Chris, IMHSHO you have misconstrued this saying because it was not fully quoted. I quote it below and add my comment:
***** No Work, No Food Hyakujo, the Chinese Zen master, used to labor with his pupils even at the age of eighty, trimming the gardens, cleaning the grounds, and pruning the trees. The pupils felt sorry to see the old teacher working so hard, but they knew he would not listen to their advice to stop, so they hid away his tools. That day the master did not eat. The next day he did not eat, nor the next. "He may be angry because we have hidden his tools," the pupils surmised. "We had better put them back." The day they did, the teacher worked and ate the same as before. In the evening he instructed them: "No work, no food." ***** I looked for a better translation but this is the best (and shortest) one I found. I still don't like the last sentence because of the misinterpretation that's possible. Hyakujo DID INDEED DEMONSTRATE to the other monks that if he could not work that he would not eat. He however DID NOT TELL THEM that if one of them did not work then that person was not deserving of food. ALL, ALL, ALL, ALL zen teachings, lessons, instructions, conclusions, insights, ephiphanies, etc..., apply ONLY TO YOU! They cannot be (should not be) interpolated (translated and applied) to OTHERS! This is a common mistake, and one that is fundamental in most religions. That is that if I think something is bad, then it is bad for EVERYONE. And if I decide I shouldn't do something, then EVERYONE ELSE shouldn't do it either. Or they've SINNED (missed the mark that I've set for them). Zen doesn't do that; at least the zen I practice doesn't do that. Maybe Buddhism does. ...Bill! --- In [email protected], ChrisAustinLane <chris@...> wrote: > > It is the Implied not eating for non-workers that is contrary to my > conventional idea of compassion. And which is not a problem unless you divide > people into workers and workers. > > Thanks, > Chris Austin-Lane > Sent from a cell phone > > On Mar 29, 2011, at 8:43, "ED" <seacrofter001@...> wrote: > > > > > > > > > Nothing elfish about earning one's daily bread. > > > > > > > > --- In [email protected], Chris Austin-Lane <chris@> wrote: > > > > > > There is a famous old Zen saying: a day without work, is a day without > > > food. > > > > > > The self-sufficiency of the zen monasteries is one reason Zen survived > > > the anti-Buddhist times in China. > > > > > > One might take this attitude to be the opposite of conventional > > > compassion, a hard core selfish ness, but only if you add in > > > distinctions between different people onto the saying. > > > > > > I thout it would be funny, given the dialog about work going on. > > > > > > > > > > > > Chris, > > > > Can you explain? (Zenspeak fails to enlighten me in this matter.) > > > > --ED > > > > > > --- In [email protected], Chris Austin-Lane chris@ wrote: > > > >> > > > >> A day without work is a day without food. whose work? whose food? > > > > > >> > Mike, > > > >> > Pro bono work is laudable.Ã But first, one has to earn one's keep. > > > >> > Zen stories emphasize this aspect of real (illusory) existence. > > > >> > In one religion, one of the primary duties of the father is to > > > >> > ensure that his son focuses on a profession to support himself and > > > >> > his future family. This is very laudable too. > > > >> > Zen, like this religion, has it's feet on the ground, while it seeks > > > >> > to realize Buddha Nature (without seeking to realize Buddha Nature.) > > > >> > --ED > > > > > >> >> ED, > > > >> >> > > > >> >> >Or as you have pointed out before, there is no self to turn around. > > > >> >> Zen Masters selling water by the river! Ho Ho Ho. But everyone has > > > >> >> got > > > >> >> to make a living somehow. > > > >> >> > > > >> >> Don't worry, I work pro bono for those without means. > > > >> >> > > > >> >> Mike > > > > > >> >> Mike, > > > >> >> > > > >> >> Or as you have pointed out before, there is no self to turn around. > > > >> >> Zen Masters selling water by the river! Ho Ho Ho. But everyone has > > > >> >> got > > > >> >> to make a living somehow. > > > >> >> > > > >> >> --ED > > > > > >> >> > ED, > > > >> >> > > > > >> >> > I like my self and I enjoy being in the world, but maybe the > > > >> >> > trick is > > > >> >> > to not let the world turn the self around. > > > >> >> > > > > >> >> > Mike > > > > > >> >> > Selves make the world go round. > > > >> >> > --ED > > > > > >> >> > > Chris, > > > >> >> > > The 'Never Ending Story', apparently never ending. > > > >> >> > > Mike > > > > > >> >> > > > Have you ever encountered an individual devoid of self or ego? > > > >> >> > > >--ED > > > > > > > > > ------------------------------------ Current Book Discussion: any Zen book that you recently have read or are reading! Talk about it today!Yahoo! 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