A father was really 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 child.
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.”
Three months later, the boy's father returned. The Buddhist monk arranged a boxing match between the child 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 again, then the boy stood up again. Several times later, the Buddhist monk asked, “What do you think of your child?”
“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.”
“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.”
If each time you are knocked down you have the courage to stand up again, then you can be proud of yourself.
一位父亲很为自己的儿子担心，他16岁了，却一点儿勇气都没有。于是父亲决定去拜访禅师，请他训练自己的儿子。
禅师对孩子的父亲说道：“你应该让他单独留下。三个月内我将把他训练成一个真正的男子汉。但是在这段时间你不可以探望他。”
三个月后，父亲来看孩子，禅师安排孩子与一位经验丰富的拳师进行一场比赛。拳师一出手，孩子便应声而倒，但他立刻站了起来；每当再次被击倒，他紧接着又站起来。几个回合后，禅师问道：“你认为你儿子怎样？”
“真丢人！”孩子的父亲说，“我没想到他竟如此不堪一击。看来他没有必要继续呆在这儿了。”
“你只看到这一点，我感到很遗憾。难道你没见他每次倒下后并没有因此而哭泣，而是重新站起来了吗？这才是你期待他拥有的那种勇气呀！”
如果击倒后有勇气重新站起来，你便可以为自己感到骄傲了。