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{{Short description|Short instructive text in some Buddhist practices}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Distinguish|Kaon}}
{{Italic title}}
{{use mdy dates|cs1-dates=ly|date=September 2023}}
{{Zen Buddhism}}
{{Buddhism}}
A '''{{transliteration|ja|kōan}}''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|k|oʊ|æ|n|,_|-|ɑː|n}} {{respell|KOH|a(h)n}};{{sfn|Wells|2008|p={{page needed|date=September 2023}}}} {{langx|ja|公案}}; {{lang-zh|c=公案|p=gōng'àn}} {{IPAc-cmn|g|ong|1|-|an|4}}; {{langx|ko|화두}}; {{langx|vi|công án}}) is a [[narrative|story]], [[dialogue]], question, or statement from [[Chan Buddhism|Chinese Chan Buddhist]] lore, supplemented with commentaries, that is used in [[Chan Buddhism|Chan]], [[Zen]], [[Korean Seon|Seon]] and [[Thiền]] [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] practice in different ways. The main goal of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} practice in Zen is to achieve {{transliteration|ja|[[kenshō]]}} (Chinese: {{translit|zh|jianxing}} {{lang|zh|見性}}), to see or observe one's [[buddha-nature]].<ref>{{Citation |last1=Buswell |first1=Robert E. |title=jianxing |date=2017-07-20 |work=The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780190681159.001.0001/acref-9780190681159-e-1946 |access-date=2024-08-29 |publisher=Princeton University Press |language=en |doi=10.1093/acref/9780190681159.001.0001 |isbn=978-0-691-15786-3 |last2=Lopez |first2=Donald S.|url-access=subscription }}</ref>

Extended study of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} literature as well as meditation ({{transliteration|ja|[[zazen]]}}) on a {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} is a major feature of modern [[Rinzai school|Rinzai]] Zen. They are also studied in the [[Sōtō]] school of Zen to a lesser extent. In [[Chan Buddhism|Chinese Chan]] and [[Korean Seon]] Buddhism, meditating on a {{transliteration|zh|[[Hua Tou|huatou]]}}, a key phrase of a {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, is also a major Zen meditation method.

==Etymology==
The Japanese word {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} is the [[on'yomi|Sino-Japanese pronunciation]] of the Chinese word ''gōng'àn'' {{lang|zh|公案}} (or ''gūng'on'' in [[Cantonese]]). According to the [[Yuan dynasty]] Zen master [[Zhongfeng Mingben]] ({{lang|zh|中峰明本}} 1263–1323), {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}} originated as an abbreviation of {{transliteration|zh|gōngfǔ zhī àndú}} ({{lang|zh|公府之案牘}}, Japanese {{transliteration|ja|kōfu no antoku}}), which referred to a "public record" or the "case records of a public law court" in [[Tang dynasty]] China.{{sfn|Sasaki|1965|pp=4-6}}{{sfn|Foulk|2000|pp=21-22}}{{refn|group=note|Assertions that the literal meaning of {{transliteration|zh|kung-an}} is the table, desk, or bench of a magistrate appear on page 18 of {{harvtxt|Foulk|2000}}. See also {{harvtxt|McRae|2003|pp=172–173 note 16}}.}} {{transliteration|ja|Kōan}}/{{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} thus serves as a [[metaphor]] for principles of reality beyond the private or subjective opinion of one person, and a teacher may test the student's ability to recognize and understand that principle.

Commentaries in {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} collections bear some similarity to judicial decisions that cite and sometimes modify precedents. An article by T. Griffith Foulk claims:

{{Blockquote|Its literal meaning is the 'table' or 'bench' {{transliteration|zh|[[An (Shintō)|an]]}} of a 'magistrate' or 'judge' {{transliteration|zh|[[gong (title)|kung]]}}.{{sfn|Foulk|2000|pp=21–22}}}}

{{transliteration|zh|Gong'an}} was itself originally a metonym—an article of furniture involved in setting legal precedents came to stand for such precedents. For example, {{transliteration|zh|Di Gong'an}} ({{lang|zh|狄公案}}) is the original title of ''[[Celebrated Cases of Judge Dee]]'', the famous Chinese [[detective novel]] based on a historical Tang dynasty judge. Similarly, Zen {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} collections are public records of the notable sayings and actions of Zen masters and disciples attempting to pass on their teachings.

==Doctrinal background==
The popular Western understanding sees {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} as referring to an [[the unanswered questions|unanswerable question]] or a [[nonsense|meaningless]] or [[absurdity|absurd]] statement. However, in Zen practice, a {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} is not meaningless, and not a riddle or a puzzle. Teachers do expect students to present an appropriate response when asked about a {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Sasaki|1965|p=xi}}{{sfn|Hagen|2000}}{{sfn|Aitken|1991|pp=xiii, 26, and 212}}{{sfn|Loori|1994|p=p64}} According to Hori, a central theme of many {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} is the 'identity of opposites':{{sfn|Hori|2000|pp=289-290}}{{sfn|Hori|2000|p=310 note 14}}

{{Blockquote|{{transliteration|ja|
[K]ōan}} after {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} explores the theme of nonduality. Hakuin's well-known {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, "Two hands clap and there is a sound, what is the sound of one hand?" is clearly about two and one. The {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} asks, you know what duality is, now what is nonduality? In "What is your [[original face]] before your mother and father were born?" the phrase "father and mother" alludes to duality. This is obvious to someone versed in the Chinese tradition, where so much philosophical thought is presented in the imagery of paired opposites. The phrase "your original face" alludes to the original [[nonduality]].{{sfn|Hori|2000|pp=289–290}}}}

Comparable statements are: "Look at the flower and the flower also looks"; "Guest and host interchange".{{sfn|Hori|2000|p=289}} {{transliteration|ja|Kōan}} are also understood as pointers to an unmediated "Pure Consciousness", devoid of cognitive activity.{{sfn|Hori|2000|p=282}} Victor Hori criticizes this understanding:

{{Blockquote|[A] pure consciousness without concepts, if there could be such a thing, would be a booming, buzzing confusion, a sensory field of flashes of light, unidentifiable sounds, ambiguous shapes, color patches without significance. This is not the consciousness of the enlightened Zen master.{{sfn|Hori|2000|p=284}}}}

== {{transliteration|zh|Gong'an}} in China ==

=== The "public cases" of the old masters ===
{{transliteration|zh|Gong'an}} literature developed at some point in between the late [[Tang dynasty]] (10th century) to the [[Song dynasty]] (960–1279), though the details are unclear.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109-111}} They arose out of the collections of the recorded sayings of Chan masters and "transmission" texts like the [[The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp|''Transmission of the Lamp'']]. These sources contained numerous stories of famous past Chan masters which were used to educate Chan/Zen students.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109-111}} According to [[Morten Schlütter]] "it is not clear exactly when the practice of commenting on old gongan cases started, but the earliest Chan masters to have such commentaries included in the recorded sayings attributed to them appear to be [[Yunmen Wenyan]] and Fenyang Shanzhao (947–1024)."{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=110}}

According to [[Robert Buswell Jr.|Robert Buswell]], the {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} tradition "can be viewed as the products of an internal dynamic within Chan that began in the T'ang and climaxed in the Sung."{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=111}} By the beginning of the Song era, Chan masters were known to use these stories in their sermons, as well as to comment on them and to use them to challenge their students.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=110}}

[[Morten Schlütter|Schlütter]] also writes:{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109}}

{{blockquote|[M]uch of the material in the recorded sayings collections of individual Song Chan masters consists of the master quoting ("raising"; {{transliteration|zh|ju}}) a story about a famous past Chan figure's encounter with disciples or other interlocutors and then offering his own comments on it. The stories held up for comment came to be referred to as gongan, "public cases," or {{transliteration|zh|guze}}, "old model cases," both terms borrowed, it would seem, from the language of law.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109}}}}

Originally, such a story was only considered a {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} when it was commented upon by another Chan master, i.e. when it was used as a "case" study for enlightenment.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109}} This practice of commenting on the words and deeds of past masters also served to confirm the master's position as an awakened master in a lineage of awakened masters of the past.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109}}

According to Schlütter, these stories were also used "to challenge Chan students to demonstrate their insights: a Chan master would cite a story about a famous master and then demand that his students comment."{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109}} Later on, certain questions (like: "Why did Bodhidharma come from the West?") developed independently from the traditional stories and were used in the same fashion.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109}} Schlütter also notes that "most commonly used {{transliteration|zh|gongan}} in the Song originally came from the influential [[The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp|''Transmission of the Lamp'']], although the subsequent transmission histories also became sources of {{transliteration|zh|gongan}}."{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=110}}

Over time, a whole literary genre of {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} collection and commentary developed which was influenced by "educated [[Scholar-official|literati]]" of the Song era.{{sfn|McRae|2003|p=131}} These collections included quotations of encounter-dialogue passages (the "cases", {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}}) with a master's comment on the case attached. When a prose comment was added, the genre was called {{transliteration|zh|niangu}} ('picking up the old ones'), and when poems were used to comment, the genre was termed {{transliteration|zh|songgu}} ('eulogizing the old ones'). Further commentaries would then be written by later figures on these initial comments, leading to quite complex and layered texts.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=110}}

The style of these Song-era Zen texts was influenced by many Chinese literary conventions and the style of "literary games" (competitions involving improvised poetry). Common literary devices included:{{sfn|Hori|2003|loc=Chapter 4}}{{sfn|Heine|2008|p=52}}

{{Blockquote|
#The extensive use of [[allusion]]s, which create a feeling of disconnection with the main theme;
#Indirect references, such as titling a poem with one topic and composing a verse that seems on the surface to be totally unrelated;
#Inventive wordplay based on the fact that {{transliteration|zh|[[hanzi]]}} (Chinese characters) are homophonic and convey multiple, often complementary or contradictory meanings;
#Linking the verses in a sustained string based on hidden points of connection or continuity, such as seasonal imagery or references to myths and legends.{{sfn|Heine|2008|p=52}}}}

There were dangers involved in such a highly literary approach, such as ascribing specific meanings to the cases, or become too involved in book learning.{{sfn|McRae|2003|p=131}} [[Dahui Zonggao]] is even said to have burned the [[Woodblock printing|woodblocks]] of the ''[[Blue Cliff Record]]'', for the hindrance it had become to the study of Chan by his students.{{sfn|Yampolski|2003|p=20}}

=== "Observing the phrase" ===
During the late [[Song dynasty]] (11th–12th century), the practice of assigning specific {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}} to students for contemplation had become quite common and some sources contain examples of Zen masters (e.g. Touzi Yiqing) who became enlightened through contemplating a {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}}.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=111}} 
[[File:Dahui_49th_generation.jpg|thumb|[[Dahui Zonggao]] (1089-1163)]]

Thus, by the time of [[Dahui Zonggao]] (1089–1163),{{refn|group=note|{{lang-zh|c=大慧宗杲|w=Ta-hui Tsung-kao}}; Japanese: {{transliteration|ja|Daie Sōkō}}}} this practice was well established.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=112}} Dahui promoted and popularized the practice extensively, under the name of "observing the phrase zen" ({{transliteration|zh|kanhua chan}}). In this practice, students were to observe ({{transliteration|zh|kan}}) or concentrate on a single word or phrase ({{transliteration|zh|[[Hua Tou|huatou]]}}), such as the famous {{transliteration|ja|mu}} of the {{transliteration|ja|[[mu-kōan]]}}, and develop a sense of "great doubt" within until this ball of doubt "shattered", leading to enlightenment.{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=22}}{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=112}} Dahui's invention was aimed at balancing the [[Vipassana|insight]] developed by reflection on the teachings with developing [[samatha|śamatha]], calmness of mind.{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=23}}

This idea of observing a key phrase or word was Dahui's unique contribution, since the earlier method of {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}} contemplation never taught the focusing on a single word, nor did it teach to develop a "ball of doubt that builds up before finally shattering."{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=112}} According to Wright, instead of focusing on the full narrative of a {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, Dahui promoted "intense focus on one critical phrase, generally one word or element at the climax of the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}."{{sfn|Wright|2000|p=208}}

