The Gateless Barrier: the Wu-Men Kuan (Mumonkan) Free

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Block print by Mark T. Morse mtm. Chinese texts: Taisho No. Acsai Roland, Cephalion, Szentendre, Blyth Illustrated by Mark T. The Wu-men kuan J. External links. As the Zen Lineage comes first in the title it is appropriately translated by using the possessive The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) the beginning or transposing it to the end of the title and using the preposition "of the". Although the short title The Gateless Gate has become fairly common in English, this translation must be rejected upon closer scrutiny. A particular source of criticism is the fact that in the rendering, "Gateless Gate", the word "gate" occurs twice. However, in the Buddhist sense, the term is often used to refer to a particular "aspect" or "method" of the Dharma teachings. This implies the literal translation checkpoint without a gate. As a checkpoint is something that can be either closed, functioning as a barrier, or open, functioning as an entry point, this title may be taken to have a double meaning: does "without a gate" mean that the barrier has no gateway through which to pass, or does it mean that the passage has no gate to block it? One should also note that, as the author of the collection was named Wumen which could mean either the literal gateless or the figurative gate The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) emptinessWumenguan could also be read as simply, The Checkpoint of Wumen. The text was originally prepared by Wumen as a record of his teaching during a monastic training period held at Longxiang Soaring Dragon monastery in The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) summer of Wumen selected the 48 koans and commented on and added a verse for each koan. His teachings were transcribed and after the training period were compiled into the collection called the Wumen Guan. As was customary in China at the time, an edition might have additions of text inserted by a subsequent owner or publisher. The most well known version of the text is from the Japanese wood block edition made from the manuscript edition that contains the following sections. Blyth Zen and Zen Classics, Vol. Four, Mumonkan, Tokyo: Hokuseido Press. German vesrsion: Die torlose Schranke. Due to non-renewal it is currently in the public domain in the US although other parts of Zen Flesh, Zen Bones are not. Table of Contents. Title Page 1. Joshu's Dog 2. Hyakujo's Fox 3. Gutei's Finger 4. A Beardless Foreigner 5. Kyogen Mounts the Tree 6. Buddha Twirls a Flower 7. Joshu Washes the Bowl The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan). Keichu's Wheel 9. A Buddha before History Seizei Alone and Poor Joshu Examines a Monk in Meditation Zuigan Calls His Own Master Tokusan Holds His Bowl Nansen Cuts the The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) in Two Tozan's Three Blows Bells and Robes The Three Calls of the Emperor's Teacher Tozan's Three Pounds Everyday Life Is the Path The Enlightened Man Dried Dung Kashapa's Preaching Sign Without Words, Without Silence Preaching from the Third Seat Two Monks Roll Up the Screen Blow Out the Candle Not the Wind, Not the Flag This Mind Is Buddha Joshu Investigates A Philosopher Asks Buddha This Mind Is Not Buddha Learning Is Not the Path Two Souls Meeting a Zen Master on the Road A Buffalo Passes Through the Enclosure An Oak Tree The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) the Garden Ummon's Sidetrack Tipping Over a Water Vase Bodhidharma Pacifies the Mind The Girl Comes Out from Meditation Shuzan's Short Staff Basho's Staff Who Is He? Proceed from the Top of the Pole Three Gates of Tosotsu One Road of Kembo Amban's Addition. Nyogen Senzaki, Eloquent Silence Nyogen Senzaki's Gateless Gate and Other Previously Unpublished Teachings and Letters Wisdom Publications,pages The most comprehensive collection available of Nyogen Senzaki's brilliant teachings, Eloquent Silence The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) new depth and breadth to our knowledge and appreciation of this historic figure. It makes available for the first time his complete commentaries on the Gateless Gate, one of the most important and beloved of all Zen texts, as well as on koans from the Blue Rock Annals and the Book of Equanimity. Amazingly, some of these commentaries were written while Senzaki was detained at an internment camp The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) WWII. Also included are rare photographs, poems reproduced in Senzaki's beautiful calligraphy and accompanied by his own translations, and transcriptions of his talks on Zen, esoteric Buddhism, the Lotus Sutra, what it means to be a Buddhist monk, and other subjects. Roko Sherry Chayat has edited Nyogen Senzaki's words with sensitivity and grace, retaining his wry, probing style yet bringing clarity and accessibility to these remarkably contemporary teachings. Fisher Evanston, U. This paper attempts something which at first might seem unusual, that is, to analyze a collection of Zen koans. According to some scholars of Zen, the koan "cannot be understood by logic; it cannot be transmitted in words; it cannot be explained in writing; it cannot be measured by reason" 1. This seeming contradiction touches upon a basic problem encountered in trying to understand the religious conceptions of another culture. For a religious understanding of The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) by Zennists there is no need for explanation, indeed there is no way a koan can be The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan). The intention of the koan is to bring about a state of enlightenment, devoid of conceptualization, beyond