The Mental Factors and Their Operation of the Seventh Consciousness

When the six faculties contact the six sense objects, the six consciousnesses arise. The six faculties and the six sense objects together constitute the twelve entrances (āyatanas). The six faculties refer to the supreme faculties (rūpa-prasāda), located at the back of the head; the five supreme faculties together with the manas constitute the six faculties, also called the inner six entrances. The six sense objects are the inner five sense objects, plus Form subsumed under the Dharmāyatana, which makes the inner six sense objects, also called the outer six entrances. The inner six entrances and the outer six entrances together are called the twelve entrances. Among them, the faculties and the sense objects are definitely together; the inner six sense objects arise within the supreme faculties at the back of the head, contacting the six faculties. Only when faculties and sense objects are together can they make contact; after contact, when the manas directs its attention (manaskāra), the eighth consciousness can then produce the six consciousnesses.

That the faculties and sense objects make contact means that faculties and sense objects are definitely together—but where? The five supreme faculties are located at the back of the head, so the five sense objects must manifest and arise at the supreme faculties at the back of the head. The inner five sense objects are definitely produced at that location of the supreme faculties at the back of the head, so the faculties and sense objects come together in contact. After the faculties and sense objects make contact, the eighth consciousness produces the five sense consciousnesses; at the same time, the mental objects (dharmas) that depend on the five sense objects are also at the supreme faculties at the back of the head, contacting the manas, and the eighth consciousness simultaneously produces the mind consciousness, which discerns the six sense objects together with the five sense consciousnesses. This is called the mental consciousness accompanying the five sense consciousnesses (pañcavijñāna-sahagata-manovijñāna).

When the six faculties contact the six sense objects and the six consciousnesses are produced, the three then come together and make contact—that is, the six consciousnesses, relying on the six faculties, again contact the six sense objects, and thereby can discern the six sense objects. The faculties and sense objects are continually in contact; if the faculties and sense objects do not make contact, the six consciousnesses will cease. Then the six consciousnesses again contact the six sense objects; after contacting the six sense objects, there is the capacity of reception—receiving and accepting the six sense objects—and the mental factor of feeling (vedanā) appears. After accepting the six sense objects, the six consciousnesses have discerned the six sense objects and grasped the six sense objects, and the mental factor of perception (saṃjñā) emerges.

After discerning the six sense objects, the six consciousnesses begin to deliberate (manana). If the deliberation is unclear, they again direct attention, generating attention toward the six sense objects once more. After the attention, there is again discernment and again feeling; at this point, the feelings of suffering, happiness, sorrow, joy, and neutral feeling (upekṣā-vedanā) emerge. The initial feeling is reception and acceptance; after accepting, it is as if the six sense objects have been taken in, and only then does one know what the six sense objects are—this acceptance represents taking them in. The feeling that comes later carries emotional coloring, and the feelings of suffering, happiness, sorrow, joy, and neutrality will arise.

After the feeling emerges, if the feeling is not clear, there is further grasping of characteristics and discernment, and the mental factor of perception will arise again. After the mental factor of perception arises and discerns, deliberation begins again. If the deliberation is unclear, there is renewed contact; after contact, there is again reception and feeling, or at this time attention is directed again, and then there is again the capacity of discernment. With further contact and further discernment, the order of the mental factors hereafter becomes disordered. The initial sequence follows the order of attention (manaskāra), contact (sparśa), feeling (vedanā), perception (saṃjñā), and volition (cetanā); the operation of the five universal mental factors proceeds in this way.

After discerning the six sense objects, the six consciousnesses begin to deliberate. If the deliberation is unclear, they direct attention again, generating attention toward the six sense objects once more. After the attention, there is again discernment and again feeling; at this point, the feelings of suffering, happiness, sorrow, joy, and neutrality emerge. The initial feeling is reception and acceptance; after acceptance, it is as if the six sense objects have been taken in, and only then does one know what the six sense objects are—this acceptance represents taking them in. The feeling that comes later carries emotional coloring, and the feelings of suffering, happiness, sorrow, joy, and neutrality will arise.

After the feeling emerges, if the feeling is not clear, there is further grasping of characteristics and discernment, and the mental factor of perception will arise again. After the mental factor of perception arises and discerns, deliberation begins again. If the deliberation is unclear, there is renewed contact; after contact, there is again discernment, or further thinking, or continued feeling. In this way, after discernment and feeling, there is further deliberation, until finally, when the matter has been deliberated clearly and discerned distinctly, the six consciousnesses give rise to a determined mind; the manas, knowing this, also gives rise to a determined mind, and is about to begin action—this is the mental factor of volition (cetanā).

The content discerned by the six consciousnesses must also be transmitted to the manas, and the manas will simultaneously, toward the six sense objects discerned by the six consciousnesses, generate the operation of the five universal mental factors, producing a series of mental activities. Finally, when the manas gives rise to a determined mind, deciding how to act, the eighth consciousness discerns this and, in accordance with the manas's deliberated decision and the dharmas toward which He directs attention, operates in coordination. Because the eighth consciousness must know what the manas is attending to, which aspect of mental objects He is attending to, only after knowing this can the eighth consciousness manifest the six consciousnesses upon that mental object. Once the six consciousnesses manifest, the bodily, verbal, and mental actions begin to be carried out.

If the manas has not yet deliberated clearly, the manas will continue to contact, continue to direct attention, continue to feel, continue to discern, and finally deliberate again and make a decision. Before a decision is made, the five universal mental factors are continually operating back and forth; their sequence may not follow the order of attention, contact, feeling, perception, and volition, and may be reversed. It is possible that contact comes first and discernment after, or that contact comes first and feeling first, with discernment after the feeling. Perhaps after discernment there is again feeling, and if the feeling and discernment are still unclear, deliberation continues. If the deliberation is still unclear, there is further contact, further feeling, and further discernment.

In this way, which mental factor comes first is not fixed, and the sequence here becomes disordered. Initially it is attention; attention is definitely at the seed stage. At the seed stage, attention is generated corresponding to that mental object; then the seeds of consciousness are produced, and at the location of that mental object, the manas contacts that mental object and attends to it; the seeds are generated onto that mental object, forming the conscious mind. Contact with that mental object occurs with attention first and the generation of seeds afterward; only after the seeds emerge and form the conscious mind can there be contact with the mental object.

After contact, there is reception; after reception, there is grasping of characteristics and discernment; after discernment, there is deliberation. If the deliberation is unclear, there is further contact; after contact, there is reception and feeling, or at this time attention is directed again, and then there is again the capacity of discernment. With further contact and further discernment, the order of the mental factors hereafter becomes disordered. The initial sequence follows the order of attention, contact, feeling, perception, and volition; such is the operation of the five universal mental factors.