Case 32: An Audience with Linji

Case 32: An Audience with Linji

"Linji descended from the meditation seat, grabbed Elder Ding, slapped him and shoved him away." © Dave Needham, 2019
“Linji descended from the meditation seat, grabbed Elder Ding, slapped him and shoved him away.”
© Dave Needham, 2019
  • Title in Sullivan (2021): An Audience with Linji
  • Title in Cleary and Cleary (1992): Elder Ting Stands Motionless
  • Title in Sekida (2005): Jō Jōza Stands Still
  • Named characters (in Pinyin):
    • Shangzuo Ding (or “Elder Ding”) (n.d.)
    • Linji Yixuan (d. 866)
  • Named characters (in Wade-Giles):
    • Elder Ting
    • Lin Chi
  • Named characters (in Japanese):
    • Jō Jōza
    • Rinzai
  • Other koan collections: 
  • Historical commentaries:
    • Hakuin Ekaku and Tenkei Denson (contained in Secrets of the Blue Cliff Record, Thomas Clearly, 2002)
  • Modern commentaries:
    • Matthew Juksan Sullivan (contained in The Garden of Flowers and Weeds, 2021)
    • Robert Aitken (article in Mind Moon Circle-The Journal of the Sydney Zen Center/Clear Mountain-The Journal of the Zen Group of Western Australia, Autumn 1997, pp. 8-11)