 Although Buddhism lost its prominence in the elite circles and government sponsorships of Chinese society , this did not mean the <unk> of Buddhism from Chinese culture . Zen Buddhism continued to flourish during the Song period , as Emperor Lizong of Song had the monk Wuzhun Shifan share the <unk> ( Zen ) doctrine with the imperial court . Much like the Eastern Roman Emperor Julian the Apostate promoting Roman paganism and <unk> amongst the leading members of Roman society while pushing Christianity 's influence into the lower classes , so too did Neo @-@ Confucians of the 13th century succeed in driving Buddhism out of the higher echelons of Chinese society . 
