Chan Mind Work Articles

"The Great Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara while coursing the deep prajnaparamita perceived that the five skandhas were empty thereby transcended all suffering." (Opening verse of the Heart Sutra) These wonderful words seem so mystical and other worldly yet our practice seems so worldly. What bridge do we take to course this deep prajnaparamita? What is prajnaparamita anyway? Many Chan masters have used these words to describe the True Nature. We aspire to obtain some perfect understanding, yet we do not practice in a manner to attain this understanding. Actually we are constantly coursing through mind (this deep prajnaparamita) but never realize it. We see the world through discriminatory glasses. We constantly make judgments about everything running through mind and the environment we perceive. Suppose, for a short moment, that we are able to perceive that all phenomenon which appears in mind without any discriminatory thoughts ...

Practitioners often encounter an obstruction to the Chan practice: boredom. We have all been bored. What is boredom? It is simply a growing intolerance to a particular situation. When we first practice, we have great excitement and interest in our practice. The experience is new. It is a fresh sensation. This is the sensation of calmness. Yet it is only the beginning of the stages of a relaxed mind. The practitioner’s mind is quiet in comparison to before. One may even be amused and delighted that one can sit quietly. As one continues their practice, one will find that the mind has many layers of relaxation. The initial resting of the mind is an accomplishment but one should not think that the mind is completely relaxed. The boredom comes into play when one believes that they have completely relaxed their mind when they have not. The sensations are no longer new. Subtle thoughts come into the mind. Is this a waste of time? Where am I going with this? I cou...

Are You Dreaming? To practice the meditative method one must stay attentive. When one is performing sitting meditation one cannot expect that, since one is sitting, one will attain realization from that sitting. The mind must have no thoughts of the past or of the future. The mind must remain in the present moment. It is important not to confuse the meditative state with the sleep state. In the sleep state you are likely to have dreams. This is the subconscious mind still processing phenomena. As you dream, for that instant your mind perceives the dream thought processes as real. In fact many people wake up from terrifying dreams in a cold sweat or trembling. But was the dream real? What did the dream consist of? In all likelihood the dream consisted of past recollections that have been recorded in the mind. These memories are then distorted by various vexations, either pleasurable or unpleasurable. The person who is asleep perceives the thought patterns as real. When one is engaged in...

At War With the Self As a beginning Ch'an practitioner delves into the study of Ch'an, he or she ultimately comes face to face with their own existence. The concept of emptiness challenges the practitioner to prove such existence. In the practice of Ch'an, the practitioner must have great faith that the Dharma that is being taught is correct. Often times the practitioner must rely on this faith to accept that which cannot be seen, spoken, or directly taught. On the opposite side, opposing the Ch'an concepts, is the self; the self is a mighty opponent that does not easily yield. The self continues the battle. The self contends, by its very existence and thought patterns, that surely the self exists. Indeed, this is a dilemma to the beginning Ch'an practitioner. It is much easier to see the self than to rely on a faith that the Dharma is correct. A person might feel the body, see the clouds in the sky, feel the...

Often I am approached by people seeking advice concerning a personal problem they are experiencing. My students ask me what advice they should give if they are in the same situation. When someone asks you for help, you should apply your practice to the situation. You must use wisdom and compassion as guides. You start by listening to the person. When you listen, you should listen with your full attention. You listen with your senses. You listen to the words and to the body language. It is important to listen carefully because you must first show your genuine interest in the person’s problem. This is compassion. However, you should keep in mind that some people do not know how to get help. They simply want to dump their problem on you without bothering to listen to what you have to say. This type of person simply wants to share their suffering with you like in the old saying, "Misery loves company." You must not allow a person simply to continue to ...

See Beyond Intellectual Reasoning The concept of the five skandhas (form, sensation, volition, perception and consciousness) as being empty is a difficult idea to understand. One must grasp this meaning without totally relying on intellectual reasoning. Some times such intellectual reasoning can prove to be an obstruction to a deeper understanding. By quieting the mind one begins to obtain the wisdom necessary for dissolving "logical" mind barriers to see the larger universal picture of natural laws. When one acquires this deep wisdom there comes deep revelations as to the mysteries of life, not just as it relates to the human condition but as it relates to all phenomena observed and unobserved. It is because of this ability to see beyond "established reason" that some scientists, such as Albert Einstein, have made great progress in theoretical science. His approach was to use the creative mind to ponder the universe and then solve the mathematical formula...

