Mist and Rain

The great Zen teacher, who was one of the first to bring Zen from China to Japan, in the 13th century, was asked at the end of a public ceremony: ‘Now you have come from China to Japan, how does your teaching differ?’

Bukko replied: ‘It does not. It is all the same. It is the same teaching.’

And the questioner said: ‘But you do, in fact, teach differently here. For instance, you teach through an interpreter.’

The Master replied: ‘Well, I suppose we can say there is some difference between mist and rain.’

© 1998 Trevor Leggett