Being in the moment. Zen.

Zen Buddhist monk.

I had always associated the word "zen" with tranquility but I never really knew the true definition of the word until now.

Actually, Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism that was introduced into China in the 6 AD by the Indian prince-turned-monk Bodhidharma. Zen Buddhism made its way into Japan in 12 AD and it is the predominant school of Buddhism practiced in Japan.

Zen teaches that the potential to achieve enlightenment is inherent in everyone but lies dormant because of ignorance.

Zen Buddhism asserts that enlightenment can be attained through meditation, self-contemplation, and intuition rather than through the study of scripture, the practice of good deeds, rites and ceremonies, or worship of images.  A central element of Zen is zazen, a meditative practice which seeks to free the mind of all thought and conceptualization

The word Zen is derived from the Chinese word Ch'an, which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which means "meditation" or "meditative state".

From the pictures that I've seen so far, the Zen Buddhist monks don't dress anything like the Tibetan Buddhist monks. With the bamboo hat and rope string sandals, the first time I saw a picture of one, I thought he was a beggar. In fact, the monk is asking for alms which I've since read, is common practice for them.

When the monk is seated in the prayer position, his legs are crossed and his fingers are placed in the meditation mudra which is made by placing both hands in the lap, right on top of left, with palms turned upward and thumbs touching to form a circle. This mudra position symbolizes the Buddha in a state of meditation.

There will be plenty of opportunity to visit Zen Buddhist temples while I'm in Japan and the amateur gardener in me has already decided that I will definitely take time to visit the temple gardens which were designed specifically as meditation spaces.

The Japanese are stellar landscape designers and gardeners. The layout and design of a Japanese garden is determined by its surroundings; that is to say, buildings, paths, hills, walls, etc. As the plants and trees mature, they are constantly sculpted to maintain and enhance the overall experience.  What we would consider as simple and mundane tasks, training and pruning have been elevated to art forms in Japan. 

Zen gardens make use of gravel, rocks and moss to create abstract, often miniature, landscapes also called "mind-scapes". This form of gardening is referred to as Karesansui.

Karesansui is a garden style unique to Japan. Unlike other traditional gardens, there is no water present in Karesansui gardens. There is gravel or sand, raked or not raked, that symbolizes sea, ocean, rivers or lakes.

The act of raking the gravel into a pattern recalling waves or rippling water has an aesthetic function. Zen priests practice this raking to help their concentration as achieving perfection of lines is not easy. Line patterns need not be static and in fact, developing variations in patterns is a creative and inspiring challenge.

Stone arrangements and other miniature elements are used to represent mountains and natural water elements and scenes, mountains, islands, rivers, waterfalls, and even people . In most gardens moss is used as a ground cover to create "land" covered by forest. I read somewhere that global warming is causing the moss, that grows in many of the gardens to die off. Very sad.

Karesansui gardens are often, but not always, meant to be viewed from a single vantage point from a seated position.

One of the most famous Zen gardens is at Ryōan-ji temple in northwest Kyoto, Japan. The temple is a UNESCO World Heritage site and I will definitely put it on my list of "must-see" places.

The garden at Ryōan-ji was built in the 15th century. It is 30 meters long from east to west and 10 meters from north to south. The garden has no trees and consists simply of raked gravel and fifteen moss-covered boulders, which are placed so that, when looking at the garden from any angle (other than from above) only fourteen of the boulders are visible at one time. It is traditionally said that only through attaining enlightenment would one be able to view the fifteenth boulder.

Every religion has a symbol.  For example,the cross is emblematic of Christianity and the Star of David for Judaism.  The classic symbol for Zen is the enso. It is known as the circle of enlightenment.  There are two common versions of the enso.  One is a brushstroke of a closed circle. The closed circle represents the totality of experience and life.


This enso is by Torei Enji (1721-1792), who excelled at the Zen circle. Torei began

this one by pressing his brush down hard at the lower left and swiftly continuing

around the circle while lifting the brush.

The other version of the enso is a brushstroke of a circle with one small opening. The open circle represents the Zen concept of wabi sabi which is that all things are perfect as they are and for us to stop striving for perfection and instead to allow the universe to be as it is.

As with everything related to Zen, I'm finding that there is a beautiful simplicity to the enso, both the open and closed versions.

I've seen versions of this odd looking little red doll on many a visit to a Japanese restaurant but I never knew what it was.....just thought it was a cute doll.  In doing my reading on Zen Buddhism, I've learned that this is called a Daruma doll, a hollow, round, Japanese doll modeled after Bodhidharma. These dolls are typically red in color and depict a bearded man.  They vary greatly in color and design depending on region and artist. Though considered a toy, Daruma has a design that is rich in symbolism and is regarded as a talisman of good luck to the Japanese.

Daruma’s design, particularly the shape, color, eyes, and facial hair, each have its own history and symbolic meaning.

Darumas are still usually made of papier-mâché, have a round shape, are hollow, and weighted at the bottom in a way that it will always return to an upright position when tilted over.  This characteristic symbolizes the ability to have success, overcome adversity, and recover from misfortune.

The red color of the Daruma represents good fortune, happiness, and luck.
The eyes of Daruma are often blank when sold.  The recipient of the doll fills in one eye upon making a wish or setting the goal.  When the wish comes true or the goal is achieved, the other is colored in.  The purpose behind coloring in one eye at a time is to give motivation - every time you see the one the one-eyed Daruma,  you're reminded that you have an unfulfilled wish or yet to be accomplished goal. 

Daruma’s facial hair is a symbolic representation of the animals well known in Asian culture to embody longevity, the crane and the tortoise. The eyebrows are in the shape of a crane, while the cheek hair resembles the shell of the tortoise.
Daruma is a traditional Japanese wishing doll that helps us to achieve our dreams and aspirations.

So, I'm finding out as I read up on Japanese cultural heritage,  there's a lot more to Zen than I ever knew!  And I've just nicked the tip of the iceberg.....so much more to learn before I go to Japan!