Cultural Contacts
Volume I
Cultural Contacts
An initiative by
The Public Diplomacy Division
Ministry of External Affairs
Room No. 255, 'A' Wing, Shastri Bhawan,
New Delhi-110001, INDIA
T: +91- 11-23383316
F: +91-11-23384663
Website: www.indiandiplomacy.in
Published in 2014 by
MaXposure Media Group (I) Pvt. Ltd.
Unit No. F2B, 2nd floor
Mira Corporate Suites, Plot No. 1&2
Ishwar Nagar, Mathura Road
New Delhi - 110065, INDIA
T: +91-11-43011111
F: +91-11-43011199
Email:info@maxposure.in
Website: www.maxposure.in
CIN Number: U22229DL2006PTC152087
All rights reserved. No part of this encyclopedia may be reproduced or transmitted in any
form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by
any information storage and retrieval system, except as may be expressly permitted in writing
by the public diplomacy division, Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India.
Cultural Contacts
contents
Volume I
PREFACE............................................................... xi
CREDITS............................................................... xii
Kasyapa ........................................................... 79
Gautama Siddhartha........................................ 80
Kumara............................................................. 80
Works...........................................................80
Kai Yuan Zhan Jing.......................................... 80
Jiuzhi Calendar................................................ 81
Sardulakarnavadana......................................... 82
Sardulakarnavadana, Pictures
of Constellations............................................... 83
Prince Shetoujian’s Twenty-Eight
Constellations Scripture................................... 84
Constellation Scripture .................................... 84
Brahman Siddhanta.......................................... 87
SECTION I
INDIA-CHINA CULTURAL EXCHANGES.............1
Timeline of Chinese Dynasties and Other
Key Events.............................................................. 2
General Introduction.............................................. 3
SECTION II
COMMERCIAL INTERACTIONS BETWEEN
INDIA & CHINA.............................................19
Overview.............................................................. 22
A. Products...................................................30
Bodhi Tree........................................................ 30
Sala Tree.......................................................... 31
Asoka Tree....................................................... 32
Clover............................................................... 32
Cucumber......................................................... 33
Pepper.............................................................. 34
Bhallataka ....................................................... 35
Cotton.............................................................. 36
Saffron ............................................................. 38
Zebu................................................................. 39
Porcelain ......................................................... 40
Silk .................................................................. 40
Embroidery ..................................................... 41
Cat’s Eye .......................................................... 42
Fine Cloth......................................................... 43
B. Medical Sciences.......................................88
Cikitsāvidyā...................................................... 88
Indian Medical Science and its
Transmission to China...................................... 89
Personalities..................................................93
Ge Hong........................................................... 93
Tao Hongjing.................................................... 93
Sun Simiao....................................................... 94
Wang Tao......................................................... 96
Li Shizhen........................................................ 96
George Hatem.................................................. 97
Tang Youzhi..................................................... 98
Nagarjuna - the Physician................................ 99
Buddhacinga.................................................... 99
Jīva................................................................ 100
Buddhasena.................................................... 101
Jīva Jīvaka .................................................... 101
Works......................................................... 102
Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency........... 102
Supplement to Valuable Prescriptions............ 103
Arcane Essentials from the
Imperial Library............................................. 104
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s Treatise on
Ophthalmology.............................................. 105
Sutra of Buddhist Medicine............................ 106
Bower Manuscript.......................................... 107
Siddhasàra...................................................... 108
Jivaka Pustaka............................................... 109
Essentials of Prescriptions by Various
Medical Scientists .......................................... 110
B. Early Modern Era......................................43
Opium Trade.................................................... 43
India-China Cotton Yarn Trade........................ 45
Abdoolally Ebrahim & Co................................. 46
E D Sassoon & Co............................................. 46
Parsis................................................................ 47
Shikarpuri Financiers....................................... 48
Ismaili Traders................................................. 48
The Tatas.......................................................... 49
The Harilelas.................................................... 50
Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy......................................... 50
K R Cama......................................................... 51
H N Mody......................................................... 51
Paul Chater...................................................... 52
Ellis and Elly Kadoorie..................................... 52
C. Technological Exchanges......................... 111
Qi Min Yao Shu.............................................. 111
Sugar Making................................................. 111
Tea Cultivation............................................... 112
Zhu Kezhen.................................................... 113
SECTION III
SCIENCE & TECHNOLOGY..............................55
Overview.............................................................. 58
A. Mathematics and Astronomy.....................71
Ancient Indian Mathematics and Astronomy...... 71
Terms, Items..................................................75
Zero.................................................................. 75
Portraits of Constellation Gods......................... 75
Personalities..................................................76
Zhen Luan ....................................................... 76
Yixing............................................................... 77
Dharmacandra ................................................. 78
SECTION IV
EXCHANGES BASED ON BUDDHISM............. 115
Overview............................................................ 118
A. Sects....................................................... 132
Chinese Buddhism.......................................... 132
Tiantai School ............................................... 136
Faxiang School .............................................. 139
iii
Cultural Contacts
Tibetan Buddhism.......................................... 141
rnying ma pa Sect.......................................... 142
sa skya pa Sect............................................... 143
bkav brgyud pa Sect....................................... 144
dge lugs pa Sect.............................................. 146
jo nang pa Sect............................................... 147
thi byed Sect.................................................. 148
Theravada Buddhism in Yunnan.................... 149
Acharya Buddhism ........................................ 151
D. Personalities........................................... 200
Indian Personalities...................................... 200
Sakyamuni...................................................... 200
Mahamaudgalyayana..................................... 204
Asoka............................................................. 204
Asokan Inscriptions........................................ 206
Kasyapamatanga............................................ 207
Dharamaratna................................................ 207
Nagarjuna....................................................... 208
Deva .............................................................. 211
Dharmakala ................................................... 212
Dharmamitra ................................................. 213
Buddhabhadra................................................ 214
Gunavarman................................................... 215
Dharmaraksa.................................................. 216
Gunabhadra.................................................... 217
Punyatara....................................................... 218
Sanghadeva.................................................... 219
Dharmayasas.................................................. 220
Vimalaksa....................................................... 220
Buddhayasas................................................... 221
Sanghavarman................................................ 222
Asanga ........................................................... 222
Vasubandhu................................................... 224
Buddhajiva..................................................... 225
Gunavriddhi................................................... 225
Bhavaviveka................................................... 226
Narendrayasas................................................ 227
Paramartha .................................................... 228
Buddhabhadra................................................ 229
Dignaga ......................................................... 230
Ratnamati....................................................... 231
Bodhiruci........................................................ 231
Gautamaruci................................................... 233
Bodhidharma.................................................. 233
Jnanagupta .................................................... 234
Prabhakarmitra.............................................. 236
Silabhadra...................................................... 237
Gunaprabha.................................................... 237
Dharmagupta................................................. 238
Dharmakirti.................................................... 239
Candrakirti..................................................... 239
Divakara......................................................... 239
Cunda............................................................. 240
Subhakarasimha ............................................ 240
Atigupta......................................................... 242
Jnanaprabha................................................... 242
Prajnanadeva.................................................. 243
Bhagavaddharma .......................................... 243
Nati ............................................................... 243
Buddhatrata................................................... 244
Vajrabodhi..................................................... 244
Buddhapala.................................................... 245
Jnanacandra................................................... 246
Simharashmi.................................................. 246
Manicinta....................................................... 247
Pramiti........................................................... 247
Amoghavajra.................................................. 248
Santiraksita.................................................... 249
Prajna............................................................. 251
Bodhiruci........................................................ 252
Kamalasila...................................................... 252
Sarivarma....................................................... 253
Padma............................................................ 253
Padmasambhava............................................ 254
B. Buddhist Sacred Places............................ 151
Lumbini.......................................................... 151
Kapilvastu...................................................... 152
Bodhgaya....................................................... 153
Vajrasana....................................................... 154
Gaya............................................................... 155
Mrigdava........................................................ 156
Sarnath........................................................... 156
Shravasti........................................................ 157
Rajgriha.......................................................... 158
Griddhkuta Hill.............................................. 159
Vaishali.......................................................... 160
Kushinagar..................................................... 161
Mahabodhi Vihar .......................................... 162
Nalanda.......................................................... 164
Vikramasila Mahavihar.................................. 165
C. Monasteries............................................ 166
Mount Wutai.................................................. 166
Mount Putuo.................................................. 169
Mount E'mei................................................... 171
Mount Jiuhua................................................. 172
White Horse Temple....................................... 173
Famen Temple ............................................... 174
Jianchu Temple ............................................. 175
Daxingshan Temple ....................................... 175
Asoka Temple................................................. 176
Tanzhe Temple .............................................. 176
Lingyin Temple ............................................. 177
Caotang Temple ............................................ 178
Shaolin Temple ............................................. 178
Yongning Temple ......................................... 179
Jiming Temple............................................... 180
Xiangguo Temple .......................................... 180
Fayuan Temple ............................................. 181
Dacien Temple............................................... 181
Xingjiao Temple ............................................ 182
Kaiyuan Temple ............................................ 182
gtsug lag khang.............................................. 183
Potala Palace.................................................. 184
bsam yas dgon................................................ 189
mtho ldings dgon........................................... 189
Miaoying Temple .......................................... 190
bya khyung dgon............................................ 191
Dabaoen Temple ........................................... 192
vbras spungs dgon.......................................... 193
se ra theg dgon............................................... 193
bkra shis lhun po dgon................................... 194
sku vbum dgon............................................... 195
dgon lung dgon.............................................. 196
chu bzang dgon.............................................. 196
gsar khog dgon............................................... 197
dpal yul dgon................................................. 197
Yonghegong Temple....................................... 198
Eight Temples of Chengde.............................. 198
iv
Cultural Contacts
Vimalamitra................................................... 255
Munisri........................................................... 256
Candragupta................................................... 256
Dharmapala.................................................... 256
Danagupta...................................................... 257
Devasanti ...................................................... 258
Manjusri......................................................... 259
Atisha ............................................................ 259
Tilopa............................................................. 262
Naropa........................................................... 262
Dharmadeva................................................... 263
pha damba sangje ......................................... 263
Maitrabhadra ................................................ 265
Niguma........................................................... 265
Sukha Siddhi.................................................. 265
Omkarasri...................................................... 265
kha che pan chen shaky shi .......................... 265
Sudhasri ........................................................ 265
Buddhasri....................................................... 266
Sunyadisya .................................................... 266
Sahajasri......................................................... 267
Devadasa........................................................ 267
Samghapala ................................................... 267
Sakyayasas..................................................... 268
Virupa (bir wa ba) ......................................... 268
Western Region Personalities......................... 269
An Shigao....................................................... 269
Lokaksema..................................................... 269
Kang Senghui................................................. 270
Zhiqian .......................................................... 271
Srimitra.......................................................... 271
Kumarajiva..................................................... 272
She Gong........................................................ 276
Kalayasas........................................................ 276
Dharmanandi................................................. 276
Dharmaruci.................................................... 277
Buddhavarman............................................... 277
Dharmayasas.................................................. 278
Samgha........................................................... 279
Siksananda..................................................... 279
Jnanabhadra.................................................. 280
Li She............................................................. 281
Siladharma .................................................... 281
Wutitichanyu.................................................. 282
Purnacandra................................................... 282
Chinese Personalities.................................... 282
Liu Ying.......................................................... 282
