The Manas's Power of Mindfulness Equals Karmic Force.

The manas's power of wisdom (prajñā-bala) and power of mindfulness are inseparable from the power of meditative concentration (samādhi); these three absolutely cannot be divided. At the time of death, in the neutrino-body (antarā-bhava), and after conception, everything relies on the manas's power of wisdom. If the manas's power of wisdom is good, the power of mindfulness will be good; at the time of death, it is through the manas's power of mindfulness that one takes rebirth, determining the destiny of future lives. The manas's power of mindfulness is equivalent to the power of karma. If the manas's wholesome aspirations are strong, right mindfulness will be strong, indicating that through cultivation the power of unwholesome karma has been transformed, with wholesome karma outweighing unwholesome karma; if the manas's unwholesome thoughts are strong, unwholesome karma will be strong, meaning this person's cultivation has not been effective, and at death and rebirth they will be drawn along by whichever is stronger. If the manas has not realized the Buddha's Dharma, then at death and rebirth one is not a sage but remains an ordinary person (pṛthagjana), with the destiny of an ordinary person, transmigrating through birth and death according to that destiny. If one does not strengthen the manas's wisdom and does not rely on the manas's wisdom, then a lifetime of cultivation will yield no usable results.

For example, recollection of the Buddha (buddhānusmṛti) is right mindfulness. At the time of death, the mind consciousness is weak and cannot remember to recollect the Buddha, or lacks the strength to do so. If the recollection of the Buddha has not been infused into the manas, and the manas has not developed the habit of recollecting the Buddha, then the manas will not know to recollect the Buddha; at that point one will not resonate with the Buddha and will not be able to invoke the Buddha to come and receive one, and one can only drift along with karma, transmigrating through birth and death. As a result, a lifetime of recollecting the Buddha leaves only a few seeds, which play no role at the time of death. Such is the retribution of those who only grasp at the mind consciousness and do not cultivate and study deeply.