A day Without Work is a Day Without Food

End your story with someone finally conceding to another’s point of view.

A day Without Work is a Day Without Food

Baizhang (720–814) was a famous Zen Master who lived in China during the Tang dynasty. In a famous collection of koans called The Gateless Gate there is an intriguing story called The Wild Fox Koan. It sounds like a folktale. Basically an old man used to listen to Baizhang’s sermon every day.  Baizhang’s growing curiosity led him to question the old man.  It transpired that the old man had been trapped in a fox’s body for 500 hundred years, because he gave the wrong answer to a student in respect of causation. He declared that a man of enlightenment does not fall under the yoke of causation.  Baizhang released him from the curse by saying his answer should have been, ‘a man does not ignore causation’.

As well as being a very gifted teacher, Baizhang believed that a day without work is a day without food. He liked to work in the fields every day and he did not shirk hard toil. When he grew older, the monks thought it was time for him to give up his field work. A monk called Gento raised his concerns with Panshan, another monk. ‘Our master is getting too old for this work’, he said to Panshan. ‘And’ he added, ‘I am worried he might be overdoing it’. 

Panshan, who was the head of work practice replied, ‘I appreciate your concerns and you are not the first to raise this with me. I will speak to him this evening’.

Panshan knew how much Baizhang emphasised the importance of work practice and he remembered him giving a talk in which he said, ‘Plough the rice field for me and I'll instruct you in the fundamental principles of the great matter.’

When the monks had ploughed a rice field and then they asked the master for his instruction. Baizhang just extended his arms as if to say this is the heart of practice. 

Panshan made an appointment to speak to Baizhang and he was feeling apprehensive. ‘Master Baizhang’ he said, ‘I wonder if you would consider giving up your work in the fields. We think it is too stressful for you. After all, you will be eighty-four next March’.

The Master stared at him and then replied ‘a day without work, is a day without food’. He then terminated the meeting. Over the next few months, he turned up at the usual time, collected his tools and began working. 

Panshan said to Gento, ‘Well, looks like he is going to pay no heed to me. Why is he being so stubborn?’ Gento replied, ‘I thought he might be reluctant to give up his work in the fields’. He was silent for a minute and then he said, ‘do you think we should hide his tools?’

Panshan thought for a moment and then he replied, ‘you know, that might be a good idea’. 

So Panshan and Gento waited around the same evening and went into the shed and removed the old master’s tools. The next day, Baizhang was aware that his tools were missing and he knew what they were up to. So he returned to his room and went back to bed. When Panshan visited him in his room, he said to the master, ‘Master, are you not well? I have brought you some food.’ Master Baizhang looked at him and said sternly, ‘take it away and do not bring me any more food. I shall not eat until you return my tools. A day without work is a day without food’. 

Panshan and Gento had a discussion about the way forward. Gento said, ‘Hiding his tools seemed like a good idea, but it looks as if it has backfired on us’. Panshan said, ‘he really believes that a day without labour is a day without food. So obviously we cannot let him starve himself to death. We will just have to give him back his tools.’ 

So Master Baizhang’s tools were given back to him and the next morning he was out again in the fields. It was a very hot summer’s day in July and he seemed to be happy to be back in the fields again. He wore a straw hat to shade his eyes. 

Panshan and Gento realised that Baizhang was not going to relent. He believed that work practice was just as important as giving a talk to his students or sitting for hours in the meditation hall. They were just trying to be kind to their beloved teacher. They were worried that this kind of manual labour was too strenuous for a man in his eighties. And there were plenty of younger monks to carry out the hoeing, the planting, the weeding and so forth. 

After the work practice was over, Master Baizhang left back his tools and returned to the monastery. He believed that the monasteries should be self-supporting and not rely on donations from the laity. In India, many of monks headed out in the morning with their begging bowls and did not generate any income. Baizhang did not want to rely on outside help. Why should they beg when they could till their own fields and grow their own crops?

Panshan and Gento had to accept that Baizhang was not going to relent. He believed in combining meditation practice with work practice and his overall aim was to make the monasteries self-sustaining rather than having to rely on alms and donations from the laity. Panshan and Gento were being taught the lesson of letting go of a fixed viewpoint. They were trying to impose their beliefs on the Zen Master and that led to a confrontation in the form of a hunger strike. 

Panshan and Gento had acted out of genuine concern for their Zen Master and were initially frustrated when they were not able to prevent him from doing work practice. However, after a few months of eating humble pie, they accepted his decision and it proved to be a valuable lesson for them.