How Are Immeasurable Hundreds and Thousands of Samādhis Accomplished?

The immeasurable hundreds and thousands of meditative concentrations (samādhi) are all accomplished within profound meditative concentration, and all are accomplished by the manas. In profound meditative concentration, the mind consciousness can no longer deliberate, yet the manas still engages in deliberation (manasikāra). If the manas does not deliberate, no samādhi will appear; all samādhis are the result of the manas's deliberation, and the deliberation of the mind consciousness cannot bring forth any samādhi. After the manas has deliberated, thoughts and views change, wisdom arises, the mind gains decisiveness, and choices are made—only then does the state of samādhi appear. Therefore, train yourself to let the wisdom-based deliberation of the mind consciousness guide the manas's deliberation, entering deep into meditative concentration where Samādhi and Prajñā are cultivated in equal measure; profound samādhi will surely appear, and in the future hundreds of millions of samādhis will appear, along with immeasurable supernatural powers and powers of the Path to receive, guide, and liberate sentient beings. Even the twenty-five pure wheels of meditative concentration for accomplishing cultivation described in the Complete Enlightenment Sūtra are also accomplished by the manas within profound meditative concentration. 

In the Complete Enlightenment Sūtra, the World-Honored One expounded the twenty-five pure wheels of meditative concentration: 一切如来圆觉清净，本无修习及修习者，一切菩萨及末世众生，依于未觉幻力修习，尔时便有二十五种清净定轮。 

（一）若诸菩萨唯取极静，由静力故，永断烦恼，究竟成就，不起于座，便入涅槃，此菩萨者，名单修奢摩他。（二）若诸菩萨唯观如幻，以佛力故，变化世界，种种作用，备行菩萨，清净妙行，于陀罗尼，不失寂念，及诸静慧，此菩萨者，名单修三摩钵提。（三）若诸菩萨唯灭诸幻，不取作用，独断烦恼，烦恼断尽，便证实相，此菩萨者，名单修禅那。

The twenty-two methods of cultivation that follow are all formed by combining at random the three methods above—śamatha, vipaśyanā, and realizing the reality of dharmas—and all are accomplished by the manas within profound meditative cultivation. The Complete Enlightenment Sūtra is extremely sublime, supremely sublime; it is cultivation of genuine practice and genuine realization, allowing not the slightest pretense—none of the emotional thoughts and mental interpretations can be of any use. Profound meditative concentration is indispensable; the manas's deliberation is indispensable; profound contemplative wisdom (vipaśyanā-caryā) is indispensable—that is, the manas's contemplative wisdom is indispensable. In such cultivation, no matter how the mind consciousness deliberates, reasons, speculates, or guesses, it cannot play even the slightest role, cannot push forth even a trace of samādhi, and the shadow of supernatural powers and powers of the Path will even less appear.

If you want to calm your mind but simply cannot calm it, that is because the mind consciousness wants to be calm while the manas does not want to be calm; if you feel that all dharmas are like illusions and want to extinguish these illusory dharmas, yet cannot extinguish even a single dharma, that is because the mind consciousness wants to extinguish them while the manas does not perceive them as illusory and does not want to extinguish them; if you feel that greed, hatred, and delusion are afflictions and want to eradicate them, yet cannot eradicate them, with afflictions arising ceaselessly, that is because the mind consciousness wants to eradicate the afflictions while the manas does not want to eradicate them. Therefore, if cultivation remains merely at the level of the mind consciousness, it fundamentally cannot resolve the great matter of birth and death. So from now on we must cultivate in a down-to-earth manner, not deceiving ourselves or others, and not playing with flowery fists and embroidered legs or phony postures.