Chinese mythology, folktales, and literature
•
–Mao Zedong, May 1965 Long have I cherished ambitions soaring high;Now I climb Jinggang Mountain once again, nigh.A thousand miles to seek the old haunt, I hie;Its old face changed, with fresh charms it’s graced by.
•
A blind man was in the company of others. When his companions saw something funny, they laughed. The blind man laughed, too.
•
At a Chan monastery, the monastic chef was a highly respected role. Master Shishuang, who had trained in several temples before, served as grain keeper under Master Weishan.
•
Danxia Tianran was a renowned Tang Dynasty Chan master. Ordained as “Tianran,” he earned the name Danxia Tianran after founding Danxia Temple (also known as Red Clouds Temple or Immortal Clouds Temple) on Mount Danxia in Nanzhao County, Henan. Celebrated for his unconventional methods and iconoclastic wisdom, his ordination story epitomizes these traits.
•
There was a monastery overseen by two brothers. The elder brother was highly learned, while the younger brother was simple-minded and had only one eye.