Theos-Talk Archives (July 2002 Message tt00057)

Here's some stories that were emailed to me. 
The sender called them Zen stories.

Maybe

There is a Taoist story of an old farmer who had
worked his crops for many years. One day his horse ran
away. Upon hearing the news, his neighbors came to
visit. "Such bad luck," they said sympathetically.
"Maybe," the farmer replied. The next morning the
horse returned, bringing with it three other wild
horses. "How wonderful," the neighbors exclaimed.
"Maybe," replied the old man. The following day, his
son tried to ride one of the untamed horses, was
thrown, and broke his leg. The neighbors again came to
offer their sympathy on his misfortune. "Maybe,"
answered the farmer. The day after, military officials
came to the village to draft young men into the army.
Seeing that the son's leg was broken, they passed him
by. The neighbors congratulated the farmer on how well
things had turned out. "Maybe," said the farmer.

Obsessed

Two traveling monks reached a river where they met a
young woman. Wary of the current, she asked if they
could carry her across. One of the monks hesitated,
but the other quickly picked her up onto his
shoulders, transported her across the water, and put
her down on the other bank. She thanked him and
departed. As the monks continued on their way, the one was
brooding and preoccupied. Unable to hold his silence,
he spoke out. "Brother, our spiritual training teaches
us to avoid any contact with women, but you picked
that one up on your shoulders and carried her!"
"Brother," the second monk replied, "I set her down on
the other side, while you are still carrying her."

Ritual

When the spiritual teacher and his disciples began
their evening meditation, a cat who lived in the
monastery made such noise that it distracted them. One
day the teacher ordered that the cat be tied up during
the evening practice. Years later, when the teacher
died, the cat continued to be tied up during the
meditation session. And when the cat eventually died,
another cat was brought to the monastery and tied up.
Centuries later, learned descendants of the spiritual
teacher wrote scholarly treatises about the religious
significance of tying up a cat for meditation
practice.

Wooden Coffin

A farmer got so old that he couldn't work the fields
anymore. So he would spend the day just sitting on the
porch. His son, still working the farm, would look up
from time to time and see his father sitting there.
"He's of no use any more," the son thought to himself,
"he doesn't do anything!" One day the son got so
frustrated by this, that he built a wooden coffin,
dragged it over to the porch, and told his father to
get in. Without saying anything, the father climbed
inside. After closing the lid, the son dragged the
coffin to the edge of the farm where there was a high
cliff. As he approached the drop, he heard a light
tapping on the lid from inside the coffin. He opened
it up. Still lying there peacefully, the father looked
up at his son. "I know you are going to throw me over
the cliff, but before you do, may I suggest
something?" "What is it?" replied the son. "Throw me
over the cliff, if you like," said the father, "but
save this good wooden coffin. Your children might need
to use it."
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