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6 / Y ASUT ANI ' S INTRODUCTORY LECTURESsucceeded by his eldest disciple, Myozen. During the eight yearsDagen spent with Myozen he passed a considerable nwnber of koansand finally received inka.Despite this accomplishment Dagen still felt spiritually unful£lled,and this disquiet moved him to undertake the then-hazardous journeyto China in search of complete peace of mind. He stayed at all thewell-known monasteries, practicing under many masters, but hislonging for total liberation was unsatisfied. Finally at the famousT'ien-t'ung Monastery, which had just acquired a new master, heachieved full enlightenment, i.e., the liberation of body and mind,through these words uttered by his master, Nyojo: "You must letfall body and mind."These words are said to have been uttered by Nyojo at the commencementof the formal zazen period, in the early morning, as hewas making his round of inspection. Spying one of the monks dozingoff, Nyojo reprimanded him for his half-hearted effort. Then addressingall the monks, he continued: "You must exert yourselveswith all your might, even at the risk of your lives. To realize perfectenlightenment you must let fall [i.e., become empty of all conceptionsof] body and mind."1 As Dagen heard this last phrase his Mind's eyesuddenly expanded in a flood of light and Understanding.Later Dagen appeared at Nyojo's room, lit a stick of incense (aceremonial gesture usually reserved for noteworthy occasions), andprostrated himself before his master in the customary fashion."Why are you lighting a stick of incense?" asked Nyojo. Needlessto say, Nyojo, who was a first-rate master, and who had receivedDagen many times in dokusan and therefore knew the state of hismind, could perceive at once from Dagen's walk, his prostrations,and the comprehending look in his eyes that he had had a great enlightenment.But Nyojo undoubtedly wanted to see what responsethis innocent-sounding question would provoke so as to fix the scopeof Dagen's satori."I have experienced the dropping off of body and mind," repliedDagen.·Nyojo exclaimed: ''You have dropped body and mind, body andmind have indeed dropped!"1 for a discussion of the significance of a single word or phrase precipitating enlightenment,seep. 91.