The World of Black Boxes
Chapter Eleven: Material Form Inside the Black Box (2)
Fifteen: The Realms Encountered by the Seven Consciousnesses and Magnetic Fields
The original realm is contacted by the eighth consciousness; among the realms bearing essence, the true realm bearing essence is contacted by the seventh consciousness, while the pseudo realm bearing essence and the false realm bearing essence are contacted by the sixth consciousness; the real realm is contacted by the five consciousnesses; and the subjectively imagined realm is contacted by the solitary consciousness.
A magnetic field is material form, and what can perceive material form are the seven consciousnesses, with the perception of the seventh consciousness being primary. The sixth consciousness, generally speaking, is baffled and does not know the subtleties involved, while the seventh consciousness knows but cannot speak. What has the greatest magnetic field effect is the realm bearing essence, because it carries relatively many particles of the four great elements from the original realm, and therefore its influence is relatively great.
Sixteen: Observing the Issue of Sentient Beings' Consciousness Through the Example of Seeing a Rope as a Snake
When a person sees a rope, what the eye consciousness sees should be the rope's colors, which are form sense-objects; the rest—the rope's length, thickness, material, texture, and so on—are form included in the realm of dharmas (dharma-āyatana-rūpa), the mental sense-objects seen by the consciousness accompanied by the five senses, all of which contain seeds of the four great elements. What falls into the eye consciousness is the real realm; what falls into the consciousness accompanied by the five senses is the pseudo realm bearing essence. When the two combine to fully discriminate the rope and arrive at the conclusion that a normal worldly person should arrive at, only then does one count as a normal worldly person. The subsequent handling of the rope should likewise belong to the way a normal person would handle it.
If, due to certain causes, this person's consciousness becomes deranged, he may see the rope as a snake. The eye consciousness sees the rope, and perhaps it is still the rope's colors, with the form sense-object unchanged; yet when the mind consciousness sees the mental sense-object of the rope, it forcibly discriminates the image and appearance of a snake, altering the mental sense-object. This altered mental sense-object is called the subjectively imagined realm, discriminated by the mind consciousness alone, with the eye consciousness not discriminating together with the mind consciousness. The more and the greater the mental sense-object is altered, the more severe the mind consciousness's derangement, the less of the rope's essence is carried, the further it departs from the facts, and the more frenzied the mind becomes. Conversely, the more and greater the rope's essence that is carried, the closer it is to the facts, and the closer the mind is to normality.
In the process of seeing the rope, the rope's mental sense-object and the subjectively imagined realm may coexist, but as one wanes the other waxes. If it is entirely the subjectively imagined realm, the rope is completely taken to be a snake; the person is completely deranged and will flee in terror. If only a portion of the mental sense-object is altered into the subjectively imagined realm of a snake, the person, though frightened and trembling, will have doubts in mind and will not fully believe it; he will, while fearing, go on to carefully discriminate and observe. When he sees clearly that it is really a rope, the subjectively imagined realm completely reverts to the mental sense-object, the fear disappears, and he can face the rope normally. If, however, due to the influence of psychological suggestion being relatively strong, after careful observation he confirms it is a snake, the mental sense-object will completely turn into the subjectively imagined realm, and the person may be so terrified that he bolts away at once.
As ordinary beings of the Sahā world, those with deranged consciousness are everywhere; all have some degree of mental derangement, and almost no one is completely normal. Why? The afflictions of greed, anger, and delusion and karmic obstructions cause the mind to be chaotic and unsettled; cognitive errors are everywhere; one cannot normally and correctly judge the people, affairs, objects, and principles one encounters; one does not acknowledge the truth of facts, but acknowledges only the subjectively imagined realm engendered by wrong views (mithyā-dṛṣṭi), with or without essence, with or without basis.
The better one's psychological constitution and the more normal one's mental state, the thinner and calmer and more peaceful one's mind, the smaller one's reactions, and the fewer the ripples. Conversely, the mind will surge with waves, the greater one's influence—or destructive power—over the surrounding environment, and the more one can trigger disorder among the people and affairs around, leading to unrest in the group. The phenomenon of an entire group being mentally deranged is not rare, and will become more and more common in the future, mainly because the derangement of the group's leader perfumes and influences the whole group, causing everyone in it to have deranged consciousness and disordered minds. When the group's problems multiply and grow ever larger, with problems emerging one after another, it will reach the point where the fire cannot be wrapped in paper, and that group will not be far from destruction.
