No Mind: The Flowers of Eternity - 07

The world of the gurus has ended

BELOVED BUDDHA,

ONCE, AFTER DAIJI HAD BECOME AN ENLIGHTENED MASTER, HE SAID TO HIS MONKS, "I'M NOT GOING TO EXPLAIN ANY MORE DEBATES; YOU KNOW, IT'S JUST A DISEASE."

AT THIS, A MONK STOOD UP FROM THE ASSEMBLY AND CAME FORWARD; DAIJI WENT BACK TO HIS ROOM.

ON ANOTHER OCCASION, WHEN DAIJI WAS SWEEPING THE GROUND, JOSHU ASKED HIM HOW TO MANIFEST PRAJNA.

DAIJI REPEATED, "HOW CAN WE MANIFEST PRAJNA?" AT THIS, JOSHU GAVE A GREAT LAUGH.

THE NEXT DAY, SEEING JOSHU SWEEPING THE GROUND, DAIJI ASKED HIM, "HOW CAN WE MANIFEST PRAJNA?" JOSHU PUT DOWN HIS BROOM AND LAUGHED ALOUD, CLAPPING HIS HANDS.

DAIJI WENT BACK TO HIS ROOM.

No Mind: The Flowers of Eternity - 06

My change has taken me higher

BELOVED BUDDHA,

ONCE A DISCIPLE OF MA TZU, CALLED IKAN, WAS ASKED BY A MONK, "HAS THE DOG THE BUDDHA-NATURE OR NOT?"

IKAN REPLIED YES, AND THE MONK THEN ASKED, "HAVE YOU GOT IT OR NOT?"

IKAN RESPONDED, "I HAVE NOT."

THEN THE MONK ASKED, "ALL EXISTENT CREATURES HAVE THE BUDDHA-NATURE; HOW IS IT THAT YOU HAVEN'T?"

IKAN SAID, "I DON'T BELONG TO ALL EXISTENT CREATURES."

THE MONK COMMENTED, "YOU SAY YOU DON'T BELONG TO ALL EXISTENT CREATURES.

THIS 'YOU' - IS IT A BUDDHA OR NOT?"

IKAN SAID, "IT IS NOT A BUDDHA."

No Mind: The Flowers of Eternity - 05

I am just myself

BELOVED BUDDHA,

CHOSA WAS A DISCIPLE OF NANSEN AND A CONTEMPORARY OF TOKUSAN, RINZAI AND ISAN. ONE DAY CHOSA WENT FOR A WALK AND WHEN HE RETURNED TO THE GATE, THE HEAD MONK ASKED HIM, "OSHO, WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN STROLLING?"

CHOSA REPLIED, "I HAVE COME FROM WALKING IN THE HILLS."

THE HEAD MONK SAID, "WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?"

CHOSA SAID, "FIRST I WENT FOLLOWING THE FRAGRANT GRASSES, AND NOW I HAVE RETURNED IN PURSUIT OF THE FALLING BLOSSOMS."

AT THIS THE HEAD MONK COMMENTED, "YOU ARE FULL OF THE SPRING."

CHOSA REPLIED, "BETTER THAN THE AUTUMN DEWS FALLING ON THE LOTUS LEAVES."

ONE EVENING CHOSA (WHO WAS KYOZAN'S "UNCLE" IN THE DHARMA LINEAGE) WAS ENJOYING THE MOONLIGHT WITH KYOZAN, WHO SAID, "EVERYONE HAS 'THIS ONE THING' BUT DOES NOT KNOW HOW TO USE IT."

CHOSA REPLIED, "PERHAPS I SHOULD EMPLOY YOU AND USE IT."

KYOZAN EXCLAIMED, "TRY IT!"

INSTANTLY, CHOSA TRAMPLED ON KYOZAN.

No Mind: The Flowers of Eternity - 04

In your eyes is the hope of the world

BELOVED BUDDHA,

ONE DAY WHEN ISAN AND THE MONKS WERE ENGAGED IN PICKING TEA LEAVES, ISAN CALLED TO KYOZAN, "ALL DAY I HAVE HEARD YOUR VOICE AND NOT SEEN YOU." KYOZAN, INSTEAD OF SAYING ANYTHING, SHOOK A TEA PLANT.

ISAN SAID, "YOU HAVE GOT THE USE, BUT NOT THE SUBJECT."

