On Account of What Can the Mind Consciousness Condition the Aggregates, Sense Bases, and Elements?

The reason the mind consciousness can cognize the aggregates, sense bases, and elements is that the manas first cognizes them and then determines the discernment of each in detail; only then can the mind consciousness cognize the aggregates, sense bases, and elements. If the manas could not cognize the various characteristics of the aggregates, sense bases, and elements, the mind consciousness could not cognize them either. How does the mind consciousness arise? When the manas is in contact with mental sense-objects and the manas wishes to act, the eighth consciousness then gives rise to the mind consciousness to engage in activity. If, after the manas contacts the mental sense-objects, it does not wish to act, the eighth consciousness will not give rise to the mind consciousness to engage in activity. Therefore, when the mind consciousness cognizes the characteristics of the aggregates, sense bases, and elements, it must be because the manas first cognized those characteristics; there is no such thing as the manas not cognizing the aggregates, sense bases, and elements!

At all times, the manas, moment after moment, must rely on the eighth consciousness to cognize the characteristics of the aggregates, sense bases, and elements, and cannot be separated from them even for an instant. Even when asleep and dreamless, even when unconscious, even in the samādhi of no perception, even at death while still not having left the physical body, even in the antarā-bhava—the manas must always be together with the aggregates, sense bases, and elements, and must always cognize them, unless there are no aggregates, sense bases, and elements, unless there is no fivefold aggregate.

If there were a dharma that the manas could not cognize, by what means could the mind consciousness cognize it? On any dharma where the manas is absent, the mind consciousness could not possibly exist in the first place, let alone be able to cognize it. That consciousness arises from the condition of the manas and dharmas is the noble scriptural authority of the World-Honored One, the noble word of the World-Honored One, spoken from His own mouth—how could there be any violation of this? That the manas silently encompasses all dharmas was spoken personally by the World-Honored One in the Śūraṅgama Sūtra—how could there be any violation of this?