The image of Jesus as a "soul-savior" that restores the human true Self, as conveyed in the "Gospel of Thomas," which was brought to China by Nestorian Christians, was crystallized in the "Ten Oxherding Pictures(十牛図)" by followers of Zen Buddhism, which emerged during the Tang Dynasty.

The story of a shepherd who grazes 100 sheep and desperately searches for one that has gone astray, leaving the other 99 behind, appears in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke as a parable that reveals the depth of God's love for those who are lost. According to Mr. Sasagu Arai, author of the Japanese version of 《The Gospel of Thomas》, in 《the Gospel of Thomas》, the whole story is the metaphor of 'The Kingdom.' Since the comparison point of the story is 'Shepherd,' there is a tendency for the 'humanology theorization' of the story, which is characteristic of 《the Gospel of Thomas》. Because the astray sheep is declared the largest sheep, it suggests the original Self of a man. which should be saved, same as in verses 20, 76 and 96 of 《the Gospel of Thomas》. The word 'after he had toiled' implies Jesus' suffering. "I love you more than the ninety-nine," this is because it is indispensable one for one hundred.

Interpreting this in the light of overall theme of 《the Gospel of Thomas》, that is, the view of humanology and salvation, the original Self (the largest sheep), which originally belonged to the Kingdom, that is, primitive human existence, has gone astray into non-original ones, primitive human existence, especially the one embodying the original self (the shepherd) searched for it and tried to find it. In this case, the one embodying the original self appears to point directly to Jesus, but it is essentially a human matter.

According to Mr. Sasagu Arai, the parable of 'An astray sheep' described at the verse 107 in the Gospel of Thomas is parallel to the Gospel of Matthew 18:12-14 and the Gospel of Luke 15:4-7 but does not exist in the Gospel of Mark. Thus its original source is Q source. Incidentally Q source is part of the common material found in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke but not in the Gospel of Mark. Q source was hypothesized by 1900, and is one of the foundations of most modern gospel scholarship.

According to Mr. Arai, the old lore remains in verse 4 of 《the Gospel of Luke》 rather than verse 12 of 《the Gospel of Matthew》, Verse 13 of 《the Gospel of Matthew》 is close to the Q source. Verse 5-6 of 《the Gospel of Luke》 is a rewriting of the Q source by Luke. Both 《the Gospel of Matthew》 verse 14 and 《the Gospel of Luke》 verse 7 are edited phrases by Matthew and Luke. On the other hand, as for the verse 107 of 《the Gospel of Thomas》, the edited phrases of 《the Gospel of Matthew》 and 《the Gospel of Luke》 have been removed, and the archetype of the Q source has been preserved as a whole.

If the ninety-nine sheep belong to the primitive existence (the Kingdom), the parables of 《the Gospel of Thomas》 verse 107 and 《the Gospel of Matthew》 chapter 18 verse 12-14 look almost same meaning. It is considered that 100 sheep should belong to the primitive existence (the Kingdom) in 《the Gospel of Thomas》and they should belong to the church community in 《the Gospel of Matthew》, to that extent, the paradox of 'one is more important than ninety-nine' does not hold for both parables. However, in 《the Gospel of Thomas》, one, that can complete one hundred, is loved more than ninety-nine, that is missing one, and one itself is not the object of love.

This point is clearly pointed out by the interpretation of the astray sheep of 《The Gospel of Truth (Evangelium Veritats)》, which was included in the Nag Hamadi Texts along with 《The Gospel of Thomas》. In ancient times, there was a custom of counting with the left hand until '99' and counting with the right hand for 'more than one hundred.' The left hand meant 'incomplete' and the right hand meant 'perfect.' Therefore, the last 'one' belongs to the great right hand, and the 'hundred' represents the Father. Irenaeus (130-202) mentions that the Valentino Gnostic Marcosians had this kind of interpretation in his book, 'Adversus haereses (Against Heresies).' In any case,《 the Gospel of Thomas》 adds the phrase 'the largest sheep' to the parable of 'The astray Sheep' and uses this as the motive for the shepherd's hardship, and finally let Jesus himself say, "I love you more than the ninety-nine," and, in this way, portrays the image of Jesus as a "soul-savior" that restores the human true Self.

Time passed to the Tang Dynasty in China, a monk was working in the Kitchen pantry(厨庫). His master came over and asked, "What are you doing?" The monk replied, "I'm letting the cattles graze." The master then asked again, "How do you do it?" The monk replied, "When the cattles go to the fields to graze, I pull the reins." The master nodded with satisfaction, saying, "I see, I see." (Jingde Chuandeng Lu)

You may wonder what it means to let cattles graze in a kitchen, but a cattle is called "The workings of the Iron Ox" and in Zen Buddhism, it is a metaphor for the "true self." Here, it refers to the monk students who practice in search of their "true self."

