Zen and 'cultural studies' group-think

[Randy Man]

I was very interested in Jacqui Chen's reference to a proposed biopic of
Sessue Hayakawa by Oshima that was to be entitled "Hollywood Zen". It would
have been a good title at least. Hayakawa's autobiography was titled "Zen
Showed Me the Way" (which I always used to mis-remember as "Zen Made Me Do
It"). Anyway a great idea for a film and an even greater idea for a
biography. Do any of you know of any work in progress on one or if there is
one in Japanese (that could be an apt subject for an English translation)?
What litle I know of his early Hollywood career would make a fascinating
story in any medium.

Randy Man
College of Santa Fe
----- Original Message -----
From: C. Jacqui Chen <jacqui_chen at juno.com>
To: <KineJapan at lists.acs.ohio-state.edu>
Sent: Thursday, September 02, 1999 1:03 AM
Subject: Re: Zen and 'cultural studies' group-think


> I wish to thank Joss for his very informative re-posting. This has
> reminded me of Oshima Nagisa's now-defunct project,  "Hollywood Zen",
> which was to be a biopic on Sessue Hayakawa. Although the film never
> materialized, its title clearly suggests a perpetuation of a certain idea
> of "zen" as somehow synonymous with a certain idea of "Japanese-ness"
> framed simply by its existence in the west.
>
> As for Koreeda's "Afterlife": phew! what a movie! Aside from its
> intriguing use of documentary technique to convey ideas of memory, film,
> identity...., I found it interesting that young and stoic-looking (read:
> cool) actors are chosen to carry the weight of a film that deals with
> death and mostly the elderly. Although youth certainly does not escape
> death, the photogenic leads strangely give the film a rather detached
> feeling simply due to what their attractive appearances signify. It is an
> exhilarating experience as far as self-reflexive filmmaking is concerned,
> although the concept of "heaven" in Afterlife seems imposed by the
> subtitles and altogether absent from the intended story.
>
> Jacqui Chen
>
> On Wed, 01 Sep 1999 07:33:55 +0900 "Joss Winn" <josswinn at iname.com>
> writes:
> > I am reminded that about 18 months or so ago, I posted two long
> > replies to
> > 'What is a Zen Movie'.  I post them here again for your convenience.
> >
> > Joss Winn
> >
> > Subject: Re: inq: What's a Zen movie?
> >
> > Hello, my name is Joss Winn and I'm a graduate student at the
> > University of
> > Michigan. I study Japanese Buddhism, particularly Zen, and am also a
> > student
> > this semester of Prof. Mark Nornes in his Asian Cinema class (highly
> > recommended!) I follow the discussions of KineJapan quite closely
> > but
> > haven't had much to contribute until now.
> >
> > This message is quite long and mostly concerns itself with Buddhism
> > and not
> > film. I do think, however, that it is entirely relevant to the
> > question of a
> > "Zen movie."
> >
> > With regards to "What's a Zen movie?", we first have to ask "what is
> > Zen?"
> > There is a habit in the West (I don't know about Japan) to abuse the
> > term
> > 'zen' and manipulate it for all manner of enterprises. It has an
> > exotic
> > appeal that is consistently taken advantage of. Of course, we talk
> > of 'Zen
> > art', so why not 'Zen movies'? Well, it depends on what piece of art
> > we're
> > talking about. If it's one of Hakuin's brush paintings, then yes,
> > that is
> > certainly art within the Zen Buddhist tradition. It is 'Zen art'. I
> > have no
> > problems with the use of the term 'Zen' in instances like this. It
> > is when
> > we find such things as 'Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance'
> > and 'Zen
> > and the Art of Making Lots of Cash' (I made the last one up but have
> > seen
> > these types of books). It is this abuse of the term that has led to
> > the
> > quite common remark, "oh, how very Zen!" which, if we examine what
> > Zen
> > actually was and still is in most instances, this is an entirely
> > ignorant
> > exclamation, drawing not from the Buddhist conception of Zen, but
> > from the
> > Western misconception of Zen that has developed over the last
> > century.
> >
> > I do not see myself as a Zen purist, nor am I a Zen Buddhist,
> > although I
> > have spent a brief period in Japan training at a Ryutakuji, a Rinzai
> > Zen
> > monastery in Shizuoka-ken. I also attended regular 'sittings' and
> > retreats
> > at a Zen temple in London for a few years, so I have had some
> > contact with
> > the tradition beyond books. However, it is to books that we should
> > turn if
> > we want to understand the historical development of the Western
> > conception
> > of 'Zen'. I think if we do this, it will allow us to consider
> > whether a 'Zen
> > Movie' is possible, and if so, what would it be like?
