I commend you on your decision. Although I have not watched the Warriors, and I don't really watch basketball because, you know, it's too much of this. And, you know, because I'm so familiar with what I've been reading, I don't remember whether we actually talked about what I'm reading or not. So where did we stop last time? Do you remember? No? Yes, sir.

[01:39]

In my book. And so, the gardener is still mind consciousness.

[02:45]

So, I'm going to read that, and we'll discuss that, and then I would also like to get, at least touch on, Further on, we're going to talk about person death. But we'll see if we get there. But before we get there... So it's 7.20.

[03:53]

7.45. No, 7.40. We can ask questions or deal with questions until 7.40 and then end the book. So if you have any questions, I know you've been studying, I'm very happy that people showing a lot of interest. If you don't have questions, we'll just go right into it. Yeah? I don't know if this is a little esoteric. This is a little what? Esoteric. Oh, esoteric. So I was dreaming. So a couple of days ago, I was, I think I was dreaming. I had a vision, I was very clearly looking at an outdoor scene, and yet at the same time I was very aware that I was buying me my bed. So it's kind of one of those half dreams where you're dreaming, but you're aware that you're dreaming.

[05:00]

Yes. I would imagine that It was my mind consciousness that was seeing that image. It wasn't my eyes seeing that image. No. It was my mind consciousness. Yes. But then I'm wondering, who was it that was aware that I was dreaming? Yes, the painter. It was the painter making a picture. Painting a picture of an outdoor scene. So you could have gotten up. with that in mind, gone to your easel and your brushes and made that painting. It manifests the painting. And then the painting itself would have been a thing in itself. Would have been the thing in itself. Not as actual landscape, but as a picture. So we do this all the time. We dream and then

[06:01]

We act out the dream. We're doing it all the time. We're acting out of our dreams. And we think that we're awake. But this is a dream within the dream, within the dream, within the dream. So it's kind of different. The image that comes to my mind is different rooms. We paint. We have an idea. We're lying in bed. We have an idea. We're always thinking of ideas, right? And then we're always acting them out. And so this is all in the field of representation. That's the field of representation in a very direct way. It's not the thing in itself. But the thing in itself is the dream. So the awareness that my dream is not But if you think the dream is something other than a dream... I'm wondering about the Yogacara school in the context of Buddhist history.

[07:17]

Was it a response to the Vidyamaka's and Nagarjuna's teaching of negation and emptiness and people maybe needing something so-called to hold on to or some kind of thing as a model Well, I don't know about hold on to, but Nagarjuna, supposed to be, according to our history, Nagarjuna was this great Buddhist philosopher who popularized or made clear to everyone the understanding of non-duality. And so, and the middle way. Middle way is Madhyamaka, middle way. So there are two middle ways. One means, you know, like the middle way between extremes. But Madhyamaka middle way means the middle way between, it's not like take this way or that way.

[08:29]

It means the oneness of duality. That's the Middle Way. The Middle Way is oneness of duality. And that's what Mahayana Buddhism is based on. And so, in order to do that, what Nagarjuna did, he was a great logician, and so he logically Whenever he had a debate with somebody, he always let them trip themselves up. He didn't say, you're right or you're wrong. He just led them along until finally they realized that they were on the wrong understanding. So that was his big skill. And so there's a lot of negation. So Madhyamaka takes everything away. That's the Heart Sutra. The Heart Sutra is this Nagarjuna made clear the Prajnaparamita understanding.

[09:48]

And of course the Heart Sutra is just a little kernel of that, but it contains all of the essence. of which there are many Bandhus, 600 or so. And then the followers of Madhyamaka became very strict in their negation, and people thought it was nihilistic, that understanding. So Vasubandhu and Asanga, his brother, the Yogacara understanding, which instead of negation, synthesis, synthesizing instead of negating. So it's the balance between negativity and positivity.

[10:49]

So the Yogacara has a positive, things, they balance each other. So was like a closed fist be more the yarmulke and open hand? No. I don't think there's any closed fist at all. It's all open. It's all open? Yeah, it's all open. I don't know what I mean by closed fist. Is it stories the teachers like? Oh, I take everything away. Yeah. That's not a closed fist. Well, you could say that. It's taking everything away. granting, withholding and granting. It doesn't quite relate to that. It doesn't, yeah, it's a kind of a relationship, but it's not, it's a stretching issue.

