Yunmen

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Chan master Yunmen

Yúnmén Wényǎn ( Chinese  雲 門 文 偃  /  云 门 文 偃 , Japanese Ummon Bun'en; * 864 ; † 949 ) is a master of the Chan who lived at the end of the Tang Dynasty . He is considered to be the founder of the Cloud Gate School , which is one of the "five schools" in ancient China on which all of the Zen traditions that still exist today are based.

Yunmen is considered to be the author of many well-known Zen quotes and koans , such as the well-known saying “ Every day is a good day !”. Became known z. B. also the story in which a monk asked: "What is Buddha-nature ?" Yunmen replied in a similar manner: "A dried stick with shit" (Japanese: "Kanshiketsu!"; Term for wooden spatula for cleaning the anus after defecation in East Asia until the introduction of toilet paper). Yunmen saw here the monk's attachment to an exaggerated and categorically pure concept of Buddha . The Nirvana Sutra teaches that the ultimate reality is in all things.

literature

  • Urs App: Zen words from the Wolkentor mountain. Explanations and discussions of the Zen master Yunmen Wenyan (864–949). Barth, Bern a. a. 1994, ISBN 3-502-64640-6

Web links