As long as you are not an eighth-bhūmi bodhisattva, nor a first-bhūmi bodhisattva, everyone is subject to being perfumed. What kind of perfuming one should receive, and what one should be perfumed into—everyone has the right to choose; this right belongs to oneself and cannot be taken away by others. Therefore, choice involves wisdom, and also involves karmic power and merit. If one makes a correct, error-free choice, it shows that one has wisdom, slight karmic obstructions, and merit. Some perfuming has an influence that is not limited to one life; it may persist for many lives, even life after life, manifesting the habits formed by that perfuming. Choosing one's environment and the people, affairs, objects, and principles one contacts is very important, indeed extremely important.
Seventeen: What the Six Consciousnesses Manifest Is the Pseudo Realm Bearing Essence
"When the mind conditions form, it is a pseudo realm bearing essence; the object-aspect in between arises from one end"—this refers to the function of the six consciousnesses seeing form: what is seen is a sense-object realm resembling the realm bearing essence, not the realm bearing essence itself; the sense-object realm seen is extremely false, just like an image in a mirror. These false object-aspects manifest only in the minds of the six consciousnesses and are not transmitted further downward; it stops here. Since they are already false and without essence, how could a non-real dharma be transmitted further? In fact, what real affairs and real dharmas are there in the world? After seeing through it all, in a single thought one transcends at once; everything returns to voidness and tranquility (praśama), and from then on all is peace under heaven.
Eighteen: The real realm does not accord with the mind; the subjectively imagined realm follows only the perceiving-aspect; the realm bearing essence connects both the sentient mind and the essence.
Question: "The real realm does not accord with the mind; the subjectively imagined realm follows only the perceiving-aspect." Does "the subjectively imagined realm follows only the perceiving-aspect" mean that the subjectively imagined realm is of the same seed as the perceiving-aspect, or does it mean that the subjectively imagined realm transforms in accordance with the perceiving-aspect?
Answer: The real realm is the faithful or similar manifestation of the external six sense-objects in the supreme faculty (indriya) at the back of the brain, formed by subtle seeds of the four great elements, and cannot be altered. The subjectively imagined realm is an illusory realm conjured up by the tathāgatagarbha in coordination with the manas's grasping. The perceiving-aspect is formed by seeds of consciousness. The subjectively imagined realm manifests and changes according to the mental factor of volition (cetanā) of the mind consciousness that follows the manas; if the manas does not grasp and the mind consciousness does not fantasize, the subjectively imagined realm does not exist. As for the real realm, regardless of whether the manas grasps it or not, it necessarily exists and cannot be altered.
The real realm is the object-aspect cognized and seen by the five consciousnesses; the mind consciousness does not engage in thinking and discrimination within it. After the five consciousnesses cognize it, whatever it is, that is what is seen; it is not influenced or altered by the mind consciousness's determination (adhimokṣa). For example, when touching sunlight, if it is the heat, the body consciousness feels heat—no verbosity and no disputes; if it is brightness, the eye consciousness sees brightness—no verbosity and no disputes. It is very direct, without the mind consciousness needing to discriminate for half a day, ponder names and concepts, or give rise to any mental activity.
The subjectively imagined realm is the object cognized solely by the solitary consciousness (mano-vijñāna-eka-citta); the five consciousnesses have nothing to do with it. When the mind consciousness gives rise to thought, the subjectively imagined realm arises; if the mind consciousness is correct, the subjectively imagined realm is correct; if the mind consciousness is deviant, the subjectively imagined realm is deviant. The realm transforms and develops images according to the mind consciousness, without autonomy and without self-nature.
