No Water, No Moon Zen Story
- Everything IFS
- Dec 2
- 2 min read
Updated: 5 days ago
Today we enter… No Water, No Moon
You’ve been searching for something. Maybe it’s peace. Or answers. Or clarity. You reach and reach. You hold tightly to what you think you need.
And then…you lose it.
This story is about what happens next .It’s short. It’s strange. But it holds something holy.
Let’s walk in together.
Let the Story Unfold
When the nun Chiyono studied Zen under Bukko of Engaku, she was unable to attain the fruits of meditation for a long time.
At last she began to carry water in an old bamboo basket. One moonlit night as she was carrying water, she looked into the pail and saw the full moon reflected there. In that instant, the bamboo snapped, the pail fell apart. The water disappeared. The moon’s reflection vanished.
And at that moment, Chiyono was free.
She wrote this verse:
“This way and that I tried to keep the pail together, hoping the weak bamboo would never break.
Suddenly the bottom fell out. No more water; no more moon in the water, emptiness in my hand.”
Sit With the Meaning
She tried and tried. She did everything she was told. She practiced hard. She waited for awakening.
But it never came.
Until… something broke. Not inside her. Not spiritually. Just… the pail.
The moment her effort failed, the moment the container gave way, that’s when she woke up.
No water. No moon. Just emptiness… in her hand. And it was enough.
That’s what makes this story so sacred.
Zen doesn't say: “You must reach enlightenment. ”It says: “Let go. Let it fall apart. Let it empty.”
Because what you're grasping may be the very thing keeping you from seeing clearly.
What vanishes was never the moon. Just the illusion you thought was holding it.
And when it breaks… freedom doesn’t feel like gaining something. It feels like emptiness that doesn’t ache.
Turn Inward With Your Parts
Is there a part of you still trying to “hold the pail together”?
What fear shows up when you imagine letting go of effort, control, or striving?
Can you sense a part that longs for freedom, but doesn’t believe it can come through release?
What does your system feel when you picture the moon’s reflection disappearing and nothing needing to replace it?
Let Expression Rise
This is where your parts are welcome to speak, in whatever form feels true today. Not a task. Not a project. Just a soft invitation inward.
Choose what feels alive:
• IFS Journaling — Write from the voice of the part that’s still trying to “keep the pail together.” What is it afraid would happen if it stopped?
• IFS Parts Art — Draw what “emptiness in your hand” feels like to your system. Is it peaceful? Scary? Beautiful? Dead?
• Somatic IFS — Gently place your hand over the chest or belly. Breathe into the feeling of something breaking open — and nothing needing to be fixed.
And if none of these feel right…it’s perfectly okay to simply rest with the story. Let the silence do the holding.
Stay here with your parts as long as you like, and we’ll meet again in the next story. 🕯️
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