The Fundamental Way to Eradicate the View of Self Lies in Eliminating the View of Self in the Manas

All sentient beings regard the five aggregates as the self. Who are these sentient beings? Sentient beings primarily refer to the mental faculty (manas). The five aggregates are centered around the mental faculty, which governs the six consciousnesses and, together with the physical body, constitutes the aggregate-body. The Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra states: "He understands the mental activities of sentient beings." Who understands the mental activities of sentient beings? It is the Tathāgatagarbha that understands the mental activities of sentient beings. Here, "sentient beings" refers to the mental faculty. Because the Tathāgatagarbha primarily understands the mental activities of the mental faculty and assists in fulfilling its wishes and thoughts, only then can the karmic activities of body, speech, and mind of the five aggregates and six consciousnesses arise, and thus the phenomena of the three realms manifest.

This mental faculty represents sentient beings. The mental faculty regards the five aggregates as the self: it regards the aggregate of form as the self, the aggregate of sensation as the self, the aggregate of perception as the self, the aggregate of mental formations as the self, and the aggregate of consciousness (the six consciousnesses) as the self. It also regards the various functions and operations of the Tathāgatagarbha as belonging to the self (the mental faculty). All these dharmas are produced by me and belong to me. Therefore, this "self" primarily refers to the mental faculty.

Now, it becomes clear whose view of self is severed in the process of severing the view of self. Severing the view of self primarily means severing the mental faculty's view of self. The mental faculty regards all these dharmas as the self. Severing the view of self means causing the mental faculty to cease regarding the five aggregates as the self (the mental faculty). Eliminating this perception of the mental faculty is what constitutes severing the view of self. Therefore, severing the view of self must necessarily reach the mental faculty; it must cause the mental faculty to acknowledge that the five aggregates are not the self. Only then is the view of self severed.

This "self" refers to the mental faculty, not the mind-consciousness of the six consciousnesses. It is because the mental faculty regards the aggregate of consciousness (the six consciousnesses), the aggregate of sensation, the aggregate of perception, the aggregate of mental formations, and the aggregate of form as the self. Therefore, severing the view of self means causing the mental faculty to cease recognizing these dharmas as the self. If the mental faculty does not sever the view of self, but only the mind-consciousness severs the view of self—meaning the mind-consciousness believes the five aggregates are not the self—is this severing the view of self? It is now evident that the mind-consciousness believing "this is not me" is useless. This is not severing the view of self. The mental faculty must acknowledge that the five aggregates are not the mental faculty itself. Only then is it the most fundamental and ultimate severing of the view of self.