Observing Practice Transforms Manas

In the meditative contemplation of earth, water, fire, and wind during Chan concentration, they are found to have no origin, no source, illusory and transient, leading to the Hinayana conclusion of emptiness and non-existence. Thus, water is not recognized as a true dharma, nor is it possessed by me, nor does it belong to me. As for the Mahayana practice of contemplation, it is considerably more difficult to perceive that these elements are born from the Tathagatagarbha. Understanding this conceptually is not difficult; even contemplating the emptiness of water from the Hinayana perspective is relatively easy to grasp. However, conceptual understanding ultimately remains just that—it cannot be regarded as realization. Some may claim to be genuinely convinced that earth, water, fire, and wind are all empty, illusory, and devoid of self, asserting that they have completely eliminated doubt. Yet this certainty still resides at the level of conscious awareness; the manas (the seventh consciousness) has not attained certainty. It is difficult for the manas to become firmly established in such realization due to the profound influence of ignorance and the deeply ingrained habit of perceiving dharmas as real. This habitual tendency is stubborn and resistant to change, requiring prolonged and diligent cultivation to gradually loosen its entrenched views or transform its fundamental perceptions.