Wumen Huikai was a Chinese Chán master during China‘s Song period. He is most famous for having compiled and commentated the 48-koan collection The Gateless Barrier.

Wumen Huikai Quotes

1. “The Great Way has no gate; / there are a thousand paths to it. / If you pass through the barrier, / you walk the universe alone.”
— Wumen Huikai

2. “If your mind isn’t clouded by unnecessary things, This is the best season of your life.”
— Wumen Huikai

3. “One instant is eternity; / eternity is the now. / When you see through this one instant, / you see through the one who sees.”
— Wumen Huikai

4. “There are a thousand flowers blossoming in spring, The magical light of the full moon in autumn; There is a breeze in summer, And snow in winter; And if vanities don’t hang in my mind, I shall rejoice at any time and place.”
— Wumen Huikai

5. “Spring comes with flowers, autumn with the moon, summer with the breeze, winter with snow. When idle concerns don’t fill your thoughts, that’s your best season.”
— Wumen Huikai

6. “If you seek, how is that different from pursuing sound and form? If you don’t seek, how are you different from earth, wood or stone? You must seek without seeking.”
— Wumen Huikai

7. “The enlightened man is one with the law of causation.”
— Wumen Huikai

8. “You cannot describe it or draw it. You cannot praise it enough or perceive it. No place can be found in which to put the Original Face; it will not disappear even when the universe is destroyed.”
— Wumen Huikai

9. “Search back into your own vision- think back to the mind that thinks. Who is it?”
— Wumen Huikai

10. “One instant is eternity; eternity is the now.”
— Wumen Huikai