Chapter One: The Self-View and Self-Attachment of Manas (2)

Thirteen: The Parikalpita-Svabhāva (Imaginative Nature) of Manas

Mahākāśyapa practiced the dhūtaṅga (ascetic practices). He would sit under a tree but never under the same tree for more than three days; by the third day, he would certainly change to another tree. This was to avoid developing attachment to the tree, thereby avoiding the bondage of birth and death. The minds of Arhats with dual liberation (liberated both mentally and physically) are already liberated; they can enter Parinirvāṇa (final nirvana) anytime, anywhere. Why then do they still watch over their minds so diligently? The mind that watches is the sixth consciousness (mano-vijñāna), which possesses strong awareness and rationality. The mind being watched is manas (the seventh consciousness), which has poor awareness and rationality, possessing the parikalpita-svabhāva (imaginative nature). It easily gives rise to attachment to any dharma (phenomenon) it encounters. The manas of ordinary beings can be said to grasp onto any dharma it encounters.

Why is manas so prone to attachment? Manas has been profoundly afflicted by ignorance (avidyā) since beginningless kalpas (aeons) ago. It does not understand the principles of dharma, does not perceive the substance and essence of dharmas, only knowing their superficial appearances, clinging to illusions as ultimate reality. Furthermore, due to ignorance and delusion, it does not know it is deluded, clinging to its own views and unwilling to relinquish them. Therefore, manas is difficult to transform; it is not easy to change its cognition, habits, and tendencies. Speaking of the habits and tendencies of manas, as long as manas encounters things corresponding to its inclinations, if it happens more than three times, it easily forms a habit. So-called habits refer to the inertial force of manas, its willingness and preference to follow previous thoughts, actions, and considerations, lacking flexibility. Some habits of manas are not even liked by manas itself, but with repeated exposure, they form mechanized thoughts and mental activities.

Why does manas have this mechanical inertia? Because manas is deluded and unskilled in contemplation. Regarding dharmas it has been exposed to for a long time and matured with, it automatically accepts them, then grasps and acts accordingly, thus forming habits and naturalness. For the sixth consciousness and the other five consciousnesses, it means unconsciously saying, doing, or thinking something, unable to control it. Because manas is stubborn, how can it be easily controlled? Moreover, if the sixth consciousness is also unenlightened, lacking the thought or idea of control, the habits and inertia of manas become even more prominent.

Fourteen: The Formation of Habits in Manas

Originally, there were no paths in the world; when many people walk, a path is formed. Manas originally had no habits; with frequent contact and constant doing, habits are formed. Once manas develops a habit, it will not easily remove or correct it, even if it is a meaningless matter. Once manas becomes accustomed to it, it will continue to act accordingly in the future. It does not contemplate whether this matter is meaningful, whether it is worth doing, or what cost is worth paying; it disregards all this. From this point of view, manas is deluded and of inferior wisdom.

Judging from the deluded nature of manas and its tendency to easily form habits, manas possesses the parikalpita-svabhāva. If it were wise, it would not have the parikalpita-svabhāva; having wisdom means not grasping, let alone the parikalpita-svabhāva. Due to the deluded nature of manas, it is instead not easy to form habits with wholesome dharmas, nor is it easy to generate attachment to them. Of course, attachment to wholesome dharmas is also a bondage of birth and death, preventing liberation. However, cultivation is gradual. Using the wholesome to subdue the unwholesome is the preliminary stage of practice. When unwholesome dharmas are removed and wholesome dharmas are also not retained, the mind becomes empty and corresponds with the Way (Dao), possessing sufficient power of the Way.

Since beginningless kalpas ago, the environment manas resided in had more unwholesome dharmas and fewer wholesome dharmas, or no wholesome dharmas at all. Therefore, manas corresponded with unwholesome dharmas and did not correspond with wholesome dharmas. It became accustomed to unwholesome dharmas and unaccustomed to wholesome dharmas. Influencing it with wholesome dharmas is comparatively difficult. However, to escape the cycle of suffering in the sea of saṃsāra, no matter how difficult it is, one must persist in permeating it with wholesome dharmas. Persistence leads to victory.

Fifteen: Can the Parikalpita-Svabhāva of Manas Be Removed?

