Learn to observe and judge your own state of effort.

Ru Chun: Nowadays, whether I am thinking about worldly matters or about the Dharma principles, I often find myself in a state of complete self-oblivion. Often when someone speaks to me, I have no idea what they are saying, as I am fully immersed in my own thinking. Recently I read some Dharma teachings saying that one should use the mind consciousness less, so I thought my method was wrong and changed my approach. But perhaps I changed it incorrectly, because now I can no longer find that good feeling, and I don't know what is going on?

Comment: Thinking while often in a state of complete self-oblivion—in this state there is both the mental activity of the mind consciousness and that of the manas; it may also be that the manas's thinking is stronger than that of the mind consciousness. Such training is of great help in enhancing wisdom. If the wisdom of the mind consciousness is insufficient, it is fine to first train the mind consciousness in deliberation; if the manas's thinking predominates, then continue to use the manas.

However, you should know that this still does not count as embarking on the correct path of practice, because the Dharma being contemplated has no main thread—it is scattered contemplation, contemplating whatever one happens to encounter, and one has not yet set out in the direction of eradicating the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi). Once you have trained well in this way, then practice with single-minded focus! Observing the breath is for the purpose of knowing nothing at all—you have not yet grasped the Dharma, and you do not yet have a concept of eradicating the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi).