Patriarch Ch’an [1] is the direct method of Ch’an personally handed down by Sakyamuni Buddha to the First Patriarch Mahakasyapa. The method was then transmitted from one patriarch to another, to the Second Patriarch Ananda, to the Third Patriarch Sanavasa, and so on…
Bodhidharma, the 28th patriarch in the Indian tradition, brought this method to China. He is considered the first patriarch in the Chinese Ch’an tradition. The second patriarch was a Chinese named Hui K’o. The successors in the lineage are the Third Patriarch Seng Ts’an, the Fourth Patriarch Tao Hsin, the Fifth Patriarch Hung Jen, and the Sixth Patriarch Hui Neng who was also the last patriarch who received the Buddha‘a bowl and the Buddha’s Robe. Due to sake of peace for the shanha, Hui-Neng was told to hide them and to transmit the dharma direct mind to mind.
Many people misunderstand and take Buddhism for a superstitious religion. However, from a practical point of view, Buddhism is an educational system. This system teaches the Mind-Dharma [2] leading to ultimate enlightenment. This education covers the ten thousand things [3] in the universe, with no exclusion. The core idea of this education is that all things come from the Mind.
Because the Mind is the origin of all things, Sakyamuni Buddha said that “all things are created by the Mind.”
So what is the Mind? Mind is a word spoken by anybody, but known to no one. The 14th patriarch in the Indian tradition Ch’an, Nagarjuna Bodhisattva, used the phrase “emptiness without even the notion of emptiness” [4] as a parable of the Mind. The Mind, by nature, has no form and is beyond measurement. Therefore, it cannot be approached through the thinking process of the brain and cannot be described by words. So “Emptiness” is the only barely and reluctantly acceptable term used in Buddhist teachings to refer to the Mind.
“Emptiness” in Buddhism is not to be taken in a negative way as something nihilistic. Without emptiness, the Mind cannot manifest its functions. We can see that this “emptiness without even the notion of emptiness” accommodates everything in the universe. From the moon to the sun, to mountains, rivers, lands, houses, trees, everything and anything relies on this “emptiness without even the notion of emptiness” to be accommodated and to function. Our daily activities such as eating, dressing, talking, hosting guests, working are all made possible thanks to this “without even the notion of emptiness”. Unfortunately, we use it every day without realizing it. For this reason, Sakyamuni Buddha teaches this direct method of Ch’an so that everyone can realize their own true Mind. The moment we realize our Mind is called “seeing our true nature and attaining the Buddhahood.”
Even though we talk about becoming a Buddha, there is really no Buddhahood to reach. It is just to awake from our open-eye dreams [5]. When we wake up from the closed-eye dreams [6] we had in sleep, we recognize that all things encountered in the dreams are not real. In a similar way, the realization when waking up from open-eye dreams is called enlightenment. Another term used for this experience is “attaining the Buddhahood.”
The following is a brief description of the practice of ts’an Patriarch Ch’an, which is to ts’an hua tou and k’an hua tou.
Hua means words, tou is prior to. Hua tou is used to describe the moment before any idea is formed. Once a thought arises, we are already at the tail [end] of the words.
When we ts’an, we ask the word to stir up the not-knowing. When we k’an, we to look at that not-knowing to see what it is. Since not-knowing has no place, we have no target to look at. So we keep looking but see nothing, and still know nothing [7]. In Ch’an terminology, this not-knowing is named Ch’an doubt. When the practitioners ts’an Chan, they continue asking and looking simultaneously to maintain the doubt. This doubt will eventually take practitioners to the hua tou.
Hua tou is the wu shih wu ming [beginningless ignorance]. It is also called the “top of the 100-foot pole” or the origin of consciousness. From the top of this 100-foot pole, the practitioner just makes one more step forward, and at that instant, he departs from the realm of consciousness. This ksana [8] of leaving the realm of consciousness is called “seeing the real nature and attaining the Buddhahood.” In other words, the Prajna manifests throughout space and time, and our knowing is now omniscient. In the Doctrinal Schools [9], this omniscience is called Samyaksambodhi [genuine and complete enlightenment.]
