Zen Master Gutei started the one-finger tradition, and used it most effectively. If someone asked him, "What is the meaning of Buddhism?" he would lift one finger in silence. If someone asked him, "Why do monks meditate?" he would lift one finger in silence. People began calling it "one finger Zen."
When Gutei was on his deathbed, he reportedly held up his finger and said to his followers, "I've used this for more than forty years, and I've never come close to exhausting it." Ha ha!
If anyone asks a "why" question in our family, everyone who is present immediately lifts a finger and laughs.
The finger cuts through "either/or," "if/then," "both/neither," etc. No argument is a match for it.
When Gutei was on his deathbed, he reportedly held up his finger and said to his followers, "I've used this for more than forty years, and I've never come close to exhausting it." Ha ha!
If anyone asks a "why" question in our family, everyone who is present immediately lifts a finger and laughs.
The finger cuts through "either/or," "if/then," "both/neither," etc. No argument is a match for it.