Zuo Rong........................................................ 283
Zhu Shixing.................................................... 283
Dharmaraksha................................................ 284
Daoan ............................................................ 285
Zhidun ........................................................... 286
Fahe............................................................... 287
Faxian............................................................ 288
Huirui ............................................................ 291
Baoyun........................................................... 292
Zhimeng......................................................... 292
Kang Falang .................................................. 293
Huisheng ....................................................... 293
Fali ................................................................ 294
Sengmeng ...................................................... 295
Tanlang.......................................................... 295
Zhiyan............................................................ 295
Daorong ........................................................ 296
Xuanzang....................................................... 296
Yijing.............................................................. 304
Fazang ........................................................... 309
Huiri .............................................................. 310
Shenhui.......................................................... 310
Wukong ......................................................... 311
yeshe tshogyal................................................ 312
Virocana......................................................... 313
Li Chengmei................................................... 314
lo chen rin chen bzang po.............................. 314
Daoyuan......................................................... 315
Xingqin........................................................... 315
Cihuan............................................................ 315
Jiye................................................................. 315
Guangyuan .................................................... 316
Fayu............................................................... 316
Jiansheng....................................................... 316
Jicong............................................................. 316
Chongda......................................................... 317
Weijing........................................................... 317
vbrog mi shakya ye shes................................ 317
Huaiwen......................................................... 318
Jiquan............................................................ 318
Daoyuan......................................................... 319
vbrom ston pa rgyal bavi vbyung gnas.......... 319
nag tsho tshul khrims rgyal ba....................... 320
mar pa chos kyi blo gros................................ 320
Macig Labdron............................................... 321
rngog blo ldan shes rab.................................. 323
rngog legs pvishes rab ................................... 323
rgya brtson vgrus seng ge............................... 324
cha pa chos kyi seng ge.................................. 324
kun dgav rgyal mtshan................................... 324
Yuanyi............................................................ 325
klong chen rab vbyams pa............................. 326
red mdav ba gzhon nu blo gros...................... 326
tsong kha pa................................................... 326
Zhiguang........................................................ 328
dge vdun rgya mtsho...................................... 329
bson nams rgya mtsho.................................... 329
pan chen blo bzang chos kyi rgyal mtshan.... 330
ta ra na tha..................................................... 330
yon ldan rgya mtsho...................................... 332
grags pa vod zer............................................. 332
ngag dbang rgya mtsho.................................. 332
blo bzang bstan pvi rgyal mtshan.................. 333
lcang skya ngag dbang blo bzang
chos ldan........................................................ 333
si tu chos kyi vbyung gnas............................. 334
lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje............................... 335
vju mi pham vjam dbyangs
rhamgyal rgya mtsho .................................... 335
E. Scriptures................................................ 336
Tripitaka......................................................... 336
Buddhist Canon in Chinese............................ 337
bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur ........................ 338
Buddhist Canon in Mongolian........................ 339
Buddhist Canon in Manchu Language............ 340
Buddhist Canon in Tangut Language............. 341
Buddhist Canon in Dai Language................... 341
Ullambana Sutra............................................ 342
A Biography of Tripitaka Master.................... 342
Biographies of Eminent Monks of the
Great Tang Seeking Scriptures in the
Western Regions ............................................ 343
v
Cultural Contacts
A Record of the Buddhist Religion
as Practised in India and the
Malay Archipelago......................................... 346
Bodhimargadipasastra.................................... 349
Moksalankarasastra........................................ 350
bu ston chos vbyung...................................... 351
rgya gar chos vbyung..................................... 352
chos vbyung dpag bsam ljon bsang................ 352
thuvu bkwan grub mthav............................... 353
gu bkrvi chos vbyung..................................... 353
D. Works..................................................... 474
Lao Zi............................................................. 474
Analects.......................................................... 476
Vedas.............................................................. 477
Rig Veda......................................................... 481
Brahmanas..................................................... 482
Upanishad...................................................... 483
Yogasutra....................................................... 488
Vaisheshika Sutra........................................... 491
Nyaya Sutra ................................................... 496
Brahma Sutra................................................. 497
Bhagavadgita.................................................. 500
Hiran yasaptati .............................................. 501
Dasapadarthasastra ....................................... 502
F. Doctrines................................................. 354
grub mthav smra ba ...................................... 354
gzhung bkav pod lnga.................................... 355
gzhan stong gi lta ba...................................... 356
rgyud.............................................................. 357
Way of Great Perfection ............................... 360
lam vbras........................................................ 361
phyag rgya chen po ...................................... 361
sbor drug ....................................................... 362
naro chosdrug................................................ 362
smon lam chen mo......................................... 362
E. Events..................................................... 504
Debate between Buddhism and Daoism......... 504
SECTION VI
LINGUISTICS............................................... 509
Overview............................................................ 512
Ancient Chinese Translation............................... 515
A. Terms - Concepts..................................... 517
Shabdavidya .................................................. 517
Siksa .............................................................. 518
Nirukta .......................................................... 519
Vyakarana ..................................................... 519
Brahmi Script ................................................ 520
Kharosthi Script............................................. 521
SECTION V
PHILOSOPHY.............................................. 365
Overview............................................................ 368
A. Theory.................................................... 375
Pancavidya..................................................... 375
Hetuvidya....................................................... 376
Hetuvidya of Tibetan Buddhism ................... 383
Collected Topics of Tibetan Buddhism .......... 383
Adhyàtma Vidyà ........................................... 384
Metaphysics of the Wei and Jin Dynasties .... 384
Neo Confucianism of Song and
Ming Dynasties .............................................. 389
Jainism........................................................... 393
Six Orthodox Schools..................................... 399
Samkhya......................................................... 402
Yoga............................................................... 407
Vaisheshika.................................................... 413
Nyaya............................................................. 418
Mimamsa ....................................................... 424
Vedanta ......................................................... 425
Six Stramana Masters..................................... 432
Lokayata......................................................... 435
Ajivaka........................................................... 438
B. Personalities........................................... 522
Xuanying........................................................ 522
Huilin............................................................. 523
Zhiguang........................................................ 524
Shouwen......................................................... 524
Panini ............................................................ 525
Patanjali ........................................................ 526
C. Dictionaries............................................ 526
Sanskrit-Tibetan Dictionary .......................... 526
Nighantu ....................................................... 527
Siddharastu ................................................... 527
Shabdavidya Sastra ...................................... 528
Volume II
SECTION VII
LITERATURE............................................... 531
Overview............................................................ 534
B. Concepts................................................. 440
Brahmatmaikya.............................................. 440
Samsara ......................................................... 441
Vimukti.......................................................... 444
A. Literary Genre......................................... 547
Fictional Narratives of the
Supernatural World........................................ 547
The Legend of the Tang Dynasty.................... 548
Transformational Texts.................................. 548
Stories of Gods and Demons .......................... 549
Maudgalyayana Opera................................... 549
Indian Mythology........................................... 550
Buddhist Literature in India .......................... 555
Indian Folk Literature.................................... 556
C. Personalities........................................... 446
Laozi............................................................... 446
Confucius ...................................................... 450
Ma Dexin ....................................................... 455
Kang Youwei.................................................. 456
Sun Yat-sen (Sun Zhongshan) ....................... 457
Zhang Binglin (Zhang Taiyan) ....................... 460
Liang Qichao.................................................. 461
Swami Vivekananda....................................... 462
Aurobindo...................................................... 466
Surendranath Dasgupta.................................. 471
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan.............................. 471
Debiprasad Chattopadhyaya ......................... 473
B. Personalities........................................... 557
Chen Duxiu.................................................... 557
Lu Xun ........................................................... 559
Su Manshu...................................................... 561
Guo Moruo .................................................... 564
Xu Dishan ...................................................... 565
Lin Yutang ..................................................... 567
vi
Cultural Contacts
Mao Dun ....................................................... 568
Xu Zhimo....................................................... 569
Zheng Zhenduo ............................................. 570
Bing Xin ........................................................ 571
Ba Jin ............................................................ 573
Ai Qing ......................................................... 575
Yang Shuo ..................................................... 576
Wu Xiaoling................................................... 576
Shi Zhen......................................................... 577
Mu Dan ......................................................... 578
Asvaghosa...................................................... 579
Kalidasa.......................................................... 581
Bana .............................................................. 586
Rabindranath Tagore..................................... 589
Thakur Gadadhar Singh ................................ 596
Mahendulal Garg ........................................... 597
S C Chatterjee................................................. 597
Muhammad Iqbal........................................... 598
Amar Singh.................................................... 599
Munshi Premchand........................................ 599
Jaishankar Prasad ......................................... 601
Yashpal .......................................................... 601
Jainendra Kumar............................................ 602
Mulk Raj Anand ............................................ 602
R K Narayan................................................... 603
Agyeya........................................................... 604
K A Abbas ...................................................... 605
Krishan Chander............................................. 605
Maitreyi Devi ................................................ 606
V Akilan ........................................................ 607
Cao Miaoda.................................................... 668
Sujiva............................................................. 668
Cui Lingqin..................................................... 669
Nan Zhuo....................................................... 670
Duan Anjie..................................................... 671
Mei Lanfang................................................... 671
Zhang Jun...................................................... 674
Uday Shankar................................................. 676
Ravi Shankar.................................................. 677
Kamala Lakshman.......................................... 680
C. Types of Songs and Dances...................... 680
Lion Dance..................................................... 680
Triumphant March of Prince of Qin............... 681
Nishangyuyi Melody...................................... 683
Brahman Sangeet........................................... 684
Natyashastra................................................... 685
D. Painting • Sculpture................................. 686
Concepts and Schools.................................... 686
Chinese Painting............................................ 686
Cao Zhongda Technique................................. 688
Iron Line Drawing.......................................... 688
Ancient Indian painting Technique................ 689
Gandhara Art................................................. 690
Gupta Art....................................................... 691
Nimnonnata................................................... 694
Architecture................................................. 695
Dunhuang Caves............................................ 695
Binglingsi Caves............................................. 696
Yungang Caves............................................... 697
Qizil Caves..................................................... 699
Dayan Stupa................................................... 699
Ajanta Caves ................................................. 700
Great Stupa of Kanishka ................................ 701
Sanchi Stupa................................................... 702
Personalities................................................ 702
Gu Kaizhi....................................................... 702
Dai Kui........................................................... 703
Zhang Sengyou............................................... 704
Cao Zhongda.................................................. 704
Wu Daozi........................................................ 705
Yuchi Yiseng.................................................. 706
Yang Huizhi................................................... 706
Zhang Yanyuan.............................................. 706
Qi Baishi......................................................... 707
Xu Beihong..................................................... 707
Zhang Daqian................................................. 709
Ye Qianyu...................................................... 709
M F Hussain................................................... 710
Abanindranath Tagore................................... 711
Nandalal Bose ............................................... 712
C. Works..................................................... 607
The Tale of the Procurement of
Scriptures by the Tripitaka Master
of the Great Tang........................................... 607
The Investiture of the Gods............................ 608
The Drama of Journey to the West................ 609
Journey to the West ...................................... 609
Expedition to the Western Oceans................. 611
Mahabharata.................................................. 612
Ramayana...................................................... 615
Jatakamala..................................................... 620
Harsacarita .................................................... 620
Nagananda..................................................... 621
Pancatantra.................................................... 622
Puranas.......................................................... 623
Padmavat....................................................... 627
Ramacaritamanas........................................... 627
Sursagar......................................................... 628
Kabirgranthavali............................................ 629
SECTION VIII
VISUAL AND PERFORMING ARTS................. 631
Overview............................................................ 634
