Consciousness and Manas Perceive Differently

Question: Last night after finishing meditation, I was preparing to sleep when it started raining. The rain struck the glass with crisp sounds. As I listened while drifting off, just before falling asleep, it felt as if the rain was hitting my skull. Soon, it seemed to smash away half of it, leaving a dark, hollow space with only half a skull remaining. Though aware, I wasn't particularly startled and simply fell asleep. Was this due to residual concentration from meditation not yet dissipated, or was it an illusion?

Answer: When the mind is calm after meditation, consciousness remains free of discursive thoughts, especially before sleep. The manas directly perceived the sound of rain, making it seem extremely loud. This perception was exaggerated into the image of half the skull being smashed away, illustrating how immense the raindrop sounds felt. What the manas perceives differs from what consciousness perceives, sometimes drastically. Thus, the dharmas we ordinarily see are utterly different—even opposite—from those perceived upon realizing the ultimate truth. Only then do we realize that all our previous views and understandings were entirely mistaken, leading to regret so profound we might slap our thighs.

Why is it that after cultivating contemplative insight, when observing the same phenomena—breath, bodily activities, or the six dusts—the perception before and after realizing the truth differs so vastly? Why do the same acts—drinking water, bathing, seeing forms, hearing sounds, smelling scents, tasting flavors, feeling touches, or knowing dharmas—evoke completely opposite inner experiences and views before and at the moment of realization?

Before realization, one is utterly certain: form is form, sound is sound, scent is scent, flavor is flavor, touch is touch, dharma is dharma, and "I" is "I." After realization, everything is negated: form is not form, sound is not sound, scent is not scent, flavor is not flavor, touch is not touch, dharma is not dharma, "I" is not "I," and person is not person. Why such a vast difference? What consciousness sees is entirely different from what the manas perceives in samadhi. Thus, claiming that consciousness attains fruition is a joke—such "attainment" is indistinguishable from non-attainment, a fool’s deluded view. The more deluded sentient beings are, the more confident they tend to be. Confident in what? Confident in their own delusion.

Before realization, consciousness runs wild with deluded thoughts and opinions, endlessly elaborating and swelling with pride. After realization, consciousness finally quiets down, and everything must be overturned. Those who talk the most, who cling hardest to views, who are most stubborn—they are the most inverted.