A father was worried about his son, who was sixteen years old but had no　courage at all. So the father decided to call on a Buddhist monk to train his　boy.

一位父親為兒子擔心。兒子16歲了，卻沒有一點勇氣。于是，父親決定去拜訪一位禪師，請他訓練兒子。

The Buddhist monk said to the boy’s father, “You should leave your son alone　here. I’ll make him into a real man within three months. However, you can’t　come to see him during this period. ”

禪師對男孩的父親說：“你應該讓他單獨留在這里。不出3個月，我要讓他成為一個真正的男子漢。不過，在這段時間，你不能來見他。”

Three months later, the boy’s father returned. The Buddhist monk arranged a　boxing match between the boy and an experienced boxer. Each time the fighter　struck the boy, he fell down, but at once the boy stood up; and each time a　punch knocked him down, the boy stood up again. Several times later, the　Buddhist monk asked, “What do you think of your child?”

3個月后，男孩的父親又來見禪師。禪師安排這個男孩和一位經驗豐富的拳師進行拳擊比賽。拳師每次一出手，男孩就倒在地上，但男孩又馬上站起來；每次將他擊倒，他就又站起來。幾個回合后，禪師問道：“你認為自己的孩子怎么樣？”

“What a shame!” the boy’s father said. “I never thought he would be so　easily knocked down. I needn’t have him left here any longer.”

“真丟人！”男孩的父親說，“我絕沒想到他這樣不堪一擊。我不需要他再留在這里了。”

“I’m sorry that that’s all you see. Don’t you see that each time he falls　down; he stands up again instead of crying? That’s the kind of courage you　wanted him to have.”

“很遺憾，你只看到了這一點。難道你沒看到他每次倒下后并沒有哭泣，而是重新站起來了嗎？這才是你想要他擁有的那種勇氣。”