The
Silk Road transmission of Buddhism to
ChinaChina is a cultural region, an ancient civilization, and, depending on perspective, a national or multinational entity extending over a large area in East Asia....
started in the 1st century CE with a semi-legendary or quasi-historical account of an embassy sent to the West by the Chinese Emperor
MingEmperor Ming of Han, , was second emperor of the Chinese Eastern Han Dynasty.He was the second son of Emperor Guangwu. It was during Emperor Ming's reign that Buddhism began to spread into China. One night, he is said to have dreamed of a golden man or golden men...
(58 – 75 CE). Extensive contacts however started in the 2nd century CE, probably as a consequence of the expansion of the
Kushan EmpireThe Kushan Empire of Ancient India originally formed in the territories of ancient Bactria on either side of the middle course of the Oxus River or Amu Darya in what is now northern Afghanistan, and southern Tajikistan and Uzbekistan...
into the Chinese territory of the
Tarim BasinThe Tarim Basin is a large endorheic basin occupying an area of more than . It is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west. Its northern boundary is the Tian Shan mountain range and its southern is the Kunlun Mountains on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. The...
, with the missionary efforts of a great number of Central Asian
BuddhistBuddhism, as traditionally conceived, is a path of salvation attained through insight into the ultimate nature of reality. It encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha...
monks to Chinese lands. The first missionaries and translators of Buddhist scriptures into Chinese were either
ParthiaParthia is a region of north-eastern Iran, best known for having been the political and cultural base of the Arsacid dynasts, after which the Arsacid Empire is then also known as the 'Parthian Empire'....
n, Kushan,
SogdianSogdian may refer to* anything pertaining to Sogdiana, an ancient civilization of Iranian peoplesand in particular to* the Sogdian language* or the Sogdian people...
or Kuchean.
From the 4th century onward, Chinese pilgrims also started to travel to northern
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
, the origin of
BuddhismBuddhism, as traditionally conceived, is a path of salvation attained through insight into the ultimate nature of reality. It encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha...
, by themselves in order to get improved access to the original scriptures, with Fa-hsien's pilgrimage to India (395-414), and later Xuan Zang (629-644). The
Silk RoadThe Silk Road is an extensive interconnected network of trade routes across the Asian continent connecting East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean world, as well as North and Northeast Africa and Europe...
transmission of Buddhism essentially ended around the 7th century with the rise of Islam in Central Asia.
First contacts
The first contacts between China and Central Asia occurred with the opening of the
Silk RoadThe Silk Road is an extensive interconnected network of trade routes across the Asian continent connecting East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean world, as well as North and Northeast Africa and Europe...
in the 2nd century BCE. The 1st century BCE
Records of the Great Historian tells of the travels of the Chinese explorer
Zhang QianZhang Qian was an imperial envoy to the world outside of China in the 2nd century BC, during the time of the Han Dynasty...
to Central Asia around 130 BCE, who reports about a country named Shendu (India), whose peaceful Buddhist ways are mentioned in writing in the 1st century CE
HanThe Han Dynasty was the second imperial dynasty of China, preceded by the Qin Dynasty and succeeded by the Three Kingdoms . It was founded by the peasant rebel leader Liu Bang, known posthumously as Emperor Gaozu of Han. It was briefly interrupted by the Xin Dynasty of the former regent Wang Mang...
history, the Hanshu.
