ABOUT

Zen Parables
Zen is difficult to describe. It is a sect of
Buddhism, but it is less a religion than a form
of Buddhist meditative practice. It has no holy
book, no ornate church or temple, no
complicated ritual. Zen monks do not preach
sermons about right and wrong behavior.
Zen focuses on the inner self, rather than
on the outer self that acts in the world. Yet
for eight hundred years, Zen has strongly
appealed to japanese warriors as well as to
monks, politicians, and artists. Today, it is also
practiced by people in the East and the West
from all walks of life and different religions
who wish to find inner peace, relieve stress,
and focus on essential priorities.

The Philosophy of Zen

The object of Zen is to free the mind from
everyday, conventional logic through meditation. Followers of Zen believe that meditation
empties the mind and suppresses the ego.
leading to a clearer understanding of one's
own nature. According to one legend,
Bodhldharma, a famous Zen monk, gazed at
a blank wall for nine years before achieving
inner enlightenment.

Monks and Warriors

Originating in India and spreading to China.
Zen Buddhism was introduced to japan in
I 191. Zen monasteries were soon founded in
Kamakura and Kyoto. During the Kamakura
period (I 185-1333). the samurai, feudal
warriors who served the aristocracy, were
attracted to Zen because of its discipline and
simplicity. They applied Zen principles to
martial arts such as archery and fencing.
Virtually every aspect of Japanese culture
has been influenced by Zen. Because monks

Japanese painting of a Zen monk.

drank bitter green tea in order to stay awake

during meditation. tea drinking grew into an
intricate and symbol-laden ritual. The arts also
felt the impact of Zen. as manifested in the
conciseness of haiku poetry (see page 448).
Nearly every art form of classical japanpainting, poetry, dance, architecture. drama,
and even gardening-has been shaped to some
degree by Zen. with its emphasis on simplicity,
self-discipline, and meditation. Even the
expressions of everyday Japanese speech
reflect Zen values.

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Zen Parables
Make the Connection

Background

Quickwrite
As a class, compile a list of familiar stories
that teach a lesson--perhaps the stories are
from the Bible or another religious text, or
they may be folk tales you have read or
heard from members of your family. What
lessons do the stories teach! How did you
figure out the lessons! Do any of the stories
share the same message]

Zen parables were originally used to teach

aspiring monks about Buddhism. The
relationship between a Zen monk and his
teacher is an extraordinary one. Instead of
imparting knowledge in a clear and logical
way, the Zen master at first deliberately
tries to confuse his students, a tactic that
forces them to abandon preconceived ideas.
This technique prepares the students to
understand the sometimes paradoxical, or
contradictory, nature of truth.
For example, to unsettle his students, a
master may assume a fierce expression and
a cold demeanor. He may ask a pupil a question and then interrupt him halfway through
the answer. He may pose what appears to
be a ridiculous question, such as "What did
your face look like before you were born?"
He may command students to perform
seemingly impossible tasks like "Pull a bird
out of your sleeve." He may also answer a
serious question with an absurd response.
Ifa pupil asks, "What is the nature of the
Buddha!" his master might reply, "Pass me
that fan!" or "Pork dumpling!"
Zen masters behave in these ways in part
to make students wary of language and conventional ways of thinking. Words, according
to Zen philosophy, can be dangerous, for
they prevent people from experiencing the
world directly as it actually is.

Literary Focus
Parable

Parables are brief stories that teach a

moral, or lesson, about life. They are often
allegorical, having both literal and symbolic
levels of meaning. The most famous parables
in Western literature are those told by
Christ in the New Testament (see page 83) .
Christ presents moral lessons in short tales
about everyday events such as a stray sheep
or a spendthrift son. Behind the simple story
is a wise lesson about the right way to live.
Many Zen stories are also deceptively simple
tales that contain profound truths.

A parable is a short, allegorical story

that teaches a moral or religious
lesson about life.

For more on Parables, see the Handbook

of Literary and Historical Terms.

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BaI

Literature of India, China. and Japan

ZEN

PARABLES

translated by Paul Reps

Carved statue of a Luohan .Yuan dynasty

(c. 1271-1368).
Victoria & Albert Museum. London (A.29-193 I).

Muddy Road
Tanzan and Ekido! were once traveling together
down a muddy road. A heavy rain was still
falling.
Coming around a bend, they met a lovely girl
in a silk kimono / and sash, unable to cross the
intersection.
1. Tanzan (tan'zari') and Ekido (e-ke'do).
2. kimono n.: wide-sleeved robe, fastened with a sash;
part of the traditional costume for men and women
in Japan.

