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Chan is the originating tradition of Zen Buddhism (the Japanese pronunciation of the same character, which is the most commonly used English name for the school). Chan Buddhism spread from China south to Vietnam as Thiền and north to Korea as Seon, and, in the 13th century, east to Japan as Japanese Zen .
- Brief History
- Schools of Chan
- Spread of Chan Buddhism in Asia
- See Also
- Sources
Origins
Prior to the formal establishment of the Chan form of Buddhism, the title chan-shi ("meditation master") was used to refer to a small group of monks who specialized in the meditation.According to Buswell and Lopez: 1. Some of these specialists adopted the term chan as the formal name of their community (Chan zong), perhaps sometime during the sixth or seventh centuries. These early “Chan” communities gathered around a number of charismatic teachers who were later considered to be “patriarchs”...
Philosophical basis
Rupert Gethindescribes the philosophical basis of Chan as follows: 1. Bodhidharma is said to have emphasized the teachings of the Lankavatara Sutra, and the theoretical basis of Ch’an centres on the notions of the tathāgatagarbha and ‘emptiness’ as pointing beyond all conceptual forms of thought. Our innermost nature is simply the Buddha-nature (fo-hsing) which is to be realized in a direct and sudden experience of inner awakening (wu/satori). Peter Harveystates: 1. The philosophical backgrou...
Around the ninth century in China, there were five schools of Chan. But following a government suppression of Buddhism in 842, only two schools emerged: 1. Linji (Lin Chi; Japanese Rinzai) 1.1. Founded by Linji (died 867). 1.2. Emphasized the use of gong-ans (koans), direct methods in teacher-student interviews, and 'sudden awakening' 2. Cao-dong (...
Thiền in Vietnam
According to traditional accounts of Vietnam, in 580 an Indian monk named Vinītaruci (Vietnamese: Tì-ni-đa-lưu-chi) travelled to Vietnam after completing his studies with Sengcan, the third patriarch of Chinese Chan. This, then, would be the first appearance of Thiền Buddhism. Other early Thiền schools included that of Wu Yantong (Chinese: 無言通; Vietnamese: Vô Ngôn Thông), which was associated with the teachings of Mazu Daoyi, and the Thảo Đường (Caodong), which incorporated nianfochanting tec...
Seon in Korea
Seon was gradually transmitted into Korea during the late Silla period (7th through 9th centuries) as Korean monks of predominantly Hwaeom (Hangul: 화엄종; Hanja: 華嚴宗) and East Asian Yogācāra (Hangul: 유식종; Hanja: 唯識宗) background began to travel to China to learn the newly developing tradition. Seon received its most significant impetus and consolidation from the Goryeo monk Jinul (知訥) (1158–1210), who established a reform movement and introduced kōan practice to Korea. Jinul established the Song...
Zen in Japan
Zen was not introduced as a separate school in Japan until the 12th century when Eisai traveled to China and returned to establish a Linji lineage, which is known in Japan as the Rinzai. In 1215, Dōgen, a younger contemporary of Eisai's, journeyed to China himself, where he became a disciple of the Caodong master Rujing. After his return, Dōgenestablished the Sōtō school, the Japanese branch of Caodong. The schools of Zen that currently exist in Japan are the Sōtō, Rinzai and Ōbaku. Of these,...
Buswell, Robert E.; Lopez, Donald S. (2014), The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton UniversityApr 1, 2015 · Chan Buddhism. First published Wed Apr 1, 2015; substantive revision Sat Mar 2, 2019. The Chan School ( Chan zong, 禪宗) is an indigenous form of Chinese Buddhism that developed beginning in the sixth century CE and subsequently spread to the rest of East Asia (Japanese: Zen; Korean: Sôn; Vietnamese; Thiền).
It is the method to realise Ch’an. Ch’an was first discovered by a prince named Siddhartha Gautama (called Shakyamuni after his enlightenment), who was born in India about 2500 years ago. After he became enlightened and was called a Buddha, he taught us the method to know Ch’an.
Chan ( 禅, 禪; Chán; 禪那; chánnà ), from Sanskrit dhyāna (meaning “ meditation ” or “meditative state”), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming dominant during the Tang and Song dynasties. After the Yuan dynasty, Chan more or less fused with Pure Land Buddhism.
Mar 21, 2022 · Chan, or dhyāna, is a total way of being and living—alert, aware, centered, and free of error whether walking, standing, sitting, or even in sleep.
