The religious people always go on showing humbleness: "I am nothing, I am nobody." And if you look into their eyes, their eyes are saying just the opposite. If you watch their behavior, it is always a projection of holier-than-thou. They go on saying, "We are nothing," and they go on in a subtle way, in a diplomatic way, proclaiming, "We are saints."
The real man of Zen is not humble in the ordinary sense of the
word. He simply says whatsoever is the case. This is the case! Chao
Chou is simply stating a truth. He is not saying anything about
himself, remember. He is simply stating a fact: "THIS state - this
state of no-mind in which I am - is higher, higher among human kings
and higher among Kings of Dharma also - because it is the highest
state."
Once Ramakrishna was given a painting by a great painter - a
painting of Ramakrishna himself, a portrait. Ramakrishna took the
painting, bowed down to the painting, touched the feet - his own
feet, it was his own portrait! The painter was puzzled: "Is that man
really mad?" The disciples were puzzled.
One disciple asked, "Paramahansadeva, what are you doing, touching
your own feet?"
Ramakrishna said, "Right! You should have reminded me before. I
should not do such a thing. What will people think? They will think
I am mad! But the truth is, I completely forgot that this is my
picture - I could only see the ultimate state of consciousness. This
is a portrait of Samadhi, not of Ramakrishna. Ramakrishna is
irrelevant! It could have been Buddha′s picture, it could have been
Krishna′s picture, it could have been Jesus′ picture. It is just an
accident that it is mine. It doesn′t matter.
"But the painter has been able to catch hold of something very
subtle; he has been able to depict something which is indescribable.
And I could not resist myself - I had to bow down, I had to touch
the feet."
Remember, when Chao Chou says:
he is not talking about himself, not at all. He is talking about
the ultimate state. He is no more, so who is there to be humble? See
the point: there is nobody to be proud, there is nobody to be
humble. Those are all games of the ego - to be humble or to be
proud.
The real man is neither proud nor humble; he simply is not.