Once there were two brothers, nicknamed Big Tiger and Little Tiger, who lived in Changan, the Chinese capital under many dynasties. Among their friends and relatives, the two were known collectively as the tiger brothers. They were strong, honest, idealistic, and brave, and had earned the distinguished service awards for heroism from the imperial army. They also had a strong sense of justice fighting on the side of the poor and weak. 

One summer evening in an outdoor opera house, one of the brothers roughed up a powerful eunuch who was a confidant of the king. It turned out that the eunuch had made some disparaging remarks about a young woman singer who was a friend of the brothers. The king's confidant then charged them with attempted murder and banished them forever to the southwest border region of China. Subsequently, their house was confiscated and they were forced to become wanderers. 

Two years later, the tiger brothers drifted to Hangzhou and were charmed by the city and its countryside. There they were convinced of the old saying: “In Heaven, there is paradise; on Earth, there is Suzhou and Hangzhou.” 

One late afternoon while wandering along a mountain path, hoping to find shelter before dark, they walked toward a village in the valley. But by nightfall they had reached only a little dilapidated temple at the foot of the mountain. As they approached, an old monk was closing the gate. The brothers hurried forward and said, “Venerable Master, we're itinerant workers. May we stay in your temple for a few days to rest? We are tired now and hope to find some work in the village tomorrow.” 

The old monk put the palms of his hands together and nodded.

“Certainly, if you don't mind the coarse food in my humble temple. You are welcome to stay as long as I have food to share,” he said.

The brothers answered, “We are grateful for your kindness. It is more than we expected. We are used to hardship and hunger, any food is good to us.” 

During dinner, the tiger brothers praised the charm of Hangzhou. Little Tiger said, “The people here seem prosperous and happy. It must be a good place to live in. I hope we can find work.” 

“Hangzhou may be a good place to live in, but not right here,” said the old monk. “There is no water nearby. I have to climb several hills to fetch it. I have spent half my life fetching water and the other half being exhausted. For my age, this is no easy job.” 

“Where can you find water, Old Master?”

The old monk pointed his chopsticks toward the gate of the temple, “Beyond those hills. It is more than two miles away, too far for my old bones.” “That's not far for us,” said Big Tiger. “You're right. In the past we had many monks here. But when they grew old, they left. Carrying water was too much for them. When I was young I felt the same way you do. Time flies. Twenty years have passed in a wink. Now I have no strength left in my legs.” Considering the old monk's difficulties and the precarious-ness of a roving life, the tiger brothers decided to stay on and help the old monk. Big Tiger said, “Master, we have no family to support, and we are both willing and strong enough to help. May we be your disciples?” The old monk was impressed by their sincerity and thoughtfulness. Best of all, each of the brothers had the build of a jingang.* He accepted their offer immediately and was happy that he would have two strong water carriers. 

From then on, the brothers spent half the day studying intellectual and spiritual subjects and the other half in physical labor, such as cleaning the yard, gathering firewood, cooking meals, repairing walls and many other jobs. They workedhard but were happy. Every morning they went over the hills to fetch water. Later, they made bigger buckets and could-easily carry them filled with water on shoulder-poles, as if the weight were light as hay. Within a couple of hours they could fill the water vats in the temple. In addition, they would fetch enough water to distribute among the sick and the poor in the village. Before long, the villagers affectionately nicknamed the brothers “Master Tigers.” 

One year Hangzhou suffered a great drought which lasted from summer to winter. All the water sources dried up. Every morning the brothers looked at the empty water vats with the sad realization that they were helpless. 

Then Little Tiger recalled their discovery of the Boy's Spring on Heng Shan** in Hunan Province during the early days of their exile. It was a hot summer afternoon and they were exhausted and thirsty. Hoping to find shelter from the sun in the shade of cliffs by the roadside, they came upon a big stele carved with the Chinese characters, “Boy's Spring.” On the side was a little pool with a slate bottom, its water invitingly clear and fresh. And from the cracks of the rock, water dripped into the pool and overflowed into a little stream. Cupping their hands, the brothers took a drink and found they had never before tasted water so delicious and sweet. 

* Jingang means “the precious and hard,” that which can injure but cannot be injured: a name used for the Buddhist guardians of a temple. 

** Heng Shan is one of the five sacred mountains in China. 

“It would solve our problems if we could steal the Boy's Spring and move it here,” Big Tiger said. 

“I suppose it could be done if we had magic powers to make wishes come true. Anyway, I'm curious as to how the spring got its name. I would like to go back and find out,” said the younger brother. 

Next day, they told the old monk about their decision to steal the Boy's Spring and move it near to the temple. The old monk thought it was an excuse to leave the temple; or, perhaps, they had delusions from the long suffering of the drought. To let them go might help their mental state. 

