A History of Zen Buddhism

Over the past decade, Americans' fascination with religions of the east has grown substantially. Some have turned to Hinduism, others to Taoism, and many to Buddhism. However, in it purest form Buddhism is a strict and heavily rule laden religion. Therefore, those who turn to Buddhism for enlightenment often turn to Zen Buddhism. This is because Zen Buddhism's teachings are flexible and often created by the follower. And flexible is what busy Americans seem to want in a religion.

Called Zen Buddhism in Japan and Ch'an in China, this sect of Buddhism evolved out of Mahayana Buddhism and originated in China in the 6^th century (http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9022369

&query=zen&ct=). The word Ch'an takes its meaning from the Sanskrit word dhyana meaning meditation. Today the religion claims over 9,600,000 followers (http://www.bartleby.com/65/ze/ZenBuddh.html). However, one would be unable to understand Zen Buddhism without first understanding the roots of Buddhism itself.

Buddhism was founded through the teachings and revelations of Siddhartha Gautama around 500 BC. Gautama was born in southern India in approximately 460 BC. He is said to have lived till approximately 560 BC. Gautama was a boy prince whose father aimed to keep him sheltered from the pain and suffering of the world. When Gautama turned 29 he shunned his inheritance in order to help those who were suffering and to experience struggle for himself. After 6 years of living as a poor man, Gautama reached enlightenment at the age of 35. He soon became known as Buddha, or "One who is awake" (http://religiousmovements.

lib.virginia.edu/nrms/zen.html).

During his period of enlightenment, Gautama revealed that suffering is simply a matter of the mind and that this world and everything in it is not permanent (Suzuki 51). However, Gautama pronounced that there is an end to suffering. This end comes after a series of many reincarnations. The quality of the next life is determined by the actions of the first, or karma. Once the soul has reached enlightenment it may advance to nirvana once death occurs (http://www.bartleby.com/65/bu/

Buddhism.html).

Buddhism believes that nirvana is achieved through meditation and observance of basic morality. There are five basic morals which Buddhists are required to abide by. These morals include restraining oneself from taking another's life, refraining from sex before marriage, drinking alcohol, stealing, and lying. In addition to these, Buddhist monks must abide by five more rules. They are taking/earning money, diet restrictions, sleeping in large beds, wearing jewelry, perfume, and other luxuries, and participating in non-Buddhist events (http://www.bartleby.com/65/bu/Buddhism.html).

After Gautama's death, his teachings were handed down through the generations orally until the 1^st century when his story was first written down. Because of this oral tradition, many sects of Buddhism split off in a short amount of time (http://www.bartleby.com/65/bu/Buddhism.html). This eventually led to Zen Buddhism through Mahayana Buddhism. This was a type of Buddhism that was easier for the common people to relate to. The other major sect of Buddhism, Theravada, left little room for these people because it assigned many rules and demanded extensive meditation; things the common person did not have time for because they needed to earn wages (http://www.wsu.edu/~dee/BUDDHISM/

MAHAYANA.HTM).

In the 5^th century the founder of Zen Buddhism, Bodhidharma, came to China from India. He established Zen as a sect of Buddhism which emphasized the teachings of the Lanka-Vatara Sutra. A Sutra is a book of wisdom which was handed down from Siddhartha Gautama, the founder of Buddhism (http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9022369

&query=zen&ct=). The Lanka-Vatara Sutra emphasizes that "...the ultimate truth is a state of inner experience by means of Noble Wisdom, and as it is beyond the realm of words..." (Suzuki 50).

