Buddhism in Japan movement to eradicate Buddhism and bring Shinto to ascendancy arose throughout the country due to the strong connections of Buddhism to the Shōguns. During the Meiji period (1868–1912), after a coup in 1868, Japan abandoned its feudal system and opened up to Western modernism. Shinto became the state religion. Within the Buddhist establishment the Western world was seen as a threat as well as a challenge to stand up to. Buddhist institutions had a simple choice: adapt or perish. Rinzai and Soto Zen chose to adapt, trying to modernize Zen in accord with Western insights, while simultaneously maintaining a Japanese
Buddhism in Lithuania Zen Master. The Vilnius Kwan Um Zen community grew under the support of Zen Master Wu Bong's frequent visits. The Vilnius International Kwan Um School of Zen Buddhism was officially registered as a religious community in Lithuania in 1991. Zen Master Su Bong Sunim, the guiding teacher of the Hong Kong Kwan Um Sangha, opened the first Zen Temple, Ko Bong Sa, in Vilnius in 1993. Daily Zen practice is held at the Kaunas Zen Kwan Um Center since 2007. The 14th Dalai Lama Tenzin Gyatso has visited Lithuania twice and met with the President Valdas Adamkus and the Catholic