Is that so?

In his inspiring little book "Writings from the Zen Masters" (Penguin paperback), Paul Reps quotes the story of the Zen master Hakuin which goes as this:

The Zen master Hakuin was praised by his neighbours as one living a pure life.

A beautiful Japanese girl whose parents owned a food store lived near him. Suddenly, without any warning, her parents discovered she was with child.

This made her parents angry. She would not confess who the man was, but after much harassment at last named Hakuin.

In great anger the parents went to the master. "Is that so?" was all he would say.

After the child was born it was brought to Hakuin. By this time he had lost his reputation, which did not trouble him, but he took very good care of the child. He obtained milk from his neighbours and everything else the little one needed.

A year later the girl-mother could stand it no longer. She told her parents the truth - that the real father of the child was a young man who worked at the fishmarket.

The mother and father of the girl at once went to Hakuin to ask his forgiveness, to apologize at length, and to get the child back again.

Hakuin was willing. In yielding the child, all he said was: "Is that so?"

Mindful of that story (meditation does work!), I replied today to an email from an uncomplimentary, 'serial' critic, of the work of one of my teams in a most unlikely manner - for me that is. "Thank you" I wrote and wondered if Hakuin would have approved.