E. Films....................................................... 712
Chinese Films in India.................................... 712
Indian Films in China..................................... 713
Personalities................................................ 717
Bruce Lee........................................................ 717
Zhang Yimou ................................................. 718
Jackie Chan ................................................... 718
Sachindranath Sengupta................................. 719
Satyajit Ray.................................................... 719
Raj Kapoor..................................................... 720
Works......................................................... 721
Awara............................................................. 721
Do Bigha Zamin............................................. 721
A. Music • Dance • Drama............................. 650
Kucha Music ................................................. 650
Buddhist Music............................................... 651
Indian Music.................................................. 652
Saptaswaras.................................................... 656
Tianzhu Music................................................ 657
Indian Dance.................................................. 657
Bharatanatyam............................................... 663
Indian Drama................................................. 666
B. Personalities........................................... 668
Wan Baochang............................................... 668
vii
Cultural Contacts
Jhansi Ki Rani................................................ 722
Karwan........................................................... 723
3 Idiots........................................................... 723
Wang Dayuan................................................. 800
Yang Dazhao (Atchew)................................... 801
Chinese Community in India.......................... 801
C. Works..................................................... 803
Records of the Western Regions of the
Great Tang..................................................... 803
SECTION IX
FOLK CUSTOMS, HEALTH & FITNESS............ 725
Overview: Folk Customs ............................. 728
Buddhism and Chinese Popular Beliefs.......... 733
Buddhism and Chinese Popular Festivals....... 737
sa ga zla ba Festival ...................................... 742
zho ston Festival............................................ 742
bcu bavi lnga mchod Festival......................... 742
SECTION XI
DIPLOMATIC EXCHANGES........................... 807
Overview............................................................ 810
A. Concepts................................................. 817
Panchsheel (Five Principles of
Peaceful Coexistence)..................................... 817
Hindi Chini Bhai Bhai.................................... 817
Overview: Health & Fitness.......................... 743
Concept & Terms............................................ 749
Qigong............................................................ 749
Wushu............................................................ 750
Indian-style Massage...................................... 751
Yoga............................................................... 751
Kalaripayattu ................................................ 757
Works......................................................... 758
Tendon-strengthening Sutra .......................... 758
B. Events..................................................... 818
Visit of Chiang Kai-shek and his
wife to India .................................................. 818
Chinese Army in India 1942-1945................. 819
Establishment of India-China
Diplomatic Relations...................................... 819
Visit of Indian Leaders to China Since the
Establishment of Diplomatic Relations........... 820
Visit of Chinese Leaders to India Since the
Establishment of India-China
Diplomatic relations....................................... 822
Rajiv Gandhi’s Visit to China in 1988............ 825
Chinese Cultural Delegation’s Visit to India
in 1954........................................................... 825
SECTION X
COMMUNICATIONS LINKS AND
SITES OF INTERACTION............................... 761
Overview............................................................ 764
Silk Road............................................................ 771
India-China Transport and Communication
Lines During World War II.................................. 775
A. Names of Places...................................... 776
China.............................................................. 776
Chang’an........................................................ 776
Luoyang.......................................................... 777
Kashgar.......................................................... 778
Yarkand.......................................................... 779
Turfan............................................................ 779
Shanghai........................................................ 780
Hong kong...................................................... 781
India............................................................... 782
Magadha........................................................ 783
Takshasila...................................................... 783
Pataliputra..................................................... 784
Kalinga........................................................... 784
Gandhara........................................................ 785
Kashmir.......................................................... 786
Chola.............................................................. 786
Tamralipta (now Tamluk).............................. 787
Uddiyana........................................................ 788
Kamarupa....................................................... 788
Kanchipuram.................................................. 789
Purushapura (now Peshawar)........................ 789
Kollam (Quilon)............................................. 790
Bengala ......................................................... 791
Kochi.............................................................. 792
Varanasi......................................................... 792
Madras (now Chennai)................................... 794
Ladakh........................................................... 795
Bombay (now Mumbai).................................. 796
Calcutta (now Kolkata).................................. 797
Assam............................................................. 798
C. Organisations, Institutions,
Delegations............................................. 826
China-India Friendship Association................ 826
India-China Goodwill Mission........................ 827
Indian Residents Association, Tianjin............ 827
The Ghadar Party........................................... 828
Indian National Association of China............. 828
Indian Youth League...................................... 829
Indian Independence League.......................... 829
India-China Friendship Society...................... 830
Indian Women’s Society for
India-China Friendship................................... 831
Indian Medical Mission ................................. 831
All India Dr Kotnis Memorial Committee ...... 832
D. Personalities........................................... 832
Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty......................... 832
Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei Dynasty..... 834
Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty................. 835
Emperor Gaozong of Tang Dynasty ............... 837
Empress Wu Zetian ....................................... 838
Wang Xuance................................................. 840
Li Yibiao ........................................................ 842
Kublai Khan.................................................... 843
Yang Tingbi.................................................... 845
Emperor Chengzu of Ming Dynasty................ 845
Zheng He........................................................ 846
Huang Maocai ............................................... 847
Ma Jianzhong................................................. 848
Wu Guangpei.................................................. 849
Soong Ching-ling............................................ 850
Mao Zedong................................................... 851
Zhou Enlai ................................................. 852
Deng Xiaoping................................................ 853
B. Personalities and People.......................... 799
Zhang Qian..................................................... 799
viii
Cultural Contacts
Gupta King .................................................... 854
King Harsavardhana (Siladitya)..................... 854
Narasimhavarman II Rajasimha..................... 858
Chandrapida................................................... 858
Luo Haoxin..................................................... 859
Rajendra Chola............................................... 859
Devakara........................................................ 860
Tie Ge............................................................. 860
Qasar Qaya..................................................... 860
Ibrahim Sharqi............................................... 861
Saifuddin Hamza Shah................................... 861
Jalaluddin...................................................... 863
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi .................... 863
Raja Mahendra Pratap.................................... 868
M N Roy......................................................... 868
Benoy Kumar Sarkar ..................................... 869
Jawaharlal Nehru........................................... 870
Subhash Chandra Bose................................... 871
Dr M Ramachandra Cholkar .......................... 872
Dr Madan Mohanlal Atal ............................... 872
Dr Dwarkanath Shantaram Kotnis ................. 873
Dr Bejoy Kumar Basu .................................... 875
Dr Deben Mukherji......................................... 875
K P S Menon................................................... 876
K M Panikkar................................................. 876
Bishambhar Nath Pande ................................ 877
Bhakti Bhushan Mandal ................................ 877
Zhu Jieqin...................................................... 919
Yang Yunyuan................................................ 919
Wei Guisun..................................................... 920
Jao Tsung-I (Rao Zongyi)............................... 920
Wu Yan........................................................... 921
W Pachow (Bazhou)....................................... 921
Wu Baihui...................................................... 922
Yang Ruilin.................................................... 923
Wu Juncai...................................................... 923
Ran Yun-hua.................................................. 924
Yin Hongyuan................................................ 924
Sun Peijun...................................................... 925
Huang Xinchuan............................................. 926
Shih Shu-lu..................................................... 927
Li Zhifu........................................................... 928
Liu Anwu........................................................ 928
Jin Dinghan.................................................... 929
Liu Guonan..................................................... 930
Wang Huaiting............................................... 930
Zhang Mantao................................................ 931
Shan Yun........................................................ 931
Li Yuanshan.................................................... 932
Jiang Zhongxin............................................... 932
Zhao Guohua.................................................. 933
Zhou Dafu ..................................................... 934
Kshitimohan Sen............................................ 934
Kalidas Nag.................................................... 935
Rahul Sankritiyayana..................................... 935
Tan Yun-shan ................................................ 936
Prabodh Chandra Bagchi................................ 939
Dr Raghuvira ................................................. 940
Sujit Kumar Mukherji .................................... 941
Pandit N Aiyaswami Sastri ........................... 941
Prahlad Pradhan............................................. 941
K Venkataramanan......................................... 942
Amitendranath Tagore................................... 942
Vidya Prakash Dutt........................................ 942
V V Paranjpe.................................................. 943
Lokesh Chandra.............................................. 943
Narayan Chandra Sen..................................... 944
Rajesh Saran................................................... 944
Tan Chung...................................................... 944
Biswadev Mukherjee..................................... 946
Vimla Saran.................................................... 946
Haraprasad Ray.............................................. 946
Mira Sinha-Bhattacharjea .............................. 947
Giridhar Dattatrey Deshingkar ...................... 948
Govind Purushottam Deshpande ................... 948
Haridas Mitra................................................. 949
Krishna Kinkar Sinha..................................... 949
Satiranjan Sen................................................ 949
SECTION XII
MODERN ACADEMIC EXCHANGES................ 879
Overview............................................................ 882
India Studies in China......................................... 884
China Studies in India ....................................... 887
A. Organisations, Institutions...................... 890
Peiping Lecture Association........................... 890
Sino-Indian Cultural Society.......................... 890
B. Personalities........................................... 891
Xu Chonghao ................................................. 891
Feng Chengjun .............................................. 892
Taixu.............................................................. 892
Huang Chanhua............................................. 894
Tao Xingzhi.................................................... 894
Hu shi ............................................................ 896
Tang Yongtong............................................... 897
Liang Shuming .............................................. 898
Lü Cheng........................................................ 899
Chen Hansheng.............................................. 900
Su Xuelin........................................................ 901
Wen Yiduo...................................................... 903
Zhou Shujia.................................................... 904
Xiang Da......................................................... 905
Shanti Tseng................................................... 906
Chang Renxia (Chang Jen-hsieh) .................. 907
Fa-fang........................................................... 908
Chen Hongjin................................................. 909
Dongchu......................................................... 909
Xu Fancheng................................................... 910
Mi Wenkai...................................................... 911
Yu Yu............................................................. 912
Fang Hao........................................................ 912
Ji Xianlin........................................................ 913
Jin Kemu........................................................ 916
Wei Fengjiang................................................ 918
SECTION XIII
OTHERS...................................................... 951
Museums..................................................... 953
National Museum of China............................. 954
Quanzhou Maritime Museum ........................ 954
Indian Museum.............................................. 955
National Museum of India.............................. 955
Salarjung Museum ......................................... 957
Xuanzang Memorial Hall................................ 958
Appendix................................................... 960
Index......................................................... 992
ix
Cultural Contacts
preface
In the last few decades there has been a significant momentum in India-China relations with
both sides attaching increasing importance to the potential for cooperation in the area of
Culture. On one hand, Culture has the ability to go beyond the restraining framework of
state-state relations by focusing on more broad-based people-to-people relations, and on the
other, it can also help to establish and develop a dialogue irrespective of and parallel to the
political relationship. In recent years, both India and China have decided to take advantage
of the strategic importance of Culture by designing new mechanisms of cooperation and
integrating them into the policy framework of bilateral relations. Therefore, the idea of
compiling an Encyclopedia of India-China Cultural Contacts was mooted in the Joint
Communiqué of the Republic of India and the People’s Republic of China issued on December
16, 2010, during the Chinese Premier H. E. Mr. Wen Jiabao’s visit to India. This was a major
and significant step forward. It was felt that compilation of the Encyclopedia would be a
giant effort towards “revitalising cultural ties” by revisiting, reliving and reemphasizing our
shared cultural experience. It is expected to not only make the history of many centuries of
India-China cultural contacts easily accessible to people of both the countries, but it is also
expected to build popular consciousness about our common cultural heritage.
This Encyclopedia reinforces the approach of “connected histories” and seeks to identify
encounters and linkages that have facilitated the mutual enrichment and growth of our two
cultures and societies. Therefore its focus has been on Movement (of people/ ideas/ objects),
Interaction (nature and sites of interaction), and Incorporation (processes of acculturation/
adaptation/reaction). In the context of the present, the backdrop of this shared experience
will help us to fully understand and appreciate the truly boundless possibilities of continuing
this journey together in today’s world.
The year 2014 is the year of friendly exchanges between India and China. It is highly
appropriate that the Encyclopedia of India-China Cultural Contacts is being compiled and
published now, which is a precious gift dedicated to the celebration of this occasion.
This has been an ambitious project with the objective of generating new ideas, new
research as well as consciousness of the importance of the shared historical experience
of India and China. In other words, it is a work in progress that hopes to benefit from
constructive suggestions of scholars and interested readers alike. Needless to say, errors may
have remained which we hope to rectify in future.
