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I saw an article on the Internet about the fact that Buddhism is compared to solipsism or nihilism.

In particular, they talked about Japanese and Chinese Buddhism, since the teachings of Yogacara are present there. On this I want to ask questions about these schools.

My questions:

  1. Do the schools of Buddhism Soto, Rinzai, Jodo-shu, Jodo Shinshu, Nichiren, Shingon in Japan teach Buddhists, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas any varieties of solipsism and any varieties of nihilism?

  2. Do the schools of Buddhism Chan, Pure Land in China teach Buddhists, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas any varieties of solipsism and any varieties of nihilism?

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  • Hello and Welcome to Buddhism Q&A. I must say, you are asking a very broad question about 8 schools of Buddhism, looking to identify "any" parallels with two western philosophical ideas without giving their precise definitions. This will be hard-to-impossible to answer well.
    – Andriy Volkov ♦
    Commented Aug 19, 2021 at 19:42
  • Do the schools of Buddhism Soto, Rinzai, Jodo-shu, Jodo Shinshu, Nichiren, Shingon in Japan teach Buddhists, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to deny that other people have individual minds? Do the schools of Buddhism Chan, Pure Land in China teach Buddhists, Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to deny that other people have individual minds?
    – Jack
    Commented Aug 19, 2021 at 19:50
  • There are several topics about "solipsism" asked on this site already, maybe the best is What are other peoples minds according to the Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra? (which is tagged yogacara).
    – ChrisW ♦
    Commented Aug 19, 2021 at 20:18
  • There are already multiple other questions that asked whether Buddhism is solipsism (or not) and whether Buddhism is nihilism (or not). Are there reasons why you think Japanese and Chinese schools of Buddhism are any different from Buddhism in general, with regards to nihilism and solipsism? Also, why mix nihilism and solipsism in one question?
    – ruben2020 ♦
    Commented Aug 20, 2021 at 2:11
  • I think the question is barely on-topic also, I mean I think it is on-topic but only barely. Our rule for "comparative religion" questions (for example) is that the question must be at least as much asking about Buddhism as it is about whatever religion it's being compared with -- whereas this questions seems to be more about solipsism and nihilism and less about Buddhism. And the question might be clearer, more focussed, if you cited and quoted the article, and asked something about that quote (like whether it's true, or something like that).
    – ChrisW ♦
    Commented Aug 20, 2021 at 6:08

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I think the answer is probably "no" to the question about nihilism and Japan.

There's this story for example, where the protagonist, Dokuon, is Rinzai rōshi.

Nothing Exists

Yamaoka Tesshu, as a young student of Zen, visited one master after another. He called upon Dokuon of Shokoku.

Desiring to show his attainment, he said: “The mind, Buddha, and sentient beings, after all, do not exist. The true nature of phenomena is emptiness. There is no realization, no delusion, no sage, no mediocrity. There is no giving and nothing to be received.”

Dokuon, who was smoking quietly, said nothing. Suddenly he whacked Yamaoka with his bamboo pipe. This made the youth quite angry.

“If nothing exists,” inquired Dokuon, “where did this anger come from?”

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