The circle has always been an important symbol in Buddhism, especially in Zen. The painted Zen circle or enso symbolizes many things, among them the enlightened state of being, the emptiness and fullness of all things, the circle of life, and the consciousness of the one painting it.
It is said the consciousness of an enlightened one painting such circles is captured in the energy of the painting. This is why enlightened Zen teachers have often painted such circles to give to their students. It is another form of energetic transmission.
In our Zen tradition, we sit in circles, eat in circles, chant in circles and walk in circles. When I taught in public school, behavior problems ended when I had the students sit in a circle. The students intuitively knew that this was a more natural way to be together.
And the circle is not only revered by Buddhists and public school students. Native American Medicine Man, Black Elk, eloquently describes how all of life reveres the circle.
“Everything the power of the world does is done in a circle. The sky is round, and I have heard that the earth is round like a ball, and so are all the stars. The wind, in its greatest power, whirls. Birds make their nests in circles, for theirs is the same religion as ours. The sun comes forth and goes down again in a circle. The moon does the same, and both are round. Even the seasons form a great circle in their changing, and always come back again to where they were. The life of a man is a circle from childhood to childhood, and so it is in everything where power moves. Our tipis are round like the nests of birds, and these are always set in a circle, the nation’s hoop, a nest of many nests, where the Great Spirit meant for us to hatch our children. But the Wasichus have put us in square boxes. Our power is gone and we are dying, for the power is not in us any more.”
– Black Elk
Those of us who feel the power of universal energy understand the great power that circles hold. Maybe someday all classrooms will return to the circle, where we once again remember that all beings are precious and none more important than any other. May these Zen circles bring you back to your own true power.
I cannot tell you where the energy embodied in these paintings comes from. I simply get out of the way. I empty my mind of all thoughts and intentions and the paintings arise by themselves. That is the source of their power. That is the practice of Zen Art.
Click on any small image that calls to you to see a larger image on its image page. If you are interested, you will also find information and prices for buying a print of that image.
Enjoy your journey.
Zen Circle Five
This is one of the first Zen circles I painted. It has become very popular. I painted this in a very deep meditative state so there is a strong energy of transmission in it. Over three hundred prints of this image have been sold so far. Click on the image to see a larger image and get more information.
Wave Enso
The wave is not the ocean, nor is the ocean the wave. Yet wave and ocean cannot be separated. Neither able to stand by themselves alone, what then is wave or ocean?
Bodhidharma’s Enso
“A special transmission outside the scriptures,
With no reliance on words and letters
A direct pointing to the human mind,
And the realization of enlightenment.”
– Bodhidharma, The First Zen Ancestor
Enso Sculpture
From the Organic Origami Series. Sculptures made from torn, distressed and manipulated paper towels. Like the paintings, each sculpture emerges free of intention and thought, the practice of Zen Art.
