The Efficacy of Consciousness's Knowing Perfuming Arises Only When Permeating Manas

Many people experience afflictions arising in their minds, which adversely affect both themselves and others. Their conscious awareness recognizes that this should not be so, yet they feel utterly powerless to change it. The conscious mind cannot control the mental faculty (manas); it can only helplessly allow the mental faculty to manifest afflictions and submit to its domination. While the conscious mind knows this is wrong, its understanding remains superficial. The mental faculty itself remains unaware, making it impossible to simply cease the afflictions. The conscious mind should diligently contemplate and contemplate, thereby influencing the mental faculty. Once the mental faculty comprehends the principle, the conscious mind can then gain control over it, making it possible to achieve freedom from afflictions.

It is the mental faculty, laden with ignorance and afflictions, that proceeds to the next life, not the conscious mind. Therefore, whatever the conscious mind learns, understands, or comprehends must be instilled into the mental faculty by any means necessary. Otherwise, once the conscious mind perishes, the mental faculty, being devoid of knowledge and understanding, will take rebirth, leading to unfavorable karmic retribution. A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. If the knowledge, understanding, and learning acquired by the conscious mind are not stored in the treasury [of the mental faculty], once the conscious mind perishes, there will be no usable seeds for the next life. That would indeed be a great pity.