Manjushri’s Selection of the Perfect Gateway to Penetration

 Long ago, Shakyamuni Buddha had already arranged a seat for us in the Shurangama Dharma Assembly. Among the various Dharma-door practices, which Dharma-door is most suitable for sentient beings in this present age who have great faculties and aspire to seek the Unsurpassed Way?”

The Buddha asked Manjushri Bodhisattva. “Which Dharma-door most easily leads to accomplishment? Manjushri, please pay attention and choose one Dharma-door.”

Manjushri Bodhisattva presented:
I now respectfully report to the World-Honored One, the Buddha appeared in the Saha world, The true essence of the Dharma-door in this realm, Is purified through sound. In this world, the place called “endurance,” where the Buddha manifested out of compassion, the true method for teaching and transforming sentient beings is the purity of sound. This points to the Dharma-door of turning hearing inward to hear one’s own nature.

To cultivate and realize samadhi, It is truly appropriate to enter through the hearing nature. The practice of turning hearing inward to hear one’s own nature is truly the most wondrous, the finest among all Dharma-doors. With the ear faculty, Even through a wall, the ears can still hear sounds. You can still hear what is on the other side of the wall. Sounds both near and far can be heard. Compared with it, the other five faculties truly cannot measure up. The eyes, nose, tongue, body, and mind do not function like the ear faculty–it is more perfect than the ear faculty. The function of the ear faculty is completely unobstructed and unhindered. The other faculties cannot possibly compare with the ear faculty. This is what is truly unobstructed. The other five senses do not possess this true unobstructedness.

When there is sound, when there is no sound, when sound has just arisen, when sound has completely ceased, the hearing nature never disappears. Everyone can recognize this in an ordinary waking state. Yet it still constantly exists even while dreaming. Someone may be deeply asleep and still hear the sound of the laundry beater used by someone washing clothes and the sound of the rice-pounding pestle, like bells and drums harmonizing together. This proves that the hearing nature still exists even in dreams. It is not that because there is no thinking, (the hearing nature) does not exist. It is unlike the mind, which is not manifest when there is no thinking. The awareness that observes transcends thought. The knowing of the hearing nature transcends thinking.

It is because of the sound-dust that there is a name. Because there is sound-dust, there is hearing. We call that which recognizes sound-dust hearing ‘sound’. Turn hearing back and one is liberated from sound-dust. What is that which has departed from it called? We say there is hearing because there is sound, but does hearing remain when there is no sound? Hearing still remains. Because the hearing nature is not an object of arising and ceasing. Therefore, turn hearing back to the hearing nature. From now on, do not chase after the six faculties and the six sense-objects. Return the six faculties and the six sense-objects to the self-nature.
Turn hearing inward to hear one’s own nature
Then one attains the Unsurpassed Way.

What is your self-nature? When you listen, you will recognize it. Now, before you recognize it, you will not understand until I tell you. For example,, when I drink this cup of tea, I myself know whether the tea is cold or hot, but you still do not know anything. If you want to know, you must drink the tea yourself. If you want to recognize your own self-nature, first of all, you must turn the hearing nature back. If you do not do so, how can you hope to recognize your own self-nature? You ask:
“When turning the hearing nature back, how do I listen?”

Use your own ears, but do not listen to sounds outside. Do not try to find out what is happening out on the street, or who is saying what. Turn hearing inward and listen within yourself. In this way your self-nature will manifest. That is how you practice. When you turn the hearing nature back, you become free with respect to external sounds.

“What is that which has departed from it called?” If you yourself can completely separate from external sounds, hearing yet not hearing, is this not truly the hearing nature? Yes and no. Not, yet yes. Hearing yet not hearing. This means being free with respect to sound. You hear, but not in the way you heard before. Although you know that ordinary hearing can hear sounds far away or nearby, it still has a limit. If you truly attain the practice of turning the hearing nature inward to recognize your own self-nature, then you can hear throughout the entire Dharma Realm. But you can also choose not to hear any sound from the entire Dharma Realm. You must exercise control. It is like a telegraph. If I want to send, I can send to everyone everywhere at any time. If I do not want to send a telegram, I will not do so. If I want to hear whatever sounds in the Dharma Realm, I can turn it on. Try it. What is such freedom with respect to sound called? It originally has no designation. It is that which transcends the designation of hearing and the true hearing nature.

What does it mean to turn the hearing nature inward to recognize one’s own self-nature? That is the practice used in investigating Chan meditation. When investigating Chan, do not be eager to devote all your energy to seeking outward. You should turn the light inward and reflect. Then ask yourself: “Who is the one reciting the Buddha’s name?” “Who?” Place the word “Who?” in your mind and then listen with your own ears. Pursue the word “Who?”. Do this continuously, without stopping. Do not let your practice be interrupted. Contemplate this topic of inquiry in whatever you are doing.

“What” is this? That is the question. “Who is the one reciting the Buddha’s name?” You do not need to recite it aloud, but ask within your mind and listen with your own ears. Listen within, not outside. After listening within, your mind and hearing nature will eventually merge into one. And then, unexpectedly, at a time you do not anticipate, you will suddenly become enlightened. But you absolutely must bring your mind and nature back together as one. Do not let them scatter in many directions. Do not let them dissipate outward. Gather them inward. Turn the hearing nature inward to recognize your own self-nature. Eventually and naturally your practice will develop. Investigating Chan and the practice of turning the hearing nature inward to recognize one’s own self-nature are the same. And now everyone knows that using the ear faculty to cultivate perfect penetration is the easiest method. Therefore, devote all your mental energy to cultivating this method.

The Sutra teaches: Because the faculties are formed by gathering in sound, now one must escape sound. Just as water becomes ice because of cold, now to return to water one must surely escape cold.

Clearly understand the path to which it returns