Kwan Um

Seon

Kwan Um

Branch of Jogye

The Kwan Um School of Zen is an international Seon organization founded in 1983 by the Korean master Seung Sahn (1927–2004), who was among the first Korean Zen teachers to establish a major presence in the West. The school's name refers to Gwaneum (Avalokiteshvara), the bodhisattva of compassion. Seung Sahn's teaching style combined the rigor of traditional Korean hwadu practice with a direct, humorous, and accessible approach adapted for Western students. His famous kong-an (koan) interviews, often beginning with 'What is this?', became the school's hallmark. The Kwan Um School maintains over a hundred Zen centers and groups across North America, Europe, Asia, and Africa, making it one of the most geographically widespread Zen organizations in the world.