Chan Mind Work Articles

Student to Master:“What is Ch’an?” Master to Student:“Go ask the lamppost.” The foregoing exchange between the student and master reflects the most classical response to the question, “What is Ch’an?” The response indicates that the answer cannot be found through a direct verbal response. In fact, the master completely stops the student from seeking by pointing out the futility of dualistic thinking. Dualistic thinking is when one is attaching to the concept of subject and object. For example: “I like this, I don’t like this, I see this, I don’t see this, I am thinking this, and I remember this.” It is quite understandable that over innumerable lifetimes, habit energy has developed where one engages the mind in such dualistic thoughts. Thus, it is very hard to penetrate through this habit energy to reveal the true nature of the mind. The paths that lead to revealing the true nature begin and end with the non-attaching mind. But h...

In the many ways a Christian can practice mediation, prayer, listening to lectures, or reading scripture one may reach a turning point in their life. Some may perceive this experience as a communion with God. They may perceive themselves to be bathed in a Holy Light. In this communion with God they catch a glimpse of their true nature, which is beyond the physical body. At such a moment some may perceive that they have been saved or born again. They perceive that they have touched the hand of God and have now become a true Christian. In that moment there is no doubt that their hearts are pure and that their adherence to moral precepts would come without thinking that they are adhering to moral precepts. Those who perceive their salvation or being born again have only discovered what was never lost. It has been with them all the time. It is the truth beyond birth and death. However, it is not important to quibble over whether this new beginning is or is not a form of reb...

Have you Suffered Today? To the beginning Buddhist practitioner it is often difficult to envision how Buddhism can be applied in their every day life. The beginning Buddhist practitioner initially sees the concepts of Buddhism as only abstract principals. Such a practitioner often associates the practice of Buddhism with only calming the mind through sitting meditation. While the mind indeed does become calm through the practice of sitting meditation, the mind also becomes sharpened and focused in the present moment. It is this present moment that allows the Buddhist practitioner to truly benefit in every day life from the practice of Buddhism. I often ask my students "Which one of you has suffered today?" Some students will raise their hands. I will then inquire of them, "What has caused you suffering today?" Some suffer from interpersonal relationships, some suffer from health problems, some suffer from lack of money. There is a myriad of problems ...

I remember going to a Chan meditation retreat and seeing my teacher, Master Sheng-yen, passing by in the hallway. Seizing the opportunity I mentioned to him that I was happy to be at the retreat and have a great joy in the practice. He nodded his approval and continued walking down the hallway in the other direction. A few steps later he called my name and said: "Remember not to be too joyous." I immediately understood his admonition not to overindulge in such joy and turn it into a concept or an attachment. What is Dharma Joy? It isn’t a feeling or sensation. Actually, if one looks for it, it will quickly dissipate and be confused with some false feeling emanating from notions of self. Dharma Joy is a peace and contentment arising from the proper study and practice of Chan. Of what is Dharma Joy constructed? Its foundation is having faith in the Buddha Mind. Its walls are the adherence to the proper moral precepts. Its...

I remember a story that a young monk told me about the time when he lost his glasses. One day when he was engrossed in his work he could not locate his glasses. He looked on his desk but they were not there. He looked all over his room and still could not find them. After looking several places and not locating them he went to ask an older monk if he had seen his glasses. When he asked the older monk if he had seen his glasses the older monk just smiled. The young monk then came to the realization that all this time the glasses had been perched upon the top of his head. This young monk had spent quite some time looking for something what had always been with him. I find this story quite helpful in explaining the futility of seeking enlightenment outside of one’s true self. As Buddhists we are taught to put down our cravings, desires, vexations, and aversions. We believe by putting down these negative aspects of the mind that we will achieve enlightenment. While it is nobl...

Imagine you are a political prisoner with no idea of how long you could be in prison for - one day, one year or even a lifetime. Could you endure? An important part of the Ch’an practice is to endure life’s situations. This concept has many facets. To endure is to become non-temporal, to be patient and non-disriminatory. To endure, one must first not be fixed on the idea of time. To suffer an ache or pain or loss is not enduring. It is suffering when we are in a situation which can be perceived to be uncomfortable. Put yourself in the situation. Are you in a mental countdown in which you are holding on until you are released from the situation? For example: sitting through a boring lecture, sitting through being lectured or waiting for the clock at work to reach quitting time. When the time is uncertain as to when a perceived uncomfortable situation will be over, what are you thinking? “This will never end, I can not bear it...

I recently saw an actor being interviewed on television. He was talking about his early career experience in the film industry. Prior to acting in films he had only performed in one stage play. One day his agent told him he needed to go to an audition for a movie that the famous movie director John Houston was casting for. On the appointed day he went to the studio and found about fifty other young actors who looked exactly like him waiting around for their moment to be auditioned. He left the room and walked around for a while. When he returned the waiting room was nearly empty and he signed his name at the bottom of the list. Finally, when it was his turn to see Mr. Houston. He was quite candid with him. He told Mr. Houston that he did not have any film making experience at all. That he had only been in one play and did not even know how to act in front of a camera. The young actor added, "But if you give me the ...