Zen Buddhism itself has fifteen tenets by which all followers much live and abide by. The first tenet of Zen is, "The realities of life are most truly seen in everyday things and actions." The second tenet of Zen explains that, "Everything exists according to its own nature. Our individual perceptions of worth, correctness, beauty, size, and value exist inside our heads, not outside them." The third tenet of Zen says, "Everything exists in relation to other things." The fourth tenet of Zen declares, "The self and the rest of the universe are not separate entities but one functioning whole." The fifth tenet of Zen pronounces, "Man arises from nature and gets along most effectively by collaborating with nature, rather than trying to master it." (Holmes 8)

The sixth tenet of Zen is, "There is no ego in the sense of an endlessly enduring, unchanging private soul or personality that temporarily inhabits the body." The seventh tenet of Zen explains that, "True insight does not issue from specialized knowledge, from membership in coteries, from doctrines or dogmas. It comes from the preconscious intuitions of one's whole being, from one's own code." The eight tenet of Zen says, "In emptiness, forms are born. When one becomes empty of the assumptions, inferences, and judgments he has acquired over the years, he comes close to his original nature and is capable of conceiving original ideas and reacting freshly." The ninth tenet of Zen declares, "Being a spectator while one is also a participant spoils one's performance." The tenth tenet of Zen pronounces, "Security and changelessness are fabricated by the ego-dominated mind and do not exist in nature. To accept insecurity and commit oneself to the unknown creates a relaxing faith in the universe." (Holmes 8)

The eleventh tenet of Zen is, "One can live only in the present moment." The twelfth tenet of Zen explains that, "Living process and words about it are not the same and should not be treated as equal in worth." The thirteenth tenet of Zen says, "When we perceive the incongruity between theories about life and what we feel intuitively to be true on the nonverbal, non-judging plane, there is nothing to do but laugh." The fourteenth tenet of Zen declares, "Zen art has this characteristic quality, that it can fuse delight in a work of visual art, knowledge of life, and personal experiences and intuitions into one creative event." The fifteenth tenet of Zen pronounces, "Each of us develops into a unique individual who enters into unique transactions with the world as it exists for him." (Holmes 9)

After Bodhidharma's death, Hui-k'o inherited the responsibility of carrying on the religion. During the 7^th and 8^th centuries he single handedly defined the nature of Zen through the Platform Sutra. This piece of writing explained that the way to enlightenment was through seeing one's "original Mind" or "original Nature". Hui-k'o also popularized the idea of "sudden enlightenment", or satori (http://www.bartleby.com/65

/ze/ZenBuddh.html). This enlightenment, or bodhi, can be achieved instantaneously because everyone holds the potential to reach enlightenment. Zen argues that not many achieve enlightenment simply because they are unaware that it is possible (Suzuki 53).

It is said that Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen Buddhism, spent nine years gazing at a cave wall, meditating. He hoped that this activity would bring him enlightenment, and it eventually did (http://campus.northpark.

edu/history/WebChron/China/ZenBudd.html). This is what makes Zen unique from other sects of Buddhism; the belief that meditation is the way to enlightenment. They do not believe that studying scriptures, worshiping, holding ceremonies, or doing good deeds will lead to enlightenment in any way. Zen teaches that we too often come to believe that words and ideas are real things. Zen argues that it is not words which are real, but experiences; particularly the experience of enlightenment. The only way to bodhi is to break a rational way of thinking and become open to illogical thought. These ideas are explained in the Ganda-Vyuha Sutra (Suzuki 50).

The path to enlightenment is said to be outlined in the Four Noble Truths. These are a collection of revelations that the Buddha received during his enlightenment. The first Noble Truth is referred to dukkha. This postulate explains that discontent and suffering is temporary and must be overcome. The second Noble Truth stresses that all suffering is caused by desire. The third Noble Truth explains that the only way to relieve suffering is to put an end to earthly desires. The fourth Noble Truth outlines how one should live in order to end suffering and desire. It is called the Noble Eightfold Path (http://www.buddhaweb.org).

The first three steps of the Eightfold Path are considered qualities of wisdom, or panna. The first step is to gain the right thoughts. The second step requires one to acquire the right state of mind. The third step is to achieve the right communication (http://www.buddhaweb.org).

The next three steps in the Noble Path exemplify the characteristics of a moral being, or sila. The forth step in the Eightfold Path necessitates the right behavior. The fifth step entails the correct profession. The final three steps refer to meditation. The sixth step requires the right amount of effort be put into meditation (http://www.buddhaweb.org).

