The Knowing of the Manas Is True Knowing

The consciousness accompanied by the five senses (pañca-sahagata-mano-vijñāna) is far more powerful than the solitary consciousness (mano-vijñāna-eka-citta), and therefore can much more effectively persuade the manas. The consciousness accompanied by the five senses grasps information that is more real and more comprehensive, with richer data and more conclusive evidence, so the manas has a dependable basis on which to make choices and judgments.

Practice is not baseless imagination; the manas must necessarily participate. Whatever lacks the participation of the manas is not solid or grounded—it belongs to emotional thinking and intellectual understanding, like a castle in the air. Once the manas participates in practice, true knowledge can be realized; what the manas knows is true knowledge. If it is merely the knowledge of the mind consciousness, it is unreliable—that is knowledge and theory learned from others, not what one has personally realized.

If the mind consciousness can successfully permeate and influence the manas, then the power of the mind consciousness becomes extremely immense. That we study Buddhism and ultimately attain buddhahood relies precisely on the mind consciousness continually and deeply permeating the manas, eradicating the manas's ignorance, completely transforming consciousness into wisdom, and finally attaining buddhahood.

When the mind consciousness has power, if it permeates the manas during daytime contemplation, then at night one enters dreams, and in the dream the mind consciousness can know that it is what one contemplated into being—this is the credit of the manas.