Zen Encounter: Niaoke Daolin and Bai Juyi, second half 18th century, Soga Sh?haku, Japanese, 1730 - 1781, 45 1/2 ¡Ñ 19 3/4 in. (115.57 ¡Ñ 50.17 cm) (image)83 3/8 ¡Ñ 25 7/8 in. (211.77 ¡Ñ 65.72 cm) (without roller), Ink on silk, Japan, 18th century, Legend has it that the famous Chinese poet Bai Juyi (772¡V846) once paid a visit to the Zen master Niaoke Daolin (741¡V824) and found the elderly monk sitting in a tree by a nest of magpies. The poet asked the monk about the essential meaning of the Dharma, or Buddhist teaching. The monk answered by quoting a scripture, the Precept Verse of the Seven Buddhas: 'Shun all evil, perform every good.' To this, the poet exclaimed, 'Even a three-year-old child knows this!' And the Zen master replied, 'A three-year-old child may be able to say it, but even an 80-year-old man cannot do it.' Finally comprehending, Bai Juyi then built a Zen temple and devoted his life to Zen practice. In this painting of the famous encounter, the Japanese painter Soga Sh?haku shows a smiling Niaoke Daolin sitting high in a tree next to three magpies. The poet below, accompanied by an attendant, appears befuddled.