Be Like the Water

Retelling of Old Legends:

Be Like the Water 

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Once upon a time there lived a rather meek individual called Yori who strove to be strong. As he was interested in wrestling, he traveled to the farthest edges of the country and after repeated attempts finally got accepted in an illustrious school where a most famed master was the instructor.

Fueled by his enthusiasm he endured grueling training sessions to eventually become a great fighter. His timid nature however always stood in the way and in daily practice or special tournaments without fail he persistently got bested 
by the other initiates.

The teacher who’d earlier on recognized his true abilities was baffled by this. Suspecting Yori’s innate impediment, he initiated a private bout with Yori to test his skill. True enough, Yori, caught in the momentum of fight defeated his master on the first round. Subsequent bouts all proved to be the same.

You are a like the turtle,” the master told Yori one day. “But too often you cower under your shell, you need to come out.” and sent Yori to see his good friend, a Zen master at the nearby temple, for help.

“Not a turtle,” the Zen master nodded after hearing Yori’s account. “You shall be a Sweeping Wave.”

He instructed him on the preliminaries of meditation then told him to remain there the rest of the night imagining himself not as a human being who’s primarily afraid, not as an adroit wrestler, not anything but a great wave of the oceans. “Be like the tsunami,” he said to him before retiring to his private chamber. “Imagine your power sweeping, swallowing all and everything in your path. Then all will be well with you.”

Yori set motionless in darkness for hours contemplating the words of the Zen master.

At first his mind would not cooperate with his will, and he wondered about a great many useless things, places, people or past events, anything but the wave. Gradually however, his willpower won over his monkey mind and forced it to focus on the vast sea, volumes of water and then the waves. His mind now was pinned on that single giant wave. It grew larger and larger, washing over the shoreline, uprooting trees, structures, houses, and even the temple he was sitting in. Everything was encompassed by that giant wave. All that could be seen was the ebb and flow of the immense ocean.

At the first light of day when the Zen master emerged from his room he found Yori still meditating at the spot exactly as he’d left him. The master smiling patted Yori on the shoulder and said, “Now you are that invincible wave, go forth and always be thus.”

And true to fact, Yori from that day forth became an invincible fighter, winning every challenge and tournament. For decades his fame spread far and wide and he became the undefeated champion of the realm.

Fini