N - Shouming Wenti

Shouming Wenti, a young man from Nanyang, travelled the length and
breadth of China seeking a truly wise master. After years of searching
he found himself in a humble village at the foot of a mountain. He
asked the local innkeeper:

"I have heard tell of an old hermit of great wisdom who lives near this
village. Do you know where I can find him?"

The innkeeper took a moment to reply. Stroking his long moustache he
said:

"The man of whom you speak is indeed wise, and lives in a cave near the
top of the mountain." On hearing this Shouming was overjoyed, and
although he had no material wealth with which to reward the innkeeper,
he bestowed upon the man his most sincere and heartfelt
gratitude.

The following morning Shouming set off up the mountain to find the
hermit's cave. He had heard many amazing tales of the old man's wisdom;
that he spent his life in quiet contemplation, surviving on a thin soup
made from leaves and wild berries. Some claimed he was the wisest man
in all of China.

After trekking for hours up steep treacherous mountain paths and
scrambling over rocky crevasses, he arrived at the mouth of a small
cave. Shouming entered cautiously. Inside he found an old man sat
cross-legged on the cave floor, holding a sandal in one hand and a
yarrow stalk in the other. An empty brass pot was before him. Shouming
bowed deferentially.

"I come seeking a man of great renown and wisdom," he announced.

The old man nodded. He had a look of intense concentration on his face.
Shouming prostrated himself.

"O wise and venerable sage," he said, "my long journey is finally at an
end. Excuse my humble ignorance, but what so occupies your
attention?"

"I went out onto the mountainside to pick berries," the sage replied,
"and I trod in some goat droppings. I am scraping them from my
sandal."

At these words, Shouming became enlightened.