Zen Master Hakuin lived in the late seventeenth and early eighteenth centuries. He is said to have created the now-famous question: “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” Hakuin believed that the understanding arising out of practice in everyday life was deeper than the understanding that could come from practicing in the monastery, since lay people faced more distractions, held more responsibilities, and experienced more heartbreak than the monks and so needed to practice with great diligence.
Hakuin was greatly respected and had many disciples. At one time in his life, he lived in a village hermitage, close to a food shop run by a couple and their beautiful, young daughter. One day the parents discovered that their daughter was pregnant. Angry and distraught, they demanded to know the name of the father. At first, the girl would not confess but after much harassment, she named Hakuin. The furious parents confronted Hakuin, berating him in front of all of his students. He simply replied, “Is that so?”
When the baby was born, the family gave it to Hakuin. By this time, he had lost his reputation and his disciples. But Hakuin was not disturbed. He took delight in caring for the infant child; he was able to obtain milk and other essentials from the villagers. A year later, the young mother of the child was troubled by great remorse. She confessed the truth to her parents – the real father was not Hakuin but rather a young man who worked at the local fish market. The mortified parents went to Hakuin, apologizing, asking his forgiveness for the wrong they did him. They asked Hakuin to return the baby. Although he loved the child as his own, Hakuin was willing to give him up without complaint. All he said was: “Is that so?”
He did not attach to the opinion of the others! He cared about the baby. In Zen we call this noticing what the bone of any situation is. What is the really important part of a situation? Our lives speed by and before we know it we are old. How many times do we stop and fight about our opinion, our idea, our sense of being hurt? Our dignity is hurt… our idea of ourselves has been damaged by someone else. We forget to look at what the really important heart of the matter is.
In zen we teach that the most important thing is to help each other. we say: only for you. Yes, this also includes ourselves. We cultivate the Bodhisattva mind and heart. How can I help?
In this situation, Hakuin simply accepted this helpless tiny human being and cared for it and love that baby. Can we do that? Can we simply put down our “I, me, my and without much fuss reach out to the others?
It becomes so difficult to stop looking at ourselves and what we want. This is the biggest problem: want, desire… we want and desire all day long sometimes. Waking up means to stop. Stop and consider the situation in front of you: how can we help? What is my function in any situation? What is my relationship with what is happening?
Hakuin was simple. He was not disturbed by losing his students. His reputation was damaged but he only reached out to care for the baby. He had a shining correct Direction.
What is your direction?
