How to achieve enlightenment thanks to only one word? And thanks to silence? To illuminate wisdom, you do not need complex techniques - you just need to calm your heart, clear your consciousness and... to be close to a worthy mentor. This is precisely the essence of the famous Eastern teachings of Zen (Chan). The book is a collection of the best medieval parables and stories about the Chinese masters of Chan Buddhism, included in many classical works: "Outpost without Gates," "Records of the Transfer of the Lamp," "Speeches from Azure Cliff," "Throne Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch." The publication also includes information on the history of the formation of the genre of Chan sayings "yulu" and "paradoxical dialogues" - koans (gunan), on ways to train the consciousness of Buddhist monks. Usually, such a genre is usually called "koans" in Western literature and interpreted as "paradoxical dialogues of Zen masters." How "paradoxical" they are and whether they are riddles for someone else besides the idle Western reader, we will talk a little below. In the meantime, we note that "koan" is the usual Japanese designation for Zen (Chan) short dialogues for the Western reader, and in Chinese this genre sounds like gong'an.