To help awaken us to this world of Buddha-nature, Zen masters employ another mode of zazen, the chanting of dharani and sutras. A dharani has been described as “a more or less meaningless chain of words or names that is supposed to have a magical power in helping the one who is repeating it at some time of extremity.” As phonetic transliterations of Sanskrit words, dharani have doubtlessly lost much of their profound meaning through the inevitable alteration of the original sounds. But as anyone who has recited them for any length of time knows, in their effect on the spirit they are anything but meaningless. To the degree that the discursive mind is held at bay during the voicing of dharani, they are valuable as another exercise in training the mind to cease clinging to dualistic modes of thought.

Sutras are the recorded words and sermons of the Buddha, and do in some degree make a direct appeal to the intellect. Thus for those whose faith in the Buddha’s Way is shallow the repeated chanting of sutras eventually leads to a measure of understanding, and this serves to strengthen faith in the truth of the Buddha’s teachings. As faith grows, however, there is less need for chanting them.