Dharma Bums
Ryokan was a Zen teacher of repute. One day after a storm, a fisherman saw him walking on the beach. The waves had washed thousands of starfish onto the shore, and they were quickly beginning to die in the warm sunlight. Ryokan picked up the starfish, one by one, and threw them into the sea.
The fisherman caught up with the teacher and said, “Surely, you cannot hope to throw all these starfish back into the sea? They will die in their thousands here. I’ve seen it happen before. Your effort will make no difference.â€
“It will make a difference to this one,†Ryokan replied, throwing another starfish into the sea.
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