Quotes from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings

216 pages

Rating: (6K votes)


“14. Muddy Road

Tanzan and Ekido were once traveling together down a muddy road. A heavy rain was still falling.

Coming around a bend, they met a lovely girl in a silk kimono and sash, unble to cross the intersection.

"Come on, girl," said Tanzan at once. Lifting her in his arms, he carriedher over the mud.

Ekido did not speak again until that night when they reached a lodging temple. Then he could no longer restrain himself. "We monks don't go near females," he told Tanzan, "especially not young and lovely ones. It is dangerous. Why did you do that?"

"I left the girl there," said Tanzan. "Are you still carrying her?”
― quote from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings


“If the feet of enlightenment moved, the great ocean would overflow; If that head bowed, it would look down upon the heavens.
Such a body has no place to rest. . . .
Let another continue this poem.”
― quote from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings


“It is too clear and so it is hard to see. A dunce once searched for a fire with a lighted lantern. Had he known what fire was, He could have cooked his rice much sooner.”
― quote from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings


“When the mouth opens All are wrong.”
― quote from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings


“Meeting a Zen master on the road, Face him neither with words nor silence. Give him an uppercut And you will be called one who understands Zen.”
― quote from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings



“Mamiya concentrated upon what the sound of one hand might be. “You are not working hard enough,” his teacher told him. “You are too attached to food, wealth, things, and that sound. It would be better if you died. That would solve the problem.” The next time Mamiya appeared before his teacher he was again asked what he had to show regarding the sound of one hand. Mamiya at once fell over as if he were dead. “You are dead all right,” observed the teacher. “But how about that sound?” “I haven’t solved that yet,” replied Mamiya, looking up. “Dead men do not speak,” said the teacher. “Get out!” 43.”
― quote from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings


“Gutei raised his finger whenever he was asked a question about Zen. A boy attendant began to imitate him in this way. When anyone asked the boy what his master had preached about, the boy would raise his finger. Gutei heard about the boy’s mischief. He seized him and cut off his finger. The boy cried and ran away. Gutei called and stopped him. When the boy turned his head to Gutei, Gutei raised up his own finger. In that instant the boy was enlightened.”
― quote from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings


“When there is no place for Zen in the head of our generation, it is in grievous trouble.”
― quote from Zen Flesh, Zen Bones: A Collection of Zen and Pre-Zen Writings


Popular quotes

“Lo que he aprendido es la importancia de desvincularse de las locuras de los demás porque uno ya tiene bastante de qué preocuparse intentando mantenerse centrado...”
― Helen Fielding, quote from Bridget Jones: The Edge of Reason


“If I didn't try to assume responsibility for my own existence, it would seem utterly absurd to go on existing.”
― Jean-Paul Sartre, quote from The Age of Reason


“And if you jump for joy, you have a very good chance of experiencing a painful bump on the head, unless you make sure you are standing someplace with very high ceilings, which joyous people rarely do.”
― Lemony Snicket, quote from The Vile Village


“The view changes from where you are standing.
Words can wound, and wounds can heal.
All of these things are true.”
― Neil Gaiman, quote from Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders


“I'd rather give her new ones, for I think she is a little bit proud and might not like old things. If she was my sister it would do, because sisters don't mind, but she isn't, and that makes it bad, you see. I know how I can manage beautifully; I'll adopt her!" and Rose looked quite radiant with”
― Louisa May Alcott, quote from Eight Cousins


Interesting books

Amy Snow
(7.1K)
Amy Snow
by Tracy Rees
Partners in Crime
(10.5K)
Partners in Crime
by Agatha Christie
The Little Lady Agency
(24.9K)
The Little Lady Agen...
by Hester Browne
A Conspiracy of Paper
(9.4K)
A Conspiracy of Pape...
by David Liss
Clockers
(7.7K)
Clockers
by Richard Price
Reading Like a Writer: A Guide for People Who Love Books and for Those Who Want to Write Them
(8.2K)
Reading Like a Write...
by Francine Prose

About BookQuoters

BookQuoters is a community of passionate readers who enjoy sharing the most meaningful, memorable and interesting quotes from great books. As the world communicates more and more via texts, memes and sound bytes, short but profound quotes from books have become more relevant and important. For some of us a quote becomes a mantra, a goal or a philosophy by which we live. For all of us, quotes are a great way to remember a book and to carry with us the author’s best ideas.

We thoughtfully gather quotes from our favorite books, both classic and current, and choose the ones that are most thought-provoking. Each quote represents a book that is interesting, well written and has potential to enhance the reader’s life. We also accept submissions from our visitors and will select the quotes we feel are most appealing to the BookQuoters community.

Founded in 2023, BookQuoters has quickly become a large and vibrant community of people who share an affinity for books. Books are seen by some as a throwback to a previous world; conversely, gleaning the main ideas of a book via a quote or a quick summary is typical of the Information Age but is a habit disdained by some diehard readers. We feel that we have the best of both worlds at BookQuoters; we read books cover-to-cover but offer you some of the highlights. We hope you’ll join us.