Mental Wandering Is the Manas Deliberating

Dazing, spacing out, absent-mindedness, or being in a trance—"leng" (愣) signifies a state of stillness without action, while "shen" (神) refers to consciousness. Thus, "leng shen" (愣神) describes a state where consciousness ceases its functions of thought and analysis. This occurs because consciousness has already grasped the superficial meaning of a matter but cannot resolve deeper issues, compelling it to hand the problem over to manas (意根) for resolution. Consciousness merely maintains focus on the problem.

Many significant and profound issues cannot be resolved by consciousness alone, necessitating reliance on the inherent experiences and wisdom accumulated by manas over countless lifetimes. Initially, consciousness comprehends the surface-level aspects of a problem and transmits this understanding to manas. Once manas grasps the general idea, it independently contemplates the deeper dimensions of the issue.

For example, when encountering an old classmate or colleague, consciousness recognizes the person and knows who they are, yet cannot recall their name or address them appropriately, making it impossible to offer a greeting. At this point, consciousness can take no further action. Manas must then search for the person’s name, engaging in continuous contemplation and deliberation. Simultaneously, it causes the six consciousnesses (六识) to fall silent—leaving one speechless, staring at the other party, and refraining from any action.

During the state of "leng shen," consciousness may occasionally engage in faint thought activities to assist manas in its contemplation. However, these conscious thoughts remain weak and subdued. If consciousness were to become overly active, it would disrupt and exit the state of "leng shen."