Can one practice Chan investigation directly without eliminating self-view?

Answer: A few individuals have a good foundation from past lives and possess a certain understanding and realization of emptiness and non-self, so they can directly investigate Chan; in the process of investigation, they will first eliminate self-view and only then can they see the true mind. The vast majority of people have a weak foundation, with minds too heavily attached to existence and self; their obstructions during Chan investigation are too heavy, and they cannot truly see the mind and attain enlightenment. They probably all need to first eliminate self-view and then investigate Chan. If one investigates Chan directly without eliminating self-view, the best outcome is intellectual understanding/interpretive awakening—it looks good and smells sweet as a fruit, but has little practical value.

At the time of interpretive awakening, there are two selves existing in parallel, side by side, without conflict, which only increases self-view and afflictions. The "understanding" in interpretive awakening is akin to inference, not personal realization, so it does not eliminate self-view; moreover, one feels the true mind is another self, and this is a great obstacle to practice. Therefore, for those with heavier self-view, it is better to focus first on eliminating self-view. Only when self-view is eliminated and the obstructions are gone can the true mind be readily realized.

Most people do not achieve interpretive awakening; even that is not easy. If one truly has interpretive awakening, then as long as one additionally cultivates meditative concentration (samādhi), and within that concentration uses the manas to investigate Chan anew, or to verify what one has understood, then when conditions and the proper time arrive, it can turn into genuine enlightenment. The prerequisite is that precepts, concentration, and wisdom must all be cultivated to completion, including the thirty-seven aids to enlightenment and the bodhisattva's six perfections. At the time of true interpretive awakening, the general direction is already clear, so practice will proceed faster. The worry is that few people can truly achieve interpretive awakening—most merely understand without awakening.

Establishing theoretical views and knowledge is much, much easier than actual diligent practice. If the views are learned from elsewhere, the difference in difficulty between the two is greater than one to ten. If the views are worked out through one's own practice and exploration, the difference in difficulty is less than one to ten. In practice, one mainly relies on one's own concentration and wisdom to cultivate; the time of exploration is precisely the time of actual diligent practice. Once a path has been explored and the skill has matured, seeing the Way will come soon.