Cultivation of Concentration and Chan Meditation for Realization of the Way (Part 1)
Section Six: The State of Samādhi
1. What State Is Samādhi?
Samādhi (meditative concentration) is a state in which the mind does not move, mainly referring to the six consciousnesses not moving, with the manas moving only in a few places, moving slowly and subtly. Take for example the state of spacing out (lèng shén) and being in a daze: when spacing out, the mind consciousness focuses on a single object, settled on that one object without moving, without superficial thinking activity, while the dharma-object is deeply implanted into the manas. The manas is forced to devote its main energy to this dharma-object realm, and thus has no choice but to deliberate (manasikāra) deeply. In this way wisdom can open up, and the origin and essence of this dharma-object realm can be considered clearly and thoroughly. This is the result of the joint cooperation of the mind consciousness and the manas: the mind consciousness deliberates deeply and subtly, the manas calms its spirit to assist the thinking, personally joining in the deliberation, and as a result samādhi and wisdom manifest.
Being in a daze, staring blankly, losing presence of mind, and spacing out: "lèng" means dull and unmoving, and "shén" refers to the mind consciousness. Spacing out means the mind consciousness no longer performs the function of thinking and analysis. Because the mind consciousness has already understood the surface, superficial meaning of the dharma, and cannot solve the deeper problems, it has no choice but to hand the problem over to the manas to solve, while the mind consciousness is only responsible for keeping its eyes fixed on the problem. Many major and profound problems cannot be solved by the mind consciousness, so it has to rely on the manas's inherent experience and wisdom from past lives. In the earlier stage, the mind consciousness works out the shallow problems and transmits them to the manas; once the manas grasps the general idea, it will deliberate further on the deeper problems on its own.
For example, upon seeing an old classmate or old colleague, the mind consciousness recognizes this person and knows who it is, but just cannot say the name, cannot address this person, and thus cannot offer a greeting. At this point the mind consciousness can make no move, so the manas has to search for this person's name, continuously deliberating and pondering, while keeping the six consciousnesses tongue-tied with mouth agape, eyes staring at the other person, doing nothing at all. While spacing out, sometimes the mind consciousness also has some faint thinking activity to assist the manas's deliberation, but the mind consciousness's thinking will not be strong; otherwise, with the mind consciousness's thoughts becoming active, one would emerge from the spacing-out state.
In worldly dharmas, many situations are like this as well: when encountering a major problem that must be solved, the mind consciousness falls into a dazed state, moving little, analyzing little, with little emotional thinking and intellectual conjecturing, while deep inside the mind—that is, the manas—holds this major matter in suspension, and then it can deliberate the matter clearly and thoroughly, and the method for solving the problem emerges. Prolong the samādhi power of focused spacing out—the longer the better, the deeper into the manas the better, and the less the mind consciousness thinks, the better. When the conditions and timing are complete, there is no worry about failing to realize any dharma. Why can some people not understand the Buddhist sutras and the meaning of the Dharma, and not comprehend others' words and state of mind? It is precisely because they lack meditative concentration (dhyāna), so their wisdom is insufficient to be opened up. Lacking meditative concentration is in turn because of a lack of merit: the mind is restless and the thinking shallow.
2. The Difference Between Having Samādhi and Not Having It
In profoundly deep meditative concentration, the mind consciousness can depart from language and words; there may be thinking and imagining in the mind, or there may be no thinking, but the imagining is rather simple, being only surface-level knowing. The manas, however, has always been apart from language and words; He does not correspond with language and words. What corresponds with language and words is the mind consciousness, whose thinking is superficial. When one can think apart from language and words, the power of samādhi is already very good—one has gone deep into the manas and activated the manas's volition (cetanā)—and wisdom easily arises. Such power of samādhi is not easy to cultivate. For a person of shallow samādhi power, thinking must be accompanied by language and words; otherwise the thinking cannot proceed, and so wisdom is also insufficient. The transition from the superficial thinking of the mind consciousness to the thinking of the manas can only be accomplished within meditative concentration. The deeper the meditative concentration, the greater the manas's function, and the greater the wisdom developed.
