Sep 22 2017

Wu Men Hui-k’ai – Ten thousand flowers in spring, the moon in autumn

Published by at 9:00 am under Poetry

Ten thousand flowers in spring, the moon in autumn
by Wu Men Hui-k’ai

English version by Stephen Mitchell

Ten thousand flowers in spring, the moon in autumn,
a cool breeze in summer, snow in winter.
If your mind isn’t clouded by unnecessary things,
this is the best season of your life.

— from The Enlightened Heart: An Anthology of Sacred Poetry, by Stephen Mitchell


/ Image by Alice Popkorn /

The flowers say it, the moon, the breeze, the snow. Each time we pause to notice the living world around us it blesses us and says, May your mind be unclouded, and may every season be the best season of your life!

A good meditation for us as we rest upon the cusp of autumn.

Wishing you all a blessed time of transitions– autumn equinox, Rosh Hashanah, and Navaratri.


Recommended Books: Wu Men Hui-k’ai

The Enlightened Heart: An Anthology of Sacred Poetry The Gateless Gate: The Wu-men Kuan The Gateless Barrier: Zen Comments on the Mumonkan The World: A Gateway: Commentaries on the Mumonkan


Wu Men Hui-k’ai

China (1183 – 1260) Timeline
Buddhist : Zen / Chan

There are two primary collections of koans in Zen/Chan Buddhism: The Blue Cliff Records and The Gateless Gate (Wu Men Kuan or the Mumonkan). The Gateless Gate was first published in 1228 and consists of 48 koans compiled by Wu Men Hui-k’ai with his commentary and poetic verse.

Wu Men (also called Mumon) was head monk of the Lung-hsiang monastery in China.

More poetry by Wu Men Hui-k’ai

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9 responses so far

9 Responses to “Wu Men Hui-k’ai – Ten thousand flowers in spring, the moon in autumn”

  1. # Carolon 22 Sep 2017 at 10:21 am

    Thank you, Ivan. Lovely poem and the thought for the day is beautiful – if we could
    just remember. . .Carol

  2. # marrobon 22 Sep 2017 at 10:25 am

    Thank you Ivan for this simple and elegant poem.
    Specially appreciated in the North country where
    the seasons are marked and encourage reflection
    on the cycles of life.

    May our minds be unclouded by unnecessary things!
    Happy fall solstice and weekend.

  3. # Amardeep Singhon 22 Sep 2017 at 2:36 pm

    Cool poem, Ivan.

    Thank you for mentioning Navaratri. It is one of my favorite festivals.

    Warm regards,
    Amardeep

  4. # Annaon 22 Sep 2017 at 4:30 pm

    the flowers, the moon,

    the breeze, the snow –

    the colourful Beauty of

    Life

    recognise itself

    As it is

  5. # leslieon 03 Oct 2017 at 8:03 pm

    Hello Ivan-find it so curious and delicious and wonderful how the bread crumbs of a search starts out as one thing and leads to a site like this! I was in Bhutan a year ago and climbed to the iconic Tiger’s Nest Monastery-is that a picture of the Tiger’s Nest?

  6. # Ivan M. Grangeron 04 Oct 2017 at 6:59 am

    Hi Leslie- Yes, that’s the place in the photograph. I imagine visiting in person would have been an amazing experience! ~Ivan

  7. # Leslieon 07 Oct 2017 at 7:11 am

    Ivan-you are right, it was an amazing experience to be there-the country and people are pretty amazing as well. Thank you so much for this site-i visited your youtube channel yesterday and just listened to the lovely poetry. John O’Donohue and David Whyte’s poetry got me through a period of enormous loss and grief. My hope is that others will be brought to sites like yours for their healing-namaste dear one.

  8. # digitaltissueon 27 May 2019 at 2:56 pm

    This poem is beautiful, because the “unnecessary thing” is the order one’s life flows. That is why the seasons are out of order in the poem.

  9. # Norison 26 Feb 2020 at 12:09 pm

    I hear this poem and it touched me so deeply that I have to write down. So simple and so true that it is with me for ever.
    Thank you

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