Tetsugen, a devotee of Zen in Japan, decided to publish the sutras, which at that time were available only in Chinese. The books were to be printed with wood blocks in an…
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About Wellsprings
This site is a cluster of wellsprings. Wellsprings of heartwarming anecdotes, stirring stories, age-old fables, epic tales, mythical musings, good deeds, life's lessons, inspiring insights, and much more. None of these are our own but they have something for all of us. That's why we have taken the liberty of putting them together, acknowledging the source or the author wherever we could.
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No work, no food
Hyakujo, the Chinese Zen master, used to labour with his pupils even at the age of eighty, trimming the gardens, cleaning the grounds and pruning the trees. The pupils felt sorry to…
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Muddy Road
Two monks, Tanzan and Ekido, were once traveling together down a muddy road. It was raining heavily in those parts. Coming around a bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk…
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Mokusen’s hand
Mokusen Hiki was living in a temple in the province of Tamba. One of his adherents complained of the stinginess of his wife. Mokusen visited the adherent’s wife and showed her his…
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How grass and trees become enlightened
During the Kamakura period, Shinkan studied Tendai six years and then studied Zen for seven years; then he went to China and contemplated Zen for thirteen years more. When he returned to…
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Happy Chinaman
Anyone walking about Chinatowns in America will observe statues of a stout fellow carrying a linen sack. Chinese merchants call him Happy Chinaman or Laughing Buddha. This Hotei lived during the T’ang…
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Naivedyam: Does God eat our offerings?
Here is a very good explanation about Naivedyam offered to God. Does God eat our offerings? Many of us could not get a proper explanation from our elders. An attempt is made…
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We connect differently to a personal God
Sri Rama was the maryada-purushottama, the ideal man. The purpose of his avatara was to teach us how to live. On the same day, three other mahapurushas, his brothers, were born. Their…
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The right teaching
Once, there was a renowned monk who lived in a beautiful monastery with many of his pupils. His teachings were known to be very effective and many of his students grew up…
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The woodcutter and his axe
This is a classic tale of honesty passed on from generation to generation. I didn’t want to miss it at any cost. Long ago, there lived a woodcutter in a small village.…