"Silent illumination is actually the most direct method, because Chan is not something that you can use your mind to think about. It’s not something that you can use any words or form of language to describe. The method is simply to do away with any method of practice. Use no method as the method itself. … The silent illumination method is to not have any thoughts. At that moment you just put down everything, and that is the state of Chan itself. Silent doesn’t mean falling asleep. That’s why we have to follow the word “silent” with the word “illumination,” that is, your mind must be very clear."
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Chan Newsletter 10 (December 1980): 1–2.
https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Sheng_Yen
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Sheng Yen
Sheng Yen (Chinese: 聖嚴 Shèngyán; 22 January 1931 – 3 February 2009) was a Taiwanese Chan Buddhist monk, religious scholar, and writer. Sheng Yen was the founder of the Dharma Drum Mountain, a Buddhist organization based in Taiwan.
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