Long ago, a man named Sung, longed to be a magician. So, one day, he went to a temple. He saw a priest with long hair sitting on a rush mat. He bowed and asked the priest if he could teach him magic. “I guess you are not strong enough for that,” replied the priest. Sung begged the priest to let him try. The priest allowed him to stay in the temple and join with the other pupils. Early next morning, the priest sent for him.
The priest gave him a hatchet and asked him to go out and cut firewood. He did this every day for a month. At last, his hands and feet were so sore that he secretly began to wish to go back home. One evening, when he returned from the day’s work, he found two strangers drinking wine with the priest.