‘Is Zen a form of Buddhism?’ The answer to this question would have to be in both the affirmative and the negative at the same time. In the affirmative because, historically speaking, Zen is conceived as a form of Buddhism founded by Bodhidharma in China in the sixth century. As it developed in China, Korea and Japan, it acquired the trappings of a religious order, with its own temples, rituals, and robes. In this sense, Zen can be called a particular form of Buddhism standing alongside other forms of Buddhism, such as the T’ien-t’ai (Tendai), the Hua-yen (Kegon), the Chen-yen (Shingon) and the Ching-t’u (Jōdo) sects. Further, in terms of its teaching and practice, Zen, in the course of its long history, has come to generate its own particular doctrines and methods comparable to those of the other schools. We may call this form of Zen ‘traditional Zen.’