Short Zen Stories: The Other Side

A young Buddhist on a journey pondered for hours on how to cross a wide river he came upon. As he was about to give up his pursuit to continue his journey he saw a great teacher on the other side of the river and yelled asking how he could get to the other side. 

The teacher ponde...

A soldier comes to a Zen Master and inquires if there is really a paradise and a hell. The Zen master asks the soldier who he is, and the soldier replies ‘I’m a Samurai’.

The Zen master then provokes the soldier till he loses his temper and draws his sword, ready to cut the head of the mas...

When Ikkiyu, a Zen master, was a teenager, he accidently broke a precious cup which was a favourite antique of his master. When he heard the footsteps of his master from behind, he quickly asked him, ‘Dear master, why do people have to die?’

The old master replied, ‘Death is n...