The Presence of the Mental Factor of Volition (Cetanā) Does Not Imply the Existence of Grasping at Dharmas

An arhat in the cessation attainment (nirodha-samāpatti) has already extinguished the self-grasping of the five aggregates; otherwise he could not attain the fourth fruit, much less cultivate the cessation attainment. When an arhat has cultivated to the fourth dhyāna, he is already free from the bondage of the five aggregates—free in birth and death, able to leave when he wishes and stay when he wishes—and having attained the cessation attainment, he becomes even more at ease.

When an arhat is in the first dhyāna, he no longer has grasping at a self of person; he does not grasp at the feeling, perception, or volition mental factors, nor at the physical body—it is not necessary for the two mental factors of feeling and perception to be extinguished before there is no grasping. Whether or not there is grasping is the function of the mental factors of the manas as a whole, not necessarily the function of the individual mental factors of feeling, perception, or volition. The same is true of grasping at dharmas: it is the function of the manas's mental factors as a whole. For example, in the cessation attainment the manas has the mental factors of attention (manaskāra), contact (sparśa), and volition (cetanā), all of which are functions directed toward dharmas. Whether or not there is grasping at dharmas is not the operation of the single volition mental factor; it is the result of the collective arising and operation of the mental factors as a whole.

However, the manas of all Buddhas has completely extinguished grasping at dharmas. Their manas possesses not only the five universal mental factors, but also the five particular mental factors and the eleven wholesome mental factors. With so many mental factors, their grasping nature has nevertheless been extinguished. The Buddha's manas has no grasping at dharmas, yet the volition mental factor still operates ceaselessly. The undefiled consciousness (amala-vijñāna) discerns the manas's volition mental factor and, in coordination with the manas, manifests immeasurable Buddha-lands throughout the ten directions. In fact, the tathāgatagarbha can discern the entire set of the manas's mental factors. The volition mental factor has the function of decision-making; after the tathāgatagarbha discerns it, it cooperates with the manas according to the manas's decisions to carry out its tasks, presenting to the manas all the dharmas it needs.

On what basis does the manas deliberate and decide? First, the ingrained experience accumulated since beginningless kalpas; second, the results of discernment transmitted from the six consciousnesses, which can serve as reference. Then, drawing on its own experience and wisdom, it can deliberate deeply on the various mental-object realms and make correct judgments and decisions. The prerequisite is still that the mental objects the manas engages with are relatively few—that is, when there is a certain degree of meditative concentration—so that its judgments and decisions are more imbued with wisdom. The deeper the concentration, the more prominent the manas's function, the clearer, faster, and more efficient its deliberation, and the higher its wisdom. Meditative concentration can aid the manas's discernment and deliberation: when the manas's consciousness-seeds are less dispersed and become concentrated, its power of discernment is strong, its discerning wisdom is enhanced, and wisdom can fully manifest. This is true whether one is attaining the fruits, becoming enlightened, or realizing all the Buddha's dharmas as well as worldly dharmas.

When the manas faces many realms, it is selective—this is its nature of deliberation and decision-making. On what basis does He make choices? The manas has discerning wisdom and can know whether a dharma is important or not, so it makes decisions according to whether a dharma is beneficial and important to itself. The manas's degree of grasping differs for different dharmas. Why does it differ? Because He knows which dharmas are beneficial to Himself and which are important.

Seeds cannot force the manas to grasp. For example, after an arhat's manas has severed grasping, he has no interest in worldly dharmas; even though the seeds have all flowed forth, He still chooses not to see, not to hear, not to think of them—there is no mental rumination, no longing. Why does the manas let the mind consciousness discern some dharmas clearly? It is still because the manas has intention and interest in them that the tathāgatagarbha cooperates by giving rise to the mind consciousness, so as to discern those dharmas with emphasis and in detail.