The Song of Enlightenment tells us how to practice, how to live our lives, and how to view the world. It tells us how we can help ourselves on the Buddhist path, and how we can help others after entering the door of Ch'an. For all of these reasons, the Song of Enlightenment is a Ch'an classic. It is as important and influential as the Verses of a Believing Mind, the font-style:italic">Song of the Precious Mirror Samadhi, and the Platform Sutra.