Is Innate Self-Grasping of Manas or Consciousness?

Does consciousness possess innate self-attachment? "Innate" means inherent from birth. When consciousness first emerges, it cannot distinguish directions and knows nothing, let alone recognize a so-called "self," parents, or siblings. Therefore, it has no self-attachment. All manifestations of an infant's consciousness are taught and perfumed by the manas (the seventh consciousness). Thus, it is the manas that possesses innate self-attachment, and the manas itself does not need to be reborn. The environment and parents cannot immediately perfume the infant; consciousness must be gradually taught to slowly comprehend all dharmas and phenomena. Whether instructed by its own manas, others, or influenced by the environment, consciousness must learn everything one by one—nothing is innate, including self-awareness.

Consciousness is initially taught and perfumed by the manas. At birth, it is molded by the manas and must be dominated by it, possessing no principles or opinions of its own. All behaviors of consciousness in the womb are entirely compliant with the manas, without the slightest self-assertion. After birth, consciousness remains completely subservient to the will and habits of the manas, devoid of any self-assertion. Only later, through environmental influence and instruction from others, does it begin to develop some cognition and a degree of self-assertion.

A child's innocence lies in the pure expression of their inner self (manas)—without falsehood, pretense, or concealment by consciousness. It is the straightforward and unrestrained nature of the manas; consciousness does not control or disguise the manas. Through children, the characteristics of the manas can be directly observed. Children are born with greed—that is the manas' greed. They are naturally prone to anger—that is the manas' hatred. They are innately ignorant—that is the manas' delusion. If a child is born exceptionally intelligent, that is the manas' wisdom. If they possess innate talents, that is the manas' ability. Whatever is innate and does not require deliberate postnatal learning belongs to the manas.

Some people possess exceptional innate wisdom in certain areas, requiring no postnatal learning—this is the manas' wisdom, carried over from past lives. Child prodigies exemplify this. Wisdom acquired by consciousness through postnatal learning takes longer to develop and is not rapid. If something is learned very quickly, it is still due to the influence of the manas, having been encountered in past lives, related to karmic seeds and the manas. The same applies to Buddhist practice. Some advance by leaps and bounds in their practice, known as having "good roots" and "wisdom roots"—a foundation from past lives. The manas brings perfuming from previous lifetimes into the present, enabling very rapid progress in Buddhist practice.

When we truly cannot distinguish between the manas and consciousness, we should consider: What occurs when consciousness is absent? What occurs when consciousness is weak and minimally functional? What occurs when consciousness first emerges or is about to cease? All these situations are manifestations of the manas' characteristics.