Zen Gardens Essay Research Paper Zen Buddhism

Zen Gardens Essay, Research Paper

Zen Buddhism began to show up in Japan during the eighth century. It went through various periods of popularity and disregard, but constituted one of the most important influences on Japanese culture. All Buddhist temples include gardens. The first temple gardens evolved from well-groomed landscaping around Shinto shrines. Later, the gates and grounds surrounding Buddhist temples began to use gardens to beautify the temple, similar to the Heian mansion gardens. Jodo Buddhism (Pure Land) used temple gardens as a way to symbolize the “pure land” created by Amida Buddha to aid suffering souls in pursuit of enlightenment. These Zen gardens were meant to encompass the nature of the universe. The garden is the Buddha’s realm. Gardens are tools, vehicles for meditation and reflection. Therefore they tend to be far more metaphorical than other gardens. You can stroll through many Zen gardens, but more often, you are encouraged to simply look at it.

During the 10th to 12th centuries known as the Heian era, Japan was breaking away from the styles of the Chinese T’ang Dynasty. New ideas were developing as the Imperial court converted what it had learned. In the area of garden design, however, Chinese thought was still a powerful force. Most of the aesthetic principles we see as Japanese had not yet developed. The dominant architectural style, called Shinden, was essentially a modification of Chinese design. Buildings were arranged somewhat symmetrically and according to the laws of Chinese geomancy called Feng shui. Within the mansions, a central building, the shinden (sleeping hall) would be linked to other outlying buildings by covered causeways. Beyond the tile roofs and verandas was the garden. A large empty area was set aside for open-air gatherings such as dance performances or games. The rest of the garden was intended for viewing and limited strolling. Fishing on small boats to catch fish in their ponds was one popular activity. Poetry reading and writing was also essential.

According to Feng shui, all structures have to be laid out carefully along compass lines and in certain configurations to allow ki (Chinese “chi”), the mystic energy of life to flow properly. A reduced ki flow in a home was thought to cause sickness and disharmony. For example, the builders, after consulting with a Yin-yang diviner, would usually create special arrangements to prevent bad ki from entering the home from the northwest. In the first Japanese garden design manual, the Sakuteiki, it is explained how water courses should flow from the northwest to the southeast so that any bad ki could be cleansed by the protective deity of the east Kamogawa (blue dragon), then proceed west again passing under a veranda of the house so as to draw away any evil spirits that might have somehow slipped into the house. Heavy stones were thought to serve as gates or landing points for spirits and were thus placed very carefully. Other design rules applied as well. Influenced by esoteric Buddhism, the garden design was expected to include an island in a pond connected to the mainland by a bridge. This represented the world of enlightenment separated from the world of man. The bridges were frequently arched and coated with bright red lacquer (another Chinese influence).

The Heian nobles also filled their gardens with special aesthetic ideas that were unique to its time. Mujo is a sense of melancholy, which arose from a Buddhist awareness of the impermanence and transient nature of all things. Plants were sparse but flowering and deciduous trees were popular for their passing beauty. At the end of the Heian era, chaos ensued. Most of the Imperial court culture withered away as civil war shook Japan. Most of the great shinden mansions of Heiankyo were destroyed. As a result, there are no extant examples of Heian mansion gardens. However, they have been found in archeological sites and are well represented in literature such as The Tale of Genji and paintings of the era. Yet this garden style never really died and was to be reinvented over many centuries.

Abstract representations of natural elements had long been an aspect of Japanese design by this time. But in the late Kamakura to early Muromachi period (late 15th cent.), the true Zen gardens began to evolve. Designers began to create “the garden as a painting” under the influence of Chinese Zen ink painting. A sort of “short-hand” style developed called karesansui (dry-mountain-water). Karesansui, or “dry landscape” style Japanese gardens have been in existence for centuries. They are to be used as an aid to create a deeper understanding of the Zen concepts and to heighten the poetic and metaphoric significance of stones. Not only is there viewing intended to aid in meditation but also the entire creation of the garden is intended to trigger contemplation. A good example of a “dry landscape” garden is at Ryoan-ji Temple in Kyoto, created around 1500. In an area measuring 30 m x 10 m. This small dry garden is composed of 15 rocks of different sizes set in outcroppings of two and three set, with raked gravel in between which represents the sea. Created by Soami, painter and poet. These dry-stone gardens so greatly favored by the Zen temples were an attempt to symbolically express the vastness of nature within a small space. The rocks represent islands and the gravel is raked into geometric patterns resembling