2

新年おめでとう!

§ Before the Meiji Restoration

(1868), the date of the
Japanese New Year was
based on the lunar (Chinese)
calendar.
§ Nowadays, the date is based
on the Gregorian calendar.
§ The first day of January, i.e.
Jan 01 2023.

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3
 Religions
Economic Factors Buddhism
Affordable vs Shinto
Luxurious Christian...

Socio-political
Foreign Cultures
Factors
Social norms Chinese
Korean
e.g. Samurai,
Western
Meiji restoration Japanese
Aesthetics

§ In this course we will focus on:

§ The Influence of Zen Buddhism on Japanese Aesthetics

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Lecture Date Topic

1 Jan 17 Introduction
Lunar New Year Jan 24 No Class
2 Jan 31 Origin and development of Zen Buddhism
3 Feb 7 The acceptance and development of Zen in Japan
4 Feb 14 Japanese aesthetic values 1
5 Feb 21 Japanese aesthetic values 2
6 Feb 28 Traditional Japanese arts.
Reading Week Mar 7 No Class
7 Mar 14 Influence on arts and literature
8 Mar 21 Influence on architecture and landscaping
9 Mar 28 Zen and design
10 Apr 4 Zen and lifestyle
11 Apr 11 Influence across the globe
12 Apr 18 Zen and contemporary aesthetics

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§ (1) Short Essay (800-1000 words )– 25 %
§ Suggested topics (Due Mar 13, 2023)

§ (2) Final Essay (2000 words) – 60 %

§ Suggested topics / any approved topic (Due Apr 25, 2023).

§ (3) Attendance / Participation – 15 %

§ Please sign in Attendance@HKU with your UID registered name.

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§ Outstanding – shows critical / research/ reflective elements,
novelty, correct understanding and historicity.
§ Excellent – shows some research elements, originality,
correct understanding and historicity.
§ Good – correct understanding of what is mentioned in the
lecture.
§ Satisfactory – try your best to hand in something...
§ Please submit on time.
§ No plagiarism.
§ Turnitin <30%
§ Cite everything properly (with page numbers).
§ Originality.

§ 4 or more academic sources. (for short essay, from Moodle

reading list).
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§ Due March 13.
§ 800-1000 words (exclude footnotes and bibliography).

§ Examine a traditional Japanese art form in relation to the

aesthetic values influenced by Zen Buddhism.

§ E.g. Wabi-sabi in Japanese Tea Ceremony.

Wabi-sabi of Sen no Rikyu’s Tea Bowls.
Mono-no-aware in Bonsai Arts.
Discuss the aesthetic elements in a specific Noh play.

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§ 1.Essential concepts, practices and historical background.
§ 2.Aesthetics of Zen:
§ Philosophy and nature of beauty and taste.
§ What is consider beauty? Why pleasing?
§ Principles and concepts.

§ 3.Influences: (expression, inspiration, conveyed)

§ Japanese traditional arts;
§ Architecture and landscaping;
§ Arts and literature;
§ Spirituality;
§ Design;
§ Lifestyle.

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§ Buddhist tenet
§ Suffering
§ Four Noble Truths
§ Impermanence
§ Emptiness

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§ Three Seals or Three Marks of
Existence: suffering, impermanence,
and no-self.
§ Suffering
§ Inherent condition of cyclic existence
(life).
§ Impermanence
§ All phenomena are conditioned.
Things are changing continuously.
§ No-self
§ If all things arise out of causes and
conditions (dependent origination),
there is nothing that has a fixed
nature, including “ourselves”.
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www.menti.com

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§ Sometimes many of us are “perfectionist”.
§ Searching for perfection in our life.
§ Idealize this perfection as an ultimate goal.
§ Human desire.

§ Expressed in arts.
§ Found in many cultures.
§ E.g. Renaissance period.
§ Ideal proportion (perfection).
§ Last forever (permanence).
§ Perfect symmetry.

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§ Rustic objects are (labelled as) inferior.
§ Things that are undecorated are cheap.

