One evening, Zen master Shichiri Kojun was reciting the sutras when a thief entered his house with a sharp sword, demanding “Your money or your life.”
Without any fear, Shichiri said, “Don’t disturb me! Help yourself with the money, it’s in that drawer.” And he resumed his recitation.
The thief was startled by this unexpected reaction, but he proceeded with his business anyway. While he was helping himself with the money, the master stopped and called, “Don’t take all of it. Leave some for me to pay my taxes tomorrow.”
The thief left some money behind and prepared to leave. Just before he left, the master suddenly shouted at him, “You took my money and you didn’t even thank me?! That’s not polite!”
This time, the thief was really taken aback at such fearlessness. He thanked the master and ran away. The thief later told his friends that he had never been so frightened in his life.
A few days later, the thief was caught and he confessed, among many others, his theft at Shichiri’s house. When the master was called as a witness, he said, “No, this man did not steal anything from me. I gave him the money. He even thanked me for it.”
The thief was so touched that, upon his release from prison, he became a disciple of the master.
Image: A postage stamp issued by Nepal in 2002 on the occasion of the 2550th birth anniversary of the Buddha depicts him descending from the celestial realm to the human world at the end of the three months’ rainy retreat, which took place near the city gate of Sankassa, an ancient city of India near modern-day Sravasthi. Courtesy https://www.buddhiststamp.com