Zen (Thiền or Thiền Na, Sanskrit Dhyana, Chinese Chan, Japanese Zen). The religious and philosophical concepts behind Zen, originating in ancient India, call for the renunciation of all mental attachments to engage completely in meditation and the search for truth. Sakyamuni became the Buddha after 49 days of zen meditation beneath a sacred fig tree. As an organized school of Buddhism, Zen was founded in 520 AD in China by the Indian monk Bodhidharma. The Chinese Zen school split into two branches following the death of its fifth patriarch; the northern branch made little progress, while the southern branch formed by Hui Neng split into five orders, the most thriving being that of Linji.
The Thiền Tông Zen sect was introduced into Vietnam in 580 by the Indian monk Vinitaruci. Later, probably under the influence of Taoism, Thiền Tông advocated transcendence in relation to intellect, communion between master and disciple, and contemplation in a seated position until attaining enlightenment (giác ngộ, Sanskrit satori). Subsequently, other Zen sects appeared in Vietnam: the school of the Chinese monk Vô Ngôn Thông (9th century), the Thảo Đường sect patronised by King Lý Thánh Tông (11th century), and the Trúc Lâm (Bamboo Forest) sect, created by King Trần Nhân Tông (12th century) (see Buddhism in Vietnam.) Zen spread to Korea and Japan later than Vietnam, in the 7th and 12th centuries, respectively.
