OUTSIDERS CAN SHARE WITH US THEIR WISDOM

Zen Shorts

By Jon J. Muth (New York: Scholastic, 2005)

Introduction

This picture book for children retells a few short Zen stories. The stories are strung together by the giant, cuddly, wise panda that shares them with his new neighbors.

Summary

One day, the wind deposits a giant umbrella in the yard of some children. When the children go out to investigate, they find a giant panda in the yard. This giant panda is no ordinary panda, it can speak, and it always speaks wisdom. Despite the fact that this panda is new to the neighborhood, that he does not look like the other children and that he speaks with a “slight panda accent,” the children accept him and listen to his wise counsel.

Panda has a tea party with the sister who is sad she had no gift to offer the panda. He retells the Zen short story of a wise uncle who lived humbly, with few physical comforts. A thief breaks into his home and searches for things to steal. The wise uncle sees what is happening and kindly greets the thief. The uncle wants to give a gift to the thief, but had nothing to offer except for the patched and tattered robe he was wearing. The thief accepts the robe and left thinking the wise uncle a fool. But the uncle, when meditating upon the moon and its beauty, laments that he was not able to give the beauty of the moon to the thief. Physical possessions come and go, but the beauty of nature is always present and is for everyone to enjoy.

Later, as Panda is playing with the older brother, the kite gets tangled, and the brother exclaims they were victims of bad luck. Panda tells about a peasant farmer whose horse ran away. “Such bad luck,” exclaim his neighbors. “Maybe,” he says. The next day the horse returns with two wild horses. “Such good luck,” his neighbors exclaim. “Maybe,” he says. The next day his son tries to ride one of the wild horses, falls and breaks his leg. “Such bad luck,” exclaim his neighbors. “Maybe,” he says. The next day soldiers come to forcefully enlist all young men. They pass up his son because his leg is broken. “Such good luck,” his neighbors exclaim. “Maybe,” he says. Whether an action is good or bad cannot be known without broader context, which is only known as time passes.

The youngest brother goes to Panda’s house to swim. He is in a foul mood, and instead of enjoying his swim time, he broods about the wrong done him by his siblings. As Panda helps youngest brother return home with his tower of pool toys, he retells the final Zen short story. Two monks see a wealthy woman who is about to have to walk through a puddle of water. The elder monk graciously carries her over the puddle. Instead of thanking the kind monk, the woman insults him. The monks continue on their way, the younger monk angry at the ill treatment of the elder monk. When the younger monk finally vents his anger, the elderly monk asks him why he is still carrying that heavy load of anger with him. The elderly monk explains that he left that load next to the puddle, as it was pointless carrying any negative feeling with him after depositing the wealthy woman on dry ground.

Questions and Discussion

Each of these Zen short stories illustrates an important moral that the children would not have been able to learn had they not welcomed this strange neighbor into their lives. Of course, pandas are cute and cuddly, but we should remember that new neighbors that aren’t cute and cuddly can also share their wisdom with us. Too often, when someone arrives in our neighborhoods or schools or societies, the new individual or family or group is not accepted and this new person/family/group is not given an opportunity to share her/their ideas and wisdom.

Have you ever been a new student in a class or a new neighbor in new town? How did you feel and how were you treated? Has a new family ever moved into your neighborhood? How did you feel when you saw them? How did people treat them, and why?

Each of these Zen stories shows the virtue of patience and calmness of emotions: when the thief was stealing from the wise uncle, the uncle could have easily been angry, but instead chose to be generous; when perceived misfortunes and fortunes happened to a farmer, he never rushed to distress or joy at the events, but accepted them as simple events and judged them later; and when the elderly monk was mistreated by the wealthy woman, he left any anger he could have felt next to the puddle he helped her cross. The ability to control one’s emotions is important in living among people who are diverse, from different backgrounds and espousing different beliefs. This control of emotions is especially important because when we live in close proximity with difference, actions or words that were intended to be a kindly gesture, could be interpreted as an offensive gesture. It is better, as these short stories demonstrate, to accept the situation and seek understanding before forming opinions and holding grudges.