Zen koan: A stone lost in a river is never found again
@innertalks (21098)
Australia
January 5, 2023 10:51pm CST
The Zen master, Zerski Duplox, was standing by a river, when he picked up a stone, and dropped it into the surging currents of the river.
He said to his students:
"A stone lost in a river is never found again."
One bright student, put his hand in the river, near its bank, picked up another stone there, and said,
"Well, this one has been found."
The great master frowned.
He did not like to be shown up by a student like this.
And so, he gave this cryptic reply:
"A heart lost in yourself, is found whenever it is found."
But then he added this explanation, for what he had just said:
"The emptiness of life is replaced by the fullness of your heart, when you find yourself alive in your heart, but the fullness of your mind is lost when it enters love's rivers, as it should be lost, as the river carries all in itself forwards, and yet the stone, each thought, remains as it was too."
The student, was not finished yet either, and so, he then quoted the American writer, Saul Bellow, (1915 to 2005).
"A fool can throw a stone in a pond that 100 wise men can not get out."
The master laughed, and replied:
"A wise man is wise because he is not a fool. A fool is a fool because he is not wise. A zen master is a Zen master, because he empties his mind of stones, while filling his heart with truths. Stones do not sustain the heart, only truth does that."
Photo Credit: The photo used in this article was sourced from the free media site, pixabay.com
4 people like this
4 responses
@innertalks (21098)
• Australia
6 Jan 23
There is another Zen saying that a coin lost in a river can only be found in that river, but with a stone, yes, you would never find the original one again.
We might feel lost in life, but the truth is that we never are. A coin or a stone in a river, is still itself, at all times too. We should not become too unhappy then, if we feel a bit lost in life.
@maggiesunjuan (554)
• China
6 Jan 23
A story full of philosophy, though I don't quite get it. Does this mean a sarcasm that masters always like to pretend to be wise and behave in a philosophical way?
2 people like this
@innertalks (21098)
• Australia
6 Jan 23
The master was taken aback by the clever reply of his student, but he recovered, and gave a good enough answer after that.
Zen is meant to be something not quite gotten, as it is more something to ponder over, to find what lies behind the obvious story, or koan.
Here, we need to keep going back to the river of life, and not think that a part of us can be lost in life.
Everything is where it is, everything is what it is.
@maggiesunjuan (554)
• China
6 Jan 23
@innertalks That is clear and I got it! Thanks!
2 people like this
@Nakitakona (56302)
• Philippines
3 Feb 23
Stones thrown into the river is lost for it couldn't be found right away. Sooner or later it is found by someone who isn't seeking it.
This reminds me of the epic poem of Henry W. Longfellow "The Arrow and the song."
1 person likes this
@innertalks (21098)
• Australia
3 Feb 23
Yes, at sometime, someone else might step on that stone in the river, and pick it up.
Nothing is ever truly lost unless it is destroyed.
@Nakitakona (56302)
• Philippines
4 Feb 23
@innertalks That's the real truth. Something is lost and others find it.
1 person likes this
