Well, I understand that the stories are pointing 'the way' or have a hidden message or something, but I don't understand what. Like, for example, this: A great and foolish King complained that the rough ground hurt his feet, so he ordered the whole country to be carpeted with cowhide. The court jester laughed when the King told him of his order. "What an absolutely crazy idea, Your Majesty," he smiled. "Why all the needless expense? Just cut out two small pads to protect your feet!" Is trying to say "If a person's mind becomes pure, their surroundings will also become pure." but unless someone makes the link, and tells me what the story is saying, then to me I just don't see the relevance or applicability (or even the philosophy) of the story.
Why should the king have the whole country carpeted with cowhide when pads on the bottom of his feet will do exactly the same thing?
Impermanence One night, under the starry sky, the circle was quiet and members seemed pensive. Badger broke the silence and said, "You know, I can't visualize myself expiring completely." Raven said, "A ghost." Badger said, "Even ghosts are not impermanent, though, are they?" Raven said, "Take care of your miseries now, and they won't abide." Source: Zen Master Raven
During a great storm at sea a band of terrified pilgrims huddled in a circle around their Zen master as the vessel pitched and the bulkheads groaned. "We shall all die," lamented one. "I wish I had been better to my wife and children," moaned another. "I had hoped to marry after the pilgrimage," said a young woman. "It is your fault, Master; you led us on this vessel and now we will perish with so many regrets and so many blighted futures." "Look at this," said the patient master. He took two wooden triangles and placed them with just the tips barely touching. "This bottom triangle is the past. Nothing can bring it back or change it. This top triangle is the future. It is equally futile to predict it. And, this tiny intersecting speck is the present, which changes with each beat of your heart." "So..?" the pilgrims said. "So it's useless to agonize over what is gone or pine for what might be. Live now in the only moment of the world available to you." "What is that?" "The present." "How do we do that?" "Let's eat," said the master.
Your brain may not understand, but a deeper part of you does understand what is being said with each story. And this will end up benefiting you in one way or another anyway. It's like planting some magical seeds within your psyche -- eventually the seeds will sprout and thrive and grow fruit, though by the time it happens you may have forgotten about anything having been planted in that spot within you. :m: If consciously understanding what is being said is that important to you however, then i would suggest you spend 30 minutes sitting in a chair and pondering the story, and asking yourself what messages it might be conveying. It helps to kinda clear your mind as you do this though, instead of intellectualizing. --- Nan-in, a Japanese master during the Meji era (1868 - 1912), received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen. Nan-in served tea. He poured his visitor's cup full, and then kept on pouring. The professor watched the overflow until he no longer could restrain himself. "It is overfull. No more will go in!" "Like this cup", Nan-in said, "you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?"
"Mother, what is water?" asked the baby fish of the mother fish. "Water is what you swim in. Water is what you're mostly made of." "But where is it?" "All around you." "But I can't see it," said the baby. "Of course you can." "Where?" "Everywhere." "And I'm made of water?" "Mostly." "And after I die..?" "You go back to being water," said the mother.
