One
day Master came to the women's office without notice. As soon as
She saw us, She eagerly shared with us a dream She had had the previous
night but whose meaning She wasn't sure of. "Doo-Er, do you
know anyone in the monastic group who can analyze dreams?"
She asked. "Maybe Tong Half-God can," I replied. Master
nodded and asked me to immediately summon her by phone. She also
asked me to summon the nun-in-charge.
Soon
Tong Half-God and the nun-in-charge arrived. There were a few nuns
working in the office at the time. We formed a warm, cozy picture
as we all sat around Master. Then She told us Her dream. "I
dreamed of a large fruit tree with all kinds of fruit - persimmons,
wax apples and apples - on it. Later, a wind blew, and a big, plump
apple dropped down. I tried to catch it in my hands but was too
late. The apple dropped to the ground and got bruised all over.
I immediately checked the other fruit and found that most of them
were being blown away. Only a small persimmon and a small wax apple
were left on the tree. Because they were still very small and grew
close to the thick foliage, they remained safe even in the gusty
wind. I felt pity for these two weak ones, so I picked them and
put them in my pockets, one on each side."
As
soon as Master had finished Her narration, She asked Tong Half-God
to explain the dream. I don't remember her interpretation but I
remember that Master was not satisfied with it. Later Master gave
the best analysis. Although She just spoke very casually, we all
knew that She had given the best interpretation of Her dream.
She
said, "I think that the big apple represents those disciples
who have done well in spiritual practice and attained certain levels.
They thought they could withstand the strong winds and heavy rains
and didn't need the protection of the tree any more. They made themselves
distinct and assailable targets. So when the wind and rain came,
they were the first to fall! There were other disciples who had
not attained high levels, yet they knew how to seek protection by
growing close to the tree. So finally they were put into Master's
pockets and remained safe there."