Medieval Japanese Zen
Kendall Roper
May 1, 2018 DOI: 10.33015/dominican.edu/2018.hum.05 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Theoretical or philosophical paper |
|---|---|
| Topics | Buddhism |
| Citations | 1 |
| Key points | Argues that Zen Buddhism functioned as a catalyst for sacred symbol formation in medieval Japanese society, shaping its ethos and world-view through symbolic practices such as tea ceremony, Sumi-e painting, Zazen meditation, and haiku poetry. |
Abstract
Post-modernism asserts that the world as we know it does not exist independently from the symbolic interpretations we formulate about it. This symbolic and ever unfolding interpretation of reality applies to our understanding of science as well as philosophy, to religion as well as art. In striving to describe religious experiences, various cultures have developed complex symbolic languages whose purpose is to reference a culturally understood version of sacred reality as presented through religion. Religions contribute to shaping these cultural perceptions of reality by utilizing symbolic acts, objects, events, qualities, or concepts to express otherwise inexpressible elements of a culture’s cosmology and ethos. Considering this, it becomes apparent that sacred symbol system formation can be identified and traced within cultures. Analyzing Zen Buddhism from this perspective as it flourished in twelfth century Japan is particularly interesting in light of the rapid proliferation of new symbol systems emerging in its wake. These included symbolic acts such as tea ceremony, Sumi-e painting styles, Zazen meditation, and haiku poetry. By creating, or providing new reference points for, these highly symbolic acts, Zen Buddhist monks altered the ethos and world-view of medieval Japanese culture in a powerful, pervasive, and long-lasting manner. From a post-modern perspective therefore, Zen Buddhism was acting as a catalyst for sacred symbol formation in medieval Japanese society after the introduction of that society to Zen.
Comparable studies
Other theoretical and historical papers on buddhism, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mental balance and well-being: Building bridges between Buddhism and Western psychology. | 2006 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist Modernism and the Rhetoric of Meditative Experience | 1995 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Buddhist and Psychological Perspectives on Emotions and Well-Being | 2005 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| Too Early to Tell: The Potential Impact and Challenges—Ethical and Otherwise—Inherent in the Mainstreaming of Dharma in an Increasingly Dystopian World | 2017 | Theoretical or philosophical paper | |
| From self to nonself: The Nonself Theory | 2016 | Theoretical or philosophical paper |