The ten oxherding pictures as the way of Zen
The picture and poem series by the Chinese Zen master Guoan
Shiyuan is unique in the history of mysticism. Nowhere else has the
spiritual path been described in such a simple and profound
way.
In the 12th and 13th centuries, Chinese Zen Buddhism made use of
picture and poem series to illustrate the spiritual path to
enlightenment with the aid of the motifs of ox and circle. The
circle symbolises the final enlightenment, nirvana, and the ox the
true self of the disciple. In Zen Buddhism, becoming Buddha means
nothing else than to contemplate one's own nature.
The herdboy in Guoan's series is initially stumbling in the
dark. He does not know what he seeks. On his path he must overcome
various obstacles before he can catch the ox and take him home. The
awakening to the true self, the 'insight into one's own essential
nature', only happens when the self is forgotten. At this point,
the series could end with the nirvana circle which symbolises
perfect enlightenment. But instead Guoan adds two more pictures to
show that only after the awakening can one see everything as it
truly is. In the last picture, the enlightened adept, beaming with
joy, strolls as a Bodhisattva out into the world's hustle and
bustle and another herdboy crosses his path.