During the Sung dynasty, a prime minister named Chang Shang-ying hated Buddhism with a passion, and he decided to write an essay refuting the teachings of the Buddha. While he was pondering which way to attack his target, his wife asked him what he was writing about. He answered that he hated Buddhism, and wished to write an essay proving that Buddha-nature did not exist.

His wife answered, "If there's no such thing as Buddha-nature, then what is there to criticize? Why attack something that isn't real? If you do, it will only serve to make it real. If you want to oppose something, you must have something to oppose. If nothing is there, it's like clapping one hand. Your hand strikes empty space and makes no noise." When Chang Shang-ying heard his wife's comments, he felt foolish. He collected as much Buddhist material as possible and read about Ch'an. The more he read, the more interested he became; finally, he became enlightened.

Ou-l Chih-hsu, a monk who studied several Buddhist disciplines, is a similar example. When he was young, he bitterly opposed Buddhadharma, and wrote a number of articles attempting to cast Buddhism in a disparaging light. He opposed Buddhism for so long, and with such fervor, that in the end he became a great Buddhist master.

Therefore, a person with superior karmic roots will not necessarily accept Buddhadharma wholeheartedly when he first encounters it. One may utterly oppose Buddhism in the beginning, and then convert to its teachings after a long period of time; but when a person of superior karmic roots accepts Buddhism, he understands and accepts the Dharma completely, without doubts.