Salt and Soy Sauce Hosted by David Weinstein

When asked, “How is it?”
Mazu said, “For thirty years following confusion,
there has never been a lack of salt and soy sauce.”

This koan brought back memories of a two-week retreat I did with Lama Zopa and some other people at his cave in Lawudo, near Mount Everest. Not much grows at that altitude except potatoes. They never get very big because the growing season is so short. That’s all we had to eat for two weeks. On some days we had salt, which was quite a special occasion. It transformed the potatoes into a multifaceted banquet.

I hear Mazu saying something similar about the effect of practice on our life. Just as salt and soy sauce bring out the flavors of what they are put on, our practice brings out the flavors of our life.

What is salt and soy sauce in your life?

—David Weinstein

David Weinstein Roshi, Director of Rockridge Meditation Community