Joint Compilation Committee for the Encyclopedia of India-China Cultural Contacts
June, 2014
xi
Cultural Contacts
Credits
Encyclopedia of India-China Cultural Contacts
Joint Compilation Committee
INDIA
CHINA
Gautam Bambawale
Zhang Fuhai
Syed Akbaruddin
Gong Li
Bishwadip Dey
Chen Yingming
Shilpak Ambule
Qian Shuren
Sabaree Mitra
Xue Keqiao
Madhavi Thampi
Ge Weijun
Kamal Sheel
Liu Jian
Arttatrana Nayak
Jiang Jingkui
Joint Secretary (East Asia), MEA
Joint Secretary (External Publicity), MEA
Director (XPD), MEA
Deputy Secretary (East Asia), MEA
Editorial Committee & Expert Group
INDIA
CHINA
Sabaree Mitra
Xue Keqiao
Madhavi Thampi
Jiang Jingkui
Kamal Sheel
Liu Jian
Arttatrana Nayak
Ge Weijun
(Chairperson)
(Chairperson)
xii
Cultural Contacts
Contributors
Chen Ming
Li Hui
Liu Lei
Huang Xinchuan
Lalji
Deji zhuoma
Xue Keqiao
Zhang Ran
Bian Bu
Guo Tong
Wang Bangwei
Ranjana Sheel
Jiang Julang
Vijaya Deshpande
Zhang Shujian
Li Yalan
Li Yuejin
Kamal Sheel
Ren Xiaoke
Zhang Minyu
Arttatrana Nayak
Wang Yong
Sun Yutang
Yang Jianxing
Han Zhigeng
Avijit Banerjee
Niu Weixing
Zhou Liqun
Madhavi Thampi
Huang Xianian
Kalsang gyal
Lan Jifu
Sabaree Mitra
Qiao Anquan
Ge Weijun
Tan Jie
Tong Wei
Yao Weiqun
Zhu Mingzhong
Liu Jian
Zhang Yuan
Li Baolong
Jiang Jiangkui
Jia Yan
Wang Jing
Zhao Jiazi
Jin Shanshan
He Yun
R. K. Sinha
Rong Xinjiang
Wang Lingnan
Yang Xiuting
Editorial and Research Assistance
Dhriti Roy
Severin Kuok
Saheli Chattaraj
Research Assistance
Debashish Chaudhuri
Nilanjana Basu
Manish Srivastava
Abhishek Singh
Lin Heng
Prashant Kaushik
Ayushman Baruah
Paulomi Ghoshal
xiii
Cultural Contacts
Cultural Contacts
I
India-China
Cultural Exchanges
1
Cultural Contacts
Timeline of Chinese Dynasties
and Other Key Events
ca. 2100-1600 BCE
Xia (Hsia) Dynasty
ca. 1600-1050 BCE
Shang Dynasty
ca. 1046-256 BCE
Zhou (Chou) Dynasty
Western Zhou (ca. 1046-771 BCE)
Eastern Zhou (ca. 771-256 BCE)
221-206 BCE
Qin (Ch’in) Dynasty
206 BCE-220 CE
Han Dynasty
Western/Former Han (206 BCE-9 CE)
Eastern/Later Han (25-220 CE)
220-589 CE
Six Dynasties Period
Three Kingdoms (220-265 CE)
Jin Dynasty (265-420 CE)
Period of the Northern and Southern
Dynasties (386-589 CE)
581-618 CE
Sui Dynasty
618-906 CE
Tang (T’ang) Dynasty
907-960 CE
Five Dynasties Period
960-1279
Song (Sung) Dynasty
Northern Song (960-1127)
Southern Song (1127-1279)
1279-1368
Yuan Dynasty
1368-1644
Ming Dynasty
1644-1912
Qing (Ch’ing) Dynasty
1912-1949
Republic Period
1949-present
People’s Republic of China
Capitals: near present-day Zhengzhou and Anyang
Capitals: Hao (near present-day Xi’an) and Luoyang
Spring and Autumn Period (770-ca. 475 BCE)
Confucius (ca. 551-479 BCE)
Warring States Period (ca. 475-221 BCE)
Capital: Chang’an, present-day Xi’an
Qin Shihuangdi dies, 210 BCE
Capital: Chang’an
Confucianism officially established as basis for
Chinese state by Han Wudi (r. 141-86 BCE)
Capital: Luoyang
Period of disunity and instability following the
fall of the Han; Buddhism introduced to China
Cao Wei, Shu Han, Dong Wu
Capital: Chang’an
Capitals: Chang’an and Luoyang
Capital: Bianjing (present-day Kaifeng)
Capital: Lin’an (present-day Hangzhou)
The reign of the Mongol empire; Capital:
Dadu (present-day Beijing)
Re-establishment of rule by a Han ruling
house; Capitals: Nanjing and Beijing
Reign of the Manchus; Capital: Beijing
Capitals: Beijing, Wuhan, and Nanjing
Capital: Beijing
2
Cultural Contacts
General
Introduction
I
ndia and China are both ancient civilisations
and as close neighbours there has been
friendly intercourses and cultural exchange
between their people for more than 2,000
years. During this period, cultural exchanges
between India and China have been carried out at
various levels through different channels and with
a rich content. There were political, diplomatic
and people-to-people contacts, intercourse by land
as well as by sea and material as well as spiritual
exchange. It is a unique example in the history
of cultural exchanges in the world and the story
of this shared cultural journey must be spread far
and wide.
While the history of India-China cultural
contacts has been extensively written about, most
of the literature on it has been due to the efforts
of individual scholars or groups of scholars who
from time-to-time have been motivated by their
academic and cultural legacy to embark upon these
projects. Documentation of the ancient period has
been more comprehensive on the Chinese side
while there have been some very interesting and
untold narratives of the colonial and modern
period unearthed by some Indian scholars.
The present project has tried to draw upon all
that has been already done by Indian, Chinese and
other scholars, while striving to fill some of the gaps
that remain. This encyclopedia aims to highlight
the depth and diversity of interactions between
India and China through the ages. It will not only
bring the history of many centuries of India-China
cultural contacts into the public domain, making
it easily accessible to people of both the countries,
but it will also provide a much-needed boost to the
effort to build popular consciousness about our
shared cultural experience.
By way of introduction, this essay gives a
chronological survey of the development of
cultural interactions between India and China from
the most ancient times through to the present.
it is accepted that ancient Indians had known
China since no later than the 4th century BCE. Some
Indian books such as Mahabharata, Ramayana
and Arthashastra, had mentioned Cina (ie China)
more than once. In the Arthashastra, which was
composed in about 4th century BCE, Chinese silk
was documented, indicating that silk trade between
India and China already existed.
In ancient times, Indians and Chinese both
divided the sky into 28 constellations in the same
order, demonstrating mutual exchanges in the field
of astronomy.
In the centuries before Christ, cultural exchange
between India and China is characterised by a
combination of trade and efforts to establish
contacts with each other.
According to Shi Ji (Record of History), Zhang
Qian (unknown~114 BCE) started for the Western
Regions in 135 BCE on a diplomatic mission and
came back 13 years later. In Bactria (now Iran
and Afghanistan), he found cloth produced in
Sichuan and rods made of Qionglai bamboo. Local
people said such articles were from merchants
who came from Sichuan and were doing business
in India. When the Emperor Wu of Han (Liu Che,
156 BCE~87 BCE) learned of this, he sent envoys
time and again to southwestern China to look
for the passage to India, but was obstructed by
local people. They all returned without
accomplishing anything.
The passage through which Zhang Qian went
to the Western Regions was called the ‘Western
Region Road’ that is the ‘Silk Road’. With this road
being opened, an increasing number of envoys
were sent from China to India. According to Da
Yuan Biographies of Shi Ji when Zhang Qian was
on his second trip to the Western Regions, he
sent his deputy envoy to India. After Zhang Qian,
in the 1st century BCE, China on an average sent
seven or eight missions to the Western Regions
every year, with each mission consisting of more
than 100 persons and taking eight or nine years to
accomplish a round trip. Frequent contacts enabled
Chinese to have a better knowledge of India. In the
section on “Biographies of Western Regions” in Shi
Ji, the geographical setting, products, traditions
Before the Christian Era:
Early Contacts
It is difficult to determine when cultural exchange
between India and China actually began. However,
3
Cultural Contacts
provide a grand feast along the road attracting
nearly 10,000 people to dine and watch.
etc., of some Indian places and their relationship
with the Han Dynasty, etc., were recorded.
In southwestern China, the “Dian-Mian Road”
(Yunnan-Burma) had existed for long as a route
to India through which private trade activities
had been carried out. Moreover, in the 2nd century
BCE, there was also a sea route between China and
India, which was referred to as “South Sea Road”.
In the section on Geography in Han Shu (Book of
Han Dynasty), a clear sea route from Guangdong
to Kanci (now Kanchipuram in south India) as well
as a specific shipping schedule was recorded. At
that time, goods shipped to India mainly included
gold and silk fabrics and those brought from India
mainly consisted of gem, crystal and glassware.
Buddhist Intercourse
From 220 to 580 CE, cultural exchange had greatly
developed with increasing movement of people
and trade between India and China. Both sides now
had a better knowledge of each other. However,
the most prominent feature of this period was the
large-scale eastward movement of Buddhism which
was associated with a great number of Indian
monks coming to China to preach. According to
Eminent Monks, there were as many as 30 or 40
such monks. They translated sutras, preached
Buddhist teachings, and brought into China the
knowledge and techniques related to Indian
astronomy, calendar, medicine, architecture,
painting, sculpture and so on.
In the 3rd century CE, Chinese began to go
westward to seek the dharma. Zhu Shixing set
out in 260 and crossed the Gobi Desert to arrive
at Khotan which was near India and had many
Indian residents. There Zhu Shixing found a sutra
in Sanskrit and asked someone to bring it back
to China, while he remained in Khotan. About
20 years later, Dharmaraksa went to the Western
Regions for Buddhist sutras and there he visited
various kingdoms and collected many sutras. He
was said to have learnt as many as 36 languages. A
number of years later, he took 165 Sanskrit sutras
back to China and translated them and preached
Buddhist doctrines in Dunhuang, Chang’an and
other places.
In the 4th century CE, Kumarajiva was a
representative of such pilgrims. At the age of nine,
he went from Kucha with his mother to study
dharma in India and began the return journey at
the age of 12. In 385 CE, he arrived in Liangzhou
(now Wuwei of Gansu Province). In 401 CE, Yao
Xing, the Emperor of Later Qin (366~416 CE),
invited him to Chang’an and gave him the status
of Teacher of the State. Thereafter, Kumarajiva
settled in Chang’an, translating sutras and setting
up a translation workshop. He translated more
than 300 volumes of sutras, accepted disciples and
preached Buddhist texts, with 3,000 followers.
Faxian went to India with nine other fellow
students to seek the Buddhist Vinaya. Some
of them returned midway, some fell sick and
died in India and some settled in India. Faxian
visited holy places in India, studied dharma
and gathered and transcribed sutras. In 414 CE,
he passed by Sri Lanka, Java and other places
and came back to China by sea. Later, he wrote
a memoir i.e. A Record of Buddhist Kingdoms
(also called Biography of Faxian) and translated
many sutras. This memoir which included what
The 1st ~ 6th centuries CE:
Extensive Interactions Driven
by Buddhism
This phase in history is characterised by a
combination of material and spiritual exchanges
and the entry of Buddhism into China.
In the 1st and 2nd centuries CE, the Western
Region route had been interrupted from time to
time but the southern sea route was available. In
1st - 2nd centuries CE, the King of Kanci sent people
to bring a rhinoceros to China, in the year 59, the
King of Gandhara sent a white elephant to China,
and in the year 87, the Kushan King offered lions.
Around the beginning of the present era,
Buddhism was introduced into China. This is the
most significant event in the history of India-China
cultural exchange. Initially, Buddhism won imperial
recognition and was accepted by a few noblemen,
who took Buddha as a god and worshipped him
together with Lao Zi. Later on, the followers of
Buddha began to increase. According to the 6th
century CE work Eminent Monks, the first Indian
monks to come to China were Kasyapamatanga,
Dharmaratna and then Anshigao (from Arsaces)
and Lokaksema (from the Yuezhi). Other Indian
monks then came to China and were engaged
mainly in translating Buddhist sutras. In the 1st
century CE, China built its first Buddhist temple,
i.e. White Horse Temple and the first sutras were
translated into Chinese. In the 2nd century CE, a
man named Zhai Rong became a legendary figure
in the Buddhist history of China. He was in charge
of land and water transportation in Guangling (now
Yangzhou of Jiangsu Province) and Danyang and
spent a large amount of money and material to build
copper Buddha statues and pagodas and temples.
Within his jurisdiction, those listening to and
studying Buddhist scriptures would be exempted
from compulsory labour service and more than
5,000 families were converted into Buddhists. On
the occasion of Buddha’s Birth Festival, he would
4
Cultural Contacts
Vighna, Zhu Luyan, Zhi Qian, Kang Senghui,
Baiyan, Samghavarman, Tan Di, Dharmaraksa,
Nie Chengyuan, Zhi Qian and others. Among
them, Dharmaraksa was the most important
translator. From the 4th to 6th centuries CE, there
were Dao’an, Boyuan, Srimitra, Samghabhuti,
Buddhabhadra,
Dharmanandi,
Samghadeva,
Samgharaksa,
Zhu
Fonian,
Dharmayasa,
Kumarajiva, Punyatara, Dharmaruci, Vimalaksa,
Buddhayawa,
Buddhabhadr,
Dharmaksema,
Faxian, Gunavarman, Xie Lingyun, Zhimeng, Sanga
Gendun, Gunabhadra, Paramartha, Bodhiruci and
Narendrayasas. Among them, the most important
were Dao’an and Kumarajiva who not only
translated many classic volumes but also proposed
their own translation theories.
