Dharma Objects and Meditative States

Mental sense-objects include material mental sense-objects, mental-factor mental sense-objects, and mental sense-objects that are neither material nor mental. Material mental sense-objects are form included in the dharma base (dharma-āyatana-rūpa); mental-factor mental sense-objects include the seven consciousnesses and their mental factors (caittas), and also include the eighth consciousness and its mental factors; those that are neither material nor mental include the conditioning forces not associated with mind (citta-viprayukta-saṃskāra). For devas in the formless realm, while in meditative concentration, the mind consciousness also takes the concentration state as its object, which is a subjectively imagined realm; the deliberation of the mind consciousness requires a subjectively imagined realm—it may deliberate on material mental sense-objects, may deliberate on mental-factor mental sense-objects, or may involve both; it is not fixed.

In the living environment of devas in the formless realm there is no form, and thus there is no form included in the dharma base, so there is no real environment—there are only subjectively imagined mental sense-objects, directly born from the seeds of the tathāgatagarbha; therefore it is not impossible for there to be material mental sense-objects of concentration-fruit form (samādhi-phala-rūpa).

If the concentration state contains mental sense-objects of the seven consciousnesses and their mental factors , then the mind consciousness would have to take the seven consciousnesses and their mental factors as objects—how coarse the movement of the mind consciousness would be! Is this possible? It is not possible. No matter who it is, if the concentration state contains the seven consciousnesses and their mental factors, the mind consciousness must be deliberating, and this concentration state would be shallow—below the second dhyāna. Above the second dhyāna there is no initial application or sustained examination, no examination and deliberation; only below the first dhyāna, including the first dhyāna itself, are there examination and deliberation.

Form included in the dharma base refers to the mental sense-objects manifested upon the five sense-object forms, called material mental sense-objects; they are also composed of the seeds of the four great elements.

Mental-factor mental sense-objects are the eight consciousnesses and all the mental factors of those consciousnesses that the mind consciousness can correspond to and discern. When the mind consciousness possesses wisdom, especially after the transformation of consciousness into wisdom, the mind consciousness can discern the eight consciousnesses and part of the mental factors of the eight consciousnesses; when it can discern them completely, that is the buddha-fruition of the third transformation of consciousness into wisdom. The manas, relying on the mind consciousness, can also discern mental-factor mental sense-objects; after enlightenment, what it can discern increases; after the transformation of consciousness into wisdom, it can discern a greater portion; after attaining buddhahood, it can discern all of them completely.