Attachment (grasping, clinging) means stagnation, obstruction, hindrance, obstacle, bondage, birth and death, lack of freedom. Therefore, having attachment prevents Nirvāṇa and liberation. Absence of attachment means fusion, softness, pliability, penetration, sudden clarity, thorough understanding, and brightness.

Once manas neither grasps the unwholesome nor the wholesome, nor the neither-wholesome-nor-unwholesome, and encounters all dharmas without obstruction, the mind becomes fused, liberated, and unobstructed, achieving Buddhahood with ease. One who stays near vermilion becomes red; one who stays near ink becomes black. When manas is heavily afflicted by ignorance and strong in grasping, one must distance oneself from unwholesome dharmas and draw near to wholesome dharmas. Only then can one avoid being tainted by unwholesome dharmas, gradually remove unwholesome dharmas, and not grasp them. Drawing near to wholesome dharmas allows one to be permeated by wholesome dharmas, liberating the mind wholesomely. One should observe what dharmas one's own manas is grasping. As long as one knows what one is grasping, it becomes manageable; sooner or later, the grasping nature will be corrected and removed.

The parikalpita-svabhāva of manas includes grasping at the person-self (pudgala-ātma-grāha) related to the five aggregates (skandhas) and the eighteen elements (dhātus), and grasping at the subtle dharma-self (dharma-ātma-grāha). Ordinary beings have both types of grasping relatively severely, primarily grasping the person-self. Their understanding of the dharma-self is neither extensive nor deep, so they cannot yet be said to grasp it much. The manas of Arhats and Pratyekabuddhas has eradicated the view of the person-self, and consequently, they have also eradicated the grasping of the person-self, no longer grasping the five aggregates and eighteen elements as the person-self. Bodhisattvas of the Ten Bhūmis (stages) have eradicated the view of the dharma-self to varying degrees, and consequently, they have also eradicated the grasping of the dharma-self to varying degrees. When a Bodhisattva exhaustively eradicates the grasping of the dharma-self, the Bodhisattva's ignorance is exhausted, and they become a Buddha.

All grasping arises due to erroneous views. Once erroneous views are refuted, grasping will subsequently be gradually eradicated. Therefore, where there is ignorance in manas, there are wrong views, and thus there is parikalpita-svabhāva. When a portion of the ignorance in manas is eliminated, a portion of the parikalpita-svabhāva decreases, so that grasping becomes less and less, lighter and lighter, until it is finally extinguished upon becoming a Buddha. It is evident that the parikalpita-svabhāva of manas can be eliminated through continuous and deepening cultivation.

Sixteen: Why Are Sentient Beings Not Liberated?

Because the manas-vijñāna (seventh consciousness) constantly grasps the dharmas seen by the seeing aspect (dṛṣṭi) of the ālaya-vijñāna (eighth consciousness) as self and belonging to self, it is bound by dharmas and thus not liberated. Whatever dharmas the ālaya-vijñāna sees, it manifests like a mirror. The dharmas manifested, once apprehended by manas, are considered by it to be self and belonging to self. Thus, greed and attachment arise. If manas clearly recognizes that these dharmas are all clearly the ālaya-vijñāna's and not its own, manas eradicates ignorance, eradicates the view of the person-self and the view of the dharma-self, attains right view, and no longer grasps these dharmas as self and belonging to self. It is then liberated from all dharmas and becomes a Buddha.

Seventeen: Do Those Who Have Eradicated Self-Grasping Still Have Thoughts?

After eradicating self-grasping, there are still some thoughts concerning immediate survival. When interacting with people, it's impossible to have no thoughts. When encountering various situations, thoughts on how to handle them will arise. When expounding the Dharma opportunistically for sentient beings, thoughts will also arise. These thoughts are relatively pure and subtle, all of an opportunistic nature, without deliberate thoughts of fabrication, nor thoughts strongly grasping at self or similar concepts. The Buddha also had thoughts when coming into the world; those thoughts were all pure, selfless, and without any grasping. Because the mental factors (caittas) of the several consciousnesses all include the mental factor of memory (smṛti), the functioning of the consciousnesses inevitably involves the appearance of thoughts.

