Awakening Never Apart

Let Great Awakening never leave your side; let “Awareness” abide in everyday life.

Awakening Never Apart is the Jewel Mirror of the Awakened Heart written by Zen Master Hung Chi-Sung, gathering the very essence of the Buddha’s Way into concise verses—an easy-to-carry manual for lived practice.

With this portable Dharma companion at its heart, it aspires to enter every household and every stage of life, accompanying us in walking, standing, sitting, and lying down—and even through birth, aging, illness, and cessation—so that, moment by moment, we directly observe our own mind, and Great Awakening is never apart from the self.

Understanding Awakening Never Apart

Great Awakening Never Apart from the Self: A Manual for Real Practice

Awakening Never Apart: Jewel Mirror of the Awakened Heart is the Jewel Mirror of the Awakened Heart designed by Zen Master Hung Chi-Sung. It is the most essential heart-teaching of his life—what he himself regards as pointing directly to the ultimate core of the Buddha-Dharma.
Each morning after rising, or each night before sleep, recite—according to conditions—one verse, three verses, or the entire text: first for one’s own benefit, and then for the benefit of all beings. Through recitation and direct observation, we learn to meet life’s many conditions—family, relationships, work, illness, aging, and cessation—responding in accord with reality, until awakening is no longer a mere concept, but a luminous presence directly experienced here and now.
The Awakening Never Apart initiative, through this pocket reader together with related media and multilingual editions, embodies a concrete practice of Recognizing and Repaying Profound Grace. May all beings realize Great Awakening together—until the vision of the Buddha-All Dharma Realm is fulfilled, and the entire Dharma realm becomes a Pure Land.

Core Concepts －Four Key Points

The Awakening Never Apart initiative is carried through by four essential themes: Buddh All (all beings are fully Buddha), Whole-Life Education, the Inexhaustible Lamp Dharma Gate, and the path of Recognizing and Repaying Profound Grace. Together, they guide us—at every stage of life—to cultivate an awakened mind, benefiting ourselves and benefiting others.

All beings are Buddh All; this very Dharma realm is a Pure Land.

We should directly perceive: within each moment of our own minds, a Buddha is attaining perfect enlightenment. Just so it is with the minds of all sentient beings—each and every heart contains a Tathāgata attaining perfect and complete awakening. You and I are present Buddhas, here and now. When all of us behold directly the truth of Awakening Never Apart, the Buddha-All Dharma Realm and the pure Buddha-land manifest in this very moment.

Ultimate Protection from Birth to Death

From as early as the time a fetus is in the womb, one may begin to recite and uphold this verse of awakening. Through childhood and adulthood, and on into old age, illness, and cessation, it offers a complete teaching for the whole of life. From taking rebirth—conception, gestation, birth, and growth—to the final hours of life and the intermediate state, one may, as conditions allow, continue to recite and uphold this Dharma verse, so that awakening may flow on through this very body—until great merit and great wisdom are fully present, and perfect Buddhahood is ultimately fulfilled.

One lamp kindles one lamp; lamps without end.

Drawing upon the Inexhaustible Lamp teaching in the Vimalakīrti Sūtra, when we recite and share this book, it is like one lamp kindling another—lamps upon lamps, endlessly luminous. Taking as our support the Middle Treatise’s teaching that “merit is born of application,” let the light of awakening turn, layer upon layer, between giving and receiving—illuminating the Dharma realm, until all lands become pure.

Recognizing and Repaying the Dharma Realm’s Fourfold Grace

Awakening Never Apart is a sublime Dharma gateway of recognizing and repaying profound grace. Within this true reality, we come to understand the fourfold grace of the Dharma realm—the grace and awakening bestowed by the Buddhas, the nurturing love of our parents, the kindness of all sentient beings, and the sustaining support of this land. We see that without these four graces, neither our life today nor our awakening could be. By reciting, upholding, and sharing this book, we offer the deepest filial devotion and return of kindness to the Dharma realm—thereby swiftly advancing on the path to the fulfillment of unsurpassed Bodhi.

