Manas: The Master Switch of All Dharmas

The key to closing the mind lies in the mental faculty (manas). By properly managing the mental faculty, the six consciousnesses will not cling to sensation, perception, mental formations, or consciousness, thereby eliminating afflictions and attachments. The crucial point of spiritual practice is the mental faculty itself, which serves as the master gatekeeper and primary switch for all phenomena. When the mental faculty ceases, all phenomena become quiescent—there are no affairs and no mind, no mind and no realms. Nirvana is quiescence.