From Library Journal
The Mumonkan is a classic Zen text consisting of 48 koans collected by Wu-men, a Chinese master who lived in the 13th century. This fresh translation and commentary by Aitken, a prominent American Zen master, is striking in its evidence of careful scholarship and attention to the problems of translation. In contrast to Zenkei Shibayama's Zen Comments on the Mumonkan ( LJ 4/15/74), Aitken's commentaries more carefully maintain a feeling of Zen "non" sense in addressing the content of the cases, yet his historical explications nicely place the text in perspective for the uninitiated reader. This translation belongs alongside other editions in collections with a particular interest in Zen. For those with a more marginal interest, this would only be appropriate as an enhancement to more basic works on the subject.
- Mark Woodhouse, Gan nett-Tripp Lib., Elmira Coll., N.Y.Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Joko Beck, author of Everyday Zen
"Aitken Roshi poses these koans in a manner accessible to Westerners through his depiction of his personal struggles with them (as a student) and his approach to them as a teacher. His commentary allows the transformative power of this traditional koan collection to come alive for modern students."
