A person wanted very much to pursue spiritual practice. He read many stories and scriptures, and all of them said: Humility is the prime quality showing that someone has attained sainthood. Therefore, he longed to learn to be humble.

He followed a master to study. He told his master that he longed to see God, but he didn't know how he could learn to be humble. He felt himself to be unclean, impure and not humble; so he could not see God.

His master said, "Good! Now you go and find someone or something filthier, lower and humbler than you. Bring them to me, or just tell me; then I can teach you how to learn from them, how to become humbler."

He went from Taipei to Kaohsiung but failed to find anyone, not even in Miaoli. Though we are so lousy, he couldn't find anyone lousier than he. He felt frustrated.

Once, when in the toilet, he suddenly thought that the feces must be filthier and lower than he, since no one would want them and would run away covering their noses upon seeing them. He wanted to take a heap of feces to his master, because he could not find anything lower than that.

Just as he reached out his hand, and before he touched "them" he suddenly heard a voice say, "Don't touch me! Don't move! Don't touch me!" The man was amazed and wondered who was talking. Then the voice was heard again, "Don't you touch me!" It seemed that the feces was talking to him. Totally bewildered, he asked, "Why not? Why can't I touch you?"

It said, "Don't you see? I was a perfect piece of cake yesterday. (Audience laughs.) I was so pretty, so valuable and precious, that I was fit to be consumed by a king, or to be offered to a great saint. Now, just because of having associated with you once, today I have been transformed into this state. No one wants to see me now, not even get close. When they see me, they close their eyes, block their noses, and run away quickly. Everyone despises me. I turned into this state just because I associated with you just once! If you touch me once more, oh terrible, (audience laughs) who knows what I will become? I don't know what more terrible things will happen to me. So, please don't touch me anymore." Then, the man really understood and felt humble.

We all think we are very good, but the truth is that we might not be! We think we are better than the feces, but the truth is that they turn into that state because of us. We spiritual practitioners know very well whether we have the quality of humility within or not. Don't think that we are anything great.