Contents

Editor's Introduction

I. The Chan Retreat

Clack! Clack! Clack!
Clack! Clack! Clack!

Dawn breaks hard on the sleepy practitioners. It is 4:15 A.M. and the clapping of the morning boards signals another day of retreat. "Is it already four hours since I eased my aching body - this figment of my mind - into the sleeping bag? Will I make it through another day? I? I? But who am I? To whom does this sleepiness and confusion belong? Better get up. Bathroom will be busy. Shih-Fu didn't seem pleased with me yesterday. Must pull myself together today!"

This avalanche of mind stuff, through imaginary, typifies a kind of mental state that grips many a practitioners, especially during the earl days of a Chan seven-day retreat. It is a mind confused, and distracted by pain and suffering, but basically not unlike the mental states experienced daily by the average person. It is a state of preoccupation with one's private predicament, ruled by an army of doubts.

The difference is that the self-confrontation of the retreat brings into focus the distractions of an entire lifetime; indeed, in the teaching of Buddhism, the accumulated delusions of eons of rebirth. What is the source of these delusions? On a superficial level, it is the belief in the overriding importance of one's private predicament. This is no great revelation. All the great ethical and religious systems address the question of self and selfishness in one way or another.

But the unique spirit of Buddhism is to challenge the fervent belief in the reality of that predicament itself, especially its private nature. Buddhism does not deny existence, or that existence is problematic. The central teaching is that the belief in a private predicament, a focus of interest and attitudes called the self, is itself the seeding ground of the problems of existence.

Master Sheng Yen tells us, "Where there is a body, there is vexation." Recognizing this poignant truth would lead one straightaway to the path of practice, if one's sense of bodily existence were keen enough. Practice to escape having a body? Of course not. Practice to learn that the possession of a body need not lead unalterably to delusion, minute after minute, day after day, life after life; practice to begin unraveling the threads of karma that knot us to our yearnings.

II. The Book

The present book consists primarily of lectures given by Master Sheng Yen at Chan retreats since his arrival in America in 1975. As such, they do not form a structured whole in the sense of presenting a theoretical view of Chan Buddhism. Far from it. As a scholar of Chinese Buddhism, Master Sheng Yen does have some interest in theory, and his other books bear that out. As a teacher of meditation, however, Master Sheng Yen is rooted in the practical. The lectures are given by Master Sheng Yen to instruct, encourage, inspire, even cajole and caution, but never to "educate".

To the extent these lectures from a whole, it is because they rise out of a consistent and informed approach to teaching Chan meditation. The Chan retreat is chosen as a model because it brings together the many historical threads of the Chan tradition. It is in fact the living demonstration of the idea of "transmission of mind without the use of words", espoused by Bodhidharma in the sixth century A.D.

The book begins with a brief autobiography of Master Sheng Yen, followed by the chapter on "The Chan Seven Day Retreat." Both of these were lectures given at the editor's request, to provide background for the book. The chapter on "Four Conditions For Practicing Chan" is actually an expansion of a previous retreat lecture, again, provided at the editor's request. All the other lectures are based on tape recorded transcripts of retreat lectures.

The major part of the book then consists of selections from among many lectures. The purpose was to present a broad picture of Master Sheng Yen's methodology of meditation, and his explanation of the experience of enlightenment, and on guidelines fro making progress.

Two long chapters, "On Silent Illumination" and "On Contemplating Mind," are based on commentaries on poems by two famous Chan Masters, Hung-Chi, and Han-Shan. The poems are didactic, and are addressed to advanced practitioners. Master Sheng Yen uses the poems as points of departure for his own commentary, which has its own focus in the actual retreat situation.

As presented, the talks are the end result of translation, transcription, and editing. Inevitably, this filtering results in some loss of the original flavor of Master Sheng Yen's language and delivery. However, the translators and editors have strived to preserve the original sense and meaning of Master Sheng Yen's words, while rendering them into acceptably good English. To the extent that this goal has not been achieved, the fault lies with the coordinating editor.

The latter part of the book contains several accounts of retreat experiences of disciples and students of Master Sheng Yen. These accounts are presented because they convey interesting and hopefully, useful insights into the retreat process from the student's point of view. The students range from intermediate to advanced in meditation experience. The accounts are not offered as models of aspiration. Every Chan student brings to the retreat a unique set of attitudes and responses, and is therefore likely to experience something unique. Probably none of the writers would describe their experience as particularly deep. However, in each case, the experience had a certain validity, and at least hint at the possibilities. In age, they range from early twenties to early thirties; in sex, they are roughly balanced between male and female.

The experience of Chan is a step along the path; it is not necessarily enlightenment, and certainly not a final resting place. Master Sheng Yen tells us that there are many levels of enlightenment, and that the ultimate enlightenment is to finally transcend enlightenment, and to dwell in pure existence. Even so, to experience Chan is a necessary step to enlightenment. Master Sheng Yen says, "To get the Buddha-mind and to be confirmed are strong reasons for attending retreats."

The first of three appendixes consists of the transcription of radio interview with Mr. Lex Hixon on Station WBAI in New York City. This interview is included because of the insights it gives to Master Sheng Yen's method for conducting retreats.

The second appendix is a glossary of Buddhist terms used in this book. The third appendix is the daily retreat schedule as conducted by Master Sheng Yen.

To call this book a collection of retreat lectures by Master Sheng Yen is to call a pile of dead leaves a tree. Abstracted from the somber, intense, and frequently very moving context of the Chan retreat, these reproductions have already lost much of their immediacy. Everyday, after the evening meal, comes a brief rest period. The practitioners meditate, sit or stand about, waiting for Master Sheng Yen to enter for the evening lecture.

There is no conversation. It has been a hard day for all. Up since 4:15 A.M., all have gone through the same rigorous schedule, including a total of about eight hours of sitting meditation. Their mental and physical states vary. Some are distracted and discouraged by the pain and strain of long sitting. Others have transcended their physical problems and have settled their minds enough to begin experiencing deeper meditative states. All are bonded in a common undertaking - to practice Chan.

To some this means spiritual realization, to others, perhaps a way to improve their emotional lives or health. These distinctions do not matter to Master Sheng Yen. He speaks to all as fellow travelers on the path. When Master Sheng Yen enters to give his talk, the mood is already palpable with a feeling that only be described as reverence. This reverence, although personified in Master Sheng Yen, actually transcends his person. This is no accident, for it is Master profound sense of the teaching of the Buddha, and the example of the Bodhisattvas. This mood is all the more poignant for being devoid of any sense of worship; the Buddha is perceived as a teacher and exemplar, not a god.

Though frail of body, Master Sheng Yen conveys a sense of great spiritual energy. From morning till night, his presence dominates and sets the tone; the mental climate of the retreat is the collective mind of all present, but it is also shaped and guided by the master's personality. To experience Master-Yen's rebuke is to be truly humbled; to receive his compassion is to be moved to tears. He is also a very funny man, capable of hilarious feats of story-telling and mimicry. When delivering the class of the Dharma, his dark eyes blaze with zeal, so that even the English translation which follows can become superfluous. When he comforts a suffering student in front of everyone, all are comforted.

These are the things that are lost in these printed pages. Even so, to one who has never seen a tree, even dead leaves may contain a lesson about the nature of trees. To those who have never experienced a Chan retreat, this book may hopefully convey something of the method, the intent, and the flavor of this unique form of spiritual training. If this happens to any degree, the publishers will feel less ashamed for having offered to the readers a pile of dead leaves.

Ernest Heau
New York City 
November 1982