> >
> > The introduction of Zen in Europe and the USA is due almost entirely
> > to the
> > efforts of DT Suzuki, a name that many people are familiar with.
> > Suzuki
> > wrote dozens of books on Zen in English and provided the foundations
> > for
> > both the popular and scholarly understanding of Zen in the West
> > today.
> > However, in the last decade, Suzuki's works have come under
> > considerable
> > criticisim for presenting an entirely twisted sense of the Zen
> > tradition's
> > history, doctrine and practice.
> >
> > Suzuki's presentation of Zen rests largely on his position as a
> > scholar
> > during the Meiji and Taisho periods. If we read his works they
> > present the
> > essence of Zen as an experience of 'satori'or 'enlightenment'.
> > (There is a
> > problem with talking about an 'essence' in Buddhism which,
> > doctrinally,
> > argues there is no essence to anything-so how come, for Suzuki,
> > their is an
> > 'essence of Zen'?) This over emphasis on satori has been shown,
> > quite
> > convincingly, to derive from Suzuki's position as a Meiji Buddhist
> > scholar.
> >
> > During the Meiji period, Buddhism was severely persecuted for being
> > a
> > foreign tradition while the State were attempting to emphasise the
> > indigenous Shintoism as the national ethic. In response, Buddhist
> > institutions realised the need for reform and began to promote a new
> > type of
> > Buddhism, one that was no longer the rich land-owning and rather
> > stagnant
> > tradition that it had become, but rather a vibrant tradition that
> > was
> > immediately relevant to everyone. Part of their efforts were
> > directed
> > towards establishing private Buddhist Universities in order to
> > compete with
> > the new State universities. As a result of this, a new form of
> > scholarship
> > was born: Japanese Buddhology. (Interestingly, it is now the largest
> > body of
> > scholarship on Buddhism in the world). This scholarship followed the
> > Japanese model of Buddhism as being highly sectarian (in no other
> > Buddhist
> > country are different forms of Buddhism defined in terms of their
> > institutional history-usually,in other countries, all types of
> > belief and
> > practice can found within a single monastic copmpound).
> >
> > Suzuki must be understood as not only a Buddhist scholar, but also a
> > Meiji
> > scholar who was educated in a new system of education, was highly
> > susceptible to Western modes of thinking and whose own understanding
> > of Zen
> > was influenced by Western psychology and philosophy. Prof. Robert
> > Sharf of
> > the University of Michigan has done quite a convincing job of
> > showing where
> > Suzuki was coming from, who his sources of understanding were and
> > why he
> > presented Zen as he did. He shows how Suzuki's emphasis on satori,
> > or the
> > 'Zen experience' is a gross misrepresentation of Zen Buddhism if we
> > examine
> > the history of the tradition itself. In fact, Sharf argues that
> > Suzuki's
> > emphasis on satori as the quintessential Zen experience is used in
> > the
> > interests of a greater nationalistic discourse. Sharf shows how
> > Suzuki
> > defines satori as uniquely Japanese, and that Westerners are unable
> > to
> > experience it. By interpreting the Zen experience in this way,
> > Suzuki was
> > able to place both Zen and the 'enlightened' beneficiaries of that
> > tradition
> > (i.e. the entire Japanese nation) above the increasingly influential
> > Western
> > powers and the threat of imperialism.
> >
> > >From my brief time in a Zen monastery (two months during the summer
> > of 1994)
> > I found that the Zen life (as epitomized by the monastic life),has
> > very
> > little to do with what Suzuki is talking about. Rather, monks are
> > more
> > concerned with learning elaborate ritual techiniques, memorizing
> > scriptures
> > and performing the daily work routine.
> >
> > Within Buddhism, the monks and nuns are seen as absolutely essential
> > to the
> > continuation of the tradition. The monastic lifestyle provides the
> > perfect
> > example of Buddhist practice, and so I am inclined to think that if
> > we are
> > really to get a sense of what Zen is, then we must understand what
> > is going
> > on in the monastery. This is not to suggest that lay practioners are
> > not
> > practicing Zen correctly or authentically (what is authentic
> > practice
> > anyway?) but that the regulated monastic lifestyle presents the
> > ideal within
> > the tradition of what Zen is. If we are to accept this, then much of
> > the
> > Western understanding of Zen needs to be revised and Suzuki needs to
> > be put
> > back on the shelf only to be reverentially dusted once in a while.
> > Indeed
> > Suzuki was important as the populariser of Zen in the West, and he
> > presented
> > it a way that was very seductive and in terms that were very
> > recognizable.
