Hakuin Ekaku
The Sound of One Hand (Sekishu onjō)
Written work
The Sound of One Hand (Sekishu onjō)
隻手音声 (Sekishu onjō)

It explains why he prefers the new kōan—“clap two hands and there is a sound; what is the sound of one hand?”—to Zhaozhou's traditional mu for arousing the great doubt in beginners, and relates it to Kannon, who hears the sounds of the world. It is the founding piece of the Rinzai kōan curriculum.
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Authorship note
Written in Japanese (kana mixed with characters) for lay readers. A short work presenting his own kōan; approximate date.
Editions and translations
Editions in your language first, without hiding the others. Each with its cover and its store.
日本語
Hakuin Ekaku
Sekishu onjō; Sangyō itchi no ben; Hōkyōkutsu no ki; Tosen shikō
The Conscious LibrarySekishu onjō; Sangyō itchi no ben; Hōkyōkutsu no ki; Tosen shikō
Zen Bunka Kenkyūsho (Hakuin Zenji hōgo zenshū), 2001
ISBN 9784881821428
Ed. Yoshizawa Katsuhiro.
Other works by Hakuin Ekaku
- The Embossed Tea Kettle (Orategama) · 1749
- Idle Talk on a Night Boat (Yasenkanna) · 1757
- Wild Ivy (Itsumadegusa) · 1766
- Song in Praise of Zazen (Zazen wasan)
- Introductory Talks on the Record of Sokkō (Sokkōroku kaien-fusetsu) · 1743
- Poison Blossoms from a Thicket of Thorn (Keisō dokuzui) · 1758
- Words from the Land of Kaian (Kaiankokugo) · 1750
- Poison Words on the Heart Sūtra (Dokugo shingyō)
- An Icchantika's Notes on the Poems of Hanshan · 1746
- Treasure Left to the Cold Forest (Kanrin ihō)
- Reflections Left by the Precious Mirror (Hōkan ishō)
- Spear Flower (Yabukōji) · 1753
- Snake Strawberries (Hebiichigo) · 1754
- Thistle (Oniazami) · 1751
- Goosegrass (Yaemugura) · 1759
- Sashimogusa
- Miraculous Tales of the Ten-Phrase Kannon Sūtra
- Kana Sermons on Causes and Conditions
- Kana Goosegrass (Kanamugura)
- Tales of Spurring On for Beginners
- Record of the Filial Piety of Takatsuka's Fourth Daughter
- The Tale of Heishirō of Ihara and Other Tales
- Record of the Precious Mirror Cave
- Grinding songs, lullabies, weeding songs and riddles
- Letters
- Rōhatsu Exhortations
- Secret Notes on the Blue Cliff Record · 1916
- Painting and calligraphy · 1719
- Collected works · 1934
- Hakuin on Kensho (Albert Low) · 2006
Sources
- Yoshizawa Katsuhiro 芳澤勝弘 (ed. y anot.). Hakuin Zenji hōgo zenshū 白隠禅師法語全集. Kioto: Zen Bunka Kenkyūsho, 1999–2003, 14 vols. e índice. ISBN del primer volumen 4881821318.
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