"Come on, girl," said Tanzan at once. Lifting

her in his arms, he carried her over the mud.
Ekido did not speak again until that night
when they reached a lodging temple. Then he no
longer could restrain himself. "We monks don't
go near females," he told Tanzan, "especially not
young and lovely ones. It is dangerous. Why did
you do that?"
"I left the girl there," said Tanzan. "Are you
still carrying her?"
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465

The Thief Who Became a Disciple

One evening as Shichiri Kojun " was reciting
sutras a thief with a sharp sword entered,
demanding either his money or his life.
Shichiri told him: "Do not disturb me. You
can find the money in that drawer." Then he
resumed his recitation.
A little while afterwards he stopped and
called: "Don't tak e it all. I need some to pay
taxes with tomorrow."
The intruder gathered up most of the money
and started to leave. "Thank a person when you
receive a gift," Shichiri added. The man thanked
him and made off.
A few days afterwards the fellow was caught
and confessed, among others, the offense again st
Shichiri. When Shichiri was called as a witness
he said: "This man is no thief, at least as far as I
am concerned. I gave him the money and he
thanked me for it."
After he had finished his prison term, the
man went to Shichiri and became his disciple.
Dragon andTiger by Chao Kyoshi. Detail of a multi-panel
screen. Edo period (19th century).

A Parable
Buddha told a parable in a sutra'
A man traveling across a field encountered a
tiger. He fled, the tiger after him. Coming to a
precipice, he caught hold of the root of a wild
vine and swung himself down over the edge. The
tiger sniffed at him from above. Trembling, the
man looked down to where, far below, another
tiger was waiting to eat him. Only the vine
sustained him.
Two mice, one white and one black, little
by little started to gnaw away the vine. The
man saw a luscious strawberry near him.
Grasping the vine with one hand, he plucked the
strawberry with the other. How sweet it tasted!
3. sutra (soo'tr;) ) 11. : on e of a collection of
stories that describe the teachings of the
Buddha .

466

The Taste of Banzo's Sword

Matajuro Yagyu'' was the son of a famous
swordsman. His father, believing that his son's
work was too mediocre to anticipate mastership,
disowned him.
So Matajuro went to Mount Futara? and
there found the famous swordsman Banzo.?
But Banza confirmed the father's judgment.
"You wish to learn swordsmanship under my
guidance?" asked Banzo. "You cannot fulfill
the requirements."
"But if! work hard, how many years will it
take me to become a master?" persisted the youth.
"The rest of your life," replied Banza.
"I cannot wait that long," explained Matajura. "I am willing to pass through any hardship
if only you will teach me. If I become your
devoted servant, how long might it be?"
4.
5.
6.
7.

Shichiri Kojun (she-die 're ko'jan).

Matajuro Yagyu (ma-ta-jon' ro yag'oo).
Mount Futara (foota'ra).
Banzo (ban'zo).

Literature of India, China. and Japan

Combat

ofSamurai Warriors

by Utagawa Hiroshige. Edo period (19th century) .

Musee des Arts Asiatiques-Gu imet , Paris.

"Oh, maybe ten years," Banzo relented.

"My father is getting old, and soon I must take
care of him," continued Matajuro. "If I work far
more intensively, how long would it take me?"
"Oh, maybe thirty years," said Banzo,
"Why is that?" asked Matajuro. "First you say
ten and now thirty years. I will undergo any
hardship to master this art in the shortest time!"
"W ell," said Banzo, "in that case you will have
to remain with me for seventy years. A man in
such a hurry as you are to get results seldom
learns quickly."
"Very well," declared the youth, understanding at last that he was being rebuked for
impatience, "I agree."
Mat ajuro was told never to speak of fencing
and never to touch a sword. He cooked for his
master, washed the dishes, made his bed,

cleaned the yard, cared for the garden , all

without a word of swordsmanship.
Three years passed. Still Matajuro labored on.
Thinking of his future, he was sad. He had not
even begun to learn the art to which he had
devoted his life.
But one day Banzo crept up behind him and
gave him a terrific blow with a wooden sword.
The following day, when Matajuro was
cooking rice, Banzo again sprang upon him
unexpectedly.
After that, day and night, Matajuro had to
defend himself from unexpected thrusts. Not a
moment passed in any day that he did not have
to think of the taste of Banzo's sword.
He learned so rapidl y he brought smiles to
the face of his master. Matajuro became the
greatest swordsman in the land.
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467

CONNECTION to ZEN PARABLES

Zen Garden's Calming Effect

Due to Subliminal Image?

[ INFORMATIONAL TEXT )

Hillary Mayell
National Geographic News, September 25, 2002

t's the kind of thing you simply have to

experience for yourself. Otherwise, the Zen
rock garden of the Ryoanji Temple in Kyoto,
Japan, a United Nations World Heritage site,
simply defies the imagination.
The garden, after all, has no plants-no
flowers, no trees, not even any weeds.
It's a 30- by 10-meter (roughly 98- by
32-foot) rectangle surrounded by earthen
walls on three sides and a wooden veranda 1
on the fourth. Inside the rectangle is a vista
of white pebbles and 15 rocks. And it is world
famous for the peace and serenity anyone and
everyone who visits it feels.
Visual-imaging scientists in Japan say
they've figured out what it is about the garden
that engenders/ this serenity. The secret: The
more than 500-year-old garden is harboring a
subliminal.' message in the form of a tree.

Zen, Meditation, and

Rock Gardens
The Ryoanji Temple (Temple of the Peaceful
Dragon) is a Zen place of worship and meditation first built sometime during the 1450s. It
burned when most of Kyoto was leveled by fire
during the Onin Wars, and was rebuilt in 1486.
The rock garden, which fronts the abbot's?

