Thiền or Thiền Tông is the Vietnamese word for Zen Buddhism. The word is derived from the Chinese Chán. According to traditional accounts in Vietnam, in 580, an Indian monk named Vinitaruci (Tì-ni-đa-lưu-chi in Vietnamese) traveled to Vietnam after completing his studies with Sengcan, the third Patriarch of Chinese Chán. With this event Vietnamese Thiền Buddhism came into existence. The school that Vinitaruci and his Vietnamese disciple founded would become known as the oldest of Thiền in Vietnam. By the 10th century, the Vinitaruci School became one of the most influential Buddhist groups in Vietnam, with the Patriarch Vạn-Hạnh, who demised in 1018.
Other early Vietnamese Thiền schools were the Vô Ngôn Thông, which was associated with the teaching of Mazu Daoyi (709–788), a Zen teacher in medieval China, and the Thảo Đường, which incorporated nianfo (a Pure Land practice that generally refers to the repetition of the name of Amitābha Buddha) chanting techniques. Both were founded by Chinese monks.
King Trần Thái Tông , the first King of the Trần Dynasty, founded a new school, the Trúc Lâm-Yên Tử (Bamboo Forest on Yên Tử Mountain) school, which was Vietnamese by nature and origin, but which was also somewhat influenced by Confucian and Taoist philosophies. This incorporation of the three major philosophies in Asia (Buddhism, Confucianism, and Taoism)is typical of Vietnamese Thiền Tông .
In the 17th century, a group of Chinese monks led by Nguyên Thiều established a vigorous school, the Lâm Tế, which is the Vietnamese pronunciation of Linji. A more domesticated offshoot of Lâm Tế, the Liễu Quán school, was founded in the 18th century and has since been predominant in Central Vietnam. Thich Nhat Hanh's meditation practices come from this Thiền school.
Most Venerable Thích Thanh Từ, one prominent and influential Vietnamese Thiền master, restored Trúc Lâm-Yên Tử Thiền Tông in Việt Nam. He currently resides at Trúc Lâm Thiền Monastery in Dalat, Vietnam. He was a disciple of Most Venerable Thích Thiện Hoa.
The most famous practitioner of syncretized Thiền in the West is Thích Nhất Hạnh who has authored dozens of books and founded the Plum Village in France. During the Vietnam War, Thich Nhat Hanh was a monk and a peace activist. He was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in 1967 by Martin Luther King, Jr. In 1966. He left Vietnam in exile and now resides at Plum Village, a monastery in France. He has written more than one hundred books about Buddhism, which have made him one of the very few most prominent Buddhist authors among the general readership in the West. In his books and talks, Thich Nhat Hanh emphasizes mindfulness as the most important practice in daily life.
There is also another notable Vietnamese Zen master who has been influential in Western countries: Most Venerable Thich Thien-An. Thich Thien-An came to America in 1966 as a visiting professor at UCLA and taught traditional Thien meditation.
Sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki
http://www.daophatngaynay.com/vn/phap-mon/thien-dinh/to-su/9474-Thien-Truc-Lam.html
Tran Thai Tong TLYT Zen Founder
http://www.daophatngaynay.com/vn/phatgiao-vn/con-nguoi-vn/9709-Triet-hoc-Tran-Thai-Tong.html