Dahui also taught that meditation on just one {{transliteration|zh|huatou}} of a single {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} was enough to achieve enlightenment, since penetrating one {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} was penetrating into all of them.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=114}} He went even further, arguing that this new meditation technique was the only way of achieving enlightenment for Chan practitioners of his day. Thus, Schlütter writes that "in this insistence, he was unusual among the Song Chan masters, who generally tended to take a rather inclusive view of Buddhist practice. It is therefore fair to say that Dahui not only developed a new contemplative technique, he also invented a whole new kind of Chan in the process."{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=116}} Whatever the case, Dahui was extremely influential in shaping the development of the Linji school in the Song.{{sfn|McRae|2003|pp=123–133}}

[[Dale S. Wright]] also writes that Dahui: {{sfn|Wright|2000|p=208}}

{{blockquote|[...] maintained that the {{transliteration|zh|hua-t'ou}} had no meaning and that any intellectualization, any conceptual thinking at all, would obstruct the possibility of break-through. As a corollary to this, Ta-hui warned that the intellectuals who in his day were the ones most interested in {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} meditation would be the least likely to succeed at it, given their tendency to think. His advice to them, therefore, was to cease completely any effort to resolve the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} and "to give up the conceit that they have the intellectual tools that would allow them to understand it." The primary effort required in this enterprise was a negative one, "nonconceptualization,"...{{sfn|Wright|2000|p=208}}}}

As Robert Buswell explains, this emphasis on non-conceptual meditation on a {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} meant that "there is nothing that need be developed; all the student must do is simply renounce both the hope that there is something that can be achieved through the practice as well as the conceit that he will achieve that result."{{sfn|Wright|2000|p=208}}

Wright argues that since "the narrative structure of the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} was eliminated in the focus on a single point", that is the {{transliteration|zh|hua-t'ou}} (which was said to have no meaning), such a practice became a [[samatha|śamatha]]-like {{transliteration|ja|zazen}} practice (which even resembles Caodong [[Shikantaza|silent illumination]]), even if this was never acknowledged by the masters of the Linji school in the Song.{{sfn|Wright|2000|p=209}}  Furthermore, Wright also argues that this practice was anti-intellectual since all learning was to be renounced in the practice of {{transliteration|zh|kanhua chan}}.{{sfn|Wright|2000|pp=209–210}} According to Wright, this development left Chinese Chan vulnerable to criticisms by a resurgent neo-Confucianism.{{sfn|Wright|2000|pp=210–211}}

According to Mario Poceski, although [[Dahui Zonggao|Dahui's]] ''kanhua'' Chan (in which one focuses on a ''huatou'') purports to be a sudden method, it essentially consists of a process of gradually perfecting concentration. Poceski also observes the role the ''kanhua'' technique played in standardizing Chan practice. He argues that this contributed to the routinization of the tradition, resulting in a loss of some of the more open and creative aspects of earlier Chan.<ref>Mario Poceski, Chan and the Routinization of Charisma in Chinese Buddhism, in ''The Theory and Practice of Zen Buddhism: A Festschrift in Honor of Steven Heine,'' Chinese Culture 6, edited by Charles S. Prebish and On-cho Ng, pages 55-56, Springer 2022</ref>

=== The Chan master's role ===
According to Kasulis, the rise of {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}} contemplation in Song-era Zen led to a greater emphasis on the interaction between master and student, which came to be identified as the essence of enlightenment, since "its verification was always interpersonal. In effect, enlightenment came to be understood not so much as an insight, but as a way of acting in the world with other people."{{sfn|Kasulis|2003|p=30}}

This mutual inquiry of past cases gave Zen students a role model and a sense of belonging to a spiritual family since "one looked at the enlightened activities of one's lineal forebears in order to understand one's own identity."{{sfn|McRae|2003|p=130}}{{refn|This role-taking is described by the Swedish psychologist of religion [[Hjalmar Sundén]], though McRae does not seem to be aware of this.|group=note}} The practice also served to confirm an individual's enlightenment and authority in a specific lineage or school. This formal authorization or confirmation ({{lang-zh|印可|yìn kě}}, Japanese: {{transliteration|ja|inka}}, Korean: {{transliteration|ko|inga}}) was given by their teacher and was often part of a process of "[[dharma transmission]]" ({{lang-zh|傳法|chuán fǎ}}) in a specific lineage.<ref>Haskel, Peter (2001). ''Letting Go: The Story of Zen Master Tōsui'', p. 2. University of Hawaii Press. {{ISBN|0-8248-2440-7}}.</ref>{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109}}<ref>Bodiford, William M. (2008), ''[https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/Bodiford-transmission-ZenRitual.pdf Dharma Transmission in Theory and Practice. In: Zen Ritual: Studies of Zen Buddhist Theory in Practice]'' (PDF), Oxford University Press.</ref> This formal act placed the "confirmed" Chan master in a special unique position as an interpreter and guide to the {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}}.{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=109}}

The importance of the teacher student relationship is seen in modern Japanese {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} training which always requires an authorized teacher ({{transliteration|ja|[[rōshi]]}} or {{transliteration|ja|[[oshō]]}}) in a specific lineage who has the ability to judge a disciple's understanding and expression of a {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}}. In the [[Rinzai school|Rinzai Zen school]], which uses {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} extensively, the teacher certification process includes an appraisal of proficiency in using that school's extensive {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} curriculum. According to Barbara O'Brien, the practice of going to a private interview with one's Zen master ({{transliteration|ja|[[sanzen]]}}) where one has to prove one's understanding of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} "is the real point of the whole exercise".<ref>Barbara O'Brien, ''The Circle of the Way'', p.239</ref>

=== Chinese {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}} collections ===
Some of the key Song-era {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} collections are:

* The ''[[Blue Cliff Record]]'' ({{lang-zh|碧巖錄|Bìyán Lù}}; Japanese: {{transliteration|ja|Hekiganroku}}) is a collection of 100 {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} compiled in 1125 by [[Yuanwu Keqin]] ({{lang|zh|圜悟克勤}} 1063–1135), mostly drawn from earlier "transmission" stories.
* The ''[[Book of Equanimity]]'' or ''Book of Serenity'' ({{lang-zh|從容録|Cóngróng lù}}; {{langx|ja|従容録|Shōyōroku}}) is a collection of 100 {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} by [[Hongzhi Zhengjue]] (Chinese: {{lang|zh|宏智正覺}}; Japanese: Wanshi Shōgaku) (1091–1157), compiled with commentaries by [[Wansong Xingxiu]] (1166–1246). 
* ''[[The Gateless Gate]]'' (Chinese: {{lang|zh|無門關}} {{transliteration|zh|Wumenguan}}; Japanese: {{transliteration|ja|Mumonkan}}) is a collection of 48 {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} and commentaries published in 1228 by Chinese monk [[Wumen]] ({{lang|zh|無門}} {{c.|1183–1260}}). The title may be more accurately rendered as ''Gateless Barrier'' or ''Gateless Checkpoint''. Five {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} in the collection derive from the sayings and doings of [[Zhaozhou Congshen]] (transliterated as Chao-chou in Wade–Giles and pronounced Jōshū in Japanese).
* The {{transliteration|zh|Zhengfayan zang}} ({{lang|zh|正法眼藏}}, "Treasury of the true dharma eye", Japanese: {{transliteration|ja|Shōbōgenzō}}) is a collection of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} and dialogues compiled between 1147 and 1150 by [[Dahui Zonggao]]. Dahui's ''Treasury'' is composed of three scrolls prefaced by three short introductory pieces. 
* The {{transliteration|zh|Zongmen liandeng huiyao}} ({{lang|zh|宗門聯燈會要}}) was compiled in 1183 by [[Huiweng Wuming]] ({{lang|zh|晦翁悟明}}) (n.d.), three generations after Dahui in the same line; the sermon is found in zh 20 (x 79: 173a).

These texts mostly draw and develop stories which are found in other sources, mainly the ''[[Anthology of the Patriarchal Hall]]'' (Chinese {{transliteration|zh|Zǔtángjí}}, mid-10th century), and the [[Hagiography|hagiographical]] ''[[The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp|Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp]]'' (Chinese {{transliteration|zh|Jǐngdé Chuándēnglù}}, early 11th century).

=== After the Song era ===
[[Zhongfeng Mingben]] (1263–1323),{{sfn|Dumoulin|2005|p=155}} a Chinese Chan master who lived at the beginning of the [[Yuan Dynasty]], revitalized the Chinese [[Linji school]].{{sfn|Dumoulin|2005}} Zhongfeng put a strong emphasis on the use of {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}}, seeing them as a "work of literature [that] should be used as objective, universal standards to test the insight of monks who aspired to be recognized as Ch'an masters".{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=22}} He also promoted Dahui's famous {{transliteration|zh|kanhua chan}} method of meditating on a {{transliteration|zh|huatou}} and influenced several Japanese Rinzai masters of the time who came to China to study with him, including Kosen Ingen, Kohō Kakumyō, [[Jakushitsu Genkō]] (1290–1367).<ref>Heller, Natasha (2009), "The Chan Master as Illusionist: Zhongfeng Mingben's Huanzhu Jiaxun" (PDF), Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies, 69 (2): 271–308, {{doi|10.1353/jas.0.0020}}, {{S2CID|170819511}}</ref><ref>Dumoulin, Heinrich (2005b), ''Zen Buddhism: A History. Volume 2: Japan'', pp. 197-204. World Wisdom Books, {{ISBN|978-0-941532-90-7}}</ref>

According to Zhongfeng:

{{Blockquote|The koans do not represent the private opinion of a single man, but rather the hundreds and thousands of [[bodhisattva]]s of the [[Trailokya|three realms]] and [[Ten spiritual realms|ten directions]]. This principle accords with the spiritual source, tallies with the mysterious meaning, destroys birth-and-death, and transcends the passions. It cannot be understood by logic; it cannot be transmitted in words; it cannot be explained in writing; it cannot be measured by reason. It is like the poisoned drum that kills all who hear it, or like a great fire that consumes all who come near it. What is called "the special transmission of the Vulture Peak" was the transmission of this; what is called the "direct pointing of [[Bodhidharma]] at [[Shaolin Temple|Shao-lin-ssu]]" is this.{{sfn|Mingben|2006|p=13}}}}
[[file:Chan Master Miyun Yuanwu.gif|thumb|Chan Master Miyun Yuanwu]]
In later periods like the [[Ming dynasty]], Chinese Chan developed in different directions, such as incorporating [[Pure Land Buddhism|Pure Land]] elements and the re-introduction of an emphasis on the study of scripture.<ref name=":0" />

However, {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} meditation was still practiced in the Linji lineages. During the [[Ming dynasty|Ming]], [[Miyun Yuanwu]] (1566–1642) was a successful promoter of the Linji school's {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} methods, emphasizing vigorous master disciple encounters which made use of shouting and beating in imitation of classic {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} stories. Yuanwu's efforts to revive the Linji tradition were so successful that according to Marcus Bingenheimer, "Miyun's Tiantong branch {{lang|zh|天童派}} of the Linji School became the dominant Chan lineage in China and beyond" ({{c.|17th century}}).<ref name=":0">Bingenheimer, Marcus. (2023). "[https://www.researchgate.net/publication/368520485_Miyun_Yuanwu_miyunyuanwu_1567-1642_and_His_Impact_on_17th-Century_Buddhism Miyun Yuanwu 密雲圓悟 (1567–1642) and His Impact on 17th-Century Buddhism.]" ''Religions''. 14. 248. 10.3390/rel14020248.</ref> He led numerous communities of thousands of monks and confirmed twelve dharma heirs.<ref name=":0" />

His teachings also influenced Japanese Zen since his student [[Ingen|Yinyuan Longqi]] (Japanese: Ingen Ryūki, 1592–1673) later founded the [[Ōbaku|Ōbaku school]] in Japan.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Wu |first=Jiang |date=2006 |title=Building a Dharma Transmission Monastery |url=https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/Jiang.pdf |journal=East Asian History |volume=31 |pages=48}}</ref> This lineage also spread the Linji {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} teachings to Vietnam, mainly through the efforts of Yuanshao ({{lang|zh|元韶}}, 1648–1728).<ref name=":0" />

==Modern Chinese Chan and Korean Seon==
{{Main|Hua Tou}}
{{Chinese Buddhism}}
{{Korean Buddhism}}

