“There is the need for serious practitioners to adopt the practice of ‘dead guy’: one who is not moved by the Eight Worldly Winds of praise or blame, fame or disrepute, gain or loss, or pain and pleasure.

There are also certain prerequisites that must be fulfilled before starting on the path of Chan. Firstly, we need a firm understanding of cause and effect. Secondly, we need to follow sincerely the moral guidelines of Buddhism. Thirdly, there must be an unshakeable belief that we can awaken to something better in ourselves, namely to full Buddhahood. And lastly, we need to choose a method and follow it faithfully without changing to another.

“The idea of ‘host and guest’ should be carefully understood. A traveler staying at an inn for the night does not stay after the next morning but simply packs and leaves. However, the host stays as he has nowhere to go. Also, a good host does not interfere with his guests.

The guest signifies the part of our mind with a million thoughts, and the host is the part which is before thought. A more subtle example is ‘When light streams in through a window, you can see dust dancing in the air or clear space. Dust moves; space is still.’

“‘Guest and host’ illustrate the mind of a million thoughts and the mind before thought. ‘Space and dust’ signify the more subtle stages and progress in the training. Dust dances in space but does not disturb it; it remains unmoving and unaffected, just like the dead guy, who is no longer disturbed by the Eight Worldly Winds.

If you can understand this example and practice like this, it is unlikely that you will make any serious mistakes.””

Teachings by Chan Master Xu Yun (1840-1959)