However, the thoughts of those who have eradicated self-grasping differ greatly from those who have not. Thoughts can reflect whether a person has grasping or not. Those who grasp have intense thoughts; those who do not grasp have subtle thoughts; their mental state is opportunistic and relaxed. Those who have eradicated self-grasping have no more thoughts or expectations for future lives; they do not plan or make arrangements for the afterlife. Of course, in this present life, they live opportunistically, dealing with everything around them without any pursuit, taking each day as it comes, not contending with others. Regarding the matter of liberating sentient beings, they similarly act opportunistically: when there is affinity, they speak some Dharma; when there is no affinity, they do not think about it. In short, most thoughts arise passively; rarely do thoughts arise actively.

Under this coping mentality, the thoughts of the sixth consciousness are obvious, while those of manas are very faint. Because the thoughts of manas are faint and few, the thoughts of the sixth consciousness also become few and subtle, mostly passive. Since manas has no major thoughts or ideas, there are no dreams. Usually, the mind is calm, the breath is relaxed, and the mental state is peaceful.

Eighteen: Manas Still Grasps After Organ Transplantation

Question: During organ transplantation, after the internal organs are removed, the six consciousnesses are no longer active on the organs. Then, what function causes the internal organs to throb and jump? What phenomena occur when the internal organs are transplanted into another person's body?

Answer: After the internal organs leave the body, they have nothing to do with the six consciousnesses, but they are still related to manas and the tathāgatagarbha (Buddha-nature). Manas still grasps them as self, and the grasping function of the tathāgatagarbha still exists. The nervous system of the internal organs will still function temporarily, so the internal organs appear to throb and jump. Organ transplantation is like parents giving away a treasure that originally belonged to their child to another child. If the two children have a good relationship, the parents giving their treasure to the other child might be acceptable; perhaps the mind has to endure a bit, and it can endure, without opposing or taking it back. If the two children have a bad relationship, then they will not allow the parents to give their treasure to the other party; they will throw a tantrum and make a big fuss, or go to take it back.

Here, it is mainly a problem of manas. Whether organ transplantation succeeds or not mostly depends on manas. If manas does not grasp its own organs, the success rate of transplantation is high. If manas grasps its own organs very strongly, rejection will occur after transplantation, and the transplantation will not succeed. Even for a healthy normal person, if manas no longer grasps its own physical body and completely abandons it, it is possible to die immediately. Therefore, life and death depend on manas.

After organ transplantation, the tathāgatagarbhas of the two people cooperate for a short period. When manas has almost completely abandoned its own organ, that organ becomes the transplant recipient's, and the organ is solely maintained and upheld by the recipient's tathāgatagarbha. If the brain is transplanted, manas, having no place to reside, will follow the brain over. This is equivalent to transplanting the entire manas. Then, the transplanted person's brain is altered, no longer the original person's mode of thinking; emotions, etc., also change.

After a patient receives a transplanted organ, rejection reactions may occur. Besides genetic factors and various other reasons, one reason is the rejection by the donor's manas. Most organ donations are not voluntary; the donor did not express willingness before death to donate organs after death. Rather, the family members decide to donate the deceased's organs. If the deceased was unwilling, then after the organ enters the patient's body, the deceased's manas interferes and rejects it, causing rejection reactions. Or, even if the deceased agreed to donate organs before death, if the organs are removed by surgery before death has fully occurred, while the deceased is in great pain, they may generate anger and regret. Then, when the organ enters the patient's body, the deceased's manas may have resistance, and the patient may experience rejection reactions.

Nineteen: Why Severed Flesh Can Still Move Due to Manas' Grasping

Question: After a person accidentally severs a finger, if it is reattached promptly within a certain time due to manas' grasping, it can regain function. However, it's a bit difficult to understand how an organ or part of the body, after leaving the main body, can still have distinct signs of life (such as twisting, jumping, etc.). Through what means does manas keep that organ or body part active? Since the physical sense faculty (rūpa-indriya) is gone, how do manas and the tathāgatagarbha control the detached organ or severed flesh? Can the tathāgatagarbha directly output seeds to the detached organ through manas without any basis? Or is this movement merely an unconscious neural reflex?

Answer: An organ just detached is still maintained jointly by manas and the tathāgatagarbha, just like the organs on the body. The tathāgatagarbha provides the four great elements (mahābhūta) seeds to satisfy the needs of the body faculty (kāyendriya). Once manas considers the detached organ useless, it will abandon it. Then the tathāgatagarbha ceases to output the seeds of the four great elements, and those organs lose their vitality.

