- Muddy Road
Two monks, Tanzan and Ekido, were traveling together down a muddy road. A heavy rain was 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 could no longer restrain himself.
“We monks don’t go 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?”
2. Empty Your Cup
A university professor came to visit Nan-in, a Zen master.
While the master served tea, the professor talked about Zen.
Nan-in poured the visitor’s cup full, and then kept on pouring.
The professor watched the overflow until he could no longer restrain himself. “It is overfull. No more will go in!”
“Like this cup,” Nan-in said, “you are full of your own opinions. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?”
3. The Sound of One Hand
A student asked the master Hakuin, “What is the sound of one hand clapping?”
4. No Water, No Moon
Chiyono, a serving maid, wanted to become a nun but was rejected due to her low status.
Still, she kept practicing meditation. One night, she was carrying a water bucket made of bamboo strips.
The moon was reflected in the water. Suddenly, the bucket broke. The water disappeared. The moon vanished.
In that moment, Chiyono was enlightened. She later wrote:
“With this and that I tried to keep the bucket together,
And then the bottom fell out.
Where water does not collect,
The moon does not dwell.”
5. Learning to Be Silent
Yamaoka Tesshu, as a young student of Zen, visited one master after another.
He called upon Dokuon of Shokoku. Wanting to impress, he said,
“The mind, Buddha, and sentient beings — all three do not exist.
The true nature of phenomena is emptiness. There is no realization, no delusion, no sage, no mediocrity.
There is no giving and nothing to be received.”
Dokuon listened quietly. Suddenly, he whacked Yamaoka with his pipe.
The student leapt up in anger.
“If nothing exists,” Dokuon said, “where did that anger come from?”
6. The Gates of Paradise
A samurai asked Hakuin, “Is there really a heaven and a hell?”
Hakuin looked him over and said, “You’re just a dirty soldier. I bet you couldn’t cut off my head.”
Enraged, the samurai drew his sword.
Hakuin said, “Here open the gates of hell.”
Shocked, the samurai sheathed his sword.
Hakuin said, “Here open the gates of heaven.”
7. If You Love, Love Openly
A monk named Ryokan lived a simple life.
One day, he caught a thief in his hut.
“There’s nothing here to steal,” Ryokan said. “But you can have my clothes.”
The thief ran away, confused.
Later, Ryokan sat naked, watching the moon.
“Poor fellow,” he mused, “I wish I could give him this beautiful moon.”
8. The Moon Cannot Be Stolen
A thief entered the hut of a Zen master and found there was nothing to steal.
The master returned and caught him, saying:
“You have come a long way to visit me, and you should not return empty-handed. Please take my clothes as a gift.”
The thief, bewildered, fled.
Later, the master wrote:
“The moon at the window –
The thief left it behind –
Such a beautiful night.”
9. Wash Your Bowl
A monk told the master Joshu, “I have just entered the monastery. Please teach me.”
Joshu asked, “Have you eaten your rice porridge?”
The monk replied, “Yes.”
Joshu said, “Then wash your bowl.”
10. Nothing Exists
Yamaoka, a brash student of Zen, told the master Dokuon, “Everything is empty. There is no you or me, no mind, no body.”
Dokuon responded by hitting him with a stick.
When Yamaoka reacted with anger, Dokuon asked,
“If nothing exists, where did your anger come from?”
11. Three Days More
A student asked the master, “How long will it take me to be enlightened if I work very hard?”
The master said, “Ten years.”
The student replied, “What if I try even harder?”
“Twenty years.”
“And if I try harder still?”
“Thirty years.”
“Why does it take longer the harder I try?”
The master said, “When you have one eye on the goal, you only have one eye on the path.”
12. Obedience
A master told his disciple to water a dry flower bed every day, though nothing grew there.
For three years, the student obeyed without question.
One day, flowers bloomed.
The master said, “You are ready. Not because of the flowers, but because you followed without seeking reward.”