[11:52]

You're reading too much in, thank you. But, yes, Peter? Just to clarify something, just thinking about this analogy of the picture, the idea of the picture, you're looking at it, or are you just seeing something? You don't know what it is. If you're perceiving things through direct perception, are there representational aspects present? Yes. Because imagination, we're talking about imagination,

[12:56]

Sometimes you can't tell the difference, right? But those, like alaya-vijnana just is pretty much neutral, even though it can be fooled. And sense consciousness is pretty much neutral. It just sees what it sees, hears what it hears, right? developmental consciousnesses, and so imagination comes through those consciousnesses as a combination of the independents. When you are dreaming, you may not know you're dreaming. As a matter of fact, from my perspective, there are sleeping dreams and waking dreams. That's what we're doing all the time.

[14:20]

So what we think is awake is really mostly dreaming. If you are aware of all the thoughts that are going through your mind all the time in one hour or in 15 minutes, but think of a whole day of thoughts that have no conclusion, they're just randomness. The thing about mind consciousness, which actually will be explained here, is that mind consciousness, the sixth consciousness, can act independently of the sense consciousnesses. But the sense and the sense consciousnesses can act independently of mind consciousness.

[15:24]

And when the sense consciousnesses are acting independently, they have direct contact with Alaya Vidyana, seen directly. because manas and manurajana are always coloring everything. So coloring is dreaming because it has to do with memory and associations and habits and conditioning. So those are always coloring our perception. So when there's direct perception, there's no discrimination.

[16:30]

That's why discrimination is such a big word, a big term in the Dharma, because discrimination is continually coloring everything and dividing. That's the cause of duality. We live in that realm. We live in the realm of duality and dreaming and coloration and delusion. That's the realm of delusion. So I want to get to, there's so much in here that I want to do right now, but we'll never get to it. So, but anyway. Dreaming. I remember all my life, I loved dreaming. I just loved dreaming. I thought life was about dreaming. But then I started to practice and little by little I realized, you know, it's great not to dream.

[17:32]

It's also great to dream. I think what we do is make judgments. It's not judgments about whether we should be dreaming or not, it's about whether that's good or bad. So good and bad are one of the big problems that we have when we talk about delusion It looks like delusion is bad. But delusion is just not understanding. Doing something, thinking that you know what you're doing, but not understanding. So that's delusion. But it's not bad. It can be bad, but it's not necessarily bad. It's just wrong. And we think, well, wrong is bad, isn't it? No. Wrong is just wrong. Bad is just bad. Wrong is not bad. not understanding. So we say ignorant. Ignorance is not bad, necessarily.

[18:34]

It's just not understanding. So we don't say all those ignorant people out there that are under delusion. of delusion, which is not seeing correctly, that's all. It's not seeing correctly. Our view is always distorted by something, and that's manas. That's why we say that manas is always incorrect, because it always sees things, that seventh consciousness always sees everything from the point of view of And it colors everything that we see. That's all.

[19:35]

It's not bad. It could be bad, but as soon as you start saying bad, you're coloring that as you're making a judgment. So when we see all these people that we don't like what they're doing, and we say, they're bad, they're bad, that's just coloring what's actually happening. So we can't really see what they're doing because we say bad or good. and put these labels on everything, and that's discoloring. So we withhold those kinds of naming so that we can actually see what's happening. Bad dog, bad dog. Well, dogs, you know, English is a second language for dogs. Can we say that it's just not helpful? I mean, that's kind of what it is. It's not bad or good. It's not bad, it's just not really helpful.

[20:36]

Yes, well, not helpful is one way of talking about things instead of making judgments. But, you know, some things are not helpful, right? And some things are totally not correct. But the more we use... You know, I see these politicians all the time falling into it, and that's bad. And that's wrong, which cuts off the argument completely. It just stops all the discussion. Yes? Is that, how does that connect to what Kai talks about here on, well here it's at the bottom of page 134 in this, so maybe it's a couple pages later in the version. So what does he say? Because mind is the base of all actions, that is why it is so important to be mindful. Mindfulness is the best state of being for the mind, etc.

[21:37]

And then he says, the Sangha is a great help in our practice of mindfulness. Surrounded by others who are practicing mindful speaking, mindful listening, and mindful action, we are motivated to do the same. My question is around motivation and this expression of what is mindfulness in terms of what you were just naming, which is, well, as I heard you, you know, this piece about not adding something to, but just seeing it. And my experience of that is that if I'm actually present, there's this pause of don't know or not knowing, not knowing how to respond. And in that space is, so I'm just wondering how do you see this treasure of the Sangha as supporting that, this motivation? You know, when you come to practice, people often come to practice and they want somebody to tell them something.

