Manas is the Meaning of Manifest Consciousness

"Present cognizing consciousness" means a consciousness of direct perception (pratyakṣa), that is, directly perceiving dharmas, directly discerning dharmas, or directly presenting dharmas. Although the manas, like the tathāgatagarbha, also has the function of a mirror reflecting images—the functional capacity to manifest images of dharmas like a mirror—the images manifested by the tathāgatagarbha are images it gives birth to itself, whereas the images presented by the manas are presentations of the images transformed by the tathāgatagarbha; the manas does not transform images. The relationship between the tathāgatagarbha, this mirror, and the images is one of giving birth and being given birth to: the one who gives birth must necessarily be a dharma that is unborn and unceasing, while that which is given birth to is subject to arising, ceasing, and change. But the relationship between the manas and the images is not one of giving birth and being given birth to—both are dharmas that have been given birth to. Moreover, the images presented by the manas are fundamentally different from the images manifested by the tathāgatagarbha: what the tathāgatagarbha manifests is the essential realm (the primary object), the most originally transformed and fabricated dharma of the tathāgatagarbha, whereas the image presented by the manas is a tainted-reflective realm, a secondary transformation of dharmas by the tathāgatagarbha, which is already no longer real.

Why is the manas said to be a present cognizing consciousness? Because when the manas perceives dharmas, it perceives dharmas that are presently existing; it perceives dharmas as they truly are, and it has no capacity of inference or non-valid cognition in perceiving dharmas. In the very first instant that the tathāgatagarbha conjures forth a dharma, the manas can already perceive it—this is the tainted-reflective realm, close to the essential realm, relatively real and reliable. After the manas perceives the tainted-reflective realm, only if it wishes to discern further in detail does it transmit the dharma to the six consciousnesses to perceive. What the six consciousnesses then perceive is no longer the relatively real tainted-reflective realm; what they perceive is a dharma that has already undergone alteration, and the dharma thus manifested is yet another layer removed from the essential realm and the realm of reality—more illusory than the dharma perceived by the manas. Furthermore, when the mind consciousness perceives dharmas there is also inference and non-valid cognition, so what it manifests is even less real.

If we compare this with the meaning of "present cognizing consciousness," the tathāgatagarbha's perception of dharmas is even more a perception of direct perception, more real and reliable than the manas's perception. Whatever dharma the tathāgatagarbha perceives, it is a dharma that it itself has presently given birth to and upheld; there is not the slightest barrier between it and the dharma—whatever dharma it gives birth to, that is the dharma it perceives; whatever dharma it upholds, that is the dharma it perceives; if it does not give birth, it does not perceive; if it does not uphold, it does not perceive—and there is certainly no occurrence of perceiving dharmas through inference or non-valid cognition. For the tathāgatagarbha, there are fundamentally no dharmas of the past and no dharmas of the future—all are dharmas of the present moment; even dharmas from countless eons ago are dharmas of the present moment. But for the six consciousnesses, they are not dharmas of the present moment; in fact, the six consciousnesses cannot perceive dharmas of the present moment—whatever dharma they perceive is a dharma that has already undergone alteration, a dharma of the past.