Nichi nichi kore kōnichi

Nichi nichi kore kōnichi (日々是好日) also pronounced "hibi kore kõjitsu" is a Chinese-Japanese Zen Buddhist proverb at least 1.100 years old which means "Every day is a good day", or "All days are good days". It was Zen Master Yunmen's answer in the sixth case of the koan collection Blue Cliff Record.[1][2][3] It has been presented by some Zen masters (notably, Kodo-Sawaki and his disciple Taisen Deshimaru)[4] as a kōan, that is, a statement that appears contradictory to rationality but that can be grasped through intuition. It was a favorite saying of the avant-garde composer John Cage, featured in Song Books (1970) as Solo for Voice 64.

"Every day is a good day."

References

  1. ↑ Katsuki Sekida, "Two Zen Classics: Mumonkan, Hekiganroku." Weatherhill, 1977. ISBN 0-8348-0130-2.
  2. ↑ Thomas Cleary and J.C. Cleary, "Blue Cliff Record". Shambala, Boston/London, 2005. ISBN 0-87773-622-7. Originally published in 1977.
  3. ↑ Urs App, "Master Yunmen". Kodansha, 1994. ISBN 1-56836-004-5
  4. ↑ Taisen Deshimaru, La Pratique Du Zen
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