The CMJ Experience

THE JAPANESE MASTER NAN-IN GAVE AUDIENCE TO A PROFESSOR OF PHILOSOPHY. SERVING TEA, NAN-IN FILLED HIS VISITOR'S CUP, AND KEPT POURING. THE PROFESSOR WATCHED THE OVERFLOW UNTIL HE COULD RESTRAIN HIMSELF NO LONGER: STOP! THE CUP IS OVERFULL, NO MORE WILL GO IN. NAN-IN SAID: LIKE THIS CUP, YOU ARE FULL OF YOUR OWN OPINIONS AND SPECULATIONS. HOW CAN I SHOW YOU ZEN UNLESS YOU FIRST EMPTY YOUR CUP?

A MONK ASKED NANSEN: 'IS THERE A TEACHING NO MASTER EVER PREACHED BEFORE?' NANSEN SAID: 'YES THERE IS.' 'WHAT IS IT?' ASKED THE MONK. NANSEN REPLIED: 'IT IS NOT MIND, IT IS NOT BUDDHA, IT IS NOT THINGS.'

A MASTER WAS ASKED BY A CURIOUS MONK: 'WHAT IS THE WAY?' 'IT IS RIGHT BEFORE YOUR EYES,' SAID THE MASTER.'WHY DO I NOT SEE IT FOR MYSELF?' ASKED THE MONK.'BECAUSE YOU ARE THINKING OF YOURSELF,' SAID THE MASTER.'WHAT ABOUT YOU,' SAID THE MONK, 'DO YOU SEE IT?' THE MASTER SAID: 'SO LONG AS YOU SEE DOUBLE, SAYING I DON'T, AND YOU DO, AND SO ON, YOUR EYES ARE CLOUDED.' 'WHEN THERE IS NEITHER I NOR YOU, CAN ONE SEE IT?' SAID THE MONK.'WHEN THERE IS NEITHER I NOR YOU, WHO IS THE ONE WHO WANTS TO SEE IT?' REPLIED THE MASTER.

GENSHA COMPLAINED TO HIS FOLLOWERS ONE DAY: 'OTHER MASTERS ARE ALWAYS CARRYING ON ABOUT THE NECESSITY OF SAVING EVERYONE -- BUT SUPPOSE YOU MEET UP WITH SOMEONE WHO IS DEAF, DUMB AND BLIND: HE COULDN'T SEE YOUR GESTURES, HEAR YOUR PREACHING, OR, FOR THAT MATTER, ASK QUESTIONS. UNABLE TO SAVE HIM, YOU'D PROVE YOURSELF A WORTHLESS BUDDHIST.' TROUBLED BY THESE WORDS, ONE OF GENSHA'S DISCIPLES WENT TO CONSULT THE MASTER UMMON WHO, LIKE GENSHA, WAS A DISCIPLE OF SEPPO.'BOW PLEASE,' SAID UMMON. THE MONK, THOUGH TAKEN BY SURPRISE, OBEYED THE MASTER'S COMMAND -- THEN STRAIGHTENED UP IN EXPECTATION OF HAVING HIS QUERY ANSWERED. BUT INSTEAD OF AN ANSWER, HE GOT A STAFF THRUST AT HIM. HE LEAPT BACK.'WELL,' SAID UMMON, 'YOU'RE NOT BLIND. NOW APPROACH.' THE MONK DID AS HE WAS BIDDEN. 'GOOD,' SAID UMMON, 'YOU'RE NOT DEAF EITHER. WELL, UNDERSTAND?' 'UNDERSTAND WHAT SIR?' SAID THE MONK.'AH, YOU'RE NOT DUMB EITHER,' SAID UMMON. ON HEARING THESE WORDS THE MONK AWOKE AS FROM A DEEP SLEEP.

THE MASTER TOZAN WAS WEIGHING SOME FLAX IN THE STOREROOM. A MONK CAME UP TO HIM AND ASKED: 'WHAT IS BUDDHA?' TOZAN SAID: 'THIS FLAX WEIGHS FIVE POUNDS.'

WHILE TOKAI WAS A VISITOR AT A CERTAIN TEMPLE, A FIRE STARTED UNDER THE KITCHEN FLOOR. A MONK RUSHED INTO TOKAI'S BEDROOM, SHOUTING: 'A FIRE, MASTER, A FIRE!' 'OH?' SAID TOKAI, SITTING UP. 'WHERE?' 'WHERE?' EXCLAIMED THE MONK. 'WHY, UNDER THE KITCHEN FLOOR -- GET UP AT ONCE.' 'THE KITCHEN, EH?' SAID THE MASTER DROWSILY. 'WELL, TELL YOU WHAT, WHEN IT REACHES THE PASSAGEWAY, COME BACK AND LET ME KNOW.' TOKAI WAS SNORING AGAIN IN NO TIME.

