Koan for your day.

[Callypigia]

The Gateless Gate

The great path has no gates,
Thousands of roads enter it,
When one passes through this gateless gate,
He walks freely between heaven and earth.

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What does this mean to you?

 

[Konohamaru of Akatsuki]

it makes me bored

 

[Lord Naruto San]

Makes me wanna go sell this brick for the low everything must go

 

[Aoihime]

It makes me think of a person traveling on the path of life

 

[Titania Erza]

It kinda feels like the ending of Bioshock infinite, with the lighthouses resembling the gates

 

[Callypigia]

It makes me think of a person traveling on the path of life

Yes. It is about the path to enlightenment. Have you thought about what you want out of life?

 

[Goetia]

After reading and a bit of thought, I can say this koan refers to the path ones takes during life.

The great path has no gates,

This part of the riddle, to me, means that everyone has a chance at walking the path.

Thousands of roads enter it,

This part means that the lives of many have the potential to cross and diverge at any time.

When one passes through this gateless gate,
He walks freely between heaven and earth.

This part to me, refers to the void that awaits us after death. Going to neither one place or the other, but being inbetween both planes of existence.

I am sure that there are other answers that people will get when they read that koan, but that is simply what it meant to me.

 

[Callypigia]

After reading and a bit of thought, I can say this koan refers to the path ones takes during life.



This part of the riddle, to me, means that everyone has a chance at walking the path.



This part means that the lives of many have the potential to cross and diverge at any time.



This part to me, refers to the void that awaits us after death. Going to neither one place or the other, but being inbetween both planes of existence.

I am sure that there are other answers that people will get when they read that koan, but that is simply what it meant to me.

Your analysis is good. Koan's come from the heart, not logic; meditation and stillness of the mind. It is about life, or more specifically the path to enlightenment. The gate is the self, and each person follows a different path. Freedom between heaven and hell is parinirvana. I appreciate you taking the time to think about it.

 

[Goetia]

Your analysis is good. Koan's come from the heart, not logic; meditation and stillness of the mind. It is about life, or more specifically the path to enlightenment. The gate is the self, and each person follows a different path. Freedom between heaven and hell is parinirvana. I appreciate you taking the time to think about it.

I must have forgotten the most basic rules of koan, to forget that koan ignore logic. I used to read through many koan, though I stopped for some time. It isn't a problem, riddles such as these are entertaining and are very good at stimulating the mind.