Zen story: Steal the Moon

Buddha Groove (blog.buddhagroove.com); Ashley Wells, CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Zen Master Ryokan lived a life of simplicity in a cabin near the mountains. When he was away one night, a thief broke in only to find nothing worth stealing.

Just then Master Ryokan returned and seeing the burglar said: “You have travelled far to visit me! I can't let you return emptyhanded. Here are my clothes. Please accept them as a gift.”

The baffled thief took the clothes and ran away.

Now naked, the master gazed at the moon. “Poor man,” he sighed, “how I wish I could give him this glorious moon.” Source