§ Something broken is not good and have

to be fixed/ discarded.
§ Perfection is the best!

§ Very true and idealistic.

§ But almost impossible to achieve in real
life.
§ Leads to suffering.
§ When things are out of our expectation.

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§ Realise impermanence.
§ Sickness, old age and death is unavoidable
and natural.
§ Realise imperfection.
§ There is nothing perfect in this world.

§ Realising this is not pessimistic.

§ But this is an objective truth.
§ Applies to everyone.
§ You’re not alone.

§ We suffer from grasping for perfection and

permanence (incorrect labelling).

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§ Buddhist teaching and practices help us to
realise these.
§ Expressed in aesthetics.
§ Daily objects as focus of reflection
/meditation.
§ Train the internal (mind) by external things,
see thing as it is.
§ More capacity to enjoy things as it is,
because life is not perfect.
§ Give attention to the unusual beauty of
impermanence and imperfection.
§ Appreciate impermanence and
imperfection.
§ Apply to ourselves, e.g. get hurt, angry…
§ Free from bondage of our own misconception.
§ Happier and blissful life.
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§ Everything is subject to change.
§ Stay strong.

§ Stand up again.
§ Do not conceal your scar.
§ But bravely accept them.
§ Celebrate them.
§ The “precious scar”.

§ Everyone is different and unique.

§ We should be proud of what we are.

§ Free yourself from suffering.

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§ The ego.
§ “I” am superior.
§ Arrogant.

§ Aesthetics with humbleness/ modesty.

§ To oneself.
§ To others.
§ To the nature.

§ Respect for yourself and others.

§ Not viewed as weak or submissive.
§ But as a norm.

§ Expressed in all aspect of life.

§ Collectivist society.
§ Prioritize the group over the individual.
§ Perceive personal accomplishment to be
a means to benefit the group.
§ Collectivism vs individualism.

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20
 21

u Buddhism faded out in India

after the 12th century CE.
u Royal patronage...
u Support Hinduism

u Muslim invasion.
u But successfully proliferated
and continued to develop
outside of India.
u China, Korea, Japan, Tibet...
u Adaptation: integrated and
assimilated local cultures.

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§ Traces to the historical Buddha.
§ The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the
Lamp (景德傳燈錄).
§ Composed in the Sung Dynasty, ~1004-1007.

§ The Flower Sermon. (拈華微笑 nenge mishou)

§ At Vulture Peak, the Buddha instead of
delivering his usual sermon in front of his
disciples by words, he simply held up a flower
and smiled.
§ All of his disciples were puzzled, only
Mahākāśyapa understood the Buddha's
meaning and smiled also.
§ Buddha proclaimed Mahākāśyapa as the one
who truly understood him and was worthy to be
the one receiving a special “mind-to-mind
transmission”.
§ The lineage is maintained through a system
of direct master-to-disciple transmission that
continues to this day.
§ Direct transmission beyond words. 22
23
§ Mahākāśyapa 摩訶迦葉
§ One of the principal
disciples of Gautama
Buddha.
§ Considered to be the
first patriarch in a
number of Buddhist
schools.
§ Not only in Zen.

Block print by Shiko Munakata

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1. Mahākāśyapa (c. 5th to 4th century BCE)
India
⁞
28. Bodhidharma (達摩) c. 440 – c. 528 CE (1st Patriarch)
29. Huike (慧可) 487–593 (2nd) Sui dynasty

30. Sengcan (僧燦) ?–606 (3rd)

China
31. Daoxin (道信) 580–651 (4th) Tang dynasty
32. Hongren (弘忍) 601–674 (5th)
33. Huineng (惠能) 638–713 (6th)

The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp (景德傳燈錄).

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 26

§ Buddhism further developed in

China.
§ Chinese Buddhism.
§ Many schools.