[22:48]

And we say, just sit. I practice. People say, well, can I sit at home? And I say, you can sit anywhere you want. But it's really good to sit at the zendo. It's not like we need a lot of people not trying to recruit you. But if you want to understand the dharma, you sit with people. You practice with people. You don't have to say a lot, because we learn from osmosis, so to speak. That's not the right word. We learn from association. The great teaching, most of the teaching, is through association. Not through talking to each other so much and gabbing, but through being quiet, listening, participating, and we absorb.

[23:49]

through our pores with Sangha. Sangha is the most important part of practice. Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. Sangha is the most important because the Sangha, you give yourself away when you're practicing with the Sangha. You harmonize with people who are doing the same thing that you are. When you harmonize with people who are doing the same thing you are, then harmony, that harmony, The verse says, mind consciousness, which is Manu Vijnana, is the root of all actions of body and speech.

[24:59]

Its nature is to manifest mental formations, but its existence is not continuous. Mind consciousness gives rise to actions that lead to ripening. It plays the role of the gardener, sowing all the seeds. So the seeds, the sowing, the seeds come from the sense perceptors. We have five senses, and the sixth sense is Mano Vishnana, but it's also consciousness. So as we, you know, eyes, ears, nose, taste, tongue, touch, and so forth. These five sensors collect information and Manavajnana sorts it all out.

[26:08]

But it's complex. So he's saying mind consciousness is the root of all actions of body and speech. Its nature is to manifest mental formations, but its existence is not continuous. To manifest mental formations, mental formations are thoughts, basically. But technically, the 51 mental formations, which we haven't talked about, but we talked a little about it. Form, feeling, perceptions, mental formations, and consciousness. Those are the five streams of which we think of as our self. So, mind consciousness gives rise to actions that lead to ripening.

[27:15]

So, it plays the role of the gardener, sowing all the seeds. So, let's get into it. There are three kinds of action, or karma. actions of body, speech, and mind. So the actions of body, speech, and mind are the karmic progenitors. Is that the right word? Mind consciousness is the base of all three types of action of body, speech, and mind. Mind consciousness directs the body to act. Whatever we say arises from mind consciousness. and it is the source of thinking, measuring, cognizing, and judging. Like manas, which is the seventh consciousness, the ego, mind consciousness is an evolving consciousness. In other words, continuously evolving. However, while manas is continuous, mind consciousness is not. Sometimes mind consciousness stops operating.

[28:18]

For example, when we sleep, without dreaming, our mind consciousness stops completely. So we're unconscious. We're unconsciousness. When we are at a faint, our mind consciousness may not be operating. And in the state of meditation called no mind, mind consciousness is also at risk. In the eight jhanas, I don't know if you're familiar with the jhanas, but the jhanas are but they're pre-Buddhist, and there are eight levels of consciousness, which the first four are more earthy, or conditioned, and the other four are less conditioned, until you get to the unconsciousness of no mind. So mind consciousness is not continuous, and the same is true of other

[29:21]

the other five sense consciousnesses of eyes, ear, nose, tongue, body, and body. So in other words, our sense consciousnesses and manas, mind consciousness, are discontinuous. We close our eyes, close our ears, you know, and so forth. You know, every once in a while we think about somebody who has no sense consciousnesses, they come out of the war with no sense consciousnesses at all, except that they can breathe and think. And it's interesting to know what they can't communicate, so we don't know much about it. So in this way, mind consciousness and sense consciousnesses differ from store consciousness The sixth gives rise to two kinds of actions.

[30:28]

One is leading action, which draws us in one direction or another. Too often, Mara, which is delusion, provides the road and the hungry ghosts show us the direction. But when the Buddha provides the road and the Sangha shows the way, it's beneficial for us. The second kind of action is called ripening action. Our actions bring about the ripening of either wholesome or unwholesome scenes in our store consciousness from our karma. So mind consciousness makes both kinds of actions possible. Actions that propel us in a certain direction, whether for good or bad, and actions that mature the seeds that are already present in us. So because mind consciousness can initiate an action that leads to the ripening of seeds in our stoic consciousness, it is important that we learn about, train, and transform our mind consciousness.

