Direct Perception and Non-Valid Cognition

When sitting in meditation with eyes closed, after a period of time, as discursive grasping gradually diminishes, various images will appear. These are not thought up by the mind consciousness; when one tries to see them clearly using the mind consciousness, the images disappear. When one sits quietly again, various images appear once more.

During meditation, some images are thought up by the mind consciousness, while some are not produced by the mind consciousness—they emerge directly from the brain, that is, from the manas. These are direct perception realms, the most real and usable, and they open wisdom. When one observes with the mind consciousness, the power of meditative concentration has already been reduced and diluted, and the realm will disappear. The mind consciousness has an interfering effect—it interferes with the arising of the manas's wisdom. As for what is thought up from the mind consciousness, it is the result of sentiment and intellectual understanding, and sometimes it is also random daydreaming; it is of little use, and most of it is non-valid cognition realms. What needs to be proven, what needs to be personally realized, must emerge directly from the brain, with the mind consciousness knowing it only afterward, and then suddenly awakening with a start. True enlightenment is precisely this kind of situation. Without the power of meditative concentration, do not entertain the fantasy of having such fundamental, direct enlightenment.