A while ago we had a brief discussion of this book. Peter A. was
interested in its allegations of ties between Zen and bonsai
which he, after extensive study has failed to discover, and I
after a cursory look, tend to agree.

Anyway, my local Barnes and Noble had a copy and since the price
is reasonably reasonable I bought it.

I don't know the ethnicity of the author, Chye Tan, but he lives
in The Netherlands and that country has a very long history with
S.E. Asia (Indonesia).

Anyway, the book opens with 15-16 pages of a "Zen Bonsai"
gallery, with a short explanation of the "Zen Qualities" in the
caption for each tree. For a massive (and very nice) Ficus
religiosa, the "Zen Quality" was: "The sturdy, ribbed trunk is
riddled with dimpled depressions and clefts. It displays an
imposing grandeur, which signifies righteousness."

The pictured bonsai are all quite acceptable specimens; several
are very nice. The "Zen Qualities" of a very likeable, slender,
upright Chamaecyparis was: "The entrancing, drooping foliage of a
weeping tree evokes melancholy as well as enchantment."

In a chapter expounding on the relationship of Zen and bonsai,
the author notes the amount that Zen "borrowed" (or was given)
from Taoist philosophy as it was developing in China. He
continues, noting that after Zen Buddhism reached Japan, "(I)t
had a profound effect on painting, calligraphy, poetry, and the
tea ceremony, bringing with it an emphasis on simplicity and
austerity, subtlety, and tranquility. Garden design, ikebana
(the art of flower arrangement) and bonsai also evolved under its
influence."

I have found one other reference to Zen and Bonsai in Beasley's
"The Japanese Experience." However, neither this author nor
Beasley provide any references for the statement.

Anyway, in this book, the Zen references are more in the line of
"armchair Zen" than anything particularly philosophical (at least
in MY opinion).

Is the book worth the $25 I spent on it? I think so. Just.
There's more on design and less on the "how-to" basics that are
covered endlessly in other books (although how-to isn't ignored
here). Since design is less frequently (or well) covered
elsewhere in bonsai literature, that makes this book worthwhile.

FWIW, _I_ believe that the roots of bonsai (or, rather,
decorative trees grown in pots) are much more likely to rest in
Taoism than in Buddhism. However, there are so many close ties
between Taoism, Confucianism, and Buddhism and they're all so
long ago and so tied up in myth, who can know? Taoism, of
course, pre-dates either of the others.

Peter, if you ever see the book I would really like to hear your
impression.

Jim Lewis - - Tallahassee, FL - The Great
Tao flows everywhere. Its course can go left or right. The ten
thousand things depend on it for growth, and it does not refuse
them. - From the "Tao-te Ching"

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