Do the Five Consciousnesses Have Five Particular Mental Factors?

The first five consciousnesses possess the mental factor of concentration. If the five consciousnesses lack concentration, the eye consciousness becomes attached to multiple objects, the ear consciousness becomes attached to multiple objects, the nose consciousness becomes attached to multiple objects, the tongue consciousness becomes attached to multiple objects, and the body consciousness becomes attached to multiple objects. Consequently, the mental consciousness would inevitably follow suit, becoming attached to multiple objects as well. Wouldn't this cause the mind to be greatly disturbed? If the five consciousnesses lack concentration, the mental consciousness cannot be concentrated either. The mental consciousness would necessarily follow the five consciousnesses, discriminately engaging with various objects everywhere, thus easily leading to a state of mental chaos.

It is observed that the five consciousnesses can each concentrate on one or two objects without scattering, discerning subtle details. This demonstrates that the five consciousnesses can possess concentration and correspond to it. If the six consciousnesses lack concentration, it indicates that the manas (root consciousness) is unstable, because the five and six consciousnesses becoming attached to objects is the result of the manas leading and grasping. If the manas does not wish to perceive objects, the six consciousnesses cannot perceive them. Therefore, if the manas lacks concentration and does not correspond to it, cultivation would never attain dhyana (meditative absorption), and the four dhyanas and eight samadhis could not be achieved. Sentient beings would only exist in the human realm of the desire realm, and there would be no beings existing in the heavens.

The five consciousnesses possess the discerning wisdom (prajna) that can generate judgment and confirmation regarding the five sense objects (forms, sounds, smells, tastes, touches). They can clearly discern and discriminate the five sense objects. Therefore, the five consciousnesses possess the mental factor of wisdom. When the wisdom of the five consciousnesses is strong, it is also elicited by the concentration mental factor of the five consciousnesses. The principle that wisdom arises from concentration applies here. Similarly, most of the wisdom of the manas is also elicited by concentration, especially the wisdom after eliminating afflictions and transforming consciousness into wisdom, which is even more elicited by the concentration mental factor of the manas. Since the five consciousnesses can confirm what the five sense objects actually are, it indicates that they possess the mental factor of adjudicative determination (adhimokṣa), capable of clearly understanding and decisively determining the characteristics of the dharmas (phenomena) of the five sense objects.

The nature of the five consciousnesses to move towards or avoid the objects of the five sense fields demonstrates that they possess the mental factor of desire (chanda). For example, when the eye consciousness encounters soft colors, it actively moves towards them; when encountering the intense glare of sunlight, it naturally avoids it. This is the desire mental factor of the eye consciousness. The ear consciousness strives to avoid harsh sounds, while yearning for soft, light music. The nose consciousness has an aversion to pungent odors and moves towards pleasant fragrances, generating attachment. The tongue consciousness actively seeks out delicious flavors and moves towards them, while strenuously avoiding irritating tastes. The body consciousness moves towards light and pleasant touches, generating attachment, and urgently avoids harsh, painful, or violating touches. The above demonstrates that the five consciousnesses possess a subtle mental factor of desire, much weaker than that of the mental consciousness, manifesting indistinctly and difficult to observe.

The five consciousnesses also possess a certain degree of mindfulness (smṛti) towards previously experienced objects. Due to this quality of mindfulness, they can have the mental factor of desire and generate attachment, becoming unwilling to leave the object and clinging to it.

The five consciousnesses fully possess the five object-specific mental factors (chanda, adhimokṣa, smṛti, samādhi, prajñā), albeit weakly. They generally manifest as the five object-specific mental factors associated with the five sense consciousnesses of the mental consciousness. However, upon careful differentiation, they can still be discerned. Overall, the manifestation and operation of the five consciousnesses are still controlled and determined by the manas. Consequently, the desire mental factor of the five consciousnesses appears even weaker and more indistinct, obscured by the controlling influence of the manas, making it very difficult to detect.