Once upon a time, there was a king in China who wished his two pet chickens to become the best fighting cocks in the land. Upon hearing of the martial prowess of a legendary Taoist master, our king beseeched this master of the Way thus:
“Oh great One, your liege desires that these two worthless feathered scratchers shall triumph in the upcoming melee of fighting cocks. Make them invincible.”
And so our budding avian titans were brought under the wing of said ineffable master.
But come the grand contest, our king was sore concerned at the progress of his beloved chickens. Or apparent lack thereof. Whereas all the other champions from far and wide were in earnest combat with wing, beak, and claw, his own champions stood placidly aloof. They took no part in the unfolding spectacle of squawks and flying feathers!
Whenever they were set upon by the other cockerels, they merely retreated, turned, stepped away or otherwise deflected the mighty blows rained upon them, without fail. And remained unruffled.
And so it came to pass that all the mighty combatants in this unsurpassable contest clawed, pecked and kicked each other out of contention. Even the mightiest of them slumped in defeat, if only through exhaustion.
Save for our two idle protagonists. And so our mighty monarch witnessed his twin champions declared unbowed and triumphant.
Overjoyed though our king was to have his heart’s desire fulfilled, yet was he still sore baffled as to how his chickens had won!
“Oh most illustrious of gurus, how did you conjure victory out of seeming certain defeat?”
Whereupon our reticent sage revealed his great secret:
“I merely trained them to Do NOT!”