The seeds of the four great elements on the organ constantly generate and disintegrate. The organ thus possesses the characteristics of the four great elements: the motility of wind (vāyu), the solidity of earth (pṛthivī), the moisture of water (ap), and the warmth of fire (tejas). The particles composed of seeds constantly arise, abide, change, and cease, driving the particles to constantly move and change, thus generating various energies, such as kinetic energy, thermal energy, potential energy, etc.

The reason freshly severed flesh moves is that the nervous tissue still has conductive function; the cells' functions are not necrotic, and both manas and the tathāgatagarbha are maintaining it. The stronger manas grasps, the longer the flesh moves. Some animals have been dead for a long time; their bodies are dismembered and sold piece by piece, yet the flesh is still moving. This animal grasps its body very strongly; whoever buys its flesh, it knows, and in the future, it will certainly seek repayment and reclaim it. When sentient beings encounter each other, some are repaying kindness or debts; some are engaged in mutual enmity and retribution. The relationships of kindness, grudges, enmity, and resentment are extremely complex; no one is without enemies.

Twenty: The Suffering (duḥkha-vedanā) of Manas

Question: When an animal's body is dismembered and still convulsing, is the suffering (duḥkha-vedanā) of manas particularly severe at this time? Does the dismembered flesh still have a strong sense of pain?

Answer: Whether the physical body is being dismembered or immune to dismemberment, it has no suffering (duḥkha-vedanā) or pleasure (sukha-vedanā). What experiences feeling is the mind-consciousness, the five consciousnesses, and the sixth consciousness. Manas does not have physical suffering or pleasure related to tangible objects (spraṣṭavya). This is the physiological suffering perceived by the body-consciousness (kāya-vijñāna); the suffering of the sixth consciousness is mental. When things go against its mind or do not accord with its wishes, manas becomes unhappy, which is suffering. Manas is very greedy and hateful; because of its grasping, the more it grasps, the more it greedily clings and the more hateful it becomes. Manas does not wish to die; it does not wish to be killed or eaten, so it has resentment and suffering. If it is saved, it will also have a grateful mind. Therefore, manas will repay kindness, bear grudges, and seek revenge. The resentment poison in manas's mind is sufficient to make people uncomfortable; its resentful wishes are sufficient to make people receive negative karmic retribution and evil results.

Twenty-One: The Grasping Nature of Manas

Internal organs freshly removed from a living body are all fresh and vital, with nerve cells moving, showing clear signs of life. Why are the internal organs still fresh after leaving the body? Because with manas' grasping, the tathāgatagarbha will output seeds to maintain the survival of the internal organs.

Observing the body-grasping nature of each person's manas at the time of approaching death, those who grasp the body more strongly die more slowly and experience more and heavier suffering. Those with lighter body-grasping die more quickly, with less and lighter suffering. Except for beings destined for hell. People with severe body-grasping are those with heavy afflictions (kleśa). Such people have light wholesome karma; often, at the time of death, there are no auspicious signs (nimitta), and they do not know where they are going, so they grasp the body severely. The more they grasp the body, the more suffering the mind experiences. This is a vicious cycle from which ordinary people without cultivation cannot escape. People with much and great wholesome karma often have some auspicious signs and good omens at the time of death; their minds turn towards wholesome destinations and grasp the body less, so death comes quickly.

Therefore, one should train oneself more in daily life to minimize grasping towards people, affairs, and objects. At the time of death, suffering will be less. Also, in daily life, suffering will be very little. So, the less grasping, the closer to liberation, and the easier the life. Whatever one grasps at becomes a burden. Grasping itself is a manifestation of delusion. A wise person can see clearly, let go, and will not grasp any people, affairs, or objects to increase the burden on their body and mind.

Twenty-Two: When Can the Parikalpita-Svabhāva of Manas Be Removed?

