Zen Is Zen, Tao Is Tao

One need only to look at the priests of Taoism and Zen to see some of the differences: Zen monks shave their head, are vegetarian, avoid wine and intoxication, value the Heart Sutra, and practice celibacy; Taoist priests generally have a full head of hair, drink wine, value the Dao De Jing, and are permitted to have wives (and sex!). (View Highlight)

Or we might look at their meditation techniques. In Zen, practitioners keep their mind on the void. In Taoism, visualization is used extensively in meditation. From a Zen perspective, these visualizations are considered a “deviation” because they cause thoughts to arise, which conflict sharply with Zen teachings (but not with Taoist teachings). (View Highlight)