consist solely of the manas (mental faculty) without consciousness; otherwise, one would not even be aware of the dream. The awareness of the dream is consciousness. What can think and be known is the conscious mind. The deliberative function of the manas is generally imperceptible to ordinary people's consciousness.

Realizing the manas is relatively easy, but observing its operation is extremely difficult—more challenging than observing the tathāgatagarbha (Buddha-nature). Consciousness and the manas are so tightly intertwined that they are exceedingly hard to separate. Countless individuals can only observe consciousness, failing to perceive the manas. When teachings about the manas are presented, such people attribute them solely to consciousness, reflecting a profound lack of wisdom.

Why is it easier to detect the manas, influence it, resonate with it, and observe it during the moments just before falling asleep or waking up? Because during these times, the discriminative function of consciousness is weak and manifests less, thus not obscuring the manas.

In the middle of the night when one is asleep, playing recordings is also effective because the manas does not sleep. The tathāgatagarbha continuously transmits sound objects (śabda) through the ear faculty to the subtle sense faculty (indriya), and the manas is able to perceive them—albeit with limited clarity. If the sound becomes too loud, consciousness will awaken to discern it.