The Discrimination of the Six Dusts is Governed by Manas

The discernment of the six dusts (objects) is governed by the mind faculty (manas), which holds the ultimate authority. Some claim that the mind faculty can only discern whether there are significant changes in the mental objects (dharma-dust), but this is not the case. Mental objects are of five types: visual mental objects, auditory mental objects, olfactory mental objects, gustatory mental objects, and tactile mental objects. The mind faculty can discern all five types of mental objects; otherwise, how could it deliberate and decide which of the first five consciousnesses should arise? For mental objects of the same category, the mind faculty can also make general distinctions. For example, if several people suddenly appear before one's eyes, and the mind faculty is only interested in one of them, it will decide to discern that specific person, and the mental consciousness will not discern the others.

The mind faculty can also discern the five sense objects (five dusts). For instance, color is the form seen by the visual consciousness. When various colored flowers appear before one's eyes, if the mind faculty is only interested in purple flowers, then the visual consciousness will only select and discern the purple flowers, ignoring flowers of other colors.