Zen Koan #6: Nansen’s “Ordinary Mind Is the Way”
Zen Koan #6: Nansen’s “Ordinary Mind Is the Way”
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Context: A monk named Zhaozhou (Joshu) – yes, the same Joshu who would later teach “Mu” – as a young man asked his teacher Nansen (Nanquan, 748–834), “What is the Tao (the Way)?”
Nansen replied, “Ordinary mind is the Tao.” Joshu asked, “Then should I direct myself toward it?”
Nansen said, “If you try to direct yourself, you go away from it.” Joshu protested, “But if we do not try, how can we know the Way?” Nansen answered, “The Way is not about knowing or not knowing. Knowing is delusion; not knowing is blankness.
When you truly reach the genuine Way, it is like vast space – clear and void. You cannot force it one way or the other.” Hearing this, Joshu was enlighteneden.wikisource.orgen.wikisource.org.
Commentary: This luminous koan (Gateless Gate #19, also in Book of Equanimity) presents great wisdom in plain speech. Joshu earnestly wanted to know how to attain the Tao – the fundamental truth. Nansen directs him back to the ordinary, present mind.
The “ordinary mind” in Chinese (pingchang xin) does not mean a wandering, unenlightened mind; it means the mind right here and now, in its natural, uncontrived state. “The Way is ordinary mind.”
This is a profound teaching: enlightenment is not a special state somewhere else – it is realized by fully being in whatever state you are in now.
Joshu then asks if he should aim for it. The more he seeks it as an object or goal, the further he estranges himself from his own mind.
Nansen further explains that the true Way is beyond intellection (knowing) but also beyond obtuse ignorance (blank not-knowing).
It’s not an idea to figure out, nor just an absence of thought. It’s as open and boundless as the sky – you can’t grasp it by cleverness nor by dullnessen.wikisource.org. Upon this, Joshu had a breakthrough.
We can imagine that his mind – which had been striving and churning – suddenly let go into the vast space of “ordinary mind.” He stopped trying to direct the mind, and thus he directly experienced the Way.
This koan reminds us that in Zen, one does not abandon daily life to find the Way – daily life is the Way. As another Zen saying goes: “Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water; after enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.”
The difference is one’s perspective – seeing the sacred in the ordinary. Nansen’s words are very practical for us: when we are chasing after some “special” realization, we overlook the miracle of the present moment. When we are sunk in confusion or passivity, we also miss it.
The Way is subtle – it requires us to be alert yet at ease, neither grasping nor avoiding. When we manage that, even for a moment, the “ordinary” appears as extraordinary. (Joshu, who attained this insight, went on to live to age 119 and became one of the greatest Zen masters, famed for one-word answers that pointed directly to ordinary mind.)
Zen Koans: The Gateless Gate to Insight
Zen koans are short, paradoxical anecdotes or questions used in Zen Buddhism to provoke deep reflection and awaken insight beyond logical reasoning. A classic koan often features an encounter between a student and a master where the master’s response is unexpected or seemingly nonsensical. Koans are not riddles with trick answers; instead, each koan is a “Gateless Gate” – a barrier that the logical mind cannot pass. Only by dropping analytical thinking and engaging one’s whole being can one penetrate a koan and experience a shift in consciousness. As 18th-century master Hakuin Ekaku described, “From the very beginning all beings are Buddha... It is like water and ice... Stop the movement to grasp or reject and behold: the water flows clear and freely” – a poetic summary of the koan spirit of letting go and directly seeing reality.
Koans emerged within the Chán/Zen tradition of China during the Tang and Song dynasties (7th–13th centuries) and were later transmitted to Japan, Korea, and Vietnam. Koan practice involves contemplating these stories during meditation or daily activities, often under guidance of a teacher. The seemingly illogical responses of the masters are designed to frustrate the discursive mind and force the student to turn inward, smashing conventional dualistic thinking. The great Zen teacher Wumen (Mumon) said one must “pass through the barrier of the ancients” to realize enlightenmentsacred-texts.com. In koan practice, great doubt and great faith work together – as the student’s habitual thinking gets tied in knots, a breakthrough becomes possible.
