In the year 220 AD, as the Han dynasty was collapsing, Confucianism, then the state ideology, began to lose its popularity. This, along with the demise of the Han order, set up a situation in which the people of China were hungry for new ideas. There were also many dignitaries within the Chinese government that were looking to gain good political footing in order to ensure staying power. These factors all opened up the gate for Buddhism to enter Chine

“There is a legend the Buddha was once handed a flower and asked to preach on the law. The story says he received the blossom without a sound and silently wheeled it in his hand. Then amid the hush his most perceptive follower, Kashyapa, suddenly burst into a smile… and thus was born the wordless wisdom of Zen.”

A few years before Buddhism gained a following in Japan, Bodhidharma took early Ch’an thoughts to China from India in 520 AD. When Bodhidharma arrived in China, it was not known as Ch’an yet, simply a school of meditation. This idea was further built on by another Chinese ideology at the time: Taoism. Taoists exalted intuition over reason, a tradition easily absorbed into the Chinese meditation school of the Ch’an.

At this point in time, there were two major schools of Buddhism in China. The first form to emerge was known as Hinayana, or Theravada Buddhism. This loosely translated means, “The Lesser Vehicle.” Theravada Buddhism was mainly concerned with reaching individual enlightenment; how one could rise above the cycle of samsara and reach nirvana. Mahayana Buddhism, or, “The Great Vehicle,” became the popular form practiced in most of China, Japan and Korea. The followers of Mahayana believed that the entire world could reach salvation, and that those who follow Theravada were selfish for only fulfilling personal enlightenment. The bodhisattva, someone who has become enlightened but prolongs his/her entry to nirvana in order to save others, became the ideal, for it was the bodhisattva that was in search of universal salvation.

Japan and China have always remained very similar in most everything that is done within the countries. Borrowing from each other, the two countries have shared quite a lot in common. So it comes as no surprise to learn that Ch’an and Zen Buddhism are very similar. While many people were not sure if these two factions of Buddhism would remain strong in both countries, followers of the two religions have proved the skeptics wrong.

The Rinzai sect evolved from the work of Lin-chi (? -866), who was an exponent of sudden enlightenment. The Soto was founded by Liang-chieh (? -869) and Pen-chi (? -901). The Soto stressed quiet sitting in meditation to await enlightenment. A third group, the Obaku, was established in 1654. The Obaku school is closer to the Rinzai tradition except for its emphasis on invoking the name of Buddha.

Some topics in this essay:
Japanese Zen, Zen Buddhism, Sutra Hui-neng, Japan Japanese, Taoism Taoists, AD Han, East Asia, Southern Ch’an, Buddha Zen, Japan Korea, zen buddhism, ch’an zen, ch’an zen buddhism, asian countries, east asian countries, japanese zen, tea drinking, reach salvation, prince shotoku, enlightenment southern school, enlightenment southern, han dynasty collapsing, ch’an china, one’s own nature, china japan,