Notes:
As we are talking about a method of practice, we would better think about the importance of practicing. When we first start, a lot of things are hard to understand, let alone to accept. Please practice, practice, practice.
[1] Patriarch Ch’an: ‘Ch’an’ is the abbreviation of the original phrase ‘Ch’an Na’ —a corruption of the pronunciation of the Sanskrit word Dhyana or the Pali, Jhana. Chang Chen-Chi,
The Practice of Zen.] <<<
Please do not take this for Soshi Zen [which is a Japanese term in its Romanized form] even if the Chinese characters for Soshi Zen and Patriarch Ch’an are the same. The practice of Soshi Zen is based on the knowing. The practice of Patriarch Ch’an is based on the not-knowing.>>>> The practice of Patriarch Ch’an is based on the not-knowing.
[2] Mind-Dharma:
Mind: The Chinese word H’sin is one of the most difficult words to translate into English. It can mean: mind, heart, nature, original nature, essence, etc.
Dharma: The Sanskrit word Dharma has several different meanings: norm, law, doctrine, justice, righteouness, quality, thing, object of mind, phenomenon. <<<
[3] Ten thousand: Ten thousand is used in the sense of all, complete, so many as to be innumerable. Its use is similar to the use of the number 84 or eighty four thousand in the Indian culture. <<<
[4] “Emptiness without even the notion of emptiness”: The suggested meaning of the Chinese phrase “hsu k’ung wu so yu” which could be literally translated as : “emptiness which does not exist,” “emptiness which is not,” “emptiness with nothing.” <<<
[5] Open-eye dreams: Things experienced in the dreams we have when we sleep appear to be very real. But when we wake up, we know that they are not. These dreams are called closed-eye dreams. Things experienced in our daily life also appear to be very real. We need to enlighten ourselves to be able to recognize that they are not. These unreal things with a very real appearance are said of as happening in our open-eye dreams. <<<
[6] Closed-eye dreams: Dreams we have while sleeping [closed-eye]. We all have some dreams when we sleep. Sometimes we are so scared in our dream that when we wake up, our heart is still beating very fast. Sometimes we are so sad in our dream that when we wake up, we can find tears on the pillows. The things we encounter in our dreams looked real, very real. In our dream, if someone tells us that the things are not real, that everything is just within the dream, we are not going to believe him. How could they not be real? People love me, and I am happy; people beat me, and I feel pain… But when we wake up, we recognize that everything in the dreams was not real.
Please read The Heart Sutra for more explanation. <<<
[7] Ts’an hua tou and k’an hua tou: for more details on this practice, please read The Practice of Ts’an Patriarch Ch’an. <<<
[8] Ksana: The Sanskrit term for an extremely short unit of time, just a very small portion of a second. <<<
[9] Doctrinal Schools: Ch’an does not rely on texts or writings. Doctrinal Schools emphasize instruction based on the written canon. <<<
Note:
Due to the fact that the different parts on this website have been presented separately, some footnotes may appear repetitive.
– Except for the ones clearly marked with “translated from Master Wei Li’s original”, all footnotes are given by the translators.
– Notes between square brackets are given by the translators.
There might be places where the translators were not able to render into English the quintessence of what Master Wei Li wished to share with others. There might also be places where errors were made and went undetected. In those cases, the generosity of the reader is respectfully requested.
Master Wei Li’s Disciples
Patriarch Ch’an is the method of practice officially handed down by the Patriarchs called ts’an ch’an [explanations will follow]. Ts’an ch’an is not tso ch’an [sitting Ch’an], on the other hand, tso ch’an is not ts’an ch’an. Many of us mistake tso ch’an for ts’an ch’an. In fact, we do not need to be in the sitting position to ts’an ch’an. The Patriarchs have taught: “It is best to practice ts’an while working. If one always chooses to practice by sitting in a quiet place, it is unlikely that he will see his self-nature.”
