The Manas First Perceives Dharmas

When major events or sudden incidents occur, the subconscious reacts very quickly. This is because the manas first perceives dharmas and then transmits them to the supreme faculty (rūpa-prasāda); the six consciousnesses perceive them afterward. As soon as the six consciousnesses are born, they must carry out the manas's instructions—there is no time for the mind consciousness to deliberate and decide, and action must be taken immediately to deal with the event. After the mind consciousness has finished processing it, one may still feel baffled, not knowing what exactly happened. The manas reacts so quickly precisely because it perceives dharmas first and knows dharmas first.