Can ordinary sentient beings cling to the eighth consciousness as self?

Only someone who has realized the eighth consciousness begins to grasp the eighth consciousness as self; when one has not yet realized the eighth consciousness, the ordinary being's manas has no way to grasp the eighth consciousness as self. After truly realizing the eighth consciousness and attaining enlightenment, through continuous subsequent cultivation, one must also gradually eliminate the manas's grasping of the eighth consciousness, in order to pass through the third gate of the Chan school and attain liberation.

If sentient beings could grasp the eighth consciousness, they would no longer grasp the five aggregates as self. If one has not realized the eighth consciousness, how could one grasp the eighth consciousness? Everyone should go ahead and grasp the eighth consciousness—as long as one can grasp the eighth consciousness even a little, one will give rise to a bit of the samādhi of suchness, and the merit will be immeasurable.