Zen Stories to Tell Your Neighbors

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Zen Stories to Tell Your Neighbors

Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:17 pm

Is That So?

A beautiful girl in the village was pregnant. Her angry parents demanded to
know who was the father. At first resistant to confess, the anxious and
embarrassed girl finally pointed to Hakuin, the Zen master whom everyone
previously revered for living such a pure life. When the outraged parents
confronted Hakuin with their daughter's accusation, he simply replied "Is
that so?"

When the child was born, the parents brought it to the Hakuin, who now was
viewed as a pariah by the whole village. They demanded that he take care of
the child since it was his responsibility. "Is that so?" Hakuin said calmly as
he accepted the child.

For many months he took very good care of the child until the daughter
could no longer withstand the lie she had told. She confessed that the real
father was a young man in the village whom she had tried to protect. The
parents immediately went to Hakuin to see if he would return the baby. With
profuse apologies they explained what had happened. "Is that so?" Hakuin
said as he handed them the child.

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:18 pm

It Will Pass

A student went to his meditation teacher and said, "My meditation is
horrible! I feel so distracted, or my legs ache, or I'm constantly falling asleep.
It's just horrible!"

"It will pass," the teacher said matter-of-factly.

A week later, the student came back to his teacher. "My meditation is
wonderful! I feel so aware, so peaceful, so alive! It's just wonderful!'

"It will pass," the teacher replied matter-of-factly.

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:18 pm

Just Two Words

There once was a monastery that was very strict. Following a vow of silence,
no one was allowed to speak at all. But there was one exception to this rule.
Every ten years, the monks were permitted to speak just two words. After
spending his first ten years at the monastery, one monk went to the head
monk. "It has been ten years," said the head monk. "What are the two words
you would like to speak?"

"Bed... hard..." said the monk.

"I see," replied the head monk.

Ten years later, the monk returned to the head monk's office. "It has been
ten more years," said the head monk. "What are the two words you would
like to speak?"

"Food... stinks..." said the monk.

"I see," replied the head monk.

Yet another ten years passed and the monk once again met with the head
monk who asked, "What are your two words now, after these ten years?"

"I... quit!" said the monk.

"Well, I can see why," replied the head monk. "All you ever do is complain."

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:19 pm

Knowing Fish

One day Chuang Tzu and a friend were walking by a river. "Look at the fish
swimming about," said Chuang Tzu, "They are really enjoying themselves."

"You are not a fish," replied the friend, "So you can't truly know that they
are enjoying themselves."

"You are not me," said Chuang Tzu. "So how do you know that I do not
know that the fish are enjoying themselves?"

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:20 pm

Learning the Hard Way

The son of a master thief asked his father to teach him the secrets of the
trade. The old thief agreed and that night took his son to burglarize a large
house.

While the family was asleep, he silently led his young apprentice into a
room that contained a clothes closet. The father told his son to go into the
closet to pick out some clothes. When he did, his father quickly shut the door
and locked him in. Then he went back outside, knocked loudly on the front
door, thereby waking the family, and quickly slipped away before anyone
saw him.

Hours later, his son returned home, bedraggled and exhausted.

"Father," he cried angrily, "Why did you lock me in that closet? If I hadn't
been made desperate by my fear of getting caught, I never would have
escaped. It took all my ingenuity to get out!"

The old thief smiled. "Son, you have had your first lesson in the art of burglary."

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:21 pm

Masterpiece

A master calligrapher was writing some characters onto a piece of paper.
One of his especially perceptive students was watching him. When the
calligrapher was finished, he asked for the student's opinion - who
immediately told him that it wasn't any good.

The master tried again, but the student criticized the work again.
Over and over, the calligrapher carefully redrew the same characters,
and each time the student rejected it.

Finally, when the student had turned his attention away to something else
and wasn't watching, the master seized the opportunity to quickly dash off the
characters.

"There! How's that?," he asked the student.

The student turned to look. "THAT.... is a masterpiece!" he exclaimed.

