The Expert

Chi Ch'ang was a man who wanted to become the very best archer in the world, and so he searched for the master archer's Wei Fei. In a few years he practiced and mastered the art of not blinking and looking. He became even more arrogant than he already was as he tried to kill Wei Fei in order to claim the title of master archer. Instead they ironically hugged after Chi Ch'ang failed to strike the killing blow. Wei Fei told him to seek the real master called Kan Ying up in the mountains. Chi Ch'ang's pride refused to back down from a challenge eventually he was dumbfounded as Kan Ying showed him what archery is really about without using a bow and arrow. The old man seemed to had used magic sorcery, but in reality he perceptively used his mind subconsciously as a weapon to shoot down a bird far up in the sky from their gaze. For nine years, Chi Ch'ang learned from Master Kan Ying how to control his determined pride and arrogant attitude. On page 237 Kan Ying mentions that you must cast aside your bow and arrow because those are the limits to his skills and those objects are his characteristic traits which are holding him back from true archery. Once he trains his mind thoroughly for many years he is able to open the boundary of his subconscious and perform god-like impossibility. He learns humility, complete patience, and peace of mind as he spends forty years with an expressionless aura reaching true enlightenment.

Discussion Question: Do you think he is a better person at the end of the story?