ENLIGHTENMENT

My Zen master tells me that out of chaos comes order. He talks about form and non-form and that both co-exist. He insists that black and white aren't opposites but are reflections of each other. He tells me that nothing contains everything and that everything contains nothing.

"In order to see must you watch or in order to watch must you see?" he posited.

I gave him a puzzled look and he whacked me over the head with his paddle.

"Do you understand?" he bellowed.

"Yes, I understand," I stammered because I didn't want him to whack me again.

But he struck me and screamed, "How can you understand what can't be understood?"

I thought for a moment.

"The brown cat digs a hole and buries its excrement," I ventured.

"What?" he queried in a more measured voice.

"The brown cat digs a hole and buries its excrement," I replied with increased confidence.

He gave me the paddle.

"Strike me! You are finally on the road to enlightenment."