Be the one to win the race

A Zen master was given a beautifully crafted crystal cup. It was a gift from a former student.

He was very grateful. Every day, he enjoyed drinking out of his glass. He would show it to visitors and tell them about the kindness of his student. 

But every morning, he held the cup in his hand for a few seconds and reminded himself: “This glass is already broken.”

One day, a clumsy visitor toppled the glass on its shelf. The cup fell down. When it hit the floor, it was smashed into thousands of tiny pieces.

The other visitors gasped in shock, but the Zen master remained calm. Looking at the mess in front of his feet, he said: “Ah. Yes. Let’s begin.”

He picked up a broom and started sweeping.

My thoughts: Happiness quotient of our life takes the shape of our emotions. When we accept the fact that we may not have certain things in our lives for some reasons beyond our control, we gain fifty percent of happiness. And when we accept the fact that one day or the other we may lose what we have as well, the balance fifty percent of happiness is achieved. 

When you are grateful for your possessions, you are second in the race for happiness. But when you accept that you may lose whatever you possess too any day, you are ahead of everyone in the race.

Be the one to win the race.

A call for compassion

Zen Story

One evening, Zen master Shichiri Kojun was reciting sutras when a thief entered his house with a sharp sword, demanding "money or life".

Without any fear, Shichiri said, "Don't disturb me! Help yourself with the money, it's in that drawer". And he resumed his recitation.

The thief was startled by this unexpected reaction, but he proceeded with his business anyway. While he was helping himself with the money, the master stopped and called, "Don't take all of it. Leave some for me to pay my taxes tomorrow".

The thief left some money behind and prepared to leave. Just before he left, the master suddenly shouted at him, "You took my money and you didn't even thank me?! That's not polite!".

This time, the thief was really shocked at such fearlessness. He thanked the master and ran away. The thief later told his friends that he had never been so frightened in his life.

A few days later, the thief was caught and confessed, among many others, his theft at Shichiri's house.

When the master was called as a witness, he said, "No, this man did not steal anything from me. I gave him the money. He even thanked me for it."

The thief was so touched that he decided to repent.

Upon his release from prison, he became a disciple of the master and many years later, he attained Enlightenment.

Attack a problem head on

A Grand Master and the Guardian shared the administration of a Zen monastery.

One day, the Guardian died and a replacement had to be found. The Grand Master gathered together all the disciples in order to decide who would have the honour of working at his side.

'I am going to set you a problem,' said the Grand Master.

'And the first one to solve that problem will be the new Guardian of the temple.'

Once this briefest of speeches was over, he placed a small stool in the middle of the room. On it stood a priceless porcelain vase containing a red rose.

'There is the problem,' said the Grand Master.

The disciples looked in some perplexity at what was there before them: the rare, sophisticated designs on the porcelain vase and the elegance of the flower. What did it represent? What should they do? What did this enigma mean?

After a few moments, one of the disciples got to his feet and looked at the master and at his fellow students. Then he walked resolutely over to the vase and threw it to the ground, shattering it.

'You are the new Guardian,' the Grand Master said to the student.

And as soon as the student had returned to his place, he explained.

'I made myself perfectly clear. I said that there was a problem to be solved. Now it does not matter how beautiful or fascinating a problem might be, it has to be eliminated. And so I shattered the vase.’

A problem is a problem. It could be a very rare porcelain vase, a delightful love affair that no longer makes any sense, or a course of action that we should abandon……

There is only one way to deal with a problem: attack it head on. Running away from a problem only increases its distance from the solution. The easiest way to escape from a problem is to attack it.

Anger management

A Zen student said to his teacher, "Master, I have an ungovernable temper. Help me get rid of it."

"You have something very strange," said the teacher.

"Show it to me."

"Right now I cannot show it to you."

"Why not?"

"It arises suddenly."

"Then it cannot be your own true nature," said the teacher, "if it were, you would be able to show it to me at any time. Why are you allowing something that is not yours to trouble your life?"

Thereafter whenever the student felt his temper rising he remembered his teacher's words and checked his anger.

In time, he developed a calm and placid temperament.

Pleasure and the Tongue

Zen story

A Zen master was resting with one of his disciples. At one point, he took a melon out of his bag and cut it in two so that both could eat it.

While they were eating, the disciple said: 'Wise master, since everything you do has a meaning, perhaps your sharing this melon with me is a sign that you have something to teach me.'

The master continued eating in silence.

'Your silence obviously conceals a question,' the disciple insisted, 'and it must be this: ‘does the pleasure I am experiencing in eating this delicious fruit reside in the melon or in my tongue?'

The master said nothing.

The disciple went on excitedly: 'And since everything in life has meaning, I think I am close to finding the answer to that question: the pleasure is an act of love and interdependence between us, because without the melon there would be no object of pleasure and without my tongue…'

'That's enough!' said the master. 'The real fools are those who think themselves terribly intelligent and spend all their time trying to interpret everything. The melon is delicious, and that's enough, now let me eat in peace!'

Are you God?

It is said that when Buddha was first Enlightened he was asked, "Are you a God?"

"No," he replied.

"Are you a saint?"

"No."

"Then what are you?"

And he answered, "I am awake."

