Zen

A Zen Buddhist monk, in traditional robes and straw hat, entering the Asakusa (or Sensoji) Temple in Tokyo, Japan. At the main gate is a 4 m/13 ft tall paper lantern dedicated to the god of thunder.

Tofuku-ji Zen garden in Kyoto, Japan. Zen gardens are designed to suggest an infinite yet enclosed space, and are closer to landscape painting than to nature. The most austere type of Zen garden is the dry landscape. These were first created in the late 15th century and are intended purely for meditation.

Kinkaku-ji, temple of the Golden Pavilion in Kyoto, Japan. The second and third floors are covered with gold leaf on Japanese lacquer. Around the temple are lush and beautiful gardens.

Form of Buddhism introduced from India to Japan via China from the 12th century. Rinzai Zen (founded 1191) features kōan (paradoxical questions), intense meditation, and sudden enlightenment (satori). Soto Zen (founded 1227) was spread by the priest Dōgen (1200-1253), who emphasized work, practise, discipline, and philosophical questions to discover one's Buddha-nature in the ‘realization of self’. Simplicity in art forms and the writing of haiku verses are the products of Japanese Zen Buddhist thought.

Rinzai Zen Buddhists often take an ordinary activity and concentrate on performing each action with such mindfulness that the action becomes perfect; a form of meditation was used to train the samurai warriors. For example, in Zen archery, the skilful practitioner would be able to still his mind and concentrate on the exact circumstances of the occasion. Staying entirely in the present moment, the archer would notice the wind, the moistness of the air, and the subtle movements of the target; he would become part of the whole environment, losing any sense of being separate from it. He will give up any effort or concern. Then his arrow, when it is released, will automatically hit the target perfectly. Kōans are used to help a Zen Buddhist get past the habitual workings of the mind. A kōan is a thinking task that appears to make no sense or be unanswerable, such as: ‘What is the sound of one hand clapping?’

Soto Zen Buddhists focus on a special form of meditation called zazen - just sitting.