Chan Patriarchs Most Forbid Practitioners' Mental Speculation

Many modern Buddhist practitioners like to engage in research, especially literati and scholars of all kinds. In fact, research is the domain of the conscious mind (manovijñāna), similar to emotional speculation and intellectual understanding.

In reality, the cultivation and realization of the Buddha-dharma is absolutely not a matter of doing research, nor can it rely on emotional speculation, intellectual understanding, or conjecturing beneath the mind. The Chan patriarchs of the past also most abhorred such conjecturing beneath the mind. Yet nowadays it has all been done openly—conjecturing and emotional speculation carried out brazenly, without honestly and genuinely doing the real work. Watching Buddhism gradually degenerate, what can be done? The pace of worldly life has quickened, fast food is all the rage, and eating it has made people's bodies unhealthy. Buddhism has also gone along with the trend, engaging in "fast food" practice, with the result that people's thinking has become unhealthy too, manifesting a kind of pathological state—yet without being aware of it, and instead displaying this pathology as beauty.

Buddhist "fast food" arises from the restless, agitated minds of the masses, and its result is even greater restlessness. There are many people who are glib and slick-tongued and do not engage in genuine practice. Therefore Buddhism is not a religion of research; it requires verification and down-to-earth, step-by-step cultivation. Thus it requires letting go of body and mind, requires a complete awakening from the very marrow of one's heart, requires the total transformation of body and mind from head to toe, from inside to outside. Only in this way can one truly transform consciousness into wisdom, and only then can an entirely new self appear—a five-aggregate world like that of the Buddha.

The path of cultivation is long; take it slowly. Sometimes one truly cannot rush. What is important is to lay a solid foundation in the Buddha-dharma. One must not seek quick success, must not build skyscrapers on a beach—without a foundation, no matter how tall the building, it will eventually collapse. When we study the Dharma, we should be down-to-earth and must not pursue rapid seeing of the mind and realization of one's nature; otherwise the consequences are serious, detrimental both to Buddhism and to the individual. I hope everyone, when conditions are not yet ripe and merit is lacking, will not rush into investigating Chan or rushing to see the mind. An unstable foundation is like building a castle in the air—it may one day collapse. The drawbacks of rapid enlightenment will gradually appear: progress on the path will be very slow, and arrogance (māna) will arise very easily—that is the greatest obstruction to the Path. One may even create unwholesome karma and in the future suffer its retribution.

When conditions are not complete, everyone should not pursue rapid enlightenment. Instead, one should contemplate and practice (vipaśyanā-caryā) the principle of non-self, and solidly eradicate the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi). This brings great benefit to oneself, to others, and to the community. People in today's world have especially heavy afflictions, all arising from the "self." Once the view of self is thoroughly eradicated, afflictions become slight, and the likelihood of creating unwholesome karma diminishes. But if one sees the mind without having thoroughly eradicated the view of self, one will still create unwholesome karma because of the "self" without knowing it, and may even create unwholesome karma with a clear conscience, believing it to be wholesome karma. It is evident that the merit and benefit of truly eradicating the view of self is immense—this is the most crucial link in studying Buddhism and cultivating practice.