Dreams Can Test One's Level of Spiritual Cultivation

Question: Can the manas distinguish between true and false, good and evil? What should genuine effective spiritual practice look like?

Answer: If the manas knew what is beneficial and harmful, there would be no need to guide and instruct it through the mind consciousness. Often, the mind consciousness wouldn't even arise, as the manas would handle these matters itself. The manas possesses a non-definitive nature; it does not recognize wholesome or unwholesome dharmas, nor does it create wholesome or unwholesome karma. However, it directs the six consciousnesses to create wholesome or unwholesome karma. This is because the manas has two aspects: defilement and purity. If the defilement of the manas manifests, it directs the six consciousnesses to create defiled karma. If the purity of the manas manifests, it directs the six consciousnesses to create wholesome karma.

A practitioner who has attained progress will know to uphold precepts and refrain from creating unwholesome karma even when encountering adverse conditions in dreams. The actions of body, speech, and mind in dreams more accurately reflect a person's level of spiritual practice. If one can maintain mastery and refrain from creating karma in dreams, there is a certain degree of assurance during the bardo state. In dreams, the controlling power of the mind consciousness is weaker, allowing the habitual tendencies of the manas to manifest fully. If the manas does not exhibit its habitual tendencies in dreams, it indicates that the person's practice has already influenced the manas, and the manas has been subdued.

If the mind consciousness has been cultivated, the mind consciousness will know that it is in a dream and will thus be able to resist the manas, refraining from creating unwholesome karma. Therefore, genuine spiritual practice should be able to transform the manas. If one's practice has not reached the level of transforming the manas, the practice is not yet effective. Many people have not even succeeded in influencing the mind consciousness; their mind consciousness still blatantly creates unwholesome karma and cannot uphold the Five Precepts. Such a person is not yet on the Buddhist path; they are a beginner in Buddhism.