Using Vijñānavāda to Analyze the Principles of Hypnotherapy

Hypnotherapy is a guided healing method in which the person being hypnotized is led deep into the subconscious. At that point, the defense mechanisms in the hypnotized person's subconscious are largely dismantled, allowing the guided healing to easily penetrate to the subconscious level for healing. In the waking state, however, because the defense mechanisms provide effective protection, it is difficult to penetrate deeply.

What this passage means is that in the waking state, the mind consciousness is very active; relying on the self-grasping nature of the manas (the seventh consciousness), it can plan, scheme, strategize, and calculate gains and losses for the self, effectively protecting the so-called self, and preventing the manas's simple-mindedness and lack of scheming from coming into play. When the manas grasps at self, it has a powerful tool. When the consciousness is weak, the manas loses this powerful tool for grasping at self, and He manifests simplicity, spontaneity, childishness, primitiveness, and guidability.

During hypnosis, the mind consciousness's activities of thinking and analysis are suppressed; it cannot think, analyze, judge, design, or scheme, and there is no defense mechanism. Therefore, it cannot submit analytical and deliberative reports to the manas, cannot guide and control the manas, cannot serve as the manas's advisor. The manas's self-protection capability is thus gone, and He also cannot direct the consciousness to lie in order to protect His own interests—whatever the facts are, the consciousness simply says they are. At the same time, the manas can also be induced by external factors: encountering goodness, He becomes good; encountering evil, He becomes evil, drifting along with circumstances. At this point, external force can completely substitute for the consciousness in guiding the manas, allowing the manas to be changed through the inspiration and guidance of that external force. Then the self's potential can be brought into play, the mind can be stimulated, mental illnesses can be cured, and the psyche can develop healthily.

The defense mechanism is the manas, through the mind consciousness's functions of scheming, skillfulness, analysis, calculation, and so on, adopting certain measures and means to protect itself. The manas itself cannot think, analyze, or plan what means should be adopted; He must rely on the consciousness's analysis and deliberation, and only through the consciousness's strategizing can He decide how to protect Himself, and then direct the six consciousnesses to protect Himself.

The manas wants to protect Himself in every thought, but without the help of the consciousness, He is powerless; He has no mechanisms, because His wisdom is inferior—He cannot think or plan, cannot calculate. Without the consciousness's false teachings, the manas manifests as very simple-minded: He does not lie, does not deceive people, has no schemes, no calculations, and cannot engage in so-called self-protection. The consciousness's self-defense is never apart from the manas's self-grasping; the defense plan still requires the manas's approval before it can pass, and only then can it be concretely operated and executed. If the manas has no guidance or instruction from the consciousness, the manas by Himself cannot defend against anything—He cannot calculate, cannot scheme, cannot think up bad ideas, cannot beat around the bush to conceal Himself, and will act entirely according to habit, manifesting simplicity, appearing foolish.

After hypnosis brings the consciousness into the subconscious, the connection between the manas's knowing nature and past lives becomes prominent, and the manas may bring forth events from past lives. This is because the manas is connected to past lives over countless kalpas—He has never ceased to exist, and His connection to the karmic seeds of past lives is far closer than that of the consciousness. It is just that He cannot express them, so the consciousness cannot understand these matters, and we do not know them—this is the mystery of the intervening birth (the veil between lives). Hypnosis can reveal events from past lives that the mind consciousness itself does not know; these are revealed by the manas. The manas holds extremely many secrets that the consciousness generally cannot discern, and since the manas has no verbal designations and cannot express them Himself, the consciousness is unable to discern them.