The Sixth Patriarch [Hui Neng] said: “The Tao [Way] is realized by the mind, not through sitting.” It is explained in the Chapter on Tso Ch’an in the Platform Sutra [1] that when we talk about tso ch’an, we talk about the mind which is sitting, not the body. Not giving rise to thoughts in response to the external good and bad circumstances is called sitting; seeing the internal imperturbability of the self-nature is called ch’an.
So what is ts’an ch’an?
The word ts’an means doubt. Doubt means not knowing. When something is known, the doubt stops. When the doubt stops, there is no more ts’an. Therefore ts’an ch’an strongly emphasizes the feeling of doubt. To stir up the feeling of doubt, we need to use the hua tou, so the practice is called ts’an hua tou.
What is hua tou?
According to Master Hsu Yun [2], a thought must be formed before we speak the words. Hua tou —which means word’s head, or thought’s origin— is the state before a thought is formed. Once a thought is formed, even not spoken out, we already are at the word’s tail [end].
Now, we have only begun practicing ts’an chan, we have not reached the hua tou yet, but we have left the word’s tail. In other words, we are on the way from the word’s tail to hua tou, or thought’s origin. And one day, we will get there. When we reach the hua tou, the hua [the words] will disappear. As long as the hua still exists in our mind, we have not reached the hua tou.
On this, Master Hsu Yun gave an example: “The hua tou is a cane, the doubt is the walking. Like a crippled person who needs a cane to walk, we need the hua tou to stir up the feeling of doubt.”
There are countless hua tou which can be used to ts’an hua tou. For now I suggest one of the following 5 for the practitioners to choose. Please choose the one that is the most difficult for you to comprehend. The harder for you to comprehend the better. You should choose one and one only. Once you have made up your mind, you should not go back and forth from one hua tou to another. You should stick to the one you choose and ts’an all the way until you see the self-nature.
The 5 hua tou I want to suggest are:
1. Before heaven and earth came into existence, what was I?
2. All things return to the One, to where does the One return?
3. Before my parents were born, what did my original face look like?
4. From where did I come to this life, to where will I go after death?
5. It is not the mind, not the Buddha, not things. What is it?
The hua tou is a question. When there is a question there must be an answer. For example, you silently ask yourself the question “Before heaven and earth came into existence, what was I?” When you cannot answer the question, your curiosity grows. That curiosity is the doubt.
You ask the question once and you cannot answer it. You ask it a second time, you cannot answer it. You ask it a third time, and you keep going on asking the question day and night without interruption. You keep asking while you are walking, standing, lying down, sitting, working manually or mentally, driving, eating, using the bathroom, sleeping. This ts’an process should continue without interruption. Beginners tend to forget to keep up the asking. Therefore in a 24-hour day, the ts’an process is interrupted for 23 hours. With more practice, the interruption will be reduced to 22 hours, then 21 hours, then 20 hours, and so on. Gradually the practice will become continuous and tight, day and night, 24 hours without interruption. When the practice becomes gapless we reach hua tou. In other words, we reach the top of the 100-foot pole. From the top of the 100-foot pole, we make one more step forward, and instantly we see our true nature. In other words, we realize the state of ultimate freedom, we eternally deliver ourselves from all suffering
Important things requiring great attention
from practitioners of ts’an Patriarch Ch’an
1. Wiping out of the attachment to the reality of the self
Buddhist schools, Small or Middle or Great or Supreme Vehicle, all teach of the wiping out of the attachment to the reality of the self. Without wiping out the attachment to the reality of the self, we cannot liberate ourselves from the suffering of birth and death, cannot get away from the cycle of birth and death.
How does ts’an ch’an wipe out the attachment to the reality of the self? The basics of the practice can be found in these nine words: “Nothing to gain, nothing to seek, nothing to fear.” When there remains something to gain, the attachment to the reality of the self still exists. When there remains something to seek, the attachment to the reality of the self still exists. When there remains something to fear, the attachment to the reality of the self still exists.
