Like karma, Zen has become a popular internet buzzword. Facebook is full of pictures of people enjoying a relaxing walk, their breakfast or a cup of coffee, tagging it as their moment of Zen. Most of the time the photos that subscribe themselves to Zen have bastardized the word, its meaning and simply point out the original poster’s ignorance on the topic. So what is Zen? In reality Zen is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that originated during the Tang dynasty in China. It’s an entire body of religious study which has a host of different practices; meditation, daily liturgy services, funerals, etc. Like other religions, Zen has influenced art and literature, including books by noted western philosopher Alan Watts. 
When we think about Zen in aquascape, often the first name to pop into mind is Takashi Amano, whose freshwater designs changed our perception of aquariums. Amano was able to create natural landscapes so authentic, from a distance they couldn’t be differentiated from mountain ranges, rivers and thick bamboo forests. What about Zen on the marine side of things? Has it been attempted? Is it as simple as re-creating a natural reef? Given the teachings of Zen, which include consciously understanding that everything is connected and that “just being” is a natural state, are all reef tanks in some way representative of Zen? In the west:
In the west Zen is often thought as a moment of relaxation, or mental clarity. It’s often connected with unwinding, settling and reflecting on the day (or perhaps life in general). In some ways these are accurate representations, but when trying to incorporate Zen into aquascaping the rabbit hole proves a bit deeper. Sometimes in the west a well pruned reef tank, or perhaps one where corals and rock are shaped like a bonsai tree are tagged a “Zen reef.” While they are certainly attractive, they don’t necessarily incorporate the fundamentals of Zen, at least not like some of Amano’s striking aquascapes. Here in the United States, we have the terrible tendency of dumbing things down to sound bites, video clips and catch phrases. Much of our Zen inspired lifestyle (which ranges from clothing, to headphones, on up to dinnerware) has taken thousands of years of intensive study and reduced it to stylish emblems and simple designs. If we want to truly bring a notion of Zen into our reef aquariums, it may be vital to study the freshwater side of the hobby, unlocking the intricacies of carefully crafted Zen scenes.… More:
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