Joshu Jushin (778-897) was one of the great Chan (Zen) masters of Ancient China. Many of the best-known koans originated with Joshu. Although Joshu's life itself is an embodiment of the Zen ideal, it was his particular ability to express the true nature of enlightened mind in a pithy and succinct fashion that made his teaching so influential. His sayings and dialogues have been preserved in the Zen literature as timeless and potent expressions of the experience of enlightenment.

Included here is the first complete translation of Joshu's saying, dialogues and poems, as well as records of his pilgrimages and a short biography.