> > But that is the problem. When Suzuki used terms like 'the Zen
> > experience',
> > he was not refering to anything found within the Zen tradition
> > itself, but
> > rather an interpretation unique to him and a few other progressive
> > scholars
> > learned in Western psychology and philosophy. Sharf goes so far to
> > say that
> > 'Suzuki's Zen is not Zen at all'. I understand what Sharf is saying,
> > but it
> > requires some elaboration (see above) and also suggests that Zen
> > doesn't
> > change. Indeed the tradition has changed, and Suzuki's influence in
> > the West
> > was admired by some Japanese priests who, realising that it was a
> > way of
> > reviving their failing tradition, adopted much of his terminology to
> > explain
> > themselves. However, for the most part, Suzuki did not significantly
> > change
> > the Zen tradition in Japan. The monks might desire satori, but for
> > the most
> > part, they are more interested in learning the professional
> > techniques in
> > order to serve their local community in the form of performing
> > funerary
> > rites.
> >
> > I do not mean to present a negative image of Zen or Japanese
> > Buddhism. On
> > the contrary, I have a great deal of admiration and interest in
> > contemporary
> > Buddhism in Japan (there is nothing wrong with performing funerary
> > rites!)
> > However, I do think it is important to understand our own
> > misunderstanding
> > of Zen, and realise that when we see a book called 'Zen and the Art
> > of
> > Making Cash' it is so far removed from what the tradition is today,
> > that
> > it's a joke.
> >
> > I have also wondered about Richie's questionable interpretation of
> > Ozu when
> > he describes the "empty moments" in his films as examples of "mu, a
> > Zen
> > aesthetic term implying, among other things, nothingness" Without
> > getting
> > into the details of Buddhist philosophy, we should note that as a
> > Zen term,
> > Mu is a strictly soteriological term indeed referring to
> > 'emptiness',
> > although not 'nothingness'. It would appear that Richie is saying
> > that in
> > one sense, Ozu's films are 'Zen Movies', and perhaps Ozu did have an
> > interest in Zen. Yet, it is quite likely that both Richie and Ozu
> > would have
> > received their understanding of Zen from popular books either by
> > Suzuki or
> > by others influenced by him and not from the tradition itself.
> >
> > So what, if it is possible, is a Zen Movie? Surely not one full of
> > empty
> > moments-that would be a cliche long since given up by contemporary
> > Zen
> > scholars. What is Zen? It's a Buddhist tradition in which monks (and
> > a few
> > nuns) concern themselves with rituals of some sort or another. They
> > meditate
> > (a ritual), chant scripture, worship the Buddha and a whole lineage
> > of
> > patriarchs going back to the Buddha, they perform funerary rites, go
> > on
> > alms, spend a great deal of time cleaning and maintaining their
> > monastery
> > and provide a center for the local community to practice generosity
> > (by
> > giving gifts to the monks) and learn about the history of Buddhism,
> > and the
> > basic teachings of the Buddha. Occasionally a temple might offer
> > classes in
> > mediation, although this is rare. Zen is also a Buddhist tradition
> > with
> > which the laity might concern themselves when a family member dies,
> > or as a
> > place to go for New Year's celebrations. Of course, a very small
> > minority of
> > the laity also meditate at home, at a local temple or during week
> > long
> > monastic retreats. Yet most of the time, the lay Zen Buddhist
> > performs daily
> > reverence to the family ancestors at the Butsudan (the domestic
> > shrine) and
> > is not concerned with emptiness or enlightenment.
> >
> > Aside from studying Buddhism, I am also interested in making films
> > and would
> > love to combine my interest in Zen Buddhism and film-making. To be a
> > Zen
> > film, it would have to be a Buddhist film; that is, it would somehow
> > include
> > themes of suffering, the absence of self, the persistence of life
> > due to
> > past good and bad actions, and the opportunity to stop this
> > continuation of
> > life and simultaneously help others do so too. We may ask, "would it
> > have a
> > happy or sad ending?" Theoretically, it couldn't possibly have a
> > truely
> > happy ending because the audience would still be left in the
> > theatres as the
> > credits roll, evidence that there are still suffering Beings present
> > in the
> > world. Yet it needn't have a sad ending either since the fact that
> > Buddhism
> > still exists in the world (testified by the very creation of our Zen
> > film),
> > means that there is still the opportunity for all Beings to attain
> > nirvana/enlightenment. Perhaps there should be no ending to the
> > film, just
> > as there is no ending to the cycle of death and rebirth without
> > enlightenment (I would not suggest that my film could enlighten
> > anyone!) By
> > having no ending, the audience would naturally be frustrated and
> > have the
> > opportunity to reflect on suffering as they watch the credits!
