禅Mazu Daoyi

proverb

The Tile and the Tile-Maker

Tang

Traditionally attributed

Text

Nanyue polished a tile to make a mirror; I polished sitting to make a Buddha. He laughed; I laughed back. From that day, I sat for the sake of sitting, and a Buddha appeared without anyone making one.

tr. Zen Lineage editorial

license: cc_by

Attribution

Lineage: Nanyue line

By Mazu Daoyi

Sources

  • contentOrdinary Mind as the Way: The Hongzhou School and the Growth of Chan Buddhism

    Mario Poceski

No per-field confidence has been recorded for this teaching yet. Treat individual claims with the caution appropriate to the source list below.

Attribution status: traditional — see editorial policy for what this means.

1 supporting citation on record (see Sources above).

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