Mumonkan / Wumenguan · CASE 29
Not Wind, Not Flag
The Gateless Gate
Case
As the wind raised a temple flag, two monks argued. One said, “The flag is moving.” The other said, “The wind is moving.” They went back and forth without agreeing with the principle. The Daikan Enō said, “The wind is not moving. The flag is not moving. Your minds are moving, worthy ones.” The two monks were startled.1
Verse
Wind moving, flag moving, mind moving— all plead guilty under one charge. They only know how to open their mouths, unaware that their words have fallen.
Footnotes 1
- The temple flag or banner marked a Buddhist institution and could announce teaching. The story's point is not safely reduced to “consciousness creates reality,” since Wumen immediately denies mind's movement too. ↩
About this version and its sources
- Full source citation
- 非風非幡 — CBETA T2005: T48n2005_p0296c17–p0296c26.
- 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
- e9456a32acbb
Wumen's commentary
The wind is not moving. The flag is not moving. Mind is not moving. Where do you see the patriarch? See intimately here, and you will know that the two monks bought iron and obtained gold. The patriarch could not suppress a laugh and gave the whole game away.