How the Five Aggregates Operate

Taking the act of drinking tea as an example. Drinking tea is a process involving the combined operation of the five aggregates as a whole; the five aggregates of form, sensation, perception, mental formations, and consciousness, along with the eighteen dhatus comprising the six sense bases, six sense objects, and six consciousnesses, all participate in it. The three—sense bases, sense objects, and consciousness—come into contact and operate together. The director of this process is the manas (mind base), responsible for coordinating and regulating the activities of contact, sensation, perception, and thought involving the six consciousnesses, five sense bases, and six sense objects. The most agile and swift is the manas; often, the consciousness (mano-consciousness) completes tasks without being fully aware of what happened. The five sensory consciousnesses cooperate as if devoid of independent thought, completely loyal to the directives of the manas, which consciousness sometimes cannot fully comprehend.

The entire process of drinking tea is likewise. If the tea is too hot and spills onto the hand, one will jerk the hand away reflexively, without time for consciousness to clearly recognize and analyze the situation. When the manas intends to pick up the teacup and intends to drink the tea, the sense bases and sense objects come into contact, giving rise to the six consciousnesses to cooperate in the operation, thereby fulfilling the manas's instructions, and only then can the tea be brought to the mouth. As for the specific operation of the six sense bases and the six consciousnesses, one must personally observe and correlate them, paying particular attention to the details by settling the mind to observe carefully. It is necessary to clarify the concept of the five aggregates and understand the functions and roles of the eighteen dhatus.