Classic Collections of Koans
Over generations, Zen teachers compiled koan collections with commentary to aid students. Three of the most famous are The Gateless Gate (Mumonkan), The Blue Cliff Record (Hekiganroku), and The Book of Equanimity (Shōyōroku):
The Gateless Gate – compiled in 1228 by Chinese master Wumen Huikai (Mumon Ekai). It contains 48 koans (plus one added later), each with Wumen’s commentary and verse. The title “Gateless Gate” indicates that the only barriers to enlightenment are our own attachments. Wumen’s cases include famous dialogues like “Joshu’s Dog”, “Mu”, and “Nansen Cuts the Cat”. Wumen’s brief commentaries are often wry or poetic, designed to jolt the reader’s mind into a new perspective.
The Blue Cliff Record – a 12th-century collection of 100 koans, expanded from earlier compilations by master Yuanwu Keqin. The Blue Cliff Record includes extensive commentary and verse for each casebluecliffrecord.ca. These koans are drawn from the golden age of Zen in Tang/Song China and feature many renowned masters. The Blue Cliff is known for its literary elegance and subtle, layered analysis – in fact, it was once suppressed for fear monks would intellectualize its poetry instead of directly realize the truth. Nevertheless, it remains a treasure trove of Zen wisdom, including koans like “Every Day Is a Good Day”, “The Highest Meaning of the Holy Truths” (Bodhidharma’s encounter with Emperor Wu), and Layman Pang’s stories.
The Book of Equanimity – also known as the Book of Serenity, compiled by Wansong Xingxiu in the 12th century. It contains 100 koans (with some overlap with the Blue Cliff) and emphasizes balanced, peaceful reflection – hence “equanimity.” Each case is accompanied by verses by earlier master Hongzhi. The Book of Equanimity includes cases such as “The World Honored One (Buddha) Points to the Ground”, “Jizo’s Most Intimate”, and “Rinzai’s True Person”. It is valued in the Sōtō Zen school for its gentle yet profound approach.
Each of these collections became a classic, studied by monks and lay practitioners alike. In the Rinzai Zen tradition (especially in Japan), a teacher might assign koans sequentially to trainees – starting with a “first barrier” koan like Mu or “What is the sound of one hand?”, then moving through dozens or even hundreds of koans over years of training. In Sōtō Zen, koans are not assigned in the same way, but they still inform teachings and are reflected upon during zazen (sitting meditation) or in daily life stories.
Koans are “alive” – not mere texts to be parsed, but encounters to be experienced anew by each practitioner. There is a saying that “a koan is not answered, it answers you.” In working with koans, one isn’t solving a puzzle so much as allowing the koan to work on one’s own tightly held perspectives. A genuine response to a koan comes not from the intellect but from one’s whole being, often spontaneously. It could manifest as a word, a gesture, a deep bow – or simply a fundamental shift in understanding. The commentaries and verses provided by the classic koan collections are there not to explain the koan’s “solution” (indeed, any such explanation could spoil it), but to point towards the state of mind of the masters and to inspire the adept. They often use allusions, poetry, or humor to hint at the deeper meaning.
Below, we explore 100 traditional Zen koans drawn from the Mumonkan, Blue Cliff Record, Book of Equanimity, and other classic Zen lore. For each koan, we present the original story or exchange (in English translation), give a bit of historical/spiritual context about the teachers or setting, and offer a brief commentary or interpretation to illuminate the key insight or paradox. These koans are not meant to be “understood” in a conventional way – rather, let their images and words resonate beyond reason. As Wumen said in his preface to The Gateless Gate, “If you do not pass the barrier and do not shatter your illusions, you will remain a ghost clinging to bushes and grasses.” But if you step through the gateless gate, even the most ordinary moment – hearing the rain drip, seeing a flower bloom, washing your bowl – can reveal ultimate truth.
One Hundred Zen Koans (with Context and Commentary)
Below is a curated list of 100 classic Zen koans. They span the early Chinese masters (6th–10th century), the golden age of Zen (Tang/Song dynasties), and a few later and modern anecdotes that have entered Zen teaching. Each koan is titled by a distinguishing phrase or subject. The context notes the protagonist master (and era, if known) or source, and the commentary highlights the paradox or insight. Many of these koans appear in the aforementioned collections, indicated in parentheses for reference (GG = Gateless Gate, BCR = Blue Cliff Record, EQ = Book of Equanimity). Whether a koan is encountered in formal practice or casual reading, it can serve as a “finger pointing at the moon” – do not fixate on the finger (the words), but look to the moon (your own direct experience)!
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