Zen koan of the day - Man in the Weeds

[dcj]

Man in the Weeds

A monk asked Ching Ch'ing "I am breaking out; I ask the Teacher to break in."

Ching Ch'ing said, "Can you live or not?"

The monk said, "If I weren't alive, I'd be laughed at by peo­ple."

Ching Ch'ing said, "You too are a man in the weeds."

---

commentary: The mother hen breaks in and the chick breaks out.

Comments

[wales]

I think I need another clue, to this koan, perhaps another life

[dcj]

The commentary on this one doesn't provide me much clarity. I think it is along the lines of a hen is hatching and asking the mother (teacher) for a hand; the mother (teacher) asks if the hen is ready, and the response suggests the hen is not ready but stuck on the brink.

Here is the the companion verse:

VERSE
The Ancient Buddhas had a family style;
** The words are still in our ears. The model for all time.
Don't slander old Shakyamuni.
.
Responsive preaching comes to scornful detraction
** Why are your nostrils in my hand? Eight blows pays for thirteen. What about you? He lets the initiative go, so I'll
strike.*
.
Chick and mother hen do not know each other;
** Since they don't know each other, why then do they naturally break in and break out?
.
Who is it that breaks in and breaks out together? **Shattered in a hundred fragments. (Hsueh Tou) has the kindness of an old granny; but don't misunderstand.
.
A peck, and he awakens;
** What are you saying? You've fallen into the second­ ary. •
But he's still in the shell.
*Why doesn't he stick his head out? •
Once again he receives a blow;
• • Wrong! I strike! A double case; triple, quadruple.
.
All the patchrobed monks in the world name and describe it in vain.
**He has let go; he needn't bring it up. Is there anyone who can name or describe it? If there is, he too is a man in the weeds. From remote antiquity, the dark­ ness is vast and boundless; it fills the channels and clogs the gullies. No one understands. •