After 130 BCE, numerous embassies to the West followed Zhang Qian's travels, and there may have been some contacts with Buddhism around that time. Chinese murals in the
Tarim BasinThe Tarim Basin is a large endorheic basin occupying an area of more than . It is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west. Its northern boundary is the Tian Shan mountain range and its southern is the Kunlun Mountains on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. The...
city of
DunhuangDunhuang is a city in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China. It is sited in an oasis.- History :...
describe Han Wudi (156-87 BCE) worshiping Buddhist statues, "golden men brought in 120 BCE by a great Han general in his campaigns against the nomads". However, there is no such mention of Han Wudi worshiping the Buddha in Chinese historical literature. The Hou Hanshu also records the visit of
YuezhiThe Yuezhi or Rouzhi , also known as the Da Yuezhi or Da Rouzhi , were an ancient Central Asian people.They are believed by most scholars to have been an Indo-European...
envoys to the Chinese capital in 2 BCE, who gave oral teachings on Buddhist sutras to a student, suggesting that some Yuezhi had already started to disseminate the Buddhist faith in eastern Asia during the 1st century BCE. The
Hou Hanshu then describes the questionable legend about the encouragement of Buddhism around 70 CE by Emperor Ming (58-75 CE):
- "There is a current tradition that Emperor Ming dreamed that he saw a tall golden man the top of whose head was glowing. He questioned his group of advisors and one of them said: “In the West there is a god called Buddha. His body is sixteen chi high (3.7 metres or 12 feet), and is the colour of true gold.” The Emperor, to discover the true doctrine, sent an envoy to Tianzhu (Northwestern India) to inquire about the Buddha’s doctrine, after which paintings and statues [of the Buddha] appeared in the Middle Kingdom."
This encounter is further described in a 6th century CE account by
Yang XuanzhiYang Xuanzhi was a Chinese writer and translator of Mahayana Buddhist texts into the Chinese language, during the 6th century, under the Northern Wei Dynasty....
:
- "The establishment of the Baima Temple (Temple of the White Horse) by Emperor Ming (58-75 CE) of the Han marked the introduction of Buddhism into China. The temple was located on the south side of the Imperial Drive, three leagues (li) outside the Xiyang Gate. The Emperor dreamt of the golden man sixteen Chinese feet tall, with the aureole of sun and moon radiating from his head and his neck. A "golden god", he was known as Buddha. The emperor dispatched envoys to the Western Regions ("遣使向西域求之") in search of the god, and, as a result, acquired Buddhist scriptures and images. At the time, because the scriptures were carried into China on the backs of white horses, White Horse was adopted as the name of the temple." (Translation: Ulrich Theobald).
M. H.
MasperoPeople with the name Maspero include:*Gaston Maspero , French Egyptologist, father of Henri*Henri Maspero , French sinologist, son of Gaston, father of François*François Maspero , French author and journalist, son of Henri...
established in 1901 that this story had no real basis in fact, but was almost certainly just a pious legend dating from the 2nd century CE. He also pointed out that the 3rd century
WeilüeThe Weilüe written by Yu Huan between CE 239, the end of Emperor Ming’s reign, and 265 CE, the end of the Cao Wei . Although not an "official historian," Yu Huan has always been held in high regard amongst Chinese scholars....
has a very different account of the introduction of Buddhism to China, with no mention at all of Emperor Ming.
The military expansion of China into
Central AsiaAsia is a region of Asia from the Caspian Sea in the west to central China in the east, and from southern Russia in the north to northern India in the south. It is also sometimes known as Middle Asia or Inner Asia, and is within the scope of the wider Eurasian continent.Various definitions of its...
under the rule of Emperor Ming at that time was very real, in particular with the campaign of the general
Ban ChaoBan Chao , courtesy name Zhongsheng , was born in Xianyang, Shaanxi, the younger brother of the famous historian, Ban Gu , was a Han Dynasty general and cavalry commander in charge of the administration of the "Western Regions" during the Eastern Han dynasty...
, who managed to repel the
XiongnuThe Xiongnu were a confederation of nomadic tribes from Central Asia with a ruling class of unknown origin and other subjugated tribes. The bulk of information on the Xiongnu comes from Chinese sources. What little is known of their titles and names comes from Chinese transliterations from their...
from the
Tarim BasinThe Tarim Basin is a large endorheic basin occupying an area of more than . It is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west. Its northern boundary is the Tian Shan mountain range and its southern is the Kunlun Mountains on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. The...
and control most of the area by around 75 CE. These contacts necessarily prompted some level of cultural exchange, and may indeed correspond to the first time Buddhist ideas were transmitted to China.
The first documented transmission of Buddhist scriptures to China occurs in 148 CE, with the arrival of the Parthian missionary
An Shih KaoAn Shigao was a prince of Parthia, nicknamed the "Parthian Marquis", who renounced his prospect as a contender for the royal throne of Parthia in order to serve as a Buddhist missionary monk....
in China, probably on the heels of the Kushan expansion into the Tarim Basin. An Shi Kao established Buddhist temples in Loyang and organized the translation of Buddhist scriptures into Chinese, testifying to the beginning of a wave of Central Asian Buddhist proselytism that was to last several centuries.
Central Asian missionaries
In the middle of the 2nd century CE, the Kushan empire under king
KanishkaKanishka was a king of the Kushan Empire in Central Asia, ruling an empire extending from Bactria to large parts of northern India in the 2nd century of the common era, and famous for his military, political, and spiritual achievements...
expanded into Central Asia and went as far as taking control of
KashgarKashgar or Kashi is an oasis city with approximately 350,000 residents in the western part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China...
,
KhotanThe oasis town of Hotan or Hetian is the capital of Hotan Prefecture, Xinjiang, China. It was previously known in Chinese as 于窴 pinyin: Yutian....
and
YarkandYarkant County , is a county in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, China, located on the southern rim of the Taklamakan desert in the Tarim Basin. It is one of 11 counties administered under Kashgar Prefecture...
, in the
Tarim BasinThe Tarim Basin is a large endorheic basin occupying an area of more than . It is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west. Its northern boundary is the Tian Shan mountain range and its southern is the Kunlun Mountains on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. The...
, modern
XinjiangXinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China and also claimed by the territory of the Republic of China.-Names:Older English-language reference works often refer to the area as Chinese Turkestan, Sinkiang, East...
. As a consequence, cultural exchanges greatly increased, and Central-Asian Buddhist missionaries became active shortly after in the Chinese capital cities of Loyang and sometimes
Nanjing' , abbreviated in Chinese as Ning , is the capital of China's Jiangsu Province, and a city with a prominent place in Chinese history and culture...
, where they particularly distinguished themselves by their translation work. They promoted both Hinayana and Mahayana scriptures. Thirty-seven of these early translators of Buddhist texts are known.
- An Shih Kao
An Shigao was a prince of Parthia, nicknamed the "Parthian Marquis", who renounced his prospect as a contender for the royal throne of Parthia in order to serve as a Buddhist missionary monk....
, a ParthiaParthia is a region of north-eastern Iran, best known for having been the political and cultural base of the Arsacid dynasts, after which the Arsacid Empire is then also known as the 'Parthian Empire'....
n prince who made the first known translations of HinayanaHīnayāna is a Sanskrit and Pāli term literally meaning: "the low vehicle", "the inferior vehicle", or "the deficient vehicle".The term appeared around the 1st or 2nd century CE. Its use in scholarly publications is controversial...
Buddhist texts into Chinese (148-170).
- Lokaksema
Lokaksema , born around 147 CE, was the earliest known Buddhist monk to have translated Mahayana sutras into the Chinese language and as such was an important figure in Buddhism in China. The name Lokakṣema means 'welfare of the world' in Sanskrit.-Origins:Lokaksema was a Kushan of Yuezhi ethnicity...
, a Kushan and the first to translate MahayanaMahayana is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice. It was founded in India...
scriptures into Chinese (167-186).
- An Hsuan, a Parthian merchant who became a monk in China 181
- Zhi Yao
Zhi Yao was a Kushan Buddhist monk of Yuezhi ethnicity who was involved with the translation of Buddhist texts into Chinese around 185 CE. His origin is described in his adopted Chinese name by the prefix Zhi , abbreviation of Yuezhi .Zhi Yao was a student of Lokaksema...
(c. 185), a Kushan monk, second generation of translators after Lokaksema.
