Ch'an Buddhism accepts Buddhist scripture but it does not depend on it. Ch'an stresses that a practitioner must come to realize that there is no life or death, no good or bad, no internal or external, no future or past. Ch'an does away with dualities. It puts emphasis on sudden enlightenment. Ch'an requires that you adopt the attitude of non-discrimination and not be obsessed with anything. Only with such an attitude can you face death with equanimity. With such an attitude, there is no fear, and no clinging to life.

STUDENT:

If you practice for your entire life and do not get enlightened, will it have been a waste of time, or will something carry over into the next life?

SHIH-FU:

If you have the attitude I just described and practice diligently, whether you get enlightened in this life, and whether you practice in your next life does not matter. I am sure you are not satisfied with this answer. Objectively speaking, then, what happens? Serious Ch'an practitioners will not do bad things and create bad karma; therefore they will not be reborn in a lower realm. Even if they do something wrong, they will know it immediately and repent. After repenting, the consequences of the action will not be as bad.

Ch'an practitioners who have mastered their fear of death do not care if they go through the intermediate body stage; it does not matter what realm they are born in or what world they are born in. If the causes and conditions are conducive for practice, then they will practice in their next lives.