2. Distinction between curiosity/suspicion and right doubt
Ts’an chan is right doubt. A person is said to have right doubt when he keeps his mind in a state of doubt and does not use his mind to run after knowledge and comparison, and therefore nurtures and strengthens the doubt. When this strong doubt reaches its highest limit, it will suddenly explode. This explosion is given the name of seeing the self-nature. Seeing the self-nature is to enlighten, to know ourselves hence to be our own masters. Only when we become our own masters can we realize the state of ultimate freedom, which is the eternal liberation from all suffering. In other words, it is to see the self-nature and to attain the Buddhahood.
On the other hand, a person is said to have curiosity when he uses his mind to look for knowledge, to try to explain the hua tou to look for an answer. That is not ts’an chan.
Satisfying our curiosity might lead to acquiring more knowledge, more logical understanding, but not to enlightenment. One good example can be found in the case of Newton. Seeing the apple falling down from the tree, Newton developed a curiosity asking himself the question, “Why did not the apple fly up to the sky instead of falling down to the earth?” From that question, Newton started his studies and ultimately found his answer with the discovery of the law of gravity. That is curiosity. Answers to curiosity can help invent things useful to our daily life. However, as these things are only valuable to this mundane life but cannot help us know ourselves, we cannot use them to make us masters of ourselves, and therefore, cannot realize the state of ultimate freedom.
3. Not letting any other thought arise
Besides the doubt, we are not going to let any other thought arise [3]. We do not suppress the wandering thoughts. We do not let go of them. We do not wipe them out. No matter how many wandering thoughts arise, we do not pay any attention to them. We do not bother if there are thoughts or not. The doubt, functioning like an automatic broom, without any manasikara [attention/intention], would clean away everything. When there are thoughts, the doubt does the cleaning. When there are no thoughts, the doubt still does the cleaning. If the doubt is continuous and tight, there will be no gap through which thoughts arise. The arising of even just another single thought is the proof of some gap.
4. Cause-Effect, Doubt-Enlightenment
We should know that doubt is the cause, enlightenment is the effect. The same as no-cause will lead to no-effect, no-doubt will lead to no-enlightenment. The same as small cause will lead to small effect, small doubt will lead to small enlightenment. The same as great cause will lead to great effect, great doubt will lead to great enlightenment. As we ts’an ch’an, when the doubt becomes heavy, it might cause headaches, chest pains, difficult breathing. These are symptoms of a great doubt. At those moments, the more pains the better: do not be scared, because these are good signs, as a great doubt will lead to great enlightenment. But if these pains happen when you are sitting, they are not good symptoms. In that case, what should we do? We should stand up immediately [4] and look for something to work on while keeping ts’an ch’an continuous. As we ts’an, when we feel that the nerves are too tense —so tense as to become unbearable— then we will have to ask the hua very slowly, word by word, with a spacing of about ten seconds between words. This will help loosen the stress.
5. No differentiation of qualifications
There is no differentiation of qualifications regarding practitioners of the method of ts’an Patriarch Ch’an. There is no difference between beginner and old hand, intelligent and ignorant, old and young [5]. The story of the 8 year-old Dragon Girl who attained the Buddhahood was told in the Lotus Sutra [6]. In the Transmission of the Lamp (the book on the history of the Chinese Ch’an), a 13 year-old girl named Trinh and a 15 year-old girl named To realized their self-nature, and several ignorant Patriarchs did the same with their practice of ts’an Patriarch Ch’an. Practitioners of ts’an ch’an only need to be wholeheartedly concerned about the question of life and death, to courageously ts’an, and then anyone can see the self-nature and attain the Buddhahood. We should not underestimate our own ability of attaining the Buddhahood.
6. Great faith in our own mind
When we ts’an ch’an, we need to have faith in our own mind. If we only have faith in the method of practice ts’an ch’an, but not in our own mind, then no matter how advanced we are in our practice, how much spiritual progress we make, we still cannot see our self-nature. Therefore Master Po Shan said that there is a correct faith and an erroneous faith:
The faith that our own mind is Buddha is the correct faith, clinging to dharmas outside of our own mind [7] is the erroneous faith.
