zen
/ˈzɛn/ noun, adjective, proper noun
Forms Sen Dzen
- noun (religion) Synonym of enlightenment, particularly the kind acquired through Zen meditation.
- noun An approach to instruction, understanding, or an activity similarly emphasizing simplicity and intuition rather than conventional thinking or fixation on goals. “the zen of cooking”
- adjective (colloquial) Wise, displaying enlightenment or similar wisdom, insightful, unburdened and free of worries, extremely relaxed and capable.
- proper noun (religion) A school of Mahayana Buddhism characterized by sudden enlightenment achieved by indirect means and principally associated with China and Japan.
- adjective (religion) Of or related to Zen Buddhism. “Zen meditation”
Synonyms
enlightenment particularly the kind acquired through Zen meditation tao Zen Buddhism acid back breaker battery-acid dose dot Elvis loony toons Lucy in the sky with diamonds pane superman window pane
Etymology
From Zen. In more general use, popularized by Eugen Herrigel's 1948 Zen in the Art of Archery and Robert M. Pirsig's 1974 Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance.
From Japanese 禅(ぜん) (zen), from Middle Chinese 禪 (MC dzyen), an abbreviation of 禪那 (MC dzyen na), from Sanskrit ध्यान (dhyāna, “a type of meditation”). Doublet of dhyana and Chan.
Sources: Wiktionary · WordNet 3.0 — from the Wiktionary entry “zen”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details