Killing Zen Story
- Dec 11, 2025
- 2 min read
Today we enter… A Killing. A story that sounds violent at first glance, but its blade turns inward long before it ever touches the world.
Step slowly. This one cuts close to the ego.
Let the Story Unfold
Two monks were arguing about a point of doctrine. Their debate grew heated, each determined to prove himself right.
They approached the master for resolution.
Before either monk could speak, the master said:
“I will answer your question.”
He drew a line in the dirt with his staff.
He pointed to the first monk.
“If you say this line is too long, I will cut you down.”
He pointed to the second monk.
“And if you say this line is too short, I will cut you down.”
Both monks froze.
The master said:
“Now speak—if you have anything left to say.”
Neither monk could.
The argument died on its own.
Sit With the Meaning
This is not a story about physical killing. It is a story about ego—its hunger to be right, its addiction to comparison, its need to measure everything.
The master isn’t threatening violence. He is threatening the only thing the ego fears: the end of its position.
Too long, too short, both require judgment. Both require a self who knows, who measures, who positions itself above.
The moment either monk declared an opinion, he would step out of presence and into the mind’s battlefield.
The master’s teaching is simple:
When you stop measuring, the argument ends.
When you stop comparing, suffering ends.
When you stop needing to be right, peace begins.
What dies in this koan is not a monk. It is the compulsive need to stand somewhere.
Turn Inward With Your Parts
Is there a part of you that rushes to take a position so it won’t look foolish or weak?
What happens inside when you imagine not knowing — and not needing to know?
Which protector equates “being right” with safety?
Can you sense a younger part who believes losing an argument means losing worth?
Let Expression Rise
IFS Journaling
Write from the part that must take a stance, defend a point, or win a debate. Let it share what danger it imagines if it simply says,“I don’t know.”
IFS Parts Art
Draw the line in the dirt. Then draw the two parts of you that want to declare it too long or too short. Where do they stand? What do they protect?
Somatic IFS
Stand with feet grounded.
Lift your chin as if preparing to argue.
Feel the tension.
Then slowly drop your shoulders, soften your belly, and unclench your jaw.
Notice what shifts when you stop preparing to take a stance.
And if none of these feel right, simply stay with the story. Let the quiet be the teacher.
Stay here with your parts as long as you like, and we’ll meet again in the next story.
Continue Exploring the Zen Stories
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