"Is that so?"

Is That So?

The Zen master Hakuin was praised by his neighbors as one living a pure
life.

A beautiful Japanese girl whose parents owned a food store lived near
him. Suddenly, without any warning, her parents discovered she was with
child.

This made her parents very angry. She would not confess who the man was,
but after much harassment at last named Hakuin.

In great anger the parents went to the master. "Is that so?" was all he
would say.

After the child was born it was brought to Hakuin. By this time he had
lost his reputation, which did not trouble him, but he took very good
care of the child. He obtained milk from his neighbors and everything
else the little one needed.

A year later the girl-mother could stand it no longer. She told her
parents the truth - that the real father of the child was a young man
who worked in the fishmarket.

The mother and father of the girl at once went to Hakuin to ask his
forgiveness, to apologize at length, and to get the child back again.

Hakuin was willing. In yielding the child, all he said was: "Is that
so?"