Knowledge and Views Cannot Withstand Afflictions, Nor Can They Withstand Birth and Death

When one attains the sunlight-contemplation, encountering any state or realm requires no thought whatsoever; one passes through it directly. When one genuinely severs the self-view, with sufficient meditative concentration (dhyāna power), one also need not engage in thought but directly empties the state and moves beyond it, not even looking directly at these so-called states.

However, those with merely conceptual understanding, compounded by arrogance (māna), may encounter states with afflictions (kleśa) heavier than those of ordinary people.

Thus it can be seen that the realization attained by the mind-root (manas) and the understanding grasped by the intellect (mano-vijñāna) cannot be mentioned in the same breath. The disparity between possessing meditative concentration and lacking it is exceedingly vast. What true practice cultivates, we should understand.

When one genuinely attains any Dharma, possessing meditative concentration, any problem ceases to be a problem, any matter ceases to be a matter. But once meditative concentration is lost, it is difficult to say—floodwaters may breach the dam, destroying the embankment of afflictions.

Whether one has cultivated or not is seen through actions, not through spoken words. Words may sound lofty and profound, yet conduct may be debased and lowly—such is the magnitude of the gap. Language and written words correspond to the intellect; this does not represent true cultivation. Behavior directly corresponds to the mind-root (manas); this represents cultivation. Therefore, cultivation is the cultivation of the mind-root. Until the mind-root is cultivated, it is not genuine practice. All conceptual knowledge stands powerless before even moderately greater afflictions, especially before life and death. Conceptual knowledge fundamentally cannot withstand afflictions, much less life and death.