Jingqing asked a monastic, “Where have you been?”
The monastic said, “Three Peaks.”
Jingqing said, “Where were you during the summer?”
The monastic said, “Five Peaks.”
Jingqing said, “I give you thirty blows.”
The monastic said, “What is my fault?”
Jingqing said, “The problem is that you go in and out of monasteries.”
Student: “Why is it a problem to go in and out of monasteries? We sometimes have to go in and out of monasteries to see other masters, or on errands for masters.”
Master: “Why are you out of the monastery in vain now? Come in quickly.”
Commentary:
There is no monastery in the monastery, but there are multiple monasteries out of the monastery.
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
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