Cultivation of Concentration and Chan Meditation for Realization of the Way (Part 1)

Section Two: The Samadhi Required for Chan Practice

1. Enlightenment Occurs Spontaneously When Samadhi is Fully Attained

Samadhi is common to non-Buddhist paths. Having samadhi does not necessarily mean one possesses the Way (Dao), but without samadhi, one certainly cannot attain the Way. Separated from samadhi, it is impossible to accomplish the work of the Way. A person lacking samādhi power has a coarse and distracted mind, incapable of penetrating the profound principles of the Dharma. Consequently, it is impossible for them to truly and completely sever the view of self or to realize the mind’s nature. Therefore, Chan practice requires excellent samādhi power. Before engaging in Chan inquiry, one must first cultivate samadhi well, and only then proceed to investigate Chan.

Patriarchs throughout the ages have taught their disciples to cultivate samadhi. The meditation halls established in monasteries of the past were precisely for practitioners to sit in meditation, cultivate samadhi, and investigate Chan. Practitioners during the Tang and Song dynasties each possessed samadhi. At that time, sutras were extremely rare and hard to encounter; few had the chance to read them. Buddhists could only sit in meditation and cultivate samadhi, hence their samādhi power was very strong. They were fully endowed with samadhi both in stillness and in activity. Their minds did not grasp outward objects; they constantly abided in samadhi. Therefore, when they encountered a Chan master expounding the true meaning of the Dharma, they could quickly awaken to it. They were also able to depart from this life and take rebirth at will, freely choosing parents suitable for their Buddhist study and practice.

Endowed with such excellent samādhi power, when Chan masters ascended the hall to teach spontaneously according to circumstances, some listeners attained enlightenment right there beneath the platform. Buddhists of the past engaged in Chan investigation and contemplated the Dharma throughout the twelve periods of the day and night. Thus, upon encountering a condition, they could immediately awaken. At that time, they did not possess extensive knowledge of Chan methods or numerous Buddhist theories. They only knew some essential characteristics of the Tathagatagarbha (Buddha-nature) mind and, accepting them without doubt, began their Chan inquiry to seek the Tathagatagarbha. Consequently, their awakening was faster and easier than it is for people today, precisely because they were fully endowed with precepts, samadhi, and wisdom (śīla, samādhi, prajñā), as well as sufficient wholesome roots and merit. The language used by Chan masters of the past was relatively obscure and indirect, not plainly revealed. If practitioners lacked the complete set of precepts, samadhi, and wisdom, it was very difficult for them to attain realization. It is not like now, where the Dharma has been explained very clearly, yet practitioners still fail to grasp its essence.

2. Investigating Chan requires the first dhyāna (meditative absorption) of the form realm (rūpadhātu) or the anāgamya-samādhi (the samadhi preceding the first dhyāna) in order to investigate the true mind, the Tathagatagarbha, thereby achieving a breakthrough in Chan inquiry (破参, *pò cān*) and finding the true mind, the Tathagatagarbha. This corresponds to the samadhi of the sixth heaven of the desire realm (欲界, *kāmadhātu*). If the samadhi is deeper or shallower than this, it becomes difficult to investigate the true mind, the Tathagatagarbha. If the samadhi becomes deeper, one enters the second dhyāna, where the eyes do not see forms, the ears do not hear sounds, the five sense consciousnesses cease, and only the mental faculty (manas, 意根) and the mental consciousness (mano-vijñāna, 意识心) remain. In this state, one cannot find the true mind within the union of the true and the false in the activities of body, speech, and mind. Seeking the Tathagatagarbha while in deep samadhi is difficult to accomplish. At that time, the mental consciousness is relatively faint and insensitive, making it hard to discern what the true Tathagatagarbha is. Moreover, bodily and verbal activities cease, leaving only subtle mental activity; the mental consciousness finds it difficult to locate the true mind amidst this mental activity. Seeking the Tathagatagarbha occurs precisely in the very moment of the activities of body, speech, and mind, especially in the moment of bodily and verbal actions, within the union of the true and the false, that the true mind, the Tathagatagarbha, can be found.

