Jōshū's Five Years Unable to Explain

Engo's commentary on the case

Throughout his life Jōshū never employed blows and shouts; what he employed surpassed blows and shouts. The way this monk brings his question is also very unusual. If it were not Jōshū, answering him would have been difficult. Because Jōshū was an adept, he merely told him, “Someone once asked me that. For a full five years I could not explain it.” The place of questioning stands like a wall a thousand fathoms high; the place of answering does not slight him either. If you understand directly in this way, it is straight on. If you do not understand, do not make rational calculations. Have you not heard of practitioner Zong of Touzi? He served as secretary in Setchō's assembly. Setchō had him investigate “The utmost Way is not difficult; it only detests picking and choosing,” and at this he had an awakening. One day Setchō asked him, “What is the intent of ‘The utmost Way is not difficult; it only detests picking and choosing’?” Zong said, “Beast! Beast!” Later he lived in seclusion at Touzi. Whenever he went to preside as abbot, he wrapped his straw sandals and scripture texts in his kāṣāya. A monk asked, “What is the practitioner's house style?” Zong said, “The kāṣāya wrapped around straw sandals.” The monk said, “I do not yet understand the intent.” Zong said, “Barefoot, I descend to Tongcheng.”¹ Therefore it is said, “Offering to Buddha does not depend on having much incense.” If you penetrate and slip free, capture and release are mine. Since there is one question and one answer, each distinctly present and complete, why does Jōshū instead say, “I could not explain it”? Tell me: is it a nest-cave for people of the time? Does Jōshū answer him from inside the nest-cave, or from outside it? You must know that this matter is not in words and phrases. If there is a fellow who trusts it through bone and through marrow, it is like a dragon obtaining water or a tiger leaning against a mountain. The verse says: Jōshū said, “Someone once asked me that. For a full five years I could not explain it.” This resembles the elephant king bellowing and the lion roaring. Flavorless talk stops people's mouths. South, north, east, west: the crow flies and the hare runs. If Setchō did not have the final line, where would there be any Setchō? Since “the crow flies; the hare runs,” tell me: ultimately, where do Jōshū, Setchō, and this mountain monk fall?³