the realm of words and even thought. However, for an academic understanding of koans we can, and should, analyze them in order for non-Zennists to comprehend their function and purpose in Zen. We shall return to this point a little later, but first let us explain what constitutes a koan. Koan is the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese characters kung an, which mean "public record". These characters were used by Buddhists to signify, "'a public document setting up a standard of judgement', whereby one's Zen understanding is tested as to its correctness" 2. Theoretically koans may take any form, but the most common consists of questions and answers mondo; wen fastories or statements 3. One of the most famous koans is in the form of a mondo, "The Master Jyoshu was once asked by a monk, 'Has a dog also Buddha-nature or not? Jyoshu said, 'Mu! However, even with this explanation of mu, the koan appears meaningless to non-Zennists, and many seem to think that the "key" to understanding Zen lies in uttering nonsense. Needless to say, this is not the case. For this analysis, we are going to consider koans as means of communicating a particular understanding of reality, the Zen understanding. By means of koans, Zen Masters are able to convey the most The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) ideas, attitudes and conceptions of Zen Buddhism. If we accept the fact that koans were intended to aid in the attainment of enlightenment satori; wuthen we must view them as having a single goal and purpose. However, koans appear radically different in form and content; therefore, the problem in analyzing koans lies in discovering the various methods used to achieve the same end. This problem is very similar to the problem faced by students of myth. A group of myths from a given culture appear totally unrelated; however, they are all indicative of a common cultural outlook and it is our problem to understand where the similarities lie, or rather how cultural ideas are communicated through myths. In an attempt to solve this problem, Claude Levi-Strauss pioneered what is known as the structural study of myth. The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-Men Kuan (Mumonkan) - Google книги

Mumon Ekai. The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) latter would suggest a barrier with no passage through it. Inan epilogue to the volume was written by Wu-an Jap. A Case can mean a barrier or a checkpoint. These cases were given to students to check where they were, and what they need, or are they ready to go through checkpoint. Cases were also referred to as a barrier which was set up as an obstacle — a barrier — to test students and see where they were. There are many complete translations into English. Blyth, are accompanied by extensive interpretive commentaries on each case. As a guide to Mumonkan and to Zen, his book must be read with some caution. The most recent version, Zen Comments on Mumonkan, contains a very The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) translation by Sumiko Kudo and valuable commentaries by Zenkei Shibayama. The general opinion is that the book is very good one. There is also a translation into German by Heinrich Dumoulin and a french one, done by Jacques Prestreau. Zen has many classic texts, of which this work is one. The work consists of narrated relationships between ancient Chinese teachers and their pupils, illustrating means employed to sublimate the dualistic, outgoing, generalizing, intellectualizing tendencies of students in order The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) they might realize their true nature. The problems or inner challenges with which the masters confronted their pupils came to be called koans, and each of the following stories is a koan in itself. None of the stories make any pretense at logic. They are dealing with states of mind rather than words. Unless this is understood, the The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) of the classic will be missed. The whole intent was to help the pupil break the shell of his limited mind and attain a second birth, satori, enlightenment. Each problem is a barrier. Those who have the spirit of Zen pass through it. Those who live in Zen understand one koan after another, each in his own way, as if they were seeing the unseen and living in the illimitable. Zen has no gates. Therefore Zen should be gateless. Now, how does one pass through this gateless gate? Some say that whatever enters through a gate is not family treasure, that whatever is produced by the help of another is likely to dissolve and perish. Even such words are like raising waves in a windless sea or performing an operation upon a healthy body. If one clings to what others have said and tries to understand Zen by explanation, he is like a dunce who thinks he can beat the moon with a pole or scratch an itching foot from the outside of a shoe. It will be impossible after all. In the year I was lecturing monks in the Ryusho temple in eastern China, and at their request I retold old koans, endeavoring to inspire their Zen spirit. I meant to use the koans as a man who picks up a piece of brick to knock at a gate, and after the gate is opened the brick is useless and is thrown away. My notes, however, were collected unexpectedly, and there were forty-eight koans, together with my comment in prose and verse concerning each, although their arrangement was not in the order of the telling. I The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) called the book The Gateless Gate wishing students to read it as a guide. If a reader is brave enough and goes straight forward in his meditation, no delusions can disturb him. He will become enlightened just as did the patriarchs in India and in China, probably even better. But if he hesitates one moment, he is as a person watching from a small window for a horseman to pass by, and in a wink he has missed seeing. View all posts by admin. Skip to content. Contents hide. Related posts:. Why Practice Zen? The Zen Files. Published by admin. Prev Ego — The Zen Universe. Koan Studies - Wu-Men Kuan koans