When the mental consciousness is faint and mental activity is minimal, it is difficult to find the true Tathagatagarbha. Unless one possesses the highest capacity, one should not expect to realize the mind and attain enlightenment within deep samadhi. If the samadhi is too shallow or absent, the mental consciousness is scattered and the mind is coarse and agitated, also preventing the opening of wisdom and realization of the true mind. Within the intermediate state of anāgamya-samādhi or the first dhyāna, the mental consciousness is not scattered but relatively focused, enabling one to achieve one-pointedness of mind (一心不乱, *yīxīn bù luàn*). In this state, contemplation becomes more subtle and refined, facilitating the opening of wisdom.

Attaining enlightenment cannot be separated from the mental consciousness concentrating the mind in one place, nor can it be separated from this kind of focused, single-minded concentration. Therefore, for Chan inquiry leading to enlightenment, one cannot attain realization either in a state of very deep samadhi or in a state of very shallow samadhi. After cultivating the samadhi skill of concentrating the mind in one place, one must still know: what is this "one place"? At this point, one must know the direction and starting point for Chan inquiry; otherwise, realization remains impossible. One must know *what* is to be realized, what the mark or object of realization is. If one does not know this, there is still no way to attain enlightenment.

After realizing the mind, wisdom opens. One knows how the Tathagatagarbha cooperates with the five aggregates (skandhas) and the seven consciousnesses in their functioning, how the activities of body, speech, and mind are produced, and one can observe some of the essential characteristics of the Tathagatagarbha. Subsequently, one can also know the causes and conditions for the arising of all phenomena. At this stage, if one has not cultivated very deep samadhi, it is impossible to possess supernatural powers (abhiññā, 神通), nor can one know worldly secrets. The state of enlightenment is different from the state of samadhi; the two cannot be confused. Knowing everything pertains to the state of samadhi with supernatural powers and is unrelated to enlightenment. "The void is shattered and the earth is leveled flat" (虚空粉碎大地平沉) is a state of samadhi, also unrelated to the wisdom state of enlightenment.

3. If precepts, samadhi, and wisdom have not yet been well cultivated, and the six perfections (pāramitās) are not fully attained, it is not yet time for Chan inquiry. One should slow down the investigation; samadhi must be sufficient first. If samadhi is poor, one cannot truly engage in contemplative observation (观行, *guānxíng*) with the mind; the observation will not be deep or penetrating, like viewing flowers through fog. With insufficient samadhi, contemplative observation becomes merely the mental consciousness's research and analysis. Although one might arrive at a seemingly correct conclusion, the body and mind receive no benefit, no meritorious fruition (功德受用, *gōngdé shòuyòng*). This is highly undesirable. If even the six pāramitās of a Bodhisattva are not yet complete, rushing into Chan inquiry will often lead to results contrary to one's wishes. The master does not pull up the seedlings to hasten their growth for you all, nor should you pull yourselves up by your own bootstraps. A small seedling has just sprouted; if you pull it up to a meter tall, can this seedling still live? If the seedling dies, there is no hope for it to become a small tree, let alone a large one. If one's Buddhist practice in this life is merely intellectual understanding (解悟, *jiěwù*), not only is this life's potential wasted, but it also becomes difficult for this individual to become a capable person in future lives. Hastening growth might ruin not just one lifetime; the potential to become a pillar (栋梁, *dòngliáng*) in the next life cannot be achieved, and the opportunity to become a pillar is lost.

Many people urge me to quickly organize a Chan retreat (禅三, *chán sān* – three-day Chan intensive). I ask why they want a Chan retreat? They say it’s to guide people in Chan inquiry for three days in preparation for enlightenment. Tell me, everyone, can I enable people to attain enlightenment in three days? Chan Master Xiangyan served as an attendant beside his master for eighteen years. With that capacity and those favorable conditions, he still did not attain enlightenment. Sentient beings in this Dharma-ending age (末法时期, *mòfǎ shíqī*) lack samadhi, cannot uphold precepts, and are incomplete in the six pāramitās. Could they attain enlightenment in just three days? If that were possible, how many people in this Saha world during the Dharma-ending age would attain enlightenment while the Buddha was in the world? Why didn't the Buddha do things this way?

