Ven. Shi Jiuneng's Essential Instructions on Chan Meditation

The Chan method of investigating Chan all requires us to use the faculties rather than consciousness. Chan does not care whether you have wandering thoughts or not—it does not bother itself with such idle matters; it only requires you to see the manas. In Chan investigation there is the practice of investigating the huatou (critical phrase), which can be used by those of middle and upper faculties; those of lower faculties cannot raise it. Why? Consider this huatou investigation: "Who is reciting the Buddha's name?" or "What is our original face before our parents were born?" Many people investigate the huatou—"Who is reciting the Buddha's name? Who is reciting the Buddha's name?"—searching everywhere; this is not investigating the huatou, this is reciting the huatou. What is investigating the huatou? Investigating the huatou means investigating what is before the words. What is before the words? Do you want to speak? When you think "Namo Amitābha Buddha," that is already speaking; the huatou is what exists before reciting "Namo Amitābha Buddha."

So the practice of investigating the huatou is like this—you want to recite Amitābha, but you deliberately do not let it be recited aloud; once it is recited, it becomes the tail of the words, and once recited it runs off. So you must investigate what is before the words. You want to recite Amitābha, but you deliberately do not let it be recited, and then you observe what state this is. You want to recite, but Amitābha must not pop out of your head; if it pops out, that is the tail of the words. Can you do it? If you can do this, this is investigating the huatou. Moreover, in this huatou investigation, the practice must be carried out with great density and continuity. How dense? In the past, Chan taught that investigating the huatou works like this: in the method of applying effort, the phrase "reciting Amitābha" is not allowed to be recited out, and yet you must still watch what is before the phrase—this is quite difficult.

When investigating the huatou becomes urgent, it is like swallowing a hot glutinous rice ball—a very hot tangyuan held in the mouth: swallowing it would scald you to death, yet you cannot bear to spit it out because it tastes so good, so it gets stuck in your throat. There is a metaphor: like a cat stalking a mouse. A cat catches a mouse; watching a cat chase a mouse—chase, chase, chase, chase—the mouse suddenly runs into its hole. Then the cat digs its four claws into the ground, raises its tail, and fixes its whole attention on the mouth of the hole. Why? To keep the mouse from coming out; the moment it comes out, the cat will pounce. This is just like watching one's own mind. This phrase of the Buddha's name must not be allowed to pop out, yet you must keep thinking of it. The cat, on the one hand, does not let the mouse come out; on the other hand, it wants the mouse to come out so it can catch it. Ah, but once it comes out it runs away, so you cannot let it come out. Yet if it does not come out, you wait in vain, so you want it to come out.

Like a cat stalking a mouse—this is how the Chan investigator, the one investigating the huatou, must be. It must be like this: you want to recite the Buddha's name but do not let it be recited, and then you watch to see what state this is. Can you think of it? If you can, you are certainly a person of middle or superior faculties. If you cannot think of it, then honestly start by removing your wandering thoughts first. Once your wandering thoughts are gradually eliminated and your Buddha-recollection practice gradually deepens, the mind will slowly calm down; and after it calms down, you will gradually see the manas. So investigating the huatou is actually applying effort directly upon the manas. When your wandering thoughts have not arisen, and yet your mind is clear and lucid—that is the manas.

Assessment: Dharma Master Shi Jiuneng describes the practical situation of investigating Chan very accurately and precisely, and clearly points out that when investigating Chan, it is precisely the manas that is single-mindedly engaged in the investigation; that practice is a Chan-investigation effort centered on the manas. When you cultivate to the point of being able to use the manas to deliberate and investigate the huatou, you will feel that investigating the huatou truly has a deep flavor and meaning, and is indeed fascinating and hard to let go of. That is why Chan investigators can practice tirelessly, diligently applying effort day and night, with the practice continuing unbroken and steadily intensifying. Investigating Chan is like a cat stalking a mouse: seeing the mouse darting about at the mouth of the hole, the chance of catching it is very high, success is imminent, so the cat stays alert, carefully and cautiously keeping watch, neither leaving nor abandoning, waiting for the moment to seize it in one stroke.

Why is it said that at the moment when a phrase, or the four words "Amitābha Buddha," is about to emerge but has not yet emerged—that is the huatou, the state of the manas's investigation? Because the mindfulness of the manas has no characteristics of language, words, or sound. When the huatou is about to emerge but has not yet emerged, language, words, and sound have not yet formed; at this moment it is the mindfulness and deliberation of the manas. At the next step, when language, words, and sound appear and it falls into the mind consciousness, it is no longer the state of investigating the huatou but reciting the tail of the words—the state of the mind consciousness's emotional thoughts and intellectual interpretations. Therefore, among all dharmas, the mindfulness of the manas always comes first and the mindfulness of the mind consciousness comes after; the mindfulness of the mind consciousness can also be transferred back to the mindfulness of the manas—it is only that the mindfulness of the manas is extremely difficult to observe and grasp.

In all states of wakefulness there is the knowing and mindfulness of both the mind consciousness and the manas; it is only that in various states, the knowing and mindful functioning of one or the other is stronger and more prominent. The functions of these two consciousnesses are very hard to distinguish clearly. Suppose the manas is A and the mind consciousness is B; our knowing is B's knowing, and when we try to distinguish the manas, it is B distinguishing A. How can B know whether A knows or does not know? How can B know what mental states, what feelings, what thoughts A has? How can B understand and comprehend A's mental state? How can B's judgments about A be accurate and without error? When B does not know A's mental state, it shows that B does not yet possess the wisdom to judge A. When can the mind consciousness have wisdom? When can it directly and truly observe, in valid direct cognition, the operation of the manas? Only after attaining realization and possessing the wisdom of the varieties of paths is this possible.

For now, let us not concern ourselves with whether the mind consciousness can truly observe the mental state of the manas. We should first establish the correct views of investigating Chan, and, modeling on the practice and state of effort described above, cultivate the correct practice of Chan investigation—this is what most urgently needs to be done at present. As long as you cultivate this Chan-investigation practice, even if you do not awaken in this life, in future lives you will still know how to apply effort, will be able to cultivate this Chan-investigation practice again, will not go down wrong paths, and realization will only be a matter of time.