On the Phenomenon of Persistence of Vision

Question: The human eye has the phenomenon of persistence of vision. The actual material form has already ceased, yet the image remains for a moment. Is this lingering image the subjectively imagined realm discerned by the mind consciousness?

Answer: Vision is a joint function of the eye consciousness and the mind consciousness. When vision persists, what persists should be the manifest color seen by the eye consciousness, but at the same time there is certainly the mind consciousness discerning the visible form, expressive form, and non-expressive form; the mind consciousness must also have a persisting function. The eye consciousness alone cannot have the function of visual persistence; otherwise it would not be a complete material sense-object. What persists is not the subjectively imagined realm; the subjectively imagined realm is discerned solely by the solitary consciousness, whereas here the eye consciousness is still discerning jointly. It is because of the function of visual persistence that we feel the act of seeing form is continuous, and that the material sense-object being discerned is also continuous. In fact, neither is continuous; rather, it arises in one instant and ceases in the next instant—it is intermittent, breaking off and then continuing again.