"I ASK YOU, WHAT DO YOU SAY?" SAID KYOZAN. ISAN KEPT SILENT.

THEN KYOZAN SAID, "YOU HAVE GOT THE SUBJECT, BUT NOT THE USE."

MORE THAN TEN DISCIPLES OF KYOZAN'S BECAME ENLIGHTENED.

A FEW YEARS BEFORE KYOZAN PASSED AWAY, HE COMPOSED THE FOLLOWING GATHA:

WHEN MY YEARS REACH

SEVENTY-SEVEN

MY DEPARTURE WILL TAKE PLACE.

I WILL LEAVE IT TO MY NATURE

No Mind: The Flowers of Eternity - 03

A meeting of two rivers

BELOVED BUDDHA,

ONCE KAKUSAN WENT TO SEE KYOZAN. RAISING HIS FOOT, KAKUSAN SAID, "THE TWENTY- EIGHT INDIAN PATRIARCHS WERE LIKE THIS, AND THE SIX PATRIARCHS OF THE COUNTRY OF T'ANG WERE LIKE THIS, AND YOU ARE LIKE THIS, AND I AM LIKE THIS!"

KYOZAN CAME DOWN FROM THE ZEN SEAT AND HIT HIM FOUR TIMES WITH THE WISTERIA STAFF.

AFTER KAKUSAN BECAME ENLIGHTENED, AN ASCETIC ONCE SAID TO HIM, "WHAT IS THE TRUE MEANING OF BUDDHISM?"

KAKUSAN REMAINED SILENT AND BOWED TO HIM.

THE ASCETIC ASKED, "ARE YOU BOWING TO A MAN OF THE WORLD?"

KAKUSAN REPLIED, "DON'T YOU SEE WHAT I AM SAYING? I AM YOUR FAMOUS DISCIPLE!"

AT ANOTHER TIME KYOZAN, ON SEEING A MONK APPROACH HIM, RAISED HIS MOSQUITO FLAPPER. AT THIS, THE MONK SHOUTED LOUDLY, "KWATZ!"

No Mind: The Flowers of Eternity - 02

An assembly of two buddhas

BELOVED BUDDHA,

ON ONE OCCASION WHEN A MONK ASKED KYOZAN THE MEANING OF BODHIDHARMA COMING FROM THE WEST, KYOZAN DREW A CIRCLE IN THE AIR AND PUT THE CHARACTER FOR BUDDHA INSIDE IT. THIS LEFT THE MONK WITHOUT WORDS.

AT ANOTHER TIME, KYOZAN WAS LIVING IN SEKITEI TEMPLE IN KOSHU. A MONK CAME UP TO HIM AND SAID, "MASTER, DO YOU KNOW CHINESE CHARACTERS?"

"AS FAR AS BEFITS MY POSITION," RESPONDED KYOZAN.

THE MONK THEN CIRCLED KYOZAN ONCE IN THE ANTI-CLOCKWISE DIRECTION AND

ASKED HIM, "WHAT CHARACTER IS THIS?"

KYOZAN DREW THE CHARACTER FOR THE NUMBER TEN. THEN THE MONK WALKED

AROUND HIM IN A CLOCKWISE DIRECTION AND ASKED WHAT CHARACTER THAT WAS.

KYOZAN CHANGED THE FIGURE TEN (WHICH LOOKS LIKE A PLUS SIGN) INTO A SWASTIKA.

No Mind: The Flowers of Eternity - 01

To create a few more rainbows

BELOVED BHAGWAN,

ONCE A MONK WAS ASKED BY KYOZAN, "WHERE HAVE YOU COME FROM?" TO WHICH THE MONK REPLIED, "FROM YUSHU."

KYOZAN THEN ASKED HIM, "I'D LIKE TO KNOW SOMETHING INTERESTING ABOUT YUSHU; WHAT'S THE PRICE OF RICE THERE?"

THE MONK REPLIED, "AS I WAS COMING HERE, I UNINTENTIONALLY PASSED OVER THE BRIDGE OF THAT TOWN AND TROD ON THE GIRDERS OF THE BRIDGE, BREAKING THEM."

ON ANOTHER OCCASION KYOZAN WAS WASHING HIS CLOTHES AND TANGEN ASKED HIM, "WHAT SHOULD WE DO AT THIS MOMENT?"

KYOZAN ANSWERED, "AT THIS MOMENT WHERE SHALL WE LOOK?"

TANGEN MADE NO REPLY.