Zen Koan – Hekiganroku – No. 17 – Zen Master Kyorin’s “Sitting Long and Getting Tired”

The Case

A monk asked zen master Kyorin, "What is the meaning of Bodhidharma's coming from the West?'' Kyorin said, "Sitting long and getting tired.''

Engo's Introduction

Cutting through nails and breaking steel, for the first time one can be called master of the first principle. If you keep away from arrows and evade swords, you will be a failure in Zen. As for the subtle point where no probe can be inserted, that may be set aside for a while; but when the foaming waves wash the sky, what will you do with yourself then?

Verse

One, two, and tens of hundreds of thousands, Take off the muzzle and set down the load. If you turn left and right, following another's lead, I would strike you as Shiko struck Ryutetsuma.