> >
> > Well, I hope those that have bothered to read this far can
> > understand my
> > irritation with the popular use of the term 'Zen'. When I first saw
> > "Zen
> > movies", I imagined empty moments of silence and motorcycle
> > maintenance, and
> > I'm very bored of coming across that.
> >
> > Joss
> >
> >
> >
> > ============
> >
> > Date: Mon, 17 Nov 1997
> >
> > From: Josiah Luke Winn
> >
> > Subject: Re: inq: What's a Zen movie?
> >
> > There is a brief bibliography at the end of my message.
> >
> > Sybil Thornton wrote:
> >
> > "I think, we should look at Zen film less from the perspective of
> > the
> > product than from the perspective of its production and reproduction
> > of its
> > tradition. I don't think there is any such thing as Zen film. There
> > is
> > however a process for training filmmakers and performers
> > characterized by a
> > preconceived model of form and diction and a rigorous apprenticeship
> > under a
> > master."
> >
> > It would seem that I am not the only one to consider Robert Sharf's
> > work on
> > Zen as useful for this discussion (strange,in that he wouldn't
> > regard
> > himself as a Zen scholar). When I initially responded to Paul's
> > question, I
> > also wrote that I didn't think there was such a thing as a Zen film,
> > but
> > then decided to omit this, thinking that I was being a little too
> > hasty.
> >
> > When I wrote last time, I wanted to detract from the rather crude
> > efforts of
> > a 'Zen style' of film that lingers on emptiness and silence, and
> > suggest a
> > 'fuller' film style, one that I think reflects more accurately, the
> > zen
> > lifestyle. I should add something at this point following David
> > Desser's
> > comment: "'the Zen of everyday life' wherein one lives fully, in the
> > moment,
> > totally dedicated to whatever it is one is doing." Admittedly this
> > kind of
> > remark is found in every popular book on Zen, yet it is by no means
> > unique
> > to Zen. Every Buddhist tradition would include this as an essential
> > practice. It's this kind of misunderstanding that we need to be
> > aware of
> > when talking about Zen. There is, in fact, little that distinguishes
> > it from
> > any other Buddhist tradition except for an obsession with it's
> > patriarchal
> > geneaology and a greater emphasis placed on meditation-although not
> > in all
> > cases.
> >
> > Clearly, if we are to make a 'zen film', we should be aware of what
> > Zen is,
> > and understand the rhetorical moves often found within the
> > tradition. The
> > Zen tradition is fortunate in many ways, that it had such a
> > charismatic
> > spokesperson to represent it in the West (Suzuki). In Japan the
> > situation is
> > different of course. Zen is just another Buddhist sect and far from
> > being
> > the most popular. It's influence on the arts derives mostly from
> > it's
> > political connections during the Muromachi period, and not because
> > there is
> > something intrinsically unique to it that defines the Japanese. Much
> > of our
> > understanding of Zen and Japanese culture comes from Suzuki's book
> > of that
> > title, a book which although still in print, is now the subject of
> > much
> > criticism today among scholarly circles.
> >
> > My knowledge of art within the Zen tradition is very slim, and
> > although I
> > have criticised the emphasis on Zen emptiness, silence, minimalism,
> > etc.
> > these are features that we can identify in traditional Zen arts.
> > Indeed if
> > one were to go to a Zen monastery one would see that there is very
> > little
> > ornament, especially compared to, say, a Shingon monastery. Yet,
> > minimalism
> > isn't the exclusive property of the Zen tradition, nor is emptiness.
> > We
> > should remember that Buddhism is an ascetic tradition and that this
> > lifestyle demands a certain amount of minimalism (admittedly few
> > Japanese
> > priests would seem to follow this). The emphasis on emptiness is
> > also by no
> > means exclusive to Zen. It has been the central philosophical
> > doctrine of
> > the entire East Asian Buddhist tradition since it's arrival in China
> > in the
> > 2nd century.
> >
> > Obviously there is a Zen aesthetic, yet how we translate that onto
> > film I'm
> > not quite sure. How significant should we deem it anyway?
> > Surely,there would
> > be more to a Zen film that it's immediate sensual properties. I do
> > remember
> > enjoying Bae Yong-Kyun's film but am inclined to think that Paul's
> > original
> > question was referring more to Zen style than a film explicitly
> > about Zen.
> > As I have mentioned, I am more interested in considering what a Zen
> > narrative would consist of, what themes would it address?
