Owning a kaleidoscope is far better than chasing ten thousand flowers.

Ru Chun: "Now when I encounter things, I no longer rush about in a panic. There are many solutions, and lots of ideas keep popping into my head." This is a manifestation of the manas's meditative concentration and wisdom. With concentration and wisdom, one has a well-thought-out plan and remains calm and unhurried. Having inspiration is innovation—at the level of the mind consciousness it is called innovation, but at the level of the manas it is not called innovation; it should be His inherent wisdom. He is originally the Dharma King, unrestricted by any dharma. He can know all dharmas—whether past, present, or future, whether in heaven, among humans, or underground. As long as He transmits to the mind consciousness those dharmas that the mind consciousness cannot discern, at the level of the mind consciousness they become new dharmas (innovation). If the mind consciousness can receive them properly, that is meritorious, worthy of the manas's hard labor; otherwise it lets down the manas's good intentions, making the manas feel suppressed and uncomfortable. Therefore, the development of the manas's wisdom is also called the development of potential—it is wisdom we inherently possess. If we diligently cultivate precepts and meditation, the manas can bring forth wisdom.

Assessment: There are quite a few errors in this passage. First, the manas is not the Dharma King; it is not at ease with regard to dharmas, being limited by its own ignorance, and it does not know or understand many dharmas—which is precisely why it must be cultivated. It is the tathāgatagarbha that is the Dharma King: all dharmas come from Him, He is not swayed by any dharma, and He is at ease with regard to dharmas. Second, inspiration comes from the manas; inspiration can also be called innovation, and innovation is the joint achievement of the manas and the mind consciousness. Third, the manas's wisdom is not inherent wisdom; it is wisdom that arises only through cultivation, that is, acquired wisdom. Inherent wisdom is the great wisdom of the tathāgatagarbha. Some people, having learned a bit about the manas, think the manas is heaven itself, as if it could substitute for the functions of the tathāgatagarbha—they are extremely adept at wild speculation in their heads.

Your meditative concentration has indeed made some progress, and your mind consciousness deliberates more deeply and more abundantly. Although you have grasped more theory and have more to say, however abundant the theory, its practical effect is not great. After Cūḍapanthaka attained the fourth fruit of arhatship, he still could not teach the Dharma—he was clumsy of speech—but he accomplished everything in practice. He had the wisdom of liberation but not the wisdom of the unarisen; he simply could not express it, and his range of knowledge was also insufficient. Even so, this does not obstruct his being a sage: he had the wisdom of liberation from birth and death in the three realms. The apple had been eaten and was in his belly—this was real and tangible. How many times stronger is he than those glib talkers who can write a hundred books yet are possessed of the afflictions of greed, hatred, and delusion? 

Look at the experiences others have shared—genuine and solid, without a trace of the false, the fake, or intellectual interpretation. Their meditative concentration is excellent: upon taking their seat they quickly enter samādhi. The functions of the mind consciousness are somewhat weaker, while the functions of the manas are powerful. They truly have the wisdom to solve practical problems, including wisdom in the Buddhadharma. As long as something enters the manas, their deliberation of it is very thorough. Our study of Buddhism and cultivation is meant to solve the practical problem of fundamental birth and death, not to learn theory. So it is enough to grasp just enough theoretical knowledge; do not keep drilling deeper into it. Apply your mind where it counts. As long as the manas's wisdom is developed, dharmas you previously did not understand can all be understood, and knowledge you previously did not know can all be made clear. Then, summarizing your own wisdom and passing it on, it becomes the theoretical knowledge that others need—bringing immeasurable benefit to both others and yourself.

Many people do not know how to study Buddhism and cultivate. Every day they relish collecting knowledge everywhere—whether useful or useless, whether helpful or obstructive to themselves—and strive to gather it, collecting some and then forgetting some. Especially during the long stretches of time in the three evil paths, because there is too much suffering, they nearly forget everything they learned when they were human, retaining very little. Moreover, some people grow old with poor memory and cannot even recall what they ate yesterday. So is it not unwise to spend vast amounts of time on broad learning and rote memorization? If after taking up Buddhism one does not develop the inexhaustible treasure trove and does not know to take the golden key in hand, one may appear to be working hard, but in fact it is wrong effort—the more diligent one is, the farther one strays from the Path.

Qingfeng put it well the other day: some people just love studying the patterns in a kaleidoscope. Before they have figured out the first pattern, they switch to the second. Through ten thousand pattern changes, chasing after each design, they end up with their eyes dazzled and still have not figured anything out. Why do they not realize they should study the kaleidoscope itself and make one, so that all patterns and figures are at their command? Knowledge in the world is boundless and develops explosively—who has the energy to chase after and study it day after day? Bring forth great bodhicitta and strive to become a knowledge repository, with all knowledge flowing forth from your own mind in an unending stream. Then all sentient beings can draw knowledge and nourishment from this repository of yours—how beautiful a thing that would be? They are all hopelessly foolish.