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Ma-tsu sent Tan-hsia to Shih-t'ou, under whom he trained for some years. He went on to become one of Shih-t'ou's dharma successors.
Later he returned to Ma-tsu. Having arrived in Ma-tsu's monastery he sat himself astride the neck of a statue of Manjushri. As the monks, upset by the outrageous behavior of the newcomer, reported this to Ma-tsu, the latter came to see Tan-hsia and greeted him with the words, “You are very natural, my son.” From this incident Tan-hsia's monastic name T'ian-ran (the Natural) is derived.
After the death of Ma-tsu, Tan-hsia went on wandering pilgrimage and visited other great Ch'an masters of the time in order to train himself further in hossen with them.
At the age of eighty-one, he settled in a hermitage on Mount Tan-hsia, from which his name is derived. Soon up to 300 students gathered there around him and built a monastery.
Four years after his arrival on Mount Tan-hsia, he suddenly said one day, “I'm going on a journey once again.” He picked up his hat and his pilgrim's robe and staff. When he had put on the second of his pilgrim's sandals, he passed away before his foot again touched the ground.
