How to Enter Dhyāna through Wisdom

After adjusting his breath, the senior monk mentally summoned the question requiring contemplation. Having clarified its essence with his consciousness, he refrained from analysis, reasoning, speculation, or imagination, avoiding superficial conscious thought. He mobilized the mental faculty, deeply implanting the question into the heart of the mental faculty, allowing it to suspend the question. At this point, neither consciousness nor the mental faculty contained words, language, or sound. Thus, profound meditative concentration emerged, and meditative power arose. The mental faculty entered a state of pondering the question. If the physical body encountered no hindrances and the mind was free of distracting thoughts, the more the mental faculty pondered, the more focused it became. The deeper the meditative concentration grew, the more wisdom unfolded, and the body-mind state became increasingly harmonious, with the spirit growing ever more joyful.

Pondering the meaning of the Dharma within such profound meditative concentration is entirely equivalent to profound contemplative practice, investigating Chan, and delving into inquiry. The understanding of the Dharma's meaning in the mind becomes increasingly clear. Once the pondering penetrates to clarity, the inner mind becomes utterly certain, free from doubt, eliminating perplexity. If one uses this method to ponder the content concerning the severance of self-view and the realization of self-nature and enlightenment of the mind, once the pondering and investigation lead to clear understanding, the three fetters will be severed, and the knot of doubt will inevitably be cut. If it is derived from conscious reasoning and conjecture, the mental faculty remains unenlightened, the knot of doubt remains unbroken, karmic obstacles remain unremoved, and the cycle of birth and death cannot be ended.

Most people only know how to use the superficial mode of thinking with consciousness; they do not know how to use the deep pondering mode of the mental faculty. Consequently, they are unable to diligently practice investigating Chan and delving into inquiry, leading to emotional thinking and intellectual understanding. Doubtful feelings do not cease, the knot of doubt remains unbroken. When encountering the slightest disturbance, doubt flares up intensely, and previously deduced Dharma principles are overturned. Even if not overturned, they are not experiential realization or direct proof, lacking practical use. Therefore, among those who now consider themselves enlightened, the ratio of false enlightenment is like the purity of gold, or even higher—certainly no less. This is the reality of the Dharma Ending Age. Regardless of how many people feel unwilling, this is the fact, corresponding and matching the faculties of sentient beings and the background of the times in the Dharma Ending Age. It will not be better than the Period of True Dharma or the Period of Semblance Dharma; absolutely not.