Zen Buddhism or Zen (Japanese zen ) is from China in about the 5th Century of the Christian era resulting flow or line of Mahayana Buddhism, which was significantly influenced by Taoism. The Chinese name Chan is from the Sanskrit word dhyana . Dhyana freely translated means something like "meditative state of contemplation," which refers to the fundamental characteristic of this Buddhist flow which is therefore also referred to sometimes as meditation Buddhism.
As of 12 Chan century came to Japan, where he received a Zen a new expression, which came in modern times in turn, new interpretation to the West. The data used in Europe and the U.S. terms to come mostly from the Japanese Zen. However, Korean, Vietnamese and Chinese schools have gained in recent influence in western culture. Wikipedia
2011