> >
> > With regards to Markus' comment: "Yes, but perhaps more important
> > for this
> > discussion is the function of Zen in popular culture; this is
> > basically what
> > we are dealing with when it comes to the cinema question. This helps
> > us
> > sidestep questions which you begin to raise on "authentic"
> > traditions. A
> > better approach is to think of practice, its appearance in popular
> > culture
> > being one important form that may have absolutely nothing to do with
> > what
> > goes on in the monasteries."
> >
> > To do this we have to consider whether we are talking about Zen in
> > the USA
> > or Zen in Japan. The two are quite different. I'm not sure if I
> > should
> > really attempt to answer how Zen functions in either culture as I
> > have only
> > spent a couple of months in Japan, and most of this was in a
> > monastery.
> > Neither am I qualified to talk much about Zen in the USA, as I'm
> > really only
> > a visitor here. In Japan, there are a few opportunities for the
> > populace to
> > practice Zen meditation outside of the monastery. It is also common
> > for Zen
> > monasteries to encourage companies to send groups of business men to
> > do week
> > long intensive retreats. The retreat I did had twenty or so business
> > men
> > there, most of whom had never meditated before. Their company was
> > also kind
> > enough to provide cakes and buns for everyone each day! Anyway, I
> > will leave
> > Zen and popular culture to someone else for now. It has been my
> > intention to
> > point out the misunderstanding many Westerners (and even some
> > Japanese) have
> > about the term 'Zen'and to encourage a more 'enlightened' (sorry!)
> > perspective. I really think it could be much more interesting than
> > what we
> > have had up to now. It would also allow us to appreciate the
> > richness of the
> > tradition beyond the usual spin on emptiness and minimalism. Unlike
> > Sybil, I
> > do think that a 'Zen film' is possible, one that communicates issues
> > found
> > within the tradition without a reliance on overt symbolism and empty
> > imagery
> > and yet offers Zen answers or a Zen perspective on life through the
> > use of
> > narrative in a subtle and familiar way. Since it is a religious
> > tradition,
> > it should be relevant to all aspects of life, offering suggestions
> > and
> > guidance. Neither would the film rest on the pretence of offering
> > the viewer
> > a glimpse of enlightenment (within the Zen traditon, enlightenment
> > is handed
> > down and certified individually from master to disciple, something a
> > film-maker could not do).
> >
> >
> > Joss
> >
> > p.s. here's the brief bibliography:
> >
> >  Faure, B. 1995. 'The Kyoto School and Reverse Orientalism.' Japan
> > in
> > Traditional and Postmodern Perspectives. Eds. Charles Wei-hsun Fu
> > and Steven
> > Heine. Albany: SUNY.
> >
> >  --- 1993. Chan Insights and Oversights. New Jersey: Princeton
> > University
> > Press.
> >
> >  --- 1991. The Rhetoric of Immediacy. New Jersey: Princeton
> > University
> > Press.
> >
> >  Foulk, T.G. 1988. 'The Zen Institution in Modern Japan' Zen
> > Tradition and
> > Transition. Ed. Kenneth Kraft. New York: Grove Press. 157-177.
> >
> >  Ketelaar, James Edward. 1990. Of Heretics and Martyrs in Meiji
> > Japan.
> > Buddhism and its Persecution. New Jersey: Princeton University
> > Press.
> >
> >  Sharf, Robert H. 1995. 'The Zen of Japanese Nationalism.' Curators
> > of the
> > Buddha: The study of Buddhism Under Colonialism. Ed. D. Lopez Jnr.
> > Chicago:
> > Chicago University Press.
> >
> >  --- 1994. 'Whose Zen? Zen Nationalism Revisited' Rude Awakenings.
> > Zen, the
> > Kyoto School & the Question of Nationalism. Eds. James W. Heisig &
> > John C.
> > Maraldo, University of Hawaii Press, Honolulu.
> >
> >  Stone, J. 1990. 'A Vast and Grave Task: Interwar Buddhist Studies
> > as an
> > Expression of Japan's Envisioned Global Role.' Culture and Identity:
> > Japanese Intellectuals During the Interwar Years. Ed. Rimer, J.T.
> > New
> > Jersey: Princeton University Press.
> >
> >  Suzuki, D.T. 1953. 'Zen: A Reply to Hu Shih.' Philosophy East and
> > West. 3:
> > 25-46.
> >
> >
>
> _____________________________________________________
> FARMERS are miserly, craven, mean, stupid, murderous beasts.
> (tears in his eyes) You make me laugh so hard I'm crying.
> But then, who made animals out of them?
> You...all of you damned samurai.
>
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