The realm bearing essence is necessarily transmitted from sentient beings' fundamental eighth consciousness. When the eighth consciousness contacts the original realm and takes in the particles of the four great elements, forming the initial image, carrying the essence of the original realm—the seeds of the four great elements—the seventh consciousness sees it and takes it to be what it itself sees, taking all of these to be "I," giving rise to a mind of grasping; by means of the eighth consciousness it transmits the dharma carrying the essence of the four great elements to the supreme faculty, relying on the six consciousnesses for discrimination and grasping. But the dharma transmitted to the supreme faculty is no longer the dharma the seventh consciousness originally saw at first; it is only similar. The six consciousnesses do not know this principle and all take it to be real. The object-aspect between the seventh consciousness and the eighth consciousness arises, first, in the mind of the seventh consciousness, and second, in the minds of the six consciousnesses. Yet the object-aspects cognized by the sixth and seventh consciousnesses have certain differences; the sixth and seventh consciousnesses do not know this and simply ignore it. This too is ignorance (avidyā).
Nineteen: When mind conditions mind, it is a true realm bearing essence; the object-aspect in between arises from both ends.
The seventh consciousness cognizes the perceiving-aspect of the eighth consciousness. After the eighth consciousness contacts the original realm and takes in the particles of the four great elements, it forms the initial image, carrying the essence of the original realm—the seeds of the four great elements. When the seventh consciousness sees it, it takes it to be its own seeing, takes all of these to be "I," and gives rise to a mind of grasping; relying on the eighth consciousness, it transmits the dharma carrying the essence of the four great elements to the supreme faculty, relying on the six consciousnesses for discrimination and grasping. But the dharma transmitted to the supreme faculty is no longer the dharma the seventh consciousness originally saw at first; it is only similar. The six consciousnesses do not know this principle and all take it to be real. The object-aspect between the seventh and eighth consciousnesses arises, first, in the mind of the seventh consciousness, and second, in the minds of the six consciousnesses. Yet the object-aspects cognized by the sixth and seventh consciousnesses have certain differences; the sixth and seventh consciousnesses do not know this and simply disregard it. This too is ignorance.
The object-aspect transmitted into the black box of the supreme faculty is cognized by the six consciousnesses; after being cognized, it manifests in the minds of the six consciousnesses. The object-aspect in the minds of the six consciousnesses, like an image in a mirror, has undergone a change in essence: it no longer carries the essence of the original realm—the real seeds of the four great elements—and is called the pseudo realm bearing essence, also called the false realm bearing essence. It is similar to the external object-aspect, similar to the original realm, similar to the true realm bearing essence.
Suppose there is a person with supernatural powers (abhijñā) who has trained all six consciousnesses well, remaining unmoved in suchness (tathatā-acalita) toward all six sense-object realms, knowing they are illusory conjurations with no practical use. Then the object-aspects of the six sense-objects in the black box of the supreme faculty would have no effect whatsoever on the bodies of the six consciousnesses; high mountains and great seas could not obstruct the bodies of the six consciousnesses, because mountains and waters are all false realms, false object-aspects, images in a mirror, without substantial effect. A great fire burning the bodies of the six consciousnesses would not move them; fire burning and blades cutting the body would cause no hindrance, because fire and blade are both false realms and false dharmas, like object-aspects in a mirror—what substantial force could they have?
Sentient beings do not understand this principle and lack meditative concentration (samādhi); so when sense-objects arrive, the mind is moved and they enter the mind, and body and mind are harmed—harmed by false realms. Is that not an injustice? Is it not dispiriting? Is it not an indignity?
Twenty: The True Realm Bearing Essence and the Essence-less Subjectively Imagined Realm
When you go out to bask in the sun, the sunlight you receive is a true realm bearing essence, because it adds heat and energy to the body and supplements calcium, having actual functional effect. Food and drink eaten into the stomach belong to the true realm bearing essence, because they replenish the body's energy, fill the stomach, and give a person spirit and physical strength. But food and drink eaten in a dream has no satiating effect; upon waking, the stomach still feels hungry. Dream food and drink is an essence-less subjectively imagined realm, carrying no essence, and therefore has no actual functional effect. Likewise, food and drink fantasized in the mind also has no satiating effect and cannot add energy to the body; it is likewise an essence-less subjectively imagined realm.
