One of the great Sufi Masters, Junnaid, was dying. His chief disciple came close to him and asked softly, ″Master, you are leaving us. One question has always been in our minds. …
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The tunnel
Zenkai, the son of a samurai, journeyed to Edo and there became the retainer of a high official. He fell in love with the official’s wife and was discovered. In self-defence, he…
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The pointer
The Zen teacher’s dog loved his evening romp with his master. The dog would bound ahead to fetch a stick, then run back, wag his tail, and wait for the next game.…
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Paradise
Two men wander the desert, hopelessly lost. Tired and thirsty, they ascend a large sand dune – only to discover a giant stone wall. On the other side of the wall, they…
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Harmony
There is the story of a young martial arts student who was under the tutelage of a famous master. One day, the master was watching a practice session in the courtyard. He…
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The moon cannot be stolen
Ryokan, a Zen master, lived the simplest kind of life in a little hut at the foot of a mountain. One evening, a thief visited the hut only to discover there was…
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If I had only one year to live, how would I live differently?
Anthony Burgess was 40 when he learned that he had only one year to live. He had a brain tumor that would kill him within a year. He knew he had a…
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We are already God
Rabiya (also Rabia) , a great Sufi mystic, was passing…. It was the street she used to pass every day on her way to the marketplace, because in the marketplace she would…
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A heap of skulls
This is a story about Bayazid, a Sufi mystic. Once, he was passing through a cemetery and he came upon a heap of skulls. Out of curiosity he took one skull. He…
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Identification is misery
Junaid, a famous mystic, was going through the market-place of the town with his disciples. And it was his way to take any situation and use it. A man was dragging his…