Zen koan of the day - No Cold or Heat

No Cold or Heat

A monk asked Tung Shan, "When cold and heat come, how can we avoid them?"

Tung Shan said, "Why don't you go to the place where there is no cold or heat?"

The monk said, "What is the place where there is no cold or heat? "

Tung Shan said, "When it's cold, the cold kills you; when it's hot, the heat kills you."

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dcj commentary:

Narasimha was an avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu, who was half lion and half man. Narasimha iconography shows him with a human torso and lower body, with a lion face and claws, typically with a demon Hiraṇyakaśipu in his lap whom he is in the process of killing.

Brahma offered Hiraṇyakaśipu a boon. Hiraṇyakaśipu asked,

Grant me that I not die within any residence or outside any residence, during the daytime or at night, nor on the ground or in the sky. Grant me that my death not be brought about by any weapon, nor by any human being or animal. Grant me, further, that I not be killed by human, deva or animal.

Brahma granted him the boon, and Hiraṇyakaśipu gained these powers.

Narasiṃha was not human, deva or animal as he was a form of Viṣṇu incarnate as a part-human, part-animal. He came upon Hiraṇyakaśipu at twilight (when it is neither day nor night) on the threshold of a courtyard (neither indoors nor out), and put the demon on his thighs (neither earth nor space). Using his sharp fingernails (not a weapon), he disemboweled and killed the demon king.