The Arising of Consciousness Is Closely Related to Material Form

The principle governing the arising of the six consciousnesses: when the faculties and sense-objects come into contact, the tathāgatagarbha gives rise to consciousness. If a faculty undergoes alteration, the consciousness's capacity for discernment encounters obstruction; if a sense-object changes, the consciousness's discernment likewise encounters obstruction. Yet the seeds of consciousness belonging to consciousness itself never undergo change. The structure of the four great seeds that compose the body constantly changes in accordance with karmic force and various conditions, and material form must therefore undergo continual change. Neural transmission all takes place through the body faculty and the five sense faculties—it cannot be separated from the five faculties. The tathāgatagarbha relies on the five faculties to transmit the subtle particles of the four great elements and manifest the six inner sense-objects. The tathāgatagarbha also relies on the supreme faculties to manifest the mental sense-objects. When the faculties and sense-objects change, the conscious mind changes along with them, and discernment will inevitably malfunction.

The mental sense-objects are manifested in reliance upon the supreme faculties; if there is a problem with the supreme faculties, the mind consciousness's discernment will inevitably be impaired. The mental consciousness accompanying the five sense consciousnesses cannot exist apart from the five sense-objects, apart from the five sense faculties, or apart from the supreme faculties. The solitary mental consciousness likewise cannot be separated from the supreme faculties; if the supreme faculties are impaired, the solitary mental consciousness cannot arise either, and the person falls into a state of coma. If the solitary mental consciousness had no relation to the supreme faculties, then the solitary mental consciousness of a person in a vegetative state should also function normally, without any problem. Yet in a vegetative patient, the solitary mental consciousness rarely manifests; such a person cannot think, analyze, judge, or reason, and can hardly recall anything. From this we may draw a conclusion: the arising of the mind consciousness is closely related to material form, and is also closely related to the brain—the supreme faculty.