The Discriminating Power of Mind Consciousness with Respect to the Realm of Direct Perception Is Great

For example, if the mind consciousness thinks of a square moon, a square moon appears in the brain; when looking at the round moon in the sky, one then tries to imagine that the moon before one's eyes is square, but simply cannot imagine a square moon. This is because the mind consciousness lacks sufficient meditative concentration (samādhi) and is disturbed by the present sense object, making it very difficult to engage in clear non-valid cognition (non-valid imagination and conception).

When the eyes are open, what the mind consciousness perceives is the mental sense-object (dharma-viṣaya) upon the five sense objects; when the eyes are closed, what the mind consciousness imagines is a subjectively imagined realm. If, with eyes open, one sees the round moon upon the five sense objects, after the consciousness accompanied by the five senses (pañca-sahagata-mano-vijñāna) has discerned the round moon, and with the direct perception of the eye consciousness in coordination, the force of what is personally witnessed is powerful, and the manas can confirm and support it. After looking at the round moon, trying to imagine a square moon becomes very difficult, because the image of the round moon remains in the mind consciousness; the mind consciousness must discern two kinds of sense objects simultaneously, so the conscious mind is divided, and the imaginative function that arises becomes very weak, making it not so easy to imagine a square moon.

The solitary consciousness (mano-vijñāna-eka-citta) is the most easily disturbed, so the capacity to imagine a square moon is insufficient; after all, the solitary consciousness discerns through non-valid cognition, with relatively few external conditions, whereas the round moon is discerned through direct perception, and with the eye consciousness discerning it at the same time, the force of imagining the round moon is great, so it is somewhat more difficult to make the subjectively imagined realm manifest, and therefore the square moon in the mind does not easily appear.

If the mind consciousness has quite excellent meditative concentration, the solitary consciousness may gain the upper hand, and one can imagine a square moon in the mind, which contradicts the moon in the material form sense object. At this time, the round moon and the square moon may appear alternately—one moment round, the next moment square. A person with extremely good meditative concentration may be able to make both moons manifest simultaneously, or may manifest only a single square moon. Try practicing your own meditative concentration to see which kind of consciousness can gain the upper hand. If this kind of meditative concentration can be cultivated, in the future one will be able to transform all dharmas, and even manifest a trichiliocosm (three thousand great thousand worlds) within a single thought. Healing and adjusting others' illnesses also depends entirely on this kind of meditative concentration, and changing the minds of others likewise depends entirely on this kind of meditative concentration.