“Of course, you may go, but be careful,” said the old monk. “It is more than a thousand miles to Heng Shan, and it will take you a long time to get there. I'm old, so we may not see each other again, but I want you to remember my feelings towardyou. Be good to all living things and remember all the villagers. Help everyone and in the end you will be helped by others.” He escorted the brothers to the edge of the village and bade them farewell with tears welling in his eyes. 

For months and years, over mountains and across rivers, in summer heat and winter cold, the brothers walked and walked toward Heng Shan, wearing out their shoes and clothes. Finally they reached the foot of Heng Shan and struggled toward the Boy's Spring. When they could hear water dripping from a rock and the babbling of a brook, they collapsed in exhaustion and dreamed of the old monk and the long suffering villagers. Water drops falling on their faces revived them and when they awoke, they found the sky was blue and birds were singing. Standing before them was a little boy with two buns on his head and a willow branch in his hand. He was smiling mischievously. 

Could this little boy be the master of the spring? The boy dipped the willow branch into the pool and sprinkled cool water on the brothers' faces. They felt energy surging through their feet, and begged the boy to let them move the spring to Hangzhou. The boy leaped to the ledge of a cliff, waved the willow branch at them, and said, “Oh yes, try it. I don't think anyone can do it, but my father said that determination and indifference to worldly fame and fortune can make you do anything in this world. That may include moving mountains and rivers.” 

“We struggled every step for more than one thousand miles to get here. Don't you think we have enough determination?” asked Little Tiger. 

Big Tiger added, “We are willing to risk everything to secure water for our old master and the villagers; we don't want this spring for worldly fame and fortune for ourselves.” 

The boy listened as the brothers pleaded their case. 

“My good fellow, we came all the way hoping to move this spring to Hangzhou. Even if we were to be transformed into horses or donkeys to transport this spring, we would be happy if the people of our village could taste the water,” the brothers said. 

Moved by their sincerity the boy finally agreed and said, “All right, since you seem to meet the qualifications, I'll let you move it. But I'll change you into tigers as it is too big a job for a horse or a donkey.” Again, the boy dipped the willow branch into the pool and scattered water on the brothers' faces. Then they felt something run through their bodies, their skins stretched as if about to burst, and there were tumultuous expansions and contractions inside their bodies. They fainted. When they woke, they had turned into tigers with black stripes on golden fur. They leaped to the side of the pool and roared toward the northeast where the little temple stood. 

That night while the old monk was meditating, he noticed two tigers pacing about outside his room. He got up and opened the door but the tigers disappeared in a flash. He walked to the center of the yard where the tigers had stood and found that the ground was wet. He must be hallucinating, he thought, and laughed. 

In the village square next morning, the old monk told the villagers what had happened the night before. But he was more astounded when the villagers said they had had the same dream. They believed that the tiger brothers had come back to comfort them. Suddenly a puff of smoke rose from the ground in their midst and there stood a little boy with two buns on his head and a willow branch in his hand. The boy shouted excitedly, “The tiger brothers are back, the tiger brothers are back." The crowd was dumbfounded.

The boy quickly pulled the monk to a bamboo grove at the edge of the village. Then, as suddenly and mysteriously as he had appeared, the boy was gone.

After the monk caught his breath, he saw two tigers lying side by side in the bamboo grove, purring and moving their tails reassuringly. He called out, "Big Tiger, Little Tiger, come here.” The beasts walked over to the monk, one on either side, and brushed against him like cats. The old monk patted their heads and in a gentle voice said, "I've been thinking of you ever since you left the temple. Now I am so happy that you have come back. What has happened to you? Have you really changed into tigers?" He could not believe whether it was real or he was dreaming. 

By now a large crowd had gathered round him. When they saw the tigers were friendly, the people were convinced that these were the reincarna-

tions of the tiger brothers.

When the crowd came closer, the tigers roared, leaped into the air, then ran toward the temple. They reached the center of the yard, pawed the ground, and dug a pit the size of a garden fountain pool. When the old monk caught up with them, he was astonished by the dirt piled up in the yard, which blocked the door and the windows of the meditation room. When the tigers saw him, they circled round him a few times, then roared again. Meanwhile, the sky had changed to steel gray, a fierce wind blew, and clouds gathered over the temple. The tigers leaped into the air, rising higher and higher until they reached the top of a silver cloud and faded out of sight.

When the old monk looked at the pit again, a stream of water was spurting from its center. Soon it was filled with clear water. When the villagers tasted the water, they found it refreshing and sweet. Afterwards, the villagers built an embankment and a slate bottom to enclose the spring.

The original little temple became a ruin, and in later years the people of Hangzhou built a big temple by the spring. They called it "Tiger Run Spring," and the temple "The Tiger Run Temple.” To this day, these names are used and you can still taste the delicious water which is said to be the Boy's Spring of Heng Shan from Hunan Province.