§ Syncretism: interaction of
Chinese culture, Taoism,
Confucianism.
§ Translation of a large body of
Indian Buddhist scriptures into
Chinese.
§ Many works were composed in
China.
§ Combined, the Chinese
Buddhist Canon was printed.
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§ Chinese Buddhist Canon 漢傳大藏經 (many versions, ~13):
§ E.g. Taishō Tripiṭaka, 大正新脩大藏經 85 Vols.

§ http://tripitaka.cbeta.org
§ Containing: (the “3 baskets”)
§ Agama (Indian sutras)
§ Vinaya (Rules of conduct)
§ Abhidharma texts (Commentaries)
§ Other Mahāyāna sutras.

§ Many works were composed in China.

§ Entangled with Chinese culture, Taoist, Confucian thoughts.

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§ The printed Chinese canon
disseminated and influenced
throughout the East Asian
cultural sphere.
§ Transmitted to Korea,
Vietnam, Japan...
§ Buddhist thoughts with
Chinese interpretation and
cultural element.

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§ Printed their own version based on
the Chinese original.
§ Korea
§ Japan

§ Tripiṭaka Koreana 高麗大藏經

§ (47 volumes, 1514 texts)

§ Taishō Tripiṭaka 大正新脩大藏經

§ (popular, 85 volumes, 5320 texts).

§ The Chinese Canon is shared

among all Mahayana Buddhist
schools.

Woodblocks printing for Chinese Canon

Haeinsa Temple Korea 29
 30

§ Mahayana Buddhism
§ Tiantai 天台宗 (Lotus Sutra)
§ Three Treatises 三論宗 (Madhyamika)
§ Vinaya 律宗 (Vinaya of the Dharmaguptaka)
§ Consciousness Only 唯識宗 (法相宗, Yogacara)
§ Hwayan 華嚴宗 (Avatamsaka Sutra)
§ Tang Esoteric 唐密 (Tantric school)
§ Pure land 淨土宗
§ Zen School 禪宗
§ and others...

§ Zen Buddhism is just one of the many Buddhist schools.

§ Successful and predominating.

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 31

§ Chán, Ch’an, Chan, Zen.

§ One of the predominate school in Chinese Buddhism (since Tang
dynasty).
§ “Chan” (禪) transliterates the Sanskrit dhyāna 禪那 or “meditation”.
§ Focus on meditation and direct insight.
§ Reading and reasoning alone cannot lead to enlightenment.
§ Not focus on supramundane sources, e.g. Celestial Buddhas as in
Pure land Buddhism.
§ Does not require extensive philosophical / literal training or
studying.
§ Enlightenment can be accomplished here and now.

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 32

§ A special transmission outside the scriptures (教外別傳);

§ Not established upon words and letters (不立文字);

§ Directly pointing to the mind (直指人心);

§ Seeing nature and becoming a Buddha (見性成佛);
§ Without-thinking (無念).

§ Irony: Chinese Zen literature is perhaps the most

voluminous of any in Chinese Buddhism!
§ but could be due to the most predominate school.

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1. Mahākāśyapa (c. 5th to 4th century BCE)
India
⁞
28. Bodhidharma (達摩) c. 440 – c. 528 CE (1st Patriarch)
29. Huike (慧可) 487–593 (2nd)
30. Sengcan (僧燦) ?–606 (3rd)
China
31. Daoxin (道信) 580–651 (4th)
32. Hongren (弘忍) 601–674 (5th)
33. Huineng (惠能) 638–713 (6th)

The Jingde Record of the Transmission of the Lamp (景德傳燈錄).

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§ “Semi-legendary” Buddhist monk who
lived during the 5th or 6th century.
§ Came from the western region, Indian
subcontinent, or Central Asia (Persia)?
§ Regarded as its first Chinese patriarch
of Zen Buddhism.
§ Bodhidharma brought Zen from India
to China in about 500 C.E., more than
a thousand years after Shakyamuni
Buddha's death.
§ Related to Shaolin Monastery,
established Shaolin kungfu (legend).
§ Teachings and practice centered on
meditation and the Laṅkāvatāra
Sūtra.

