Choshin said, “People say that the Buddha transmitted the dharma to Mahakasyapa in secret and shared his seat with him. The people attending the talk should have spat in the Buddha’s face. Because they didn’t do that, their offspring are still in calamity now.”
Student: “What is the error that these ancient people made?”
Master: “They misled their offspring into believing that the Buddha did what he hadn’t done.”
Student: “What was it that the Buddha did?”
Master: “He transmitted the dharma to Mahakasyapa in secret and shared his seat with him.”
Commentary:
People don’t know what the Buddha’s gift is like, because they dropped and broke it into pieces when the Buddha handed it to them.
©Boo Ahm
All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway
Zen Fools 