Faxian had experienced, seen and heard along
the way to India as well as the state of Buddhism
and local customs then prevailing in India has a
significant value for studying the Indian history
of that age.
Political Contacts
From the 3rd to 6th century CE, more frequent
contacts were made between Chinese and Indian
states. In 428 CE, the Emperor Wen of Song (Liu
Yilong, reign from 424 to 453 CE) received a
letter of credence from Candrapria, the King of
Kapilavastu (now in the valley of the Kaveri River
in south India). In 502 CE, the Emperor Wu of Liang
received an official letter from the Gupta King
which was recorded in Chinese official documents.
The southern dynasties in China mainly maintained
contacts with kingdoms in the south of India via
the southern or maritime route. According to Wei
Shu (the Book of the Wei Dynasty), from 451 to
521 CE, envoys (including some merchants) from
across India came to the Northern Wei, at least,
27 times and the Northern Wei also sent envoys
to India time and again, mainly to the kingdoms
in the north of India through the Western
Region route.
During this period, Indian envoys brought
to China many rare objects and animals while
the Chinese exported to India mainly silk and
silk products.
Architecture
Between the 3rd and 6th centuries CE, China built
many temples. In 247 CE, during the reign of Sun
Quan (182~252 CE), the Jianchu Temple was
built in Nanjing. Buddhist temples were built in
Guangdong, Zhejiang, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Hunan,
Hubei and Sichuan while in the north, according
to Luoyang Jialan Ji (Temples in Luoyang), in
Luoyang alone, there were 42 temples in the 3rd
century CE. In the Northern Wei Dynasty, this
figure rose to as many as 1367. Buddhist temples
in China formed a unique school of architecture by
combining the traditional Chinese style and artistic
characteristics of Indian buildings. The pagoda was
a form learned from India and later on, in China
there were constructed various forms of pagoda.
Cave temples originated in India and spread to the
Xinjiang region in China in about the 3rd century
CE and then were introduced into the heartland
of China, reaching the peak of development in the
period from the 4th to 9th centuries CE. For instance,
the Kizil Grottoes in Xinjiang, Dunhuang Grottoes
and Majishan Grottoes in Gansu, Yungang Grottoes
in Shanxi and Longmen Grottoes in Henan were
all accomplished during this period. These grottoes
were influenced by Indian architecture, sculpture,
painting and so on.
Temples then were a place for cultural activities
as well as a seat of learning and practice by
followers. Whenever there was a Buddhist event, a
grand celebration would be held and there would
be acrobatics, dancing and singing as well as a
procession of Buddha figures. Such practices were
learnt from India.
Technologies
Along with the translation of a large number of
sutras and the arrival of several Indian monks,
Indian astronomy, calendar and medicine were also
brought into China. Sui Shu (Book of Sui Dynasty)
mentions a number of books on astronomy and the
calendar, such as Longshu Pusa Yaofang (Nagarjuna
Prescriptions) as well as books on medicine
and fitness regimen, for example, Longshu Pusa
Yangxingfang (Nagarjuna Mind Cultivation). These
books were circulated in China and had an impact
on Chinese astronomy, calendar and medicine.
According to Eminent Monks (Volume IV), Yu
Fakai “was a follower of Jivaka and a master of
medical skill” and also good at acupuncture.
He was the earliest one to combine traditional
Chinese medicine with Indian medicine. Tao
Hongjing also introduced Indian theories in his
works on medicine.
Translations
Literature
Translation was necessary for Buddhism to be
introduced into China. During this period, Chinese
as well as monks from India were involved in
sutra translation. From the 1st to 3rd centuries
CE among such translators were Dharmakala,
Between the 3rd and 6th centuries CE, following
the introduction of Buddhism into China, there
appeared a quantity of “Zhi Guai”, i.e. ghost
stories, which were called “supplemental textbooks
5
Cultural Contacts
of the Tang Dynasty by Yi Jing, from 641 to 691 CE,
more than 40 Chinese monks travelled to India. This
did not include others such as the famous Xuanzang,
Hui Ri, Han Guang, Wu Kong and Zhi Xuan.
The rising passion for Buddhism in the Tang
Dynasty promoted cultural exchange between China
and India and quickened the fusion of the Chinese
culture with the Indian culture. Chinese Buddhism
became more mature and different sects arose e.g.
Three Sastras, Tiantai, Hosso Shu (Dharmalaksana),
Avatamsaka, Vinaya, Dhyana, Pure Land and Esoteric
Buddhism. In particular, the emergence of Dhyana
signalled that the sinicisation of Indian Buddhism
had been basically accomplished.
During this period, Buddhism was also introduced
into Tibet. In the first half of the 7th century CE,
Songtsan Gampo (617~650 CE) unified the greater
part of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and founded
the Tubo Kingdom with Lhasa at the centre. He
successively married the Princess Bhrukuti of Nepal
and the Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty
and built Buddhist temples for them. In 755 CE, the
young Trisong Detsen (742~797 CE) succeeded
to the throne. When he grew up, he began to
believe in Buddhism, inviting Santaraksita and
Padmasambhava from India and building temples.
To propagate Buddhism in Tibet, Trisong Detsen
invited masters from India including, among
others, Vimalamitra and Dharmakirti, to teach
Buddhism and 12 Indian monks to preside over
the Tibetans’ monastic ceremony. Trisong Detsen
also twice sent monks to study in India. However,
since the Tibetan Bon faith was still powerful, in
836 CE, some of its more powerful adherents began
to eradicate Buddhism which consequently nearly
became extinct in Tibet. This period was called the
“first propagation” of Tibetan Buddhism.
Around the 7th century CE, Theravada Buddhism
expanded from Burma into southern Yunnan but
soon disappeared due to wars and ensuing chaos.
After the 8th century CE, Buddhism began to spread
in the Nanzhao area of Yunnan and developed
quickly.
for Buddhism” by the famous modern Chinese
writer Lu Xun. These stories not only introduced
to Chinese people the Buddhist outlook on world,
life and morality and a way of thinking but also
testified to the rich imagination and literary
creation of ancient Indians.
Drawing and Painting
Buddhism introduced new subjects and skills to
Chinese painting. From the 3rd to 6th centuries CE,
there were a number of painters who were good
at painting Buddhist pictures. For instance, Cao
Buxing (3rd century CE), a native of Wuxing (now
Huzhou of Zhejiang Province), under the influence
of Indian sculpture, drew vivid folds on the clothes
of human figures, that came to be known as
‘coming alive’. Dai Kui (326 ~396 CE), a native of
Suxian of Anhui, drew many figures of Buddha and
carved a 60 feet tall wooden Amitabha. Gu Kaizhi
(about 345~406 CE), a native of Wuxi, caused a
great sensation by his painting of Vimalakirti on the
wall of Waguan Temple in Nanjing. Zhang Sengyao
(about mid-5th century CE~mid-6th century CE), a
native of Suzhou, was good at painting Buddhist
figures. He often went to temples to paint murals.
He once produced a painting on the door of a
temple, which, from the distance, appeared to be
in relief, while from nearby it appeared smooth
and even. This skill was introduced from India.
Music and Dance
During this period, Buddhist music emerged in
China, largely due to Cao Zhi (192~232 CE), a
man of letters during the Three Kingdoms. In 230
CE, he adapted and composed the Prince Ode and
other pieces of music. In the 6th century CE, the
Emperor Wu of Liang (02 to 549 CE) reformed
the court music, added much Buddhist content
and ordered the musician Shen Yue (441~513
CE) to compose Buddhist music and play it at the
royal court.
The 6th ~10th centuries CE:
Heightened Political, Cultural
and Commercial Contacts
Political Contacts
In 618 CE, the Tang Dynasty was founded and
a powerful and prosperous era was ushered into
China. This dynasty adopted a policy of opening
to the outside world. Many Indians came to China
to trade, live or serve in an official capacity. This
period was characterised by enthusiasm for both
Buddhist and political contacts.
Sui Shu (Book of Sui Dynasty), in the section on
Western Regions, mentioned that the Emperor
Yangdi of the Sui Dynasty (569~618 CE) sent
Wei Jie, Du Xingman and others to visit kingdoms
in the Western Region and there they obtained
besides sutras, agate cups and other things.
According to Tang Shu (Book of Tang Dynasty),
Tong Dian and Cefu Yuangui, the Tang dynasty had
many contacts with Indian states while the Indian
rulers also sent many envoys to China. According
to Jiu Tang Shu (Old Book of Tang), Siladitya
sent envoys to China in 641 CE and the Emperor
Buddhism
After Faxian, an increasing number of pilgrims
went to India. This reached a peak during the Tang
Dynasty. According to the Buddhist Monk’s Pilgrimage
6
Cultural Contacts
Around the 9th century CE, temples became places
for cultural events and entertainment. Some big
temples such as the Ci’en Temple had their own
theatre for music, dance and acrobatic performance.
Acrobatics, dance and music although not drama in
the real sense, nevertheless provided the seeds for
the birth of drama.
Taizong of the Tang Dynasty wrote him a letter
along with an imperial jade seal. The Tang empire
also sent a number of envoys to India, and among
them, Wang Xuance was the most reputed. Wang
Xuance went to India three or four times. Back in
China, he wrote Zhongtian Zhuguo Xingji (also titled
Wang Xuance Xiguo Xingzhuan), consisting of 10
volumes, with three volumes of maps and charts
and covering religion, geography, politics, law,
arts and customs. Regrettably, this book was lost
and is not available any longer.
Literature
In the Tang Dynasty, some great poets such as Li
Bai, Du Fu, Bai Juyi, Liu Yuxi and Han Yu had close
contacts with monks from India and also wrote
poems to Indian friends.
There were also “Tang Chuan Qi” short novels
in which traces of Indian influence could be
discerned. For instance, Liu Yi Zhuan (Legend of
Liu Yi) was a story about Liu Yi and his marriage
with the daughter of a dragon. The creation of the
image of a dragon daughter had something to do
with Buddhist texts. Another example, in the Nanke
Taishou Zhuan (Legend of Nanke Prefecture Chief),
tells the story of a man who came across a kingdom
of ants, where he eventually became an official,
married and had his children. This was not just
an example of fantasy but also broke through the
boundary between humans and animals, something
very reflective of the creative imagination of
ancient Indians.
Under the influence of Buddhism, the Tang
period saw a new genre of literature called
‘Bianwen’. It was believed that reciting ‘Bianwen’
on the Buddhist stories of gods and ghosts such
as Xiangmo Bianwen and Mulian Jiumu Bianwen
disseminated the concepts of karma and samsara. It
has had a profound influence on literary production
in later generations of Chinese writers.
Drawing and Painting
In the Tang Dynasty, Chinese painting was enriched
and diversified. There were great masters with new
schools constantly emerging, distinctive styles being
established and exotic skills being assimilated.
Yuchi Yiseng (during the 7th century CE) was a
native of Khotan. In his youth, he was recommended
to visit Chang’an by the King of Khotan and was
highly appreciated by the imperial court. At that
time, his murals could be seen in the big temples of
Chang’an and Luoyang. He was adept at painting
the Buddha and Bodhisattvas, and had a style
characteristic of the Western Region. Wu Daozi (8th
century CE) was a native of Yuxian of Henan and
his legendary life was recorded in many documents.
About 100 years after his death, he was called
the “Sage of Painting”. He often did paintings
at temples and his famous painting, “Birth of
Gautama Buddha”, portraying Suddhodana and
Mayadevi carrying the newly born Siddhartha to
the Mahesvara can still be seen. In this painting,
the figures all have a Chinese image. There were
many other skilled artists as well.
Music and Dance
Astronomy and Mathematics
Sui Shu (Book of the Sui Dynasty), in its “Music”
section, recorded that in 581 CE the royal court
of the Sui Dynasty put in place seven ensembles,
with Indian music as one of them and that 30 years
later, there were nine ensembles with Indian music
still being included.
In the Tang Dynasty, Buddhist music became
very popular and many forms of music could be
traced to India. Some musical instruments were
also introduced from India. According to the fifth
volume of the Life of Xuanzang, when meeting with
Xuanzang Indian ruler Siladitya asked about the
musical composition Qinwang Pozhen Yue (Prince
Qin Breaking through the Enemy Array) indicating
that Chinese music was well recognised in India
as well.
