Drop of Water

A wise teacher once said, "all the dharmas are in a single drop of water". A few years ago on a long retreat I finally got some insight into what that means. And now I see it everywhere, all the time, available to anyone. Why was it so hard to see before?

One day a student asked Zen master Hyong-Bong: "Master, will you please give the dharma in a water droplet?"

"I am sorry", said the master, "but my water droplet is very expensive."

"How much does it cost?"

"How much can you pay?"

The student pulled out a few coins from his pocket. "This is all I have. Will you take it?"

Hyong-Bong answered: "Even if you offer me a mountain of diamonds and gold, still my droplet will be too expensive."

The student went back to the zendo and thought: The master is right. He means that the droplet cannot be bought with money. If it were not like that, rich people would have purchased it easily. Obviously it is not a matter of money but of something else, something that worth more than money. What can I offer which is worth more than a mountain of gold? The student meditated and thought about it a lot, and after a few months he came up with a new offer: "Master, I know what to pay with; I will give you my life. I will do anything you ask me. I will be your servant."

Hyong-Bong smiled and said: "Even if you offer me ten thousand lifetimes, still my droplet will be too expensive."

The student returned to the zendo and thought about it for a few more months. He understood that being a servant is not enough to attain the droplet, and even if he were to sacrifice his life, it would still remain unreachable. He wondered what else he could offer which would be worth more than ten thousand lifetimes. He thought a lot until a new answer appeared; in order to surrender totally, just giving up money or time is not enough. I must give up something much deeper - my mind.

"I will give you my mind," he proudly announced to Hyong-Bong.

"Your mind is a stinking pile of garbage, and I have no interest in it at all. Even if you give me all that is inside your head a thousand times over, still my droplet will be too expensive."

This time the student returned defeated to the zendo. The Master would not accept anything that he had to offer, and he had nothing else to pay with. What else is there beyond possessions, life and thoughts? He vowed not to return to the Master until he was enlightened, and he prepared himself for a long period of practice.

One day, he looked out of the window and had a great insight: the truth was just in front of him; the sky, the trees, the clouds; everything was so real, the world was already perfect, regardless of him. He was stunned. He understood that he could put aside all his sophisticated opinions and his esoteric quest. I must put "myself" aside; it has nothing to do with reality. He rushed to the Master’s room: "Master, I know the cost of the droplet."

"Do you? How much does it cost?"

"The sky is blue, the trees are green."

"Not bad," said Hyong-Bong smilingly. "But my drop is even more expensive than that."

Three weeks more the student sat in the zendo, and the more he thought about it, the angrier he became. After all, he had offered all that he had and he had opened up to the world: the sky was blue, the trees were green, sugar was sweet and salt salty. It is hot in the summer and it snows in winter. So is the world, and so is the truth. He remembered the great feeling he had when he entered into the Master’s room the last time. It was an unfamiliar joy. Truth was there without any "self" to understand it. Yet, his answer was still rejected and the Master insisted that his droplet was even more expensive than that. Unlike before, this time his confidence was so strong that he was not willing to accept defeat any more. He went back to the Master’s room. "I do not need your droplet," he roared, "I have found what I was looking for. You may take your droplet and shove it up your ass!"

The Master burst out laughing, and the disciple felt even more offended. He got up quickly, took a few big steps towards the door and opened it with a mighty pull. When his body was almost completely out, the Master called him: "Wait a minute!"

The student turned around.

"Be careful with my droplet" said Hyong-Bong with shining eyes.