The Level of General-Characteristics Wisdom at the Moment of Initial Enlightenment

A lay Buddhist asked: Master, when one first attains enlightenment and realizes the tathāgatagarbha, one gives rise to general-characteristic wisdom. Using this general-characteristic wisdom to observe the tathāgatagarbha, within what range can one observe? I replied: At the beginning of enlightenment, this range is not very large; the observation is not yet pervasive. The range is within the simple functioning of the five aggregates (pañca-skandha), and it is rather rough; in complex functioning, the tathāgatagarbha is difficult to observe. Among them, the aggregate of form and the aggregate of volitional formations are primary; the aggregates of feeling, perception, and consciousness can be observed to a slight degree, but not much and not deeply. Because the aggregate of form and the aggregate of volitional formations are more obvious, they are easier to observe; on the aggregate of feeling, one can also observe roughly; on the aggregates of perception and consciousness, observation is somewhat more difficult. All of it is rough, general observation, unable to penetrate into the details; the observation is not deep or subtle.

But this observation is a direct perception (pratyakṣa) observation, that is, an observation of what is presently before one. At the very moment of the functioning of the five aggregates, if one sees, one sees; if one does not see, one does not see. One must not fall into a momentary instant of thinking; in between, no language, words, or sounds will appear, and one will not fall into the appearance of thinking, deliberating, analyzing, or pondering. Once one falls into deliberation, it is no longer direct, present observation. During investigation, once language, words, or sounds appear, it is certain that meditative concentration is insufficient, that the mind consciousness's function of emotional conjecture and intellectual interpretation has gained the upper hand, and that the function of the manas has weakened—it is not direct-perception wisdom. Therefore, direct perception must be the manas personally present on the scene, observing, discovering, and witnessing—not the mind consciousness's kind of mental imagining and mental filling-in. In ancient times, when Chan masters tested their disciples, if a disciple hesitated even slightly and wanted to describe in words, the master would often strike down with a blow of the staff, not allowing them to fall into deliberation and intellectual interpretation.

The mental activity of the mind consciousness's deliberation is obvious; especially the mind consciousness's solitary deliberation is not direct perception. Only what is observed simultaneously together with the manas is direct perception, with the mind consciousness playing an auxiliary role, not the leading role. The smaller the proportion and weight it occupies, the deeper the wisdom; the more it is direct perception, the more it cannot be denied, cannot be retracted, and is not hesitant and indecisive, but is very firm and resolute, without doubt. It can be seen that this kind of direct-perception observation is extremely difficult to achieve, requiring both meditative skill and wisdom to be very high.

From the Tang and Song dynasties onward, after the Sixth Patriarch, it is said that more than a thousand people attained enlightenment, and some seventeen hundred Chan kōans have been handed down. But not all of these are pure realization-enlightenment; there are also understanding-enlightenments, and the specific numbers cannot be examined or tallied. From the few words of those enlightenment verses, and from the brief dialogues and suggestive descriptions, because there are no details, one cannot distinguish from them whether it was realization-enlightenment or understanding-enlightenment. Even if they all had meditative concentration, this does not show that whoever has meditative concentration must have realization-enlightenment; of course, those without meditative concentration certainly cannot attain realization-enlightenment. Only one who attains enlightenment while in meditative concentration, precisely when the manas is deeply investigating, seeing it instantaneously without falling into the mind consciousness's deliberation, counts as realization-enlightenment; whatever leans toward the mind consciousness is understanding-enlightenment, or may not even count as understanding-enlightenment. Of course, if it is a genuine understanding-enlightenment, through cultivating concentration and strengthening the manas's investigative skill, it can be transformed into realization-enlightenment.

To have this kind of investigative skill, meditative concentration is indispensable. To have meditative concentration, the physical body's qi must gather; when qi gathers, the body is settled; when the body is settled, the mind is settled. To gather qi, first, the physical body must be healthy, with qi channels flowing smoothly, able to form a strong force that gathers the mind together; second, there must be no scattered, miscellaneous thoughts, no fantasies or mental wandering—that is, not grasping at conditions among the various dharmas, which means being able to let go of worldly affairs. If the physical body lacks qi, then qi cannot gather. To have sufficient qi, one can practice qi cultivation, one can replenish qi, and dietary or medicinal supplementation also works. Once the qi arises, one must follow along with the movement of the qi, letting both body and mind quiet down; once the momentum forms, meditative concentration appears. Therefore, practice should still be started early, while the body is healthy and one's strength is abundant. Do not wait until old age and declining appearance, when nothing works anymore, and only then remember that one should practice—at that point it may be too late, and the skill cannot be built up. Although practice is not about cultivating the body, apart from the body's cooperation, how can one practice?

A seventy-five-year-old elderly lay Buddhist spoke with me on the phone, his voice resounding like a bell, with very ample inner qi. As soon as I heard it, this momentum even surpassed mine, and surpassed many young people in their twenties and thirties; from the sound of his voice, he could live another twenty years without a problem. I asked how his meditative concentration was. He said his meditative concentration was very good, that he could reach the level of investigating with the manas, with no scattered thoughts and a very strong sense of qi. I asked how his wisdom state was. He asked me about the general-characteristic wisdom at the time of first enlightenment—within what range can one observe the functioning of the tathāgatagarbha? As soon as I heard it, I understood: over these years his meditative skill and wisdom have both greatly advanced, his mind's capacity and breadth are great, his good roots are deep, and he is a person who will become a great vessel.