Some Buddhist texts had subject matter related
to astronomy and calendar. These included, for
example, Abhidharmakosa Sastra translated by
Xuanzang, Fo Shuo Da Kong Que Zhou Wang Jing
translated by Yijing, Fo Mu Da Kong Que Ming
Wang Jing, Su Yao Jing translated by Bukong
(Amoghavajra), Bei Dou Qi Xing Nian Song Yi Gui
translated by Vajrabodhi, and Zhu Xing Mu Tuo Luo
Ni Jing translated by Facheng (Dharma-Siddhi).
Su Yao Jing consisted of two volumes and offered
a detailed introduction of the Indian knowledge
system on constellations, stars, the zodiac and
astrology. It is an important reference work for
the study of ancient Indian and Chinese astronomy
and calendar.
According to Calendar I of Jiu Tang Shu, Volume
32, during the reign of the Empress Wu Zetian,
Gautama Luo created the Guang Zhai Calendar,
and during the reign of the Emperor Xuanzong, Yi
Drama
Cultural exchange between India and China resulted
in the birth of Chinese drama and its enrichment.
7
Cultural Contacts
Indian prescriptions, some of which used Indian
medicinal herbs. Wang Tao (mid-7th century
CE) was another medical doctor who adopted
the “four elements” theory and included many
Indian prescriptions.
Xing produced the Da Yan Calendar; all of which
were influenced by ancient Indian astronomy
and calendar.
Yi Xing was a reputed scientist and a learned
monk in the Tang Dynasty. His 52-volume Kai Yuan
Da Yan Li was incorporated into the “Calendar”
section of Tang Shu and his Su Yao Yi Gui, Qi
Yao Xing Cheng Bie Xing Fa and Bei Dou Qi Xing Hu
Mo Fa, each with one volume, were included in
the Tantras.
In the 8th century CE, three families from India
served as court astronomers. They were Kasyapa,
Kumara and Gautama. According to written
records and archaeological information, Gautama
family members lived in China for five generations
in the sequence of Gautama Yi, Gautama Luo,
Gautama Siddha, Gautama Zhuan and Gautama
Yan while Gautama Yi had come to China from
India in the early Tang Dynasty, four subsequent
generations all served as royal astrologers in the
Tang Dynasty.
Of these five generations, Gautama Siddha
(about mid-7th ~ early 8th centuries CE) was the
most famous. He compiled the 120-volume Treatise
on Astrology of the Kaiyuan Era, introducing various
astrological theories and schools in ancient China
and recording Chinese observation of heavenly
bodies and their knowledge about the universe.
Such information is very valuable for the history
of science. Navagraha Calendar, translated by
him in 718 CE, is also of great research value.
With the translation of the Navagraha Calendar,
Chinese began to know of Indian arithmetic. It
showed how to write Indian numerals and listed
10 numbers from zero to nine ie the predecessors
of the current numerals 0 to 9. This proves that the
so-called Arabic numbers originally were invented
by Indians.
Technologies
Indians had known how to make cane sugar for
long. According to some sutras translated around
the 5th century CE, India’s technology of making
cane sugar had already been introduced into China
at that time.
According to the Biography of Xuan Zang (volume
IV) in the Sequel of Eminent Monks, the Taizong
Emperor sent Wang Xuance to India to study
how to boil sugar. The Mahabodhi Temple sent
two craftsmen and eight monks to visit to China
with Wang Xuance and help China with sugar
manufacturing.
The invention of paper-making may have had
links with India. In the mid-2nd century CE, paper
was already in use in Khotan in the region of
present-day Xinjiang. It is very close to India and
so it is possible that Indians might have known
paper at that time. In the 7th century CE, Yi Jing
went to India and found that paper was used there.
Some scholars tend to think that paper making was
brought into Tibet in the mid-7th century CE and
later from there it was introduced into India.
Chinese silk and silk fabrics were introduced
into India before our era but in the neighbourhood
of China, Khotan was the first place to practice
mulberry planting, sericulture and silk reeling. Tibet
and Yunnan had known how to feed silkworms and
reel silk. It is possible that Indians learned to make
silk from these places but it is uncertain when.
Linguistics
Indians had paid attention to the study of phonetics
for long, and before our era, there were already
grammar books and a highly scientific alphabet
system. Buddhist culture from India, to some extent,
promoted linguistics in China and had a significant
impact, especially in respect of phonology, syntax
and lexicography.
The term “Zimu” (letter) first appeared in sutras
translated in the early 5th century CE and was also
recorded in Xitan Ziji by the monk Zhiguang in
the Tang Dynasty. This proved that “Zimu” was
directly related to the spread of Sanskrit. Two
Tang dynasty documents discovered in Dunhuang,
Gui Sanshi Zimu Li and Shouwen Yunxue Caijuan,
both list 30 phonemes for Chinese. A monk named
Shouzhen (mid-9th~mid-10th centuries CE) further
divided 30 phonemes into five categories, i.e.
Chun, She, Ya, Chi and Hou while “She” sound
was subdivided into “She Tou” and “She Shang” ,
Medicine
Ancient India was also known for ophthalmology.
In the Tang Dynasty, oculist-monks from India used
the so-called “Gold Grate Method” to cure cataract
and Bai Juyi and Liu Yuxi both wrote poems to
praise this.
A medical doctor Sun Simiao (about 581~682
CE) wrote Qian Jin Yao Fang and Qian Jin Yi Fang
the former included recipes compiled by him
on the basis of historical documents and private
prescriptions in the year 652 CE, and the latter was
composed 30 years later on the basis of his medical
practice. In the preface of Qian Jin Yao Fang, Sun
cited medical theories in Buddhist texts, thinking
that people would not fall ill if four elements inside
their bodies i.e. earth, water, fire and wind were
coordinated while lack of coordination would lead
to illness. The Qian Jin Yi Fan had a number of
8
Cultural Contacts
and easy to understand” as well as the “Five No”
principle in translation.
Around the time of Xuanzang, translators
mainly included Punaudaya, Zhitong, Wujigao,
Janabhardra, Rizhao, Buddhapalita, Devaprajn,
Huizhi, Mitrasanta, Bao Siwei, Siksananda
and Bodhiruci. After Xuanzang, translators
mainly consisted of Yijing, Zhiyan, Pramiti,
Subhakarasimha,
Vajrabodhi
and
Bukong
(Amoghavajra) with Amoghavajra being the most
famous, having translated 110 tantras (a total
of 143 volume). After Amoghavajra, prominent
sutra translators included Zhihui, Lianhua Jingjin,
Wukong, Fajie, Prajna, Manyue and dharmasiddhi (Facheng).
“Chi” into “Chi Tou” and “Zheng Chi”, “Hou” into
“voiced” and “voiceless”. It is on the basis of this
that China developed its pinyin phonetic system
many generations later.
Lexicography
To facilitate the understanding of sutras, Chinese
monks compiled some dictionaries among which
Yiqiejing Yinyi (also abbreviated as Xuanying Yinyi),
consisting of 25 volumes, was compiled by Xuan
Ying (7th century CE) around the year 648 CE. This
book explained terms chosen from 450 Buddhist
Hinayana texts with many quotations from ancient
Chinese books. Huilin (737~820 CE) in his
100-volume Yiqiejing Yinyi (abbreviated as Huilin
Yinyi) selected terms from 1,300 Buddhist texts to
annotate them with a great number of quotations
from ancient Chinese books. Till date this book is
widely quoted for academic purposes.
To facilitate sutra translation, Chinese-Sanskrit
dictionaries were compiled. For instance, Yijing
compiled the Fanyu Qianziwen using Sanskrit to
explain 1,000 Chinese characters. Similar to this
were Tangfan Wenzi by Quanzhen, a monk in the
Tang Dynasty and Fanyu Zaming by Liyan. Indian
monks were also involved in compiling ChineseSanskrit dictionaries. The one-volume Tangfan
Shuangyu Duidui Ji was compiled by Antatàbodha
and Pragunamishash. These two Indian monks
had been translating sutras in China for long but
information about them was not recorded in any
works of history.
10th ~17th centuries CE:
Frequent contacts across the sea
During this period, cultural exchange between India
and China continued to deepen. Though cultural
activities driven by Buddhism weakened and the
practice of Chinese seeking to find the dharma
in India was about to come to an end, sea-borne
traffic and booming trade were not comparable to
any era in the past.
Buddhism
According to Fo Zu Tong Ji (A General History of
Chinese Buddhism), from 972 to 1053 CE, some
Indian monks came to China to translate and preach
sutras, but no more came thereafter. Meanwhile,
the saga of Chinese monks’ westward pilgrimage
was nearing an end. As recorded in the Volume
43 of Fo Zu Tong Ji, in 966 CE, Emperor Taizu of
the Song Dynasty arranged for 157 pilgrims to be
sent to India. This was the last officially sponsored
pilgrimage. A century later, Fan Chengda (1126
~1193) wrote Wu Chuan Ji on the basis of available
information and recorded the journey of one of
these pilgrims, Jiye. Jiye returned to China in
976, but even later, other pilgrims came back from
or went to India, indicating that travel then was
quite convenient. However, in the 11th century CE,
with the Muslim invasion of India, Buddhism there
declined and during the reign of Emperor Renzong
of the Song Dynasty (1023 - 1063), pilgrimages
from China to India, that had lasted six centuries,
virtually ceased. In Tibet, however, these activities
still continued.
From the late 10th to late 15th century CE,
Tibetan Buddhism had its “second propagation”.
During this time, its leading sects such as
Nyingma, Ganden, Sakya, Kagyu and Gelug, had
been formed. Smritijnanakirti, an Indian scholar
came to Tibet in the latter half of the 10th century
CE adept at panca-vidya and esoteric Buddhism,
he disseminated Buddhism in Tibet, translated
Translations
From the late 6th to early 7th centuries CE, Yan Cong
and Dharmagupta were the main translators. Yan
Cong, in addition to presiding over the translation
workshops in the Sui Dynasty and compiling Zhong
Jing Mu Lu, also translated 23 sutras. By imperial
order, he translated She Li Rui Tu Jing and Guo Jia
Xiang Rui Lu into Sanskrit, in a total of 10 volumes
and asked bhikshus from Rajagriha to bring them
back to India.
In the early Tang Dynasty, Prabhakaramitra of
Nalanda came to China. In 629 CE, the Emperor
Taizong decreed sutras to be translated at Da
Xing Shan Temple, with Prabhakaramitra as the
chief translator. Prabhakaramitra died in 633 CE.
Twelve years later, Xuanzang returned from India
and presided over sutra translation. From this
period on, Buddhist translation was of a very high
order. At Xuanzang’s workshop, division of work
was meticulous, the staff was disciplined and work
efficiently carried out. From 646 to 664 CE, under
Xuanzang, 73 sutras, in a total of 1,330 volumes,
were translated. Xuanzang also put forth his
own theory, requiring translation to be “truthful
9
Cultural Contacts
sent envoys to India 11 times while various Indian
kingdoms sent envoys to China 13 times.
In early 15th century CE, China further extended its
maritime navigation and Zheng He’s (1371~1433)
seven expeditions to the Western Ocean served to
expand India-China interaction. Zheng He visited a
number of places in India. Fei Xin, Ma Huan and
Gong Zhen, who had accompanied Zheng He in these
voyages, wrote Xing Cha Sheng Lan (The Description
of the Starry Raft), Ying Ya Sheng Lan (The General
Survey of the Ocean Shores) and Xi Yang Fan Guo Zhi
(The Annals of Foreign Nations in the Western Ocean),
respectively. These are important documents for the
study of India-China relations during that period.
Around the same time, Hou Xian had been to India
on a diplomatic mission many times. According to
Xing Cha Sheng Lan, Ying Ya Sheng Lan and Ming
Shi (History of the Ming Dynasty), Ming Dynasty
had contact with the following Indian kingdoms or
places: Delhi, Jaunpur, Bengal, Vijayanagar, Cochin,
Kollam, Cail (on the east coast of south India),
Comorin, Chola (on the southwest coast of India),
Calicut and the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
many tantric texts and wrote Yu Yan Men Lun,
a Tibetan grammar book. Rinchen Zangpo
(958~1055 CE) was one of the most important
figures in the revival of Tibetan Buddhism. He
had been to India three times and successively
studied under 75 scholars there. Back in Tibet,
he translated 50 sutrayanas and 108 tantrayanas.
