What was one cultural contribution to Japanese society that came from china?

Answer 1

One major contribution is Buddhism. Although originally from India, Buddhism developed in its own right in China before being embraced in Japan. In Japan Buddhism was further assimilated into the Japanese culture through the development of distinctly Japanese sects such as the Jodo (pure land) branches, as well as the way the new religion was practiced side by side with the old Shinto religion.

If you want a contribution that originally started in China, a good example is tea. Tea is now a part of everyday Japanese culture, and it has deep roots in zen philosophy as well. This is because the original Japanese tea ceremony, developed by Sen no Rikyu, was a developed as a reaction to what the zen-worshiping Rikyu saw as an overly ostentatious show of Chinese extravagance. Rikyu's new style, which focused on the grace and beauty of simple movements with simple tools, became a traditional Japanese art. The Chinese origins are still visible though: for example, when tea was brought over to Japan, the Chinese style at the time was to crush the whole leaves into a powder then whisk the powder into hot water to make tea, and that is still the way the "matcha" in the tea ceremony is prepared today, despite the more popular brewing method being more common everywhere else.