Chan, the original Chinese form of Zen, took shape over many centuries as a meditation-centered movement within Mahāyāna Buddhism that gradually absorbed and reshaped Chinese cultural currents. Traditional accounts trace its beginnings to the Indian monk Bodhidharma, regarded as the First Patriarch, who emphasized direct, wordless transmission and meditative insight over scriptural study. A line of early patriarchs—Huike, Sengcan, Daoxin, and Hongren—consolidated this contemplative orientation, establishing monastic communities and systematizing practice. From the outset, the focus fell on direct experience of mind rather than elaborate doctrine, and yet these communities remained relatively modest and regional in scope.

A decisive turning point came with the figure of Huineng, honored as the Sixth Patriarch, whose teaching of sudden enlightenment and the inherent Buddha-nature of all beings became emblematic of the so‑called Southern School. In contrast, the Northern School, associated with Shenxiu, articulated a path of gradual cultivation and purification of mind. The Platform Sutra, linked with Huineng, framed this tension between sudden and gradual approaches and helped shape the self-understanding of Chan as a tradition of immediate awakening. Over time, the Southern rhetoric of sudden enlightenment came to dominate, and Chan entered what is often remembered as its golden age.

During the Tang dynasty, Chan flourished and diversified into several lineages, with masters such as Mazu Daoyi, Baizhang Huaihai, Linji Yixuan, and Dongshan Liangjie giving rise to distinctive styles of teaching. Their methods could be unconventional—shouts, blows, paradoxical exchanges—yet always aimed at cutting through conceptual entanglement to reveal “ordinary mind” as the Way. From these lines emerged the Five Houses of Chan, including Linji, Caodong, Yunmen, Fayan, and related currents, which were more like stylistic and genealogical streams than sharply separate sects. Chan monasteries became important religious institutions, and Chan discourse began to influence the wider literati culture.

Under the Song dynasty, Chan became deeply institutionalized and widely recognized as a leading form of monastic Buddhism. Koan (gong’an) literature, such as collections of encounter dialogues between masters and students, assumed a central role, especially in the Linji lineage, where contemplation of these “public cases” served as a catalyst for breakthrough insight. At the same time, Caodong masters developed and refined approaches that emphasized silent, objectless awareness, leading to fruitful tensions between “silent illumination” and more sharply focused koan introspection. Chan also entered into various forms of syncretism and dialogue with other Buddhist schools and with Confucian thought, even as it continued to present itself as a “special transmission outside the scriptures.”

In later dynasties, Chan’s independent creative energy waned, and yet its institutions and lineages persisted, often blending meditation with devotional practices such as Pure Land recitation. Figures like Hanshan Deqing and other reform-minded monks worked to renew the contemplative heart of the tradition within these changing conditions. Periods of decline alternated with revival, and Chan adapted to new social and intellectual climates while preserving its core emphasis on direct realization. In more recent times, renewed interest in Chan has led to fresh efforts to restore traditional training and to share its methods beyond China, allowing the ancient insights of this tradition to speak in new cultural idioms while remaining rooted in its original concern: the direct awakening of mind.