Eighty Percent

A small consideration of two Zen koans

Caoshan asked Elder De, “The Buddha’s true Dharma body is like the empty sky. It manifests by responding to things—just the way the moon appears on the water. How do you explain this responsiveness?”

De said, “It’s like a donkey looking into a well.”

Caoshan said, “That was nicely said, but it is only eighty percent.”

De said, “How would you say it, master?”

Caoshan said, “It is like a well looking at a donkey.”

Book of Serenity, case 52

Caoshan together with his teacher Dongshan, are considered the founders of Zen’s Soto school. In Chinese it’s called the Caodong school combing the first character in Caoshan’s and Dongshan’s names. In Japanese it becomesSoto for the Japanese versions of their names, Sozan and Tozan.

Caoshan Benji is part of the twelfth generation of Zen teachers flowing from the Sixth ancestor, Huineng. Caoshan lived during the Tang dynasty according to traditional Chinese reckoning, through most of the ninth century of our common reckoning, .

After a period of time studying Confucianism, at nineteen Caoshan became a novice Buddhist monk. At twenty-five, after full ordination, he began Zen studies with Dongshan. In Andy Ferguson’s magisterial Zen’s Chinese Heritage we get an account of their formal meeting from an early Lamp anthology.

Upon meeting Caoshan, Dongshan said, “What is your name?”

Caoshan said, “Benji.”

Dongshan said, “What is your transcendent name?”

Caoshan said, “I can’t tell you.”

Dongshan said, “Why not?”

Caoshan said, “There I’m not named Benji.”

The account goes on to say how from that first encounter, Dongshan knew he had someone who had already tasted the way. A most promising student.