During the Huichang period of the Tang Dynasty, Li Ao, the governor of Shannan East Road, sent several people to ask Zen Master Yaoshan Weiyan to come to the city to make offerings, but he was rejected by the Zen Master. One day, Li Ao came to visit in person. Yaoshan was sitting on the futon, holding a scripture in his hand and deliberately ignored him. Li Ao said angrily: "It's better to be famous than to meet!" After saying that, he walked out. At this time, Yaoshan said to him indifferently: "How can the prefect value his ears but not his eyes?"
Li Ao was moved by this sentence, so he turned around to worship and asked: "What is Tao?" Zen Master Yaoshan stretched out his fingers, pointed up and down, and then asked: "Do you understand?" "Li Ao said: "I don't understand. Yaoshan explained: "The clouds are in the sky and the water is in the bottle!"
Li Ao was enlightened after hearing the enlightenment from Zen Master Yaoshan. It turns out that the truth is on the clouds in the blue sky and in the water in the bottle! The Tao is in every plant and tree, in every mountain and valley, and in everything in the universe. He immediately wrote a poem: "I have realized that my body is in the shape of a crane, and two scriptures are written under a thousand pines." I came to ask without any more words, the clouds are in the blue sky and the water is in the bottle!
As long as you understand, it is not too late. After Li Ao came down from the mountain, he immediately took off his armor and returned to the fields. From then on, he lived in seclusion in the mountains and forests without leaving home. The ancients paid attention to the word "fate" when seeking teachers and discussing Taoism. The traditional concept of being good at learning and becoming an official mainly comes from the long-term influence of Confucianism. After all, there are only a few people who can put aside their external affairs and be indifferent to fame and fortune.
Perhaps only those who have traveled across the sea to Wushan will have a deeper understanding of clear water and floating clouds
It should come from this story