What Is the State of Not Giving Rise to a Single Thought?

When not a single thought arises, there is no solitary mental consciousness; when the solitary mental consciousness exists, there is necessarily thought. Thought is the thought of the solitary mental consciousness; the mental consciousness accompanying the five sense consciousnesses (pañcavijñāna-sahagata-manovijñāna) merely knows, discerns, and discriminates. When the mental consciousness accompanying the five sense consciousnesses is only in a state of discerning and knowing, without engaging in discrimination, that is the state of not a single thought arising. At this time one is also in a state of meditative concentration (samādhi): the mind is not scattered or complicated, and affairs are few and simple. How does this state come about? It is also brought about by the manas exercising its governing choice. When the manas does not cling or seek to discriminate dharmas, the mind consciousness can only obey, existing and operating quietly. This is also when the manas has no particular ideas, when the manas has no obvious thoughts. If the manas has ideas, it will prompt the mind consciousness to act and realize the manas's ideas. If the manas is mindful of other dharmas, the mind consciousness will inevitably be distracted to deal with them; it will not be quiet, but turbulent and busy. In this way, concentration cannot hold, and there is no meditative concentration.