The Reason Why One Cannot Realize No-Self

We know that this physical body is not the self, yet we simply cannot eliminate the self-view (ātma-dṛṣṭi). Why? This is a matter of wisdom. On one hand, the mind consciousness lacks the wisdom of no-self, does not know how to engage in contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā) and deliberation (manana), does not know how to gather evidence and data, and does not know how to imprint and influence the manas; on the other hand, meditative concentration (samādhi) is insufficient, so one cannot concentrate on contemplation, cannot make the manas accept the views of the mind consciousness, and the manas cannot focus on weighing the evidence and data gathered by the mind consciousness—thus the self-view cannot be eliminated.

The views held by the manas since beginningless kalpas are the hardest to turn around. Although at times the mind consciousness clearly knows that the physical body arises and ceases moment by moment and is unreal, and cannot possibly be the self, the manas simply cannot accept this falsehood—this is exactly where things get stuck. Moreover, in most cases the evidence provided by the mind consciousness is not conclusive either. Take, for example, the proposition that one plus one equals two: we know this proposition is correct, but why one plus one equals two is correct, we do not know. If even the mind consciousness does not know, it is even less possible for the manas to know.

In contemplating that the physical body is without self, one can contemplate from many different angles. For instance, if a hand is cut off, contemplate: is that hand the self? No, because the hand is gone, yet the self still remains. If the hand were the self, then the self would be gone. This shows that the hand is not the self. After the eyes are gouged out, does the self not still remain? Then the eyes are not the self. Cut off the ears, and the self still exists, without dying—so the ears are not the self. Cut off the head, and although the self dies along with it, if the self had truly ceased to exist, there would be no self in future lives. This shows that this physical body is also not the self. Is yesterday's self the self? If it were the self, then where has yesterday's self gone? Condense these questions into a single thought and suspend it in your mind. Someday, the manas will finally understand: "Oh, so that is how it is—the physical body and the five aggregates (pañcaskandha) are all not the self." Then the self-view will be eliminated.