In the modern period, the practice of meditating on the critical phrase ({{transliteration|zh|[[Hua Tou|huatou]]}}) of a {{transliteration|zh|gong'an}} is still taught and some Chinese Chan figures like [[Sheng-yen|Sheng Yen]] and [[Hsu Yun|Xuyun]] taught the practice and wrote on it.<ref>see: Sheng Yen (2009), ''Shattering the Great Doubt: The Chan Practice of Huatou,'' Translated by, Dharma Drum publications</ref><ref name="Chang, Garma C. C. 1970 pp. 72-85">Chang, Garma C. C. (1970), ''Practice of Zen'', pp. 72-85. Perennial Library / Harper & Row.</ref>

Modern [[Chan Buddhism|Chinese Chan]] and [[Korean Seon]] generally follow the method taught by [[Dahui Zonggao|Dahui]], which emphasizes meditation on a {{transliteration|zh|huatou}} ('critical phrase', 'word head'). In this method one repeats the phrase over and over again and inquires into it while in meditation (sitting or walking) as well as in daily activities. In this mainland tradition of {{transliteration|zh|huatou}} practice, also called {{transliteration|zh|kanhua}}, 'reflection on the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}',{{sfn|Schlütter|2000|p=168}}{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=38}} a fragment of a {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, such as {{transliteration|ja|mu}}, or a "what is"-question is used by focusing on this fragment and repeating it over and over again.<ref name="Lachs 2012" group="web" /><ref group="web">{{cite web |title=Huatou |url=http://www.dharmanet.org/samples/chansample2.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130515010005/http://www.dharmanet.org/samples/chansample2.htm |archive-date=2013-05-15 |work=The Legacy of Chan |publisher=Ashoka}}</ref>

In this tradition one generally contemplates one such phrase for an extended period of time, going deeper and deeper into it, instead of going through an extended curriculum as in Japanese Rinzai. A student may be assigned only one {{transliteration|zh|huatou}} for their whole life.{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=38}} The focus of this contemplation is on generating the sense of "great doubt" and on having faith in the Dharma and the practice.<ref name="Lachs" group="web" /> According to Ford the {{transliteration|zh|huatou}} "becomes a touchstone of our practice: it is a place to put our doubt, to cultivate great doubt, to allow the revelation of great faith, and to focus our great energy."{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=38}}

[[Xuyun]] wrote:

{{blockquote|The important thing is to stick to {{transliteration|zh|Hua Tou}} at all times, when walking, lying, or standing. From morning to night observing {{transliteration|zh|Hua Tou}} vividly and clearly, until it appears in your mind like the autumn moon reflected limpidly in quiet water. If you practice this way, you can be assured of reaching the state of Enlightenment.<ref name="Chang, Garma C. C. 1970 pp. 72-85">Chang, Garma C. C. (1970), ''Practice of Zen'', pp. 72-85. Perennial Library / Harper & Row.</ref>}}

Examples of {{transliteration|zh|huatou}} which are used in meditation include: "What is this?"; "What was the original face before my father and mother were born?"; "Who is dragging this corpse about?"; and "Who am I?".<ref name=":0" group="web">{{cite web |author=Chuan Zhi |date=4 October 2011 |title=The Hua-Tou Practice |url=https://www.exploringchan.org/subjects/chan-training-and-practice/the-hua-tou/huatoupractice.html |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160325024657/http://www.eyeofchan.org/all-articles/articles-by-author/articles-by-chuan-zhi/759-huatoupractice.html |archive-date=2016-03-25 |website=Exploring Chán}}</ref>

Another popular practice in Chinese Chan is using the {{transliteration|zh|[[nianfo]]}} (repetition of [[Amitābha|Amitabha Buddha]]'s name) as a {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}} practice. This method of "{{transliteration|zh|Nianfo}} Chan" ({{lang|zh|念佛禪}}) was promoted in the modern era by Xuyun and relies on repeating the Buddha's name while also asking "who is reciting?".<ref name=":02">Sharf, Robert H. ''On Pure Land Buddhism and Ch'an/Pure Land Syncretism in Medieval China.'' T'oung Pao Second Series, Vol. 88, Fasc. 4/5 (2002), pp. 282-331, Brill.</ref><ref>Baroni, Helen Josephine (2006). ''Iron Eyes: The Life and Teachings of the Ōbaku Zen master Tetsugen Dōko,'' pp 5-6. State University of New York Press. {{ISBN|0-7914-6891-7}}.</ref><ref name=":0" group="web" /> The practice of using {{transliteration|zh|nianfo}} in a {{transliteration|zh|gōng'àn}} like fashion is also found in the Japanese [[Ōbaku]] school and was taught by their founding masters (including Yinyuan, i.e. [[Ingen]]), indicating that this method dates at least as far back as the Ming dynasty.<ref>Baskind, James (2008), "[https://web.archive.org/web/20140322123250/http://www.japanese-religions.jp/publications/assets/JR33_a_Baskind.pdf The Nianfo in Obaku Zen: A Look at the Teachings of the Three Founding Masters]" (PDF), Japanese Religions 33 (1-2), 19-34, archived from the original on March 22, 2014</ref>

The modern Korean master [[Seung Sahn]] developed his own curriculum of multiple {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} in his [[Kwan Um School of Zen]], but this was a modern development unheard of in Korean Seon.<ref name="Lachs 2012" group="web" />

=={{transliteration|ja|Kōan}} in Japan==
{{Main|Japanese Zen}}

=== The introduction of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} ===
{{Japanese Buddhism}}
When the Chan tradition was established in Japan in the 12th century, both Rinzai and [[Sōtō]], took over the use of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} study and commenting. In Sōtō-Zen, {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} commentary was not linked to seated meditation.{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=25}} Japanese monks had to master the Chinese language and specific expressions used in the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} training. The desired "spontaneity" expressed by enlightened masters required a thorough study of Chinese language and poetry.{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|pp=92–93}} Japanese Zen imitated the Chinese "syntax and stereotyped norms".{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|p=93}}

During the Kamakura period, the officially recognized Rinzai monasteries belonging to the {{transliteration|zh|[[Five Mountain System|Gozan]]}} (Five Mountain System) where key centers for the study of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}. Senior monks in these monasteries were supposed to compose Chinese verse in a complex style of matched counterpoints known as {{transliteration|zh|bienli wen}}. It took a lot of literary and intellectual skills for a monk to succeed in this system.{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|p=94}}

The [[Five Mountain System#The Rinka|Rinka monasteries]], the provincial temples which were under less direct state control, laid less stress on the correct command of Chinese verse. These monasteries developed "more accessible methods of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} instruction".{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|p=94}} It had three features:{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|p=94}}

#A standardized {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} curriculum;
#A standardized set of answers based on stereotypes Chinese sayings;
#A standardized method of secretly guiding students through the curriculum of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} and answers.

By standardizing the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} curriculum every generation of students proceeded to the same series of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|p=94}} Students had to memorize a set number of stereotyped sayings, {{transliteration|ja|agyō}}, 'appended words'.{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|pp=96–97}} The proper series of responses for each {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} were taught by the master in private instruction sessions to selected individual students who would inherit the dharma lineage.{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|pp=97–98}}

The development of Rinzai {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} curriculums occurred in various stages. According to Eshin Nishimura, Japanese Rinzai-masters like {{nihongo|[[Enni|Enni-bennen]]|圓爾辨圓}} (1202–1280) and {{nihongo|Nampo-jyōmain|南浦紹明}} (1235–1308) had already divided the Chinese {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} into three groups namely {{transliteration|ja|richi}} ('ultimate truth'), {{transliteration|ja|kikan}} ('skillful method') and {{transliteration|ja|kōjyon}} ('non-attachment').<ref group="web">Eshin Nishimura, [http://www.buddhism.org/practical-principle-of-hakuin-zen/ ''Practical Principles of Hakuin Zen'']</ref> [[Musō Soseki]] (1275–1351) further developed the use of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Dumoulin|2005|pp=164–165}} Despite belonging to the Rinzai-school, Musō Soseki also made extensive use of {{transliteration|ja|richi}} (teaching), explaining the sutras, instead of {{transliteration|ja|kikan}} ({{transliteration|ja|kōan}}). According to Musō Soseki, both are {{IAST|upaya}}, 'skillful means' meant to educate students.{{sfn|Dumoulin|2005|pp=164–165}} Musō Soseki called both {{transliteration|ja|shōkogyu}}, 'little jewels', tools to help the student to attain [[satori]].{{sfn|Dumoulin|2005|pp=164–165}}{{refn|group=note|The term {{transliteration|ja|shōkogyu}} comes from a Chinese poem in which a lady calls the attendant using the word {{transliteration|zh|xiaoyu}}, Japanese {{transliteration|ja|shōkogyu}}, to warn her lover.{{sfn|Dumoulin|2005|p=165}} The poem figures in an interaction between [[Wuzi Fayan]] (1024–1104) and his student [[Yuanwu Keqin]], the teacher of [[Dahui Zonggao]]. Yüan-wu was assigned the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} "The verbal and the nonverbal are like vines clinging to a tree". Yuanwu gained [[satori]] with the phrase "She keeps calling out to [her maid] {{transliteration|zh|Xiaoyu}} although there is nothing the matter.{{sfn|Schlütter|2000|p=186}} It is only because she knows Tanlang [her lover] will hear her voice".{{sfn|Schlütter|2000|p=198 note 96}} The same {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} was assigned to Dahui Zonggao.{{sfn|Schlütter|2000|p=197 note 94}}}}

In the 18th century, the Rinzai school became dominated by the legacy of [[Hakuin]], who laid a strong emphasis on {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} study as a means to gain {{transliteration|ja|[[kensho]]}}, but also not to get stuck in this initial insight, and to develop a compassionate, selfless attitude.{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=25}} After Hakuin, most Rinzai monasteries followed the teachings of his lineage on {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} practice. {{transliteration|ja|Kōan}} study was also further systematized in a standard sequence of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} that the student had to pass and work through step by step. There are two curricula used in Rinzai, derived from two dharma-heirs of Gasan: the Takuju curriculum, and the Inzan curriculum.{{sfn|Hori|2000}} Both curricula have standardized answers.{{sfn|Samy|2016|p=105}}{{sfn|Samy|2014|p=178}}<ref name="McMahon" group="web" />

=== Rinzai school ===
{{transliteration|ja|Kōan}} practice is particularly important among Japanese practitioners of the [[Rinzai school]]. Japanese Rinzai uses extensive {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}-curricula, checking questions, and {{transliteration|ja|jakogo}} ('capping phrases', quotations from Chinese poetry) in its use of koans,{{sfn|Hori|2006}}

Koan practice starts with the {{transliteration|ja|shokan}}, or 'first barrier', usually the {{transliteration|ja|mu-kōan}} or the question "What is the sound of one hand?".{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=132}} After having attained {{transliteration|ja|kensho}}, students continue their practice investigating subsequent {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Yampolski|2005|p=186}} In the Takuju-school, after breakthrough students work through the ''Gateless Gate'' ({{transliteration|ja|Mumonkan}}), the ''Blue Cliff Record'' ({{transliteration|ja|Hekigan-roku}}), the ''Entangling Vines'' ({{transliteration|ja|Shumon Kattoshu}}), and the ''Collection of Wings of the Blackbird'' ({{lang|ja|鴆羽集}}, {{transliteration|ja|Chin'u shū}}).{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=42}} The Inzan-school uses its own internally generated list of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=42}}

==== {{transliteration|ja|Kōan}} curricula ====
In Rinzai a gradual succession of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} is studied.{{sfn|Besserman|Steger|2011|p=148}} There are two general branches of curricula used within Rinzai, the Takuju curriculum, and the Inzan curriculum. However, there are a number of sub-branches of these, and additional variations of curriculum often exist between individual teaching lines which can reflect the recorded experiences of a particular lineage's members. {{transliteration|ja|Kōan}} curricula are, in fact, subject to continued accretion and evolution over time, and thus are best considered living traditions of practice rather than set programs of study.

