Zen Is Not Reasoning or Speculation

Engaging in Chan meditation requires the complete cultivation of the Six Perfections of a Bodhisattva. All thirty-seven factors of enlightenment must be fully developed, particularly the attainment of the concentration preceding the dhyāna states. Only when conditions are ripe during Chan practice can genuine realization occur. Otherwise, one merely engages in theoretical speculation or logical inference. Even if the resulting understanding seems reasonable, it lacks the liberating merit and experiential benefit—unable to sever the three fetters or directly perceive the functioning of the eighth consciousness through experiential observation.

Inferentially derived conclusions cannot extinguish the five aggregates; mental activities remain unvoid, and afflictions persist as before. Should self-conceit further arise, afflictions will intensify beyond their previous state. How many so-called saints find their afflictions worsening, harboring dualistic selfhood within? This stems entirely from lacking meditative concentration and bypassing the arduous process of investigation—failing to subtly transform and subdue mental habits. When a perceived "fruit" suddenly manifests in the mind, conceit emerges and afflictions multiply.

Whether the fruit is that of Mahāyāna or Hīnayāna, the fruit itself is not paramount. What truly matters is whether its emergence profoundly impacts one's inner being, whether it brings about even partial personal transformation, and to what degree. From that moment onward, can one eternally benefit from this fruit? Does it serve as a foundation for embarking upon a genuine path toward luminous liberation? To gain the greatest benefit, one must value the method, channel, and process of attaining the fruit. The process reflects the arduousness of gathering evidence—the harder the attainment, the sweeter the fruit, the deeper the cherishing, the firmer and more serene the mind, the greater the sense of ease and selflessness, and the more irreversible the progress. The greater the investment, the richer the harvest. Easily attained fruits, requiring no exertion, yield only the faintest sense of selflessness—insufficient to sever the bonds of birth and death, rendering genuine liberation ever more elusive.