375. ZEN REMARKS

375. Koan Zen, in China the kung-an tradition, is the practical expression of the well known saying that Zen is 'a special transmission outside the scriptures'. This saying, however, inasmuch as it appears to jettison doctrinal teachings, would put Zen at odds with conventional understandings of Buddhism. And so the Buddhist character of  Koan Zen has been hotly disputed down through the centuries. Thus many Buddhists would be scandalised by the Zen demand that 'should you meet the Buddha on the path, kill him!'