While Hakuin only refers to break-through {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, and "difficult to pass" {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} to sharpen and refine the initial insight and foster compassion, Hakuin's descendants developed a fivefold classification system:{{sfn|Besserman|Steger|2011|p=148}}

#{{transliteration|ja|Hosshin}}, dharma-body {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, are used to awaken the first insight into {{IAST|[[sunyata]]}}.{{sfn|Besserman|Steger|2011|p=148}} They reveal the {{IAST|[[dharmakaya]]}}, or Fundamental.{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=136}} They introduce "the undifferentitated and the unconditional".{{sfn|Hori|2005|pp=136–137}}
#{{transliteration|ja|Kikan}}, dynamic action {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, help to understand the phenomenal world as seen from the awakened point of view;{{sfn|Besserman|Steger|2011|pp=148-149}} where {{transliteration|ja|hosshin kōan}} represent {{transliteration|ja|tai}}, substance, {{transliteration|ja|kikan kōan}} represent {{transliteration|ja|yu}}, function.{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=137}}
#{{transliteration|ja|Gonsen}}, explication of word {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, aid to the understanding of the recorded sayings of the old masters.{{sfn|Besserman|Steger|2011|p=149}} They show how the Fundamental, though not depending on words, is nevertheless expressed in words, without getting stuck to words.{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=138}}
#{{transliteration|ja|Hachi Nanto}}, eight "difficult to pass" {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=135}} There are various explanations for this category, one being that these {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} cut off clinging to the previous attainment. They create another Great Doubt, which shatters the self attained through {{transliteration|ja|satori}}.{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=139}} It is uncertain which are exactly those eight {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Hori|2003|p=23}} Hori gives various sources, which altogether give ten {{transliteration|ja|hachi nanto kōan}}:{{sfn|Hori|2003|pp=23-24}}
#*Miura and Sasaki:
#**Nansen's Flower (Hekigan-roku Case 40){{refn|group=note| See [http://cuke.com/pdf-2013/wind-bell/63-08.pdf here] for the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, and [https://www.bluecliffrecord.ca/case-40-nanquan-points-to-a-flower/ here] for commentaries.}}
#**A Buffalo Passes the Window (Mumonkan Case 38){{refn|group=note|Eshin Nishimura, [http://www.buddhism.org/practical-principle-of-hakuin-zen/ PRACTICAL PRINCIPLE OF HAKUIN ZEN]: "A confidence that there is still one more small step ({{nihongo||些子向上の一著子|sasi-koujyouno-ichijyakusu}}) remains even after you finish passing through all those patriarchal gates."}}
#**Sōzan's Memorial Tower (Kattō-shō Case 140)
#**Suigan's Eyebrows (Hekigan-roku Case 8)
#**Enkan's Rhinoceros Fan (Hekigan-roku Case 91)
#*Shimano:
#**The Old Woman Burns the Hut (Kattō-shō Case 162)
#*Asahina Sōgen:
#**Goso Hōen's "Hakuun Said 'Not Yet'" (Kattō-shō Case 269)
#**Shuzan's Main Cable (Kattō-shō Case 280).
#*Akizuki:
#**Nansen Has Died (Kattō-shō Case 282)
#**Kenpō's Three Illnesses (Kattō-shō Case 17).
#{{transliteration|ja|Goi jujukin kōan}}, the [[Five Ranks|Five Ranks of Tozan]] and the [[Bodhisattva Precepts#The Ten Grave Precepts|Ten Grave Precepts]].{{sfn|Besserman|Steger|2011|p=151}}{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=135}}

According to [[Akizuki Ryomin|Akizuki]] there was an older classification system, in which the fifth category was {{transliteration|ja|Kojo}}, 'Directed upwards'. This category too was meant to rid the monk of any "stink of Zen".{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=143}} The very advanced practitioner may also receive the {{transliteration|ja|Matsugo no rokan}}, "The last barrier", and {{transliteration|ja|Saigo no ikketsu}}, "The final confirmation".{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=143}} "The last barrier" is given when one left the training hall, for example "Sum up all of the records of Rinzai in one word!"{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=143}} It is not meant to be solved immediately, but to be carried around in order to keep practising.{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=143}} "The final confirmation" may be another word for the same kind of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=143}} [[Shin'ichi Hisamatsu]] gave "If nothing what you do will do, then what will you do?" as an 'unanswerable' question, which keeps nagging on premature certainty.

==== The breakthrough-{{transliteration|ja|kōan}} ====
In the Rinzai school, the Sanbo Kyodan, and the White Plum Asanga, {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} practice starts with the assignment of a {{transliteration|ja|hosshi}} or "break-through {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}", usually the {{transliteration|ja|[[mu-kōan]]}} or "the sound of one hand".{{sfn|Hori|2000}} Students are instructed to concentrate on the "word-head", like the phrase {{transliteration|ja|mu}}. In the Wumenguan ({{transliteration|ja|Mumonkan}}), public case No. 1 ("Zhaozhou's Dog"), Wumen (Mumon) wrote:

{{Blockquote|[C]oncentrate yourself into this 'Wú'{{nbsp}}[...] making your whole body one great inquiry. Day and night work intently at it. Do not attempt nihilistic or dualistic interpretations.{{sfn|Shibayama|1974}}}}

Arousing this great inquiry or "Great Doubt" is an essential element of {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} practice. It builds up "strong internal pressure ({{transliteration|ja|gidan}}), never stopping knocking from within at the door of [the] mind, demanding to be resolved".{{sfn|Sekida|1985|pp=138–139}} To illustrate the enormous concentration required in {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} meditation, Zen Master Wumen commented:

{{Blockquote|It is like swallowing a red-hot iron ball. You try to vomit it out, but you can't.}}

Analysing the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} for its literal meaning will not lead to insight, though understanding the context from which {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} emerged can make them more intelligible. For example, when a monk asked Zhaozhou (Joshu) "does a dog have Buddha-nature or not?", the monk was referring to the understanding of the teachings on [[Buddha-nature]], which were understood in the Chinese context of absolute and relative reality.{{sfn|Shibayama|1974|loc=Commentary on case No. 1}}{{sfn|Swanson|1997}}{{refn|group=note|The controversy over whether all beings have the potential for enlightenment is even older. Vigorous controversy still surrounds the matter of Buddha nature. See "Tao-sheng's Theory of Sudden Enlightenment", Whalen Lai, in ''Sudden and Gradual'' (subtitle) ''Approaches to Enlightenment in Chinese Thought'', p. 173 and 191. The latter page documents how in 429 or thereabouts (more than 400 years before Zhaozhou), Tao-sheng was expelled from the Buddhist monastic community for defending the idea that incorrigible persons ({{transliteration|ja|[[icchantika]]}}) do indeed have Buddha-nature ({{transliteration|zh|fo-hsing}}).}}

==== {{transliteration|ja|Kensho}} ====
The continuous pondering of the break-through {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} ({{transliteration|ja|shokan}}){{sfn|Hori|2005|p=132}} or {{transliteration|zh|[[Hua Tou]]}}, "word head",{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=38}} leads to {{transliteration|ja|[[kensho]]}}, an initial insight into "seeing the [[Buddha-nature|(Buddha-)nature]].{{sfn|Hori|2000|p=287}}

The aim of the break-through {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} is to see the "nonduality of subject and object":{{sfn|Hori|2000|pp=289-290}}{{sfn|Hori|2000|p=310 note 14}}

{{Blockquote|The monk himself in his seeking is the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}. Realization of this is the insight; the response to the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}{{nbsp}}[...] Subject and object – this is two hands clapping. When the monk realizes that the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} is not merely an object of consciousness but is also he himself as the activity of seeking an answer to the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, then subject and object are no longer separate and distinct{{nbsp}}[...] This is one hand clapping (sic).{{sfn|Hori|2000|pp=288-289}}}}

Various accounts can be found which describe "becoming one" with the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} and the resulting breakthrough:

{{Blockquote|I was dead tired. That evening when I tried to settle down to sleep, the instant I laid my head on the pillow, I saw: "Ah, this outbreath is Mu!" Then: the in-breath too is Mu!" Next breath, too: Mu! Next breath: Mu, Mu! "Mu, a whole sequence of Mu! Croak, croak; meow, meow – these too are Mu! The bedding, the wall, the column, the sliding-door – these too are Mu! This, that and everything is Mu! Ha ha! Ha ha ha ha Ha! that {{transliteration|ja|roshi}} is a rascal! He's always tricking people with his 'Mu, Mu, Mu'!...{{sfn|Satomi|King|1993|p=106}}{{refn|group=note|[[Maura O'Halloran]] also gives an account of herself becoming mu.{{sfn|O'Halloran|2007|p=78}}}}}}

However, the use of the {{transliteration|ja|mu-kōan}} has also been criticised. According to [[Ama Samy]], the main aim is merely to "'become one' with the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}".{{sfn|Samy|2016|p=105}}{{sfn|Samy|2014|p=178}} Showing to have 'become one' with the first {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} is enough to pass the first {{transliteration|ja|kōan}}.{{sfn|Samy|2016|p=106}}{{sfn|Samy|2014|p=179}} According to Samy, this is not equal to {{IAST|[[Wisdom in Buddhism|prajna]]}}:

{{Blockquote|The one-pointed, non-intellectual concentration on the {{transliteration|zh|hua-t'ou}} (or Mu) is a pressure-cooker tactic, a reduction to a technique which can produce some psychic experiences. These methods and techniques are forced efforts which can even run on auto-pilot. They can produce experiences but not {{IAST|prajna}} wisdom. Some speak of 'investigating' the {{transliteration|zh|hua-t'ou}}, but it is rather a matter of concentration, which sometimes can provide insights, yet no more than that.{{sfn|Samy|2016|p=107}}{{sfn|Samy|2014|p=180}}}}

==== Testing insight – or learning responses ====

===== {{transliteration|ja|Sassho}} – Checking questions =====
Teachers may probe students about their {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} practice using {{transliteration|ja|sassho}}, "checking questions" to validate their {{transliteration|ja|[[satori]]}} (understanding) or {{transliteration|ja|[[kenshō]]}} (seeing the nature).{{sfn|Hori|2006|pp=132–133}} For the {{transliteration|ja|mu-kōan}} and the clapping hand-{{transliteration|ja|kōan}}, there are between 20 and 100 checking questions, depending on the teaching lineage.{{sfn|Hori|2006|p=133}} The checking questions serve to deepen the insight or {{transliteration|ja|[[kyōgai]]}} of the student, but also to test his or her understanding.{{sfn|Hori|2006|p=133}}

===== Standardized answers =====
Those checking questions, and their answers, are part of a standardised set of questions and answers.{{sfn|Hoffmann|1975}}{{sfn|Stephenson|2005}}{{sfn|Samy|2016|p=104}} [[Ama Samy]] states that the "{{transliteration|ja|koan}}s and their standard answers are fixed."{{sfn|Samy|2016|p=105}}{{sfn|Samy|2014|p=178}} Isshu Muira Roshi also states, in ''The Zen Koan'': "In the Inzan and Takuju lines, the answers to the koans were more or less standardized for each line respectively."<ref group=web name=McMahon/> {{transliteration|ja|Missanroku}} and {{transliteration|ja|missanchō}}, "Records of secret instruction" have been preserved for various Rinzai lineages. They contain both the {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} curricula and the standardized answers.{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|p=98}}

In Sōtō-Zen they are called {{transliteration|ja|monsan}}, an abbreviation of {{transliteration|ja|monto hissan}}, "secret instructions of the lineage".{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|p=98}} The {{transliteration|ja|monsan}} follow a standard question-and-answer format. A series of questions is given, to be asked by the master. The answers are also given by the master, to be memorized by the student.{{sfn|Bodiford|2006|pp=102–106}}

According to critics, students are learning a "ritual performance",{{sfn|Stephenson|2005}} learning how to behave and respond in specific ways,{{sfn|Hoffmann|1975}}{{sfn|Stephenson|2005}}{{sfn|Samy|2016|p=104}} learning "clever repartees, ritualized language and gestures and be submissive to the master's diktat and arbitration."{{sfn|Samy|2016|p=104}}

In 1916 Tominaga Shūho, using the pseudonym "Hau Hōō", published a critique of the Rinzai {{transliteration|ja|kōan}} system, {{transliteration|ja|Gendai sōjizen no hyōron}}, which also contained a translation of a {{transliteration|ja|missanroku}}. The {{transliteration|ja|missanroku}} part has been translated by [[Yoel Hoffmann]] as ''"The Sound of the One Hand"'' (see {{harvtxt|Hoffmann|1975}}) and {{harvtxt|Bodiford|1993|p=264 note 29}}.

