Zen a day - Feb 10

Friday 8 February 2008
Winter solitude.
    In a world of one color
        the sound of wind
- Bashō

Saturday 9 February 2008
Perfectionism is slow death.
- Hugh Prather

Sunday 10 February 2008
Zen master Seung Sahn and several students were invited to stay at a fellow student's house in the country. The student had a large dog which spent its time hanging around the porch, wagging its tail and barking at strangers. That evening, when everyone was sitting around the fireplace, the dog settled down next to Seung Sahn.
The master leaned over the dog and said, "Here's a question for you that no Zen student can answer. The Buddha said that all things have Buddha-nature. But when asked if a dog has Buddha-nature, the great master Chao-chou said Mu!, which means no. So I asked you, do you have Buddha-nature?"
"Woof!" The dog let out a mighty bark.
"Ah, you are wiser than Chao-chou!"
- Zen story