Hui Hai, was one of the great Ch'an (Zen) Masters. He was a contemporary of both Ma Tsu and Huang Po, those early masters who established Ch'an after the death of Hui Neng, the Sixth Patriarch. Hui Hai's direct teachings point immediately to this moment of truth and awakening, and the message of this classic eighth-century text is universal and timeless. John Blofeld, a noted Buddhist author and translator was one of the very few Englishmen to experience life in Chinese Buddhist temples and monasteries at first hand before the Communist revolution. His love of China and knowledge of Buddhism enabled him to translate the texts with feeling and insight.