Zen

This article is about an introductory overview of the school of Buddhism. For Chan/Zen Buddhism in China, see Chan Buddhism. For Japanese Chan/Zen, see Japanese Zen. For the TV series, see Zen (TV series). For other uses, see Zen (disambiguation).

"Zenshu" redirects here. For the TV series, see Zenshu (TV series). For city in South Korea formerly known as "Zenshu", see Jeonju.

Zen
Chinese name
Traditional Chinese	禪
Simplified Chinese	禅
Transcriptions Standard Mandarin Hanyu Pinyin Chán Wade–Giles Ch'an2 IPA [ʈʂʰǎn] Hakka Pha̍k-fa-sṳ Sàm Yue: Cantonese Jyutping Sim4 Southern Min Hokkien POJ Siân Tâi-lô Siân Middle Chinese Middle Chinese dʑjen
Vietnamese name
Vietnamese alphabet	Thiền
Chữ Hán	禪
Korean name
Hangul	선
Hanja	禪
Transcriptions Revised Romanization Seon
Japanese name
Kanji	禅
Kana	ぜん
Transcriptions Romanization Zen

Eiheiji gate

Zen (Japanese pronunciation: [dzeꜜɴ, dzeɴ]; from Chinese: Chan; in Korean: Seon, and Vietnamese: Thiền) is a Mahayana Buddhist tradition that developed in China during the Tang dynasty by blending Indian Mahayana Buddhism, particularly Yogacara and Madhyamaka philosophies, with Chinese Taoist thought, especially Neo-Daoist. Zen originated as the Chan school (禪宗, Chanzōng, 'meditation school') or the Buddha-mind school (佛心宗, fóxīnzōng), and later developed into various sub-schools and branches.

Chan is traditionally believed to have been brought to China by the semi-legendary figure Bodhidharma, who was an Indian (or Central Asian) monk. From China, Chan spread south to Vietnam and became Vietnamese Thiền, northeast to Korea to become Seon Buddhism, and east to Japan, becoming Japanese Zen.

Zen emphasizes meditation practice, direct insight into one's own Buddha nature (見性, Ch. jiànxìng, Jp. kenshō), and the personal expression of this insight in daily life for the benefit of others. Some Zen sources de-emphasize doctrinal study and traditional practices, favoring direct understanding through zazen and interaction with a master (Jp: rōshi, Ch: shīfu) who may be depicted as an iconoclastic and unconventional figure. In spite of this, most Zen schools also promote traditional Buddhist practices like chanting, precepts, walking meditation, rituals, monasticism and scriptural study.

With an emphasis on Buddha-nature thought, intrinsic enlightenment and sudden awakening, Zen teaching draws from numerous Buddhist sources, including Sarvāstivāda meditation, the Mahayana teachings on the bodhisattva, Yogachara and Tathāgatagarbha texts (like the Laṅkāvatāra), and the Huayan school. The Prajñāpāramitā literature, as well as Madhyamaka thought, have also been influential in the shaping of the apophatic and sometimes iconoclastic nature of Zen rhetoric.