The Mental Factors of Smṛti and Chanda in Manas

The Sutra on the Samadhi of Sitting Meditation: What is the mind? This mind is impermanent because it arises from conditions. It does not abide, constantly arising and ceasing. It seems to arise continuously, but this is merely an illusion. It is considered to be one, yet originally it did not exist, now it appears; having appeared, it will again cease to be. Therefore, it is impermanent. Observe and know that the mind is empty. How is it empty? It arises from conditions. There is the eye faculty and there are visible forms. There is the recollection and the desire to see. Through the convergence of such conditions, eye-consciousness arises.

The six consciousnesses are empty because they arise from conditions. For example, the arising of eye-consciousness requires one condition: the existence of the eye faculty; another condition: the existence of the form-object; another condition: the existence of recollection; and another condition: the desire to see. When these conditions converge, eye-consciousness arises.

Then the questions arise: First, which consciousness performs the recollection that enables the arising of eye-consciousness?

Second, which consciousness possesses the desire to see forms that enables the arising of eye-consciousness?

It is the recollecting nature and the desire-to-see-forms nature of the mental faculty (manas) that gives rise to eye-consciousness to see forms. Then, does the mental faculty possess the mental factor of recollection? Does the mental faculty possess the mental factor of desire?

Eye-consciousness seeing forms is not impelled by mental consciousness (mano-vijñāna); it must be impelled by the mental faculty (manas). All dharmas arise impelled by the mental faculty. Therefore, the mental faculty must possess the recollecting nature and the mental factor of desire, so that all phenomena can function in the world.