依仁游藝，藝與道合：初探曉雲導師的禪畫意境哲思=Practicing Art with Benevolence and Combining Art with Buddhism ― A Preliminary Exploration on the Artistic Conception Philosophical Thinking of Master Hiu-wan's Ch’an Paintings
曉雲導師=Master Hiu-wan; 覺性=Perception; 禪心=Ch′an Mind; 依於仁=Let Perfect Virtue be Accorded with. Let Relaxation; 游於藝=Enjoyment be Found in the Polite Arts; 藝與道合=Combining Art with Buddhism
Chinese culture has been passed down for more than 5,000 years, and Chinese artistic development has been significantly affected by the Prajñā (wisdom) thinking of “emptiness” and “existence” of Buddhist Ch′an. In particular, the subsequent literati paintings excel in improving the artistic conception and aesthetics of emptiness. Master Hiu-wan was the founder of Huafan University, as well as a Prajñā (wisdom) practitioner combining literature with education, art, philosophical thinking, and religion. She devoted herself to promoting the “education of perception” of the Buddha, and realized the sophisticated meanings of “combining art with Buddhism” and “Buddhism can be practiced through art” with her own profound Ch′an studies and art of painting. She practiced Ch′an using her paintings to elaborate the profound meanings of “perception” and “Ch′an mind” of Ch′an, as well as to ultimately benefit and rescue general public. Firstly, this study probed into the rise of Buddhist art in India and development of Chinese Buddhist art. Secondly, this study interpreted the 3 characteristics of artistic conception and aesthetics in the south school landscape paintings from the artistic aesthetics theories in Artistic Conception Aesthetics and Hermeneutics “vivid charm,”“sophisticated void-solid phenomenon,” and “learning of the nature.” Besides, this study also attempted to understand the 3 links of Ch′an’s artistic conception aesthetics: the artistic experiencing of “embodiment of self-essence” of “realization” of Ch′an, the artistic image of “sophisticated phenomenon of avoid-solid coexistence” of “absent without leave” of Ch′an, and the artistic truth of “realization of local scenery” of “the present” of Ch′an. Afterwards, this study investigated the learning concept and process of Master Hiu-wan's Ch′an paintings and her discourses about the essences and perception of artistic conception aesthetics of Ch′an paintings, such as: Ch′an paintings, and sutra painting. Hopefully, this study can associate the artistic conception and aesthetic ideas of artistic works of Master Hiu-wan's “Buddhism can be practiced through art and combining art with Buddhism” with Confucius’ Confucian idea “Let the will be set on the path of duty. Let every attainment in what is good be firmly grasped. Let perfect virtue be accorded with. Let relaxation and enjoyment be found in the polite arts” to perform theoretical research, analysis, summary, comparison, and objective analysis and investigation, and arrange context and directions for interpretation.
