Monk and the Wooden Statue [A Zen story]
I heard this Zen story in a TV show, gives a deep message about the teachings of Buddha. The original version may differ from what I write. Just try to understand the message it conveys, why did the monk do such a thing at the end? you have to think beyond the conventional thinking.
There was this monk who had so much respect towards Lord Buddha. The monk was determined to attain enlightenment (realized the truth). He used to sit in front of a wooden Buddha statue in the temple and meditate. So many months passed, but he kept on meditating. He didn't reduce his effort for even a moment. Finally he attained enlightenment, it was the winter, and everything was so cold. So he chopped the statue in to pieces and made a fire.
2 comments:
Brilliant Brilliant Story!
Thank you very much!
This is brilliant. He clearly recognized that the statue was only a symbol - useful for the purpose of focusing his mind perhaps, but nothing more. Alas, so many people confuse the icons of their religion with its true message...
A lot more zen stories can be found at Zen stories. This site is good cos it lets you view them in order of rating. I don't remember seeing this story there though. Thanks!
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