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Origins of the Moktak (Wooden Fish)
The Moktak is a wooden percussion instrument shaped like a fish. This is the source of our newsletter's name, "Woodfish." The moktak is used in Buddhist chanting services and is rich in folklore. The following story on the origin of the Moktak is told by our founding teacher, Zen Master Seung Sahn. It has been adapted from an interview conducted by Glen Bradley at Dharma Zen Center in August 1989.
"Mok" means wood; "tak" means hit. But the original word is "Mok O". The Japanese call it "Mokugyo". "Moku" means wood and "gyo" means fish; so this instrument is like a fish with its mouth open. There is a story about the origin of this instrument.
Long ago, in China, there was a monk called Chung San Poep Sa. He lived near a big city and a big lake. One day a high government official came to the lake with his family for a picnic. They had a small baby, only a few months old. By chance, when they were on the boat the baby fell overboard. The official immediately engaged local fishermen to swim into the waters and find the body of his baby but they were unsuccessful. He went to Chung San Poep Sa and said he would like to do a ceremony for his dead baby but he did not have the body, so could he please help him. Chung San Poep Sa went into deep meditation and perceived what had happened. He told the government official, "we must go to the fish market early tomorrow morning and buy some fish." So they went to the fish market and Chung San Poep Sa selected a very big fish. Then they cut open the stomach and found the baby inside. To the surprise of the family, the baby was still alive. They were all very happy. Then the official wanted to help all fish for saving the life of his baby. So this moktak is shaped like a fish, with an open mouth and a hollow stomach. When you hit the moktak, a good sound appears. The meaning of the moktak sound is that the baby is still here and all fish can hear the sound and get enlightenment.