Some people, when making offerings to the Buddha, never use real objects, but rely on essence-less subjectively imagined realms of food conjured up by thought to make offerings to the Buddha. With no real objects, they need not expend actual material things and money; without giving, of course there is no return. If the imagined food cannot even fill one's own stomach or be brought to one's own mouth, could it possibly have a way to enter the Buddha's mouth and stomach? Using imagined food and drink to make food offerings to ghosts and spirits is also utterly insincere, requiring no expenditure of actual material things; since the imagined food and drink contains not a bit of real substance, giving it to others is tantamount to deceiving them, and in future lives one will likewise be deceived in this way—deceiving others is the same as deceiving oneself.
Twenty-one: What Kind of Realm Is the Echo in a Valley
When you shout loudly in a valley, the sound itself is the original realm. The original realm is transformed by the eighth consciousness into the realm bearing essence discriminated by the seventh consciousness. During its propagation, when it encounters air or rock walls and is obstructed, the transmitted sound deteriorates, because the particles of the four great elements have changed. When we then hear the echo, the sound feels rather illusory and unreal, as if from a distant horizon, greatly different from a person's shout. A person's shout is real; the echo arises afterward in accordance with the shout, like a second moon.
The echo is similar to the rebound of sound meeting obstruction, like a ping-pong ball rebounding off a paddle; the speed of the rebounding ball depends on the magnitude of the resistance encountered. The loudness and sound quality of the echo in an empty valley depend on the force of the air convection and the magnitude of the rock wall's resistance. The more empty and open the valley, the more false, illusory, and unreal the echo. The echo in a valley cannot be said to be real, nor can it be said to be false; it has a nature of both real and false, because it carries the essence of the original realm.
The second moon comes directly from the true moon in the sky, the first moon; without the first moon there is no second moon. You cannot say the second moon is real, nor that the second moon is false. The second moon has a nature of both real and false, because it carries the essence within the original realm of the first moon—and carries quite a lot of it, so it appears rather real. Even so, a person of wisdom, when pressing the eye to produce the second moon, will not take it to be the true moon, the first moon. By the same token, one cannot take the echo in an empty valley to be a person's real voice; one can only follow the echo to seek the person's real voice, and thereby find the person. This is also the secret of investigating Chan.
Twenty-two: The Object-Aspect Seen by the Six Consciousnesses Cannot Be Seen by Others
Question: The realm bearing essence is the six sense-object realm manifested by a single tathāgatagarbha after cognizing the original realm and taking in the particles of the four great elements of the original realm. This portion of the object-aspect includes everything from the similar object-aspect that arises in the instant the tathāgatagarbha contacts the original realm, up to the object-aspect before it enters the five sense faculties or the five supreme faculties. The real realm, on the other hand, refers to the six sense-object realm that manifests in the supreme faculty when the realm bearing essence enters the supreme faculty through the five gross sense faculties. Then the second moon formed by pressing the eye should be the six sense-object realm manifesting in the supreme faculty—would it not be more reasonable to classify it under the real realm?
Answer: The real realm is the object-aspect seen by the five consciousnesses. Then can the eye consciousness see the second moon? Can other people see it? The object-aspects and realms seen by each consciousness differ; the same image, upon entering each consciousness, undergoes changes in its properties. For example, when a person looks into a mirror, with another mirror opposite it, one mirror on the left and one on the right, the reflections of this person appearing in each mirror are roughly the same, yet their properties and degree of reality in each mirror differ greatly.
Twenty-three: The Difference Between the Original Realm and the Realm Bearing Essence
Do the original realm formed when the eighth consciousness first outputs the seeds of the four great elements, and the realm bearing essence after it has been discriminated by the sixth and seventh consciousnesses, both belong to the category of realms? Both belong to the category of realms: one is a realm within the supreme faculty, and one is a realm outside the supreme faculty—that is, what the Buddha called the internal realm and the external realm.
