The Black Box Is the Theater Stage

In the ever-changing states of all phenomena, our mind has actually never moved nor gone anywhere; it eternally resides within the black box, observing the coming and going of various states and their unpredictable transformations, while making aimless responses. Just as in animations and film scenes, there is no actual movement or stillness of scenery or characters—it is merely the rapid projection and playback of numerous images. Similarly, neither the mind-consciousness within the black box nor the phenomenal states move or remain still; it is simply the swift flashing of various images and scenes. The director is the mental faculty (manas), the producer is the storehouse consciousness (alaya-vijnana), and the six consciousnesses are the actors and the audience. Therefore, all we perceive are animations, all are dramas, with nothing real to speak of. Even the act of perceiving through the five aggregates is directed—the director dictates how the six consciousnesses behave, yet the director itself acts involuntarily, being at most a stage manager who will also exit the stage when the play ends and the music fades.