Realizing the Dharma requires that the sixth and seventh consciousnesses realize it simultaneously

True realization of all dharmas is always attained and acknowledged simultaneously by the sixth and seventh consciousnesses. If only the mind consciousness thinks this way and that way, but the manas does not acknowledge it—does not know or understand the principles that the six consciousnesses have acknowledged—then the manas has not been successfully infused, and He has not realized the Buddha-dharma; the body, mind, and world cannot undergo transformation. Because the mind consciousness floats on the surface, its deliberation is relatively shallow, and it cannot act autonomously, being entirely dependent on the direction of the deeper manas. If the manas has not been successfully infused, He will continue to direct all the actions and activities of the mind consciousness according to His original, pre-existing cognition, and the mind consciousness's own independent views cannot play their proper role.

The manas is the sovereign consciousness—that is, what is commonly called the subconscious deep within the mind. If a matter or principle is acknowledged deep within the mind by the manas, He will prompt the bodily, verbal, and mental actions to act in accordance with the acknowledged principle. Although before eliminating self-grasping, the manas still has attachments and afflictions and cannot make all decisions entirely according to the realized principles, He has, after all, already changed in his views and concepts. When the manas eliminates afflictions and self-grasping, there is no longer a self within the mind, and the infusion is thoroughly accomplished.

The process of the mind consciousness's deliberation is precisely the process of making the manas understand the principles; this is a process that must be undergone. The mind consciousness must deliberate, and must deliberate deeply. If it does not deliberate, the manas cannot understand the principles. When the mind consciousness understands a principle but the manas does not yet understand it, the bodily, verbal, and mental actions will not change. The manas must rely on the content and information deliberated by the mind consciousness in order to know these principles that the mind consciousness has discerned. If the mind consciousness does not deliberate, no information is transmitted to the manas; the manas cannot discern it, He cannot understand the principles, cannot bring about a change in views and concepts, and the bodily, verbal, and mental actions also cannot change. Therefore, in studying and cultivating the Buddha-dharma, we must be adept at deliberation and make good use of the mind consciousness, contemplating and practicing in accordance with the Dharma and with reason. In cultivating the Buddha-dharma, we must not let the mind consciousness remain constantly in a state of no-thought and no-awareness, nor let it sit idle and useless; otherwise, we cannot deeply understand the principles, and our wisdom will not grow.