Awakened Data: Kindling the Dharma Realm’s Inexhaustible Lamps

From a single moment of awakened awareness to hundreds of billions of voices calling us awake, we are together composing a life-healing movement—soothing body and mind—across time and space.

Since the initiative’s inception, published copies of Awakening Never Apart have been shared and offered as gifts of affinity—carried into homes, practice centers, healthcare settings, and the many scenes of daily life—to be kept close at hand, accompanying practitioners as they recite as conditions allow, and abide in present awareness in the midst of everyday living.

50000 Copies have been published

Grounded in the original Traditional Chinese text, we will gradually develop further language editions, so that readers of every tongue may draw near—in their own native language—to the essential heart-teaching of Awakening Never Apart, the very core of the Dharma.

0 Language editions

Through readers’ mutual gifting and sharing, Awakening Never Apart has now circulated to many countries and regions. Across diverse cultures and cities, one heart-lamp of Awakening Never Apart kindles another—lamps upon lamps, endlessly luminous—so that wholesome affinities and Dharma affinities spread, layer upon layer, illuminating the Dharma realm ever more widely.

0 Countries/regions of circulation

The number of spiritual friends walking this path together who, through donations, volunteer service, translation, and acts of sharing, actively uphold the Awakening Never Apart initiative. Each supporter is a practitioner of knowing and repaying profound grace—and a co-accomplisher of the Inexhaustible Lamp teaching: one lamp kindling another, lamps upon lamps, endlessly luminous.

0 Upheld by spiritual friends

Kindling the Wholesome Vow of Buddh All throughout the Dharma Realm

We aspire to bring the Dharma gateway of Awakening Never Apart into the lives of our family and friends—and ultimately to all sentient beings. As the Middle Treatise teaches, merit is born through application: when a recipient awakens through reading, this power of awakening continues through the practice of body, speech, and mind, turning layer upon layer without end.

We pray that it may continue to spread to tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions, and ultimately to all beings, so that all may attain great enlightenment together. May the pure power of great awakening benefit ourselves, our families, society, the Earth, and the boundless Dharma realm. May natural disasters, human calamities, epidemics, and wars come to cessation; and may we together advance toward the ultimate Pure Land—fulfilling the vision of Buddh All: “This very Dharma realm is a Pure Land.”

Other-Language Editions of Awakening Never Apart

Grounded in the original Traditional Chinese text, we will, step by step, bring forth other-language editions. May the Dharma gateway of Awakening Never Apart cross languages and lands, reaching ever more places where hearts are in need.

Traditional Chinese (Original)

The author’s original Traditional Chinese text fully preserves the scriptural citations and the continuity of practice. It is well suited for readers who are at ease with Buddhist terminology and traditional characters—for recitation, and for carrying close at hand.

English

Written in plain, clear English, this edition presents the essential heart-teaching of Awakening Never Apart, so that readers around the world can put the Dharma gateway into practice in daily life—Great Awakening never apart from the self.

Japanese

Bringing the teaching of Awakening Never Apart to Japan allows Japanese readers to learn, in a language close to their hearts, the path of awakening—first for one’s own benefit, and then for the benefit of all beings.

Reader Story: When Great Awakening Enters Daily Life

True reflections from life’s many stages

Many readers encounter Awakening Never Apart amid life’s changing conditions: some find steadiness—soothing body and mind—within workplace pressures and family conflicts, while others, facing illness and the great matters of life and death, rebuild inner strength and direction through daily recitation. These stories are a living testimony to the Inexhaustible Lamp teaching: one lamp kindles another—lamps upon lamps, endlessly luminous.

