Huayan’s vision of reality as a vast, interconnected web left deep footprints on Chan (Zen) and other East Asian Buddhist traditions. By portraying every phenomenon as a reflection of every other—much like pearls on Indra’s Net—this school turned abstract philosophy into a living tapestry. When Chan masters began teaching, they borrowed Huayan’s image of mutual inclusion to stress that sudden awakening doesn’t occur in isolation, but is woven into the fabric of everyday life.

Meditation halls in Tang- and Song-era monasteries often displayed murals or statues inspired by the Lotus and Avataṃsaka Sutras, linking silent sitting directly to Huayan’s cosmic vision. Chan teachers encouraged students to trace the ripples of their own awareness back to that boundless matrix. This emphasis on direct experience, paired with the Huayan idea that ultimate truth permeates each moment, paved the way for Zen’s famous “direct pointing” to one’s own nature.

Dōgen in Japan, while pioneering his unique Sōtō style in the 13th century, frequently cited Huayan imagery to describe shikantaza (just sitting). He likened each breath to a jewel that both contains and illuminates the entire cosmos—a clear echo of Indra’s Net. Meanwhile, Korean Seon monks wove Huayan’s interdependence into their koan practice, seeing each perplexing question as a facet of the world’s boundless mirror.

Beyond monastic walls, Chan art and poetry brimmed with Huayan motifs. Landscapes in ink became visual metaphors for interpenetration: mountains appearing in mist yet containing entire universes. Modern Zen centers still hang these scrolls, reminding practitioners that mindfulness and compassion arise hand in glove, just as all things arise together.

Today, with network theory and ecological awareness shaping global conversations, Huayan’s ancient insights feel fresher than ever. Chan retreats in places like Taiwan and California emphasize interdependence not simply as doctrine, but as a hands-on meditation on how individual well-being links to the health of the planet—proof that those ancient pearls continue shining in modern settings.