“If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.” – Meister Eckhart<\/p>\n
Here is a Zen koan on thankfulness:<\/p>\n
The Giver Should Be Thankful<\/p>\n
While Seisetsu was the master of Engaku in Kamakura he required larger quarters, since those in which he was teaching were overcrowded. Umezu Seibei, a merchant of Edo, decided to donate five hundred pieces of gold called ryo toward the construction of a more commodious school. This money he brought to the teacher.<\/p>\n
Seisetsu said: “All right. I will take it.”<\/p>\n
Umezu gave Seisetsu the sack of gold, but he was dissatisfied with the attitude of the teacher. One might live a whole year on three ryo, and the merchant had not even been thanked for five hundred.<\/p>\n
“In that sack are five hundred ryo,” hinted Umezu.<\/p>\n
“You told me that before,” replied Seisetsu.<\/p>\n
“Even if I am a wealthy merchant, five hundred ryo is a lot of money,” said Umezu.<\/p>\n
“Do you want me to thank you for it?” asked Seisetsu.<\/p>\n
“You ought to,” replied Uzemu.<\/p>\n
Why should I?” inquired Seisetsu. “The giver should be thankful.”<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
“If the only prayer you said in your whole life was, ‘thank you,’ that would suffice.” – Meister Eckhart Here is a Zen koan on thankfulness: The Giver Should Be Thankful While Seisetsu was the master of Engaku in Kamakura he required larger quarters, since those in which he was teaching were overcrowded. Umezu Seibei, … Continue reading And Again, Thank You<\/span>