I participated in composing the musical accompaniment for Zen Master Hung Chi-Sung’s audio guide, Awakening Never Apart. During my routine invited performances, I discovered that keeping Awakening Never Apart close at hand made it easier for me to sing—and that when unexpected equipment issues arose, they could often be resolved in time. Before a performance, I often feel anxious about the gear, but reciting Awakening Never Apart helps me settle and become steady first. On the eve of a launch event, a cable jammed and I couldn’t get it unstuck. After silently reciting the verses, it loosened smoothly not long afterward. Since then, I always carry it with me whenever I perform.

Liu Weijing

Singing Bowl Musician

I keep Awakening Never Apart close at hand in my bag, and on buses, trains, and the metro I recite a few lines. No matter how tightly the crowds press in, I can still keep a measure of steadiness in my heart. Awakening Never Apart—may every coming and going be safe. Awakening Never Apart—may every coming and going be safe.

Commuting Office Worker

Rehabilitation after a stroke is arduous. Each evening, I recite Awakening Never Apart as my evening practice, and dedicate the merit. It has also become part of my speech rehabilitation—reciting it again and again, I keep drawing my mind and body back, until they are steady and never apart.

Reader in Rehabilitation

When I travel, I carry Awakening Never Apart close at hand, stopping at different landmarks to take a photo and mark the journey. Each time I recite a few lines, it feels as though my heart settles anew along the road: though my body is far from home, awakening is never apart from the self.

Wayfarer

Audio/Video & Recitation Resources

Includes recitation videos of the Awakening Never Apart verse (the Verse of the Great Awakening), along with recorded teachings and other audio/video resources—accompanying you to enter more deeply into the true-reality teaching behind the words.

Through sound and image, we enter contemplation with the text and, from contemplation, give rise to practice—so that Awakening Never Apart may be carried close at hand and lived, here and now, in the midst of daily life: one lamp kindling another—lamps upon lamps, endlessly luminous.

Awakening Never Apart: Audio Guidance

Suitable for daily listening, and for use before and after group practice—abiding in present awareness through sound. Chinese Version / Taiwanese Version / Replay anytime

Go to the Audio Guide

Awakening Never Apart: Teaching Highlights

Chapter-by-chapter highlights—ideal for structured review and sharing. 10 Highlight Episodes / Watch in Order / Continually Updated

Go to Lecture Highlights

Latest Project Updates

Trace the worldwide journey and latest updates of “Awakening Never Apart”—including new multilingual editions, online group practice sessions, and reflections shared by readers.

Updates

Awakening Never Apart: A Life Lecture Series | Lectures by Zen Master Hung Chi-Sung

In an age of change and unrest, true steadiness is not found in outer circumstances

Lecture Two: Awakening Never Apart from the Self—The Secret of Nourishing Life

Updates

Awakening Never Apart: A Life Lecture Series | Lectures by Zen Master Hung Chi-Sung

In an age of change and unrest, true steadiness is not found in outer circumstances

it is found when the mind returns to its original awakening. Lecture One
The Secret of Awakening Never Apart — When Awakening Is Never Apart, All Worries Cease
Guiding you straight to the heart-teaching:What is Awakening Never Apart?Why does awakening in the present moment bring a life of steadiness—free from worry?

Updates

In Yuli, Hualien—Awakening Never Apart: a prayer-vow with every step I take. 🌹

Prayer Record in Yuli, Hualien—beneath “Chi Po-lin’s Giant Footprints” and the “Prayer Tree.” Step by step, footprint by footprint, we cherish the earth beneath our feet—and pass on the heart-teaching of Awakening Never Apart, so that it may continue to spread as an auspicious affinity.

Readers’ Stories

My 96-year-old father, living with dementia, smiles as he recites Awakening Never Apart.

Memories may fade, but awakening does not. At 96, my father—living with dementia—smiles as he recites Awakening Never Apart. These brief Dharma verses let his mind settle and abide, and they reveal to our family an inconceivable, gentle strength.

Awakening Never Apart

Understanding Awakening Never Apart

Great Awakening Never Apart from the Self: A Manual for Real Practice