- Spirits Measure Sincerity
- 1 Jung Tae-moon lived in a room in the house of Gim Chi-gyung, the owner of a water mill in Yohng-ahm Village. For many days, Sahng-jeh-nim stayed there and Tae-moon attended on Him.
- 2 Tae-moon, who suffered from a disease endemic to the region, asked to be healed. Though Sahng-jeh-nim consented, He did not do so right away.
- 3 Later, Sahng-jeh-nim asked, “Do you really wish to be healed?”
“Yes, I truly do.”
- 4 Sahng-jeh-nim said, “The day after tomorrow, I will go to Jung-eup County. I will cure your disease now.”
- 5 Giving Tae-moon a paper with some words written on it, Sahng-jeh-nim said, “Keep this on your pillow while you sleep tonight. Tomorrow morning, when you wake up and open your door, a dog facing the door with its front paws together will cough up blood. The disease will be transferred to the dog, but the dog will not die.”
- 6 Tae-moon did exactly as he was told and everything happened as Sahng-jeh-nim had said.
- 7 Having been cured, Tae-moon took Sahng-jeh-nim to an inn. As Tae-moon poured Him a drink, Sahng-jeh-nim said, “If you are going to delay paying for this, it would be better not to offer it.”
- 8 “I will surely pay for it by tomorrow,” Tae-moon answered. The amount owed was seven nyahng.
- 9 The next day, after Sahng-jeh-nim had left for Jung-eup, Tae-moon thought of putting off paying the innkeeper and was suddenly stricken with a severe stomachache.
- 10 He wondered, “Is this because I thought of not paying for the wine?” He made up his mind to pay as soon as possible; shortly after, his stomachache stopped. He immediately paid the innkeeper.
- (JSD Dojeon 2,76)