===== Jakugo – Capping phrases =====
In the Rinzai school, passing a koan and the checking questions has to be supplemented by ''[[jakugo]]'', "capping phrases", citations of Chinese poetry to demonstrate the insight.{{sfn|Hori|1999}}{{sfn|Hori|2003}} Students can use collections of those citations, instead of composing poetry themselves.{{sfn|Hori|1999}}{{sfn|Hori|2003}}

==== Post-satori practice ====
After the initial insight [[Kenshō#Training after kenshō|further practice]] is necessary, to deepen the insight and learn to integrate it in daily life.{{sfn|Sekida|1996}} In Chinese Chan and Korean Seon, this further practice consists of further pondering of the same Hua Tou.<ref group=web name="Lachs" /> In Rinzai-Zen, this further practice is undertaken by further koan-study, for which elaborate curricula exist.{{sfn|Hori|2000}}{{sfn|Hori|2005}} In Sōtō-Zen, [[Shikantaza]] is the main practice for deepening insight.

==== Real-life integration ====
After completing the koan-training, ''Gogo no shugyo'' is necessary:{{sfn|Hori|2005|p=145}}
{{Blockquote|[I]t would take 10&nbsp;years to solve all the kōans [...] in the sōdō. After the student has solved all koans, he can leave the sōdō and live on his own, but he is still not considered a roshi. For this he has to complete another ten years of training, called "go-go-no-shugyō" in Japanese. Literally, this means "practice after satori/enlightenment", but [[Keido Fukushima|Fukushima]] preferred the translation "special practice". Fukushima would explain that the student builds up a "religious personality" during this decade. It is a kind of period that functions to test if the student is actually able to live in regular society and apply his koan understanding to daily life, after he has lived in an environment that can be quite surreal and detached from the lives of the rest of humanity. Usually, the student lives in small parish temple during this decade, not in a formal training monastery.<ref name=antaiji10 group=web>{{cite web |url=http://antaiji.dogen-zen.de/eng/adult50.shtml |author=Muho Noelke |title=Part 10: What does it take to become a full-fledged Sōtō-shu priest and is it really worth the whole deal? |website=Antaiji |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130430022031/http://antaiji.dogen-zen.de/eng/adult50.shtml |archive-date=2013-04-30 |url-status=dead}}{{verify source|date=September 2023|reason=Added template and archive page but title does not match.}}</ref>}}

Completing the koan-curriculum in the Rinzai-schools traditionally also led to a mastery of Chinese poetry and literary skills:
{{Blockquote|[D]isciples today are expected to spend a dozen or more years with a master to complete a full course of training in koan commentary. Only when a master is satisfied that a disciple can comment appropriately on a wide range of old cases will he recognize the latter as a dharma heir and give him formal "proof of transmission" (J. ''[[inka shomei]]''). Thus, in reality, a lot more than ''satori'' is required for one to be recognized as a master (J. ''shike'', ''roshi'') in the Rinzai school of Zen at present. The accepted proof of ''satori'' is a set of literary and rhetorical skills that takes many years to acquire.{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=42}}}}

==== Breathing practices ====
[[Hakuin Ekaku]], the 17th century revitalizer of the Rinzai school, taught several practices which serve to correct physical and mental imbalances arising from, among other things, incorrect or excessive koan practice.  The "soft-butter" method (''nanso no ho'') and "introspection method" (''naikan no ho'') involve cultivation of [[Qi|ki]] centered on the tanden (Chinese:[[dantian]]). These practices are described in Hakuin's works [[Orategama]] and [[Yasen Kanna]], and are still taught in some Rinzai lineages today.

=== In Japanese Sōtō ===
Few [[Sōtō Zen]] practitioners concentrate on kōans during meditation, but the Sōtō sect has a strong historical connection with kōans, since many kōan collections were compiled by Sōtō priests. During the 13th century, [[Dōgen]], founder of the Sōtō sect in Japan, quoted 580 kōans in his teachings.{{sfn|Bodiford|1993|p=144}} He compiled some 300 kōans in the volumes known as the Greater ''[[Shōbōgenzō]].'' Dōgen wrote of [[Genjōkōan|''Genjokōan'']], which points out that everyday life experience and indeed, the whole universe in this moment, is the "fundamental kōan", which does not refer to any ancient Zen story, but to the "heart of the matter", the question of life and death.<ref name="leighton">{{cite web |author=Taigen Dan Leighton |author-link=Taigen Dan Leighton |title=The Practice of Genjokoan |url=http://www.ancientdragon.org/dharma/dharma_talks/the_practice_of_genjokoan |accessdate=May 13, 2013 |publisher=Ancient Dragon Zen Gate}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Yasutani |first=Hakuun |author-link=Hakuun Yasutani |title=Flowers Fall. A Commentary on Zen Master Dōgen's ''Genjōkōan'' |publisher=Shambala Publications |year=1996 |isbn=978-1-57062-674-6 |location=Boston |pages=6–7}}</ref>

Over time, Sōtō sect adopted various koan meditation methods from other schools like Rinzai, including the method of observing a koan in meditation and koan curriculums. By the 15th century, Sōtō temples were publishing koan texts, and Sōtō monks often studied at Rinzai temples and passed on Rinzai koan practice lineages (and vice versa).<ref>Bodiford, William M. ''Sōtō Zen in Medieval Japan'', pp. 149-150. University of Hawaii Press, Jan 1, 1993.</ref> Sōtō teachers continued to write and collect kōan texts throughout the medieval period. Later kōan collections compiled and annotated by Sōtō priests include ''The Iron Flute'' (Tetteki Tōsui) by Genrō Ōryū in 1783 and ''Verses and Commentaries on One Hundred Old Cases of Tenchian'' (''Tenchian hyakusoku hyoju'') compiled by Tetsumon in 1771.

However, during the late 18th and 19th century, the Sōtō tradition of {{Transliteration|ja|kōan}} commentary and practice became criticized and suppressed in the Sōtō school, due to a reform movement that sought to return to the teaching of [[Dōgen]] and standardise the procedures for [[dharma transmission]].{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=25}}{{sfn|Mohr|2000|p=245}} An important figure in this development was [[Gentō Sokuchū]] (1729-1807), who sought to remove Rinzai and [[Ōbaku|Obaku]] influences on Sōtō and focus strictly on Dōgen's teachings and writings.<ref>Heine, Steven; Wright, Dale S. (2000). ''The Koan: Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism'', p. 245. Oxford University Press. {{ISBN|0-19-511748-4}}</ref>{{sfn|Mohr|2000|p=245}}

Another reason for suppressing the {{Transliteration|ja|kōan}} tradition in the Sōtō school may have been to highlight the differences with the Rinzai school, and create a clear Sōtō identity.{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=25}} This reform movement had started to venerate Dōgen as the founding teacher of the Sōtō school and they sought to make Dōgen's teachings the main standard for the Sōtō school. While Dōgen himself made extensive use of {{Transliteration|ja|kōan}} commentary in his works, it is clear he emphasized [[shikantaza]] ("just sitting") without an object, instead of the koan introspection method.{{sfn|Foulk|2000|p=25}}<ref>Leighton, Taigen Daniel; Okumura, Shohaku. ''Dogen's Pure Standards for the Zen Community: A Translation of Eihei Shingi'', p. 13-14. SUNY Press, Jan 1, 1996.</ref>

=== In Sanbo Kyodan and White Plum Asanga ===
The [[Sanbō Kyōdan|Sanbo Kyodan]] school of the former Sōtō-priest [[Hakuun Yasutani]], and the [[White Plum Asanga]] of [[Taizan Maezumi]] and the many groups that derive from him, incorporate koan-study.{{sfn|Ford|2006|pp=35-43}} The Sanbo kyodan places great emphasis on [[kensho]], initial insight into one's true nature,{{sfn|Sharf|1995c}} as a start of real practice. It follows the so-called Harada-Yasutani koan-curriculum, which is derived from [[Hakuin]]'s student Takuju. It is a shortened koan-curriculum, in which the so-called "capping phrases" are removed. The curriculum takes considerably less time to study than the Takuju-curriculum of Rinzai.{{sfn|Ford|2006|pp=42–43}}

To attain kensho, most students are assigned the mu-koan. After breaking through, the student first studies twenty-two "in-house"{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=42}} koans, which are "unpublished and not for the general public",{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=42}} but are nevertheless published and commented upon.{{sfn|MacInnes|2007}}<ref group=web>{{cite web |date=Spring 2006 |website=Maria Kannon Zen Center |url=http://www.mkzc.org/foreword-to-flowing-bridge-the-miscellaneous-koans/ |url-status=dead |archive-date=2010-07-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100706081015/http://www.mkzc.org/foreword-to-flowing-bridge-the-miscellaneous-koans/ |author=Ruben L. F. Habito |title=Foreword to Flowing Bridge: The Miscellaneous Koans}}</ref> There-after, the students goes through the ''Gateless Gate'' (Mumonkan), the ''Blue Cliff Record'', the ''Book of Equanimity'', and the ''Record of Transmitting the Light''.{{sfn|Ford|2006|p=42}} The koan-curriculum is completed by the [[Dongshan Liangjie#Five Ranks|Five ranks of Tozan]] and the precepts.{{sfn|Sharf|1995c|p=432}}

==Examples of traditional kōans==
<!-- Note to editors: the list in this section should not attempt to interpret the meanings -->

===Does a dog have Buddha-nature===
{{Main|Mu (negative)}}

{{blockquote|
A monk asked [[Zhaozhou Congshen|Zhaozhou]], "Does a dog have [[Buddha nature]], or does he not have Buddha-nature?"

Zhaozhou said, "[[Mu (negative)|Wu]]".}}

"Zhaozhou" is rendered as "Chao-chou" in [[Wade–Giles]], and pronounced "Joshu" in Japanese. "Wu" appears as "mu" in Japanese, meaning "no", "not", "nonbeing", or "without" in English. This is a fragment of Case No. 1 of the ''[[The Gateless Gate|Wúménguān]]''. However, another koan presents a longer version, in which Zhaozhou answered "yes" in response to the same question asked by a different monk: see Case No. 18 of the ''Book of Serenity''.

===The sound of one hand===
{{Further|Hakuin Ekaku#Hear the sound of one hand}}

{{Blockquote
|text=Two hands clap and there is a sound. What is the sound of one hand? ({{lang|ja|隻手声あり、その声を聞け}})
|sign=[[Hakuin Ekaku]]
}}

Victor Hori comments:
{{Blockquote|...&nbsp;in the beginning a monk first thinks a kōan is an inert object upon which to focus attention; after a long period of consecutive repetition, one realizes that the kōan is also a dynamic activity, the very activity of seeking an answer to the kōan. The kōan is both the object being sought and the relentless seeking itself. In a kōan, the self sees the self not directly but under the guise of the kōan ... When one realizes ("makes real") this identity, then two hands have become one. The practitioner becomes the kōan that he or she is trying to understand. That is the sound of one hand.{{sfn|Hori|1999}}}}

Yet, Hakuin himself introduced this question with a reference to [[Kanzeon]] (Guanyin), bodhisattva of great compassion, who hears the sounds of the suffering ones in the world, and is awakened by hearing these sounds and responding to them. To hear the sound of one hand is to still the sounds of the world, that is, to put an end to all suffering.

===Original face===
{{Main|Original face}}

{{blockquote|[[Huineng]] asked [[Hui Ming]], "Without thinking of good or evil, show me your original face before your mother and father were born."}}

This is a fragment of case No. 23 of the ''Wumenguan''.

===Killing the Buddha===
{{Blockquote
|text=If you meet the [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]], kill him. ({{lang|zh|逢佛殺佛}})
|sign=[[Linji Yixuan|Linji]]
}}

===Other koans===
{{blockquote|
A student asked Master [[Yunmen Wenyan|Yunmen]] (949 AD) "Not even a thought has arisen; is there still a sin or not?"

Master replied, "[[Mount Sumeru]]!"}}

{{blockquote|
A monk asked [[Dongshan Shouchu]], "What is Buddha?"

Dongshan said, "Three pounds of [[flax]]."}}
This is a fragment of case No. 18 of the ''Wumenguan'' as well as case No. 12 of the ''[[Blue Cliff Record]]''.

{{blockquote|
A monk asked [[Ummon]], "What is the teaching that transcends the Buddha and patriarchs?"

Ummon said, "A sesame bun."
| ''[[Blue Cliff Record]]'', case no. 77}}

{{blockquote|
A monk asked Zhaozhou, "What is the meaning of the ancestral teacher's (i.e., [[Bodhidharma]]'s) coming from the west?"

