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Z

ZEN BUDDHISM. A branch of
Mahāyāna Buddhism that developed in
China as Ch’an beginning in the seventh
century CE. It later spread to Vietnam
(where it is known as Thiቲn Buddhism),
Korea, and Japan. Zen Buddhism stresses
a form of sitting meditation known as
zazen and other practices in order to cul-
tivate experiential wisdom, believing that
excessive focus on texts and theoretical
knowledge can deter one from experien-
tially realizing bodhi (enlightenment or
awakening). Chinese and Vietnamese
Zen are much gentler compared to the
shocking Japanese Rinzai. Within Japanese
Zen, the two main schools are Soto
and Rinzai. Soto Zen is a calm version of
Japanese Zen where practitioners spend
most of their time in sitting meditation
and wait to realize enlightenment. In Soto
Zen, the meditator does not focus on
anything, so if a thought arises, they are to
acknowledge it and let it fade away. Rinzai
Zen, on the other hand, is the school that
the West has adopted. Rinzai has a strong
focus on the koan (a statement or ques-
tion-and-answer that does not make
any logical sense, such as “What is the

Buddha? The rooster crows at daybreak.”)

and the awakening stick (a flat wooden

rod that is used on meditators as a

reminder to stay focused or to encourage

“sudden enlightenment”). The Rinzai

meditator focuses on breathing and the

koan in hopes of attaining satori, or

“sudden enlightenment.” Zen, as a whole,

is a very individualistic tradition, mean-

ing that it is up to the individual to

decide how to practice Zen and there

are no set rules on how to practice; the

individual or the school can pick and

choose which, if any, Buddhist doctrines

to accept. Zen does, however, emphasize

the importance of questioning every-

thing, otherwise the follower is no better

than a parrot who repeats words without

knowing the significance. Zen prides

itself on being illogical, and the use of the

koan and the awakening stick are exam-

ples of non- rational ways of reaching

enlightenment.

ZENO OF CITIUM (344–262 BCE). A

stoic philosopher from Citium in Cyprus,

Zeno is considered the founder of the