How to Gain the Greatest Benefit from Reading Sutras? (Manas Training)

Many people lack the foundation of prajñā emptiness, yet they relish discussing Yogācāra. As a result, the more they study, the more attached to existence they become, the less empty they become, and the further they deviate from the Path. Yogācāra originally points entirely to the emptiness of all dharmas, but when many people study it, it turns into solid, real existent dharmas and becomes a mere academic discipline—this is the misfortune of Yogācāra studies. In order to reverse this situation and fill in the foundational part, starting from now, we should turn back and focus on the study and practice of the prajñā teachings. The prajñā teachings serve as a bridge between what comes before and after: they help both with the eradication of the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi) in the Small Vehicle and with the study and practice of Yogācāra. Without a foundation in prajñā studies, studying Yogācāra is mere conceptual proliferation (prapañca). The World-Honored One preached six hundred scrolls of prajñā sūtras; if you persist in reading a portion every day, over time your understanding of the prajñā teachings will deepen, your mind will become increasingly empty, you will not cling to worldly marks, and your body and mind will be transformed.

To read the sūtras and truly understand the Buddha's intent and gain great benefit, one must have proper methods. The first is to generate bodhicitta and let bodhicitta run through the entire process of study and practice. On this basis, practice the six pāramitās of the bodhisattva, and then devote yourself single-mindedly to diligent practice of the Path. There are generally three ways of reading the sūtras: the first is reading with the mind consciousness merely mouthing the words, while the manas wanders everywhere daydreaming; the second is when wandering thoughts decrease, the mind consciousness reads the sūtras attentively, the manas daydreams little and attends to the sūtra text together with it, leaving some space for deliberating and understanding the meaning of the sūtra; the third, when the sūtra text has become familiar, is for the mind consciousness not to read, or to read slowly without voicing the words, cooperating with the manas in contemplation and investigation, with the manas focused on the sūtra text, continuously pondering it.

The first is the most elementary way of reading the sūtras—purely reading, without needing to understand the text. One must transition to the second and third ways in order to achieve the effect of reading the sūtras: to have some contemplation of the text, correctly understand it, grasp its meaning, and thereby effectively guide one's own practice.

How does one accomplish the second way of reading the sūtras? Reading the sūtras requires focused, dedicated attention, without mixed and scattered thoughts, forbidding the manas from widespread grasping, tethering the manas so it attends only to the sūtra text. When reading, read slowly, leaving space for deliberation and understanding, and also giving the manas time to think. When you read an important passage or a place of doubt, pause, letting the manas quietly deliberate (manasikāra) and digest it. This emphasizes the quality of reading the sūtras rather than rushing for speed as if completing a task.

Once this step is more or less done, transition to the third way of reading the sūtras, leaving most of the thinking work to the manas; the mind consciousness is only responsible for guiding the manas to each section of the sūtra text, letting the manas condense the key parts of each passage into a point suspended in the mind, contemplating and investigating it alone within the mind. Only when reciting very slowly and without wandering thoughts can the manas be unaffected by the recitation, suspending the dharma meaning in the mind and contemplating it on its own.

This is the process of cultivating wisdom, and at the same time the process of cultivating meditative concentration (samādhi). With the equal cultivation of Samādhi and Prajñā, the dharma principles enter the mind, the mind becomes increasingly empty, and eventually the body and mind are transformed. For one who knows how to read the sūtras, sitting there is like an old monk in meditative absorption: although the eyes are on the sūtra text, the attention is on the manas's silent contemplation, extremely focused, to the point that meditative concentration arises, the body and mind feel comfortable and open, the mind opens and understanding dawns, wise thoughts gush forth like a spring, and wisdom shines upon the field of the mind like the bright sun—utterly nourishing. In doing anything, everything depends on how you apply your mind: not only must the initial resolve be correct, but one also needs dedication and single-minded focus, as well as correct and reasonable methods. If so, the result may not only be twice the result with half the effort, but may even surpass that.