The Key to Dharma Practice and Realization

Some people have had this experience: when encountering certain problems that the conscious mind does not comprehend, they temporarily set them aside. After a period of time, a thought suddenly arises in their mind, providing an understanding of the issue, thus resolving the doubt. The thought that emerges is an answer given by the manas (root consciousness), which may not yet be entirely conclusive and requires the conscious mind to further contemplate it carefully. Therefore, while the conscious mind may seem to stop thinking about certain problems on the surface, the manas has not let go and continues to deliberate. Because the data provided by the conscious mind is insufficient, the manas cannot arrive at a final conclusion, but at the very least, it gains direction and clarity. Only the conscious mind can be lazy; the manas is never lazy. Thus, in spiritual practice, one must continually urge the conscious mind onward, engage in more contemplation and practice, and accumulate more data and information, allowing the manas to grasp more evidence. Realization will then come swiftly.

When the conscious mind is not actively thinking or is engaged in other tasks, and an answer suddenly appears without conscious deliberation, it is a temporary conclusion reached by the manas after its own contemplation. Why does the answer appear suddenly? Because the deliberation of the manas is fundamentally unobservable to the conscious mind. When the manas comprehends, it alerts the conscious mind, which then perceives the understanding as sudden, leading to surprise. However, if it is a problem the conscious mind has been continuously pondering, understanding comes gradually, bit by bit. It does not feel sudden, nor does it cause surprise or wonder, because there is psychological preparedness.

Once these methods and processes of contemplation are mastered and applied, one will grasp the key to the realization of the Dharma. Logical thinking ability will improve, and the realization of the Dharma will subsequently accelerate.