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• Symbol of perseverance
• Shichiten hakki
• 七転⼋起 (Fall 7 times,
and get up 8 times).
• Engimono 縁起物 and good
luck
• Commercialized.

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§ Buddhist teachings based on:

§ Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra (楞伽經).

Taishō Tripiṭaka 670-672.

§ Practice

§ Meditative practice.

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§ “Sutra of the Appearance of the Good
Doctrine in Lanka”
§ Foundational sutra in Chinese, Korean, and
Japanese Zen.
§ Bodhidharma told Huike (2nd patriarch)
everything he needed to know is in this sutra.
§ Yogācāra thoughts and the concept of
Buddha-nature.
§ All the objects of the world, and the names,
concepts and forms of experience, are
manifestations of the mind. (~ subjective
idealism?)
§ Because the world is seen as being "mind-
only" or "consciousness-only", all
phenomena are void, empty of self-nature
and illusory.

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All things are only manifestations of
the mind itself;
§ One must recognise that this world is
nothing but a complex manifestation of
one's mental activities.
§ Imagined as real.
§ Habit-patterns by memory, false-
imagination, false-reasoning, and
attachments to the objects and
relationships.
§ One must recognise and be convinced
that all things are to be regarded as forms
seen in a vision and a dream.
§ Empty of substance, un-born and without
self-nature; that all things exist only by
reason of a complicated network of
causation...
§ One must recognise and patiently accept
the fact that his own mind and
personality is also mind-constructed, that
it is empty of substance, unborn and
egoless.

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§ Permanence and perfection are illusion of
the mind.
§ This illusion drives us to suffering.
§ Because we will never be satisfied
according to Buddhism.
§ Endlessly thinking about this and that...
§ Our mind wants more (craving).
§ Evolutionary biology process.
§ Drives us to increase the change of
survival.
§ Drawback: suffering.

§ Realizing impermanence will transcend

us from suffering.
§ Enlightenment, Buddha-nature.

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§ Enlightenment cannot be
achieved by studying only.
§ Experiencing is the key to
enlightenment.
§ Experience by practice.

§ Meditation is an important
practice.
§ Not only sitting meditation.
§ Engage “mindfully” in
anything.

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§ An umbrella term for practices.
(Skt. dhyana)
§ Difficult to define.
§ A technique focusing the mind on a
particular object, thought, or
activity.
§ To stop your mind form wondering.
§ Spiritual aspect:
§ To train attention and awareness,
§ To achieve a mental clarity and
emotionally calm and stable state.
§ Worldly aspect:
§ Reducing stress, anxiety, depression,
and pain.
§ Increasing peace, perception, self-
concept, and well-being.

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§ Painting, calligraphy, poetry,
gardening, flower arrangement,
tea ceremony and others have
also been used as part of Zen /
mindful training and practice.
§ Some monks specifically trained
as calligraphers, painter or
gardeners.
§ Monks raised it to a new height
by applying the power of
concentration gained in
mediation.
§ See through and step beyond
the phenomenal world.
§ To communicate / convey their
teachings to the populace.

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§ Impermanence and imperfection are
expressed within the aesthetics of
meditation practice.
§ Tea-drinking as meditation in Tang
period.
§ Calligraphy, painting.
§ Floral arrangement.

§ The purpose:
§ Visual sermon.
§ Self-reflection.
§ Remind ourselves of the Zen ideal.
§ Expressed in everyday life.

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By meditation practice:
§ We become the master of our thought.
§ Not the slave/ victim of our thought.

§ Thought arise from the mind

§ not only negative emotions,
§ but also positive ones (not happiness but
excitement),
§ Should not grasp on both,
§ negative could be non-productive, self-
sabotaging.
§ positive, over-estimation, false expectation,
leading to devastating results.
§ Key point: suffering is just a concept.
§ Anger, anxiety, sadness all arise from our
mind.
§ And we can control it.

