Mumonkan / Wumenguan · CASE 33
Not Mind, Not Buddha
The Gateless Gate
Case
A monk asked Baso, “What is Buddha?” Baso said, “Not mind, not Buddha.”
Verse
Meeting a swordsman on the road, you must present your sword; unless you meet a poet, do not offer a poem. When you meet someone, speak only three parts; you must not give the whole all at once.1
Footnotes 1
- The verse concerns discrimination in disclosure. It does not identify which “three parts” are spoken or reduce the case to a general rule of secrecy. ↩
About this version and its sources
- Full source citation
- 非心非佛 — CBETA T2005: T48n2005_p0297b03–p0297b08.
- 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
- a878ca80d757
Wumen's commentary
If you see here, the work of inquiry and study is finished.