collection of ch'an stories
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SHOW ME YOUR EGO-MIND
One of the most famous stories about Bodhidharma is that
the seeker Huike (486-593) patiently stood deep in the snow
outside the old masters cave for several days, yearning for
teachings. He nally hacked off his own left forearm and
presented it as a demonstration of his sincere aspiration for
enlightenment. In response, Bodhidharma told Huike: This
enlightenment is not to be sought through another. Huike
begged to have his agitated self or mind pacied. The sage
retorted, Show me your self and I will pacify it. Huike
said Ive sought it many years but cant get hold of it.
Bodhidharma then declared: There! It is pacied once and
for all! Upon hearing this, Huike was awakened beyond the
ego-self. Huike was later designated the second Patriarch
of a Chan School.
Now we know where Master Hakuin (1768) got his famous
Zen koan: What is the sound of one hand?
DRUNK
Japanese Zen master Oda Sesso (1901-66), abbot of Daitokuji
monastery, warned, There is little to choose between a man
lying in the ditch heavily drunk on liquor, and a man heavily
drunk on his own enlightenment!
GENEROSITY
The Japanese poet, calligrapher and benefactor to the poor,
Master Ryokan (1758-1831), lived austerely and simply in a
little hut below a mountain. One evening a thief visited the
hut only to nd nothing there to steal. So he went off, but
Ryokan caught up with him: You may have come a long
way to visit me, and you should not return empty handed.
Please take my clothes as a gift. The bewildered thief took
Collection of Chan stories
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the clothes in disbelieve. Ryokan sat naked, watching the
moon. Poor fellow, he mused, I wish I could give him this
beautiful moon!
PURE NOTHING
Bodhidharma was regarded as the rst Chan Patriarch. He
came from south India to south China around 527 CE and
visited Emperor Liang Wu-di, founder of the Liang dynasty
at Nanjing and became one of Buddhisms greatest all-time
patrons in China.
It is said that Emperor Wu asked Bodhidharma about the
highest meaning of noble Truth, and Bodhidharma replied,
Vast emptiness, there is no noble Truth. Who, then, is
standing before me? I dont know, said Bodhidharma.
The proud Emperor Wu then asked the mysterious Indian sage
how much karmic merit he, the emperor, had accumulated
by building monasteries, ordaining monks, sponsoring
translations and copies of scriptures and making Buddhist art-
images. Bodhidharma was quite blunt: No merit whatever!
And he left the region.
THE WISE MAN
Daoxin (580-651), the 4th Chinese Chan Patriarch said, The
wise man does nothing, while the fool is always tying himself
up.
THE MOON OF ENLIGHTENMENT
Zen masters have often spoken of Enlightenment as like the
moon shining brightly in the dark sky, while the Zen Buddhist
teachings are like a nger pointing up toward the moon. Too
many people, however, instead of gazing at the great moon,
prefer to relentlessly suck on the nger!
BANISHING A GHOST
The wife of a man became very sick. On her deathbed, she
said to him, I love you so much! I dont want to leave you,
and I dont want you to betray me. Promise that you will not
see any other women once I die, or I will come back to haunt
you.
For several months after her death, the husband did avoid
other women, but then he met someone and fell in love. On
the night that they were engaged to be married, the ghost of
his former wife appeared to him. She blamed him for not
keeping the promise, and every night thereafter she returned
to taunt him. The ghost would remind him of everything that
transpired between him and his ancee that day, even to the
point of repeating, word for word, their conversations. It
upset him so badly that he couldnt sleep at all.
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Desperate, he sought the advice of a Zen master who lived
near the village. This is a very clever ghost, the master
said upon hearing the mans story. It is! replied the man.
She remembers every detail of what I say and do. It knows
everything! The master smiled, You should admire such a
ghost, but I will tell you what to do the next time you see it.
That night the ghost returned. The man responded just as the
master had advised. You are such a wise ghost, the man
said, You know that I can hide nothing from you. If you can
answer me one question, I will break off the engagement and
remain single for the rest of my life. Ask your question,
the ghost replied. The man scooped up a handful of beans
from a large bag on the oor, Tell me exactly how many
beans there are in my hand.
At that moment the ghost disappeared and never returned.
