Only by Reducing Desire Can One Cultivate Meditative Concentration Well.

When an arhat reaches the end of life, the manas no longer gives rise to attention (manaskāra) toward any dharmas, and there is no operation of the deliberation (cetanā) mental factor; none of the five universally present mental factors become active. In this way, the tathāgatagarbha cannot discern the mental activities of the manas and cannot transmit the seeds of consciousness to the manas, and thus the manas ceases. If our manas continuously attends to all dharmas without interruption, with unceasing deliberation (manasikāra) and decision-making, the tathāgatagarbha will continuously give rise to the six consciousnesses, and bodily, verbal, and mental actions will continuously manifest. The manas only attends to dharmas it is interested in; the more things it is interested in, the more attention it gives, and the mind consciousness will be extremely busy, making it impossible to settle into tranquility, and meditative concentration (samādhi) cannot be successfully cultivated.

If we wish to cultivate meditative concentration well, we must reduce our desires for worldly dharmas, take no interest in any worldly dharmas, and minimize our indulgence in worldly pleasures. When the mind of renunciation arises, meditative concentration can be cultivated very quickly. If one always has initial application and sustained examination (vitarka-vicāra) toward certain people and matters, harbors anger, or has craving and attachment, it shows that the manas's grasping is unceasing, its attention is unceasing, its deliberation is unceasing, and the thoughts of the six consciousnesses are unceasing—in that case, meditative concentration cannot be successfully cultivated. When worldly desires are reduced, the desire-realm concentration will easily arise; with little or no craving for worldly dharmas, heavenly states will manifest. If one always feels that everything in the world is wonderful, always fond of worldly people, affairs, objects, and principles, the mind will not attain concentration. Reduce greed and desires, do not be too concerned with yourself, do not let your thoughts constantly revolve around yourself, try to relinquish yourself, and keep the Path in your heart—then meditative concentration will easily arise.

Cultivating meditative concentration is also cultivating the mind; subduing the afflictions of greed, anger, and delusion is cultivating the mind, and cultivating the mind is cultivating concentration. When the mind settles into tranquility (praśama), meditative concentration appears. Those who cannot cultivate meditative concentration well certainly have too many worldly matters in their minds that they cannot set aside, so the six consciousnesses continuously give rise to thoughts and cannot settle on one point. Therefore, to cultivate meditative concentration well, one should frequently examine one's own mind to see what is inside, and try to expel all the people, matters, and things one cannot let go of; then the six consciousnesses will settle into tranquility, and concentration will arise.

Whatever we do each day, the mind should be anchored on one dharma with no other thoughts, or other thoughts should be kept faint and discarded once dealt with. Worldly affairs only need to be dealt with perfunctorily; do not take them too seriously. When cultivating concentration, as long as we can gather in our thoughts and reduce grasping at worldly dharmas, concentration in motion will certainly be cultivated successfully. The mind should be kept as isolated as possible from worldly dharmas; matters can be done, but once done, let them go—do not let the mind grasp at them, and think less about various matters. In this way, concentration will easily arise. One should strive to achieve this: every day, apart from sleeping, no matter when or what one is doing, the mind should be anchored on one dharma—either recollection of the Buddha (buddhānusmṛti), or reciting mantras, or reciting sūtras, or contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā), or investigating Chan, or investigating a huatou, or investigating a gong'an. Over time, comfortable feelings will naturally arise in body and mind, and meditative concentration will appear.