Two clay oxen

The Record of Tung-shan (Dongshan) #23:

The Master together with Uncle Mi went to visit Lung-shan.
The old monk asked, "There are no roads into these mountains, so what route did you follow to get here?"
"Granted, there are no roads, so what, then, did you follow to get here, Ho-shang?" countered the Master.
The old monk said, "I didn't come following clouds or water."
"How long has the Ho-shang lived on this mountain?" asked the Master.
"I am not concerned with the passing of springs and autumns," replied the old monk.
"Which was situated here first, you, Ho-shang, or the mountain?" asked the Master.
"I don't know," said the old monk.
"Why don't you know?" asked the Master.
"I didn't come following gods or men," replied the old monk.
"What reason do you, Ho-shang, find for dwelling on this mountain?" asked the Master.
"I saw two clay oxen struggling with each other, until they fell into the sea. Ever since then, fluctuations have ceased," the old monk replied.
The Master paid homage with a renewed sense of decorum.

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Considering so much of what is called 'sanity' is social convention, I think Zen masters are 'crazy'. It's so tempting to think that because we work a certain way, and everyone we've ever met appears to work that way too, that this is 'the way people work'. But rare events happen all the time, and one thing that's become more apparent as I've gotten older is that people can be surprisingly different. I haven't seen the limits of variation in interpretation. I bet most people have seen two clay oxen.

Falling into the sea doesn't happen by following a path of reason. Clouds and water though?

This is one of my favourite stories at the moment. Hope you enjoy. Be well and stay safe.

Submitted May 06, 2020 at 09:36PM by sje397 https://ift.tt/2Ww1OE9