4 Zen Stories That Will Change the Way You Think, Forever

And how to apply it in your everyday life

A zen master will routinely hit a student with a stick when they are sitting in meditation.

Surprised?

Zen has become a buzzword associated with being cool, calm, and collected.

While that can be an outcome of the teachings, the practices teach something much more.

One of the main practices of Zen is studying the stories of their teachers.

1. A Cup of Tea

Nan-in, a Japanese zen master during the Meiji era (1868–1912), received a university professor who came to inquire about Zen.

Nan-in served tea. He poured his visitor’s cup full and then kept on pouring.

The professor watched the overflow until he no longer could restrain himself. “It is overfull. No more will go in!”

“Like this cup,” Nan-in said, “you are full of your own opinions and speculations. How can I show you Zen unless you first empty your cup?”

Intellectuals can fill their heads with a lot of information. Texts and quotes can be memorized and then recited on command. Having gathered so much bookish knowledge can create personal biases.

Being full of biases, you cannot listen to another’s point of view.

When deciding, you will be only taking that information is agreeable to your biases.

I spent 3 years studying Advaita Vedanta at an ashram in India. I went there to find freedom through philosophy. But I found myself entrapped by it.

I used the moral code, scattered throughout the various texts, to become judgemental of others.

Here’s what you can do:

• Come to know what are your personal biases and how they affect your decision-making process.
• When making a decision, consider the opposite of your initial inclination.
• Ask others (a friend, close family member, or coach) for their opinion.
• Reflect on similar situations and the outcomes.

2. Obedience

The master Bankei’s talks were attended not only by Zen students but by persons of all ranks and sects. He never quoted sutras not indulged in scholastic dissertations. Instead, his words were spoken directly from his heart to the hearts of his listeners.

His large audience angered a priest of the Nichiren sect because the adherents had left to hear about Zen. The self-centered Nichiren priest came to the temple, determined to have a debate with Bankei.

“Hey, Zen teacher!” he called out. “Wait a minute. Whoever respects you will obey what you say, but a man like myself does not respect you. Can you make me obey you?”

“Come up beside me and I will show you,” said Bankei.

Proudly the priest pushed his way through the crowd to the teacher.

Bankei smiled. “Come over to my left side.” The priest obeyed.

“No,” said Bankei, “we may talk better if you are on the right side. Step over here.” The priest proudly stepped over to the right.

“You see,” observed Bankei, “you are obeying me and I think you are a very gentle person. Now sit down and listen.”

Life becomes simple when you understand how to contact the world.

Leadership can take on many aspects. One of those is showing a person what their weaknesses are, with tack and firmness.

Sometimes it’s best to allow a person to fall on their sword.

Here’s what you can do:

• Learn the art of persuasion for effective leadership.
• Understand that people act out of insecurity and past traumas.
• Know how to contact someone by knowing what they like and dislike.

3. Is That So?

The Zen master Hakuin was praised by his neighbors as one living a pure life.

A beautiful Japanese girl whose parents owned a food store lived near him. Suddenly, without any warning, her parents discovered she was with child.

This made her parents angry. She would not confess who the man was, but after much harassment at last named Hakuin.

In great anger the parent went to the master. “Is that so?” was all he would say.

After the child was born it was brought to Hakuin. By this time he had lost his reputation, which did not trouble him, but he took very good care of the child. He obtained milk from his neighbors and everything else he needed.

A year later the girl-mother could stand it no longer. She told her parents the truth — the real father of the child was a young man who worked in the fishmarket.

The mother and father of the girl at once went to Hakuin to ask forgiveness, to apologize at length, and to get the child back.

Hakuin was willing. In yielding the child, all he said was: “Is that so?”

The world around you is in a constant state of change. What seems fixed today, can appear in the opposite form tomorrow.

When fixed on an outcome, anxiety can arise. Similarly, when trying to control what others think of you, you are fighting a losing battle.

The craving for a certain outcome creates anxiety and disappointment when the expected result is unmet.

Maintaining indifference to outcomes allows your mind to remain unchanged and even.

I have recently started a new job. The process of finding a new job was relatively stress-free. The job market in Australia is strong so there are many options. Knowing I had the choice of jobs, I was unconcerned about the outcome of the interviews. In the back of my mind, I knew there would always be another option if I happened to be unsuccessful.

Here’s what you can do:

• Understanding the importance of the world.
• Don’t get involved in things that are not your creation.
• Don’t allow yourself to be defined by what others think.
• Be open to all the various options that are available to you. Don’t limit yourself.

4. If You Love, Love Openly

Twenty monks and one nun, who was named Eshun, were practicing meditation with a specific Zen master.

Eshun was very pretty even though her head was shaved and her dress plain. Several monks secretly fell in love with her. One of them wrote her a love letter, insisting upon a private meeting.

Eshun did not reply. The following day, the master gave a lecture to the group, and when it was over, Eshun arose. Addressing the one who had written to her, she said: “If you really love me so much, come and embrace me now.”

There is a difference between infatuation and love.

When one is consumed by lust, impulse and selfish gain motivate the behavior.

Love is based on mutual respect and actions are for the benefit of both people.

Calling out someone for their inappropriate action and standing up for what you know to be right is an act of courage and can create collective change.

Here’s what you can do:

• Pause before acting out on impulse.
• Have the courage to act when required, even in a public forum.
• Let values determine what is an appropriate action.

You don’t have to go to a monastery and hang out with stick-welding Zen masters in Japan to learn their teachings. Thankfully for us, they have preserved their teachings in these iconic stories.

You don’t have to pay thousands of dollars on courses and therapy to shift your perceptions that allow for powerful life decisions to be made.

Understand and reflect on these ageless zen stories to change your life style to realize your dreams.

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