By observing a person's gaze and facial expression, one can tell whether that person has samādhi and how deep the samādhi power is. When in samādhi, the gaze and facial expression differ from the ordinary: they are rather grave and deep—the expression of deep pondering—with muscles taut, gaze concentrated, and language and words moving little or not at all. When the mind consciousness thinks superficially, the gaze is lively; in deep pondering, the gaze is fixed and profound, and the expression grave. This so-called "fixation" is precisely samādhi; it is the manas at work. A person without samādhi is lax and slack, with flaccid muscles and a wandering, unfocused gaze, because the manas is not concentrated and gathered on a single dharma.
The manas is the commanding officer that controls and directs the body faculty. Although ordinary people do not understand this principle, such is the fact. Some say it is the eighth consciousness that controls the body faculty, but the eighth consciousness obeys the manas and follows the manas's commands; He Himself has no wish to control the moment-to-moment bodily changes such as the body faculty and facial expressions. If one can master this knack of using the manas to deliberate on the Buddha-Dharma in a hidden and deep way, it will remain applicable even when one has cultivated to the stage of a bodhisattva at several bhūmis. It is extremely practical for cultivation and realization, and very swift as well, with wisdom growing rapidly.
3. The Dazed State Resembles Deeply Investigating the Meaning of the Dharma
Within the dazed state there is no emptiness; it is not the empty-void state of not a single thought arising, nor a dull, blank state; there is deep mental activity, similar to investigating a huatou (meditation topic) and deeply probing the meaning of the Dharma. While spacing out, it is best to be able to space out one's way to clarity with the manas, dragging out the manas's mental activities.
Upon encountering a problem, the eyes roll once and then remain fixed and unmoving; the mind consciousness immediately settles, straight and still, while deep in the brain something is turning and thinking—very deep, very hidden. On the surface it looks like no thinking, no thought, but in fact deep inside it is active, just not showing itself. This is the result of having gone deep into the manas and mobilized the manas: with the mind consciousness analyzing little and the manas applying its mind to personally contemplate the dharma, the potential of wisdom can be brought forth. This is the principle of investigation.
Some people do not understand what samādhi is, do not know how to cultivate it, and do not know how to use the manas. In fact, the deeper the meditative concentration, the more the manas's function outweighs that of the mind consciousness. Try to let the manas participate as much as possible in the mind consciousness's thinking, with the mind consciousness not thinking superficially—this is called investigation, and wisdom will certainly be developed. By contemplating the five aggregates (pañca-skandha), one can eradicate the view of self (satkāya-dṛṣṭi-prahāṇa); by investigating Chan, one can see the mind and attain enlightenment; by investigating the Buddha-nature, one can realize the illusion-like contemplation; by contemplative practice (vipaśyanā-caryā) on the illusory transformations of the seven consciousnesses, one can realize the mirage-like contemplation; by contemplative practice on all dharmas being like a dream, an illusion, a bubble, and a shadow, one can realize the dream-like contemplation, and so forth. All contemplative practices can be observed in direct perception and realized in direct perception, and are by no means emotional thinking, intellectual understanding, or imagination.
4. What State Does Spacing Out Belong To?
Question: When one has spaced out and the meaning of the Dharma is still with the manas, keep eyes fixed on it, letting it deliberate, and try to prolong this process as much as possible. The manas's volition (cetanā) is among the five universal mental factors (sarvatraga-caitasika), so the manas's deliberation exists and operates at all times and in all places. Is spacing out a matter of letting the mind consciousness empty out, giving the manas space and time to deliberate on the meaning of the Dharma? When spacing out, the manas is certainly deliberating, which can be explained by the five universal mental factors. When spacing out, the mind consciousness's state seems blank, without any thinking; even television images and sounds cannot disturb it. As for the duration, it varies—some long, some short. The mind consciousness is concentrated, tethering the manas and making the manas grasp at objects less. But the mind consciousness likewise seems to have no function—or is tethering the manas itself the mind consciousness's function?
