The big fish said, “But, you’re already swimming in it!”
The little fish replied, “Oh no, this is just water. Excuse me while I go find someone else who knows better.”
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Excuse me, but can you tell me where God is?
The Last Lesson
The next morning, the disciples came but the master was nowhere to be found. Instead, they saw a small note saying, “Do not try to find me. I have said all that needs to be said to you, and have done all that needs to be done. Now, remember the lessons and go and live your own lives.”
Enlightened Leadership
There are 4 kinds of leaders.
The lowest class of leader is one who is despised – who gains authority by inheritance, position or political ruthlessness.
The next kind of leader is one who is feared – who rules with an iron hand, whose punishment and retribution is swift against those who oppose him.
The next kind of leader is one who is loved – who embraces the people and shares their joys and sorrows, who understands their plight, who is pure in heart.
But the best kind of leader is one who goes unnoticed – he doesn’t assert himself, but trusts in his peoples’ capacities and abilities and empowers them to fulfill their duties and responsibilities; his leadership creates more leaders and encourages others to participate.
This leader knows that in refusing to trust his people, he makes them untrustworthy; in refusing to love them, he makes them unlovable; in refusing to value their independence, he makes them dependent.
This leader doesn’t talk much, but he does much. He doesn’t need to say a lot, but lets his actions speak for him.
And when this leader is done with his work, when he has reached the apex of his success, his people will say, “We did it! And we did it all by ourselves!”
Inspired by the Tao Te Ching, verse 17
The Most Precious Secret
The disciples wanted to know the different stages the master had to go through in his quest for enlightenment.
The master said, “Well, in the beginning, I was full of action. I thought enlightenment lay in doing kind and worthy deeds. Then I went through suffering and pain, and I stayed there until I could control my heart and stay unattached to anything. I learned to love, and my passion consumed my very core, burning away the self and all its petty desires. Then, I learned to be silent. In silence, I contemplated the mysteries of life and death and they gave up their secrets to me.”
The master paused to sip some tea.
“But finally,” he continued, “I learned the most precious secret of all.”
“And what is that?” asked the disciples.
“I learned to laugh,” replied the master as he howled with glee.
Tetsugen’s Sutras
Tetsugen was a zen master who lived in 17th century Japan. He wanted to produce a Japanese edition of the buddhist sutras (scriptures) which were then only available in Chinese. This was to be an expensive project because it involved making around 60,000 wooden blocks for printing.
Tetsugen wandered around Japan collecting funds for this project. Sometimes he would meet wealthy people who would offer gold and silver, but mostly he would encounter peasants who could only afford a few small coins.
After 10 years of traveling, he had collected enough funds to start his project. But there was a great flood as the river Uji overflowed. People were left homeless and starving. Tetsugen used all the money he collected to help them.
Then he began traveling and collecting money again for his project. It was several more years before he thought he had enough. Just then, an epidemic spread throughout Japan and Tetsugen once more gave away all that he had collected to aid the afflicted ones.
Then he started traveling again. Twenty years later (and one year before he died), he was able to fulfill his dream of printing the sutras in Japanese. The original printing blocks he used are preserved today in the Obaku Monastery in Kyoto, Japan.
The Japanese like to tell their children that Tetsugen actually produced three editions of the sutras, but the first two are invisible and far superior to the last.