Zen organisation and institutions
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Zen tradition is maintained and transferred by a high degree of institutionalisation,[1][2] despite the emphasis on individual experience[3] and the iconoclastic picture of Zen.[4]
In Japan, modernity has led to criticism of the formal system and the commencement of lay-oriented Zen-schools such as the Sanbo Kyodan[5] and the Ningen Zen Kyodan.[web 1] How to organize the continuity of the Zen-tradition in the west, constraining charismatic authority and the derailment it may bring on the one hand,[6][7][8] and maintaining the legitimacy and authority by limiting the number of authorized teachers on the other hand,[9] is a challenge for the developing Zen-communities in the west.