The Basis for the Interconnection and Interaction of the Six Sense Bases

Blue Sky's Meditation Journal November 21

During seated meditation focusing on the breath this morning, the breath passage was unobstructed, and the chest, abdomen, shoulders, and back felt warm and comfortable. After several breaths, a warm flow surged into the brain. Today, there were no obvious blockages in the brain, face, or elsewhere; breathing pressure was minimal. With mindful awareness, I perceived the changes and sensations in the energy channels throughout the body. Later, I concentrated my attention in front of me.

Occasionally pondering the Dharma principles, I suddenly recalled the Master's teaching from the day before yesterday: "Focus solely on perceiving the breath, without the reasoning or guidance of consciousness; observe the operation, arising, and ceasing of the breath directly." Thus, I concentrated on observing the breath right in front of me. Not long after, during an inhalation, there was a sudden "snap" sensation, as if my right eye and right ear root became connected. Immediately after, it connected to the brain, and the right brain area felt somewhat empty and luminous. Continuing to observe the breath for a while, the left eye and left ear also connected. The entire brain became empty and luminous, the space before my eyes became clear, and the sensitivity of the ears to external sounds decreased. I could clearly feel my concentration further enhancing. As all attention was focused on the head, I did not perceive sensations from other parts of the body. The head experienced some changes during subsequent breaths, but they were difficult to describe. This state continued until the end of the sitting session.

Comment: During the meditation, the sensation that the eye faculty and ear faculty connected with the brain indicates that the meditative concentration (dhyāna) caused changes in the Four Great Elements, making them more subtle. Consequently, the faculties within the subtle sense bases (indriyas) became somewhat interconnected. In the future, when meditative concentration deepens further and all five sense faculties become fully interconnected, their functions will become interchangeable. Especially, the mental faculty (manas) can partially or fully substitute the functions of the five physical sense faculties. When the six faculties (indriyas) are mutually interconnected, the six sense objects can be discerned by any single faculty. For example, the eye faculty can not only see form but also possess the hearing function of the ear faculty, the smelling function of the nose faculty, the tasting function of the tongue faculty, and the tactile function of the body faculty. The same principle applies to the other faculties. Thus, the miraculous functions and uses of the six faculties manifest. Sentient beings originally all possess the potential for such miraculous functions and uses. However, because the mind is obstructed, the Five Aggregates (skandhas) body divides into six faculties, each managing a separate function, causing their functions and uses to be hindered and less wondrous. To restore the original state, one must open the capacity of the mind and unblock the functions of the faculties; then the wondrous uses will appear.

The sensation of the brain becoming clear and permeable arises after the mind becomes purified, mental focus becomes concentrated, and the energy channels flow from the front Conception Vessel (Ren meridian) to the back Governing Vessel (Du meridian), reaching the brain area at the end of the Governing Vessel. The energy channels reach the subtle sense bases in the back of the head, ascend to the crown, then descend to the entire face. At the Yintang point (between the eyebrows), where the Conception and Governing Vessels meet, a small celestial cycle (microcosmic orbit) was nearly complete. Due to concentrated attention and enhanced meditative stability (samādhi), the mental function of the mind (mano-vijñāna) also strengthened, causing the body to change according to mental intention. This is the functional role of the three transforming consciousnesses (vijñāna parināma). The transforming function of the mental faculty was evident, showing a slightly active transforming effect. If the mental function of the mental faculty becomes very powerful, one can transform things according to thought; whatever one wishes for can manifest. Whatever the mind thinks can be realized as desired. At a certain stage, turning stones into gold becomes possible, and transforming specific realms is also achievable.

Dedication Verse: May all the merit from Dharma propagation and group practice on our online platform be dedicated to all sentient beings throughout the Dharma realm and to the people of the world. We pray for world peace, that wars may not arise; may flames of war never rise and weapons of conflict forever cease; may all disasters completely subside! We pray that the people of all nations unite in mutual aid, extending kindness to one another; may the weather be favorable and the harvests plentiful, bringing national prosperity and peace to the people! May all sentient beings deeply believe in cause and effect, cultivate kindness and refrain from killing; may they widely form virtuous connections and extensively cultivate wholesome karma; may they believe in the Buddha, learn the Buddha Dharma, and increase their roots of goodness; may they understand suffering, abandon its origins, aspire to cessation, and cultivate the path; may they close the door to the evil destinies and open the path to Nirvana! May Buddhism flourish forever, may the true Dharma abide eternally; may the burning house of the three realms be transformed into the lotus land of Ultimate Bliss!