The Eight Consciousnesses

The further you cultivate, the more you'll see the darker side of human nature.

To the point where you'll be less inclined to interact with people.

It's alright. As cultivators, you must learn to see the evil in human nature while still holding onto the goodness in your heart.

This goodness isn't blind. Don't just be good to everyone you meet. Cultivation is about self-improvement, not about conforming to others or playing a role.

Blindly being good will only encourage the growth of wickedness. When you encounter goodness, manifest goodness. When you encounter evil, manifest Vajra.

A cultivator who cannot even protect their own mind cannot truly cultivate.

This is because cultivation is an operation that goes against human nature. It's about using the inherent principles of the human mind, and with the power of awareness, actively changing one's own mental patterns.

Let me remind you again: do not get entangled with certain people, or rather, certain energies.

Because once your perception transcends the mundane, those who remain in their mundane habits and thought patterns will come out to slander you.

If you propose a viewpoint different from theirs, they will attack you from various high grounds, especially morally.

They want to eradicate anything in your perception that differs from theirs, and assimilate you into their way of thinking.

Using their shallow understanding, they will imagine you as they see fit, and then confront you with what they deem as justice.

Absolutely do not get too entangled. Or rather, don't get entangled when your energy is not high. Cut ties decisively.

When your energy is high enough that their words cannot affect you, then try to guide them, offer a few words of advice. If they still don't understand, it means their affinity is insufficient. Do not force it. Guide them with a spirit of detachment.

If they persistently pester you, then scold them when necessary, argue with them when necessary. But remember one thing: do not truly get angry. If you get angry, it means your cultivation is not yet sufficient.

You must be able to remain unfazed even if Mount Tai collapses before you. How can a few vulgar words disturb your mind?

When you let go of the self-centered perspective, when the thought pattern of "me" disappears, you will no longer be concerned with these matters. This is the key.

Yesterday, I stumbled upon a video where a woman was also talking about cultivation based on her own understanding.

She said that the human body is just a vessel, and the real person is the consciousness, the thought within.

Then, she claimed that emotions and desires are brought about by the physical body.

To be honest, hearing that made me furious.

I wasn't angry because her understanding or viewpoint differed from mine.

I was angry because she could easily lead many ignorant people into an abyss, meaning she was misdirecting their path of cultivation.

For this, I felt pity for many, and thus, I was angry.

What do you mean by "emotions caused by the physical body"? How can emotions arise without thought?

If the physical body could generate emotions on its own, wouldn't the pork at the market get angry and throw a tantrum long ago?

If you aren't thinking anything, where do emotions come from? If you aren't thinking anything, where do desires come from?

And you blame the physical body for these! Do you know how someone who doesn't understand this would torment their own body if they believed it?

Isn't this viewpoint wicked? Isn't it hateful?

If many people truly believe this kind of talk, and instead of addressing their emotions and suffering from their heart and mind, they torment their bodies, it's utterly ridiculous! They've ended up harming a whole bunch of people! Anyone who trusted her words was misled by her!

How can I not feel pity and anger?

I'm working hard, without seeking reward, to teach everyone methods of cultivating the heart, how to change one's mind to change oneself.

And she's there blaming everything on the physical body, saying that without a body, there would be no troubles. What a detestable statement!

Is a person still a person without a body? They don't even understand that the mind doesn't stir emotions if it doesn't move, yet they claim to teach cultivation?

It's truly speechless.

Let's re-explain the process of the human mind from before birth to after birth. Everyone, please think carefully.

Initially, humans are conceived from the union of cells from the parents' bodies. Cells are individuals acting under subconsciousness. They lack independent thought, meaning they lack individual consciousness, and are driven by instinct.

After the sperm and egg combine and form in the mother's body, consciousness begins to develop, but actions are still driven by instinct.

After birth, driven by instinct from behind, and gradually educated by their parents and those around them, individuals gradually form self-awareness.

The relationship between consciousness and self-awareness is whether you have your own thoughts, or the ability to think and differentiate independently.

This requires a stable process, typically after the age of three or five, gradually stabilizing as age increases.

Thought requires consciousness to drive it, and consciousness requires subconsciousness to form. Without consciousness, humans would not have thought.

Without subconsciousness, humans would not develop consciousness.

The six consciousnesses are called the six roots: eye consciousness, ear consciousness, nose consciousness, tongue consciousness, body consciousness, and mind consciousness. They are also called the six senses.

Simultaneously, they are referred to as the six dusts: form, sound, smell, taste, touch, and dharma.

Humans perceive the world through the six roots and are obscured by the six dusts.

That is, what the eyes see, what the ears hear, what the nose smells, what the tongue tastes, what the body touches, and what the mind thinks.

Because of the existence of the six roots and six dusts, there is differentiation: what is beautiful, what is pleasant to hear, what is fragrant, and so on.

The first five consciousnesses are essentially sensory organs transmitting signals to the mind, which then drives thought to differentiate.

After thought differentiates, people will consider what they deem good as good, and what they deem bad as bad.

Over time, this also influences the subconscious, which in turn differentiates good from bad and right from wrong, forming habits.

Once these habits are formed, sometimes you don't need your conscious mind to differentiate; you rely on habit instead.

When habits persist for a long time, this pattern begins to dictate your judgment.

In cultivation, it's believed humans have eight consciousnesses. The first five are sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch.

The sixth consciousness is the manifest awareness, the one we're consciously aware of.

The seventh consciousness is the Manas consciousness, an instinct formed by the influence of the first six consciousnesses, which differentiates based on habit. It constantly uses past experiences to judge the quality and correctness of things.

The eighth consciousness, the Alaya consciousness, is sometimes called the storage system. It records everything that has happened across lifetimes. It's somewhat like a deep subconscious.

The subconscious is divided into the superficial and the deep. The superficial subconscious can be perceived; it's like habit.

The deep subconscious is not easily perceived and is the most important secret of humanity.

To simplify, the first six consciousnesses generate the seventh consciousness, self-awareness. This self-awareness differentiates good from bad and right from wrong under the influence of the first six consciousnesses, which in turn affects habits.

Habits influence the eighth consciousness, the deep subconscious.

If you don't quite understand, let me simplify it further.

The five senses and six consciousnesses, the first six consciousnesses, influence self-awareness, which is our thinking and judgment.

The thinking and judgment of self-awareness then influence the deep and superficial patterns of the subconscious.

The patterns of the deep subconscious will affect karmic habits across lifetimes.

This means whatever you do and think will be stored, and you will be influenced by it across lifetimes.

The cultivation of the mind involves changing one's karmic habits by modifying thought patterns, thereby altering what is stored within.