Japanese Zen is derived from the Japanese pronunciation of the Middle Chinese word 禪 (Chan) which traces its roots to the Indian practice of dhyāna ("meditation"). Buddhism was introduced to China in the first century CE. According to tradition, Chan was introduced around 500 CE by Bodhidharma, an Indian monk teaching dhyāna. He was the 28th Indian patriarch of Zen and the first Chinese patriarch. Buddhism was introduced in Japan in the 8th century CE during the Nara period (710-794) and the Heian period (794–1185). Zen was not introduced as a separate school in Japan until the 12th century during the Kamakura
Rochester Zen Center the Center to form the Springwater Center, located an hour south of Rochester. The Rochester Zen Center has also contributed to the intellectual development of American Zen, through Philip Kapleau's books, "The Zen of Living and Dying", "Zen Merging of East and West", "To Cherish All Life", and the recent "Awakening to Zen" and the writings of its members and its decennial anniversary conferences. In 1986, the 20th Anniversary Conference focused on "Buddhism and Nonviolence," and the 1996 Thirtieth Anniversary explored "Buddhism in America." Since 1986 the head abbot at Rochester Zen Center has been Bodhin Kjolhede, who was sanctioned