Korean Seon

Seon (Sŏn, 禪) is the Korean variant of Chan Buddhism, a school better known in the West through its Japanese variant Zen.

Chan was transmitted into Unified Silla (668-935). Beomnang (法朗, Pŏmnang, Peomnang) (632-646), who studied with the Fourth Patriarch Dayi Daoxin (道信) (580-651), was the first to bring the teachings to Korea. Beomnang transmitted his teachings to Sinhaeng (神行) (704-779), who also traveled to China. Sinhaeng studied with Puji (651–739), a successor of Yuquan Shenxiu (died 706), the head of the East Mountain Teaching of Chan. Seon was further popularized by Doui (道義) (died 825) at the beginning of the ninth century.

Seon was gradually further transmitted into Korea, as Korean monks of predominantly Hwaeom (華嚴) and Yogacara (唯識) background began to travel to China to study the Hongzhou school of Mazu Daoyi (709–788) and his successors and the Rinzai school of Linji Yixuan. Mazu's successors had numerous Korean students, some of whom returned to Korea and established their own schools at various mountain monasteries with their leading disciples.

Initially, the number of these schools was fixed at nine. Seon was termed the nine mountain schools" at the time. Eight of these were of the lineage of Mazu Daoyi (馬祖道一) (709-788), as they were established through connection with either him or one of his eminent disciples. The one exception was the Sumi-san school founded by Yieom (利嚴) (869-936), which had developed from the Caodong school (曹洞).

Toǔi (道義 Doui) (died 825), who studied with Zhizang (735-814) and Baizhang Huaihai (百丈) (749-814) is regarded as the first patriarch of Korean Sŏn. He founded the Kaji Mountain school (迦智山 Gaji san school). The Nine mountain Schools adopted the name Jogye Order in 826. The first record of the Nine Mountains school dates from 1084.

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