Answer: Prolonging the spacing-out process means letting the manas think deeply and finely in a continuous stream, which can give birth to wisdom and effectively solve problems. Spacing out is also called deep contemplation. In fact, it is a state within samādhi in which the manas is in a "do-not-disturb" mode with respect to the mind consciousness: the mind consciousness is concentrated and not scattered, thinking and analyzing little or not at all, not disturbing the manas, and letting the manas also grasp at objects less, so that it concentrates its attention (manaskāra) and deliberation; only then can wisdom be born, thereby solving the problem.
During spacing out, the mind consciousness, together with the manas, focuses on the dharma-objects, cooperating with the manas, only without much thinking. The manas is not in a state of not a single thought arising; where there is deliberation, there is the activity of thoughts, and only with mental activity can wisdom be born. Sometimes one ponders a problem before sleep without figuring it out, but after a night's sleep, one understands it upon waking in the morning. This shows that the manas continued to work and deliberate during the night.
In the dazed state there is the mind consciousness; the mind consciousness is not extinguished. It is not an empty-void state of the mind consciousness, nor a state of the mind consciousness with not a single thought arising, but a state of the mind consciousness's focused concentration. The mind consciousness's focused concentration is samādhi; the mind consciousness having deep and subtle thinking is wisdom. The equal cultivation of Samādhi and Prajñā is the realm of meditative absorption (samādhi). The mind consciousness focuses on the dharma-object being contemplated, which is clearly different from the state of not a single thought arising and blank emptiness. Since it is not the no-mind state of not a single thought arising, nor a state of idleness, the mind consciousness does have thinking; it is only that the thinking is very deep and subtle, moving extremely slowly, extremely deep, operating in concord with the manas, contemplating the dharma-objects.
5. Spacing Out Is Equivalent to Investigating a Huatou
Question: Using spacing out to cultivate the power of samādhi in the midst of activity is indeed a skillful means, but most people find spacing out difficult to sustain. Using spacing out as the entry point, then not letting language and words appear in the mind, watching over it, maintaining it, and training gradually, the duration of spacing out will grow longer. This is actually watching the huatou, isn't it?
Answer: This state is precisely the state without language and words. At first, the time one can remain in it is short; through continuous training, the duration can be extended, the power of samādhi can deepen somewhat, and the investigation becomes more effective.
This state is not merely similar to watching the huatou; it actually is investigating the huatou. In investigation, there is the function of the manas's deliberative nature: the mind consciousness analyzes less, or does not analyze at all, cooperating with the manas's deliberation, shifting the task of deliberation onto the manas's shoulders and letting the manas bear part of it. Then, when certain conditions and timing correspond, the manas and the mind consciousness realize the dharma simultaneously. If it is not done this way—after the mind consciousness thinks and analyzes, and then hands it over to the manas—the manas will not necessarily accept and acknowledge it; within a short time, the manas absolutely cannot accept and acknowledge it, because this is not the manas's direct-perception discernment. Moreover, the mind consciousness has not presented all the evidence, so it is not complete direct-perception discernment either; the manas will not correspond with it, and therefore the dharma cannot be realized.
Although the manas's wisdom is not strong—much lower than that of the mind consciousness—He is the master consciousness: for all dharmas, the manas has the final say and makes the determination; for all matters, if He does not nod His assent, it does not count. It is like the head of a household who, though somewhat less wise than the other family members, decides all the family's affairs. If one wants this person to accept and decide a matter, one must persuade Him with all kinds of convincing reasons and evidence; once He believes, the decision can be settled. The best way is to let him personally understand the matter, be present at the scene himself, and see it with his own eyes; in the face of the facts, he can believe on the spot, and then readily make the choice, make the decision, and accept the matter.