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1. Mahākāśyapa (c. 5th to 4th century BCE)
⁞
28. Bodhidharma (達摩) c. 440 – c. 528 CE (1st Patriarch)
29. Huike (慧可) 487–593 (2nd)
30. Sengcan (僧燦) ?–606 (3rd)
31. Daoxin (道信) 580–651 (4th)
32. Hongren (弘忍) 601–674 (5th)
33. Huineng (惠能) 638–713 or Shenxiu (神秀) 606-707 (6th)

45
§ Guiyang school (潙仰宗), named after masters Guishan
Lingyou (771–854) and Yangshan Huiji (813–890).
§ Linji school (臨濟宗), named after master Linji Yixuan (died
866), whose lineage came to be traced to Mazu, establishing
him as the archetypal iconoclastic Chan-master. (Jp Rinzai)
§ Caodong school (曹洞宗), named after masters Dongshan
Liangjie (807–869) and Caoshan Benji (840–901). (Jp Sōto)
§ Yunmen school (雲門宗), named after master Yunmen
Wenyan (died 949), a student of Xuefeng Yicun (822–908),
whose lineage was traced to Shitou Xiqian.
§ Fayan school (法眼宗), named after master Fayan Wenyi
(885–958), a "grand-student" of Xuefeng Yicun.

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§ Daoxin, Hongren, Shenxiu, and Huineng
all lived during the early Tang Dynasty.
§ The later period of the Tang Dynasty is
traditionally regarded as the “golden age”
of Chinese Zen.
§ Royal support, favored by the imperial
court and ruling classes.
§ Zen was a major religion among people.

§ Heyday of Chinese culture, art, music,

architecture, literature were transmitted
to outer countries.
§ Zen became predominated during Tang
and Sung period.
§ Tang and Sung culture / aesthetics were
integrated and transmitted to Korea and
Japan together with Zen.

47
 Indian Zen
Buddhism Taoism Confucianism Local Culture (Chan)Buddhism

§ Adaptation to Chinese culture and understanding.

§ Under the influence of Taoism:
§ Blended meditational techniques with Taoism.
§ Taoist concept of naturalness with Buddha-nature.
§ Taoist harmony with the nature.

§ Under the influence of Confucianism:

§ Moral ethics.
§ Karma.

§ Local cultures.
§ Local folk belief.
§ Resulting in a unique form of Buddhism with aesthetic values influenced by Chinese
culture and thoughts.

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• As Buddhism disseminates, it adapts to the needs and
understanding of local cultures.
• Easy to be accepted by locals.
49
§ Taoist and Confucian teachings are
deep-rooted in Chinese culture.
§ 3-way “Interaction” Influencing
each other.
§ Syncretism.

Buddhism

Confucianism Taoism

50
§ Guifeng Zongmi (圭峰 宗密, 780–841) was a
Tang dynasty Buddhist scholar and monk.
§ Brought up in a Confucius background.
§ A significant figure in Tang dynasty.
§ Impact on the interpretation of Zen in China,
Korea and Japan.
§ His work provided a dialogue between the
three religions of China: Confucianism,
Taoism and Buddhism.
§ Important work: Origin of Humanity (原⼈論).
§ He created a syncretic framework where
Confucian moral principles could be
integrated within the Buddhist teachings.

51
§ Zongmi's early training in
Confucianism never left him.
§ He created a syncretic
framework where Confucian
moral principles could be
integrated within the Buddhist
teachings.
§ Buddhist teaching of karma to
validate Confucian moral values.
§ Confucius, Lao-tze and the
Buddha should be regarded as
equally enlightened.
§ The Taoist and Confucian
integration made Zen valuable to
every people.

52
§ Naturalness, wu-wei (無爲), the nature
of the universe works harmoniously
according to its own ways.
§ Ziran (自然) “self-such”, “self
organization”. The "primordial state" of
all things as well as a basic character of
the Tao. To attain naturalness, one has
to identify with the Tao, which involves
freeing oneself from selfishness and
desire, and appreciating simplicity.
§ Spontaneity, unpretentious rather
than make-up.
§ Distrust of scripture and text (rules,
concepts).
§ Emphasis on embracing "this life" and
living in the "every-moment".