My Heart Burns Like Fire Soyen Shaku, the first Zen teacher to come to America, said: "My heart burns like fire but my eyes are as cold as dead ashes." He made the following rules which he practiced every day of his life. In the morning before dressing, light incense and meditate. Retire at a regular hour. Partake of food at regular intervals. Eat with moderation and never to the point of satisfaction. Receive a guest with the same attitude you have when alone. When alone, maintain the same attitude you have in receiving guests. Watch what you say, and whatever you say, practice it. When an opportunity comes do not let it pass you by, yet always think twice before acting. Do not regret the past. Look to the future. Have the fearless attitude of a hero and the loving heart of a child. Upon retiring, sleep as if you had entered your last sleep. Upon awakening, leave your bed behind you instantly as if you had cast away a pair of old shoes. Source: Zen Flesh, Zen Bones
Muddy Road Tanzan and Ekido were once travelling together down a muddy road. A heavy rain was still falling. Coming around a bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk kimono and sash, unable to cross the intersection. "Come on, girl," said Tanzan at once. Lifting her in his arms, he carried her over the mud. Ekido did not speak again until that night when they reached a lodging temple. Then he no longer could restrain himself. "We monks don't do near females," he told Tanzan, "especially not young and lovely ones. It is dangerous. Why did you do that?" "I left the girl there," said Tanzan. "Are you still carrying her?" Source: Zen Flesh, Zen Bones
The master sculptor surveyed the different blocks of marble at the quarry. In his lifetime he had learned that there existed a "suchness" to every piece of stone. Finding that suchness and releasing it to its true life had been the secret of the sculptor's success. "Ah-ha," he would say. "There is a heroic figure locked in that piece and a saint trapped inside that other one. But where will I find the stone from which I will sculpt my masterwork, a glorious statue of the Buddha?" He had been searching for what he called the "Buddha block" for over forty years and now he felt his energies waning. He had traveled to the great quarries of the world: Italy where Michelangelo had mined his stone, Vermont where the stone glowed with light, and to obscure regions of the mountains of China. Nowhere could he find that one perfect slab from which he knew he could release the most perfect likeness of Buddha. He consulted experts from around the world. He hired a specialist to scour obscure areas. No success. In search of consolation, he sought out a local Zen priest, who headed a small temple just at the end of his street. When he explained his fruitless search, the priest smiled and said, "No problem." "Do you mean you can tell me where I might find the perfect material from which I can release the Buddha of my dreams??" said the excited sculptor. "Of course." "Where?" "Over there," said the priest, pointing to a stone well in the courtyard. The excited sculptor ran to the well and looked down. There he saw his own image looking back at him.
OK, thanks, I'll try. btw, what effect do these stories have on you? do you always understand the deeper moral? Do you have to think about it? Are you a buddhist?
Firefly Evilpoet, Well put. I may be too far in my understanding of the Koans et,c. Thanks for your input as well. I think Firefly, the best path toward understanding the short quotes and storeys is to listen to as many voices as you can and glean whatever truth you see fit to grasp. With the path to enlightenment often the closer we are to it the farther we are. If you want me to be of assistance I will reply as often as I can but there are other excellent people to listen to. Dave the Druid
The Voice of Happiness After Bankei had passed away, a blind man who lived near the master's temple told a friend: "Since I am blind, I cannot watch a person's face, so I must judge his character by the sound of his voice. Ordinarily when I hear someone congratulate another upon his happiness or success, I also hear a secret tone of envy. When condolence is expressed for the misfortune of another, I hear pleasure and satisfaction, as if the one condoling was really glad there was something left to gain in his own world. "In all my experience, however, Bankei's voice was always sincere. Whenever he expressed happiness, I heard nothing but happiness, and whenever he expressed sorrow, sorrow was all I heard." Source: Zen Flesh, Zen Bones
Dave: Thanks. Got anymore stories? I liked the one you added. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! I was thinking about this earlier, would creating an new thread for disscusion of the koans, etc. be helpful? What do you guys think?
No, i'm not a Buddhist. I'm not really anything, in those terms. Somewhere in the middle. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! I am spiritual, though i'm not religious. (my own definition of those words is that religion is "organized spirituality," and almost always comes with dogma, rituals, and limiting beliefs of various sorts -- which i'm not interested in) What effect do these stories have on me? They offer me another perspective of viewing things, that i often find insightful and apply to how i live my life as best i can. Sometimes the effect of a parable has been very powerful for me, and other times it hasn't been very apparent. Do i always understand the deeper moral? To think that i did would be making a huge assumption, and i do my best not to make assumptions. I think that there is more than one way to view most parables -- kinda like how you can interpret dreams differently. But do i always have an insightful meaning occur to me with them? In retrospect, usually. And sometimes when i read the same parable again later on, something else will occur to me that i hadn't realized before. Do i have to think about it? Sometimes a meaning has seemed obvious to me, and other times i've had to internally open myself more for one to occur. If i was in your shoes, i think that i would print these parables out -- so that i could read them in later years and see what new insight and meaning i might find in them. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! Oh, and i would suggest that you always question with an open mind any ready answers that people offer you on your path. Ask yourself if it feels right to you, deep down inside.
