Only Direct Realization by the Manas Is True Wisdom

Where is the master of the house when there is no dreaming and no thinking? This is the content of the third gate of the Chan school. Whether or not one has broken through the first and second gates, this content cannot be explained in detail or interpreted; otherwise it will fall onto the level of the conscious mind—merely understood intellectually, and it becomes very difficult for the manas to realize it. Then studying Buddhism and investigating Chan would lose all meaning. Only after passing through the first and second gates, cultivating meditative concentration until the first dhyāna emerges, and realizing the contemplation of the mirage-like, can one reach the third gate of the Chan school and begin investigating the third gate. At this point one must all the more not seek others' explanations; passing through this gate makes one an anāgāmin. Whatever requires investigation requires the manas to personally investigate it and personally realize it. If you merely hear it spoken by others, realization becomes impossible, and the Buddha Way can no longer be cultivated.

If you investigate the content of the third gate yourself and also understand some of the theoretical knowledge of Yogācāra, you can enter the first bhūmi. But the gate of the first dhyāna will probably stump everyone. In the past I still held out hope that someone might attain the first dhyāna, eradicate afflictions, and break through the obstruction of ignorance, thereby qualifying to enter the first bhūmi and become a true son of the Buddha. Now it seems there is no such hope. Nowadays, cultivating meditative concentration in this world is so difficult because the five desires and six sense objects are so alluring. In truth, it is people who are too attached to the five desires and six sense objects. The sense objects have no mind to cling to people, yet people have the mind to chase after them. No one is willing to settle the mind and distance themselves from the five desires—what can be done?

As for the first gate—"Who drags the corpse around?"—if this conclusion were made public, even if you knew who drags the corpse, it would be of no use; you still would not know exactly how the corpse is dragged, and thus you could not attain enlightenment. If you do not personally investigate it, and the manas does not accord with it, then even knowing all the answers, knowing the most detailed answer, knowing the realm of the Buddhas, is of no use. If it were useful, then we could all read the Buddhist sutras, research out the realms of the Buddha stage, and all swiftly attain buddhahood together—wouldn't that be wonderful? In fact, what we know is not what we realize; knowing is easy, realizing is hard. Does knowing that all dharmas are like dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows mean one has already realized that all dharmas are dreams, illusions, bubbles, and shadows? Does knowing the realm of the Buddha stage make one a Buddha? Neither is so. If an ordinary person understands and can describe the realm of cultivation of an arhat of the fourth fruit, does that mean he has the attainment of a fourth-fruit arhat? If an ordinary person can explain how to accomplish the Buddha Way, has he already become a Buddha? Neither is so.

To sum up: for many dharmas, it is useless for the conscious mind to easily know, understand, and comprehend them; one must also rely on the manas to personally realize them. Only upon realization can there be the wisdom of liberation and the attainment of buddhahood. Without realization, even if one speaks with dazzling eloquence, it is utterly useless and one cannot attain liberation.