Preface to the Gateless Barrier

Text

Buddhism makes mind its foundation and no-gate its gate. Now, how do you pass through this no-gate? It is said that things coming in through the gate can never be your own treasures. What is gained from external circumstances will perish in the end. However, such a saying is already raising waves when there is no wind. It is cutting unblemished skin. As for those who try to understand through other people's words, they are striking at the moon with a stick, scratching a shoe when the foot itches. What concern have they with the truth? In the summer of the first year of Jotei, Ekai was in Ryusho Temple and as chief monk led the monks, using the cases of the ancient masters as brickbats to batter the gate, and leading them on according to their type and capacity. The collection was made in a rather unmethodical fashion. It has forty-eight cases.

license: public_domain

Attribution

• Attributed To
  Wumen Huikai

Lineage: Linji

By Wumen Huikai

• Every Season Is a Good Seasonproverb
• The Gateless Barrierproverb
• Concentrate on Muproverb
• Bare Swordproverb
• No Snowflake Falls in the Wrong Placeproverb

From Mumonkan

• Every Season Is a Good Season
• The Wild Fox Koan
• Joshu's DogCase 1
• Hyakujo's FoxCase 2
• Gutei's FingerCase 3
• A Beardless ForeignerCase 4
• Kyogen Mounts the TreeCase 5
• Buddha Twirls a FlowerCase 6
• Joshu Washes the BowlCase 7
• Keichu's WheelCase 8

Sources

• contentWikisource — English-language free library

  Mumonkan, Preface

  Mumonkan: Preface to the Gateless Barrier