People have been saying many things about the Venerable Master’s completion of stillness, and this reminded me of a Chan story:
One day Su Dongpo and Chan Master Foyin were meditating together. After an hour of sitting, Su Dongpo asked the Chan Master,
“How am I sitting?” Chan Master Foyin replied, “Like
a Buddha.”
The Chan Master in turn asked Su Dongpo,
“And how about me?” Su Dongpo answered jokingly,
“Like cow manure.”
When Su Dongpo returned home, he exultantly told Su Xiaomei (his sister) the story. Xiaomei replied,
“You lost!”
Su Dongpo asked,
“Why?” Xiaomei said, “The Chan Master has a Buddha
in his mind. You have cow manure in yours!”
