76. The Stone Mind

Ho-Gen, a Chinese Zen teacher, lived alone in a small temple in the country. One day four travelling monks appeared and asked if they might make a fire in his yard to warm themselves.

While they were building the fire, Ho-Gen heard them arguing about subjectivity and objec-tivity. He joined them and said, "There is a big stone. Do you consider it to be inside or outside your mind?"

One of the monks replied, "From the Buddhist viewpoint everything is an objectification of mind, so I would say that the stone is inside my mind."

"Your head must feel very heavy," observed Ho-Gen, "if you are carrying around a stone like that in your mind."

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