Japanese Zen
Japanese Zen refers to the Japanese forms of Zen Buddhism, an originally Chinese Mahāyāna school of Buddhism that strongly emphasizes dhyāna, the meditative training of awareness and equanimity. This practice, according to Zen proponents, gives insight into one's true nature, or the emptiness of inherent existence, which opens the way to a liberated way of living.
History
Origins
According to tradition, Zen originated in ancient India, when Gautama Buddha held up a flower and Mahākāśyapa smiled. With this smile he showed that he had understood the wordless essence of the dharma. This way the dharma was transmitted to Mahākāśyapa, the second patriarch of Zen.The term Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Middle Chinese word 禪, an abbreviation of 禪那, which is a Chinese transliteration of the Sanskrit word of dhyāna. Buddhism was introduced from India to China in the first century AD. According to tradition, Chan was introduced around 500 C.E. by Bodhidharma, an Indian monk teaching dhyāna. He was the 28th Indian patriarch of Zen and the first Chinese patriarch.
Early Japanese Zen
Zen was first introduced into Japan as early as 653-656 C.E. in the Asuka period, at the time when the set of Zen monastic regulations was still nonexistent and Chan masters were willing to instruct anyone regardless of buddhist ordination. Dōshō went over to China in 653 C.E., where he learned Chan from the famed Chinese pilgrim Xuanzang, and he studied more fully with a disciple of the second Chinese patriarch, Huike . After returning home, Dōshō established the Hossō school, basing it on Yogācāra philosophy and built a Meditation Hall for the purpose of practising Zen in the Gangō-ji in Nara. In the Nara period, the Chan master, Dao-xuan, arrived in Japan, he taught meditation techniques to the monk Gyōhyō, who in turn was to instruct Saichō, founder of the Japanese Tendai sect of Buddhism. Saicho visited Tang China in 804 C.E. as part of an official embassy sent by Emperor Kammu. There he studied four branches of Buddhism including Chan and Tiantai, which he was, by that time, already familiar with.The first attempt of establishing Zen as an independent doctrine was in 815, when the Chinese monk Yikong visited Japan as the representative of Chan's Southern-school lineage, based on the teachings of the master Mazu Daoyi, who was the mentor of Baizhang, the supposed author of the initial set of Zen monastic regulations. Yikong arrived in 815 C.E. and tried unsuccessfully to transmit Zen systematically to the eastern nation. It is recorded in an inscription left at the famous Rashõmon gate protecting the southern entryway to Kyoto that, on leaving to return to China, Yikong said he was aware of the futility of his efforts due to hostility and opposition he experienced from the dominant Tendai Buddhist school. What existed of Zen in the Heian period was incorporated into and subordinate to the Tendai tradition. The early phase of Japanese Zen has been labeled "syncretic" because Chan teachings and practices were initially combined with familiar Tendai and Shingon forms.
Kamakura (1185–1333 C.E.)
Zen found difficulties in establishing itself as a separate school in Japan until the 12th century, largely because of opposition, influence, power and criticism by the Tendai school. During the Kamakura period, Nōnin established the first independent Zen school on Japanese soil, known as the short-lived and disapproved Daruma school. In 1189 Nōnin sent two students to China, to meet with Cho-an Te-kuang, and ask for the recognition of Nōnin as a Zen-master. This recognition was granted.In 1168 C.E., Eisai traveled to China, whereafter he studied Tendai for twenty years. In 1187 C.E. he went to China again, and returned to establish a local branch of the Linji school, which is known in Japan as the Rinzai school. Decades later, Nampo Jōmyō also studied Linji teachings in China before founding the Japanese Ōtōkan lineage, the most influential branch of Rinzai.
In 1215 C.E., Dōgen, a younger contemporary of Eisai's, journeyed to China himself, where he became a disciple of the Caodong master Rujing. After his return, Dōgen established the Sōtō school, the Japanese branch of Caodong.
Zen fit the way of life of the samurai: confronting death without fear, and acting in a spontaneous and intuitive way.
During this period the Five Mountain System was established, which institutionalized an influential part of the Rinzai school. It consisted of the five most famous Zen temples of Kamakura: Kenchō-ji, Engaku-ji, Jufuku-ji, Jōmyō-ji and Jōchi-ji.
