What does zen mean?

Definitions for zen
zɛnzen

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word zen.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. Zen, Zen Buddhismnoun

    school of Mahayana Buddhism asserting that enlightenment can come through meditation and intuition rather than faith; China and Japan

  2. Zen, Zen Buddhismnoun

    a Buddhist doctrine that enlightenment can be attained through direct intuitive insight

  3. acid, back breaker, battery-acid, dose, dot, Elvis, loony toons, Lucy in the sky with diamonds, pane, superman, window pane, Zennoun

    street name for lysergic acid diethylamide

Wiktionary

  1. Zennoun

    A denomination of Buddhism elaborated in Japan.

  2. Zennoun

    A philosophy of calm reminiscent of that of the Buddhist denomination.

  3. Zenadjective

    Extremely relaxed and collected

  4. zennoun

    A denomination of Buddhism

  5. zenadjective

    Pertaining to this denomination of Buddhism

  6. Etymology: 禅, from 禅那, from ध्यान (Pāli: jhāna)

ChatGPT

  1. zen

    Zen is a school of Buddhism that originated in China during the Tang dynasty, known as the Chan School. Zen emphasizes rigorous meditation (zazen), mindfulness, and self-awareness through the practice of direct understanding, experiencing life in the present moment rather than through conceptual thought, often leading to a state of peace and tranquility. The term "Zen" is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word "Chan," which in turn is based on the Sanskrit term "dhyana," meaning "meditation."

Wikidata

  1. Zen

    Zen is a school of Mahayana Buddhism that developed in China during the 6th century as Chán. From China, Zen spread south to Vietnam, northeast to Korea and east to Japan. The word Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Middle Chinese word 禪, which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "absorption" or "meditative state". Zen emphasizes the attainment of enlightenment and the personal expression of direct insight in the Buddhist teachings. As such, it de-emphasizes mere knowledge of sutras and doctrine and favors direct understanding through zazen and interaction with an accomplished teacher. The teachings of Zen include various sources of Mahāyāna thought, especially Yogācāra, the Tathāgatagarbha Sutras and Huayan. The Prajñāpāramitā literature and, to a lesser extent, Madhyamaka have also been influential.

The New Hacker's Dictionary

  1. zen

    To figure out something by meditation or by a sudden flash of enlightenment. Originally applied to bugs, but occasionally applied to problems of life in general. “How'd you figure out the buffer allocation problem?” “Oh, I zenned it.” Contrast grok, which connotes a time-extended version of zenning a system. Compare hack mode. See also guru.

Editors Contribution

  1. zen

    When the going gets tough, the tough stays zen.


    Submitted by Marvinterra on May 16, 2018  

Suggested Resources

  1. zen

    Song lyrics by zen -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by zen on the Lyrics.com website.

  2. ZEN

    What does ZEN stand for? -- Explore the various meanings for the ZEN acronym on the Abbreviations.com website.

Surnames Frequency by Census Records

  1. ZEN

    According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Zen is ranked #73464 in terms of the most common surnames in America.

    The Zen surname appeared 264 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 would have the surname Zen.

    51.5% or 136 total occurrences were Asian.
    35.2% or 93 total occurrences were White.
    6% or 16 total occurrences were of Hispanic origin.
    5.3% or 14 total occurrences were Black.
    1.8% or 5 total occurrences were of two or more races.

Matched Categories

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How to say zen in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of zen in Chaldean Numerology is: 8

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of zen in Pythagorean Numerology is: 9

Examples of zen in a Sentence

  1. Morgan Neville:

    The way I came to think of it is: Tony was an ultimate searcher and a seeker, but if you are really always seeking and always curious, then you can get lost. He had this tattoo that he got late in life that said in Greek ‘I am certain of nothing.’ That sounds very Zen, but it’s also a little sad.

  2. Geoffrey Neighor:

    I've been thinking about that old Zen conundrum what's the sound of one hand clapping My personal opinion--nothing. You don't have two hands, you don't have any clapping. It's as simple as that. Stars, galaxies, clapping hands, what's the point The point is that we all need somebody, whether you're a supercluster or a little proton, a yin or a yang. Everybody is hooked into everybody else.

  3. Zoroaster:

    He who sows the ground with care and diligence acquires greater stock of religious merit than he would gain by the repetition of 10,000 prayers. Zen Zoroaster

  4. Robert M. Pirsig:

    The only Zen you find on the tops of mountains is the Zen you bring up there.

  5. Nick Cannon:

    It's just been an outpouring of love that is really unexpected. I didn't expect it from all over the world I really can't thank you guys enough, i say thank you from Alyssa, Zen's mom, and the rest of our family... She's making it, you know, five minutes at a time. But it's but those words really, the tweets, it's outstanding.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

zen#1#7908#10000

Translations for zen

From our Multilingual Translation Dictionary

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"zen." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 29 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/zen>.

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