841Uif

II I YASUTANI-ROSHI'S COM­MENTARY ON THE KOAN MU IEDITOR'S INTRODUCTION / Ever since Joshu, oneof the great Chinese Zen masters of the T'ang era, retorted "Mu!"1to a monk who had asked whether dogs have the Buddha-nature, thereverberations of the incident have been echoing through the hallsof Zen monasteries and temples down through the centuries. Evenin this day no koan is assigned novices more often. It is commonlyagreed among Japanese masters that it is lUlSurpassed for breakingasunder the mind of ignorance and opening the eye ofT ruth. A careful reading of this section and sections m and v will explain why.As yet no translation of a formal commentary (teisho) on the koanMu has appeared in English. This present commentary was made byZen Master Yasutani, without notes, to about thirty-five laymen ata sesshin in 1961. It is reproduced here in translation exactly as hegave it except for minor editing of the few repetitious or awkwardexpressions which inevitably creep into extemporaneous speech. Inits clarity and incisiveness, in the inspiration, encouragement, andguidance it provides the novice and advanced student alike, it standsas a masterly commentary on this time-honored koan.In the Mumonkan (The Gateless Barrier), compiled by MurnanEkai, who was himself a Zen master, Mu heads the collection of fortylLit.,"no," "not," "have not," or "nothing." The u in "Mu" is voiced like theu in "put."63