The Method of No-Method: The Chan Practice of Silent Illumination

Superb book on how to meditate. Relax your body parts one by one, then keep your whole body in awareness, and if you're tense again, repeat. That is it.I wish that this was THE book that I first read on Zen meditation. I find that the method of the book is implicitly though but following the Satipatthana Sutta which gives it a foundation. A lot of the other Zen texts give you way more narrow or ad hoc seeming instructions that make sitting more difficult and leave you without a map (focus on the breath, the hara, the touch of your thumbs, your posture), or give you stories and allegories to fill your mind with and make you miss that the only thing you should do is be aware.The only important thing is to be aware. Not only on the cushion but also when eating, showering, driving, or at work. I like that the book emphasizes this and spells out in concrete terms how to bring awareness to our everyday activities.This book was on my list for a long time. I am happy I finally bought it.

As far as I am concerned in my truly honest judgement,sheng yen's book the method of no method is truly one of the great contributions to mankinds well being in the twenty first century. Sheng yen is the greatest chan/zen teacher to reach the west if only for his revival of silent illumination enlightenemnt/realization practice of the caodong lineage/school of chan/zen Buddhism that went to Japan under the name of soto zen. Here we a truly simple direct practice that all can practice in all walks of live. It is deeply liberative and conducive to truly deep well being. It is a testament to the power of full attentive here and now direct awareness less filtered by wandering irrelevant thought in every action to truly liberate a person,make him more responsibly productive to the needs of every situation as they arise, break self centered fears and graspings to see things as they truly are not how you would like them to be and to provide a rational basis for profound well being. Silent illumination practice in short is one of mankinds greatest inventive practice in promoting human flourishing. In the interests of transparent advocacy I am a member of sheng yen's chan/zen Buddhist lineage but then I searched long and hard in find a practice of spiritual awakening. The method of no method is beautifully written in its clear direct simplicity but you might use thich nhat hanh the heart of buddha's teaching as a fine introductory guide. Eric warwick

Most Zen teachers avoid technique for fear that the student will reify and attach to it as a means to an end, thus missing the aliveness of the actual practice itself. The problem with this reticence is that the students never learn to properly aim their intention and they end up grasping at their desire for Enlightenment instead, thinking they are doing something meaningful; which they are not. In fact this grasped desire has the the opposite effect of pushing Clear Perception away because it simply cannot be grasped as an object as there is no stasis to it whatsoever.So the "method" as Sheng Yen refers to it, actually keeps challenging us to step back from the opacity of our collapsed views and opens us back up to the vibrant aliveness of the present moment, utilizing the practice of conscious awareness of the actual relative real experience of Just Sitting as an antidote to the relative imaginary experience of wanting or resisting. Thus we are correctly aimed and continually course corrected because the tactile referent of Just Sitting is both an obvious benchmark to see how far away our minds have wandered from our actual experience and also a clear pathway back to the relative real. It is only from the intimacy of the relative real that the opacity of the relative imaginary can drop away allowing the way of Clear Perception to emerge of it's own.

I have not finished this remarkable book yet, and the reason for that is that I am reading slowly, taking notes on each section, and putting these lectures into practice in meditation. As historically important as Ch'an master Sheng Yen's retreat is for clarifying the Silent Illumination teachings, it is even more remarkable that he has made the lectures concrete enough to be used as a practical meditation manual. Sheng Yen is a very clear teacher with precise instructions, and a voice that transmits through the printed page, and fellow Ch'an teacher Guo Gu's able translation is also clear and easy to read. My first experiments with Sheng Yen's instructions have been powerful and helped clarify my practice. For students of Ch'an and zen who want to experience the full breadth of Ch'an and zen meditation practices, this book presents a special opportunity. Please do not skip over Guo Gu's excellent introduction, which frames the subject of Silent Illumination very well, and explains in detail Sheng Yen's teaching scheme for the whole retreat. Sheng Yen recently passed away, which makes this archive of his "live teaching" all the more important. A very special book.

When I picked up this book I had no clue of what Chan is or had never heard of it before but when I read it through just first three days of this book, I realized and was amazed to see how realistically the master author has fulfilled the need and dream of so many who do not have access to legitimate live teachers who will guide them on their way telling and interpreting what it means when something happens or something does not happen. Shifu Sheng Yen has touched the substance without wasting any time of the audience in this book. The book itself is a 7 days long retreat, however, you can use it for your life. He not only himself directly goes and reaches the core but also takes you with him. The translator Guogu has done an excellent job in capturing the essence of the Chan teaching. You need not be a believer or of certain religion if you want to practice it. Just start on the practice and you will discover what the book is all about.This is a must book if you are reading or are planning to read  Cultivating the Empty Field: The Silent Illumination of Zen Master Hongzhi .

Wonderful teachings and clear instructions on the practice of Silent Illumination, the Chinese version of Japanese Zen meditation . I would rate this book on a par with Zen Mind, Beginners' Mind, by Shunryu Suzuki Roshi, and actually more practical .

Mais um ótimo livro de Sheng Yen. Aborda a prática Silent Illumination, conforme ensinada pelo mestre chinês Hongzhi. Uma ótima fonte de referência de uma prática semelhante ao shikantaza do mestre Dogen (tradição Soto). Recomendado.

A very interesting and insightful book, written by one of the greatest contemporary Chan (Zen) Master. It is really useful to the practitioner to explore the "silent illumination" method.

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A direct and radical technique.