Recently at a summer Chan retreat the doors of the Ch’an hall were left open to let more air to come in. Because the retreat was in the forest, a lot of flies and bugs came in. That evening, the Chan hall was filled with insect activity. The next morning, I went to my appointed duty, which was to sweep the Chan floor. The bugs, moths and flies that were filled with life the night before were already lying dead on the floor. I thought, truly how quickly the life was drawn from these tiny sentient beings. This gave me a greater appreciation of these fleeting moments that we call life. At that moment I made a supreme resolution, not to waste time. I resolved that I would improve my Chan practice – now.

I recently saw a movie entitled Groundhog Day. This movie was in the theaters a few years back. This movie was particularly relevant to the Buddhist practice. The movie revolved around a television reporter who was assigned to a small town to report on an annual festival in which the length of the winter would be determined by the appearance (or no appearance) of a groundhog. This particular reporter was egotistical and overbearing towards those around him. He was oblivious to the lives of the people around him. He lacked compassion and love for anyone other than himself. In the beginning of the movie we see this reporter blindly going through his life, oblivious to the toll that his acidic comments and selfishness were taking on those around him. We can see that not only does he not love people but that they do not love him. In fact, it appears that even he lacks a sense of self esteem or value. He is like a rutterless ship, aimlessly floating in the sea of samsara. ...

How many times in your life did you promise yourself that you would break a particularly bad habit? It might have been giving up smoking, overeating, overspending, etc. Do you recall what happened to your promise? How long did it last? Did your habit become stronger instead of weaker? In order to truly break a habit we must explore what originally caused the habit and why the vow to stop does not work. We all have habits. Some habits are weak and some are strong. Simply wishing or trying to will a bad habit to subside is not enough. This is analogous to chopping off a weed at the ground level. The root remains and will soon regrow with vigor. I remember once attending a Chan retreat and participating in a slow walking mediation. We were walking in the forest. The young man in front of me was very upset by a single mosquito. As the mosquito flew around his head, he could not bear the thought of the mosquito landing on him and biting him. He so desperately wante...

Embrace the Tiger, Return to the Mountain I was raised in a Catholic household. My parents, being of Mexican decent, made sure that I obtained the proper Catholic indoctrination. I embraced parts of Catholicism. For instance, I felt a strong tie with the Virgin Mary and the universal concept of compassion for all sentient beings. On the other hand, I felt confused that God would create a world where he could condemn his own children to eternal damnation for their wrongdoing. Such wrongdoing may even include not being a Christian. I thought of the millions of people that were born in non-Christian families. I could not reconcile the idea of God’s unbridled love with this apparently God-created idea of eternal suffering. These were concepts that came to me when I was but a child. My whole Christian life left me with a yearning in my heart for a greater truth or a deeper understanding that I felt existed, yet I had not encountered. For many years I studied the martial arts. And in studyin...

The practice of Ch'an was established several thousand years ago. It is a meditative system designed to liberate the practitioner from all sufferings. Most Americans will be more familiar with the Japanese word for Ch'an (which is Chinese), which is Zen. It is basically the same approach to self-liberation. The Ch'an system stresses using the investigative mind to seek out the ultimate truth. The Ch'an methods of meditation include meditative methods such as counting or observing the breath, the use of hua tou (or koan; which are investigative questions) and the system of silent elimination. The articles found here are not primers on the aspects of learning these particular Ch'an meditative practices. The reader is referred to Venerable Master Sheng Yen's books entitled "Faith in Mind" and "Getting a Buddha Mind," as well as John Crooks "Catching a Feather on a Fan" for a concise and in depth study of these methods. (Fo...

When I was first learning the practice of Ch’an I was introduced to a Taoist master. I asked him what his practice was. He softly responded "just relax". That was it. It was not until years later that I understood the depth of this phrase. Originally I thought that when we sit to meditate we should try to relax the body and the mind to reach a good meditative state. Our failure to relax the mind produces stress and negative thoughts. The more negative thoughts we have, the more we cloud our minds. While this is true, the real fruit of a relaxed mind comes not from sitting on the cushion but in our daily affairs. When our minds are relaxed we see the world clearer. When our minds are stable, we do not constantly judge and discriminate. We do not color the world with our opinions and ego. When we add our ego, which we will inevitably do, we are unable to utilize wisdom and compassion in an unselfish manner to guide our th...

Mark Twain once wrote: “Your life would be so much easier if you started at the age of eighty years and worked your way back from there.” In some ways Ch’an is just like that quote. What Ch’an provides you is ageless wisdom and compassion to see the world through or to see through the world. It essentially provides you with the owner’s manual to your life that you did not receive when you entered this world. I came into this world a seeker. I was always looking for something but was never sure just what it was. When I heard people speak about religion or God, I always had questions but my questions were never completely answered. I remember as a very young, nine year old gardener having a debate with my employer whether or not one would go to hell upon death if he were not a Christian. I could not accept the inequity and the lack of logic of my employer’s contention. I questioned that God could be so cruel that he would set u...

Okay. You finally decided that you are going to meditate. You need to know the basic principles of meditation so as to ensure a productive undertaking. This article will cover basic topics that are helpful in any form of meditation regardless of religious orientation or type of practice. Method In order to meditate properly you must have a method. The first order of business is to determine what a method is. A method of practice is a way to provide the mind a calming environment to gain access to the ultimate truth through the clarity of mind by the arising of compassion and wisdom. Now, some people may take issue with such a broad and nebulous definition. However, such definition is broad enough to encompass most disciplines and religious orientations. Suffice it to say that a method is necessary to calm and clear the mind in order for you to use this calm and clear mind in your every day world. Note that the purpose of meditati...