Chuku(厨庫) means kitchen and library, and the Zen sect's officials, including the Dianzuo(典座), who was in charge of cooking and serving at the temple, lived here and managed the temple. This monk was probably a Dianzuo, who served as the caretaker at the Zen temple.

Since the Dianzuo(典座) was in charge of taking care of the YunShui(雲水:student monk)s, the monk would have answered, "He is grazing the cattles." This koan is included in the "Jingde Chuandeng Lu(景徳伝灯録)", which is a discussion between Zen Master Mazu-Daoyi(馬祖道一) and his disciple, Shi Gong-HuiZang(石鞏慧藏).

At the later period of the Tang Dynasty and the five dynasties and ten kingdoms period (907-960) in China, Zen Master YunMen WenYan (雲門文偃864-949), who lived at Yunmen monastery on Mount Yunmen in Shao district of Guangdong Province and to have established one of major sects of the Zen Buddhism called Yunmen School, one day delivered a sermon to the congregation and asked, "Everyone has his own bright light. When you look at it, you don't see it and it's dark and dim. What is everybody's light?" He himself answered on their behalf, "The kitchen pantry (厨庫) and three gates (三門)." Again he said, "A good thing isn't as good as nothing."

Zen Master YunMen in this koan (公案: Koans are subjects which Zen masters give their students in the meditation hall) recorded in 'The Blue Cliff Record(碧巌録) Case 86' appears to have played soliloquy. Subtracting his birth year from his death year, Master YunMen should have enjoyed longevity of 85 years old. Apparently, this koan seems to have been expressed the full scale of enlightenment that the Zen master reached over his lifetime.

Originally a Zen temple had three gates (三門) called the outer gate (外山門), the middle gate (中門)and the main gate (正門). Later it had only one gate with a large door in the center, a small door on each of the left and right and the gate was still called Sanmon (三門) but was used as same meaning with Sanmon (山門) in Japanese pronunciation.

At that time, even in case of the head temple of 'five Houses and seven Schools (五家七宗),' it became a large household with hundreds to over 1,000 monks and sometimes received imperial messenger's visiting. Therefore, the day-to-day operation of the kitchen pantry must have been extremely busy. When YunMen first entered the priesthood, he should have just concentrated on sitting meditation but after being in charge of secretariat of the temple, there might have been no difference between priesthood and lay any longer. Especially after becoming the founder of Yunmen School, his anxiety would have been nothing to that of secretariat.

According to Taiwanese Zen master Shi Shengyan(釈聖厳：1931-2009), who completed his master's and doctorate at Rissho University(立正大学) in Tokyo, various versions of the Ten Oxherding Pictures(十牛図) were created during the Song Dynasty (宋朝960-1279) to depict the process of realizing one's "true self," a stage in Zen training. The most famous is the Ten Oxherding Pictures, attributed to the 12th-century Rinzai master Kuo-an Shih Yuan(廓庵師遠), but the Shangliang(商量) works by Zen masters MaZu DaoYi(馬祖道一) and ShiGong-HuiZang(石鞏慧藏) are said to be the earliest koan works featuring cattleherds.

The first of the Ten Oxherding Pictures, "Searching for the Ox(尋牛)," depicts a novice practitioner who believes in the Buddha's teaching that everyone has Buddha nature and the power to attain enlightenment. However, he has not experienced Buddha nature himself, and is trying to discover his true self through practices such as meditation and worship.

In the second painting, "Discovering the Footprints(見跡)," the practitioner discovers ox footprints, but the ox is not easily found. At this point, the practitioner is drawn to the practice and deepens his faith. This is the meaning of "Kenjaku."

In the third painting, "Perceiving the Ox(見牛)," the practitioner is looking at the tail of the ox. Previously he had only seen footprints, but now he sees the tail and is convinced of the presence of the ox (his true self). This is expressed as seeing the face of a pure mind, or the stage where egocentrism disappears for a moment. However, it is only a glimpse, a glimpse of the ox's tail.

In the fourth painting, "Catching the Ox(得牛)," the practitioner captures a ox and attempts to control it with a rope. The practitioner realizes his Buddhahood but is tormented by worldly desires such as greed, anger, resentment and bitterness and finds that enlightenment is not permanent. Zen practice and insight form the rope that controls the ox.

In the fifth painting, "Taming the Ox(牧牛)," a saintly practitioner is pulling a rope and guiding a ox with ease. He has attained the 11th to 40th stages of Mahayana Bodhisattva practice. Although he has few earthly desires, he has been diligent in his training and has continued to make vows, and the direction in which the oxherd and the ox should go is now clear.

In the sixth painting, "Riding the Ox Home(騎牛帰家)," the oxherd plays his flute and rides effortlessly on the back of the ox. This corresponds to the first rank of bodhisattva, or the 41st stage of bodhisattva practice. The practitioner no longer needs to make conscious effort, he continues his practice, makes a vow, and the cow simply continues on its way. The practitioner can take appropriate action according to each situation.

