You Can Be Still And Still Moving

A senior monk and a novice monk took turns to carry water to the temple. As there was a distance between the well and the temple, the senior monk needed to make 10 trips, whereas the novice monk took only 6 trips, to fill the urn with water.

09.05.2016

The senior monk was puzzled. He asked the novice monk, “I am stronger than you are and I certainly walk faster than you. Furthermore, our buckets are filled to the brim at every trip. Why then are you able to fill the urn with less number of trips?”

The novice monk replied, "This is because you are stronger and walked with greater speed and movements, hence causing more spillage. I am weaker and walked slowly but more steadily, hence only a little spillage occurred. As such, I reach the temple with a bucket almost full of water each time.”

Slow and steady yield better results. Hastiness yields more waste. Don’t be rash in whatever we do as the key to yielding better results is stability.

Bodhi - Meditation & Health Magazine

The Jade Craftsman

A jade craftsman sought advice from a Zen Master over his troubles. He had been commissioned by his customer to carve a piece of jade. As he was skillful and precise in his measurements, he had a leftover of a small piece of jade, which he proceeded to carve it too.

08.31.2016

Now that he had two pieces of carved jade, he was in a dilemma because he was unsure whether he should present both pieces to his customer. After listening to him, the Zen Master said with a smile, "In fact, your action has already revealed to you the answer."

The craftsman pondered and asked, "Why is it so?"

The Zen Master replied, "You have optimized the use of the stone when you cut it. This reflects your charitable thought and heart, and your love and affection for all things. As such, you would not lose anything if you do not present this customer with the smaller piece of jade. Neither would you lose anything if you present him with it. In fact, losing a treasure would bring you other gains.”

This awakened the craftsman and he quickly left the mountain to look for his customer. Eventually, the big and small pieces of jade were delivered to the customer. The craftsman soon became a reputable craftsman as his thoughtful action traveled far and wide by word of mouth.

Many jade traders looked him up for collaborations. The craftsman was indeed thankful that he had chosen to “present”.

Bodhi - Meditation & Health Magazine