Muromachi (or Ashikaga) (1336–1573 C.E.)
During the Muromachi period the Rinzai school was the most successful of the schools, since it was favoured by the shōgun.Gozan-system
In the beginning of the Muromachi period the Gozan system was fully worked out. The final version contained five temples of both Kyoto and Kamakura. A second tier of the system consisted of Ten Temples. This system was extended throughout Japan, effectively giving control to the central government, which administered this system. The monks, often well educated and skilled, were employed by the shōgun for the governing of state affairs.Rinka-monasteries
Not all Rinzai Zen organisations were under such strict state control. The Rinka monasteries, which were primarily located in rural areas rather than cities, had a greater degree of independence. The O-to-kan lineage, that centered on Daitoku-ji, also had a greater degree of freedom. It was founded by Nampo Jomyo, Shuho Myocho, and Kanzan Egen. A well-known teacher from Daitoku-ji was Ikkyū.Another Rinka lineage was the Hotto lineage, of which Bassui Tokushō is the best-known teacher.
Azuchi-Momoyama (1573–1600 C.E.) and Edo (or Tokugawa) (1600–1868 C.E.)
After a period of war Japan was re-united in the Azuchi–Momoyama period. This decreased the power of Buddhism, which had become a strong political and military force in Japan. Neo-Confucianism gained influence at the expense of Buddhism, which came under strict state control. Japan closed the gates to the rest of the world. The only traders to be allowed were Dutchmen admitted to the island of Dejima. New doctrines and methods were not to be introduced, nor were new temples and schools. The only exception was the Ōbaku lineage, which was introduced in the 17th century during the Edo period by Ingen, a Chinese monk. Ingen had been a member of the Linji school, the Chinese equivalent of Rinzai, which had developed separately from the Japanese branch for hundreds of years. Thus, when Ingen journeyed to Japan following the fall of the Ming dynasty to the Manchu people, his teachings were seen as a separate school. The Ōbaku school was named after Mount Huangbo, which had been Ingen's home in China.Well-known Zen masters from this period are Bankei, Bashō and Hakuin. Bankei Yōtaku became a classic example of a man driven by the "great doubt". Matsuo Bashō became a leading Zen poet. In the 18th century Hakuin Ekaku revived the Rinzai school. His influence was so strong that almost all contemporary Rinzai lineages are traced back to him.
Meiji Restoration (1868–1912 C.E.) and Imperial expansionism (1912–1945 C.E.)
The Meiji period saw the Emperor's power reinstated after a coup in 1868 C.E. At that time Japan was forced to open to Western trade which brought influence and, eventually, a restructuring of all government and commercial structures to Western standards. Shinto became the officiated state religion and Buddhism was coerced to adapt to the new regime. The Buddhist establishment saw the Western world as a threat, but also as a challenge to stand up to.Buddhist institutions had a simple choice: adapt or perish. Rinzai and Soto Zen chose to adapt, trying to modernize Zen in accord with Western insights, while simultaneously maintaining a Japanese identity. This Japanese identity was being articulated in the Nihonjinron philosophy, the "Japanese uniqueness" theory. A broad range of subjects was taken as typical of Japanese culture. D.T. Suzuki contributed to the Nihonjinron-philosophy by taking Zen as the distinctive token of Asian spirituality, showing its unique character in the Japanese culture
This resulted in support for the war activities of the Japanese imperial system by the Japanese Zen establishment—including the Sōtō sect, the major branches of Rinzai, and several renowned teachers. According to Sharf,
War endeavours against Russia, China and finally during the Pacific War were supported by the Zen establishment.
A notable work on this subject was Zen at War by Brian Victoria, an American-born Sōtō priest. One of his assertions was that some Zen masters known for their post-war internationalism and promotion of "world peace" were open Japanese nationalists in the inter-war years. Among them as an example Hakuun Yasutani, the founder of the Sanbo Kyodan School, even voiced antisemitic and nationalistic opinions after World War II. Only after international protests in the 1990s, following the publication of Zen at War, did the Sanbo Kyodan express apologies for this support. This involvement was not limited to the Zen schools, as all orthodox Japanese schools of Buddhism supported the militarist state. Victoria's particular claims about D. T. Suzuki's involvement in militarism have been much disputed by other scholars.