Sunday, August 16, 2009

It Is What It Is: The Farmer's Luck

DEWEY
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The Farmer 's Luck
A Zen Fable


A farmer had a horse.  One day, the horse ran away.
The farmer and his son would have to plow the fields themselves.
The neighbors exclaimed, "Oh, what misfortune!"
The farmer replied,  "It is what it is."

The next week, the horse returned to the farm, bringing a herd of wild horses with him. "What good fortune!" the neighbors cried out.  The farmer responded, "It is what is."

The farmer's son was thrown as he tried to ride one of the wild horses fracturing a tibia. "Ah, such bad fortune," cried the neighbors. Once again, the farmer responded, "It is what it is."

A short time later, the ruler of the country began recruiting all young men to join his army for battle. The son, with broken shin bone, was left at home. "What great good fortune," the neighbors cheered  The farmer simply remarked, "It is what it is."



If you understand, things are just as they are; if you do not understand, things are just as they are. 

No snowflake ever falls in the wrong place.


Be master of mind rather than mastered by mind.

FURTHER READING
Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings by Paul Reps and Peter Coyote






Analyze Anatomy : Use Bob Barner's Dem Bones
Explore Expressions : Break a leg

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