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:21 pm

Maybe

There is a Taoist story of an old farmer who had worked his crops for many
years. One day his horse ran away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors
came to visit. "Such bad luck," they said sympathetically. "May be," the
farmer replied.

The next morning the horse returned, bringing with it three
other wild horses. "How wonderful," the neighbors exclaimed. "May be,"
replied the old man.

The following day, his son tried to ride one of the
untamed horses, was thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to
offer their sympathy on his misfortune. "May be," answered the farmer.

The day after, military officials came to the village to draft young men into the
army. Seeing that the son's leg was broken, they passed him by. The
neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well things had turned out. "

May be ," said the farmer.

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:22 pm

The Moon Cannot Be Stolen

A Zen Master lived the simplest kind of life in a little hut at the foot of a
mountain. One evening, while he was away, a thief sneaked into the hut only
to find there was nothing in it to steal. The Zen Master returned and found
him. "You have come a long way to visit me," he told the prowler, "and you
should not return empty handed. Please take my clothes as a gift."

The thief was bewildered, but he took the clothes and ran away. The Master sat naked,
watching the moon.

"Poor fellow," he mused, " I wish I could give him this beautiful moon."

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:23 pm

More Is Not Enough
The Stone Cutter

There was once a stone cutter who was dissatisfied with himself and with his
position in life.

One day he passed a wealthy merchant's house. Through the open gateway,
he saw many fine possessions and important visitors. "How powerful that
merchant must be!" thought the stone cutter. He became very envious and
wished that he could be like the merchant.

To his great surprise, he suddenly became the merchant, enjoying more
luxuries and power than he had ever imagined, but envied and detested by
those less wealthy than himself. Soon a high official passed by, carried in a
sedan chair, accompanied by attendants and escorted by soldiers beating
gongs. Everyone, no matter how wealthy, had to bow low before the
procession. "How powerful that official is!" he thought. "I wish that I could
be a high official!"

Then he became the high official, carried everywhere in his embroidered
sedan chair, feared and hated by the people all around. It was a hot summer
day, so the official felt very uncomfortable in the sticky sedan chair. He
looked up at the sun. It shone proudly in the sky, unaffected by his presence.
"How powerful the sun is!" he thought. "I wish that I could be the sun!"

Then he became the sun, shining fiercely down on everyone, scorching the
fields, cursed by the farmers and laborers. But a huge black cloud moved
between him and the earth, so that his light could no longer shine on
everything below. "How powerful that storm cloud is!" he thought. "I wish
that I could be a cloud!"

Then he became the cloud, flooding the fields and villages, shouted at by
everyone. But soon he found that he was being pushed away by some great
force, and realized that it was the wind. "How powerful it is!" he thought. "I
wish that I could be the wind!"

Then he became the wind, blowing tiles off the roofs of houses, uprooting
trees, feared and hated by all below him. But after a while, he ran up against
something that would not move, no matter how forcefully he blew against it -
a huge, towering rock. "How powerful that rock is!" he thought. "I wish that
I could be a rock!"

Then he became the rock, more powerful than anything else on earth. But as
he stood there, he heard the sound of a hammer pounding a chisel into the
hard surface, and felt himself being changed. "What could be more powerful
than I, the rock?" he thought.

He looked down and saw far below him the figure of a stone cutter.

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Postby Masato » Fri Apr 29, 2016 5:24 pm

The Most Important Teaching

A renowned Zen master said that his greatest teaching was this: Buddha is
your own mind.

So impressed by how profound this idea was, one monk
decided to leave the monastery and retreat to the wilderness to meditate on
this insight. There he spent 20 years as a hermit probing the great teaching.

One day he met another monk who was traveling through the forest. Quickly
the hermit monk learned that the traveler also had studied under the same
Zen master.

"Please, tell me what you know of the master's greatest
teaching."

The traveler's eyes lit up, "Ah, the master has been very clear
about this. He says that his greatest teaching is this: Buddha is NOT your
own mind."


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