Zen Stories # 17 - Zen dialogue

Zen teachers train their young pupils to express themselves. Two Zen temples each had a child protégé. One child, going to obtain vegetables each morning, would meet the other on the way.

"Where are you going?" asked the one.

"I am going wherever my feet go," the other responded.

This reply puzzled the first child who went to his teacher for help. "Tomorrow morning," the teacher told him, "when you meet that little fellow, ask him the same question. He will give you the same answer, and then you ask him: 'Suppose you have no feet, then where are you going?' That will fix him."

The children met again the following morning.

"Where are you going?" asked the first child.

"I am going wherever the wind blows," answered the other.

This again nonplussed the youngster, who took his defeat to his teacher.

"Ask him where he is going if there is no wind," suggested the teacher.

The next day the children met a third time.

"Where are you going?" asked the first child.

"I am going to the market to buy vegetables," the other replied.

Zen Principle: You can never train someone for every possible incident or event. Only way to train is to build complete character and unbridled wisdom, which will handle every situation automatically.

Zen Stories # 8 - Full Awareness

After ten years of apprenticeship, Tenno achieved the rank of Zen teacher.

One rainy day, he went to visit the famous master Nan-in.

When he walked in, the master greeted him with a question, “Did you leave your wooden clogs and umbrella on the porch?”

“Yes,” Tenno replied.

“Tell me,” the master continued, “did you place your umbrella to the left of your shoes, or to the right?”

Tenno did not know the answer, and realized that he had not yet attained full awareness.

So he became Nan-in’s apprentice and studied under him for ten more years.

Zen principle: Zen is all about the state of being always aware and complete wisdom. The same thing that is talked about in Hinduism as state of Always-awake-consciousness.