One day all the monks were out working. Rinzai had followed Obaku out, and the latter looking round, noticed Rinazi with empty hands, and thereupon asked him, "Where is your hoe?" Rinzai replied, "Somebody has taken it away!" Obaku said, "Come over here; I want to talk about it with you." So Rinzai went up to him. Obaku lifted up his hoe, and said, "Just this! And all the creatures under heaven are unable to catch hold of it and hold it up!" Rinazi snatched it from him and raised it aloft, exclaiming, "How is it that it is now in my hands?" Obaku said, "One man had one a rare bit of work today," and went back to the temple.
R.H. Blyth, Mumonkan, page 43, a quote from "The Records of Rinzai"
Discussion:
Rinzai clearly wanted to get out of a day's work. Obaku showed him! Tricked into taking the hoe, Rinzai will now have to put in a day's work. Ha!
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