sermon

The Gateless Barrier of Mu

Gateless Gate (Yamada Commentary)

Showa

Historically verified

Text

Mu is the gateless barrier of Zen. When you sit with Mu, you must become one with it—not thinking about Mu, not analyzing Mu, but becoming Mu itself with your entire body and mind. Mu is not a concept to be understood intellectually. It is not 'nothing' as opposed to 'something.' It is not negative and not positive. When you truly become Mu, the gate that seemed to block your way is revealed to have been open from the very beginning. The barrier was never there. This is why we call it the gateless barrier.

license: fair_use

Attribution

Lineage: Sanbo-Zen

By Yamada Koun

Sources