Lord Buddha did not answer in affirmation to question  "Are you a God?", as the word God had already a meaning for the questioner. It had a meaning and an idea of God, which essentially is not God. 

Buddha just gave him an indication which could make him realize what God is.

About Zen Stories

Zen stories are not the fiction. These stories are the incidents which really happened with the Enlightened beings and the Zen Masters, who worked or answered the disciples in order to point to bring the awakening in the self.

Zen is a product of Buddhism which traveled with Buddhist monks from India to China to Japan and Zen became popular in Japan. Most Zen masters rather than giving teachings and discourses, would create conditions or use strange looking techniques to awaken and be aware of the working of mind of the disciple..

Zen is creative. It brings about creativeness in one’s self. The popularity of Zen is such that the word has taken the place in normal modern life with Zen accessories like Zen clock or Zen Alarm Clock, Zen Garden, Zen Furniture, Zen Mats.

The stories are there. These short stories can have a profound effect on the readers as they did to the listener, or might just pass away as an amusing, entertaining story or even a meaningless story for some. Readers are free, what to take from these stories. However it is due to the profound meanings in these very short stories, these have been favorites for many. Books still gets printed telling these stories and one can find good resource online too.

Concentration

by Unknown

After winning several archery contests, the young and rather boastful champion challenged a Zen master who was renowned for his skill as an archer. The young man demonstrated remarkable technical proficiency when he hit a distant bull's eye on his first try, and then split that arrow with his second shot. "There," he said to the old man, "see if you can match that!"

Undisturbed, the master did not draw his bow, but rather motioned for the young archer to follow him up the mountain. Curious about the old fellow's intentions, the champion followed him high into the mountain until they reached a deep gap spanned by a rather flimsy and shaky log. 

Calmly stepping out onto the middle of the unsteady and certainly perilous bridge, the old master picked a far away tree as a target, drew his bow, and fired a clean, direct hit. 

"Now it is your turn," he said as he gracefully stepped back onto the safe ground. 

Staring with terror into the seemingly bottomless and beckoning abyss, the young man could not force himself to step out onto the log, no less shoot at a target.

"You have much skill with your bow," the master said, sensing his challenger's predicament, "but you have little skill with the mind that lets loose the shot."

Concentration and mental toughness are the margins of victory.

Love + Obedience

A Zen story

There are no 2 ways out of Obedience—either obey the self burning qualities like anger, jealousy and greed or obey the love, compassion and togetherness.

The master Bankei's talks were attended not only by Zen students but by persons of all ranks and sects. He never quoted sutras nor indulged in scholastic dissertations. Instead, his words were spoken directly from his heart to the hearts of his listeners.

His large audiences angered a priest of the Nichiren sect. The self-centered Nichiren priest came to the temple, determined to debate with Bankei.

"Hey, Zen teacher!" he called out. "Wait a minute. Whoever respects you will obey what you say, but a man like myself does not respect you. Can you make me obey you?"

He went to the Master and challenged him. The challenge came from his self centered mind.

The Master is not at for gaining respect, he does not need it. What he wants is the freedom, love and compassion to develop from those attracted towards him. Master's peace and strength of mind and heart is least affected by any disrespect shown to them. He remains cool, that is the strength that a master carries.

Now here was a challenge thrown with disrespect shown towards the master.

"Come up beside me and I will show you," said Bankei.

Proudly the priest pushed his way through the crowd to the teacher.

The priest blinded by his arrogance and the ambition to win over the Master's audience pushes his way from the crowd. The ambition to get back his lost prestige, makes him push from the crowd. No respect or love for them flows through him, hence the pushing. Pushing his way through the mere crowd for his glory.

Bankei smiled. "Come over to my left side."

The Master smiles at him. Looking at the arrogance and disrespect shown towards him and individuals connected with him does not break the strength and silence and smile of His heart.

And very softly he told him, “come over to his left side.”

The priest obeyed but was not at all aware of it. His mind was crowded with the thoughts and feelings of defeating the Master. To show to people and himself that he did not obey the master and was not a part of herd.

"No," said Bankei, "we may talk better if you are on the right side. Step over here."

So naturally and coolly the master asked him to step over on the other side where he was sitting. The master knew what he was doing and the proud priest totally unaware and blinded with pride was following what master asked him to do.

The priest proudly stepped over to the right.

"You see," observed Bankei, "you are obeying me and I think you are a very gentle person. Now sit down and listen."

The 2 important messages here:

1. The master’s gestures did not show that any challenge was faced. Unperturbed he pointed to the priest that he had been obeying him. There was no need of scholarly talks.

2. Regardless of all the pride and arrogance shown by the priest, Master pointed him out the gentle quality in him that obeyed.

Learning to be silent

(A Zen story)

The pupils of the Tendai school used to study meditation before Zen entered Japan. Four of them who were intimate friends promised one another to observe seven days of silence.

On the first day all were silent. Their meditation had begun auspiciously, but when night came and the oil lamps were going dim, one of the pupils could not help exclaiming to the servant, “Fix those lamps”.

The second pupil was surprised to hear the first one talk. “We are not supposed to say a word,” he remarked.

“You are stupid. Why did you talk?” asked the third.

“I’m the only one who has not talked,” concluded the fourth one.