Zen-Boeddhistiese selfloosheid as sentrale interteks van die Breytenbach-oeuvre

Abstract

Zen-Boeddhistiese selfloosheid as sentrale interteks van die Breytenbach-oeuvre A b stract The a im o f this article is tw ofold:* T o p o s tu la te th e B u d d h is t n o tio n o f se lfle s s n e s s a s ce n tra l to th e art a n d w riting o f BreytenBreytenbach. * T o provide an overview o f the p h ilo so p h y this im plies a n d o f the w ay in w hich it offers a reading o f the Breytenbach-oeuvre. T he B uddhist concept o f selflessness as expressed in the work o f Breytenbach is by way o f contrast firstly set against th e b a c k g ro u n d o f th e m o re fa m ilia r W estern p h ilo so p h ic a l tradition, a n d then an a lysed within the context o f B u d d h ist experiences such as Sunyata, Satori, Z a ze n a n d th e T aoist prin cip le o f relativity to w hich it is inexorably linked. In doing s o an a ttem p t is m a d e to fu lfil a n ee d that becam e apparant fr o m d iscu ssio n s with colleagues a n d (post)graduate stu dents: A lth o u g h Z e n -B u d d h ism in genera l h a s lo n g been acc ep ted a s a p rim a ry intertext o f th e B reyten ba ch oeuvre, a n d a lth o u g h it is c o m m o n practice to refer to notions such as Satori, Z azen a n d the V oid when studying h is work, it is n ot always clear in which way the B u d d h ist p h ilo so p h y is pertinent to the creative p rocess a s such, be it that o f creative writing or painting. T o construe th e presence o f B uddhist term inoloy in th e Breytenbach text as a m ere to o l f o r the unfolding o f p lo t o r as an attem pt to define h is writing as m oralistic o r m ystical is an unfortunate m isconception. In addition to the fo c u s on B uddhist selflessness a n d the way in which it is reflected in B reytenbach's work, this article therefore offers s o m e suggestions o n the w ay in w hich an u nd erstanding o f B u d d h ist principles can serve as elucidation o f th e n a tu re o f th eBreytenbach oeuvre a n d the creative experience as such.