Goodreads helps you keep track of books you want to read. Want to Read saving…. Want to Read Currently Reading Read. Other editions. Enlarge cover. Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Open Preview See a Problem? Details if other :. Thanks for telling us about the problem. Return to Book Page. The Gateless Barrier is generally acknowledged to be the fundamental koan collection in the literature of Zen. Gathered together by Wu-men Mumona thirteenth-century master of the Lin-chi Rinzai school, it is composed of forty-eight koans, or cases, each accompanied by a brief comment and poem by Wu-men. Robert Aitken, one of the premier American Zen masters, has trans The Gateless Barrier is generally acknowledged to be the fundamental The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) collection in the literature of Zen. Robert Aitken, one of the premier American Zen masters, has The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) Wu-men's text, supplementing the original with his own commentary -- the first such commentary by a Western master -- making the profound truths of Zen Buddhism accessible to serious contemporary students and relevant to current social concerns. Get A Copy. Paperbackpages. Published January 1st by North Point Press first published More Details Original Title. Other Editions 3. Friend Reviews. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. To ask other readers questions about The Gateless Barrierplease sign up. Lists with This Book. Community Reviews. Showing Average rating 4. Rating details. Sort order. Aug 14, Jan van Leent rated it it was amazing Shelves: buddhism. Excellent translation of this collection of classic Zen Koans. The commentary is very helpful. Tucson: The University of Arizona Press, Aug 06, Lysergius rated it it was amazing Shelves: zen. Aitken's explanations and elucidations are so clear you almost think you understand May 20, Dave rated it it was amazing. I've read a number of Koan collections and most leave me baffled. This is simply the best koan book I have come across. The essays on each koan are meticulously written and give the reader a The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) background on the teachers involved in each case and place each koan within a historical and cultural context. I've done a number of Zen retreats and never got anywhere with koan study, but the level of insight Aitken brings to these essays ensures that isnt'a barrier to my getting something from this I've read a number of Koan collections and most leave me baffled. I've done a number of Zen retreats and never got anywhere with koan study, but the level of insight Aitken brings to these essays ensures that isnt'a barrier to my getting something from this book. I dip into it often and always get something useful out of it. Jan 01, John Porcellino rated it it was amazing Shelves: zen-buddhism. When I was first exploring Zen, Aitken Roshi's books became my guide, and this translation with commentary of the Mumonkan pushed me over the edge into practice. Aitken Roshi's teachings are especially wonderful because he doesn't play around with jargon, he presents the Dharma direct, in Western terms and examples, in language that is easy to appreciate. Jan 22, Peter rated it it was amazing. Excellent, and the modern commentary steers clear of any mushy new-age thinking. Dec 01, Kathy rated it it was amazing. Never got to meet him, although perhaps I have. I used to do Wednesday nights jikido at ZCLA back in the late 80's and one night a tall slim stranger monk sat in the monitor's seat I finally just read all of Yamada Koun Roshi's Mumonkan and so I read doesn't strike me as amazing at this moment but I know darn well that it is. About time. May 27, Sarah rated it liked it. I have not read other koan books, and it took planning on my part to read this everyday. I liked it better the further I read, and found certain teachers' koans made more sense to me than others. I am happy that I have a basis in the modes of expression and thought in Zen for future reading. Apr 09, Carlo Barton rated it it was amazing Shelves: read-in What a complete fucking crock of shit. The Zen assholes who wrote these bullshit Koans are full of shit. Don't believe a single word written in this book. Sep 29, Matthew Robinson rated it it was amazing. This is the book referenced by my Zen teacher. Robert The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) is a wonderful writer aside from being a pillar of the early western Zen community. This is likely going to be my home for the mumonkan for the rest of my practice. There are no discussion topics on this book yet. Readers also enjoyed. About Robert Aitken. Robert Aitken. In the camp, he met the British scholar R. Blyth, who introduced him to Zen Buddhism. He has The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan) active in a number of peace, social justice, and ecological movements, and his writing reflects his concern that Buddhists be engaged in social applications of their experience. Books by Robert Aitken. Escape the Present with These 24 Historical The Gateless Barrier: The Wu-men Kuan (Mumonkan). You know the saying: There's no time like the present In that case, we can't Read more Trivia About The Gateless Barr No trivia or quizzes yet. Welcome back. Just a moment while we sign you in to your Goodreads account.