OUR BELOVED MASTER, Yakusan asked a monk, “Where do you come from?” “From Nansen,” was the reply. “How long were you there?” Yakusan continued. “From last winter to summer,” replied the monk. “Then you must have become a good ox,” commented Yakusan. The monk said, “The thing is, I was there, but I didn’t even go to the dining hall.” “But you cannot get by just through breathing the wind!” Yakusan commented. “It was not that bad, Osho,” said the monk. “There is surely a man who will hold a spoon for me.” On another occasion, Yakusan was returning to his temple with a bundle of firewood when a monk asked him, “Where have you been?” Yakusan replied, “I’ve got firewood.” The monk pointed to Yakusan’s sword and said, “It makes the sound ‘tap-tap.’ What in the world is it?” At this the master unsheathed the sword and assumed a warrior’s stance.