Dharma Library

Almost as soon as anyone interested in Zen, or indeed almost any form of Mahayana Buddhism, begins to sit with a group of practitioners he or she will encounter the Heart Sutra. Most groups like to include a short liturgy in their evening's 'sit' and it is very probable that the Heart Sutra will form the key element in this. The text is by no means self-explanatory and meditation instructors…

Experience in Chan Teaching

Most of us have read the story of how the great yogin Milarepa trained in Dharma practice in the household of his teacher Marpa. It is one of the classics of Tibetan religious literature and extremely important as a guide for those concerned with questions of how to advance on the Dharma path.

As a boy Milarepa had to endure extreme pain in family life as an uncle…

This text is a re-edited version of an article of the same name published in a festchift volume celebrating Master Sheng-yen's 70th birthday. Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal, (2000) 13.2 549-584. Taipei. Shifu has encouraged me to assist Chan Sanghas in Europe as well as in Britain. Naturally this has caused me to look more closely at continental Buddhism than I might otherwise have done. Some of the…

Past Patron - The late Venerable Chan Master Dr Sheng Yen

Founding Teacher - The late Chan Master Dr John Crook Chuan-deng Jing-di

What is Chan?

Chan means Meditation, in Chinese. It is the historical root of Japanese Zen. Both Chan and Zen are rooted in the Mahayana traditions of Compassion and Wisdom which are central to the Buddhist path.

Chan employs traditional Buddhist meditation…

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Why Begin?

Whenever you arrive as a newcomer at a meditation class in Buddhism the teacher will wonder why you have come. Maybe you are coming because a friend has suggested it; maybe you have heard a radio programme; maybe you have read something exciting about Zen. Whatever it was, the teacher will want to go deeper.

Westerners usually seek to explore meditation or…

It is several years now since I proposed that the casual retreat arrangements at the Maenllwyd might be of greater value to people if we created a charitable institution. Soon the WCF was in being and is now safely established and supported by small affiliated groups in a number of British cities. We have important European contacts and, thanks to Simon Child, a site on the web appreciated by many…

The essence of mind is tranquil, spacious, illumined by joy,
unattached to thoughts or the thoughtless.
When it appears you may fill with a gratitude that slowly turns to bliss.
If a thought of others emerges there may be love.
Love is embracing all and being embraced by all.
Love passes: tranquillity resumes: the spaciousness sustains itself.
The thought of 'me' is absent.
Self-concern is no longer…

Out of the corner of my eye I catch a glimpse of Bodhisattva Ksitigarbharaja seated upon the offering table in the Chan hall. As usual his serene countenance glows quietly there. I take a closer look. His expression of peace and tranquillity begins to enter and then to flood my mind. Time becomes motionless yet the soft wind gently moves the branches beyond the window, the distant rustle of the…

What is it like for a lay practitioner to work with a master over a period of time? A single retreat provides an introductory experience but what if one persists through a series of such events? This would indeed be a requirement if the aim was to train in Chan. Training takes time but does it take one anywhere?

To assist those for whom this question may be relevant, I attempt to answer it…

In NCF 18 Eric Johns described how he set out to discover the Buddha Way by visiting Bill Pickard at Mousehole in Cornwall where there was a small group living under his instruction in Soto Zen. During the subsequent years of Eric's training as a monk (Sik Hin Lic) in Hong Kong, Korea and Japan, Bill sustained a flow of letters to him, acting very much as an older spiritual counsellor to a young…