What the eighth consciousness first outputs the seeds of the four great elements to form is the original realm and the primal realm, which is contacted by the eighth consciousness and is not the real realm. The real realm is the illusory realm that one's own eighth consciousness, based on the original realm, manifests like a mirror reflecting an image, within the five supreme faculties. The realms sentient beings can contact are all real realms and realms bearing essence conjured in a second transformation by their own eighth consciousnesses, and there are also subjectively imagined realms. If a subjectively imagined realm cannot manifest normally in the brain, the solitary consciousness cannot normally read the subjectively imagined realm—it seems like amnesia, but in fact it is failing to discriminate the subjectively imagined realm that should be discriminated.
Twenty-four: The Principle of the Double-Slit Experiment
Once the six consciousnesses—or, one may say, the seven consciousnesses, or one's own eight consciousnesses—join in the perception of matter, the three consciousnesses of transformative agency (parināma) can manifest and alter the state of matter. That is to say, an original realm is composed of fixed particles of the four great elements; once it enters the supreme faculty of the human eye, the particles of the four great elements must inevitably change, with their quantity and even their proportional structure changing. Having fallen into the minds of the five consciousnesses and the mind consciousness, how could the realm manifested through the agency of the six consciousnesses not change? How could the realm not be altered? But the alteration only alters the realm manifested through the agency of the six consciousnesses; the original realm remains as it was. Therefore, in the double-slit experiment, once the light wave is observed, it becomes particle-like; and therefore, when a plant or animal is raised by different people, its state of life and vitality will differ.
However, the unchanging nature of the original realm is only a temporary phenomenon; sooner or later it will change. Because the original realm is also a dharma arising and ceasing through causes and conditions, a dharma of arising-ceasing mutation; when causes and conditions change, the original realm will inevitably change. Even when causes and conditions do not change, if sentient beings pay attention to and aspire toward the original realm, and the manas's wishes and seeking join in, the original realm will inevitably change. When the minds of the multitude are sincere and all hearts are as one, it will inevitably cause the original realm to turn in accordance with the minds of the multitude, and may even cause it to turn in accordance with the mind of a single person of the Path.
Take the earth, for example. Before humankind was born, although it existed in the mode of arising, abiding, changing, and ceasing, its mutation at that time was very slow. The delicious earth-cream on the surface floated on the earth's surface for many kalpas, sweet, rich, and fertile, neither diminishing nor thinning. When the devas of the Ābhāsvara heaven of the second dhyāna descended to the earth and became human beings, because of their craving for the earth-cream, it grew ever thinner and less, finally ceasing to regenerate and eventually becoming extinct—the result of interference by the karmic power of sentient beings. After its extinction, humans began to cultivate the delicious husked rice; finally, because sentient beings craved it without letting go, the husked rice disappeared, and even its name can no longer be found. Such is the enormity of sentient beings' karmic power.
Twenty-five: The Meanings of "Carrying by Transformation" and "Carrying by Concomitance" in the Realm Bearing Essence
The word "carrying" in "realm bearing essence" has two meanings. One is carrying by transformation, which brings out form sense-objects and material dharma sense-objects; the other is carrying by concomitance, which brings out the eight consciousnesses, or the mental factors of the eight consciousnesses, or the object-aspects, self-cognitions (svasaṃvitti), and self-validating cognitions (svasaṃvedana) of the eight consciousnesses—mental dharma sense-objects.
The realm bearing essence by transformation is a realm of the six sense-objects, divided into external and internal six sense-object realms, arising from the original realm, the primal realm. The seeds of the four great elements it carries differ somewhat from those of the original realm: the number of seeds is fewer than the number of seeds in the original realm, and the seed structure also undergoes some changes. It is a six sense-object realm carrying the essence of the original realm, and is the object-aspect of the conscious mind. Carrying by transformation is carried over from the external object-aspect, the real realm; it manifests depending on the external object-aspect, resembling the external object-aspect, and is the internal object-aspect cognized and reflected upon by the seven consciousnesses.
