The Mental Factors Embodied in Deliberation

The term "推敲" (tui qiao) originates from an anecdote about the Tang dynasty poet Jia Dao composing poetry, originally describing his mental approach and diligent state when selecting words and phrases. To find the appropriate words, the poet continuously searched his mind for vocabulary to convey the intended artistic conception of the poem, accompanied by physical gestures of pushing and knocking. Initially, it begins with conscious pondering and investigation, gradually transitioning to the pondering and investigation of the manas (the seventh consciousness). The pondering and investigation by the manas is extremely subtle and concealed, to the point where the consciousness seems inactive and devoid of thought, like meditation.

What mental factors arise when Jia Dao is pondering over the words and phrases? The five universal mental factors arise, the five object-specific mental factors arise, and perhaps wholesome mental factors and afflictive mental factors also arise. During pondering, the mental factor of attention (manasikāra) first arises towards the object being pondered, directing the mind to it. The mental factor of contact (sparśa) arises, bringing the mind into contact with the object being pondered. The mental factor of feeling (vedanā) arises, receiving and apprehending the object of pondering. The mental factor of perception (saṃjñā) arises, recognizing and grasping the object being pondered. The mental factor of volition (cetanā) arises, continuously deliberating on this object until it is finally understood and determined, leading to subsequent actions. When gesturing the actions of 'pushing' and 'knocking' with the hands, the five universal mental factors associated with the five sense consciousnesses and the sense-centered mental consciousness also arise.

When attention is applied, the mind is relatively focused; consciousness and manas concentrate on the corresponding object. The arising of the feeling mental factor might be less frequent than at other times, as the mind is calculating the issue under consideration. During the process of pondering, if a particularly sensitive image for the manas is encountered, the feeling mental factor might arise. This feeling is an internal stirring and sensation, not a feeling caused by changes in the external six sense objects. The feeling mental factor fundamentally means to receive, accept, and apprehend, because if the problem is not apprehended and accepted, one cannot proceed to think about it, cannot engage volition, cannot reach a final conclusion from deliberation, cannot make a decision or undertake subsequent actions, and even less can wisdom arise.

Throughout the processes of perception and volition, the mental factor of concentration (samādhi) is always present. There is also the mental factor of correct understanding (adhimokṣa). Correct understanding likely means having correctly comprehended the general meaning of the object, that is, having grasped the gist, arriving at a relatively reasonable answer, view, concept, or conclusion regarding the object of thought. During the process of pondering, the mental factors of desire (chanda), mindfulness (smṛti), and concentration (samādhi) also arise. The mental factor of desire is the wish to ponder, driving the sixth and seventh consciousnesses to deliberate, to select words and construct sentences. After correct understanding, mindfulness of the word meanings forms. Focusing on the pondering is the function of the concentration mental factor.