1. veranda (vo-ran'da) 11.: porch with a roof.

2. engenders (en-jeri'darz) v.: causes.
3. subliminal (sub-lim 'a-nol) adj. : meant to affect
on e's subconscious.
4. abbot (ab 'ot) n.: head of a monastery.

468

quarters, was laid out around this time as a

place for th e monks to meditate.
Thought by many to be the quintessences of
Zen art , the garden is in the dry landscape style
called Karesansui ("withered landscape").
The garden 's 15 rocks are of various sizes,
placed in five separate groupings. The white
gravel that surrounds them is raked every day;
perfect circles around the rocks, perfectly
straight lines in the rest of the space. The rocks
are arranged so that no matter where a visitor
stands, only 14 can be seen. It is said that only
when you attain spiritual enlightenment as a
result of Zen meditation will you see the 15th
stone.
Over the centuries, various explanations for
the garden 's layout have been given: That the
white gravel represents the ocean and the rocks
the islands of Japan; that they represent a
mother tiger and her cubs, swimming in the
river of the white sand toward a fearful
dragon; or that the rocks represent the Chinese
symbol for "heart" or "m ind."

Unconscious Eye
However, it's the empty space created by the
placement of the rocks and the void created by
the white gravel that has long intrigued visitors.
Now the mystery may have been resolved.
Gert van Tonder, a postdoctoral fellow of the
Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science
5. quintessence (kwin-tes'ans) n.: perfect example of
a thing.

literature of India, China, and Japan

Rock garden at Ryoanji Temple, Kyoto.

at Kyoto Uni versity, and Michael J. Lyons, a

sen ior scientist at ATR Media Information Lab s
in Kyoto, applied a shape-analysis technique
that can reveal hidden structural features to the
garden's em pty space.
Earli er stu d ies of how humans and other
primates process visual images su ggest that we
have an unconscious sensitivity to the medial
axis of sha pes, said van Tonder.
"Im agine starting two fires in a field of dry
grass:' he said . "Where the fires meet, at points
equidistant between the two sta rting locations,
is the m edi al axis."
His ana lysis indicates that the same unconscious sensi tivity is able to d iscern th e im age of
a trunk and branches of a tree within the Zen
garden's pattern of rocks and ston es. Viewed
from the veranda, th e image is apparent to the

subconscious but is invisible to th e eye.

The authors conclude in a report published
in the September 26 issue of the journal Nature
that the unconscious perception of this pattern
is the sour ce of the gard en's calming effect.
If the rocks were to b e rearranged, the invisible tree structure is lost, they say.
Van Tonder believes the garden's designer
intended to create the subliminal featuredemonstrating an understanding of the
physics of the human eye and subconscious
hundreds of yea rs ago .

According to the article , what might be the

U "secr et" beh ind t he calming effect of the
Zen garden at Ryoanji Temple? How does the
writer of this article use details to help you
unde rstand the layout of the Zen garden?

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469

Response and Analysis

Reading Check
I. Who are Tanzan and Ekido? For what
does Ekido criticize Tanzan in "Muddy
Road"?
2. Name all the dangers that the man in "A
Parable" faces.
3. In "The Thief Who Became a Disciple,"
what does Shichiri testify in court?
4. In "The Taste of Banzo's Sword," why
does Matajuro become sad working with
the master Banzo?

Thinking Critically

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5. In "Muddy Road," what does Tanzan

mean when he asks Ekido if he is still
carrying the girl?
6. In "A Parable," what might the precipice,
the tigers , and the mice symbolize, or
stand for? What is the significance of the
man eating the strawberry? What lesson
about life do you think this parable
teaches?
7. Why do you think the thief becomes the
disciple of Shichiri Kojun? What values
does this parable teach?
8. Describe Banzo's unconventional teaching methods. What do you think he is
teaching Matajuro about the art of
swordsmanship?

Extending and Evaluating

WRITING
Writing a Parable

Many Zen parables contain a paradox, or

apparent contradiction that is actually true.
Think about how a seeming contradiction
can ultimately prove true. Then, write a
brief parable of your own about one of the
following paradoxical situations:
a competition that is won through losing
a person who becomes rich by giving
something away
an enemy who becomes a friend when he
or she is trusted
a difficult task that becomes easy once a
person stops trying so hard
a scary situation that changes when a
person stops feeling fear

LISTENING AND SPEAKING

Acting Out a Parable

Pair off with another student, and adapt one

of the Zen parables you 've just read to a
modern setting and situation without losing
its moral. For insta nce, you could adapt "The
Taste of Banzo's Sword" by making Banzo
a basketball coach who teaches his students
by throwing balls at them when they least
expect it. Then, with your partner, create a
script for your dramatization, and act out
your parable for the class.

9. Are any ofthe lessons in these Zen

parables similar to lessons in stories that
you know? Review the list you made for
your Quickwrite response.
Literary Skills
Analyze
parables.
Writing Skills
Write a parable.
Listening and
Speaking
Skills
Act out a
parable.

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Literature of India. China. and Japan