Master So-San(Su-Shan Kuang-Jen;837-909) came to Venerable Master Too-Ja (Tou-Tzu), who asked: “Where are you coming from?”
So-San answered, “I come from Yon-Pyong (Sword Mountain).”
Too-Ja asked, “Then did you bring your sword?”
So-San responded, “Yes, I did.”
Too-Ja Immediately requested, “Show it to me, this old monk.”
So-San, with his finger, pointed at the ground in front of the master instead of answering with the words.
Too-Ja, then abruptly left for his room.
That afternoon he called the attendant to bring So-San to have a cup of tea with him. The attendant said, “Master, after this mornings event, he left immediately.”
Then Too-Ja sang a Gatha (Poem):
“For the last thirty years enjoying the horseback riding Today, fell from the horse back by the litter donkey.”
In this case, when the Patriarch requested, “Show it to me, this old monk,” why did So-San point at the ground in front of the master, instead?