Unlike the Rinzai sect, it does not make use of koans (paradoxical anecdotes or riddles used in Zen Buddhism to achieve enlightenment through meditation), practising instead Mokusho Zen (literally, "the zen of silent enlightenment"), which focuses exclusively on mediation.
臨済宗とことなり公案を用いず、ただ専ら坐禅する黙照禅であることを特徴とする。