Chan’s down-to-earth approach lands squarely in today’s mindfulness landscape, where direct experience trumps elaborate ritual. Stripped of ritual trappings centuries ago, Chan practice zeroes in on breath awareness and moment-to-moment attention—exactly what modern apps like Calm and Headspace promote. That “just sit” attitude, known as shikantaza or “just sitting,” dovetails with Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction’s body scans and breath-focused meditations, cutting through the noise of daily life.

Emphasis on non-conceptual seeing—letting thoughts float by without clinging—mirrors the cognitive-defusion techniques gaining traction in secular therapy. Rather than dissecting each passing idea, Chan invites practitioners to watch mental events as if they were clouds drifting across an open sky. Neuroscience studies emerging from institutions like Harvard and UCLA validate this hands-off stance, showing reduced stress markers and increased neural plasticity in regions tied to attention and empathy.

Daily life as altar: Chan masters remind that washing dishes or walking the dog can become formal meditation. In a world where corporate burnout rates spiked so dramatically that the World Health Organization recently labeled it an “occupational phenomenon,” dropping onto the breath during routine tasks feels like finding an oasis in a desert.

Koan practice—those puzzling, paradoxical questions—also inspires creative problem-solving in boardrooms and schoolrooms. Pondering “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” can spark lateral thinking far beyond Buddhist halls. Today’s educators and coaches borrow this playful inquiry to unlock intuition and resilience.

Finally, Chan’s nonsectarian spirit resonates with global audiences. Just as Chan once absorbed Daoist simplicity to flourish in Tang-dynasty China, contemporary mindfulness molds itself to diverse cultures, apps, and workshops without invoking religious trappings. In an era of remote work, social-media challenges, and wearable tech reminding people to “breathe,” Chan’s ancient wisdom quietly underpins the secular mindfulness movement—proof that cutting through complexity sometimes means simply sitting still.