Chinese Buddhism
Buddhist missionaries began bringing Buddhism to China during the Han dynasty, and the religion was present in China at the beginning of the common era. Buddhist missionaries made use of both the overland Central Asian Silk Road and the maritime routes. Initially, Buddhism was poorly understood and often confused with and mixed with Taoism. The Chinese saw many similarities between the two religions. There was also much criticism leveled at the new foreign religion by the Confucian elites. Centuries after Buddhism originated in India, Mahayana Buddhism arrived in China through the Silk Route in the 1st century CE via Tibet.
One of the first tasks of the initial missionaries was the translation of Buddhist texts. The first surviving translations of Buddhist texts into Chinese were those of the 2nd-century Parthian, An Shigao, who worked in the capital of Luoyang. His work was followed by the extensive Mahayana translations of the Kushan monk Lokakshema, active until 186, as well as the work of Dharmaraksha from the 3rd century. During this early period, the Dharmaguptaka school was influential in establishing Buddhism in China. This resulted in the widespread adoption of the Dharmaguptaka school's Vinaya monastic rule by all Chinese Buddhist schools.
During the Tang dynasty, which lasted from 618 to 907 CE, a sinicized Buddhism was widely accepted and practiced throughout the empire. Many monasteries and temples sprang up across the land. The religion was popular with all social classes and was influential on Chinese culture, having more followers than Taoism. Buddhist themes can be found in much of the literature of this period, such as in the works of famous poets like Wang Wei, who lived from 701 to 761, and Bo Juyi, who lived from 772 to 846.
A well-known proponent of the religion during the Tang era was Empress Wu Zetian, who is known for her promotion of the Longmen cave complex. She also depicted herself as a bodhisattva. The next important event in the history of Chinese Buddhism was the arrival of Subhakarasimha, Vajrabodhi, and Amoghavajra, and their establishment of Zhenyan Buddhism or Chinese Esoteric Buddhism from 716 to 720, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. This Chinese form of Vajrayana Buddhism now became popular with the elites, and by the time of Emperor Daizong of Tang, its influence among the upper classes was significant.
The Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution occurred between 841 and 845 under Emperor Wuzong of Tang. It greatly impacted and weakened the Buddhist institutions in China. Perhaps the main reason for this persecution was the Chinese state's need for taxes and wealth. The Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period from 907 to 960 or 979, an era of political upheaval and civil war, negatively impacted the religion. Various Chinese Buddhist traditions contracted or died out during this period.
Chinese Buddhism suffered extensive repression, persecution, and destruction during the Cultural Revolution from 1966 until Mao Zedong's death in 1976. Maoist propaganda depicted Buddhism as one of the Four Olds, as a superstitious instrument of the ruling class and as counter-revolutionary. Buddhist monks were attacked, disrobed, arrested, and sent to camps. Buddhist writings were burned. Buddhist temples, monasteries, and art were systematically destroyed, and Buddhist lay believers ceased any public display of their religion. During the normalization period led by Deng Xiaoping from 1977 to the early 1980s, a revival of Chinese Buddhism began to take place.
The 6th and 7th centuries saw a flowering of new and unique Chinese Buddhist traditions. The Tiantai school was mainly founded by the efforts of master Zhiyi, who lived from 538 to 597 CE, and based on the Lotus Sutra and the works of Zhiyi. The Huayan school was based on the works of Chinese masters such as Dushun, who lived from 557 to 640, Zhiyan, who lived from 602 to 668, and Fazang, who lived from 643 to 712. The Pure Land tradition was based on the veneration of Amitabha and the works of Buddhist monks such as Tanluan, who lived from 476 to 542, Daochuo, who lived from 562 to 645, and Shandao, who lived from 613 to 681.
According to Mario Poceski, for the vast majority of ordinary Chinese Buddhists, prevalent expressions of Buddhist piety were channeled via a variety of popular modes of worship and ritual observance. Many monasteries and temples typically follow a standardized traditional liturgy for daily morning and evening services, which typically involve chanting or recitation of sutras or passages from a sutra, mantras and dharanis, gathas and verses of praises of Buddhist deities and figures, and food bestowal rites.
Another key part of Chinese Buddhism is engaging in Buddhist meditations such as chanting the Buddha's name nianfo, which is the core
practice of Pure Land Buddhism, and seated meditation zazen, which is the focus of the Chan tradition. Pilgrimages to well-known monasteries and sites, such as the Four Sacred Buddhist Mountains Mount Wutai, Mount Emei, Mount Jiuhua, and Mount Putuo are undertaken by monastics and lay practitioners alike. Chinese Buddhists celebrate numerous religious festivals and holidays, and these are the most widely attended and popular of the religion's events. During religious festivals, Chinese people visit temples to take part in rituals, chanting, food, celebrations, parades, and to make offerings of prayers, incense, fruits, flowers, and monetary donations.
Common questions
When did Buddhist missionaries first bring Buddhism to China?
Buddhist missionaries began bringing Buddhism to China during the Han dynasty, and the religion was present in China at the beginning of the common era. Mahayana Buddhism arrived in China through the Silk Route in the 1st century CE via Tibet.
Who translated the first surviving Buddhist texts into Chinese?
The first surviving translations of Buddhist texts into Chinese were those of the 2nd-century Parthian An Shigao who worked in the capital of Luoyang. His work was followed by the extensive Mahayana translations of the Kushan monk Lokakshema active until 186 as well as the work of Dharmaraksha from the 3rd century.
What happened to Chinese Buddhism during the Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution?
The Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution occurred between 841 and 845 under Emperor Wuzong of Tang. It greatly impacted and weakened the Buddhist institutions in China due to the Chinese state's need for taxes and wealth.
Which schools of thought developed during the flowering of new Chinese Buddhist traditions in the 6th and 7th centuries?
The Tiantai school was mainly founded by the efforts of master Zhiyi who lived from 538 to 597 CE based on the Lotus Sutra. The Huayan school was based on the works of Chinese masters such as Dushun who lived from 557 to 640 Zhiyan who lived from 602 to 668 and Fazang who lived from 643 to 712.
How did the Cultural Revolution affect Chinese Buddhism?
Chinese Buddhism suffered extensive repression persecution and destruction during the Cultural Revolution from 1966 until Mao Zedong's death in 1976. Buddhist monks were attacked disrobed arrested and sent to camps while Buddhist writings were burned and temples systematically destroyed.