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EDITOR ' s INTRODUCTION 1 17cal power in hdping the one who is repeating it at some time ofextremity."1 As phonetic transliterations of Sanskrit words, dharanihave doubtlessly lost much of their profound meaning through theinevitable alteration of the original sounds. But as anyone who hasrecited them for any length of time knows, in their effect on thespirit they are anything but meaningless. When chanted with sincerityand zest they impress upon the heart and mind the names andvirtues of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas enumerated in them, removinginner hindrances to zazen and fixing the heart in an attitudeof reverence and devotion. But dharani are also a symbolic expressionin sound and rhythm of the essential Truth of the universe lying beyondthe realm of the discriminating intellect. To the degree that thediscursive mind is held at bay during the voicing of dharani, theyare valuable as another exercise in training the mind to cease clingingto dualistic modes of thought.The intoning of sutras, while also a mode of zazen, fulfills yet afurther purpose. Since they are the recorded words and sermons ofthe Buddha, sutras do in some degree make a direct appeal to theintellect. Thus for those whose faith in the Buddha's Way is shallowthe repeated chanting of sutras eventually leads to a measure of understanding,and this serves to strengthen faith in the truth of theBuddha's teachings. As faith grows, however, there is less need forchanting them.In another sense sutra-chanting can be compared to an Orientalink painting of, say, a pine tree in which most of the picture consistsof white space. This empty space corresponds to the deeper levelsof meaning of the sutras which the words adumbrate. Just as inthe picture our minds are brought to a heightened awareness of thewhite space because of the tree, so through the reciting of the sutraswe can be led to sense the reality lying beyond them, the Emptinessto which they point.During the chanting of sutras and dharani, each of which varies intempo, the chanters may sit, stand, or engage in a succession ofkneelingsand prostrations or make repeated circumambulations in thetemple. Frequently the intoning is accompanied by the steady thumpingof the mokugyo or punctuated by the sonorous reverberations of1 A Buddhist Bible, edited by Dwight Goddard (Dutton, N.Y., 1952), p. 662.