Our faith that our own mind is Buddha must be accompanied by the practice to enlighten our own mind and we have to lead ourselves to the place of no more doubt; only then can our faith be spoken of as correct. On the other hand, if we are unsettled and erroneous, if we only make a wild guess when saying that our mind is Buddha, but have no intention to ts’an to realize our own mind, then it is an erroneous faith.
7. Awakening to the self-nature
“The dog of Han chases the bone while the lion bites the man.” This saying by one patriarch means: when someone casts a bone, the dog will chase the bone. But the lion, through the motion of the bone, discovers the man and, instead of running after the bone, bites the man. The man stands for the self-nature, the bone stands for the words of the Buddha and the patriarchs. Should one look to the words of the Buddha and the patriarchs for awakening, then he would be no different than the dog. Should one look to the self-nature for awakening, then he would be the lion.
Wise men in the ancient times talked about “to die in the middle of words” and “face the direction of the words to expect.” These sayings mean that the patriarchs uttered some words, we listened to the words and thought that we awakened ourselves. What we do not know is that such understanding remains in the discriminating realm of ordinary people. As we do not know that the ultimate awakening can only be realized when we leave the realm of consciousness behind, the patriarchs call us the dogs of Han [8].
8. Not to fall into the state of nihilistic void
A nihilistic void is something we should avoid when we ts’an ch’an. Unlike the practitioners of other methods whose aim is to put an end to thoughts, those who ts’an ch’an must keep the doubt [which is a thought] continuous and uninterrupted. The moment we have no doubt nor thoughts, we fall into the nihilistic void which is a common sickness for Ch’an practitioners. Patriarchs had a nickname for this condition: “immersion in dead water.” Feeling quietude and calmness, people in this condition find their bodies lighten. But as they tend to cling to this condition, they will never have the opportunity to see their self-nature. This condition, then, is even less desirable than having the doubt and the wandering thoughts. So, when we ts’an, as long as we have not reached the hua tou, we should not drop the hua. Some practitioners find out that even if they drop the hua [do not ask the question], they still can maintain the doubt, and are glad about it. But it is not the real case because chances are that there is interruption without being noticed, and we also have to consider the risk of being trapped in the nihilistic void.
9. Practice starts, understanding ends
For adherents of common Doctrinal Schools’ [9] methods, the path can be completed in four steps: faith, understanding, practice, attainment. Based on faith, a need of understanding will develop. Then practice will follow based on understanding. And then practice and understanding will develop side by side. Step by step, the path followers will attain the ten stages of faith, the ten practical stages of wisdom, the ten lines of conduct, the ten acts of dedication, the ten grounds [highest stages of Bodhisattva attainment], and then Universal Enlightenment [or, equal enlightenment] and Absolute Enlightenment [or, wonderful enlightenment] [10]. This process does not apply to practitioners of Patriarch Ch’an who do not follow the same process. The practitioners of Patriarch Ch’an also start with faith, with understanding. But once they begin practicing, their drive for understanding should stop. That is what Ch’an called “Practice starts, understanding ends.” Therefore those who ts’an ch’an are not permitted to understand Ch’an and the Tao. Why is it so? Because as we ts’an ch’an, we already have Ch’an and the Tao. If we now want to understand about Ch’an and the Tao, then it is similar to having another head grow on top of the head we have. The patriarchs had the phrase “grow one more head on top of the head” to describe this situation. The second head cannot be of any use to the original head. Besides, as it causes pains and obstacles to the original head, it needs to be removed by doctors. So, we come to know that even the understanding of Ch’an and the Tao is not permitted, let alone the understanding of other things. We should know that the thirst for knowledge and understanding is a great obstacle to awakening. That is the meaning of “Practice starts, understanding ends.”
10. Emphasis on practice
Patriarch Ch’an emphasizes practice, not rhetoric. Nevertheless, it is important to have guidance from old hands, even if the method of ts’an hua tou is very easy. The reasons are:
- This booklet can only point out the essentials of the practice, and not the numerous subtle details.
