Shundo David Haye – Zen Priest

‘If one repeats what he hears from others or reads in books, he is not spreading Dharma but adulterating it. In the Orient we call such a person a “three-inch scholar.” He reads or hears, then speaks, and the distance from the eyes to the mouth or the ears to the mouth is about three inches. Those who give lectures or write books on Buddhism with no attainment of inward light are working in vain.’ (Commentary on the Iron Flute)

We came across this passage in our Dogen study group, while we were searching for a quote about inches (probably this one, though perhaps another will come to mind). In any case, it was too good not to share.