Tips for Memorizing the Immortal Tao Classic

These tips are based on the traditional Chinese way to memorize text when learning the Chinese language and also my own experience. 

There are two types of memorization:

• Intense fast memorization; this is good for people with good memorizing ability 
• Smooth slow memorization; this is good for people with normal memorizing ability 

The following is one of the ways to work with slow memorization: 

1. The Steps of Repetition - How to Approach Memorization

  a) The first step can take 3 months. Listen to Master Sha's CD once or twice a day. Just listen and/or chant with the CD. Get familiar with the tone and the sound. You do not have to try to memorize anything.

  b) The second step: start to memorize lines, chanting each line 30 times at a time, and chanting 4 lines as a group 30 times, and repeat. Most people may need 2-3 months for this step. 

  c) The third step: working on the paragraphs. You may use my Immortal Tao Classic chart to find out the connections and logical relationships among the phrases. This may take 1-2 months. 

2. For the words, phrases and paragraphs

There are two ways to memorize: 

  a) From bottom to top: word by word, then go on to phrases and paragraphs. 

  b) From the top down: treat each line as one word with four syllables. Start with phrases, then go up to paragraphs, then go down to the words. What I understand is, if I am not wrong, it is not necessary to memorize the meaning of each word. The most important thing is memorizing how to chant and the meaning of each line.

When I learned the Da Bei Zhou 20 years ago, I treated each line as one word, so the whole thing became 87 words, instead of 400-500 words. I just chanted every day 5-10 times each day. After one month I memorized it. I didn't try to force my mind to memorize at all. For anything, if we repeat it in our mind for a certain number of times, we will memorize it naturally. 

Another example is, some Buddhist monks, they can memorize a 30,000-word Sutra. How can they do it? Just by chanting; they chant every day for years.

Now for the Immortal Tao classic, if we imagine each line is a teacher's name, we need to memorize their names first, in order to receive teaching from them.

So keep chanting, chanting, chanting. This is like when we say hello to our beloved teacher every day. 

3. For the Sound and Meaning

  a) Memorize the sound first and then add the meaning to it. It will be much easier than trying to memorize sound and meaning at the same time. 

  b) Memorize the meaning of the whole sentence first, then break down the meaning to the words.

If you memorize anything in this way, it will stay in your mind firmly. You won't lose it. I still remember some classic text I learned in high school and earlier.

*** ALWAYS SING OR CHANT WITH MASTER SHA'S CD ***