Why the Wisdom of Consciousness Surpasses That of Manas

The wisdom of consciousness is far greater than that of the manas (mind-root). One reason is that consciousness has far fewer objects of cognition than the manas. It is not the master consciousness and does not need to govern all matters, so it has fewer attachments and can more easily focus on contemplating issues, discerning states with greater clarity. The manas, however, has many objects of cognition, attachments, and phenomena to discern. It can cognize all phenomena produced by the tathāgatagarbha (Buddha-nature), all matters related to oneself throughout time, and even the subtlest momentary changes in the body. It perceives and knows all these. Even matters unrelated to oneself, due to the habitual tendency to cling, it still grasps and fixates on them. Consequently, mental focus is difficult to maintain, its discerning wisdom is weaker, and its understanding of phenomena is unclear.

Another reason why the wisdom of consciousness is greater than that of the manas is that consciousness exists only for one lifetime. It is very lightly influenced by environmental conditioning, lacks the afflictions and ignorance of the manas, and has far fewer karmic obstacles. With fewer obscurations, consciousness is wiser than the manas.

If the manas had fewer objects of cognition, if the ignorance within the mind were not so deep, and if immeasurable karmic obstacles from life and death had not accumulated since beginningless kalpas, then the manas could be as wise as consciousness. Even with insufficient evidence, it could deduce a reasonable conclusion and thereby realize the truth. But manas is not like this, which is precisely why our practice for realization is so difficult.