drying Mushrooms

Here's something from a movie I once watch:

Two people are sitting in a hospital one of them says

"Man your my idol."

The other says " You know what happens when you meet your idols right?"

"No. What?"

"They either end up being assholes, or just like you."

Neat.

But we see Venerables walking around and we say "They can't be like me I'm so f'd up, and they're up there on a pedestal."

Seems like an excuse to me.

There was a more modern reflection that I read on some blog. It went something like this:

A big person from a certain tradition was visiting a Zen monastery. When the person arrived, the Abbot of the Monastery got down and took off his shoes. The student standing nearby later said to him "Master, you shouldn't be taking off their shoes. You are a great teacher. You shouldn't do this."

The master said "He wants to be King, but I am only a servant."

Get it?

Just like the old monk that Dogen met drying mushrooms (or something). Dogen asked "Why are you doing this? You are old. You should rest, or get someone else to do it for you."

The old man said "This is my job. I can't wait around for someone else to do it, or it might not get done. Perhaps the Sun won't be out tomorrow etc.. Your intelligent. Think about it. Now I must get back to work"

So where does that leave us? Afraid sometimes probably. Afraid that we can be ordinary. Afraid that there's nothing wrong with us, and we have the potential to be good human beings. To stop looking to others to solve our problems all the time.

However, let's forget all that, sit some Zazen and just dry mushrooms.

Gassho