East Asian Buddhism orEast Asian Mahayana is a collective term for the schools ofMahāyāna Buddhism which developed acrossEast Asia and which rely on theChinese Buddhist canon. These include the various forms ofChinese,Japanese,Korean, andVietnamese Buddhism.^[1][2][3][4] East Asian Buddhists constitute the numerically largest body of Buddhist traditions in the world, numbering over half of the world's Buddhists.^[5][6]

East Asianforms of Buddhism all derive from thesinicized Buddhist schools which developed during theHan dynasty and theSong dynasty, and therefore are influenced byChinese culture andphilosophy.^[7][8] Thespread of Buddhism to East Asia was aided by the trade networks of theSilk Road and the missionary work of generations of Indian and Asian Buddhists. Some of the most influential East Asian traditions includeChan (Zen),Nichiren Buddhism,Pure Land,Huayan,Tiantai, andChinese Esoteric Buddhism.^[9] These schools developed new, uniquely East Asian interpretations of Buddhist texts and focused on the study ofMahayana sutras. According to Paul Williams, this emphasis on the study of the sutras contrasts with the Tibetan Buddhist attitude which sees the sutras as too difficult unless approached through the study of philosophical treatises (shastras).^[10]

The texts of theChinese Buddhist Canon began to be translated in the second century and the collection continued to evolve over a period of a thousand years with the firstwoodblock printed edition being published in 983. A major modern edition of this canon is theTaishō Tripiṭaka, produced in Japan between 1924 and 1932.^[11] Besides sharing a canon of scripture, the various forms of East Asian Buddhism have also adapted East Asian values and practices which were not prominent inIndian Buddhism, such as Chineseancestor veneration and the Confucian view offilial piety.^[12]

East Asian Buddhist monastics generally follow themonastic rule known as theDharmaguptaka Vinaya.^[13] One major exception is some schools ofJapanese Buddhism where Buddhistclergy sometimes marry, without following the traditional monastic code orVinaya. This developed during theMeiji Restoration, when anationwide campaign against Buddhism forced certain Japanese Buddhist sects to change their practices.^[14]

Buddhism in China has been characterized by complex interactions with China's indigenous religious traditions,Taoism andConfucianism, and varied between periods of institutional support and repression from governments and dynasties. Buddhism was first introduced to China during theHan dynasty, at a time when the Han empire expanded its nascent corresponding geopolitical influence into the reaches of Central Asia.^[15] Opportunities for vibrant cultural exchanges and trade contacts along theSilk Road and sea trade routes with theIndian subcontinent andmaritime Southeast Asia made it inevitable that the percolation of Buddhism would penetrate into China and gradually into the rest of East Asia at large.^[16] Such religious transmissions were able to be afforded to enable the inexorable percolation of Buddhism into East Asia over a millennia due to the vibrant cultural exchanges that were able to be made at that time as a result of theSilk Road.^[17][4]

Chinese Buddhism has strongly influenced the development of Buddhism in other East Asian countries, with theChinese Buddhist Canon serving as the primary religious texts for other countries in the region.^[18][4]

Early Chinese Buddhism was influenced by translators fromCentral Asia who began the translation of large numbers ofTripitaka and commentarial texts from India and Central Asia intoChinese. Early efforts to organize and interpret the wide range of texts received gave rise to early Chinese Buddhist schools like theHuayan andTiantai schools.^[19][20] In the 8th century, theChan school began to emerge, eventually becoming the most influential Buddhist school in East Asia and spreading throughout the region.^[21]

Buddhism was officially introduced to Japan from China and Korea during the 5th and 6th centuries AD.^[22] In addition to developing their own versions of Chinese and Korean traditions (such asZen, a Japanese form of Chan andShingon, a form of Chinese Esoteric Buddhism), Japan developed their own indigenous traditions likeTendai, based on the ChineseTiantai,Nichiren, andJōdo Shinshū (aPure Land school).^[23][24]

Buddhism was introduced to Korea from China during the 4th century, where it began to be practiced alongside indigenous shamanism.^[25] Following strong state support in theGoryeo era, Buddhism was suppressed during theJoseon period in favor ofNeo-Confucianism.^[26] Suppression was finally ended due to Buddhist participation in repelling theJapanese invasion of Korea in the 16th century, leading to a slow period of recovery that lasted into the 20th century. TheSeon school, derived from ChineseChan Buddhism, was introduced in the 7th century and grew to become the most widespread form of modern Korean Buddhism, with theJogye Order andTaego Order as its two main branches.