However, I *could* enable everyone to attain enlightenment in three days; it’s not impossible. It’s a matter of one sentence; it’s not difficult. But after everyone attains enlightenment this way, what would each person become? What would the Saha world become? What would become of the direction of the Buddha Dharma?

In ancient times, there was a Chan master whose disciple blocked his path in a narrow alley, brandishing a knife and threatening him to reveal the secret meaning (密意, *mìyì*). Facing such a situation, the Chan master showed no fear and refused to answer directly. He simply pushed his disciple aside, saying: "You come here, I go there" (你过来，我过去, *nǐ guòlái, wǒ guòqù*). This is a master who is highly responsible towards his disciple, not engaging in transactions or trade, nor boasting about how many disciples he has guided or how capable he is. When the disciple's causes and conditions are ripe, they will awaken spontaneously. If the causes and conditions are not yet complete, they must continue to fulfill the conditions of the six pāramitās and cultivate precepts, samadhi, and wisdom. The master absolutely does not give away the realization as a favor. There are many such examples from ancient times. This is the mark of a good Chan master who is responsible towards Buddhism and sentient beings. Only in this way can one repay the four profound kindnesses (四重恩, *sì zhòng ēn*), not for personal fame and reputation.

The Buddha Dharma, having been transmitted for a long time, has developed flaws. In fact, flaws began to appear just one hundred years after the Buddha's parinirvana; it started to deteriorate bit by bit. Explaining the impermanent, conditioned dharmas (生灭法, *shēngmiè fǎ*) as "water, old, crane" (水老鹤, *shuǐ lǎo hè* – a nonsensical phrase indicating corruption of meaning) already caused Ānanda such heartache he could not bear it, so he entered parinirvana and departed. If Ānanda were to come to this world now, where the Dharma has been transmitted for over two thousand years, he probably wouldn't want to stay even for a day, unwilling to know or tolerate any of the evil dharmas and bad habits. Fortunately, he had attained the four dhyānas and supernatural powers, possessing the ability to leave at will, avoiding what he did not wish to see or be troubled by. What should Bodhisattvas who lack his abilities do? They can only tolerate, accept, and then find ways to transform the evil trends; there is no other way out.

4. Only When Samādhi Power is Deep Can the Mental Faculty (意根, *manas*) Investigate

Investigating the huatou (话头, *huàtóu* – critical phrase) means investigating a phrase that directly points to the Tathagatagarbha. That is, one must comprehend the true meaning of this phrase, thereby discovering the true function of the Tathagatagarbha and realizing it. Investigating the meaning of a phrase carries the same implication: wanting to comprehend the true meaning of that phrase. When engaging in the work of investigation, the mental consciousness's surface-level, coarse thinking is minimal. The mental activity is primarily deep, inner contemplation. The mind is both focused and profound, capable of probing the substance and deep meaning of a phrase. This cannot be done if samadhi is shallow.

The work of "being without thought yet thinking" (无所念而念, *wú suǒ niàn ér niàn*) means the surface level of the mental consciousness has no thoughts, does not think of dharmas, yet deep within the mental faculty, there is still thought; the mind is suspended in continuous thought. This is the work and state of investigation. Using the mental faculty for this work is difficult because samādhi power is insufficient. When one truly reaches the point of the mental faculty doing the work, even the mental consciousness finds it hard to observe. The function of the mental faculty is too hidden, and the observing wisdom of the mental consciousness is also very weak.

The doubt and questioning (疑情, *yíqíng*) in Chan investigation should be as close to the target as possible, and the scope should be as small as possible. This is the same principle as searching for a person. Setting the scope as the entire country is equivalent to having no scope at all. Setting it to a specific area allows one to find the person quickly. However, the smaller the scope set, the more evidence and information one needs, the more understanding of the situation one requires, and the deeper and more subtle the wisdom must be. The most direct huatou in Chan is "Who is dragging the corpse?" (拖死尸的是谁, *tuō sǐshī de shì shéi*). Realizing the Tathagatagarbha on the basis of the volitional formation aggregate (行蕴, *saṃskāra-skandha*) is the fastest, but the depth of realization is somewhat smaller, and the wisdom is shallower. If one can realize within the framework of Consciousness-Only (唯识, *vijñapti-mātratā*), realizing the ultimate source of the conscious mind, then understanding one thing leads to understanding everything. Realization based on the function of the mental faculty is the most direct and ultimately thorough.

