In this radical new translation of a classic Ch’an (Zen) koan collection, David Hinton illuminates the Taoist dimensions of “carefree-ease,” the effortless joy of the enlightened mind in harmony with earth and cosmos.

First collected by the Ch’an master Wisdom-Expanse (Hung-Chih) in the twelfth century, this collection of one hundred kung-ans, or koans, is an essential text for students of Ch’an and Zen. These miniature masterpieces of Chinese philosophy and literature offer a unique way of penetrating directly into the essence of Ch’an teaching, and in this new translation, Hinton affords readers an opportunity to experience these koans in English like never before. 

Paring away the later commentaries that are usually presented with these koans, Hinton lets the original stories stand on their own, revealing themselves as nothing less than poetic expressions of the awakened mind. A far cry from the transcendence of life-and-death that typifies the traditional Buddhist goal of nirvana, this awakening is distinctly earthy and grounded in the rhythms of nature, shaped by the centuries of Taoist tradition that preceded Ch’an. “Carefree ease,” writes Hinton, “is to move through life with the profound tranquility of the Cosmos itself as it unfurls through its perennial transformations.”

Following his translation of No-Gate Gateway (2018) and Blue-Cliff Record (2024), this volume marks the completion of Hinton’s project to translate all three of the classic koan collections.