The Result of the Manas's Selective Deliberation: Meditative Concentration Arises

The manas constantly deliberates (manasikāra) upon all the object-aspects (nimitta) manifested by the eighth consciousness, but its deliberation has degrees of urgency and importance, has emphasis, has priorities—it does not deliberate upon all dharmas simultaneously. Because the manas can attend to all the dharmas manifested by the eighth consciousness, only after attending to them can it exercise its deliberative nature, or it deliberates selectively. The object-aspects manifested by the eighth consciousness can be extremely extensive, and the range of the manas's deliberation is correspondingly very broad, making it difficult to settle on one place or a few limited places, so that it is hard for the manas to concentrate and hard for it to have meditative concentration (samādhi). Only through special training—where the manas gives attention (manaskāra) and deliberates only upon a few dharmas, or where the manas has eliminated its grasping and clinging nature toward some dharmas and no longer clings excessively—can it attain concentration, and only then can wisdom increase.

For example, a person who has cultivated the four dhyānas, the eight liberations of concentration, and preparatory concentration (anāgamya-samādhi) must have concentration in his manas; a person who possesses various meditative absorptions (samādhi) must also have concentration in his manas. Even those who cultivate non-Buddhist paths, such as practitioners of qigong, yoga, and other various disciplines, as well as researchers and scientists in various fields—all have dhyāna concentration in their manas. Of course, the best and deepest concentration is that of the Buddha's manas—the profound dhyāna, the unsurpassed dhyāna, possessed after the manas has completely and ultimately transformed consciousness into wisdom. The manas of bodhisattvas at the first bhūmi and above begins to transform consciousness into wisdom, possessing one portion or multiple portions of the wisdom of the selflessness of dharmas; they have already eradicated the grasping at a self of persons, and have also eradicated one portion or multiple portions of the grasping at a self of dharmas. Their clinging nature is greatly reduced, so the concentration of their manas is certainly not shallow. Up to the eighth bhūmi bodhisattvas and the Buddha ground, the various meditative absorptions are inexhaustible and unfathomably transformative, and the concentration of the manas becomes incomparably deep and vast. Because the manas has good power of concentration, its deliberation upon dharmas is relatively focused and concentrated, and its wisdom is deep and vast.