A ballad singer studied under a strict teacher who insisted that he rehearse day after day, month after month the same passage from the same song, without being permitted to go any further. Finally, overwhelmed by frustration and despair, the young man ran off to find another profession. One night, stopping at an inn, he – Read More –
A student came to his teacher and said he was confused. He’d been observing his teacher give counsel now for several months, and it seemed that the teacher never gave the same advice. Not only that, he appeared to give contradictory advice to his students. The student asked for an explanation, for he could find – Read More –
There once lived a great warrior. Though quite old, he still was able to defeat any challenger. His reputation extended far and wide throughout the land and many students gathered to study under him. One day an infamous young warrior arrived at the village. He was determined to be the first man to defeat the – Read More –
Zen painting is a form of meditation. The paintings are created on rice paper so that corrections cannot be made. In this way, the mind has nothing to do while painting. The artist simply paints without thought of correction, creating brush strokes with the feeling of the moment. Zen painting also honors nature and incorporates – Read More –
As children of the Creator, we have the power to create our own Heaven or Hell on Earth. The following Zen parable illustrates: A criminal, well known for his savagery, came to the young monk and demanded that he teach him about Heaven and Hell. The young monk replied, “I will teach you nothing. You – Read More –
A man walked into a temple. In the middle of the room was a stone. The man sat down on the floor and put his feet up on the stone.
The priest of the temple rushed in and asked, “Don’t you know what a sin you’ve just done? No one can put their feet on such a holy shrine! The punishment for such an act is eternity in Hell.”
The man, humble in his way, answered, “Please accept my apology, for I did not know that what I did was wrong. Can you please place my feet where God won’t be offended?”