[31:35]

So we have to be very careful about our mind consciousness. What you're saying is that, in terms of karma, the actor is mind consciousness. It may be confused by monists, but the actor... Yeah, the actor is mind consciousness. I think that's what he's saying. Yes. We act and speak on the basis of our thinking, our cognition. Yes, so we act and that's how we call our dreaming. Dreaming and thinking are pretty much related. So we act and speak on the basis of our thinking, our cognition. Whatever action based on mind consciousness of body, speech, and mind we take waters either the pot So if we water negative seeds, the result will be suffering. If we know how to water positive seeds, there will be more understanding, love, and happiness. If mind consciousness learns to see in terms of impermanence, non-self, and inter-being, it will help the seeds of enlightenment to grow and to bloom like a flower.

[32:45]

So the store consciousness, which is Maya, It's often described as the earth, the garden, or the seeds that give rise to flowers and fruits or something, as we talked about before. The mind consciousness, the sixth consciousness, is the gardener, the one who sows, waters, and takes care of the earth. That's you. That is why the verse says that mind consciousness gives rise to actions leading to ripening or maturation. The maturation of our seeds, Mind consciousness can submerge us into hell realms or lead us to liberation, because both hell and liberation are the result of the ripening of their respective seeds. Mind consciousness does the work of initiating and also does the work of ripening. If it sows wheat seeds, we grow wheat. So mind consciousness is our thinking mind, basically.

[33:50]

can be influenced by manas. So our ego influences our straight thinking, basically, and confuses us. Yes? Thank you. Thich Nhat Hanh's very accessible, and sometimes he's very accessible. Which is? Thich Nhat Hanh's writing is very accessible. Sometimes it seems a little too simplistic. Yes. So my question is, it sounds like If you water so-called good seeds, good results will happen. We know that even though we try good, to do good, things happen, and we don't feel the uplift or the sort of fruits of that good, but there's all these karmic influences affecting us moment by moment. You know, you say, why is things happening? Why is this person getting away with something? This person's doing bad, but they seem to be enjoying life and things are going well. So it's a much more complex thing than just watering good seeds and having good results.

[35:07]

So when you're talking about that, that's what you're talking about. When you're talking about this, this is what you're talking about. So when you're talking about watering seeds of good and watering seeds of bad, the results go in those directions, right? That's simplistic. the other side. When he talks about the other side, he'll talk about that. So the problem is we think, well, how come he's talking so simply when these things are happening over here? You just talk about one thing at a time. You know what I mean? He'll talk about the more complexity in some other place. But now he's talking about simplicity. I would think like a gardener, sows the seeds, but certain plants flourish and certain don't. So the gardener sows the seeds, he waters them, and he's very careful about what he does, and the sun never comes out.

[36:13]

So he says, well, try again next season. You ever hear of the dust bowl? They stuck it out. They stuck it out when nothing was happening at all. Anyway, the thing is not to get hung up on the words, but to understand the sense of things. Because if we get stuck with the words, you're lost. You just get lost. You say, well, this says that, and this says this, and then how come the author is leading us in a certain way. And just follow the way. You can argue with it if you want, but that doesn't make sense.

[37:18]

Just follow the way. And then if you trust what the author is saying, then you let him lead you over here. and then you let him lead you over here, oh, I see, and so forth. This is like when you're reading Dogon, you can't understand what he's saying, but if you just let him lead you through to the end, something's there. So why argue with it? If there's something you don't understand or don't want to understand, just go on. That's the way I studied. If it doesn't seem right or you don't got it, just leave it and go on. And that's his advice as well. I like watering good seeds. I just think that there's a lot going on in the process of watering a seed and making an effort to do good in this life. Well, it's not to do good. It's to get beyond suffering.

[38:23]

That's what it's all about. It's not good or bad. Wholesome seeds are not good. Don't call them good and bad. I did that. That's my mistake. They're not good seeds. They're not bad seeds. They're just seeds that lead to suffering and seeds that lead to release. I was thinking about the three pure precepts. I was thinking about the three pure precepts of doing good. Yeah. It's not about doing good or bad. So the store consciousness is often described as the earth, the garden where the seeds give rise to flowers and fruits, that give rise to flowers and fruits or so on. The mind consciousness is the gardener, the one who sows, waters, and takes care of the earth. That's why the verse says that mind consciousness gives rise to actions leading to ripening or maturation, the maturation of our seeds.

