Empty boat

Lin Chi said: “When I was young, I liked to sail in a boat; I had a small boat: in solitude, I set sail on the lake and could stay there for hours.

Once I sat with my eyes closed and meditated. It was a beautiful night. Some empty boat floated down the river and hit my face. Anger rose in me! I opened my eyes and was about to curse the person who had disturbed me, but I saw that the boat was empty. My anger had nowhere to move. To whom was I throwing it out? I had no choice but to close my eyes again and begin to look closely at my anger. At that moment, when I saw him, I took the first step on my Path. On this quiet night, I approached the center within me. The empty boat has become my teacher. Since then, if someone tried to offend me and anger rose in me, I laughed and said: "This boat is also empty."

I closed my eyes and headed inward. ”