Zhaozhou said, "The cypress tree in front of the hall."}}
This is a fragment of case No. 37 of the ''Wumenguan'' as well as case No. 47 of the ''Book of Serenity''.

==Cultural legacy==
[[Gentō Sokuchū]], the 18th century abbot of [[Dogen]]'s [[Eihei-ji]], aggressively sought to reform [[Sōtō]] from all things 'foreign' and associated with [[Rinzai school|Rinzai]], including kōans.{{sfn|Heine|Wright|2000|p={{page needed|date=September 2023}}}} The unorthodox Zen monk [[Ikkyū]] contemplated kōans for years while creating dolls for a merchant in [[Kyoto]], specifically penetrating the case no. 15 from ''[[The Gateless Gate]]'' and thereafter earning his [[dharma name]] ''Ikkyū''.{{sfn|Ikkyū|1986|p=33}}

Facing criticism by Buddhists such as [[Philip Kapleau]] and [[D. T. Suzuki]] for misunderstanding Zen, [[Alan Watts]] claimed that a kōan supported his lack of [[zazen]] practice. On the topic, Suzuki claimed: "I regret to say that Mr. Watts did not understand that story."{{sfn|Aitken|1997|p=30}}

[[Douglas Hofstadter]]'s 1979 book ''[[Gödel, Escher, Bach: an Eternal Golden Braid]]'' discusses Zen kōans in relation to paradoxical questions and perceiving reality outside of one's experience.{{sfn|Hofstadter|1980|p={{page needed|date=September 2023}}}} Inspired by Zen teachings (including kōans), [[Frank Herbert]] wrote on the subject of the [[paradox]]ical elements of his [[Dune (franchise)|''Dune'' series]]:

{{blockquote|What especially pleases me is to see the interwoven themes, the fugue like relationships of images that exactly replay the way ''Dune'' took shape. As in an [[M. C. Escher|Escher]] lithograph, I involved myself with recurrent themes that turn into paradox. ... It's like a kōan, a Zen mind breaker.<ref group=web>{{cite web |last=Herbert|first=Frank |date=July 1980 |url= http://www.frankherbert.org/news/genesis.html |title=Dune Genesis|access-date=February 14, 2014 |via=FrankHerbert.org |work=[[Omni (magazine)|Omni]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120107220342/http://www.frankherbert.org/news/genesis.html |archive-date=January 7, 2012}}</ref>}}

The 1989 [[Cinema of South Korea|South Korean film]] ''[[Why Has Bodhi-Dharma Left for the East?]]'' bases much of its narrative on kōans, with its title deriving from a particular kōan about the founder of Zen, [[Bodhidharma]].<ref group=web>{{cite web |url= http://www.koreanfilm.org/kfilm80s.html#bodhi |title=Why Has Bodhi-Dharma Left for the East?|access-date=2007-12-26|last=Hartzell|first=Adam |website=koreanfilm.org}}</ref>

After becoming smitten with Zen (even offering to turn his own house into a [[zendo]]), filmmaker [[Alejandro Jodorowsky]] meditated and studied koans with the traveling monk Ejo Takata (1928–1997). After the release of ''[[The Holy Mountain (1973 film)|The Holy Mountain]]'', Jodorowsky gave a talk at the [[University of Mexico]] on the subject of kōans. After this talk, Takata gifted Jodorowsky his [[keisaku]], believing that the filmmaker had mastered the ability to understand kōans.{{sfn|Jodorowsky|2005|p={{page needed|date=September 2023}}}}

In the 1958 novel ''[[The Dharma Bums]]'', [[Jack Kerouac]] paraphrases the [[Shit stick#The Gateless Gate|Yunmen ''shit-stick'' kōan]] as: "The Buddha is a dried piece of turd".{{sfn|Kerouac|1958|p=173}} The second volume of the [[manga]] ''[[Lone Wolf and Cub]]'' by [[Kazuo Koike]] and [[Goseki Kojima]] is titled 'The Gateless Barrier' and revolves around a [[Linji Yixuan|Linji]] kōan ("If you meet a Buddha, kill him") as the protagonist is tasked to kill a troublesome "living Buddha".<ref group=web>{{cite web |url=https://www.comicsreview.co.uk/nowreadthis/2016/09/05/lone-wolf-and-cub-volume-2-the-gateless-barrier/ |title=Lone Wolf and Cub |volume=2: The Gateless Barrier|first=Win |last=Wiacek |date=September 5, 2016 |website=Now Read This! |access-date=May 26, 2022 |type=review}}</ref>

In [[hacker]] culture, funny short stories concerning [[computer science]] developed, named [[hacker koans]]. The book [[Jargon File]] contains many kōans, including the ''AI Koans''. ''The Codeless Code'' is another book about [[software engineer]]s at [[corporation|big businesses]] instead of [[unix]] hackers, deriving its title from the ''[[The Gateless Barrier|Gateless Gate]]''.<ref group=web>{{cite web |url=http://thecodelesscode.com/contents |title=contents |work=The Codeless Code |publisher=Qi |access-date=2014-03-03 |url-status=dead |archive-date=2014-03-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140303102216/http://thecodelesscode.com/contents}}</ref>

The song "[[False Prophet (song)|False Prophet]]" by [[Bob Dylan]] includes the line: "I climbed a mountain of swords on my bare feet", a reference to a [[The Gateless Barrier|Gateless Gate]] kōan ("You must climb a mountain of swords with bare feet").<ref group=web>{{Cite web|title=Mumonkan Case 17 |url=http://www.moonwaterdojo.com/1/post/2017/04/mumonkan-case-17.html|access-date=2021-02-11 |website=Moon Water Dojo}}</ref> British musical artist [[Brian Eno]] collaborated with Intermorphic on developing a [[generative music]] software system named ''[[Koan (program)|Koan]]''. In 2009, American composer and multi-instrumentalist [[Tyshawn Sorey]] released his second album, ''Koan''.<ref group=web>{{cite web |last1=Hunter |first1=Trevor |date=2 February 2010 |title=Sounds Heard: Tyshawn Sorey – Koan |url=https://nmbx.newmusicusa.org/sounds-heard-tyshawn-sorey-koan/ |website=New Music USA |access-date=11 January 2021}}</ref>

The 1997 novel ''[[The Sound of One Hand Clapping (novel)|The Sound of One Hand Clapping]]'' by [[Richard Flanagan]] (and its [[The Sound of One Hand Clapping (film)|1998 film adaptation of the same name]]) derives its title from a kōan by [[Hakuin Ekaku]].{{sfn|Flanagan|1997|p={{page needed|date=September 2023}}}} The episode of the 2014 [[Fargo (season 1)|first season of ''Fargo'']] entitled "Eating the Blame" derives its episode title from a koan of the same name from the ''[[Shasekishū]]''.<ref group=web>{{cite news |last=Vine |first=Richard |url=https://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-radio/tvandradioblog/2014/may/11/fargo-recap-season-one-episode-four-eating-blame |title=Fargo recap: season one, episode four – Eating the Blame |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date=May 11, 2014 |accessdate=June 20, 2014}}</ref> Cyriaque Lamar of [[io9]] stated that the approach to technology in ''[[Tron: Legacy]]'' was reminiscent of kōans.<ref group=web>{{cite web |url=http://io9.com/5713435/jeff-bridges-and-olivia-wilde-tell-us-about-the-zen-of-tron-legacy|title=Jeff Bridges and Olivia Wilde say Tron Legacy is all about religion|first=Cyriaque |last=Lamar|website=[[io9]]|date=December 14, 2010|access-date=April 23, 2012|url-status=live |archive-date=April 4, 2012 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20120404103816/http://io9.com/5713435/jeff-bridges-and-olivia-wilde-tell-us-about-the-zen-of-tron-legacy}}</ref>

==Criticism==
===Academic criticism===
An encounter dialogue constitutes the narrative component of a koan/''gong'an.'' It depicts an interaction between a master and student who is being tested, or between rivals as a kind of contest of spiritual prowess.<ref>Heine, Steven. Zen Skin, Zen Marrow: Will the Real Zen Buddhism Please Stand Up?, pages 56-57. Oxford University Press, 2008</ref> However, according to Mario Poceski, encounter dialogues are not historically reliable and "have little or nothing to do with the lives, ideas, and teachings of the [[Tang dynasty|Tang-era]] protagonists who are featured in them."<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, page 116, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref>{{refn|group=note|Dale S. Wright observes that while the early [[Huangbo Xiyun|Huangbo]] literature prominently features rational sermons critically engaging with a variety of doctrinal themes, later Chan ''yulu'', or discourse records, downplay or abandon this sermonic model in favor of anecdotal stories about the outrageous behavior and unconventional speech of Chan masters. In the case of the Huangbo literature, Wright states that "new stories about Huang-po began to appear in subsequent centuries and were gradually added to the earlier sections of the text. By the Ming dynasty, the Huang-po literature had grown to include a significant number of 'encounter dialogue' stories about the master, and all of these are written in later styles that are amenable to the kōan focus of fully mature Chinese Zen."<ref>Wright, Dale S. The Huang-po Literature, in ''The Zen Canon: Understanding the Classic Texts,'' edited by Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright, pages 129-131. Oxford University Press, 2004</ref>}} Such stories reflect the artistic license and religious imagination of mid-tenth century Chan.<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, pages 116, 118, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref> Steven Heine points to the sociopolitical background of encounter-dialogue literature, stating that such writings are not concerned with the task of historiography "because their aim was not factuality but persuading the selected audience of the significance of master-disciple relations in terms of legitimating lineages and establishing the authority and hierarchy of transmission."<ref>Heine, Steven. Zen Skin, Zen Marrow: Will the Real Zen Buddhism Please Stand Up?, page 57. Oxford University Press, 2008</ref> Poceski observes that although Zen is often portrayed as promoting spontaneity and freedom, encounter-dialogue exegesis actually points in the opposite direction, namely towards a tradition bound by established parameters of orthodoxy. According to Poceski, on the whole, the encounter-dialogue genre is marked by formulaic repetition and cliché.<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, pages 116-118, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref> He describes encounter-dialogue stories as "mass produced" and "artificially manufactured."<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, pages 141-142, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref> He says: <blockquote>In the end, notwithstanding the iconoclastic ethos imputed to them, it is apparent that these textual sources are products of a conservative tradition that, in the course of its growth and transformation during the Tang-Song transition, was keen to promote a particular version of Buddhist orthodoxy and secure its place as the main representative of elite Chinese Buddhism.<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, pages 118-119, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref></blockquote>

Poceski points out how, in commenting on ''gong'an'', Chan masters' interpretive possibilities are limited by "the straightjacket of a certain type of Chan orthodoxy."<ref name="Mario Poceski page 124">Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, page 124, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref> This refers to "ideological constraints and clerical agendas" which take encounter-dialogue stories as actual depictions of the enlightened behavior of perfected beings that point to some rarefied truth, despite there being no compelling empirical evidence for this.<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, pages 124-125, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref> According to Poceski, as this is never up for questioning or scrutiny, ''gong'an'' stories amount to "received articles of faith, reinforced by a cumulative tradition and embedded in specific institutional structures."<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, page 125, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref>

Poceski explains how ''gong'an'' have been put in the service of institutional agendas and have historically been tied up with nexuses of power. Commenting on ancient cases bolstered Chan masters as living embodiments of a mystical Chan lineage, reinforcing their status and authority. At the same time, the ostentatious literary form such exegesis often took served to impress literati supporters, the sociopolitical elites of [[Song dynasty|Song China]], who were its intended audience. In this way, ''gong'an'' exegesis aligned with the cultural predilections and aesthetic sensibilities of the establishment.<ref name="Mario Poceski page 124"/> Alan Cole also suggests that koan writing may be seen as a response to patterns of patronage.<ref>Alan Cole, Patriarchs on Paper: A Critical History of Medieval Chan Literature, page 264, University of California Press, 2016</ref> What's more, Cole states that, in China, koan writing "appears to have been a thoroughly literary affair, with little or nothing to do with meditation."<ref>Alan Cole, Patriarchs on Paper: A Critical History of Medieval Chan Literature, page 271, University of California Press, 2016</ref>

