The abbot of a certain Zen temple wanted to draw a dragon on the ceiling of the Dharma Hall. He hired a well-known painter for the job. The latter agreed, but complained that he had never seen a real dragon, even if there was such a thing. The abbot said, "Don't care if you've seen such a thing. You become one yourself, you become a living dragon, and draw it. Don't follow the cliché." The painter said, "How can I become a dragon?" The abbot replied, "Go back to your house and focus your mind on it. The time when you feel compelled to paint will come. At that time, it will be you. Become a dragon, and the dragon urges you to give it shape." Following the abbot's words, the artist became confident after months of perseverance, because he saw himself incarnated as a dragon in his unconscious. The result is the dragon on the ceiling that we see today in the Dharma Hall of Myoshinji Temple in Kyoto.

The abbot of a certain Zen temple wanted to draw a dragon on the ceiling of the Dharma Hall. He hired a well-known painter for the job. The latter agreed, but complained that he had never seen a real dragon, even if there was such a thing. The abbot said, "Don't care if you've seen such a thing. You become one yourself, you become a living dragon, and draw it. Don't follow the cliché." The painter said, "How can I become a dragon?" The abbot replied, "Go back to your house and focus your mind on it. The time when you feel compelled to paint will come. At that time, it will be you. Become a dragon, and the dragon urges you to give it shape." Following the abbot's words, the artist became confident after months of perseverance, because he saw himself incarnated as a dragon in his unconscious. The result is the dragon on the ceiling that we see today in the Dharma Hall of Myoshinji Temple in Kyoto.