Mumonkan / Wumenguan · CASE 14
Nansen Cuts the Cat
The Gateless Gate
Case
The monks of the east and west halls were fighting over a cat. Nansen held it up and said, “If you can say it, you will save it. If you cannot, I will cut it in two.” The assembly had no answer. Nansen then cut the cat in two. That evening Jōshū returned. Nansen told him what had happened. Jōshū took off a sandal, set it on his head, and walked out. Nansen said, “Had you been there, you would have saved the cat.”1
Verse
Had Jōshū been there, he would have reversed the command, snatched away the knife, and Nansen would have begged for his life.
Footnotes 1
- This is hagiographic literature, not independently verified reportage. That genre distinction does not erase the violence asserted within the story or settle its ethical interpretation. ↩
About this version and its sources
- Full source citation
- 南泉斬猫 — CBETA T2005: T48n2005_p0294c12–p0294c22.
- Method
- Direct critical-edition translation from the cited received base text. Source claims, hagiography, uncertainty, and unresolved readings remain identified in the notes and project record.
- Editorial uncertainty
- Independent philological and reader review remain pending.
- Rights
- Project translation © Tulsa Zen Center Critical Edition contributors. Source text is cited by edition; redistribution policy requires final organizational approval.
- Revision identifier
- 38bd5ca7a925
Wumen's commentary
Tell me: what did Jōshū mean by balancing a straw sandal on his head? If you can give a turning word here, you will see that Nansen's command was not issued in vain. If you cannot—danger!