How to Practice Zen by Transcending Mental Consciousness

Without dhyana or the lack of meditative observation and Chan investigation divorced from dhyana, one fundamentally cannot transcend consciousness, let alone free oneself from conscious analysis, reasoning, and imaginative speculation. This approach to Chan investigation was most detested and opposed by past Chan patriarchs; it is the intellectual understanding they frequently disdained and rejected. Therefore, to practice Chan investigation by transcending the mind and consciousness, ensuring the result is more ultimate and directly perceived, one must diligently cultivate dhyana until the "dhyana of non-attainment" is perfected, and only then engage in the investigation and meditative observation of the Dharma. In this way, when the manas (mind-root) exerts more effort, it guarantees genuine realization, not merely intellectual comprehension by consciousness.

During meditative observation and Chan investigation, the more consciousness is employed and the greater its role, the more the effectiveness diminishes and falls short of expectations, becoming increasingly inadequate. Conversely, the more the manas is utilized and the greater its role, the stronger the explosive force, the greater the sustaining power, the farther one progresses, the deeper the awakening, the mightier the power of samadhi, the sharper the wisdom, the lighter the afflictions, and the more liberated the mind becomes.