According to Foulk, commenting on a ''gong'an'' doesn't merely serve to elucidate the wisdom of the patriarchs for a student's sake, but rather functions as a device for demonstrating a master's authority,<ref>T. Griffith Foulk, The Form and Function of Koan Literature: A Historical Overview, in ''The Koan: Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism,'' edited by Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright, page 17, Oxford University Press, 2000</ref> not only in relation to a living disciple, but also in relation to the patriarchs themselves.<ref name="T. Griffith Foulk page 34">T. Griffith Foulk, The Form and Function of Koan Literature: A Historical Overview, in ''The Koan: Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism,'' edited by Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright, page 34, Oxford University Press, 2000</ref> That is, in commenting on a ''gong'an'', a master's authority is demonstrated to be both derivative and absolute: derivative in that it draws on the prestige of the earlier patriarchs, absolute in the sense that it gives the living master the last word and ultimate judgment.<ref name="T. Griffith Foulk page 34"/> Similarly, Cole points out that koan exegesis is a kind of performance which positions the commentator as an absolute master of tradition, "one who has even mastered the Chan masters of the Tang" (who appear as the main characters in koan stories).<ref>Alan Cole, Patriarchs on Paper: A Critical History of Medieval Chan Literature, page 258, University of California Press, 2016</ref>

Foulk explains that koans presuppose an inherent hierarchy in which the commentator's voice is privileged above the root case itself, maintaining a clear juxtaposition between "judge" and "judged." Foulk writes, "In a social context, this means that whoever can work himself (by whatever means) into the position of speaking as a judge of old cases will thereafter be deemed a worthy spokesman of the awakened point of view, regardless of what he says."<ref>T. Griffith Foulk, The Form and Function of Koan Literature: A Historical Overview, in ''The Koan: Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism'', edited by Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright, page 35, Oxford University Press, 2000</ref> Similarly, Stuart Lachs understands koans to be largely literary fictions which serve to reinforce hierarchical structures within Zen institutions.<ref>Stuart Lachs, Means of Authorization: Establishing Hierarchy in Ch'an/Zen Buddhism in America, page 20, Revised paper from presentation at the 1999 Meeting of the American Academy of Religion</ref> Lachs observes that the ritual koan interview between a student and master is so presented as to give a sense of timelessness in which the student is made to feel that the procedure is an inherent part of Zen that has existed since the beginning, despite its being an institutional construction.<ref name="Stuart Lachs page 24">Stuart Lachs, Means of Authorization: Establishing Hierarchy in Ch'an/Zen Buddhism in America, page 24, Revised paper from presentation at the 1999 Meeting of the American Academy of Religion</ref> Lachs quotes from Peter Berger's analysis of religious legitimation, stating that the point of the ritual is to "let people forget that this order was established by men and continues to be dependent on the consent of men."<ref name="Stuart Lachs page 24"/><ref>Peter Berger, The Sacred Canopy, Elements of a Sociological Theory of Religion, page 44, Open Road Integrated Media, 2011</ref>

Poceski points out how ''gong'an'' exegesis deploys certain strategies to deflect criticism or challenges to authority which continue all the way to the present. These often involve the charge that critics lack genuine Chan experience and understanding. As this can be true even of [[bodhisattva]]s of the tenth level, this also reflects a sectarian notion that Chan is superior to canonical Buddhism.<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, pages 131-132, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref> Poceski says:

<blockquote>A person daring to articulate any sort of meaningful criticism can simply be dismissed as being an unenlightened ignoramus whose mind is filled with shallow views and one-sided attachments. So much for intellectual freedom and the need to question established authority.<ref name="Mario Poceski page 131">Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, page 131, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref></blockquote>

According to Poceski, modern publications and popular Zen books tend to be confined to the same strictures and ideological suppositions as the classical sources. This includes the notion that ''gong'an'' represent timeless truths that must be "unlocked via dedicated Zen practice, undertaken under proper spiritual guidance," with modern interpretations of ''gong'an'' material tending to stick uncritically to conventional lines of exegesis that fail to question normative traditions and the untenable assumptions which buttress them.<ref name="Mario Poceski page 134">Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, pages 133-134, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref> The emphasis on training under a qualified guide also reinforces the modern Zen master as gatekeeper of truth and "prime arbiter of value and meaning," reflecting a concern for orthodoxy and authority. In this way, ideological suppositions about ''gong'an'' are entwined with social relationships and power structures, as they aim to perpetuate a religious institution whose members derive tangible benefits by virtue of their status in it as maintainers of tradition.<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, page 137, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref> As Lachs points out, advancement within Zen institutions requires a sufficient degree of socialization, and this entails not questioning official positions and authority.<ref>Stuart Lachs, Means of Authorization, Establishing Hierarchy in Ch'an/Zen Buddhism in America, page 27, Revised paper from presentation at the 1999 Meeting of the American Academy of Religion</ref> In regard to this state of affairs, Poceski asks:<blockquote>However, was it not the case that Chan/Zen was supposed to take us in an entirely different direction, away from the familiar intersections of knowledge and power? Wasn't it supposed to blow away archaic ideological smokescreens and obliterate all forms of conceptual posturing, rather than conjure or shore them up? Perhaps not, or so it seems.<ref>Mario Poceski, Killing Cats and Other Imaginary Happenings: Milieus and Features of Chan Exegesis, in ''Communities of Memory and Interpretation: Reimagining and Reinventing the Past in East Asian Buddhism, Hamburg Buddhist Studies 10,'' edited by Mario Poceski, pages 137-138, Numata Center for Buddhist Studies, Projekt Verlag, 2017</ref></blockquote>

===Criticism from within the Zen tradition===
Koans have also been criticized from within the Zen tradition at various points throughout history. According to Schlütter, "the practice was common enough to attract criticism" which can be found in Song sources like the ''Sengbao zhengxu zhuan'' (True continuation of the chronicles of the saṃgha treasure), where one master called Chanti Weizhao "rails against deluded masters who teach people to contemplate (''can'') gongan stories."{{sfn|Schlütter|2008|p=111}} The Song era master [[Foyan Qingyuan]] (1067–1120) was critical of the use of koans (public cases) and similar stories, arguing that they did not exist during the time of [[Bodhidharma]].<ref>Cleary, Thomas. ''Instant Zen: Waking Up in the Present,'' pp. 13, 39. North Atlantic Books, 1994.</ref> He said, "In other places they like to have people look at model case stories, but here we have the model case story of what is presently coming into being; you should look at it, but no one can make you see all the way through such an immense affair."<ref>Cleary, Thomas. Instant Zen: Waking Up in the Present, pp. 6–7. North Atlantic Books, 1994.</ref>

According to Arthur Braverman, [[Bassui Tokushō]] (1327–1387) "was very critical of the [[Rinzai school|Rinzai]] practice of studying kōans, perhaps because they were becoming more and more formalized, hence losing their original spirit."<ref>Mud and Water: The Collected Teachings of Zen Master Bassui, translated by Arthur Braverman, page 9, Wisdom Publications, 2002</ref> [[Ikkyū|Ikkyū Sōjun]] (1394–1481) also criticized the mechanical nature of koan practice during his time, in which formulaic answers to koans were preserved and sold.<ref>Letting Go: The Story of Zen Master Tōsui, Translated and with an Introduction by Peter Haskel, page 9, University of Hawai'i Press, 2001</ref>

The unconventional Rinzai master [[Bankei Yōtaku]] (1622–1693) famously criticized the kōan method, seeing it as a hopelessly contrived and artificial technique.<ref>Haskel, Peter (1984), ''Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei'', p. xxxv, New York: Grove Weidenfeld.</ref> Bankei referred to kōans disparagingly as "old wastepaper"<ref>Haskel, Peter (1984), ''Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei'', p. 23, New York: Grove Weidenfeld.</ref> and referred to Zen masters who required devices in order to guide people as engaging in "devices Zen."<ref>Haskel, Peter (1984). Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei, p. 59. New York: Grove Weidenfeld.</ref> Bankei also criticized the practice of rousing a "great ball of doubt" employed in koan Zen. He said:

<blockquote>Others tell students pursuing this teaching that it's no good unless they rouse a great ball of doubt and succeed in breaking through it. 'No matter what,' they tell them, 'you've got to rouse a ball of doubt!' They don't teach, 'Abide in the Unborn Buddha Mind!' [but instead] cause people ''without'' any ball of doubt to saddle themselves ''with'' one, making them exchange the Buddha Mind for a ball of doubt. A mistaken business, isn't it!<ref>Haskel, Peter (1984), ''Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei'', pages 59-60. New York: Grove Weidenfeld.</ref></blockquote>

When asked why he did not make use of koans, Bankei pointed out that Chan masters before [[Yuanwu Keqin|Yuanwu]] and [[Dahui Zonggao|Dahui]] did not make use of koans either.<ref>Haskel, Peter (1984), ''Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei'', p. 107. New York: Grove Weidenfeld.</ref> Bankei observed accurately that koan study represents a later development of Chinese Chan.<ref>Haskel, Peter (1984), ''Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei'', p. 178, note 22. New York: Grove Weidenfeld.</ref> "In this sense," Peter Haskel writes, "Bankei was a traditionalist. He harked back to the Zen masters of the 'golden age' before the triumph of the koan, masters like [[Linji Yixuan|Lin-chi I-hsüan]] (J: Rinzai Gigen, d. 860), founder of the Rinzai school."<ref>Haskel, Peter (1984), ''Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei'', p. xxxv. New York: Grove Weidenfeld.</ref> Similarly, [[D. T. Suzuki|D.T. Suzuki]] writes, "Bankei can be said to have attempted a return to the Zen of the early T'ang dynasty."<ref>D.T. Suzuki, ''Dogen, Hakuin, Bankei: Three Types of Thought in Japanese Zen,'' Part 2, page 20, in The Eastern Buddhist, New Series, Vol. 9, No. 2, October, 1976</ref> Bankei said:
<blockquote>Unlike the other masters everywhere, in my teaching I don't set up any particular object, such as realizing enlightenment or studying koans. Nor do I rely on the words of the buddhas and patriarchs. I just point things out directly, so there's nothing to hold onto, and that's why no one will readily accept [what I teach].<ref>Haskel, Peter (1984), ''Bankei Zen. Translations from The Record of Bankei'', p. 104. New York: Grove Weidenfeld.</ref></blockquote>

The [[Sōtō]] school emphasizes [[shikantaza]] as its main practice, though it does not completely reject the study and use of koans. That being said, some Sōtō figures have criticized the Rinzai style koan method. [[Gentō Sokuchū]] (1729–1807), nominated abbot of [[Eihei-ji|Eiheiji]] in 1795, sought to purify the Sōtō school of koans, which he regarded as a foreign influence.<ref>Michel Mohr, Emerging from Nonduality, Koan Practice in the Rinzai Tradition since Hakuin, in ''The Koan: Texts and Contexts in Zen Buddhism,'' edited by Steven Heine and Dale S. Wright, page 245, Oxford University Press, 2000</ref> According to Buswell and Lopez, the Sōtō school regards the Rinzai koan method as "an inferior, expedient attempt at concentration" in comparison to shikantaza, which is thus deployed in Sōtō polemics against the rival Rinzai school.<ref>Robert Buswell Jr. and Donald Lopez Jr., The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, page 805, Princeton University Press, 2014</ref> The famous Sōtō master [[Kōdō Sawaki|Kodo Sawaki]] also criticized Rinzai koan practice as "stepladder Zen"<ref>Braverman, Arthur. ''Discovering the True Self: Kodo Sawaki's Art of Zen Meditation,'' p. 217. Catapult, Oct 20, 2020</ref> and said:<blockquote>From the end of the Song Dynasty to the Yuan [and] Ming dynasties techniques developed, and solving koans was the way monks became respected for having had [[satori]]s. Well, today [monks] have satoris, which in certain religious sects allows the monks to be candidates to be head priests of temples. That's the way they think. But they're wrong. Believe in [[zazen]] itself, and if you put your whole body into it, that is [true] zazen.<ref>Braverman, Arthur. ''Discovering the True Self: Kodo Sawaki's Art of Zen Meditation,'' p. 187. Catapult, Oct 20, 2020</ref></blockquote>

