The Key Points and Significance of Contemplative Practice on the Aggregate of Consciousness

In contemplating the aggregate of consciousness among the feeling, perception, and consciousness aggregates of the five aggregates, one should contemplate how the consciousness seeds generate the functions and roles of the seven consciousnesses, with the functions and roles of the six consciousnesses as the primary focus. After the consciousness seeds of feeling, perception, volitional formations, and consciousness are output, the six consciousnesses are formed, and only then do the various functions and roles of the six consciousnesses arise.

Once the six consciousnesses arise, there is the feeling of sensation, and then the discriminating function of conscious awareness, and also the awareness of volitional formations — there are the aggregate of feeling, the aggregate of perception, the aggregate of volitional formations, and all the functions and roles of the aggregate of consciousness. You must carefully observe each of these specific functions and roles one by one, clearly, without missing a single one. You should know that after the consciousness seeds arise, the conscious mind has these functions — this is very important. If you observe this clearly, you can attain realization in both the Mahāyāna and the Hīnayāna.

Within the aggregate of consciousness, the main object of contemplation is the illusory nature of feeling. Our five aggregates still take the aggregate of feeling as the primary focus, for sentient beings all take their sensations as real, and unfold the bodily, verbal, and mental activities of the five aggregates centered on those sensations. Observe how this feeling of sensation is unreal, subject to arising and ceasing, empty, suffering, and not self; then continue to contemplate the aggregate of perception and the aggregate of volitional formations. The aggregate of perception is grasping (upādāna), taking marks — taking marks in the mind, discerning and discriminating, or various kinds of thoughts and deliberation.

As for the aggregate of volitional formations, where there is consciousness there is volitional formation, because consciousness must necessarily operate; only after consciousness operates do feeling and perception arise, and only then do discrimination and these functions and roles appear. Contemplate clearly the content of how the consciousness seeds form consciousness — both the Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna teachings are realized upon this. In the future, the wisdom of realization will be extremely profound; upon enlightenment one will awaken directly to Yogācāra. This enlightenment is far deeper and more penetrating than the enlightenment of the Chan school. When one awakens to consciousness, the wisdom becomes extremely profound, and in the future one will quickly come to possess the seed-wisdom of Yogācāra (wisdom of the varieties of paths and omniscience).