- Renewing Minds and Conveying Dao
- 1 In teaching the disciples, Sahng-jeh-nim rarely wrote anything. He usually taught them orally.
- 2 He would have them all sit in rows on a round straw mat in the yard outside of the medicine room.
- 3 Rather than teaching each of them individually, He would first teach a few, and then they would teach the others.
- 4 If a disciple tried to undermine this order by insisting on being taught in person,
- 5 Sahng-jeh-nim would call him a rogue and slap him. The disciple’s face would look as if it had been scratched by thorns, but instantly the marks would vanish.
- 6 When the disciples read from books, Sahng-jeh-nim knew who was doing well and who was doing poorly just by walking behind them once.
- 7 He then had those who were doing well teach those who were doing poorly.
- 8 Sahng-jeh-nim allowed three chances to anyone who read the text incorrectly.
- 9 On the fourth failed attempt, the disciple would find himself on top of a tree or dangling from a branch.
- 10 Fearing this, they all concentrated on their reading.
- (JSD Dojeon 3,162)