[39:32]

Mind consciousness can submerge us in hell realms or lead us in liberation. So that's suffering or freedom, right? Because both hell and liberation are the results of the ripening of their respective seeds. Mind consciousness does the work of initiating, and it also does the work of ripening. If it sows wheat seeds, we grow wheat. Plants, orange trees, produce oranges, apple trees produce apples. So the gardener, mind consciousness, has to trust the earth because it's the earth that brings forth the fruit of understanding and compassion. The gardener also has to recognize and identify the positive seeds in the store consciousness and practice day and night to water those seeds to help them to grow. That's called practice. So it's really all about suffering. That's the Buddhist message and that's what The author here keeps saying this is not about some kind of intellectual, you know, we study consciousness because it's there and it's at the core of how we operate.

[40:44]

And we can either find our freedom through it or our suffering. So the gardener, which is mind consciousness, has to trust the earth. The gardener also has to recognize and identify the positive seeds in the store consciousness. and practice day and night to water those seeds and help them grow. The garden, which is the soul consciousness, nourishes and brings about the result. The flower of awakening, understanding, and love is a gift from the garden. The gardener has only to take good care of the garden in order for the flower to have a chance to grow. Because the mind is the base of all actions, that is why it is so important to be mindful With mindfulness, our thinking and our bodily and verbal actions will go in the direction of healing and transformation. The Sangha is a great help in our practice of mindfulness. Surrounded by others who are practicing mindful speaking, mindful listening, and mindful action, we are motivated to do the same. Eventually, mindfulness becomes a habit, and with mindfulness, transformation and healing will be possible.

[41:50]

He said, you know, we talk about good and bad. I mean, you're trying to be good and doing all these good things. You know, what about, you know, sometimes it's important to talk about the crazy person, you know, and the bad person who's good, you know. Yes, and in Zen we also talk about, you know, crazy wisdom and stuff like that. So we also have to recognize our crazy part. And as Suzuki Roshi said, always, we are half good and half bad. So, you know, he keeps talking about how to water the seeds of liberation, which is not the same as just being sweet and nice. It's about But we also have this crazy part.

[42:56]

But the crazy part and the enlightened part are not two different things. Yes. It sounds like it's something about transforming or expressing energy as vibrancy and compassion, and the only way to do that is in relationships. He calls it inter-being. Yes. Yeah, yes. So, yes, everything is interrelated. So that's, we'll get to that next, after our one minute. So we turn to page 155. It's on the first part of four, sense consciousness.

[44:32]

Verses 31 through 38 discuss many of the concepts we've already learned in our study of the eight consciousnesses. Collectively, these verses explore the nature of reality, notions of self and other, individual and collective, perceiver and perceived, birth and death, causes and conditions, are all concepts we use to understand the world we see and experience. It is important not to be caught by these concepts and to use them only as a means to greater understanding. They are no longer needed when we reach the ultimate dimension. In other words, dualistic concepts are no longer necessary when we reach the ultimate dimension. So what is the ultimate dimension? The ultimate dimension is the So he talks a little bit about what that is. The last two verses in this section, 39 and 40, introduce the teaching of the three self-natures.

[46:11]

So I just wanted you to know what the three self-natures are. Svabhāna, the ways in which our consciousness apprehends reality. The first self-nature, called parikalpita, svabhava, svabhava is nature, is the nature of imaginary construction and discrimination because the mind is bound to delusion, craving and anger. It creates false images of reality based on wrong perceptions and discrimination. So that is parikalpita, which has no real foundation in what we call reality. but it's what's going on in our mind all the time. So in order to unlock the door of reality, we have to observe, look deeply, and discover and put into practice the principle of the second self-nature, which is paratantra svabhava.

[47:21]

Paratantra is the nature of interdependence. One thing can manifest only by relying on everything else. A flower can manifest based only on the requisite conditions, the rain, the sunshine, the soil, and other factors which make its manifestation possible. When we are able to perceive things in the light of interdependence, one day the true nature of reality will reveal itself. This is the third self-nature, which is called paranishpana, svabhava, which is the fulfilled nature of ultimate reality. and reveals ultimate reality is paratantra, looking deeply with the eyes of inner being.

[48:27]

So what he's saying is parakalpita is the trash that goes on in your mind. Paratantra is the understanding that everything is dependent on everything else. I have this image or sound of the Avalokiteshvara. The problem here is that we're losing the train of thought.

[49:30]

So I'd rather just continue. of emptiness, because emptiness for our purpose means interdependence. That's the basic understanding of emptiness, is interdependence, because everything is empty of its own inherent nature, and it only exists And when we understand this, and act out of, when we really get this in our bones, not just as an intellectual understanding, that's Padmasambhava, which is true understanding.