LIEH-TZU EXHIBITED HIS SKILL IN ARCHERY TO PO-HUN WU-JEN. WHEN THE BOW WAS DRAWN TO ITS FULL LENGTH, A CUP OF WATER WAS PLACED ON HIS ELBOW AND HE BEGAN TO SHOOT. AS SOON AS THE FIRST ARROW WAS LET FLY, A SECOND WAS ALREADY ON THE STRING, AND THEN A THIRD ONE FOLLOWED. IN THE MEANTIME HE STOOD UNMOVED LIKE A STATUE. PO-HUN WU-JEN SAID: 'THE TECHNIQUE OF SHOOTING IS FINE, BUT IT IS NOT THE TECHNIQUE OF NON-SHOOTING. LET US GO UP TO A HIGH MOUNTAIN AND STAND ON A PROJECTING ROCK, AND THEN YOU TRY AND SHOOT.' THEY CLIMBED UP A MOUNTAIN. STANDING ON A ROCK THAT PROJECTED OVER A PRECIPICE TEN THOUSAND FEET HIGH, PO-HUN WU-JEN MOVED BACKWARDS UNTIL ONE THIRD OF HIS FEET WERE OVERHANGING THE EDGE. HE THEN MOTIONED LIEH-TZU TO COME FORWARD. LIEH-TZU FELL DOWN ON THE GROUND WITH PERSPIRATION FLOWING DOWN TO HIS HEELS. SAID PO-HUN WU-JEN: 'THE PERFECT MAN SOARS UP ABOVE THE BLUE SKY, OR DIVES DOWN TO THE YELLOW SPRINGS, OR WANDERS ALL OVER THE EIGHT LIMITS OF THE WORLD, YET SHOWS NO SIGN OF CHANGE IN HIS SPIRIT. BUT YOU BETRAY A SIGN OF TREPIDATION, AND YOUR EYES ARE DAZED. HOW CAN YOU EXPECT TO HIT THE TARGET?'

AT THE DEATH OF A PARISHIONER, MASTER DOGO, ACCOMPANIED BY HIS DISCIPLE ZENGEN, VISITED THE BEREAVED FAMILY. WITHOUT TAKING TIME TO EXPRESS A WORD OF SYMPATHY, ZENGEN WENT UP TO THE COFFIN, RAPPED ON IT, AND ASKED DOGO:'IS HE REALLY DEAD?' 'I WON'T SAY,' SAID DOGO.'WELL?' INSISTED ZENGEN.'I'M NOT SAYING, AND THAT'S FINAL,' SAID DOGO. ON THEIR WAY BACK TO THE TEMPLE THE FURIOUS ZENGEN TURNED ON DOGO AND THREATENED: 'BY GOD, IF YOU DON'T ANSWER MY QUESTION, WHY I'LL BEAT YOU.' 'ALL RIGHT,' SAID DOGO, 'BEAT AWAY.' A MAN OF HIS WORD, ZENGEN SLAPPED HIS MASTER A GOOD ONE. SOME TIME LATER DOGO DIED, AND ZENGEN, STILL ANXIOUS TO HAVE HIS QUESTION ANSWERED, WENT TO THE MASTER SEKISO, AND, AFTER RELATING WHAT HAD HAPPENED, ASKED THE SAME QUESTION OF HIM. SEKISO, AS IF CONSPIRING WITH THE DEAD DOGO, WOULD NOT ANSWER.'BY GOD!' CRIED ZENGEN. 'YOU TOO?' 'I'M NOT SAYING,' SAID SEKISO, 'AND THAT'S FINAL.' AT THAT VERY INSTANT ZENGEN EXPERIENCED AN AWAKENING.

A MASTER WHO LIVED AS A HERMIT ON A MOUNTAIN WAS ASKED BY A MONK: 'WHAT IS THE WAY?' 'WHAT A FINE MOUNTAIN THIS IS,' THE MASTER SAID IN REPLY.'I AM NOT ASKING YOU ABOUT THE MOUNTAIN,' SAID THE MONK, 'BUT THE WAY.' THE MASTER REPLIED: 'SO LONG AS YOU CANNOT GO BEYOND THE MOUNTAIN, MY SON, YOU CANNOT REACH THE WAY.'

A ZEN STUDENT CAME TO BANKEI AND SAID: 'MASTER, I HAVE AN UNGOVERNABLE TEMPER -- HOW CAN I CURE IT?' 'SHOW ME THIS TEMPER,' SAID BANKEI, 'IT SOUNDS FASCINATING.' 'I HAVEN'T GOT IT RIGHT NOW,' SAID THE STUDENT, 'SO I CAN'T SHOW IT TO YOU.' 'WELL THEN,' SAID BANKEI, 'BRING IT TO ME WHEN YOU HAVE IT.' 'BUT I CAN'T BRING IT JUST WHEN I HAPPEN TO HAVE IT,' PROTESTED THE STUDENT. 'IT ARISES UNEXPECTEDLY, AND I WOULD SURELY LOSE IT BEFORE I GOT IT TO YOU.' 'IN THAT CASE,' SAID BANKEI, 'IT CANNOT BE PART OF YOUR TRUE NATURE. IF IT WERE, YOU COULD SHOW IT TO ME AT ANY TIME. WHEN YOU WERE BORN YOU DID NOT HAVE IT, AND YOUR PARENTS DID NOT GIVE IT TO YOU -- SO IT MUST COME INTO YOU FROM THE OUTSIDE. I SUGGEST THAT WHENEVER IT GETS INTO YOU, YOU BEAT YOURSELF WITH A STICK UNTIL THE TEMPER CAN'T STAND IT, AND RUNS AWAY.'