Feedback: The ghost comes from the mans own mind. He
created it. It is his own guilt that came back to haunt him.
AN OVERFLOWING CUP OF TEA
In the early 20th century, Zen master Nan-in received a
university professor who came to ask about Zen. But instead
he only talked on and on about his own ideas. Nan-in served
tea. He poured his visitors cup full, and then, while the man
continued to speak, Nan-in kept on pouring the tea. The
professor watched the overow until he could no longer
restrain himself. You fool! It is overfull. No more will go
in! Nan-in replied, Like this cup, you are also too full of
your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you
Zen unless you rst empty your mind?
AUTHENTICITY
An old Zen saying: In matters of religion, most people prefer
chewing the menu to actually eating the food!
EXPERIENCES
A student went to see his meditation teacher and said, My
situation is horrible! I feel so distracted most of the time, or
my legs ache, or Im repeatedly falling asleep. Its terrible.
Said the teacher matter-of-factly, It will pass.
A week later, the student returned to his teacher. My
meditation is wonderful! I feel so aware, so peaceful, soalive! The teacher told him, It will pass.
MIND
Chan master Fayan (Fa-yen, 885-958) interrupted an
argument among some monks concerning the relationship
of mind to reality by posing them a question: Over there
is a large boulder. Do you say that it is inside or outside
your mind? One of the monks replied, From the Buddhist
viewpoint everything is an objectication of mind, so that I
would have to say that the stone is inside my mind. Quipped
Fayan, Your head must be very heavy!
HELP
The famous rogue Rinzai Zen Master Ikkyu (d.1481), later
the abbot of Japans Daitokuji monastery, told a visitor: Id
like to offer something to help you. But in the Zen School we
dont have a single thing!
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WHAT IS THE BUDDHA?
Touzi Daitung (914), a mentor to famous Chan master
Zhaozhou, was once asked, What is the Buddha? His
considered response: The Buddha!
When Nanyuan Huiyong (860-930) was likewise asked (its
a very popular question in Chan tradition!), What is the
Buddha? He replied, What is not the Buddha? Another
time his answer was, I never knew him. On a third occasion,
when asked What is the Buddha?Nanyuan replied, Wait
until there is one then Ill tell you.
SELF
Master Xuansha (Hsan-sha, 9th century) was asked by a
monk, What is my self? Hsan-sha retorted, What would
you do with a self? This same Master Xuansha once described
the existential situation: We are here as if immersed in water
head and shoulders underneath the great ocean, and yet how
piteously we are extending our hands for water!
PRACTICE
One of Huinengs supposed successors, Master Nanyue,
came upon young Mazu who had been ardently spending all
his days sitting in meditation at a temple. The master asked
Mazu, What are you doing? Im practicing meditation.
Why? asked the master. Said Mazu, I want to attain
enlightenment; I aim to become a Buddha. Master Nanyue
thereupon picked up a rough tile lying nearby and began to
vigorously rub it against a rock. What are you doing? asked
Mazu. Said the master, I want to make this tile into a mirror.
How is it possible to make a tile into a mirror? asked Mazu.
Retorted Nanyue: How is it possible to become a Buddha by
doing meditation? If you keep the Buddha seated, this is
murdering the Buddha.
Modern-era Soto Zen master Shunryu Suzuki (1904-71)
clarifes: We practice zazen meditation to naturally express
True Nature, not to attain enlightenment. And one of Zen
master Sengais (1751-1837) famous cartoonish Zen paintings
shows a smiling frog sitting on a lily pad, with the caption: If
by seated meditation one becomes a Buddha [Implication:
then all frogs are Buddhas!])
IMPRESSED BY THE MONKS
When Catholic missionary St. Francis Xavier was touring
Japan, he was graciously hosted in 1549 by the extraordinarily
friendly master Ninshitsu of Fukusho-ji Soto Zen monastery,
near Kagoshima. Strolling through the temple grounds
one day, Xavier saw monks meditating in great repose and
dignifed appearance. What are they doing? he askedNinshitsu. The master laughed, Some are calculating
contributions received the past month, others are wondering
how to get better clothing, and still others are thinking of
vacation and pasttimes. In short, no one here is doing anything
of importance!
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