The Correct Method of Cultivating Śamatha and Vipaśyanā

Original text of the Maitreya Bodhisattva's Questions chapter of the Samādhi Liberation Sūtra (the Buddha said): 弥勒。一切菩萨。于如是等。修多罗中。应善谛听。口常善诵。心常善知。智常善观。慧如实觉。弥勒。诸菩萨等。于彼修多罗中。善思惟已。于空闲处。独坐观察。观察彼心。内常随顺。如是观心。如是不断心。彼菩萨得身乐心乐。弥勒。是名我说菩萨修行奢摩他法。

Explanation: The Buddha said: Maitreya, all bodhisattvas should, with regard to these sūtras, first listen well and attentively to the Buddha-dharma, then correctly recite the sūtra texts, then know the sūtra's meaning well in the mind (correctly and positively), observe the principles of the Dharma with a mind of wisdom in accord with the sūtra's meaning, and with a mind of wisdom awaken to the true reality of all dharmas. This is the initial stage of understanding the principles. The Buddha said: Maitreya, after the bodhisattvas have deliberated well on these sūtras, they should find a quiet place and sit alone in contemplation, observing the Dharma meaning. The mind constantly follows and accords with the sūtra's meaning and the principles of the Dharma, observing in accordance with the Dharma principles, and the mind accepts and endorses the sūtra's meaning. By contemplating and deliberating in this way without interruption, the physical body experiences a feeling of pleasantness, and the mind also experiences a feeling of happiness and joy. Maitreya, this is what I call the method by which bodhisattvas cultivate śamatha.

By observing in accord with the sūtra's meaning, one can give rise to the joy enlightenment-factor, the tranquility enlightenment-factor, and the concentration enlightenment-factor among the seven enlightenment-factors, and then the wisdom enlightenment-factor will have the opportunity to appear. For example, when the sūtra teaches that the five aggregates are all empty, one must observe the emptiness of the five aggregates in accord with the principle of the emptiness of the five aggregates, deliberating on the emptiness of the five aggregates, and must not go against the principle of emptiness and deny the emptiness of the five aggregates. This step is crucial; it is the key prerequisite for witnessing the principles of the Dharma, for only thus can the mind be transformed. This is the second stage of cultivation.

Those who have studied Buddhism for a long time yet have not given rise to the joy enlightenment-factor, the tranquility enlightenment-factor, and the concentration enlightenment-factor should examine whether, when they deliberate on the Dharma meaning, their minds go against the Dharma meaning, fail to accord with it, or even deny it, and whether their minds often act contrary to the principles of the Dharma. When the mind goes against the Dharma principles, one's conduct will also go against the Dharma principles—how can cultivation then be effective? For example, the Buddha taught the precept against eating meat; some people, upon hearing it, refuse to accord with this Dharma principle and rack their brains to find excuses for eating meat, unconsciously resisting this precept, with the result that they never break the habit of eating meat in their entire lives. In such a case, what effect can cultivation possibly have? The same applies to the principles of the Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna: if the mind is unwilling to accord with them and always consciously or unconsciously resists and defies them, then one's conduct will never change, running contrary to the Buddha's teachings, and even a lifetime of studying Buddhism will yield no results. If, after studying the Buddha-dharma, the seven enlightenment-factors have not arisen, the cultivation is ineffective. One should take responsibility for oneself, frequently introspect on one's own mind, examine one's own mind, and reproach one's own mind.

After studying the Buddha-dharma, if one accords with the principles of the Buddha-dharma, one will reject a great many non-Buddhist teachings and a great many worldly habits and customs. If one still fervently pursues non-Buddhist teachings and worldly dharmas, or even increases one's non-Buddhist views and worldly views, then it is certain that this person has not accorded with the principles of the Buddha-dharma at all, does not follow the Buddha's teachings, and has meager good roots. If one makes no progress in studying Buddhism over a long period and sees no obvious results, there must be a reason—it is only that one is intellectually lazy, unwilling to reflect and examine oneself, has heavy worldly habits, has no aspiration or longing for the Buddha-dharma, has not genuinely given rise to the bodhi mind, and does not take responsibility for one's own birth-and-death problem. If one has not generated pleasant feeling in the study and practice of the Buddha-dharma, there is no motivation or interest in cultivation; ordinarily one takes worldly dharmas as the mainstay, with the mind firmly locked onto worldly dharmas, not according with the Buddha-dharma.

Some people cultivate with great motivation, secretly vowing in their hearts: "I must surpass everyone and be number one; I must win everyone's attention, admiration, and worship; I must let everyone know how truly capable I am; I must rise above the crowd; I..." This "I" is infinite in number. Cultivating with this infinite multitude of "I"s, one cultivates very fast, and before long one can become possessed by demons, be empowered by māras, and in future lives may possibly become a māra's son or grandson, or may cultivate merit and become an asura, fighting with people all day long, insisting on competing to be number one, full of combative spirit.

Original text (the Buddha said): 彼菩萨得身心乐已。依身心乐。观所说法。如向思惟。一切诸法。观察内心。三昧境界像。能信诸法。离于思惟。弥勒。诸菩萨等如是观彼三昧镜像。可知彼义。觉观思惟。忍悕见意。知觉现前。弥勒。是名我说菩萨修行毗婆舍那。弥勒。诸菩萨等应当如是善知毗婆舍那。

Explanation: After the bodhisattva has cultivated śamatha and vipaśyanā and attained bodily and mental bliss, relying on and according with the dharmas by which body and mind attained bliss, he continues to observe these dharmas in depth, deliberating on all dharmas (the self-nature tathāgatagarbha) in the direction the Dharma points; at this point he attains samādhi. He then observes the images of the samādhi states that appear within the mind, and can accept in faith that all dharmas (the self-nature tathāgatagarbha) are free from all deliberation, beyond the reach of thought, unborn and unceasing, existing independently. Maitreya, when the bodhisattvas observe in this way the mirror images of samādhi that appear within their own minds, they can know the meaning of all dharmas, and the mind accepts and endorses that all dharmas are unborn and unceasing—the wisdom of the patience with the non-arising of dharmas manifests before them. Maitreya, this is what I call the method by which bodhisattvas cultivate contemplative wisdom. Maitreya, the bodhisattvas should thus well understand vipaśyanā (contemplative wisdom).

The meaning of this passage is: first attain śamatha and bliss, accord with the Dharma meaning, and then observe in accord with the Dharma meaning; only then can contemplative wisdom arise, and samādhi arise. Without śamatha, there can be no observation; when the mind consciousness is scattered and cannot focus, it cannot become observation. Therefore they are connected: śamatha is a stillness that accords with the principles, and observation is observation upon that stillness. Apart from observation there is no śamatha; apart from śamatha there is no observation. Śamatha and vipaśyanā operate together, the equal cultivation of Samādhi and Prajñā. This is the principal meaning of cultivation, the fundamental method for realizing all things; apart from this, one cannot attain the states of samādhi.