It is precisely because of the parikalpita-svabhāva of manas that sentient beings have all kinds of suffering in the cycle of birth and death (saṃsāra). Removing the parikalpita-svabhāva of manas leads to Nirvāṇa. However, the parikalpita-svabhāva is not so easy to remove. One needs to eradicate the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi), eradicate self-grasping (ātma-grāha), realize Suchness (tathatā), and only when the grasping of the dharma-self is also completely exhausted can the parikalpita-svabhāva of manas be completely and thoroughly removed, achieving great liberation (mokṣa).

Twenty-Three: Can Ordinary Sentient Beings Grasp the Eighth Consciousness as Self?

Only those who have realized the eighth consciousness (ālaya-vijñāna) begin to grasp the eighth consciousness as self. Before realizing the eighth consciousness, the manas of ordinary beings has no means to grasp the eighth consciousness as self. After truly realizing the eighth consciousness and attaining awakening (kenshō), through subsequent continuous cultivation, one must gradually eradicate manas' grasping of the eighth consciousness to reach the third barrier (kōan) in Chan (Zen) Buddhism and attain liberation.

If sentient beings could grasp the eighth consciousness, they would no longer grasp the five aggregates (skandhas) as self. Without realizing the eighth consciousness, how can one grasp it? Everyone should try to grasp the eighth consciousness. As long as one can grasp the eighth consciousness even slightly, it will generate a bit of the samādhi of Suchness (tathatā-samādhi), which has immeasurable merit.

Twenty-Four: Who Extinguishes Manas in Nirvāṇa Without Remainder (Anupādhiśeṣa-Nirvāṇa)?

At the time of approaching Nirvāṇa, the seventeen elements (dhātus) are completely extinguished, and manas automatically disappears. There is no agent who extinguishes manas. If there were an agent who extinguishes manas, then there would still be a self. Having a self, one cannot enter Nirvāṇa without remainder; without self, extinction (nirvāṇa) is possible. If there is still an "agent," the agent is self; the "object" is what belongs to self. There is no one who regards manas as belonging to self. Without agent and without object, extinction is possible. With agent and object, extinction is impossible.

Extinction (nirvāṇa) is not manas willingly extinguishing itself to become extinct, nor is it manas being extinguished. Rather, it is because manas no longer grasps any dharma, no longer has desire for any dharma. Manas has no desire to create or act, nothing it seeks. The mental factor of volition (cetanā) does not arise. The tathāgatagarbha thus has nothing to create or act upon and ceases to produce dharmas. Each dharma will then disappear. Finally, the tathāgatagarbha sees that manas has no mental activities at all and ceases to output the seeds of manas' consciousness. Manas naturally extinguishes.

Twenty-Five: Manas Can Control a Severed Snake Head

Question: When a snake's head is severed, the head can still bite people. The nerves controlling reflexes are on the snake's body. After the head is severed, various organs can still independently maintain their original motor functions for a certain period. Therefore, when the severed snake head is touched, it still reflexively bites. How is this explained using the principles of Consciousness-Only (Vijñapti-mātratā)?

Answer: The head of a snake just severed is still upheld by manas and the eighth consciousness (ālaya-vijñāna). The brain's nerves are still connected to the snake's body, so manas can still control the whole body, primarily controlling the head. Because manas resides in the brain area, it controls the central nervous system to control the whole body. At this time, the six consciousnesses have not yet ceased. The activities of the head still involve the body-consciousness and mind-consciousness. If the nerves are severed, manas can no longer command the body through the nervous system, and the snake body cannot move; manas can only command and control the head.

Ordinary beings in the six paths of birth and death (gati) all grasp the body severely, not just snakes. Some animals can still walk after their heads are cut off; half a head can live for several months. Some people have been in a vegetative state for a long time yet refuse to relinquish the body. Others are very weak after being unable to eat for a long time yet still struggle tenaciously to live. Ordinary people call this phenomenon the "will to live"; in reality, it is manas' grasping of the physical body.

Is there grasping by the consciousnesses in this? Manas uses the six consciousnesses as tools and assistants; it uses them if it can and only abandons them when it truly cannot use them anymore. At that point, it chooses to leave the body and die. The tenacity of life until the very end is manas grasping the body, striving not to let the six consciousnesses cease, striving to use the six consciousnesses for discernment activities, striving to keep the mind-consciousness clear. The six consciousnesses thus struggle to act and live, despite great suffering.