In the seventh painting, "The Ox Transcended(忘牛存人)," the ox has disappeared and only the practitioner remains. This stage is between the first and eighth bodhisattva ranks, and between the forty-first and forty-seventh stage of bodhisattva practice. The beginning of the practice is like swimming upstream, and requires great effort, but eventually the swimmer becomes one with the water. The practitioner becomes effortless, and practices spontaneously, without concern for goals or objectives.

In the eighth piece, "Both Ox and Man Transcended(人牛倶忘)," both the ox and the oxherd have disappeared, leaving only the circle that is the frame of the painting. In other words, in the seventh piece, the ox, which represents the object, has disappeared, and in the eighth piece, the subject has also disappeared, leaving nothing. There is no goal, no practitioner.

The ninth painting, "Returning to the Source(返本還源)," depicts mountains and rivers. A novice practitioner sees mountains and rivers but makes no attempt to recognize them. However, an expert sees mountains as mountains and rivers as rivers. He has returned to this world. Everything exists except attachment. There is no longer any practice or non-practice, no wisdom or worldly desires. Everything is perfect, everyone is a Buddha, and the environment is a Buddha land.

The tenth piece, "入廛垂手(Ru chan chui shou)," depicts a beggar and a monk with a big belly and tattered clothes. The beggar represents suffering, and the monk represents a monk who has completed his training. The monk left the serenity of the mountains and returned to the secular world to save all sentient beings. He is free from worldly desires, but because he sees others suffering, he willingly extends a helping hand to all sentient beings who are in trouble on the path. (Excerpt from a lecture by Master Shaku Shogen Roshi(釈聖厳老師) on October 22, 1992.)

Zen Buddhism was brought to China by Bodhidharma from India during the Northern and Southern Dynasties period (439-589), and it merged with Nestorian Christianity, which penetrated into China around the same time, and seems to have exploded into popularity during the Tang Dynasty (618-907).

Incidentally, Saint Thomas, one of the twelve apostles who was the first archbishop of the Assyrian Church of the East (Syrian Church), is said to have traveled to Assyria around 35 C.E., two years after Jesus' ascension, and then went on a mission to India. built seven churches, and then left to Beijing (北京), China in 62 C.E. Assyrian Eastern Church was called Jing-jiao (景教: Luminous Religion) in China."

In 635 AD, Alopen (阿羅本: Abraham) led 21 Jingjiao followers, headed to China and met Emperor Taizong (太宗) of the Tang (唐) Dynasty and presented a Chinese translation of the Bible. Then Jingjiao was officially authorized to propagate in China. These facts are recorded on 'Daqin Jingjiao Popular Chinese Monument (大秦景教流行中国碑: Nestorian Stele),' which was discovered in Xi'an (西安) in the 17th century by the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). However, this is an official record, and it appears that the Jinngjiao followers had been preaching in China before then.

However, as early as 197 AD, in the eighth year of the reign of Emperor Chuai(仲哀天皇), the 14th emperor after Emperor Jimmu(神武天皇), King Koman(功満) of Yuzuki(弓月), a Christian country in Central Asia, came to Japan with his retainers. The Nihon Shoki(日本書紀) records, "In this year, King Yuzuki came from Baekje(百済)." Later, during the reign of the 15th emperor, Emperor Ojin(応神天皇), it was added that King Koman's son came to Japan with 18,670 people. This is thought to be the origin of the large-scale migration of the Hata clan(秦氏), a Christian religion known as Nestorianism(景教), to Japan.

Hata Kawakatsu(秦河勝), the leader of the Hata clan(秦氏), was a close aide to Prince Shotoku(聖徳太子) and contributed not only to flood control and industrial development, but also to the religious policies of the Yamato court(大和朝廷).

By the way, the 26th Emperor Keitai(継体天皇) had three sons who became Emperor Ankan(安閑天皇), Emperor Senka(宣化天皇), and Emperor Kinmei(欽明天皇). According to the Honcho Koin Jounroku(本朝皇胤紹運録), compiled in the early Muromachi period(室町時代), Emperor Ankan had a son named Prince Toyohiko(豊彦), who is said to be the same person as Hata Kawakatsu(秦河勝). If this is the case, Emperor Keitai(継体天皇) was also a descendant of the First Emperor of Qin(秦始皇帝), who came from Korea, and was a member of the Hata clan(秦氏), a Nestorian(景教) Christian sect.

Long before the Roman Empire officially recognized Christianity, the image of Jesus as the "savior of souls" that was introduced to the Eastern world by Nestorian Christians sent shock waves through the religious world, especially Zen Buddhism. The Ten Oxherding Pictures, which form the foundation of Zen religious doctrine, can be said to be the quintessence of this image.

According to the dialectic of the Gospel of John,

How then can a man possess eternal life?

When he said, "You are Huichao," Zen Master Fayan thrusted vivid Self in Huichao in front of his eyes.