The Five Designations of Manas and Their Meanings (Part 1)

The Awakening of Faith in the Mahayana Original Text: The causes and conditions for arising and ceasing refer to sentient beings revolving in accordance with the mind, mental faculty (manas), and consciousness. What does this mean? Relying on the ālaya-vijñāna, ignorance and non-enlightenment arise, enabling the capacity to perceive, to manifest, to grasp objects, and to engage in continuous discrimination. This is termed manas (意). Commentary: The arising and ceasing of all dharmas manifest due to causes and conditions. These causes and conditions include the three transforming consciousnesses: the ālaya-vijñāna, the mental faculty (manas), and the mental consciousness (mano-vijñāna). Among these, the mental faculty (manas) is the most crucial cause and condition for the manifestation of all dharmas. Sentient beings revolve continuously relying on the mental faculty (manas). Although the ālaya-vijñāna is the direct cause for the arising of all conditioned dharmas, it is instigated by the mental faculty (manas). Without the mental faculty (manas) as cause and condition, the ālaya-vijñāna would not give rise to any dharma. The mental faculty (manas) relies on the ālaya-vijñāna; following the ignorance within one's own mind, it perceives all objective dharmas arising from the ālaya-vijñāna. It then manifests all objective dharmas arising from the ālaya-vijñāna within the mind, grasps onto all objective dharmas arising from the ālaya-vijñāna, and continuously discriminates without interruption, all while remaining completely unaware of its own ignorance. This mental substance is named the mental faculty (manas). Original Text: This manas further has five different names. The first is called karma-vijñāna (业识), meaning that due to the power of ignorance, the mind moves without awareness. Commentary: This mental faculty (manas) has five different names. The first name is karma-vijñāna (业识). The mental faculty (manas) is the master that creates karma. Due to ignorance and unawareness of its own ignorance, the power of ignorance causes the mental faculty (manas) to stir, move, and form intentions. After intention is formed, subsequent contact, sensation, perception, and volition arise. Once the mental faculty (manas) makes a decision, the bodily, verbal, and mental karmic actions of the six consciousnesses are produced, subsequently leaving karmic seeds to be experienced in future lives, thus perpetuating the cycle of birth and death. Therefore, it is said that the mental faculty (manas) is karma-vijñāna, corresponding to karmic force, karmic seeds, and the cycle of birth and death. Of course, through cultivation, it can correspond to emptiness, purity, tranquility, and liberation. Hence, cultivation means cultivating the mental faculty (manas), eradicating the view of self, realizing the mind and seeing the nature, transforming consciousness into wisdom, attaining the wisdom of all seeds according to the Consciousness-Only doctrine, and ultimately achieving Buddhahood. Since the mental faculty (manas) corresponds to karmic force and karmic seeds, the pure karma resulting from eradicating the view of self is sustained by the mental faculty (manas). The pure karma resulting from realizing the mind and seeing the nature is sustained by the mental faculty (manas). Only when the mental faculty (manas) eradicates the view of self and realizes the mind and sees the nature can it sustain such pure karmic seeds; otherwise, the mental faculty (manas) cannot sustain them, and there will be no such pure karmic fruition in future lives. Similarly, the seeds of unwholesome karma are also sustained by the mental faculty (manas). Only when the mind of the mental faculty (manas) is unwholesome can it create unwholesome karma and sustain the seeds of unwholesome karma until future lives. Therefore, the mental faculty (manas) possesses all defiled mental factors and also possesses all wholesome mental factors. Original Text: The second is called pravṛtti-vijñāna (转识), meaning that relying on the moving mind, it can perceive objective appearances. Commentary: The second name of the mental faculty (manas) is called pravṛtti-vijñāna (转识). Pravṛtti means revolving or functioning. Relying on the power of ignorance, the mental faculty (manas) can cause dharmas to flow out and function from the ālaya-vijñāna. As soon as the mental faculty (manas) stirs, the ālaya-vijñāna will accordingly give rise to objects, and the mental faculty (manas) will perceive the appearances of objects. As the mind stirs again, the six consciousnesses will arise to create karmic actions, the functions of the five aggregates will manifest, and the cycle of birth and death in future lives becomes unceasing. Objects and the five aggregates appear following the stirring of the mental faculty (manas); birth and death also appear following the stirring of the mental faculty (manas). Therefore, it is said that the mental faculty (manas) is the switch that activates all dharmas; the mental faculty (manas) is the pravṛtti-vijñāna. Original Text: The third is called pratibhāsa-vijñāna (现识), meaning it manifests all appearances of objects, just like a bright mirror reflecting various images. The pratibhāsa-vijñāna is likewise: as soon as the five objects are present, they are immediately manifested without sequence, without requiring effort. Commentary: The third name of the mental faculty (manas) is called pratibhāsa-vijñāna (现识). This "manifestation" (pratibhāsa) means to present. After the mental faculty (manas) perceives all dharmas, it presents all dharmas; all dharmas manifest as images within the mind of the mental faculty (manas). Relying on the ālaya-vijñāna, whatever objects the ālaya-vijñāna manifests, the mental faculty (manas) can cognize them and present them within the mind. It is like a bright mirror reflecting all appearances of objects. For example, as soon as the five sense objects are contacted, the mental faculty (manas) immediately presents the appearances of the five sense objects. When the ālaya-vijñāna gives rise to objects, the mental faculty (manas) presents the objects within the mind almost simultaneously, without sequence, and without deliberate processing. Why is it said to be the appearances of the five sense objects, and not the six sense objects or the appearances of mental objects (dharmas)? Here, the five sense objects in essence include the six sense objects, with the mental object (dharma) included, represented by the five. Each has its own mental object (dharma); this is a simplified expression. Otherwise, one would have to say: the form object and the mental object on the form object, the sound object and the mental object on the sound object, the smell object and the mental object on the smell object, the taste object and the mental object on the taste object, the touch object and the mental object on the touch object – this would be very cumbersome. Therefore, it is simply stated as the five objects. Generally, it is said that the mental faculty (manas) contacts mental objects (dharmas) and gives rise to mental consciousness (mano-vijñāna). But how do the five consciousnesses arise? Some might say that the five consciousnesses arise from the five sense faculties contacting the five sense objects. However, the five sense faculties are material, not mental; they are not consciousnesses. How can they actively contact the five sense objects with the initiative of a conscious mind? In essence, the contact of the five sense faculties with the five sense objects is still instigated and dominated by the mental faculty (manas). The mental faculty (manas) directs the five sense faculties to contact the five sense objects, giving rise to the five consciousnesses, while simultaneously contacting mental objects (dharmas) to give rise to mental consciousness (mano-vijñāna). Since the mental faculty (manas) is the director, it will also contact the appearances of the five sense objects. After contact, it will present the complete appearances of the six sense objects. After making decisions, it will give rise to the six consciousnesses to cognize and process the appearances of the six sense objects. The six consciousnesses cognize some of the six sense objects and do not cognize others; this is the decision-making and directing function of the mental faculty (manas).