- Due to people’s different roots, degrees of attachment, varieties of knowledge and understanding, and personal inclinations, there are numerous possibilities for practitioners to go astray.
– The prescriptions must be written according to the diagnostic result for each individual.
Practitioners of Ch’an, please be very careful! If you let your overconfidence lead you astray from the clearly defined guiding principle of Patriarch Ch’an, your action would be construed as contempt of the Buddha’s teachings. You would therefore be led to a confinement in hell without knowing about it.
Basics of the practice of Patriarch Ch’an
To see the self-nature and to liberate themselves, practitioners of Patriarch Ch’an must follow these basics:
1. Faith in one’s own mind
What is the Faith in one’s own mind? That is the faith that our mind and the mind of the Buddhas are not two, not different. What will follow is that the power and the wisdom of our own mind are not inferior in any way to those of the Buddhas. The reason is that the nature and the marvellous function of our mind are the same as those of the Buddhas, encompassing space and time. Therefore we talk about the equality and non-duality of the self-nature. If the nature and function of our mind is just a little inferior to those of the Buddhas, then the Buddhas are above ordinary sentient beings, then we will talk about inequality, of high and low, of duality.
With our strong belief that our own mind is intrinsically complete with power and wisdom, that its marvellous function encompasses space and time —as the Buddha had said “there are no dharmas outside of the mind”— we surely can apply the nine words “nothing to gain, nothing to seek, nothing to fear.” The reason is that when we talk about gaining, we talk about gaining something outside of the mind; the same is with seeking. But now, as the mind encompasses the space and time, there is no space beyond space, there is no time beyond time. And as there is nothing outside of the mind, what is there to gain, to seek? If there is nothing to gain, nothing to seek, then there is nothing to fear. Then, without having to go through the process of wiping out the clinging to the reality of the self, the clinging would wipe itself out. So the use of “nothing to gain, nothing to seek, nothing to fear” is to wipe out this clinging to the reality of the self. When this clinging is wiped out, we would deliver ourselves from the suffering of the cycle of birth and death.
With a strong faith in the method of Patriarch Ch’an alone, no matter how diligent we are, we cannot realize the self-nature if we do not have the faith in our own mind. Why? Because if we do not have faith in our own mind, how could we realize our own mind! Realizing our own mind means seeing the self-nature.
Hence it is said that the faith in one’s own mind is the basis of the correct teachings.
2. The doubt
What is the doubt? We raise the hua tou [question] and ask it silently. We do not have the answer. Ch’an names this feeling of “don’t-know” “doubt.” Whatever position our body is in —walking, standing, lying, sitting— whatever kind of work we do —manual or mental— whatever kind of activity we are involved in —eating, using the toilet, talking, sleeping— we always need to maintain the doubt. Only with the doubt maintained can we say that we ts’an ch’an. In other words, we use the don’t-know-mind (doubt) of the brain to put an end to all the knowing of the brain [11]. Even if the phrase “put an end to” is used, we do not need to have the attention/intention [manasikara, tsuo i] to end, because with the doubt present, the knowing of the brain will stop by itself as it is just a sick appearance. [12]
Another parable for the knowing of the brain is the knowing of a blind man. A blind man has never seen the sun. He asks a man with normal eyes about the sun. The latter gives the former a description of the sun as something round and hot. The description given by the man with normal eyes is correct. But it will be wrong for the blind man to take anything round and hot for the sun.
To keep the doubt, we have to put an end first to the knowing by cognition and the knowing by memorization, then the knowing based on causal conditions [which does not require cognition such as walking, standing, lying, sitting, putting on clothes, having meals, and so on] Therefore, Master Lai Kuo [13] said “when the practice reaches to hua tou, we walk without knowing that we are walking, we sit without knowing that we are sitting.” When the practice reaches to hua tou, the hua would disappear by itself, all knowledge of the brain would be wiped out. We then ts’an ch’an without knowing that we are ts’an ch’an’ing, we eat without knowing that we are eating. We don’t even know the don’t-know. When we reach this state, we are very close to the moment of realizing the self-nature. Common people might say that we look very silly. But the reality is that the great wisdom will soon manifest. Ultimately, the doubt will explode, the don’t-know-mind of the brain will disintegrate. By that time both the know and the don’t-know of the brain are cleaned away, the sick appearance [the function of the brain] vanishes. In that ksana [14], the healthy appearance [15] [the wisdom of the original Buddha nature] appears. That is what is called seeing the self-nature and the attainment of Buddhahood.
