Japanese Buddhism

The introduction of Buddhism to Japan resulted in the creation of temples, monasteries, paintings, and sculptures of extraordinary artistic achievement.

Learning Objective

Create a timeline of the introduction of Buddhism and the development of Buddhist art in Japan, from the 6th through the 16th centuries.

Key Points

Before the introduction of Buddhism, Japan had already been the seat of various cultural and artistic influences.
The Japanese were introduced to Buddhism in the 6th century, when missionary monks traveled to the islands together with numerous scriptures and works of art. The Buddhist religion was adopted by the state in the following century.
Countless paintings and sculptures were made, often under governmental sponsorship. Indian, Hellenistic, Chinese, and Korean artistic influences blended into an original style characterized by realism and gracefulness.
Japan developed an extremely rich figurative art for the pantheon of Buddhist deities, sometimes combined with Hindu and Shinto influences.
From the 12th and 13th centuries, a further development was that of Zen art, which reached its apogee in the Muromachi Period (1337 - 1573) following the introduction of the faith by Dogen and Eisai upon their return from China.

Terms

haniwa
Terracotta clay figures made for ritual use and buried with the dead as funerary objects during the Kofun period (3rd to 6th century CE) of the history of Japan
Myōan Eisai
(1141 – 1215) A Japanese Buddhist priest, credited with bringing the Rinzai school of Zen Buddhism and green tea from China to Japan.
Dōgen Zenji
(1200 – 1253) A Japanese Zen Buddhist teacher born in Kyōto who founded the Sōtō school of Zen in Japan after travelling to China.
Silk Road
An extensive interconnected network of trade routes across Asia, North and Northeast Africa, and Europe, historically used by silk traders.
Zen
A philosophy of calm reminiscent of that of the Buddhist denomination.

Full Text

Buddhism Reaches Japan

Before the introduction of Buddhism, Japan had already been the seat of various cultural and artistic influences, from the abstract linear decorative art of the indigenous Neolithic Jōmon (10500 BCE to 300 BCE), to the pottery and bronze of the Yayoi period and the Haniwa art (terracotta clay figures used as funerary objects) of the Kofun period. The Japanese were introduced to Buddhism in the 6^th century CE, when missionary monks traveled to the islands together with numerous scriptures and works of art. The Buddhist religion was adopted by the state in the following century. Located geographically at the end of the Silk Road, Japan was able to preserve many aspects of Buddhism at the very time it was disappearing in India and being suppressed in Central Asia and China.

Buddhist Art

From 711, numerous temples and monasteries were built in the capital city of Nara, including a five-story pagoda, the Golden Hall of the Horyuji, and the Kōfuku-ji temple. Countless paintings and sculptures were made, often under governmental sponsorship. Indian, Hellenistic, Chinese, and Korean artistic influences blended into an original style characterized by its realism and gracefulness.

Kōfuku-ji

Five-story pagoda and Tōkondō.

The creation of Japanese Buddhist art was especially rich between the 8^th and 13^th centuries during the periods of Nara, Heian, and Kamakura. Japan developed an extremely rich figurative art for the pantheon of Buddhist deities, sometimes combined with Hindu and Shinto influences. This art tends to be very varied, creative, and bold.

The Asura in Kōfuku-ji, Nara (734)

A sculpture of an Asura, a type of supernatural being in traditional Buddhist cosmology.

Zen Art

From the 12^th and 13^th centuries, art in Japan further developed through the introduction of Zen art, which reached its apogee in the Muromachi Period (1337 - 1573), following the introduction of the faith by Dōgen Zenji and Myōan Eisai upon their return from China. Zen art is primarily characterized by original paintings (such as sumi-e) and poetry (especially haikus) that strive to express the true essence of the world through impressionistic and unadorned representations. The search for enlightenment in the moment also led to the development of other important derivative arts in Japan, such as the Chanoyu tea ceremony or the Ikebana art of flower arrangement. This evolution went as far as to consider almost any human activity as an art with a strong spiritual and aesthetic content, first and foremost in those activities related to combat techniques (martial arts).

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Grave Goods in the Kofun Period

Horyuji Temple

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