Perceiving is one thing;

the issue is what we do next.

The five senses, or first five consciousnesses, are sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. They enable us to accurately know what is being viewed, heard, smelled, etc. For awakened beings, these five senses coupled with innate wisdom enable them to interact correctly with their environment and everything and everyone in it. Then they stop there.

But we unawakened beings careen blithely into the sixth consciousness. This is the discriminatory mind, let’s say, the mind of black or white, different or like me.

From here, things get worse as we instantly lurch into the seventh consciousness, which attaches. This is the push-pull mind that attaches to ideas of I dislike or I like, etc.

Awakened beings stop at the point where they perceive and interact correctly. For them, there is no discriminating or attaching. Sadly, we’re not there yet. And so, we discriminate and attach, and can end up causing terrible suffering. For ourselves in the future. And even worse, for others now.