In 1043, Atisa, once a Theravada preacher at
Vikramasila, was invited to expound Buddhism in
Tibet; he had many followers, and his Pu Ti Dao
Deng Lun (A Lamp for the Enlightenment Path) had
a great influence in Tibet. Between the 10th to 13rd
centuries CE, many youth went to study in Tibet
and there were more than 160 translators, while
over 60-70 Indian monks were doing translation
in Tibet. From 10th to 17th centuries CE, Indian
medicine, astrology, hetuvidya, phonology,
literature, arts, language and writing, all had a
significant impact on Tibet.
In the same period, esoteric Buddhism in the
Dali Kingdom (Yunnan) and Theravada in south
Yunnan also developed rapidly.
After the mid-10th century CE, Neo-Confucianism
gained prominence, evolving and absorbing
Buddhist thinking in its course. In daily life,
popular beliefs, customs, festivals, marriage and
funeral rites and other aspects were all impacted by
Buddhism. In the field of literature, Zhi Guai and
Chuanqi novels (Song Dynasty), Zaju Opera (Yuan
Dynasty) and vernacular novels (Ming Dynasty)
assimilated Buddhist ethics and recalled and retold
the golden days of Buddhist pilgrimage. In arts,
cave temples continued to be built and paintings
still preserved many Buddhist themes.
Commodity Trade
As sea travel became more convenient, bulk
commodity exchange began between China and
India. According to Zhu Fan Zhi (The Barbarian
Countries) by Zhao Rukuo of the Song Dynasty,
in the port of Quanzhou there were many foreign
merchants, including those from India and Indian
monks preaching Buddhism. Evidently, Quanzhou
then was a centre of commerce as well as religious
activities. According to Ling Wai Dai Da (volume II)
by Zhou Qufei of the Song Dynasty, at that time,
Gulin (now Kollam) at the southern end of the west
coast of India also had close connections through
sea traffic with China.
In Yuan Dynasty, Wang Dayuan (14th century CE)
went by ship twice to investigate the seas south
and west of China, first setting out in 1330 and
returning four years later. The second time starting
in 1337 and returning two years later. He went to
many places in India and after returning to China,
in 1349, he completed Dao Yi Zhi Lue; this book
offers a detailed introduction to various Indian
places and is of great help to understand maritime
cultural exchange between Yuan Dynasty and
India. Wherever he went, he would pay attention
to the geography, soil, produce, trade, race and
customs. At that time, India was known for gems,
pearls, cotton cloth, linen, medicine, spice and
the like while China was mainly known for silk,
coloured silk satin, cloves, cardamom, blue-andwhite porcelain, white porcelain, etc.
Ma Huan’s Yingya Shenglan provided even more
detailed information. For instance, about Cochin,
Political Contacts
Political and diplomatic contacts between Indian
states and China were by and large maintained
through the sea route. For instance, according to
a section on “Foreign Countries” in Volume five
of the Song Shi (History of the Song Dynasty) and
Volume 44 of Fo Zu Tong Ji, in 1015, the Chola
ruler sent envoys to China, bringing Sanskrit
sutras and a letter from King Rajaraja. The letter
indicated that south Indians learned of the Song
Dynasty through merchants coming by sea.
Song Shi recorded that south Indian and north
Indian states sent envoys to China many times and
they usually brought gifts, such as pearl, ivory,
medicine, spice and so on.
Yuan Dynasty, though surviving for no more than
100 years, left several records concerning maritime
contacts. During the reign of Kublai Khan (12711294), the Emperor Shizu of the Yuan Dynasty,
diplomatic contacts between India and China were
most prolific. According to Yuan Shi (History of the
Yuan Dynasty), from 1272 to 1294, Yuan Dynasty
10
Cultural Contacts
Trade
he recorded information about its people’s dress,
houses, social structure and professions of five
classes of the population, the king’s beliefs,
religion, climate, weights and measures, currency,
marriage and funeral ceremonies, farm and
livestock produce, as well as on its trade with
China. He mentioned that Zheng He had erected a
monument in Calicut in 1407 and provided the text
of the inscription.
Overland trade between India and China continued
from the earlier times into this period. There was
the trans-Karakoram trade between Punjab, Ladakh
and Kashmir on one hand and the oasis towns
such as Kashgar and Yarkand in Xinjiang on the
other. There was also the trade between Kashmir
and other parts of northern and northeastern India
with Tibet. The overland trade was not large in
volume as it was carried out in physically very
difficult conditions. Traders loaded their cargo
on mules and ponies and crossed back and forth
over the high mountain passes. The trade was also
vulnerable to changing political conditions in this
region. Nevertheless, it persisted right until the
middle of the 20th century CE.
There was a revival of maritime trade between
India and China based on the spectacular growth
of the tea trade between China and Europe. Both
before and after the arrival of European traders in
the eastern waters from the 16th century CE, there
was a flourishing intra-Asian maritime trade. The
commercial connection between India and China
was maintained through the larger intra-Asian
trade. However, from the last quarter of the 18th
century CE, there was a huge increase in the direct
trade between the emerging port of Bombay on the
west coast of India and Guangzhou (Canton) based
on the export of raw cotton and later, opium from
India to China. These exports were carried both
by the British East India Company as well as by
private Indian and Western traders.
Yet another major export from India to China
in this period, starting from the later 19th century
CE, was of manufactured cotton yarn. Indian
cotton yarn displaced British yarn from the China
market, and from about 1880 to 1905 almost
completely monopolised the market for imported
cotton yarn in China. The export of cotton yarn to
China played a major role in stabilising the growth
of the emerging modern textile industry in India.
However, during and after World War I, it was
the Chinese cotton yarn industry that developed
rapidly and by 1929, China was exporting yarn
to India.
Medicine
Sea-borne traffic facilitated the bulk movement of
medicines and related materials in this period. Yuan
Shi recorded details of medicine sent as tribute by
Indian states. Volume 326 of Ming Shi gave a list of
tribute items from Bengal including frankincense,
pine resin, Wu Xiang, Ma Teng Xiang, Wu Die
Ni, Teng Jie and Cu Huang. Xing Cha Sheng Lan
and Xi Yang Fan Guo Zhi mentioned that Indians
then were very fond of musk from China and that
Chinese traded musk with locals.
The Compendium of Materia Medica compiled
by Li Shizhen (1518~1593) in the Ming Dynasty
contains valuable information about medical
exchanges between India and China. The book
introduced and verified many medicines from
India and by using many quotations from Buddhist
texts, provided their Sanskrit names. Its citation
is so extensive that it cannot be compared to any
similar book from the past. It also included some
Indian prescriptions, explained the preparation of
medicines and evaluated their efficacy, indicating
that these prescriptions then were in actual use.
Some prescriptions required Indian medicinal
materials and this could be taken as evidence that a
number of Indian recipes had been assimilated into
traditional Chinese medicine.
18th century CE to 1949:
Forging New Connections in
Modern Times
The modern phase of interactions between India
and China is a complex and rich one. Old ties based
on trade continued although under new conditions,
while altogether new relations such as those
based on nationalism and anti-imperialism also
developed simultaneously. Technological and other
changes worked to bring India and China closer
in some respects, while political developments in
some cases led to new strains. Colonialism and
imperialist expansion in this part of the world
impacted the age-old relationship between the
two countries and civilisations in many ways. At
the same time, this was also a period in which
intellectuals, political activists, writers and artists
in both India and China sought to rediscover each
other in modern conditions.
The Indian and Chinese diasporas
The development of the overland and maritime
trade led to the arrival of groups of Indians and
Chinese who settled in the other country. Most
traders from Punjab in Xinjiang stayed only for
the duration of the trading season and went
back and forth. However, a number of Kashmiris
migrated to Xinjiang and settled down there,
eventually losing their contacts with their native
places and even language and becoming a part
of local society. A small number of financiers
11
Cultural Contacts
but after the border war between India and China
of 1962 and the difficulties they faced in India
because of that, large numbers emigrated abroad
and their numbers in India dwindled.
and moneylenders from Shikarpur in Sindh (in
present-day Pakistan) were also to be found in the
main towns of southern Xinjiang.
The revival of the maritime trade with China
led to groups of merchants from India arriving on
the China coast. In the early stages, they came
mainly from the Parsi community and also the
Baghdadi Jewish community based in Bombay
and some Muslim Bohra and Ismaili traders. With
the opening of treaty ports after the First Opium
War and the growth of Hong Kong as a port,
many of them took up more or less permanent
residence in China. From the import-export trade,
their interests diversified to include other lines of
business in eastern China’s port cities, including
banking, real estate, manufacturing and share
brokerage. The 20th century CE saw increasing
numbers of people from the Marwari and Sindhi
communities arriving in Hong Kong and China’s
port cities.
Yet another group of Indians who arrived in China
and stayed on were policemen and watchmen,
especially from Punjab. The policemen were mainly
based in Hong Kong and in the foreign concessions
at Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Hankou and so
on while the Indian watchmen were more widely
dispersed among smaller towns as well. At one
time, they accounted for approximately half of the
Indians in eastern China. This group, along with
the merchants in western China and in the Chinese
ports, were mostly repatriated to India during the
1930s and 1940s.
The commercial connection between India and
China also led to the arrival of Chinese in India.
Chinese were to be found mainly in and around
Calcutta (Kolkata) and Bombay (Mumbai) but
it was only in Calcutta that their numbers grew
large enough to form a Chinese settlement in
India. The first Chinese known to have settled in
India in this period was Yang Dazhao (Atchew)
who received a grant of land from the British
authorities in Bengal to set up a sugar mill at
the end of the 18th century CE. Thereafter, more
Chinese continued to arrive in India throughout
the 19th century CE. They settled mainly in the
Bowbazar and Tangra areas of Calcutta. They
tended to specialise in carpentry and shipbuilding
and later in the tannery business as well. Chinese
were also brought to India’s northeastern province
of Assam to work on the tea plantations that the
British established. Their skills in tea cultivation
and processing were used to develop an extensive
tea industry in India.
From the early 20th century CE, the turbulent
conditions in China led to the arrival of larger
numbers of Chinese in India including women
and children. The community was well settled,
Export art from China to India
A little appreciated by-product of the 19th
century CE trade between India and China was
the transmission of some artistic and cultural
influences, although compared to the pre-modern
period, this was on a small scale. Traders from
Bombay imported from China silk cloth with the
fine silk embroidery which was a specialty of the
Guangzhou region. This greatly influenced the style
of particularly women’s and children’s clothing
among the Parsis. The characteristic gara sarees
worn by Parsi women, with their distinctly Chinese
style embroidery, were a product of this fusion of
Chinese and Indian styles. The tanchoi type of silk
brocade weaving in India was also learned and
adapted from Chinese weavers. Chinese porcelain
and furniture were also greatly appreciated and
adorned the homes of the elite particularly in
Bombay. Portrait painting and the art of reverse
glass painting were also popularised in India by
Chinese masters and subsequently, the art was
learned and imitated by Indian artists.
Hong Kong, Shanghai and Bombay
These three major port cities of Asia were to a large
extent a product of the India-China connection in
this era. Indian merchants played a significant role
in the early growth of Hong Kong. Among the well
known individuals, families and firms from India
who can be considered among the builders of
Hong Kong were the Sassoons, the Ruttonjees, the
Kadoories, Paul Chater, H. N. Mody, Abdoolally
Ebrahim & Co and so on. Many of them not only
became business tycoons, but also played a role in
the development of the infrastructure, education
and in the governance of Hong Kong. The Sassoons,
the most well-known Bombay Jewish family in
China, were a prominent part of the Shanghai
business community and owned several landmark
buildings on the Shanghai waterfront.
Bombay’s growth as India’s leading commercial,
shipping, industrial and financial centre was
greatly linked to the trade with China. Many of
its most prominent citizens in the 19th century
CE, including the well known merchant Jamsetjee
Jejeebhoy, were either directly connected with
the China trade, or else came from families that
were involved in it. The accumulation of capital
through the China trade played a significant role
in the early development of modern industry in
India and in the development of Bombay’s urban
infrastructure in the 19th century CE.
