Once there was a young monk whose soul was as restless as the waves of a storm-tossed sea. He had read much about “enlightenment” and heard that it was like a mighty wind that sweeps away the old and clears the soul. He wanted to possess this state at any cost. One night, when a powerful storm swept across the mountains, he ran out into the darkness. In his hands he carried a delicate paper lantern. He believed that if he ran fast enough and opened the lantern at just the rig

Chan Master Gasan Jōseki (Japanese: 峨山韶碩, Gasan Jōseki) sat at the bedside of his teacher Tekisui (Japanese: 鉄水, Tekisui). Three days before Tekisui would die. Gasan had already been designated by him as his successor. A temple had recently burned down, and Gasan was working tirelessly on its reconstruction. Tekisui asked him: “What will you do when the temple is rebuilt?” Gasan replied: "When you are well again, you should teach there." Tekisui asked further: “And if I am no

A student asked Master Weizhen: “Master, is man superior to animals?” Weizhen looked at him calmly and asked: “What do you call superiority? To dominate others by force?” The student startled. “No, Master. Certainly not.” Weizhen continued: “Is it superiority when humans believe they may shape the world in their own image?” The student hesitated, then said quietly: “That would be blasphemy…” Weizhen nodded. “Often humans believe they know what they are doing, yet they do not