[50:44]

That's what he's saying. I'll read it again. When we're able to perceive things in the light of interdependence, One day the true nature of reality will reveal itself. So when we really understand through our pores, if this is so, then Parinispana becomes a reveal, our true nature, fulfilled nature, or the nature of ultimate reality. So the key is paratantra, looking deeply with our eyes of inner being. These are the three. One is the mind fluff, and the other is the second, our delusion, delusional mind, basically. Which is not bad, you know, it's fun.

[51:50]

But it leads to suffering, that's all. This better be connected with what I'm saying. I regain the train of thought that bridges to that, which is this thing of, you know, the trash, so to speak. These thoughts that we hear and feel. Don't hang on to my word, though. Don't get caught on my word. I just call it that to me, for a laugh. And we talk about transformation of that to be the mirror of wisdom. So my question is, when you're sitting on the cushion, And there's the experience, in a way, of being Avalokiteshvara, hearing the cries of the world, whatever that is. Is that the functioning of, let's say, Manas transformed as the mirror of wisdom, so that what it gives rise to, actually, spontaneously, is compassion and understanding through experiencing that interbeing? If you think that you are Avalokiteshvara sitting in the cushion, that's delusion.

[52:58]

Yeah, if you think, if you're thinking it, but if you're having it, if I have the experience of, you know, that's not in my direct experience, that particular emotion or thought or whatever, where did that come from? That's, that's your enjoyment body. That's your, that's, um, uh... Yeah, that's, um... Sambhogakaya. That's your Sambhogakaya enjambment body. My question relates to Ross's, which is, experiencing interdependence, I'm going to feel pain, but I don't identify it as mine or someone else's, but I hear something or I meet something, whether it's on the cushion or on the street, and I feel something, and in that moment, Is compassion naturally arising and understanding, or is there a labeling going on there, good or bad?

[54:02]

I don't know. It's too deep a question for me. It's like, you know, if you say, if I do this, will that happen? If I did this because of that? You can think that if you want, but I can't explain that to you. I don't think in those terms. I just do what's in front of me. Because it gets too tricky. You know, without thinking too much is best. And then when something So I just, that's as far as I want to get there. And so I want to get to this, I mean, I wish we could talk about that more, but we should, but in the future.

[55:11]

I want to go to page 168, if you have it. 33, is that? Yes. Okay? So, the gatha is, birth and death depend on conditions. Consciousness is by nature a discriminatory manifestation.

[56:16]

Perceiver and perceived depend on each other as subject and object of perception. So, he says, According to the manifestation of the teachings, which is what we're studying, birth simply means manifestation, the appearance of a phenomenon. Sounds cold. Death means the absence or manifestation of appearance. Birth and death come about based on conditions. there is a birth, which is called manifestation. And there is death, the absence of manifestation. So when the conditions are all in place, something appears. And then we call it me. So when we look deeply and recognize the causes and conditions that allow birth and death to be,

[57:27]

We realize that birth and death are only notions. The manifestation of something is not the beginning of its existence. And when something is not manifesting, this does not mean that it does not exist. Before a phenomenon manifests, it is already there in the conditions. Birth is made of death, and death is made of birth. Birth and death occur simultaneously in each moment. Before you were born, you were already there. When you die, you do not become nothing. You go back to the wholeness, to the base, in order to manifest again. This is almost exactly what Suzuki Roshi said. I don't know if you were thinking about what he said, but what I was thinking about what he said was the sound of one hand clapping. That sound is already there. Yeah, well, yes. But also, you told us that he used to tell you the reason you're here is because you were always here.

[58:32]

Yes, always. Something can't arise from nothing. But what it means is that you're always here. It means that all the conditions are there, except those that actually, the main condition is there. primary conditions, but it needs all the other conditions to make it manifest. So you may have a seed. They discovered seeds in the pyramids that were paired with the pharaohs, and they took some of those seeds and actually sprouted them. Believe it or not. We think of ourselves in some way often as separate from the rest of nature. And we see how nature works, but we don't identify ourselves necessarily with the way nature itself works, or the way apples work, or the way oranges work, or the way the earth works.

[59:42]

So you may not, you know, this gives you food for thought. So everything that is manifest, it has to rely on conditions. If conditions are sufficient, then manifestation is perceived. If conditions are not sufficient, we do not perceive the manifestation. Unmanifested is not the same as nonexistent. So he talks about the snail. Unmanifested is not the same as nonexistent. The apple tree, within the apple tree, I try to take the seed apart and I don't find the apple tree. The apple tree only appears because of the right conditions. The ground, the sunshine, the water, so forth. A lot of seeds don't manifest, but they're all potential.