Mind Echoes, Heaven Dwellers and Seekers Many practitioners are confused about the meditative practice. While some sit waiting for their minds to go blank, they are actually dwelling in a dead practice. Others sit waiting to encounter a special experience to certify a realization or step toward enlightenment. Still others sit contently in a serene state, proud that their pain is gone. Unfortunately they do not realize that while the suffering may be gone, the ego remains. All of these practitioners have a false impression of what Chan really is. The sitting practice in Chan is an integral part in the development of a practitioner, however, he or she must first possess a correct understanding in order to practice properly. Let’s look more closely at the problems in meditative practice. Often practitioners are self-flagellants, whipping themselves for having thoughts, but they place themselves under too much pressure when discriminating t...

Become the Fragrance of the Rose That first question that one who wants to practice Ch'an should ask is "What benefits will I receive from the practice of Ch'an" To those persons who have not been exposed to the Ch'an practice before, there will be many misconceptions as to why to practice Ch'an and what benefits will be derived by such practice. The ultimate benefits of practicing Ch'an are immeasurable. To obtain Buddhahood is the main purpose, or ultimate goal, of practicing Ch'an. However, to a person first looking into the practice of Ch'an, such a goal may seem too noble or esoteric. While the goal of obtaining Buddahhood is most worthy, those investigating whether they want to practice Ch'an, or not, seek more immediate and concrete benefits. I often ask my students "Why do you want to practice Ch'an?" It is interesting to note that there is a common vein in their responses. The following are some of the resp...

No Enemies Through the Buddhist practice you can develop a universal compassion. This kind of compassion is more expansive than what may be termed human compassion. Human compassion is still conditioned by the mind. In human compassion you still discriminate as to who you feel you should be kind to. Human compassion extends only to your family, your friends and perhaps your co-workers. However, an ordinary person will have difficulty extending compassion to all persons. On the other hand, a Buddhist should display equal compassion to one's family, friends, co-workers and even those that are typically perceived as one's enemies. In fact, to a Buddhist there should be no such thing as enemies. Why is this so? Because a Buddhist perceives that all phenomena observed are a product of cause and effect, a product of not only one's own actions but also of those around oneself. For instance, a person might be kind ...

A few days before writing this article I began cleaning a wooden, painted statue of the Wei Tuo Bodhisattva that my wife and I had recently acquired. This statue was many years old and appeared to not have been dusted on a regular basis. In fact, the dust covering the statue was very thick and appeared impregnated into the paint. For many days after receiving it I thought very carefully considering what method I would use to attempt to do the cleaning. I feared that if cleaned too quickly, I would damage its original paint. I realized if I used solvents or cleaners, that the paint might undergo a reaction and be permanently damaged. I decided that I would take a very cautious approach. First I took a soft painter’s brush and dusted the entire statue. Next I used a Q-tip that was lightly dampened to very slowly begin to wash away the dust from this nearly life- sized statue. I then returned to the soft painter’s brush, this ti...

Many students become impatient for results in the Ch'an practice. They are constantly seeking some sort of experience to justify sitting for hours in meditation. The Ch'an practice will produce results if a practitioner approaches the practice with the right attitude. What is the right attitude? It is approaching your sitting session with a calm relaxed mind. One should not sit with a mind filled with negative thoughts or aversions. While you should look forward to your meditation practice you should not sit with the idea that you were going to get rid of anything or obtain anything. This type of practitioner misunderstands the purpose of Ch'an mediation. When you are trying to put down vexatious thoughts or obtain some form of a "Ch'an experience" your mind is still grasping. It may grasp at the idea that it wants to be tranquil. Or it may grasp at the idea that there is something to attain. Nevertheless the mind will be either agitated when the ...

My mother in law came for a visit to Riverside, California from Taiwan. I noticed during her stay that most of the events that occurred around her did not seem to affect her. She is a gracious and giving individual and because of her softness, family members often take advantage of her. Sometimes, family members will say negative and hurtful things to her face. In spite of this negative conducts directed toward her, she nevertheless remained friendly and generous toward these individuals. My wife asked her how she could be so calm and treats these family members so nicely while they were always trying to hurt or take advantage of her. My mother-in-law smiled and said to her daughter, “I do not remember what people have done to me. Why should I want to remember those negative thoughts? These thoughts will only make me sad or angry. What good is that? If I hold onto these thoughts I would always be thinking unpleasant thoughts. Why ...