The realm bearing essence by concomitance is a mental dharma sense-object realm: the mental dharmas carried along by the sixth consciousness and the seventh consciousness, the mental dharma sense-object aspects discriminated by the sixth and seventh consciousnesses, including the object cognized by one's own mind of its own mind-substance. The concomitant carrier is the cognizing mind, the seven consciousnesses—mainly the sixth and seventh consciousnesses, with the sixth consciousness primary—carrying along one's own aspects (that is, introspecting one's own thoughts), or one's own mental factors (introspecting one's own mental factors), or referring to the seven consciousnesses' perceiving-aspect (the seeing nature) cognizing the object-aspect (the conscious mind seeing sense-objects), or the perceiving-aspect cognizing the self-cognition, the perceiving-aspect cognizing the self-validating cognition, and so forth. Or it may be a mind consciousness that has already realized the eighth consciousness, the tathāgatagarbha, and possesses wisdom, able to cognize the true-suchness characteristics of the eighth consciousness—the mind consciousness can observe the eighth consciousness's true and suchlike nature, its capacity to become a Buddha.
Carrying by concomitance is a mode of cognizing dharma distinct from carrying by transformation of the external object-aspect of the real realm. What is discriminated within the minds of the seven consciousnesses, which seems to be the aspect of a realm, is also carried out by the seven consciousnesses. The subjectively imagined realm is entirely carried out by the sixth and seventh consciousnesses and does not exist depending on the external object-aspect. When the mind consciousness observes its own mental activities, those mental activities and mental factors are what the mind consciousness carries along; when the mind consciousness observes the eighth consciousness, observes the five consciousnesses, observes the seventh consciousness, or observes itself, the objects observed are all object-aspects carried out by the mind consciousness. When our eyes see a cup and the mind consciousness also discriminates and identifies the cup, this realm-appearance is a realm bearing essence, existing depending on the external object-aspect of the cup; when one is away from home and, eyes closed, the face of one's parents appears in the mind, this is a subjectively imagined realm, carried out by the mind consciousness.
Twenty-six: What Form Can Contact the Gross Faculty of the Eye
Form is divided into the form of the original realm, the form of the realm bearing essence, and the form of the real realm. Among these, the external form sense-object of the original realm can only be contacted by the eighth consciousness; the eye consciousness, the mind consciousness, and the gross faculty of the eye cannot contact it, nor can the manas. After the eighth consciousness contacts the original realm, it further manifests the realm bearing essence based on the particles of the four great elements of the original realm; this portion of form can be contacted by the manas and can also be transmitted to the gross faculty of the eye. What the gross faculty of the eye contacts is the particles of the four great elements of the realm bearing essence transformed again by the eighth consciousness, not the particles of the four great elements on the original realm. Therefore the gross faculty of the eye cannot contact the form sense-object of the original realm; only with a certain distance from the original realm can it transmit the form sense-object into the supreme faculty, where faculty and sense-object contact each other and the eye consciousness is then born to see form.
If the gross faculty of the eye were in direct contact with the form sense-object of the original realm, with no certain distance in between, the tathāgatagarbha would be unable to transmit the realm bearing essence manifested from the original realm through the gross faculty into the supreme faculty, and the eye consciousness could not be born to see form. Because the transmission of the form sense-object by the eye faculty is rather special, there is an imaging principle of the eye faculty: only when the form sense-object is at a distance from the eye faculty can an inverted image form on the retina of the eye faculty. The other faculties do not have this phenomenon and need not be at a certain distance from their corresponding material forms. Thus seeing form with the eye, compared with the other faculties' perceiving of dharmas, has the additional condition of spatial distance.
Twenty-seven: Are There External Mental Sense-Objects or Not
External mental sense-objects: for example, a high mountain outside—its shape, height, loftiness, grandeur, and so on are all external mental sense-objects. After the tathāgatagarbha contacts them, they are transmitted into the supreme faculty and become inner mental sense-objects (inner dharma-viṣaya), which the six consciousnesses can then discriminate. If there were no external mental sense-objects, and the mountain outside had only colors and nothing else, how could one distinguish this mountain from that mountain, how could one distinguish mountains, rivers, and the great earth? Surely the material world (bhājana-loka) of the universe cannot be just a riot of colors, can it?
