Chapter Ten: Belief and Dedication 13

When the Founding Master was dwelling at Sŏktu hermitage, Chang Chŏkcho, Ku Namsu, and Yi Man’gap traveled a hundred li despite their feminine frailty to pay homage to the master out of their scrupulous belief and dedication. The Founding Master was moved and said, “Your faith is so genuine, I wonder if you would eat dung if I asked you now?” Hearing the master, the three women immediately went outside and brought some dung back with them. The Founding Master said, “Sit down.” He continued, “Watching your behavior, your faith is such that I’m sure you would eat something even worse than dung. Right now, our order is still small, so I have many opportunities to look after you attentively; but when our order expands in the future, I may not even be able to know each time you come and go. Check your mind and see if the kind of scrupulous belief and dedication you have today will continue even during those times, and try to persist throughout eternal kalpas in the belief and dedication you have today.”