Bordering southern China,Buddhism may have first come toVietnam as early as the 3rd or 2nd century BCE from theIndian subcontinent or fromChina in the 1st or 2nd century CE.^[27] From the 2nd to the 4th century,Luy Lâu (nowBắc Ninh province,northern Vietnam) - capital ofJiaozhou (then part of theHan,Eastern Wu andJin dynasties), according to Chinese historical records, was the leading Buddhist center in Southeast Asia, where Indian monks often stopped by sea to translate Buddhist scriptures fromSanskrit toClassical Chinese, before gradually moving up toGuangzhou area.^[28] Vietnamese Buddhism was influenced by certain elements ofTaoism,Chinese spirituality, andVietnamese folk religion.^[29] Buddhism was the state religion ofDai Viet during theĐinh dynasty (968-981),Lý dynasty (1009-1225) andTrần dynasty (1225-1400).Trúc Lâm thiền school was founded by Trần Nhân Tông - 3rd Emperor of Trần dynasty in late 12th century.^[30]

East Asian Buddhism has a wide variety of traditions, lineages and schools (Chinese:zōng), which developed in China and are also reflected in Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese Buddhism. Traditional Asian Buddhist scholars likeSheng-yen andGyōnen (1240–1321) enumerated thirteen Buddhist traditions or schools.^[31][32] These various traditions changed and evolved over time. Some are now defunct or were absorbed into new traditions while some survived or were revived as living traditions. These "traditions" are not always rigid designations as there has always been considerable intermixing among them. Many temples and communities are influenced by many of these traditions, each consisting of different numerous sub-schools or sects.^[33]

These "thirteen schools" are:^[31][34][35]

• The Chengshi school (now defunct), which focused on the study of theChengshilun ("The Treatise that Accomplishes Reality").
• The Kosa School (俱舍宗, now defunct), based on the study ofAbhidharma using theAbhidharmakośa ofVasubandhu.
• The "Three Treatises" school (三論;Sānlùn; ChineseMadhyamaka), founded byKumarajiva (344–413 CE).
• The Consciousness Only school (唯識宗;Wéishí,Yogācāra), a.k.a. Faxiang ("dharma characteristics") school, founded by Xuanzang (602–664) and based on hisChengweishilun ("The Demonstration of Consciousness-only").
• TheTiantai school, also known as the Lotus school, due to their focus on theLotus Sutra. In Japan it is known asTendai.
• TheHuayan school, the school of theAvatamsaka Sutra (Huayanjing).
• ThePure Land tradition, including the JapaneseJōdo-shū andJōdo Shinshū schools.
• TheNirvana School (now defunct), based on theMahāyāna Mahāparinirvāṇa Sūtra translated byDharmarakṣa (c. 233–310); this was later absorbed into the Tiantai school.^[34]
• The Dilun school (now defunct) based on theDaśabhūmikā sutra translated byBodhiruci; this was later absorbed into theHuayan tradition.^[34]
• The Shelun school (now defunct) based onAsanga'sSummary of the Mahayana translated byParamartha; it was later absorbed into theHuáyán and Consciousness-only schools.^[34][31]
• TheVinaya school or Nanshan school, a historical tradition which focused on theDharmaguptaka monastic discipline, established by the monkDaoxuan (596–667).^[36]
• TheChan (Dhyana, "Meditation") school, i.e. theZen tradition attributed to the founderBodhidharma, which focuses on sitting meditation (zuòchán) and developed numerous sub-schools likeCaodong andLinji. This tradition spread throughout Asia. In Japan it isJapanese Zen, in Korea it is known asSeon, and in Vietnam it is known asThiền.
• TheTruc Lam School (竹林禪派, Vietnamese:Thiền phái Trúc Lâm), founded byTran Nhan Tong,Emperor of Dai Viet, in 1299.
• The Zhenyan school (真言宗; 'true word'; "mantra" school", i.e.,Chinese Esoteric Buddhism. Also calledMìjiao (密教; "Esoteric Teaching"),Mìzōng (密宗; "Esoteric Tradition"), orTángmì (唐密; "Tang Esoterica"). This tradition was transmitted to Japan byKūkai, where it is known asShingon.

• Buddhism in Southeast Asia
• Buddhism by country
• Buddhism and Eastern religions
• Filial piety in Buddhism
• Silk Road transmission of Buddhism
• Southern, Eastern and Northern Buddhism

• Anderl, Christoph (2011).Zen Buddhist Rhetoric in China, Korea, and Japan.Brill Publishers.ISBN 978-9004185562.
• Jones, Charles B. (2021).Pure Land: History, Tradition, and Practice.Shambhala Publications.ISBN 978-1611808902.
• Orzech, Charles (2010).Esoteric Buddhism and the Tantras in East Asia.Brill Publishers.ISBN 978-9004184916.
• Poceski, Mario (2014).The Wiley Blackwell Companion to East and Inner Asian Buddhism.John Wiley & Sons.ISBN 978-1118610336.

• Buddhism in East Asia
• Buddhism by country
• Religion in East Asia
• Schools of Buddhism

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