ABSTRACT
‘Meditation’ is an unsatisfactory term, for in every-day language it means ‘thinking about something’, which is exactly what the yogic meditator must not do, since the aim is to transcend conceptual thought. Meditation leading to illumination of mind is essential in a Buddhist context; even the Pure Land style recitation of a sacred formula requires supreme concentration to be effective. T‘ien T‘ai adepts, for all that they attach great importance to learning so as to build up a deep intellectual understanding of the profound principles of the Dharma, are very keen exponents of meditation and their system is often regarded as the most advanced of all the Chinese systems, or at least the most thorough. Ch‘an, though by no means as opposed to rites and other devotional practices as has sometimes been suggested, concentrates above all on meditation – hence its Chinese and Japanese names, both of which signify ‘dhyana’ (meditation).