The patriarchs said: “About wisdom, not two persons, about dharmas, not two kinds.” Why are not there two persons when we talk about wisdom? The wisdom of the original self-nature is the Ultimate Unsurpassed Equal Wisdom [Samyak sambodhi/Genuine Complete Enlightenment] encompassing space and time, therefore there is only one wisdom [16]. If there is also the wisdom of the brain [which does not encompass space and time], then we are going to have two wisdoms, therefore, two persons. Why “not two kinds of dharmas”? As all dharmas come from the mind, and as the original nature of the mind encompasses space and time, then the mind-created dharmas also have to encompass space and time. Therefore, it was said “not two kinds of dharmas”. If there are dharmas accepted by the brain as real, then these dharmas are only manifestations of the sick appearance.
Notes:
[1] Some commonly known translations of the complete title are: The Platform Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch, The Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch on the Pristine Orthodox Dharma, The Sutra of Hui Neng.
[2] Perhaps the most famous modern Ch’an Master [1840-1959.]
[3] In the Chinese version, there is an extra detailed explanation: “No matter if it is a good thought, an evil thought, a holy thought, a common thought, or even a thought transcending the Buddhas.”
[4] In the Chinese version, this line reads as: “We should stand up immediately, kin hin [walk around, do walking meditation] or look for something to work on…”
[5] In the Chinese version, there is an extra sentence after “old and young.”: “The only required qualification to practice ts’an chan is the knowledge of the method of practice.”
[6] One of the most important and influential of all the sutras [holy scriptures] of Mahayana Buddhism.
[7] In the Chinese version, this “clinging to dharmas outside of our own mind is the erroneous faith,” reads as “clinging to the idea that there are dharmas outside of our own mind to be acquired is the erroneous faith.”
[8] Dogs of Han are considered as very smart dogs. Han is the name of a kingdom in old China.
[9] Doctrinal Schools: Ch’an does not rely on texts or writings. Doctrinal Schools emphasize instruction based on the written canon.
[10] To understand these notions, refer to the Surangama Sutra, Volume VIII. As different English translations of the sutra might use different terms for the 52 steps mentioned in here, please be advised not to expect to find the same English words used here in the book[s] you read.
[11] The don’t-know-mind of the brain.
We start asking the hua tou, and we do not know the answer. The urge to know of the thirsty-for-knowledge mind of the old time unknown, unfelt habits automatically starts its process and transforms itself into doubt. Therefore, we say that the don’t-know-mind of the brain is the basis for the doubt. To maintain the doubt, we need this don’t-know-mind. If we know, than it is not doubt any more, than we don’t really ts’an ch’an. This don’t-know-mind is different from the not knowing of people who are ignorant, or with mental diseases, or are soundly sleeping or lose their consciousness. [translated from Master Wei Li’s original]
[12] If we look at ourselves in a mirror when we are sick, we see a sick appearance. If we look at ourselves again in the same mirror, when we recover from that sickness, we see a healthy appearance. It has always been the same face but appearances differ when we are sick and when we are healthy. Having a sick appearance is the parable for deluded people and having a healthy appearance is the parable for people who realize the self-nature.
[13] Modern Ch’an Master, younger contemporary of Hsu Yun.
[14] Ksana: The Sanskrit term for an extremely short unit of time, just a very small portion of a second.
[15] See [12] above
[16] The non-dual self-nature originally is not one. If the word one is now used, it is only as an expedient means. Please don’t cling to this one as real, because if one really is, then we will have to have two, three, up to thousands of thousands. [translated from Master Wei Li’s original]
-Tu An Zen Temple-