Questions & Koans

When Rinzai took leave of Obaku, the latter asked, “Where will you go?” Rinzai replied, “If it is not to the south of the river, it will be to the north of the river.” When Obaku slapped him in the face, Rinzai stopped him and gave him a slap instead. Obaku gave a shout of laughter and ordered his attendant, “Bring the armrest and stool of my late master Hyakujo!” Rinzai said, “Attendant, fetch fire.” Obaku said, “Though this may be so, you’d better take them. In future they will serve you to shut up everybody.”

Commentary:

Obaku’s question ‘Where will you go?’ implies ‘Do you know that the true-Self never moves at all; neither goes nor comes?’. Rinzai’s answer ‘If it is not to the south of the river, it will be to the north of the river’ means that wherever he goes, he is still in the true-Self without any direction. Obaku tested him again to see if he was really aware of the true-Self by slapping him in the face. Rinzai revealed the true-Self by returning him a slap. Convinced of Rinzai’s enlightenment, Obaku wanted to give him the armrest and stool of his late master Hyakujo as a token that his enlightenment was approved by him, just as the historical Buddha transmitted his robe and bowl to Mahakasyapa. That is why he told his attendant to bring them. Rinzai’s ‘Attendant, fetch fire’ means, ‘I know that everything is empty and that we should not be deluded by the illusions of secular things such as the armrest and stool of Obaku’s late master Hyakujo.’

Obaku’s ‘Though this may be so, you’d better take them. In future they will serve you to shut up everybody’ means ‘You are right in that everything is the true-Self in the realm of Emptiness, but you’d better take them in the realm of forms since they will help you to teach others’.

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A. It is true that the cup has every right to be enlightened just as much as we do. However, you should know that if you attain enlightenment, all the universe attains enlightenment along with you, but that the Buddha is also never enlightened, not to mention the cup, unless you are enlightened. If you truly want to see the cup attain enlightenment, you first should attain enlightenment.

Student: “When can I attain enlightenment?”

Master: “When this cup attains enlightenment.”

Student: “When does this cup attain enlightenment?”

Master: “When you attain enlightenment.”

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Layman Pang said, “Everyone has a Sutra. However, there is no one who can read it because it is formless, nameless and textless. If you have ‘I’, that is self, you can neither read nor listen to it. If you happen to be able to read it, you will become one with the principle of no birth and no death. Then, you don’t have to follow Bodhisattvas and don’t have to try to become the Buddha.”

Student: “What is the Sutra that everyone has?”

Master: “You cannot put it down even for a moment.”

Commentary:

Look for it and it is invisible whilst it is with you.

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Rinzai went to Obaku in the middle of the summer retreat. He encountered Obaku reading Sutras and remarked, “I have thought you are a great man! But it is only an old monk who crams black beans into his mouth!” A few days later when he took leave again, Obaku said, “You broke the summer retreat in coming here. And now you leave without finishing it.” Rinzai said, “I only came to pay my respect to you.” Obaku finally hit him and ordered that he be chased away. When Rinzai had gone but a few miles, he had doubts about this affair, returned, and finished the summer retreat.

Commentary:

Reading texts literally without grasping the hidden meanings is compared to pecking black beans in Zen meditation. This is also referred to as being deluded by words. However, grasping the essence of the text without being deluded by words is compared to making a dead snake alive.

By saying, “You broke the summer retreat in coming here. And now you leave without finishing it” Obaku tested Rinzai to see if he would be deluded by words such as summer, retreat, coming, leaving and finishing. Unfortunately, Rinzai didn’t seem to grasp Obaku’s intention when considering Rinzai’s answer and the context of Obaku’s hitting him and ordering that he be chased away. That is why Rinzai was doubtful of the affair, returned and finished the summer retreat. The key point here is that regardless of whether Rinzai was deluded by words or not, we should not make the mistake of pecking black beans when we read this text.

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A. To see things as empty may sound nihilistic and pessimistic since the conventional image of the word ‘empty’ may seem to suggest ‘void’ or ‘nothing’. Emptiness in Buddhism, however, doesn’t refer to voidness, or nothingness but means fullness, oneness and perfection. Everything is to Emptiness as every wave is to the sea. When we realise that everything is empty, firstly, we can be aware that everything is one as emptiness in essence, just as all waves are essentially one as the sea.

Then, everything that reaches your eyes and ears feels perfect and more beautiful, and you come to understand why Jesus said that we should love our neighbours as ourselves. Secondly, you can realise that death is not the end of your being, just as the disappearance of a wave doesn’t mean the disappearance of water that is the essence of water. This is referred to as the transcending of birth and death in Buddhism.

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Master Woonmun said, “It is said that enlightenment can be attained through hearing sounds and seeing things. What is it to attain enlightenment through hearing sounds and seeing things?”

