How to Practice the Work of Investigative Inquiry

For example, suppose we now want to investigate whether the manas is of neutral feeling. There is a huatou, or an example, that is somewhat longer, such as: when a person is extremely happy, they dance with joy and are elated; when angry, they hurl abusive words and come to blows. First we must know that these bodily actions and verbal actions are directed and commanded into being by the manas, with the participation of the body consciousness and the mind consciousness, as well as the participation of the eye consciousness and the ear consciousness; the several consciousnesses work together, and these bodily actions and verbal actions appear. Since these are directed and produced under the command and leadership of the manas, why does the manas command the production of two different kinds of bodily and verbal actions? Why, when happy, does the manas command dancing with joy, manifesting its happiness and excitement? Why, when angry, does it hurl abusive words, manifesting its anger and wrath? Is the manas not happy when one is happy, merely of neutral feeling? Is it not angry when one is angry, also of neutral feeling? Does the manas have no emotional reaction of happiness or of anger? If the manas has no emotion of happiness and does not feel joy, why can it still direct the six consciousnesses to dance with joy? If the manas has no emotional reaction of displeasure, no feeling of suffering, then why, when angry, can it still direct the six consciousnesses to come to blows?

Although these questions are somewhat long, the mind consciousness must carefully deliberate and analyze them, discerning the meanings within these words clearly and thoroughly. At this time there are language, words, and sound-images, and the linguistic and verbal images must repeatedly appear in the mind. After the mind consciousness has understood the meaning of these words on the surface, it must condense these meanings into a single point, formless and without characteristics, and hand it over to the manas. Then the mind deeply and persistently suspends this formless, characteristicless meaning. This is the manas's mode of deliberation (manana): no language or words, no sounds, silent, deep, continuous—morning it is so, evening it is so, never shifting, and in the end never abandoned whether in dreams or awake. This is the manas's investigation, with the manas as the primary agent and the mind consciousness as the auxiliary. Earlier, when deliberating and understanding the content of the language and words, the mind consciousness was primary and the manas assisted the mind consciousness; now it is exactly the reverse. This is the true method of investigating Chan, the true skill of investigation. When the conditions ripen, one will surely break through and find the answer, realize and resolve the doubts in one's mind, the questioning doubt will greatly open, and one will attain enlightenment through investigating Chan.

When the manas investigates the functions and nature of the manas itself, it also has no concept of "the manas" or "self," does not accord with concepts and words, has no language and no idle chatter—straightforward and plain, simple and clean, going directly to the center and the key point. It need not interfere with eating, drinking, and bodily functions, nor with walking, standing, sitting, and lying down, nor with the normal life activities of the five aggregates; there are simply no scattered thoughts, no extra mental preoccupations—rather focused, without divided attention.

This is the manas investigating itself. Investigating the tathāgatagarbha is the same; investigating any dharma principle is the same. No matter how profound the dharma principle, one must do this kind of work, must apply effort in this way. The mind consciousness and the manas cooperate closely with each other, while the tathāgatagarbha serves as an invisible assistant, an unnamed benefactor, supplying everything needed for the investigation and all its sustenance.