There is a mountain, far beyond the plains and hills, whose great summit overlooks the dark valley and the open seas. Neither cloud nor deep mists ever hide its calm face. It is above the shadows of day and night. From the vast plain, no man can behold it. Some have seen it but there be few that have reached its feet. One in many thousand years gathers his strength and gains that abode of eternity. I speak of that mountain top, serene, infinite, beyond thought. I shout for joy! One day, a man beheld through the opening of a cloud, the calm face of the mountain. He stopped every passer-by, that would stay to give an answer, and inquired of the way that would lead him beyond the mists. Some said take this path, and others said take that path. After many days of confusion and toil, he arrived among the hills. A man, full in years, wise in the ways of the hills, said, "I know the way. You cannot reach the mountain, O friend, unless you are strengthened by the power that comes from the adoration of the image in yonder shrine." Many days passed in peaceful worship. Tired of worship, he asked of men that seemed great with understanding. "Yea," said one, "I know the way. But if you would gain the fulfillment of your desire, carry this on you. It will uphold you in your weariness." He gave him the symbol of his struggle. Another cried, "Yea, I know the way. But many days of contemplation must be passed in the seclusion of a sanctuary, with my picture of eternity." "I know the way," said another, "But you must perform these rites, understand these hidden laws, you must enter the association of the elect and hold fast to the knowledge that we shall give you." "Be loud in the song of praise of the reflection that you seek," said another. "Come, follow me, obeying all things I say. I know the way," cried another. Eventually, the calm face of the mountain was utterly forgotten. Now he wanders from hill to hill, crying aloud, "Yes, I know the way, but..." There is a mountain far beyond the plains and hills whose summit overlooks the dark valley and the open seas. Neither cloud nor deep mists ever hide its calm face. It is above the shadows of day and night. One in many thousand years gathers his strength and gains that abode of eternity. I speak of that mountain top, serene, infinite, beyond thought. I shout for joy! - J. Krishnamurti
Gut A certain lord who studied Zen from Bankei was young and fond of martial arts. One day he decided to test the master's "gut" by suddenly attacking him with a lance as he sat quietly. The Zen master calmly deflected the trust with his rosary. Then he said to the lord, "You technique is still immature, your mind moved first." Source: Zen Antics
Koans etc Evilpoet, If you want, a new thread on the koans would be acceptable. I don't think that limiting the discussion would pose a problem, but I am concerned about loosing the broad appeal that this thread has. Consider Firefly who is learning. Thanks for your kind words on my story. It is one of my absolute favorites operating on so may levels. Dave The Druid
Dave, Perhaps my post wasn't clear enough (very, very possible). I don't want to limit disscussion, quite the opposite, I want to encourage it. The new thread I suggested was meant to be in addition to the 101 Zen Stories thread not in place of it. That way the flow of the stories/koans doesn't get interupted by discussion and discussion doesn't get interrupted by the stories/koans. Upon further reflection, I think that maybe my thought to do this is one of those Winnie-the-Pooh thoughts that I have quite often. Please Register or Log in to view the hidden image! "When you are a Bear of Very Little Brain, and you Think of Things, you sometimes find that a Thing which seemed very Thingish inside you is quite different when it gets out into the open and has other people looking at it."
Evilpoet New thread, Let me read back what you are suggesting, youwant to start a new thread that is limited to the koans and stories but not interrupted by discussion. Correct? If so that would be a great resource for looking at the stories but it would be limiting in so much as I feel that discussion at the time of posting encourages a wider reading of the stories. Still, I'm up for either or as a way to learn and share more of the zen teachings. dave the Druid
Reciting Sutras A farmer requested a Tendai priest to recite sutras for his wife, who had died. After the recitation was over the farmer asked: "Do you think my wife will gain merit from this?" "Not only your wife, but all sentient beings will benefit from the recitation of sutras," answered the priest. "If you say all sentient beings will benefit," said the farmer, "my wife may be very weak and others will take advantage of her, getting the benefit she should have. So please recite sutras just for her." The priest explained that it was the desire of a Buddhist to offer blessings and wish merit for every living being. "That is a fine teaching," concluded the farmer, "but please make one exception. I have a neighbor who is rough and mean to me. Just exclude him from all those sentient beings." Source: Zen Flesh, Zen Bones
