One day, a university professor teaching Zen came by and consulted Zen Master Nanyin about Zen.
Zen Master Nanyin treated him to some tea and filled his cup. When the cup was full, Zen Master Nanyin seemed unnoticed and went on pouring tea into the cup.
As the cup overflew, the tea made a terrible mess on the table. The university professor asked while he was busy wiping the table, “Master, please stop pouring tea into the cup. It is already overflowing.”
Zen Master Nanyin stopped.
“You are just like this cup,” he smiled, “Your mind is full of your opinions and preconceptions about Zen. I would show you Zen unless youfirst empty your cup.”
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