- Kang Meng-hsiang (194-207), first translator from Kangju
Kangju was the name of an ancient people and kingdom in central Asia. It was a nomadic federation of unknown ethnic and linguistic origin which became for a couple of centuries the second greatest power in Transoxiana after the Yuezhi....
.
- Zhi Qian
Zhi Qian was a Chinese Buddhist layman of Yuezhi ancestry who translated a wide range of Indian Buddhist scriptures into Chinese. He was the grandson of an immigrant from the country of the Great Yuezhi , an area that overlapped to at least some extent with the territory of the Kushan Empire...
(220-252), a Kushan monk whose grandfather had settled in China during 168-190.
- Zhi Yueh (c.230), a Kushan monk who worked at Nanjing.
- Kang Senghui (247-280), born in Chiao-chih in the extreme south of the Chinese empire, and son of Sogdian merchant.
- Tan-ti (c.254), a Parthian monk.
- Po Yen (c.259), a Kuchean prince
- Dharmaraksa
' was one of the greatest translators of Mahayana Buddhist scriptures into Chinese. Scriptural catalogues describe him as of Yuezhi origin. His family lived at Dunhuang, where he was born around 230 CE...
(265-313), a Kushan whose family had lived for generations at Dunhuang.
- An Fachiin (281-306), a monk of Parthian origins.
- Po Srimitra (317-322), a Kuchean prince.
- Kumarajiva
Kumārajīva; , was a Kuchean Buddhist monk, scholar and translator. He first studied teachings of the Sarvastivada schools, later studied under Buddhasvāmin, and finally became a Mahayāna adherent, studying the Madhyamika doctrine of Nagarjuna. He settled in Chang'an...
(c. 401), a Kuchean monk, and one of the most important translators.
- Fo T'u-teng (4th century), Central Asian monk who became a counselor to the Chinese court.
- Bodhidharma
Bodhidharma was a Buddhist monk from southern India who lived during the early 5th century and is traditionally credited as the transmitter of Zen to China....
(440-528), was, according to Yang XuanzhiYang Xuanzhi was a Chinese writer and translator of Mahayana Buddhist texts into the Chinese language, during the 6th century, under the Northern Wei Dynasty....
, a monk of Central Asian origin whom he met around 520 at Loyang. Bodhidharma was the founder of the ChanZen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism, translated from the Chinese word Chán. This word is in turn derived from the Sanskrit dhyāna, which means "meditation" ....
(ZenZen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism, translated from the Chinese word Chán. This word is in turn derived from the Sanskrit dhyāna, which means "meditation" ....
) school of Buddhism.
- Five monks from Gandhara traveled in 485 CE to the country of Fusang
Fusang or Fousang is a country described by the native Buddhist missionary Hui Shen to the Chinese in 499 CE , as a place 20,000 Chinese li east of Da-han, and also east of China...
("The country of the extreme East" beyond the sea, probably Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, although some historians suggest the American continent), where they introduced Buddhism:
- "In former times, the people of Fusang
Fusang or Fousang is a country described by the native Buddhist missionary Hui Shen to the Chinese in 499 CE , as a place 20,000 Chinese li east of Da-han, and also east of China...
knew nothing of the Buddhist religion, but in the second year of Da Ming of the Song dynastyThe Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...
(485 CE), five monks from Kipin (KabulKabul , is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of over 2.5 million, and is located in the province of Greater Kabul...
region of Gandhara) traveled by ship to that country. They propagated Buddhist doctrine, circulated scriptures and drawings, and advised the people to relinquish worldly attachments. As a results the customs of Fusang changed" (Ch: "其俗舊無佛法,宋大明二年,罽賓國嘗有比丘五人游行至其國,流通佛法,經像,教令出家,風 俗遂改.", Liang Shu "History of the Liang Dynasty, 7th century CE).
- Jnanagupta
Jnanagupta was a Buddhist monk from Gandhara who travelled to China and was recognised by Emperor Wen of the Sui dynasty...