[60:45]

So they all exist in potentiality. And we also exist in potentiality. But until all of the conditions are just right, we don't manifest. So unmanifested is not the same as non-existent. When the snail has retreated its antenna, it would not be correct to say that the antenna did not exist. After we walk away and the snail puts out its antenna again, it would not be correct to say that they have only at that moment come into existence. This is just a simile. It's not exactly a simile, but you get the picture. In the same way, when consciousness manifests, it is not. When consciousness manifests, there is differentiation and discrimination. Because the purpose of consciousness is to discriminate.

[61:53]

Discrimination says, this is self and that is other than self. But discrimination is not the truth. It is an imaginary construction. a fabrication of the mind. The Chinese idiogram for the term vikalpa means universal comparing. So this is our comparison mind. As soon as consciousness arises, mind starts comparing. To compare is to say, this is inside, but that is outside. This continues to exist, but that ceases to exist. And we need those terms. We need to think in that way, but it's not ultimately real. It's just momentarily convenient. The perceiver and the perceived. The perceiver, which is yourself, and that is perceived. Two of the three aspects or faces of consciousness depend on each other in order to manifest.

[62:58]

In other words, are really one piece, but we divide them in half and say that's the object and this is the subject. But they depend on each other because they're really one thing, but we discriminate them. So the perceiver and the perceived, two of the three aspects or faces of consciousness depend on each other in order to manifest. Neither can exist independently. When you are angry, there was always an object of your anger. You are angry with someone or something. When you are in love, you are in love with someone. If you are jealous, your jealousy has an object. Sometimes we say of a jealous person, he is jealous of a shadow or she is jealous of the wind. Yet even if the object of jealousy has no material reality and is nothing more than a mere shadow of the wind, shadow and wind are nonetheless its objects.

[64:05]

So when a woman learns she is pregnant, she already begins to love the baby. She visualizes the baby growing in her womb, and it looks like its sweet smile, and she is sure that this image of her baby belongs to the realm of things in itself, things in themselves. But the object of her love still belongs to the realm of mere images. It is really an imaginary construction. The mind differentiates and compares in order to develop this image. That is why the verse says that consciousness is by nature a discriminatory manifestation. So the nature of consciousness is to manifest perception in which subject and object support each other to make the perceiver and the perceived possible. Consciousness manifests as rivers, mountains, stars, and skies. When we look at the rivers, mountains, stars, and sky, we can see thinking in the deep blue waters and perception in the stars.

[65:12]

This is true because all these phenomena are manifestations of consciousness, objects of perception, both collective and individual. What we believe to be an objective reality is, first of all, the object of our perception. For consciousness, we use the Sanskrit word vijnana, like alaya vijnana. But the word used by Vasubandhu, the author of the third verses, and this is vijnapti, which means to manifest, to inform, or to give information. The Sanskrit prefix v means to distinguish, to discern, analyze, understand, or recognize. So when something is not yet manifested, we call it avijñapti. If I show you my hand, you cannot see my ability to do calligraphy, but that doesn't mean that this capacity doesn't exist.

[66:24]

It is simply avijñapti, unmanifested. If I were to take a piece of paper and a brush and make some movement with my hand, you would then see its capacity. it would then be vijnapti, or manifested. A manifestation means that both a subject, a perception, and at the same time an object of perception have manifested. Vijnanamatra means consciousness only. When used by itself, the word matra means only. There's only the manifestation of perception, nothing else. The teaching of consciousness only says that there is only consciousness which manifests itself into the subject and object of perception and cognition. The 50 verses do not often use this terminology, however, because it might lead the reader to think that this is a teaching on idealism. So a teaching on idealism means something like, everything just comes out of our mind.

[67:29]

That's not what it's saying. It doesn't mean that we just invented the floor or something, although we did. As a matter of fact, I invented this floor. But that's not what it means. But it's true. I dreamed of this floor, and I put my dream into action, and there it is. So the term vijnana mantra, manifestation only, is better. This means that there is only the manifestation of perception and cognition in which the subject and object of perception mutually support each other in order to make subject, object, and manifestation of consciousness itself possible. Just as the three reeds lean on and support one another.

[68:33]

perceiver. When there is manifestation of consciousness, it is at the same time both aspects of perception, perceiver and perceived. So this is very deep understanding, and I don't think you can necessarily always grasp this. It brings up a lot of different questions, you know, of logic and science and so forth. But it definitely He definitely points out. And it's not just his idea. This is the understanding of the school. So, the subject and object of perception mutually support each other. Is that something like... It doesn't matter.

