Japanese Zen

Japanese Zen

Buddhism in Japan
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Mahāyāna Schools Mādhyamaka Yogācāra Tiantai Huayan Zen Pure Land Esoteric Buddhism Nichiren
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See also Zen for an overview of Zen, Chinese Chán for the Chinese origins of Chán, and Sōtō, Rinzai and Ōbaku for the three main schools of Zen in Japan

Zen is the Japanese variant of Chán, a school of Mahayana Buddhism which strongly emphasizes dhyana c.q. concentration-meditation. This gives insight into ones true nature, or the emptiness of inherent existence, which opens the way to a liberated way of living.

Read more about Japanese Zen: Methods, Contemporary Zen Organisations, Western Zen Lineages Derived From Japan

Famous quotes containing the words japanese and/or zen:

“A pragmatic race, the Japanese appear to have decided long ago that the only reason for drinking alcohol is to become intoxicated and therefore drink only when they wish to be drunk.
So I went out into the night and the neon and let the crowd pull me along, walking blind, willing myself to be just a segment of that mass organism, just one more drifting chip of consciousness under the geodesics.”
—William Gibson (b. 1948)

“Zen ... does not confuse spirituality with thinking about God while one is peeling potatoes. Zen spirituality is just to peel the potatoes.”
—Alan Watts (1915–1973)

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