What Are the Mental Factors Dissociated from the Mind?

The twenty-four mental factors dissociated from the mind are: acquisition, vitality, similarity of being, state of an ordinary person, meditation without perception, cessation meditation, fruition without perception, nominal aggregates, phrasal aggregates, syllabic aggregates, birth, abiding, aging, impermanence, flux, differentiation, coordination, velocity, sequence, time, direction, number, harmony, and disharmony.

Mental factors dissociated from the mind are manifested collectively by the eight consciousnesses, the fifty-one mental factors, and the eleven forms. For instance, the mental factor dissociated from the mind known as impermanence arises from the combined functioning of the eighth, seventh, sixth, and five sense consciousnesses. It manifests through the mental factors of attention, contact, sensation, perception, and volition directed by the eight consciousnesses toward all phenomena. It is also manifested on the eleven forms. Impermanence can likewise manifest on mental phenomena, all arising from the collective operation of the eight consciousnesses and mental factors. These impermanent phenomena are not determined by the delusive mind of the seven consciousnesses, nor do they alter their impermanent nature according to the perceptions of the seven consciousnesses. Hence, they are called mental factors dissociated from the mind.

The impermanence of the five aggregates (skandhas) is manifested through the combined operation of the eight consciousnesses. The eight consciousnesses, together with mental factors, give rise to the five aggregates, generate feelings, produce discernment, and initiate various actions. This manifests at the points of conjunction among the eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body; forms, sounds, scents, tastes, tangible objects; and forms included in the dharmayatana. It also manifests at the six consciousnesses and the locations of mental factors. All other mental factors dissociated from the mind manifest in the same way. They are not determined by our conscious mind. Regardless of our mental state or perception, impermanence remains impermanence. The five-aggregate world does not become permanent due to our craving, for this is not determined by the mind. Similarly, the twenty-four mental factors dissociated from the mind—such as time, direction, number, aging, and others—are all manifested collectively by the eight consciousnesses, mental factors, and the eleven forms. Their existence is not determined by the delusive mind of the seven consciousnesses.