What Is the Uninterrupted Path of Insight?

After truly seeing the Way, the mind will continuously abide within the Way without interruption. What does "continuously without interruption" mean? Which mind is the uninterrupted mind? Which mind is the interrupted mind? Why can it be interrupted? The eighth consciousness and the mental faculty are the uninterrupted minds, while the first six consciousnesses are the interrupted minds. For seeing the Way to be uninterrupted, the mental faculty and the mental consciousness must simultaneously see the Way; it cannot be the mental consciousness alone seeing the Way. In true seeing of the Way, even if consciousness ceases, the fruit of the Way remains; whereas in false seeing of the Way, once consciousness ceases or becomes weak and inferior, the fruit of the Way is lost.

Truly seeing the Way means the mental faculty sees the Way. After the mental faculty sees the Way, the mind forever abides within the Way and will not regress from it. However, seeing the Way with the mental consciousness is not like this. The mental consciousness is an interrupted mind, a mind that cannot take charge. If the mental faculty does not see the Way, the mental consciousness will follow the arrangements and directives of the mental faculty, not recognizing the so-called Way, and thus will not be within the Way. If the mental consciousness again gives rise to doubt, it will regress. Even if the mental consciousness does not regress, because the mental faculty is the master everywhere, the actions of body, speech, and mind will not change, and one remains as before.

Some people, because they see the Way with the mental consciousness or mistake meditative absorption states for the Way, frequently sit in meditation to cultivate concentration in order to avoid regression, maintaining the absorption state to preserve the realized state they have attained. Others strive to use the mental consciousness to pull the mental faculty into compliance with themselves, but this is ultimately not a lasting solution. Paper cannot wrap fire; eventually, the truth will be fully exposed. After the mental faculty sees the Way, the attraction of states for the mental faculty and mental consciousness diminishes. The mental consciousness is easily twisted, but once the mental faculty recognizes the truth, it is extremely difficult to twist it away—ten oxen cannot pull it back.

Precisely because the mental faculty is so stubborn, its erroneous views accumulated over beginningless kalpas are deeply ingrained. Trying to use the right Dharma to influence the mental faculty is not so easy. The mental faculty is not easily conditioned; that is why attaining the fruit is so difficult. Some people have heavy afflictions; lightly and casually explaining some principles to them is utterly useless. Only after receiving severe retribution, encountering serious setbacks, or being battered and bruised (head broken and bleeding), can they slightly know to reflect on themselves. Such people are those of inferior capacity—ten oxen cannot pull them back, they cling stubbornly to their views, are inflexible, and enjoy contending.