All Accomplished Ones Throughout the Kalpas Are Endowed with Meditative Concentration.

The method of contemplation taught in the Zuochan Sanmei Jing (Sūtra on the Meditative Concentration of Sitting Chan) is precisely a teaching on contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā), with a clear line of thought, only somewhat coarse. Meditative concentration combined with contemplative practice is sufficient to attain the fruits of realization and to attain various meditative absorptions (samādhi), cultivating concentration and wisdom together. It was the same when the Buddha was in the world: after hearing the Dharma, disciples would cultivate meditative concentration, contemplate and practice, and then attain the fruits of realization. That was the path of practice back then, and it was highly efficient. It was the same in the Tang and Song dynasties: the assembly cultivated concentration and contemplated through Chan, Chan masters gave teachings from the hall, and when the conditions of the season were complete, they saw the mind and realized their nature.

As for the non-Buddhist practitioners, every one of them had skill in meditative concentration. When they met the World-Honored One, as soon as He taught the Dharma, they could immediately contemplate and practice, and they attained the fruits of realization right then and there. So do not merely look at the final step of their realization—gaining wisdom the moment they heard the Dharma. Before that, their meditative concentration had already been accomplished, their minds had already been purified, and the thirty-seven factors of the path had already been cultivated; all that was lacking was right view and right knowledge. When the World-Honored One taught the Dharma, He supplied their right view and right knowledge, and so they attained realization the moment they heard the Dharma. We should not look only at people's final results; we should observe the process of their practice. The process is very important—without a proper process, a correct result is impossible.

The past patriarchs of the Chan school were all masters of cultivating concentration. Their disciples all had meditative concentration, and the bodhisattva's six perfections had all been fully cultivated—the process of practice had already been completed. When the Chan master gave teachings from the hall, the disciples seated below would awaken. That is how the fruit appeared.

We cannot look only at the results of those who have achieved attainment; the most important thing is to look at the process of their practice, including what degree they had cultivated in past lives, how they practiced, and what kind of foundation they had. For those whose foundation has already been laid, hearing the Dharma can bring sudden enlightenment on the spot, without gradual cultivation, because previously—or in past lives—they had already cultivated gradually, and that stretch of the road had already been traveled. Taking only the final segment of a practitioner's path is a serious case of quoting out of context, and it does great harm to people.

Those who are new to Buddhism should read more about the Buddha's Jātaka deeds, and consider the path of practice the Buddha traveled from the moment He first made His resolve. This should be a great inspiration to us. To study Buddhism means to study everything of the Buddha.