6. The Dazed State Contains the Manas's Deliberative Nature
Question: Through my own experience, I have found that the dazed state can be entered anytime and anywhere, and it is highly efficient. The duration of dazing varies—some long, some short—but I am unable to use the manas to deliberate on the meaning of the Dharma; using dazing to deliberate on the meaning of the Dharma probably requires an entry point, which I cannot master for the moment. So I simply use this method of dazing to train in cultivating samādhi. I wonder whether this accords with the principle?
Answer: If one has not found the manas, one cannot know that in the dazed state there is also the manas's deliberative nature, because the manas's deliberative nature is extremely hidden and not easy to discover; one must realize the manas and know the manas's operations for this to be possible. Even after the six consciousnesses have all ceased, the manas still has deliberative nature, decision-making nature, and various consciousness-mind activities—how much more so when the mind consciousness is in samādhi, when there is even more of the manas's consciousness-mind activity. The manas's mental activities have never stopped; it is only a matter of the differences in what kind of consciousness-mind activities He has and what dharmas He deliberates on.
In the dazed state, the manas has deliberation; there is no emptiness. The key lies in what the manas is deliberating. If one wants the manas to deliberate on relatively important meanings of the Dharma, in the earlier stage one must let the mind consciousness understand this meaning of the Dharma clearly and sort out the general outline, then suspend it deep in the mind and hand it over to the manas. Afterward, the mind consciousness should not scatter and chase after objects, but should keep its eyes firmly fixed on this meaning of the Dharma without moving; then the manas is tethered to this meaning of the Dharma and deliberates on it.
In this dazed state there is also the mind consciousness's deep and subtle thinking function, and one must also separate the thoughts of the mind consciousness from those of the manas, which is extremely difficult. When the spacing out lasts a bit longer, one can deliberate on a not-too-profound meaning of the Dharma and think through not-too-difficult problems, without employing language and words. Many people have had similar experiences, but they cannot introspect and cannot summarize them, because they do not understand the manas's activities. Because I can observe the manas's operations, I am able to summarize this method of cultivating samādhi and thinking. If I could not observe the manas's operations, I would not know that in the dazed state the manas is also activated—operating, deliberating, and making decisions—and then I would be unable to tell others about it or guide them.
Discovering and summarizing experience is also a crystallization of wisdom. Using the spacing-out state to cultivate meditative concentration is also very good; it is easy to find a point of entry. Both the mind consciousness and the manas must focus on one point without moving. The mind consciousness indicates to the manas a content and scope for deliberation, thereby settling the manas on one dharma; in this way there is meditative concentration.
7. The Difference Between Spacing Out, Not a Single Thought Arising, and Staring Blankly
Spacing out means the manas has taken deep interest in a certain matter, with its attention almost entirely concentrated on the matter of concern. The mind consciousness has no thoughts, but the manas has extremely hidden deliberation; it is only that the mind consciousness does not stir up thoughts. This is very deep meditative concentration—it just depends on how long it can be sustained. If the time is longer, it is enough to solve a problem, and one can easily have a sudden realization, with the blockage suddenly opening up, free of doubt.
As for not a single thought arising, the mind consciousness has no thoughts, and the manas also has no matter requiring special attention or deliberation; the thinking is rather slight, insufficiently concentrated and focused—this belongs to a kind of dull, blank state of the mind consciousness. Because there is no problem to ponder, no problem will be solved, there will be no sudden opening of blockage, no inspiration appearing, and no wisdom being born.
Spacing out settles the mind; within the mind there are concerns, thoughts, deliberation, and pondering—it is not empty. Staring blankly is sometimes caused by certain matters, which is close to spacing out; sometimes it is due to having a bit of leisure, with a somewhat empty feeling in the mind, which is close to not a single thought arising.