He, raising his hand, said, “Avalokiteshvara brought money and bought a cake.”

He, lowering his hand, said, “It was really a pudding!”

Student: “Why did Woonmun, raising his hand, say, ‘Avalokiteshvara brought money and bought a cake’?”

Master: “Why don’t you attain enlightenment in spite of seeing things and hearing sounds.”

Commentary:

We are surrounded by and covered with things and sounds all the time.

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Rinzai left Issan. Gyosan went with him to see him off, and said, “If later on you go north, there will be a place for you.” Rinzai said, “How should that happen?” Gyosan said, “Just go there. Later there will be someone to help you, elder brother. That someone will have a head but no tail, a beginning but no end.” When Rinzai later went to the prefecture of Chin, Fuke was already there and helped the master when he started teaching. But soon after the master had settled in there, Fuke cast off his body and vanished.

Commentary:

Gyosan compared the true-Self to a place by saying, ‘If later on you go north, there will be a place for you’. In fact, the place is free from directions although he said that Rinzai should go north. Then, Gyosan revealed the true-Self by describing what it is like with the words ‘That someone will have a head but no tail, a beginning but no end’.

Fuke symbolises the true-Self because wherever we may go, it is always there although it never moves at all, and because whatever we may do, we cannot avoid depending on its power. We should not be deluded by the words ‘But soon after Rinzai had settled in there, Fuke cast off his body and vanished’. This means that when you have grasped Rinzai’s teaching, that is, you have attained enlightenment, you will not be deluded by the illusion of Fuke.

(It may be a historical fact that Fuke helped Rinzai, but people who practise Zen meditation should see things from the perspective of Zen.)

Student: “What is the true-Self?”

Master: “It is good but not worth trying to be with.”

Student: “Where is it?”

Master: “You cannot escape it.”

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A. Knowledge itself is neutral in essence. It can be neither detrimental nor beneficial to either a person or a society. Whether it is harmful or beneficial depends on how each of us sees it. That’s why it can be harmful to some people and beneficial to others at the same time.

However, for people who practise Zen meditation, the knowledge of enlightenment is often regarded as an obstacle in the way of attaining enlightenment because people are so deluded by intellectual understanding that they cannot see what it points to. So, ancient masters would say that we should look upon the Buddha’s and patriarchs’ words as enemies.

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A monk asked Master Woonmun, “What is a phrase that can penetrate the Dharma-body?”

Woonmun answered, “I hide my body in the Great Bear constellation.”

Student: “How can Woonmun hide his body in the Great Bear in the sky?”

Master: “He can do it when you can’t see what he shows you.”

Commentary:

Hiding is not different from revealing.

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Obaku sent Rinzai to carry a letter to Issan. At that time Gyosan was in charge of handling guests. He took the letter and asked, “This is Obaku’s, but what is his?” The master slapped him. Gyosan stopped him and said, “Elder brother, since you know about this matter, let’s cease.” Together they went to Issan, who asked, “How many monks are in the community of Master Obaku, my elder brother?” Rinzai replied, “Seven hundred.” Issan said, “Who is the leader?” Rinzai said, “His letter has just reached you.” Then Rinzai asked Issan, “And how large is your community here?” Issan said, “One thousand five hundred.” Rinzai remarked, “Very large.” Issan said, “There are not a few at my elder brother’s, Master Obaku.”

Commentary:

When Gyosan said to Rinzai, “This is Obaku’s, but what is his?” ‘His’ implied the Buddha’s. He tested Rinzai to see if he knew what the true-Self is. Rinzai revealed the true-Self by slapping him, and Gyosan approved him by saying, “Elder brother, since you know about this matter, let’s cease.” Then, together they went to Issan, who asked, “How many monks are in the community of Master Obaku, my elder brother?” With this question, Issan tested Rinzai to see whether he was deluded by the illusion of numbers. Rinzai responded wisely by revealing the true-Self through saying, “Seven hundred.” We should not be deluded by the number. Issan tested Rinzai again by asking, “Who is the leader?”, which meant “Do you know what the Buddha nature of Obaku, who is your leader, is like?” Rinzai showed the Buddha nature of Obaku by saying, “His letter has just reached you.” Then, Rinzai countered Issan by asking, “And how large is your community here?” Issan responded by saying, “One thousand five hundred.” We should know that he didn’t mean the number but showed the true-Self. Issan’s words ‘There are not a few at my elder brother’s, Master Obaku’ meant that there is no difference between seven hundred and one thousand five hundred.

Student: “Why is there no difference between seven hundred monks and one thousand five hundred monks?”

Master: “Which is heavier, one rabbit horn, or one thousand rabbit horns?”

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All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway