2022-08-31

Long ago, in Japan, there was a boy who was training to be a monk. He lived in the small temple at the end of the village. Every morning, at quarter to four, he woke up to the sound of a bell rung by the old priest. His first task of the day was to sit with the priest and chant the poem known as Zazen Wasan:

All living beings come from Buddhas.

Just as it is with ice and water

There is no ice without water

There are no Buddhas without living beings

The chanting was followed by a lesson called Sansen. After a bowl of rice for breakfast, the boy set to work cleaning or gardening. When he was not working, he was either studying the wise words known as sutras, or sitting with his legs in the lotus position, and with his back aching so much that he felt he would die of pain. While he was sitting still for hours on end, it was ever so tempting to nod off - but if he did so even for a moment, the old priest would wrap him on the head with a wooden spoon.The day was long and hard.

Often