[70:04]

It doesn't really matter. It doesn't make any difference. But that's an interesting question, when thinking about this. Whether it makes sense for you or not is the question. if you're there and the tree falls, and it makes a sound if you hear it. Beethoven didn't hear his Ninth Symphony or his Eighth Symphony.

[71:09]

He heard it a different way. Well, yeah. He embodied it. He invited it, but he didn't hear it. I don't think he—he heard it in his head, but that's pure imagination. That's— Yeah, total imagination, yeah. that he was writing it down, and he could see what he was writing, and he could remember what hearing the writing was. Yes, and so the writing was... What was that word? Manifestation. Manifestation.

[72:16]

Manifestation. Representation. Manifestation. No, no, no, no. When you're imaging, in other words, you're putting down one thing that means something else. Representation. That's representation. The notes are the realm of representation. because they represent what's going on in his mind, whereas the music itself would be direct perception. But that's where the realm of representations is good. It's helpful. It works. When we assign certain qualities to certain things, that's not always the way it is.

[73:40]

Depending on conditions, something can be good or And you can see how there are many, many different ways to illustrate that. Yeah. So manas represents certain things that create a delusion. But in the case of Beethoven, his representation was a more accurate or led directly to an accurate direct perception or experience of the music. So representation can either be delusional or abridged.

[74:51]

So how do you know what's what? Mindfulness. So, you know, the most difficult or the most, the hardest thing to understand is how karma works. That's a sign that those are the, that's what Buddha is assigned to have said, is that the most difficult thing to understand is the way karma works. So it's very intricate and difficult because you can say, well, there are these conditions and those conditions, but those conditions also have conditions which have conditions which have conditions. And so it's hard. You can't trace things back. I mean, it may be possible to trace things back. Expand exponentially, right?

[75:57]

Just like Adam and Eve. How are you related to Adam and Eve? Through how many generations? So that's a difficult thing to... Karma is like that, actually. Because it is karma. It's impossible to, so we know certain conditions that create certain things, causes and conditions. So we focus on the local. So when you say, well, what are all the conditions that contributed to my being here? this moment, it's impossible. I mean, it's fun, you know, to go through all the litany of conditions, but there are trillions of uncountable conditions that actually brought us here.

[77:03]

Because Shakyamuni Those are the major conditions. Your father was carrying your genes, and your mother was carrying your genes, and the father was carrying the sperm, and your mother was carrying the egg. But you existed in both of those. Your potentiality existed in both of those sites. And then when they all came together, But that doesn't mean that you just began when you were born, or that you're ending when you're disintegrating.

[78:16]

So this is a very important part. This whole understanding is based on the understanding that what we call myself, gain potentiality through generations and generations. And there's simply continuation. That's why we say there's no birth or death, because there's just manifestation at a certain time, and disintegration at a certain time. But the alaya-rajnana and manas are what continue. The energy of manas and non-awakening So you leave your body here. You leave your sensory apparatus and your Manas. Manu is not a consciousness here. But because the karma, Manas is the karma-creating consciousness.

[79:26]

And so the karma-creating consciousness supplies the energy that continues. And the seed consciousness has all those potentialities. So those two continue until they do something, until the energy's right. I don't know what it is. After that, I can't say I know anything. But the idea, the understanding is that There is no real person dead. We just call that person dead. And then we buy into it. And then we feel, oh my god, I'm going to die, you know? What do you mean I'm a person dead? I'm going to die. But everybody

[80:30]

We all know how to do it, even though we don't know. Part of our suffering comes from not knowing. And part of our suffering comes from not wanting to leave. But we have to leave. We have to leave everything. We have to leave everything behind, each moment. So if we understand that each moment is a moment of birth and death, and we just understand how that's going on and on, it doesn't stop when consciousness, or when what we call dying, So there's two births and deaths. One is two understandings.

[81:44]

One is from the time you were born to the time you died. And the other is that life is just continuous. It's just continuous. It's from the beginningless beginning to the endless end. And there's this manifestation when things are right. So The Buddhist understanding is that you don't get attached to eternalism and you don't get attached to nihilism. As we see that everything is changing and continuing to manifest in a new way every single moment, It seems logical.

[82:45]

It's just that we can't see what happens. We have doubt. So, anyway, this Buddhist understanding is not... I didn't invent it. This Buddhist understanding. Thank you.

[83:08]

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