Provide a one-sentence moral for the parable. And then write a paragraph explaining, elaborating on your moral--on your interpretation of the parable.You can do the exercises in your head or on paper. But after you work through the material in the attachment, you need to do these things.Provide a one-sentence moral for the parable.
And then write a paragraph explaining, elaborating on your moral--on your interpretation of the parable.And give it a title. With that you are about half way finished.Now, re-read the parable and come at from another interpretive angle. That is, find ANOTHER message or moral in it.
Write that second moral out as a single sentence. And again, write a paragraph explaining, elaborating on this second moral--your second, alternative or additional, way to interpret the parable. And give it a new title to match your second moral.Lastly, write a paragraph discussing your experience of doing this assignment--reading through the material and exercises, and then writing the morals and titles and paragraph explanations. Reflect a bit on the value of parables. This is your third and final paragraph.
The four paragraphs of this little story are presented one at a time. After each paragraph there is a short thinking exercise followed by a brief discussion of the questions raised there.
To fully experience the benefit of the pedagogy illustrated throughout the set of exercises, it is important to take some time considering each aspect of the short work that follows.
UNTITLED
The pupils of the Tendaischool used to study meditation before Zen entered Japan. Four of them who were intimate friends promised one another to observe seven days of silence.
Notice that the piece is untitled for the moment. This is deliberate. You will be asked to provide a title later. For now, answer the questions in the following exercise.
Exercise 1-7a
• What task do the friends undertake? Do you think this is a relatively easy task or a difficult one? Why?
• Select two words you think are especially significant in this opening. Why do you think these words may become important as the story unfolds?
• What questions would you like to ask someone about this first paragraph?
• What do you think will happen next? Why?
Here is the second paragraph:
On the first day all were silent. Their meditation had begun auspiciously, but when night came and the oil lamps were growing dim, one of the pupils could not help exclaiming to a servant: "Fix those lamps!"
Exercise 1-7b
• Make two observations about the details of this paragraph.
• What connections can you make between the first paragraph of the story and this second one?
• What tone of voice might the pupil use in saying "Fix those lamps?" What other possible tones of voice might he have used? What else might he have said-or done-silently-to indicate the lamps needed oil, instead of speaking
• What do you think will happen next? Why?
And now the third little segment:
The second pupil was surprised to hear the first one talk: "We are not supposed to say a word," he remarked.
Exercise 1-7c
• How do you respond to this development in the story? Why?
• What connections can you make between this section and the earlier ones?
• What do you expect next in the story? Do you predict that it will continue with a particular mark of punctuation? If so, which one-and why?
And, finally, the conclusion:
"You two are stupid. Why did you talk?" asked the third.
"I am the only one who hasn't talked," concluded the fourth pupil.
That's it-the end. Were you surprised at the behavior of the third pupil? Why or why not? What about the behavior of the fourth and last of the pupils? What do you think motivates the third and fourth pupils to speak? What kind of work is this, anyway?
This parable does not state an explicit moral or lesson anywhere-but any number of lessons are implied in its details of description, dialogue, and action.
Exercise 1-7d
Provide a one-sentence lesson or moral for the story. In that sentence try to capture the essence-the key concept or message that the story conveys. Take a few minutes to think about this and then write out your sentence.
Exercise 1-7e
Now that you have written out your lesson or moral for the story, it's important to go back and re-read it. This time, as you read, look for details that can be connected to suggest another different moral or lesson.
That is, you are now being asked to see the story in another light-from a different perspective and with a different focus. This will lead you to a different interpretation, which you should also now write out in a single sentence just as you did before. Be sure to take the time to consider and formulate this second differently angled perspective on the story-this second moral or lesson.
Here, now, is the complete story for yet one more re-reading:
The pupils of the Tendaischool used to study meditation before Zen entered Japan. Four of them who were intimate friends promised one another to observe seven days of silence.
On the first day all were silent. Their meditation had begun auspiciously, but when night came and the oil lamps were growing dim, one of the pupils could not help exclaiming to a servant: "Fix those lamps."
The second pupil was surprised to hear the first one talk: "We are not supposed to say a word," he remarked.
"You too are stupid. Why did you talk?" asked the third.
"I am the only one who has not talked," concluded the fourth pupil.
Exercise 1-7f
Now that you have written out two sentences, each of which captures a different lesson or "moral" for the story, you are ready to give the story a title. Do this twice-providing two different titles for the story. Be sure that each of your titles matches up with each of your sentence-lessons, or morals.
Exercise 1-7g
What did you learn in the process of doing the exercises based upon this Zen parable?