(561-592), a monk and translator from Gandhara.
- Shikshananda (652-710 CE), a monk and translator from Udyana, Gandhara
See also Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
.
- Prajna
Prajñā , was an important 9th century Buddhist monk from Gandhara, born in the area of modern Kabul, Afghanistan....
(c. 810). A monk and translator from KabulKabul , is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan, with a population of over 2.5 million, and is located in the province of Greater Kabul...
, who educated the Japanese KūkaiKūkai , also known posthumously as , 774–835, was a Japanese monk, scholar, poet, and artist, founder of the Shingon or "True Word" school of Buddhism...
in Sanskrit texts.
Artistic influences
Central Asian missionnary efforts along the Silk Road were accompanied by a flux of artistic influences, visible in the development of
Serindian artSerindian art is the art that developed from the 2nd through the 11th century C.E. in Serindia or Xinjiang, the western region of China that forms part of Central Asia....
from the 2nd through the 11th century CE in the
Tarim BasinThe Tarim Basin is a large endorheic basin occupying an area of more than . It is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west. Its northern boundary is the Tian Shan mountain range and its southern is the Kunlun Mountains on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. The...
, modern
XinjiangXinjiang is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China and also claimed by the territory of the Republic of China.-Names:Older English-language reference works often refer to the area as Chinese Turkestan, Sinkiang, East...
.
Serindian art often derives from the art of the Greco-Buddhist art of the
GandharaSee also Gandhara Gandhāra is the name of an ancient kingdom , located in northern Pakistan and eastern Afghanistan. Gandhara was located mainly in the vale of Peshawar, the Potohar plateau and on the Kabul River...
district of what is now
PakistanPakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located at the crossroads of South Asia, the Middle East, and Central Asia...
, combining Indian, Greek and Roman influences.
Highly sinicized forms of this syncretism can also be found on the eastern portions of the Tarim Basin, such as in
DunhuangDunhuang is a city in Jiuquan, Gansu province, China. It is sited in an oasis.- History :...
.
Silk Road artistic influences can be found as far as Japan to this day, in architectural motifs or representations of Japanese gods (see
Greco-Buddhist artGreco-Buddhist art is the artistic manifestation of Greco-Buddhism, a cultural syncretism between the Classical Greek culture and Buddhism, which developed over a period of close to 1000 years in Central Asia, between the conquests of Alexander the Great in the 4th century BCE, and the Islamic...
).
Chinese pilgrims to India
According to Chinese sources, the first Chinese to be ordained was Zhu Zixing, after he went to Central Asia in 260 to seek out Buddhism. It is only from the 4th century CE that Chinese Buddhist monks started to travel to
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
to discover Buddhism first-hand. Fa-hsien's pilgrimage to India (395-414) is said to have been the first significant one. He left along the Silk Road, stayed 6 years in India, and then returned by the sea route.
Tens of Chinese monks, possibly hundreds of them, visited India during that period.
The most famous of the Chinese pilgrims is Xuan Zang (629-644), whose large and precise translation work defines a “new translation period”, in contrast with older Central Asian works. He also left a detailed account of his travels in Central Asia and India.
Decline
Buddhism in Central Asia began to decline in the 7th century following the incursion of the Muslim
CaliphateThe term caliphate refers to the first form of government inspired by Islam. It was initially led by Muhammad's disciples as a continuation of the political authority the prophet established, known as the 'rashidun caliphates'. It represented the political unity of the Muslim Ummah, and was the...
. The vigorous Chinese culture progressively absorbed Buddhist teachings until a strongly Chinese particularism developed.
Central Asian Buddhist monks from the
Tarim BasinThe Tarim Basin is a large endorheic basin occupying an area of more than . It is located in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China's far west. Its northern boundary is the Tian Shan mountain range and its southern is the Kunlun Mountains on the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau. The...
and East Asian Buddhist monks appear to have maintained strong exchanges until around the 10th century, as shown by frescos from the Tarim Basin.