The final two steps in the Noble Eightfold Path are aspects of meditation, or Samadhi. The seventh step entails the right consciousness, or smiriti, during meditation. Finally, the eighth step involves having the right deliberation, or smandi, for meditation to lead to enlightenment (http://www.buddhaweb.org).

After one has reached enlightenment they are said to be characterized by the Factors of Enlightenment. These factors are, mindfulness, investigation, energy, rapture, tranquility, concentration, and equanimity. These character traits however may be corrupted by the five Hindrances which come from the Three Characteristics of Existence. The five Hindrances are sensuous lust, aversion and ill will, sloth and torpor, restlessness and worry, and skeptical doubt. The Three Characteristics of Existence are transience (anicca), sorrow (dukkha), and selflessness (anatta) (http://www.buddhaweb.org).

After the death of Hui-k'o many great masters of Zen rose to power. This era in Zen Buddhism was considered the "golden age". These great masters included Matsu, Nan-chuan, Huang-po, Lin-chi, and Chao-chou. In 845, Zen became the largest sect of Buddhism in China after a time of much persecution. Buddhism befell such criticism because of its policy of isolationism. From this upheaval, two main schools of Zen Buddhism arose (http://www.bartleby.com/65/ze/ZenBuddh.html); one was Lin-chi, or Rinzai, and the other Ts'ao-tung, or Soto. Both sects originated in Japan (http://www.ciolek.com/WWWVLPages/ZenPages/

ZenSchools.html.

The Rinzai sect of Zen Buddhism arose in 1191 when Ensai, a Zen monk, introduced the idea of using koan, or nonsensical statements used in meditation, to push one into enlightenment. Occasionally instructors were permitted to use violence to break the student's reliance on rational thought and force them into enlightenment. In this sect of Zen, it is believed that enlightenment is reached in "spontaneous flashes" (http://campus.northpark.edu/history/WebChron/China/ZenBudd.html).

The development of this type of Zen Buddhism led to the forging of alliances between the Japanese elite and Ensai, leading to the rise of Japanese Zen. This led to the appointment of Zen monks to positions of political power and the saturation of literature and art with Zen ideology (http://campus.northpark.edu/history/WebChron/China/ZenBudd.html). However, in China Zen encouraged a culture that respected the balance of life; recognizing good and evil as part of the same world (http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9022369&query=zen&ct=). Zen is again, flexible, and can be very different from culture to culture.

Soto Zen Buddhism highlighted the use of seated meditation, referred to as zazen. This sect originated in 1277 with a Zen master Dogen's return to Japan from China. Dogen broke away from mainstream Zen Buddhism because he felt the observance of monastic duties was not being adhered to (Williams 477). In contrast to Rinzai Zen Buddhism, Soto Zen believes that enlightenment is reached through periods of long meditation (http://campus.northpark.edu/history/WebChron/China/ZenBudd.html). Today Soto is the largest sect of Zen practiced in Japan (http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9022369&query=zen&ct=).

Still another popular sect of Zen is call Huang-po, or Obaku. Obaku was established in 1654 by Yin-yuan, a Zen monk from China. This sect is unique because of its use of nembutsu, invocation of the Buddha Amitabha, or Amida. The Buddha is invoked by chanting, "namu Amida Batsu", or "homage to Amitabha Buddha" (http://religious

movements.lib.virginia.edu/nrms/zen.html).

In the 16^th and 17^th century, the religion was declining in Japan. However, Zen monks such as Hakuin carried the religion on through the centuries. After World War II, writings of the likes of D.T. Suzuki brought Zen Buddhism to America where Zen gained a new audience (http://www.britannica.com/eb/article?tocId=9022369&query=zen&ct=).

Over the past fourteen centuries Zen Buddhism has profoundly affected both Japanese and Chinese thought and society. Recently, Zen masters and even those who only dabble in Eastern philosophy have brought Zen ideas to the United States. This merging of East and West has created a movement towards greater spiritual clarity. At a time when the citizens of the U.S. are doing a great deal of soul searching, Zen has provided a user-friendly approach towards religion.Works Cited

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