From this, it can be seen that the so-called "self" refers to manas. Manas represents the self of the five aggregates (skandhas) to more than ninety percent. Therefore, to eradicate the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi), one must eradicate manas' view of self; otherwise, the view of self is not eradicated. The sixth consciousness eradicating the view of self has no power; manas will still make the sixth consciousness have the view of self; the sixth consciousness cannot escape the control of manas.

Twenty-Six: How to Make Manas Quickly Accept the Buddha Dharma and Change Itself

Manas has survived in the desire realm (kāma-dhātu) for countless kalpas and is already very familiar with the worldly dharmas of the five-aggregate world. Manas is relatively unfamiliar with the Buddha Dharma. Due to contact over countless kalpas, it has worldly wisdom. The Buddha Dharma is relatively new and unfamiliar to manas; it lacks sufficient wisdom and experience to make correct, reasonable, and quick judgments. Therefore, it is not easy for manas to accept the Buddha Dharma, nor to understand it, let alone to cultivate according to it or to correct itself according to it. It is extremely difficult. Therefore, it is necessary to let the sixth consciousness frequently contact the Buddha Dharma, understand it correctly and reasonably, and use this to permeate manas, letting manas become familiar with the Buddha Dharma, interested in it, willing to study and cultivate it, and willing to correct itself according to it. Make the Buddha Dharma, which is unfamiliar to manas, become familiar, and make the worldly dharmas, which are familiar, become unfamiliar. Then, progress in cultivation and the Way will be very fast.

Twenty-Seven: How to Shatter Manas' Dharma-Grasping

The scope of dharma-grasping (dharma-grāha) is too broad. Any grasping whatsoever is dharma-grasping, including grasping the five aggregates as a person-self (pudgala-ātma-grāha), and beyond the five-aggregate body, grasping any more subtle and extensive dharmas constitutes dharma-grasping. How to shatter dharma-grasping? First, one needs to realize the tathāgatagarbha and cultivate the wisdom of consciousness-only seeds (vijñapti-mātra-bīja-jñāna). Then, observe whether all dharmas truly exist, whether they have inherent independent existence or autonomy. Through deep and subtle observation, discover that all dharmas are produced by the tathāgatagarbha depending on certain conditions; they are all produced, impermanent, and illusory, lacking inherent reality, autonomy, or independence. In essence, they are all functions and activities of the tathāgatagarbha, one dharma within the One True Dharma Realm (ekadharma-dhātu), entirely operated by the tathāgatagarbha. There is fundamentally nothing to grasp; nothing can be seized or taken. Thus, the mind becomes relaxed and no longer grasps; dharma-grasping is shattered.

The conventional world has no substantial conditioned appearances; then what is there left to create or do? When the mind is ultimately empty, one becomes a Buddha. When the ignorant grasping nature towards every dharma is extinguished, there is nothing left to crave or grasp. The path to shattering dharma-grasping is very long and slow, from the First Bhūmi (stage) to Buddhahood, a journey spanning two great asaṃkhyeya kalpas (incalculable eons). One great asaṃkhyeya kalpa shatters self-grasping; two great asaṃkhyeya kalpas continuously shatter dharma-grasping. Merely eradicating the view of self requires a very long path to walk. This shows the difficulty of cultivation and how profound the ignorance and grasping of manas are.

All grasping, self-grasping and dharma-grasping, are the grasping of manas. Manas grasps like this, so to shatter manas' grasping, one must first shatter manas' view of self and view of dharmas, shatter the entanglements of manas' thoughts. That means eradicating manas' view of self and view of dharmas. The view that all dharmas are real must be refuted bit by bit; only then can grasping decrease and be eradicated. When grasping is completely extinguished, ignorance is completely eradicated, and the mind is entirely empty and still, one becomes a Buddha.

The mark of achievement in cultivation lies in the degree of emptiness of the mind, in the extent to which ignorance and views are refuted. Seeing the emptiness of the characteristics (lakṣaṇa) of all dharmas, observing how they are empty, selfless, non-autonomous, unreal, impermanent, and changing, the mind becomes empty. Then one no longer wishes to create meaningless conditioned dharmas (saṃskṛta-dharma). Within the mind, there is no mark (animitta), no wish (apraṇihita), and no action (anābhisaṃskāra); it accords with the tathāgatagarbha. This is the Tathāgata Buddha.