A
Perfect Garden
A priest was in charge of
the garden within a famous
Zen temple. He had been given the job because he
loved the flowers, shrubs, and trees. Next to the temple
there was another, smaller temple where there lived a
very old Taoist master.
One day, when the priest
was expecting some special guests, he took extra care in
tending to the garden. He pulled the weeds, trimmed the
shrubs, combed the moss, and spent a long time
meticulously raking up and carefully arranging all the
dry autumn leaves. As he worked, the old master watched
him with interest from across the wall that separated
the temples.
When he had finished, the
priest stood back to admire his work. "Isn't it
beautiful," he called out to the old master. "Yes,"
replied the old man, "but there is something missing.
Help me over this wall and I'll put it right for you."
After hesitating, the
priest lifted the old fellow over and set him down.
Slowly, the master walked to the tree near the center of
the garden, grabbed it by the trunk, and shook it.
Leaves showered down all over the garden. "Ah, there,"
said the old man, "you can put me back now."
Who
Knows What Is Good and What Is Bad
An old Chinese farmer lost
his best stallion one day and his neighbor came around
to express his regrets, but the farmer just said, "Who
knows what is good and what is bad."
The next day the stallion
returned bringing with him 3 wild mares. The neighbor
rushed back to celebrate with the farmer, but the old
farmer simply said, "Who knows what is good and what is
bad."
The following day, the
farmer's son fell from one of the wild mares while
trying to break her in and broke his arm and injured his
leg. The neighbor came by to check on the son and give
his condolences, but the old farmer just said, "Who
knows what is good and what is bad."
The next day the army came
to the farm to conscript the farmer's son for the
war,
but found him invalid and left him with his father. The
neighbor thought to himself, "Who knows
what is good and
what is bad."
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