Zen Meditation Is to Keep Manas Abiding Here and Now

Question: Sometimes when an item hasn't been used for a long time and I forget where I put it, deliberately searching for it often proves futile. Helplessly, I have to give up the search for the time being, yet my mind remains preoccupied because the item is very important. After a few days, I suddenly remember where I put it and find the item. Is this also the work of manas?

Answer: Yes, Master. Consciousness (vijnana) cannot continuously dwell on one matter. Matters attended to by manas are remembered from time to time, and usually, consciousness is unaware that manas is dwelling on them. Searching for things, solving problems, dreaming about school events from many years ago, old friends from long ago—all these are instances of manas at work. Manas dwelling on matters is not constrained by time.

Question: Manas being persistently mindful—this is the principle of Chan (Zen) meditation, the method of diligent practice. It is the fishing rod, not the fish; the means, not the end.

Answer: Yes, Master. How to make manas persistently mindful is a significant challenge. This disciple has observed that compared to matters of spiritual practice, manas seems to dwell much more on worldly affairs. Many people like to talk about the eighth consciousness this and that, but in reality, most of it is imagination and reasoning by consciousness. Manas hasn't even carefully contemplated or dwelt on it. This is easily observable from dreams. Manas dwells on matters far and wide—things from past lives, events from a few days ago, worries, family matters, events long past—but there is little or no contemplation of matters related to the eighth consciousness. So indeed, it is the fishing rod. The distance between ideal and reality remains very far.

Question: The fear is mistaking the ideal for reality, deceiving oneself by saying, "I have obtained it." Which "I" has obtained it?

Answer: Manas has been dwelling on worldly matters for a very, very long time. Turning it around instantly is impossible unless one is a reincarnated master. If one confirms one is not, then one shouldn't think too optimistically or simplistically. It won't be that easy.

During the New Year period, because I wanted to uphold the precepts well, I engaged in contemplation based on the content of the precepts, repeatedly contemplating specific points every day. This disciple discovered that if one spends most of the day or the entire day focused on a particular issue, it starts intermittently. Counteracting circumstances as they arise requires strong concentration. The mind frequently drifts in and out of the state of concentration when faced with external conditions. Gradually, because of consistent effort, the frequency and duration of being entangled by circumstances become less and shorter. One becomes able to maintain self-awareness. Later, one becomes accustomed to holding the specific issue in mind. While doing other things or at certain moments, one suddenly understands some related principles. This happens every time after a period of contemplation, until one day, encountering a related circumstance in a dream, one knows to uphold the precept. Upon waking, one feels exceptionally light-hearted. Looking back, when encountering related problems again, one's mind has naturally become composed.