the true tso-ch'an which leads to Ch'an. These
　　   practices  are referred  to as "outer path" tso-ch'an
　　   because they are also found in other disciplines, for
　　   example, Taoism.  A couple of anecdotes will illustrate
　　   some of these not-Ch'an attitudes in tso-ch'an.
　　　　  The first anecdote involves a disciple  of
　　   Hui-neng's Nan-Yueh Huai-jang 南岳怀怀让 (677-744).
　　   Huai-jang observed a monk named Ma-tsu 马祖 (709-788)
　　   who  had a habit  of doing   tso-ch'an  all  day long.
　　   Realizing  this was no ordinary monk, Huai-jang asked
　　   Ma-tsu, "why are you cd" is mind which is involved in
　　   the  ordinary  world, and moves   as usual, but is not
　　   attached  to anything.  Another   sense comes from the
　　   root meanings  of the words p'ing   平 and ch' ang 常,
　　   and can be construed  to mean a mind which is "level"
　　   and  "constant", that  is, in  a  state  of  constant
　　   equanimity.  In  either  sense, there  is  no
　　   attachment.  So the point  is, the kind  of tso-ch'an
　　   that Ma-tsu  did before  he met Huai-jang  emphasized
　　   physi-  cal aspects  at the expense of being grounded
　　   in mind.
　　　　  The second "outer path" anecdote  also  involves
　　   disciples of Hui-neng. When Shih-t'ou Hsi-ch'ien  石
　　   头希迁 (700-790) was a young monk, he approached the
　　   dying Hui-neng and asked, "Master,   after  you  pass
　　   away, what should I do?" Hui-neng said, "You  should 
　　   go to Hsing-szu". Shih-tou   understood  him  to  say
　　   hsun-szu 寻思, which means "seek thoughts". This was
　　   actually a term for the method of meditating by
　　   watching one's thoughts.  Shih- t'ou was unaware that
　　   there was another disciple of the Sixth Patriarch  by
　　   the name of Ch'ing-yuan  Hsing-szu   青原行思 (?-740),
　　   so he just assumed  that the master told him to prac-
　　   tice  watching  his thoughts.   After  Hui-neng  died,
　　   Shih-tou  constantly  sought out very isolated, quiet
　　   places  and spent  his time  in tso-ch'an, neglecting
　　   all  else, An elder  in the   assembly  saw  this  and
　　   asked,
　　  
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　　   "The master is dead; what are  you   doing  here  in
　　   empty sitting?" Shih-t'ou replied, "I am only
　　   following  the master's   instructions.  He told me to
　　   watch  my  thoughts."  The   elder  said, "you  should
　　   realize  you have an elder Dharma brother   whose name
　　   is Hsing-szu.  Why don't  you   hurry  and go to study
　　   with him?"
　　　　  Indeed, the tso-ch'an which consists in  sitting