5. Some people cultivate samadhi characterized by "no-thought, no-thinking" (无念无想, *wú niàn wú xiǎng*) for a long time. No matter how long they cultivate, the first dhyāna will not arise, nor will they realize the Way and give rise to wisdom. Cultivating like this is wasting precious time for studying Buddhism. Prolonged "no-thought, no-thinking," without proper contemplation and observation of the Dharma according to principle, cannot give birth to any wisdom and cannot lead to realization of the Way. At life's end, how will they deal with this defiled body (有漏身, *sāsrava-kāya*)? When samadhi is well cultivated and right view is complete, within samadhi one must have the thought of investigation; one cannot remain in a state of thinking nothing at all. Only with thought and doubt (疑情) can one break through the doubt and attain wisdom. Without samadhi, having doubt is, harshly put, just blind guessing (瞎琢磨, *xiā zuómo*).

Cultivating only the body, not the mind, no matter how long one enters samadhi, the first dhyāna will not manifest. Only by separating from desire regarding the desire realm, abandoning greed and attachment, can the first dhyāna arise. What benefit is there in abiding for a long time in the dark, obscure state of anāgamya-samādhi?

6. Cultivation Requires Balanced Samadhi and Wisdom

The Buddha said that Bodhisattvas should be skilled in cultivating both samadhi and wisdom. If one finds oneself having more samadhi and less wisdom, one should cultivate more wisdom. If one has more wisdom and less samadhi, one should cultivate more samadhi, striving as much as possible to maintain balanced samadhi and wisdom (定慧等持, *dìng huì děng chí*). Although Bodhisattvas generally have wisdom exceeding samadhi, the gap between samadhi and wisdom should not be too large; otherwise, progress on the Buddhist path will be hindered. Non-Buddhists have samadhi without wisdom. Arhats have more samadhi and less wisdom. Bodhisattvas have more wisdom and less samadhi. Buddhas have balanced samadhi and wisdom.

The true mark of a Bodhisattva's accomplishment is the Four Immeasurable Minds (四无量心, *catasraḥ apramāṇāḥ cittāni*): loving-kindness (慈, *maitrī*), compassion (悲, *karuṇā*), sympathetic joy (喜, *muditā*), and equanimity (舍, *upekṣā*). Possessing these mental qualities signifies that this person is a true Bodhisattva capable of benefiting and bringing joy to sentient beings. A person with wild wisdom (狂慧, *kuáng huì* – undisciplined, arrogant wisdom) cannot represent a true Bodhisattva, because their mental nature is untamed and they cannot benefit sentient beings, being heavily self-centered. Therefore, the most important thing in our study and practice of Buddhism is to cultivate the Bodhisattva's gentle and compassionate mental nature, having compassion and equanimity towards sentient beings. The fundamental purpose of practice is for the sake of sentient beings, not for one's own private benefit. A true Bodhisattva should have this state of mind.

7. Cultivation must involve the simultaneous cultivation of samadhi and wisdom, following the methods taught by the Buddha for cultivating precepts, samadhi, and wisdom. One cannot practice according to one's own ideas, deviating from the Buddha's teachings; that is not acceptable. The current environmental conditions of this world make it very difficult for sentient beings to cultivate samadhi. However, one cannot, because samadhi is hard to cultivate, emphasize only "samadhi in activity" (动中定, *dòng zhōng dìng*) or claim that having shallow samadhi is sufficient. People with shallow samadhi have very many afflictions, disputes, and troubles. A group will become very chaotic; when people come together, there will be many entanglements and conflicts, fierce competition and fighting. No group like that can be harmonious or united. This will cause the Buddha Dharma to gradually disappear and perish; Buddhism will collapse. Moreover, people with shallow samadhi find contemplative observation (观行, *guānxíng*) very ineffective. Despite what they say seeming eloquent, logical, and fluent, most of it is learned from external sources, not the result of their own dedicated contemplative observation. Therefore, it does not belong to their own wisdom and cannot resolve the problem of birth and death.