Topic: Japanese life

"mu koan"

Chinese master called Joshu in Japanese (Chao-chou (778-897) was asked whether a dog had a Buddha Nature. He answered "Wu!" in Chinese. Since the Japanese pronunciation of wu is mu, I know Joshu was simply making a noise like a cow --"MOO!-- and not answering the question at all. In the "Gateless Gate," the Chinese master called Ekai in Japanese states the unanswerability of the question:

Has a dog a Buddha-nature?
This is the most serious question of all.
If you say yes or no,
You lose your own Buddha-nature.

--Ekai (1183-1260) via 'Zen Flesh, Zen Bones' p.165