Person A is a person, person B is a person; A, to B, is an external sense-object, including the six sense-objects of form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma. A's height, build, sex, temperament, age, appearance, and so on are all external mental sense-objects. After B's tathāgatagarbha contacts them, they are transmitted into B's supreme faculty and become inner mental sense-objects. One cannot say that A is merely a patch of colored form sense-object without external mental sense-objects such as height, build, age, appearance, and so on, can one? If every person were only a patch of color with no mental sense-objects, what difference would there be between people? Could it be that each person's tathāgatagarbha creates inner mental sense-objects using other people's tathāgatagarbhas? Does each person's tathāgatagarbha randomly fabricate the appearances and features of other people's mental sense-objects?
Twenty-eight: Mental Sense-Objects and the Five Sense-Objects Manifest Simultaneously in the Supreme Faculty
Question: Some say that the mental sense-object is born separately in the supreme faculty, and that after the manas contacts it, the mind consciousness is born to discriminate the mental sense-object. Is this so?
Answer: The mental sense-object in the supreme faculty is transmitted into the supreme faculty through the five faculties simultaneously with the external five sense-objects, becoming the inner six sense-objects, for the manas to contact and for the six consciousnesses to discriminate simultaneously. The inner mental sense-object is not born separately in the supreme faculty. If it were, the mental sense-object would have no connection with the five sense-objects; a separately born mental sense-object would appear abrupt and unfounded, rather like something arbitrarily made up, unable to display the properties and content of the five sense-objects, and the consciousness accompanied by the five senses would likewise have no close relationship with the five consciousnesses.
After the consciousness accompanied by the five senses discriminates the mental sense-object and makes choices and judgments, it must convey information to the manas; the information of the five sense-objects discriminated by the five consciousnesses is also conveyed to the manas together with the mind consciousness, because the manas is also the co-existent basis (sahabhū-āśraya) for the birth of the five consciousnesses. Only when the manas decides to discriminate and process the five sense-objects can the five consciousnesses be born; therefore the actions and activities of the five consciousnesses must be directed by the manas, answer to the manas, and serve as reference for the manas.
The five sense-objects combined with the mental sense-object constitute the complete six sense-object realm of form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma. What the five consciousnesses discriminate and process is the relatively coarse portion of the six sense-objects; what the mind consciousness discriminates and processes is the relatively subtle portion. The information of coarse and subtle combined is conveyed to the manas; the manas simultaneously receives the information of coarse dharmas and subtle dharmas, and after its own solitary deliberation (manasikāra), makes its own judgment and choice regarding the six sense-objects as a whole.
For example, when going to a shopping mall to buy clothes and seeing garments of every color, the manas will want to choose a garment whose color suits it; the eye consciousness and the mind consciousness must discriminate the clothes simultaneously. The eye consciousness discriminates only the colors; the mind consciousness discriminates the mental sense-objects beyond the colors, including the garment's style, material, and charm. After the information of the form sense-object and the mental sense-object is conveyed to the manas, the manas will weigh the color and the style and material, and then let the mind consciousness separately analyze and judge which color, red or black, is more suitable, and which style is more appropriate—this is the working domain of the solitary consciousness. The solitary consciousness then imagines the effect of wearing it on the body and conveys the results of its imagination and analysis to the manas; the manas deliberates and judges again and makes its own decision. Finally, the several consciousnesses operate in concert and buy the garment that satisfies the manas, and the six consciousnesses have completed their service to the manas.
What constitutes the whole garment includes the visible colors, which are the form sense-objects discriminated by the eye consciousness; all parts besides the color—the shapes, expressive gestures, and non-informative form (avijñapti-rūpa)—are the mental sense-objects discriminated by the mind consciousness. The two combine to constitute a garment. At the time the garment is produced and processed, the form sense-object and the mental sense-object already exist simultaneously. When each person discriminates it, the form sense-object and the mental sense-object are transmitted simultaneously through the five faculties into one's own supreme faculty, forming the inner material sense-object (inner rūpa-viṣaya) and the inner mental sense-object, for the eye consciousness and mind consciousness to discriminate. It is not the case that when the garment is produced there is only color, without mental sense-object content such as style, material, length, width, size, and charm; if so, it would not be called a garment, there would be no need for sewing and tailoring equipment to process the fabric, and there would be no such thing as fabric. Therefore the mental sense-object is bound together with the five sense-objects, not produced separately in the supreme faculty.
