An Englishman's Sword

Brian McLeod (Nov 11, 2007)

After a Manjusri wongkur in Wupperthal, Germany, one of Rinpoche's English students asked, "What shall we do with the sword?"

Rinpoche replied, "Typical! Show a Frenchman a sword and he'll marvel at the shape of the blade, the design of the hilt, the overall craftsmanship. Give a German the same sword and he'll swing it, slashing the air, enjoying the cut and thrust of it. But the Englishman says, "Ohh.. what is this for?"