53
§ Culture of the elite (Gentry class, cultured and
literate person, 文人 wenren, bunjin).
§ Elite who held privileged status through passing
the Imperial exams.
§ From Tang to Qing Dynasties.
§ Tang, Sung cultures transmitted to Japan.

§ Aesthetic, moral, and intellectual pursuits of

various things:
§ Considered as elegant:
§ Tea and its implements,
§ Paintings and calligraphy (collection and practice),
§ Poetry, (Li Bai, Bai Juyi, Wang Wei, Li Shangyin)
§ Prized objects (both natural and man-made),
§ Stones, penjing (bonsai), pottery.
§ Garden design and architecture,
§ Theater.

§ Integrating philosophical ideals (Buddhist, Taoist,

Confucian).
§ Not “professionals” but “amateurs”.
§ Express personal feeling than skill.
54
§ Painting, calligraphy, poetry,
gardening, flower arrangement,
tea ceremony and others have
also been used as part of Zen /
mindful training and practice.
§ Some monks specifically trained
as calligraphers, painter or
gardeners.
§ Monks raised it to a new height
by applying the power of
concentration gained in
mediation.
§ See through and step beyond
the phenomenal world.
§ To communicate / convey their
teachings to the populace.

55
§ A popular drink.
§ Especially after The Classic of Tea was
written in the eighth century. (茶經
Chajing)
§ First known monograph on tea in the
world.
§ By Chinese writer Lu Yu (陸羽) between
760 CE and 762 CE, during the Tang
dynasty.
§ The treatise describes the mythological
origins and history of tea, aesthetics,
methods and tools used for cultivating,
preparing, and drinking tea, plus tea-
related poems, customs, recipes, and
more.

56
According to a legend:
§ He took off he eyelids to
prevent him from falling
asleep during meditation.
§ Hyperbole.
§ Importance of meditation.

§ He threw his eyelids on the

ground.
§ His eyelids grew into tea
shrubs.
§ Important role of tea in Zen
Buddhism.

57
§ Since the Ming dynasty.
§ Lack of creative masters.
§ Moral decadence and worldliness
with monastic.
§ Sale of monastic certification and
titles.
§ Neo-Confucian philosophy, critical
stance.
§ Pure Land Buddhism (popular
religion; Zen, elite).
§ The persecution of Buddhism in
China in the mid-9th century CE
led to the downfall.
58
§ Moral, ethical, and metaphysical
philosophy influenced by Confucianism.
(宋明理學)
§ Originated in the Tang dynasty by Han
Yu (韓愈 768 – 824) and Li Ao (李翺 772–
841).
§ Prominent during the Sung and Ming
dynasties under the formulations of Zhu
Xi (朱熹1130-1200).
§ Rationalist ethical philosophy.

§ Supported by the Imperial Court.

59
§ The rationalism of neo-Confucianism is in contrast to the
mysticism of Zen Buddhism.
§ Humanistic and rationalistic, the universe could be
understood through human reasoning.
§ Neo-Confucians believed that reality existed, and could be
understood by humankind.
§ Zen insisted on the unreality of things, Neo-Confucianism
stressed their reality.
§ Zen relied on meditation and insight to achieve supreme
reason; the Neo-Confucians chose to follow logical
reasoning and studying.

60
§ Zen Buddhism survived but it was never the same again in
Tang and Sung dynasties.
§ Zen remained as the largest Buddhist school nowadays.
§ Pure Land and Zen practice are often seen as being
mutually compatible, and no strong distinctions are made.
§ Historically, many Buddhist teachers in China have also
taught both Zen and Pure Land together.
§ In Hong Kong, the two teachings seem to be integrated.

61
§ Feb 7.
§ Zen Buddhism arrived
Japan.
§ Adapted to local culture
again.
§ Japanese Zen Buddhism.
§ Influencing Japanese
aesthetics.

62