The Operational Process of the Five Universally Prevalent Mental Factors (Part 1)

The six faculties contact the six objects, giving rise to the six consciousnesses. The six faculties and the six objects together constitute the twelve sense-bases. The six faculties refer to the supreme faculties, which are the five supreme faculties located in the hindbrain, along with the mental faculty, making up the six faculties, also known as the six internal sense-bases. The six objects are the five internal objects, plus the form included in the mental domain, forming the six internal objects, also known as the six external sense-bases. The six internal sense-bases and the six external sense-bases together are called the twelve sense-bases. Among these, the faculties and objects are always in contact with each other. The six internal objects arise within the supreme faculties in the hindbrain and contact the six faculties. Only when the faculties and objects are together can contact occur. After contact, the mental faculty makes a determination and choice, and then the eighth consciousness can generate the six consciousnesses.

Where do the faculties and objects contact each other? At the location of the five supreme faculties in the hindbrain. The five objects, along with the mental object, must manifest at the site of the supreme faculties in the hindbrain. The five internal objects arise at the site of the supreme faculties in the hindbrain, thus the faculties and objects come into contact. After the faculties and objects contact, the mental faculty makes a determination to discern, and the eighth consciousness generates the five consciousnesses. Simultaneously, the mental object, which arises dependent on the five objects, also exists at the site of the supreme faculties in the hindbrain and contacts the mental faculty. At the same time, the eighth consciousness also produces the consciousness, which, together with the five consciousnesses, simultaneously discerns the six objects. This is called the five-door consciousness.

After the six faculties contact the six objects and the six consciousnesses are generated, the three then come together in contact. The six consciousnesses, relying on the six faculties, again contact the six objects, thereby being able to discern the six objects. When the six consciousnesses discern, the faculties and objects must remain in constant contact. If the faculties and objects separate, the six consciousnesses cease. After the six consciousnesses contact the six objects, the nature of reception arises; they receive and accept the six objects, and the mental factor of feeling appears. After accepting the six objects, the six consciousnesses discern the six objects, grasp them, and the mental factor of perception emerges.

After discerning the six objects, the six consciousnesses begin to deliberate. If the deliberation is unclear, they again direct attention, generating attention towards the six objects once more. After attention, there is again discernment and feeling. At this point, the feeling gives rise to the sensations of pleasure, pain, joy, sorrow, and equanimity. The initial feeling is reception and acceptance. After acceptance, it is as if the six objects are taken in, and only then is it known what the six objects are. This acceptance signifies taking them in. In subsequent feelings, emotional coloring emerges, and the sensations of pleasure, pain, joy, sorrow, and equanimity arise.

After feelings arise, if the feeling is unclear, the mind again grasps the characteristics and discerns, and the mental factor of perception will arise again. After the mental factor of perception arises and discerns, deliberation begins again. If the deliberation is unclear, contact is renewed. After contact, there is again discernment, or further thinking, or continued feeling. Thus, through discernment, feeling, and then deliberation, this continues until the matter is thoroughly deliberated and clearly discerned. At that point, the six consciousnesses give rise to a decisive mind. The mental faculty, knowing the decisive mind of the six consciousnesses, then generates its own final decisive mind, and action begins. This is the mental factor of volition.

The content discerned by the six consciousnesses must also be transmitted to the mental faculty. Simultaneously, the mental faculty, regarding the content and mental activities discerned by the six consciousnesses, employs the five universal mental factors to generate a series of psychological activities. Finally, when the mental faculty gives rise to a decisive mind, determining how to act, the eighth consciousness, having discerned this, operates in conjunction with the mental faculty's deliberation and determination, as well as the dharmas it has directed attention to. This is because the eighth consciousness must know what the mental faculty has directed attention to and which aspect of the object it has attended to. Only after knowing this can the eighth consciousness manifest the six consciousnesses with respect to that particular object. Once the six consciousnesses manifest, they begin to engage in actions of body, speech, and mind.

If the mental faculty still does not understand through deliberation, it will again contact, again direct attention, again feel, again discern, and finally deliberate again and make a decision. Before a decision is made, the five universal mental factors operate back and forth repeatedly. Their order may not necessarily follow the sequence of attention, contact, feeling, perception, and volition; it may be reversed. It is possible that contact comes first, followed by discernment, or contact comes first, followed by feeling, with discernment after feeling. Perhaps after discernment, there is feeling, and if feeling and discernment are unclear, deliberation continues. If deliberation is unclear, contact is renewed, followed by feeling and then discernment again.

Thus, which mental factor comes first is not fixed; the order here must be disrupted. Initially, there is attention. Attention is certainly at the seed stage. At the seed stage, attention arises corresponding to that mental object. Then the seeds of consciousness arise, and at the location of that mental object, the mental faculty contacts the mental object, directs attention to it, and the seeds are generated onto that mental object, forming the conscious mind. Contact with that mental object occurs first through attention, then the seeds arise. Only after the seeds emerge and form the conscious mind can it contact the mental object.

After contact, there is reception. After reception, there is the grasping of characteristics and discernment. After discernment, there is deliberation. If deliberation is unclear, contact is renewed. After contact, there is feeling or sensation, or perhaps attention is directed again, followed by the nature of discernment. Then there is contact again, followed by the nature of discernment. Here, the order of the subsequent mental factors becomes disrupted. The initial order follows the sequence of attention, contact, feeling, perception, and volition. The operation of the five universal mental factors is like this.