The Distinction Between Authentic and Inauthentic Eradication of Self-View

In the practice and realization of the Dharma, there is similarly a distinction between genuine and false cultivation and realization. The severance of self-view is divided into genuine and false severance, and the realization of the mind is likewise distinguished as genuine and false. Genuine and false phenomena permeate both worldly life and Buddhist practice, making them difficult to discern. All that is false is superficial to consciousness; it can be said to be feigned or contrived. All that is genuine corresponds deeply to the manas (root mind), is acknowledged by the manas, emanates from the innermost heart, is sincerely expressed, is uncontrived, is trustworthy, and is honest without deceit.

If the severance of self-view occurs only at the level of consciousness while the manas does not sever self-view, then the manas has not eliminated the three fetters. The mental activities of the manas still correspond to the three evil destinies, and since the bonds remain unbroken, there is no guarantee of avoiding rebirth in the three evil destinies. This is because rebirth in the three evil destinies is determined by karmic seeds and karmic force. The manas corresponds to karmic seeds and karmic force; it is the consciousness that connects the three lifetimes. If the manas has not severed the three fetters, the karmic seeds remain unchanged. At death, due to the pull of karmic force, one will inevitably enter the three evil destinies. This can be understood by observing the manas’s behavior in the intermediate state (bardo). In the intermediate state, the manas fully corresponds to one’s own afflictive habits and will certainly follow the manifestation of these habits to take rebirth.

The conscious mind is utterly powerless because consciousness cannot act autonomously and is subject to cessation. After cessation, it cannot control anything at all. Therefore, cultivating only consciousness is fundamentally useless. Merely severing self-view at the conscious level cannot resolve the problem of birth and death or prevent rebirth in the three evil destinies. To consider a step further: even if consciousness could prevent descent into the three evil destinies, at the moment of death, consciousness extinguishes first, leaving only the manas and the Tathāgatagarbha. With consciousness no longer present, the manas and karmic force remain. Since the fetters of the manas remain unbroken, falling into the three evil destinies is unavoidable. Consciousness cannot correspond to karmic seeds or karmic force; whether one enters the three evil destinies or not is entirely beyond consciousness’s control. Consciousness cannot even determine its own existence or non-existence—how could it possibly decide whether to avoid the three evil destinies?