Ton Lathouwers received transmission in 1987 from the Chinese Ch'an master Teh Cheng. During his life, Teh Cheng (1923-2002) was the coordinator and head of the Sangha Agung Indonesia, in which all of the Buddhist schools of Indonesia are brought together. He was also the highest authority of the Guang Hua Ssu denomination of Linji (Rinzai-) Ch'an Buddhism in Fujuan, China.
Maha Karuna Ch'an in The Netherlands is inspired, as well, by Hisamatsu Shin'ichi (1889-1980), founder of the most important renewal movement within Japanese Zen, the FAS Society. It was under the guidance of his colleague and successor, Masao Abe, that Ton Lathouwers began the Zen way in 1971.
Interview with TonLathouwers 2019