[[Shin'ichi Hisamatsu]] (1889–1980) criticized contemporary koan practice, which moves from one koan to another, as gradualistic and likened it to trying to approximate a circle by forever increasing the number of sides of a polygon.<ref>Jeff Shore, Koan Zen from the Inside, pages 42-43. https://terebess.hu/zen/mesterek/koan-zen.pdf</ref> He instead emphasized what he called his "fundamental koan" which he said included all koans.<ref name="Shin'ichi Hisamatsu 1975 page 61">Shin'ichi Hisamatsu, Ultimate Crisis and Resurrection Part II: Redemption, in The Eastern Buddhist, New Series, Volume 8, No. 2 (October 1975), page 61</ref>{{refn|group=note|One version of Hisamatsu's fundamental koan is:<br /><br />Standing will not do nor will sitting,<br />Feeling will not do nor will thinking,<br />Dying will not do nor will living,<br />Then, what do I do?<ref name="Shin'ichi Hisamatsu 1975 page 61">Shin'ichi Hisamatsu, Ultimate Crisis and Resurrection Part II: Redemption, in The Eastern Buddhist, New Series, Volume 8, No. 2 (October 1975), page 61</ref>}} Hisamatsu also said of his fundamental koan that it could be practiced on one's own, [[Wisdom without a teacher|without the guidance of a teacher]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=App |first=Urs |date=May 20, 1996 |title=Meeting Dr. Hisamatsu |url=http://www.fas.x0.com/writings/fasj/fj96appee.html |journal=The FAS Society Journal |pages=57–60 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20250528172953/http://fas.x0.com/writings/fasj/fj96appee.html |archive-date=May 28, 2025}}</ref>

The modern Korean [[Korean Seon|Sŏn]] master [[Daehaeng]] taught that it was not necessary to receive a [[Hua Tou|''hwadu'']] (the "critical phrase" of a koan) from others since everyone already has their own "original hwadus." She said:<blockquote>Daily life is itself a hwadu, so there is no need to receive a hwadu from others or to give a hwadu to others. Your very existence is a hwadu. Thus, if you are continuously holding on to a hwadu someone else gave you, when will you be able to solve your original hwadu? Trying to solve another person's hwadu is like turning empty millstones or spinning a car's wheels without moving forward. Your body itself is a hwadu. Birth itself is a hwadu. Work itself is a hwadu. The vast universe is a hwadu. If you want to add more hwadus to these, when will you be able to taste this infinitely deep world we live in?<ref>Daehaeng. ''No River to Cross: Trusting the Enlightenment That's Always Right Here'', p. 55. Simon and Schuster, Sep 28, 2007.</ref></blockquote>

===Other criticism===
[[D. T. Suzuki|D.T. Suzuki]] observes that although the koan method represents a convenience for the Zen practitioner, a form of "grandmotherly kindness," it is also liable to tend towards formalization and counterfeit. He writes:

<blockquote>The danger lies in the tendency to formalization. It may happen that a petty thief crowing like a cock at dawn will get past the barrier by deceiving the gatekeeper into opening the gates. As a matter of fact, in the koan system such fellows do get past, or we should say rather that they are passed through. The danger that the goods will be sold cheap is something intrinsic to the system. In any construct devised by man a pattern always evolves. When the pattern becomes fixed, the quick of life cannot move within it. When the realm of true reality which is freed of samsaric suffering is treated in such a way that it comes to resemble the fixed gestures and patterned moves learned in a fencing class, Zen ceases to be Zen. At times patterns work well and are useful. And they do have the virtue of universal currency. But by that alone no living thing is produced. I suppose, though, there are some who even find enjoyment in such a counterfeit, lifeless thing, much as they would divert themselves with games of chess or mahjong.<ref>D.T. Suzuki, ''Dogen, Hakuin, Bankei: Three Types of Thought in Japanese Zen,'' Part 2, pages 16-17, in The Eastern Buddhist, New Series, Vol. 9, No. 2, October, 1976</ref></blockquote>

According to [[Alan Watts]], the koan method suffered from two drawbacks. The first is that it can potentially lead to a kind of romanticism for exotic cultural forms.<ref>Alan Watts, The Way of Zen, page 169, Pantheon Books 1957, Vintage Books 1989</ref> The second was that its method of deliberately rousing great doubt and then breaking through it after an intense period of striving amounted to a kind of psychological trick. Regarding this, Watts says:
<blockquote>The second, and more serious, drawback can arise from the opposition of satori to the intense “feeling of doubt” which some koan exponents so deliberately encourage. For this is to foster a dualistic satori. To say that the depth of the satori is proportional to the intensity of seeking and striving which precede it is to confuse satori with its purely emotional adjuncts. In other words, if one wants to feel exhilaratingly light-footed, it is always possible to go around for some time with lead in one’s shoes–and then take them off. The sense of relief will certainly be proportional to the length of time such shoes have been worn, and to the weight of the lead. This is equivalent to the old trick of religious revivalists who give their followers a tremendous emotional uplift by first implanting an acute sense of sin, and then relieving it through faith in Jesus.<ref>Alan Watts, The Way of Zen, page 170, Pantheon Books 1957, Vintage Books 1989</ref></blockquote>

==See also==
'''Buddhism'''
*[[Kirigami (Soto Zen)|Kirigami]]
*Koans mentioning [[Subhuti]], [[Tanzan]],  and [[Tetsugen]]
*[[List of koans by Yunmen Wenyan]]
*[[Original face]]
*[[Wild fox koan]]
'''Other'''
*[[Hacker koan]]s, humorous expressions of [[hacker culture]]
*[[Chinese riddles]]
*[[Yogiism]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist|20em}}

==Sources==
;Printed sources
{{Refbegin|35em}}
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*{{cite book|contributor-last=Sasaki|contributor-first=Ruth Fuller|contribution=Introduction |author1=Isshu Miura|author2=Ruth Fuller Sasaki |year=1965|title=The Zen Kōan |publisher=Harvest/HBJ}}
*{{cite book|last=Schlütter|first=Morten |year=2000|chapter="Before the Empty Eon" versus "A Dog Has No Buddha-Nature". Kung-an Use in the Ts'ao-tung Tradition and Ta-hui's Kung-an Introspection Ch'an |title=The Kōan: Texts and contexts in Zen Buddhism |editor1=Steven Heine |editor2=Dale S. Wright |place=Oxford |publisher=Oxford University Press}}
*{{cite book|last=Schlütter|first=Morten |year=2008|title=How Zen became Zen. The Dispute over Enlightenment and the Formation of Chan Buddhism in Song-Dynasty China|place=Honolulu |publisher=University of Hawai'i Press |isbn=978-0-8248-3508-8}}
*{{cite book|last=Sekida|first=Katsuki|year=1985 |title=Zen Training. Methods and Philosophy |place=New York / Tokyo|publisher=Weatherhill}}
*{{cite book|translator-last=Sekida|translator-first=Katsuki|year=1996|title=Two Zen Classics. Mumonkan, The Gateless Gate. Hekiganroku, The Blue Cliff Records. Translated with commentaries by Katsuki Sekida |place=New York / Tokyo |publisher=Weatherhill|ref={{harvid|Sekida|1996}}}}
*{{cite journal|last=Sharf|first=Robert H.|year=1995c|title=Sanbokyodan. Zen and the Way of the New Religions |journal=Japanese Journal of Religious Studies|volume=22 |issue=3–4 |doi=10.18874/jjrs.22.3-4.1995.417-458 |url=http://www.thezensite.com/ZenEssays/CriticalZen/sanbokyodan%20zen.pdf |doi-access=free}}
*{{cite book|last=Shibayama|year=1974|title=The Gateless Barrier. Zen comments on the Mumonkan. Translated from Chinese and Japanese into English by Sumiko Kudo.|publisher=Shambhala Publications}}
*{{cite journal |last=Stephenson |first=Barry |title=The Koan as Ritual Performance |journal=Journal of the American Academy of Religion |date=June 2005 |volume=73 |issue=2 |pages=475–496 |doi=10.1093/jaarel/lfi044 |url=http://www.thezensite.com/ZenTeachings/KoanStudies/Koan_as_Ritual_Performance.htm |access-date=2013-10-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161103130835/http://www.thezensite.com/ZenTeachings/KoanStudies/Koan_as_Ritual_Performance.htm |archive-date=2016-11-03 |url-status=dead|url-access=subscription }}
*{{cite book|last=Swanson|first=Paul L.|year=1997 |chapter=Why They Say Zen Is Not Buddhism. Recent Japanese Critiques of Buddha-Nature |title=Pruning the Bodhi Tree. The Storm over Critical Buddhism |editor1=Jamie Hubbard |editor2=Paul L. Swanson |publisher=University of Hawaii Press}}
*{{cite book |last=Ueda |first=Shizuteru |year=2013 |chapter=Foreword |title=Entangling Vines |location=Somerville, Massachusetts |publisher=[[Wisdom Publications]]}}
*{{cite LPD|3}} <!-- Wells 2008 -->
*{{cite book|last=Wright|first=Dale S. |year=2000|chapter=Koan History. Transformative Language in Chinese Buddhist Thought |title=The Kōan: Texts and contexts in Zen Buddhism |editor1=Steven Heine |editor2=Dale S. Wright |place=Oxford|publisher=Oxford University Press}}
*{{cite book|last=Yampolski|first=Philip |year=2003|chapter=Chan. A Historical Sketch |title=Buddhist Spirituality. Later China, Korea, Japan and the Modern World |editor=Takeuchi Yoshinori|place=Delhi |publisher=Motilal Banarsidass}}
*{{cite book|last=Yampolski|first=Philip |year=2005|chapter=Hakuin Ekaku and the Modern Koan System |editor1=John Daido Loori |editor2=Thomas Yuho Kirchner |title=Sitting With Koans: Essential Writings on Zen Koan Introspection |publisher=Wisdom Publications}}
*{{Cite book |last=Yuanwu |title=The garden of flowers and weeds: a new translation and commentary on the Blue Cliff record |date=2021 |translator=Matthew Juksan Sullivan |isbn=978-1-948626-50-7 |location=Rhinebeck, New York |publisher=Monkfish Book Publishing Company |oclc=1246676424}}
{{Refend}}

;Web-sources
{{reflist|group=web|refs=
<!-- Lachs -->
<ref group=web name="Lachs">{{cite interview |subject=Stuart Lachs |date=August 26, 2010 |title=Interview with non duality magazine |work=non-duality magazine |url=http://www.nondualitymagazine.org/nonduality_magazine.2.stuartlachs.interview.htm |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150515074048/http://www.nondualitymagazine.org/nonduality_magazine.2.stuartlachs.interview.htm |archive-date=2015-05-15 |url-status=usurped}}</ref>
<!-- Lachs 2012 -->
<ref group=web name="Lachs 2012">{{cite web |last=Lachs|first=Stuart|date=2012-02-26 |title=Hua-t'ou: A Method of Zen Meditation |url=http://zennist.typepad.com/files/lachszen_2012_02_11.docx.pdf}}</ref>
<!-- McMahon -->
<ref group=web name=McMahon>{{cite web |url=https://whiteplum.org/user_uploads/Evolution%20of%20the%20White%20Plum.pdf |access-date=2023-09-23 |author=Barry Kaigen McMahon |title=The Evolution of the White Plum. A short and incomplete history of its founders and their practice}}</ref>
}}

==Further reading==
*[[John Daido Loori|Loori, John Daido]]. ''Sitting with Koans: Essential Writings on the Zen Practice of Koan Study''. Wisdom Publications, 2005. {{ISBN|978-0-86171-369-1}}
*{{cite book|last=Loori|first=John Daido |year=2006|title=Sitting with koans. Essential writings on the practice of Zen koan introspection |place=Boston|publisher=Wisdom Publications}}
*[[Yoel Hoffmann|Hoffmann, Yoel]], tr. ''The Sound of the One Hand.'' Basic Books, 1975. {{ISBN|978-0-465-08079-3}} This book contains examples of how some Zen practitioners '''answer''' the koans "correctly". Originally published in Japan almost a century ago as a critique of fossilization of Zen, that is formalization of koan practice.

==External links==
{{Wiktionary|koan}}
{{Wikiquote|Zen proverbs|Koans}}
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20041009183526/http://www.ciolek.com/WWWVLPages/ZenPages/KoanStudy.html Zen Buddhism Koan Study Pages]
*[http://www.thezensite.com/MainPages/koan_studies.html Koan Collections and Studies]

{{Zen}}
{{Buddhism topics}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Kōan| ]]
[[Category:Metaphors]]
[[Category:Riddles]]
[[Category:Zen texts]]
[[Category:Spiritual practice]]