ONCE THERE WAS A ZEN MASTER, SEKITO, SO CALLED BECAUSE HE CONSTRUCTED A HUT ON A BIG FLAT STONE WHICH HE FOUND IN A MOUNTAIN, AND LIVED THERE. ONE DAY A YOUNG MONK IN TRAINING CAME TO SEE HIM.
SEKITO ASKED: ”WHERE HAVE YOU COME FROM?”
THE MONK ANSWERED, ”FROM KOSEI, MASTER.”
SEKITO THEN SAID: ”IN KOSEI, THE FAMOUS ZEN MASTER, BASO, LIVES. HAVE YOU EVER SEEN HIM?
”YES, I HAVE,” THE MONK REPLIED.
THE MASTER, POINTING AT A BIG PIECE OF FIREWOOD NEARBY, THEN ASKED A MOST EXTRAORDINARY QUESTION: ”DOES MASTER BASO LOOK LIKE THIS?”
UNFORTUNATELY, THE MONK, WITH WHATEVER ZEN ABILITY HE MIGHT HAVE HAD, WAS NO MATCH FOR SEKITO. HE BLINKED HIS EYES AND COULD NOT UTTER A WORD.
THE ASTONISHED MONK RETURNED ALL THE WAY BACK TO KOSEI, MET THE GREAT TEACHER BASO, AND TOLD HIM OF THE STORY.
HEARING IT, BASO ASKED, ”WAS THE FIREWOOD YOU SAW BIG OR SMALL?”
”IT WAS VERY BIG,” THE MONK ANSWERED.
”YOU ARE A MAN OF GREAT STRENGTH,” WAS BASO’S UNEXPECTED REPLY.
”WHY, MASTER?” QUERIED THE MONK, AT A LOSS AS TO HOW TO TAKE IT.
BASO THEN SAID: ”YOU HAVE BROUGHT HERE SUCH A BIG PIECE OF FIREWOOD ALL THE WAY FROM SEKITO. YOU SURELY ARE A MAN OF GREAT STRENGTH, AREN’T YOU?”