12
Cultural Contacts
Early visitors
and nationalist organisations. One of the most
prominent of these was the Hindustani Ghadar
Party whose activities in China spanned the years
from World War I to the 1930s. In turn, the Ghadar
Party actively did mobilisation work among Indian
soldiers and policemen in the service of the British
in China, urging them not to turn their guns against
the Chinese. Their work had some impact among
Indian forces in China in the period from 1925 to
1927 when the Nationalist Revolution in China
was reaching a peak.
The leader of China’s Republican Revolution
of 1911, Dr Sun Yat-sen had great concern for
and interest in the cause of Indian freedom from
colonial rule. He met many Indian students and
revolutionaries, both in China and Japan and
tried to assist them. At the same time, he was an
inspiration for many Indian nationalists in India.
From the late 1920s, the Indian National Congress
and its leaders concerned themselves on a regular
basis with the situation in China. They sought
to build links with a broad spectrum of Chinese
nationalists and also publicly condemned the use
of Indian troops against the Chinese. Jawaharlal
Nehru, in particular, wrote repeatedly about China
and expressed much appreciation for its ancient
civilisation.
Chinese people also began to learn about the
progress of the national movement of the Indian
people. In the 1920s, Mahatma Gandhi was already
a well-known name in China. From the 1920s to
the 1940s, China published 27 books about Gandhi
and his thoughts, including four editions of his
autobiography. Numerous articles were written
on the Non-Cooperation Movement and other
developments in India. The Oriental Magazine alone
had 60 to 70 such articles and for some time even
had a regular column on “Gandhi and New India”.
The first official mission from China to India in
modern times came about when China sent a sixperson delegation to visit India from March to
September 1879. A member of this delegation,
Huang Maocai, wrote several works about his
experiences in India, including Yin Du Zha Ji, You
Li Zou Yan and Xi Jiao Shui Dao. In July 1881, the
Qing Dynasty sent Ma Jianzhong and Wu Guangpei
to India to negotiate with the British Indian
Government about matters related to opium. Back
in China, Ma wrote an account of his visit, Nan
Xing Ji and Wu wrote his own account entitled Nan
Xing Ri Ji. Later, Chinese envoys Xue Fucheng and
Huang Zunxian visited India enroute to Europe and
wrote about it.
In 1893, Swami Vivekananda, one of the most
prominent philosophers of modern India, came to
China, one of the earliest Indian public figures to
do so in this period. He wrote about China, and in
his works he expressed sympathy and friendship
with Chinese and predicted a great future for the
Chinese people.
The influential Chinese scholar and leader of the
1898 reform movement, Kang Youwei, was forced
to flee China and live in exile after the suppression
of the movement. In the course of his exile, he
came to Darjeeling in northeastern India in 1901
and stayed for one-and-a-half years, touring around
India. He wrote Travel Notes on India and Xu Mi Xue
Ting Shi Ji, in which he analysed Indian conditions.
Nationalist and Anti-imperialist Links
India and China were both victims of imperialist
expansion although in different ways and to a
different extent. This served as the basis for new
kinds of ties based on a shared anti-imperialism to
emerge in this period between the two countries.
The earliest recorded instances of cooperation
between Indians and Chinese against foreign
imperialism involved soldiers from the British
Indian forces sent to help suppress the Taiping
Rebellion in the middle of the 19th century CE.
Several Indian soldiers are known to have crossed
over to the side of the rebels and fought alongside
them. Similarly, a member of the Indian forces sent
to put down the Boxer Rebellion in north China
in 1900, Thakur Gadadhar Singh, later wrote a
moving account entitled Thirteen Months in China,
in which he gave voice to his anguish at the unjust
treatment meted out to the Chinese by the so-called
civilised foreign powers.
In the first half of the 20th century CE, the pace
of nationalist and anti-imperialist movements
in both India and China picked up. China and
Chinese political leaders provided a haven in this
period to several exiled Indian political activists
Asian Renaissance
From the early years of the 20th century CE, a
consciousness of the oneness of Asia and the virtues
of eastern civilisation developed, particularly
among intellectuals in India and China. This was
part of the awakening of the peoples of this part
of the world who were languishing under colonial
or imperialist domination. On the Chinese side,
Sun Yat-sen, Zhang Taiyan, Liu Shipei, Liang
Qichao, Li Dazhao and other personalities sought
to build this kind of consciousness of Asian unity
in their speeches and writings. On the Indian side,
Jawaharlal Nehru and exiled Indian nationalist
Raja Mahendra Pratap were among those who
fervently espoused the cause of Asian solidarity.
However, the most notable Indian personality
in this respect was the great poet Rabindranath
Tagore. His visit to China in 1924 was part of
13
Cultural Contacts
In 1942, the National School of Oriental
Languages was established in Yunnan offering for
the first time a course in the Hindi language, besides
courses on Indian history, religion and society.
In 1946, the Department of Oriental Languages
was established at Peking University which
taught Indian languages. In 1949, the National
School of Oriental Languages was incorporated
into Department of Oriental Languages at
Peking University.
After he returned from China, Tagore was very
keen to set up a centre for the study of China and
Chinese civilisation in his Visva-Bharati University
at Santiniketan in Bengal. He met a young Chinese
scholar Tan Yunshan while in Singapore in
1927 and invited him to visit Visva-Bharati. Tan
Yunshan came and stayed on in Visva-Bharati to
start teaching Chinese language, initially with just
five students. Tan Yunshan became Tagore’s main
collaborator and assistant in setting up what became
the first centre for Chinese studies in modern
India. He returned to China to raise financial and
other support for the project of setting up such a
centre. Eventually, it was inaugurated on April 10,
1937. With the assistance given by the Nationalist
Government, the Sino-Indian Cultural Society and
other supporters in China, the Cheena Bhavana as
it was called, was established with its own unique
building and a library consisting of a large number
of Chinese works.
In the 1930s, the International Academy of
Indian Culture located in New Delhi was another
institution that engaged in China studies. It
was founded by Raghu Vira who began to study
Chinese culture and the history of the India-China
relationship and developed academic links with
China. In 1938, he wrote his work, Ramayana in
China. In the late 1930s, Fergusson College in Pune
opened a centre for China studies. Scholars Bapat
and Gokro began to make a comparative study of
Sanskrit, Pali, Chinese and Tibetan Buddhist texts.
However, among Indian scholars of China studies
in this period, the most prominent was Prabodh
Chandra Bagchi. After receiving a masters degree
from Calcutta University, he went to France in
1923 to study Chinese under the guidance of the
French sinologist Sylvain Levy. From 1945 to
1956, he taught and did research at Visva-Bharati
University. He produced many important works on
various aspects of the cultural interaction between
India and China through history. He also came to
China in 1947 and taught there briefly and visited
again in 1952.
his quest to revive the ancient links between the
two great Asian civilisations India and China, as
was his decision to set up an institute for Chinese
studies in the international university that he set
up in India called Visva-Bharati. The discourse on
Asia and Asianism helped to stimulate interest and
awareness among Chinese and Indians about each
other’s countries.
Rabindranath Tagore
In the modern era, the Indian who had perhaps
the greatest impact on China was the poet and
philosopher Rabindranath Tagore. When he was
awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913,
Chinese literary circles instantly developed a
fascination for Tagore. Numerous articles about
him and translations of his work were published.
In April 1924, in response to an invitation from his
admirers in China, Tagore embarked upon a 50-day
visit to China. During this period, he went to Hong
Kong, Shanghai, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Jinan, Beijing,
Taiyuan and Haikou. While his visit was opposed
by some youth and intellectuals in China who
did not appreciate his philosophical standpoint,
he was also received with extraordinary warmth
and adulation. He cultivated deep friendships with
celebrated Chinese thinkers, writers and artists.
With poet Xu Zhimo in particular, who acted as his
translator, Tagore developed a lasting friendship.
The relationships he formed with Chinese
intellectuals, writers and artists had a deep impact
on Tagore and on his sense of affinity with China.
Tagore’s work also had a profound influence on
many Chinese writers including Guo Moruo, Xie
Bingxin, Zheng Zhenduo, Wang Tongzhao and Xu
Zhimo. The interest in and appreciation of Tagore
and his poetry in China continues to this day.
Indian studies in China and Chinese
studies in India
The systematic study of Indian civilisation in
modern China began in the 20th century CE. In 1916,
Xu Jishang started teaching Indian philosophy
at Peking University. From 1917 to 1924, Liang
Suming taught Indian philosophy there. In 1922,
Tang Yongtong returned from abroad and began to
teach the history of Chinese Buddhism and Indian
Buddhism among other courses. Chen Yinque was
another scholar who returned to China to teach
after mastering Sanskrit and Pali abroad. From
1924, Chinese students including some monks,
went to study in India. Some of the Chinese
scholars who went to India in this period included
Xu Jishan (1919), Xu Dishan (1926,1934), Jin
Kemu (1941), Wu Xiaoling (1942), Xu Fancheng
(1942), Chen Hansheng (1944), Chang Renxia
(1945) and Chen Hongjin (1945).
World War II
The invasion of China by Japan in the 1930s was
widely condemned by public opinion in India.
14
Cultural Contacts
During the War, the Indian national movement to
put an end to British colonial rule was approaching
a climax. Top leaders of the Indian National
Congress including Nehru and Gandhi were
arrested and jailed by the British. Much against
the wishes of the British Prime Minister Churchill,
Chiang Kai-shek and his wife paid a visit to India
in 1942 and met both Nehru and Gandhi. Chiang
Kai-shek tried to persuade the British government
to agree to the demands of the Indian nationalists
for political power. When he was leaving India, he
broadcast his Message to the Indian People in which
he expressed sympathy for their objectives.
Apart from writing and speaking against the
Japanese aggression, Indian leaders also organised
various actions to show their sympathy and support
for China including the collection of funds and
organising “China Days” to popularise the Chinese
resistance among the Indian public. Nehru also
visited China’s wartime capital Chongqing in 1939.
However, the best known instance of cooperation
between Indians and Chinese during the War
was the despatch of the Indian Medical Mission
to China to assist the Chinese war effort. It was
formed in August 1938, and included five doctors:
M. M. Atal, M. R. Cholkar, D. S. Kotnis, B. K. Basu
and D. Mukherjee. Carrying much needed medical
equipment, they arrived at Yan’an in February
1939 and worked under very difficult conditions to
provide medical care to the resistance fighters and
local people. Dr Basu and Dr Kotnis stayed on even
when the other members of the mission had to go
back. Dr Kotnis was appointed as the Director of the
Dr Bethune International Peace Hospital. In China,
he met and married a Chinese woman Guo Qinglan.
Tragically, he fell ill and died on December 9, 1942
at the age of 32. More than 10,000 people attended
his funeral and Mao Zedong paid a moving tribute
to Kotnis and his selfless devotion in service of
the Chinese people. Even today, Chinese people
remember Kotnis and thousands come to visit the
memorial built to the memory of Kotnis and the
Indian Medical Mission in China. In India, the
saga of Dr Kotnis was immortalised in the popular
film, Dr Kotnis Ki Amar Kahani (1946) which was
directed by the noted filmmaker Shantaram and
for which the screenplay was written by Khwaja
Ahmad Abbas.
During World War II, when Japan occupied
almost all of eastern China, India became of
great strategic importance to China as a supply
and communication route for the Nationalist
Government headed by Chiang Kai-shek which had
to shift its headquarters from Nanjing to Chongqing
in western China. This was particularly so after the
Japanese invasion of Burma in mid-1942 cut off
the supply routes to southwestern China through
that country. For the rest of the war, the Stilwell
Road from Ledo in Assam to Yunnan, the CalcuttaKunming oil pipeline and the “Hump” air route
which saw hundreds of planes carrying goods and
passengers between airfields in eastern India and
southwest China, played a very important role in
the so-called “China-Burma-India” (CBI) theatre
of war. The route from Kalimpong in north Bengal
to Tibet and Yunnan was also used to transport
civilian goods. During the War, thousands of
Chinese soldiers also received training to fight
Japanese forces in Burma in India at Ramgarh in
the present-day state of Jharkhand.
Establishment of Diplomatic Relations
During World War II, it was decided that
diplomatic envoys would be exchanged between
the Government of India (then still under British
control) and the Nationalist Government in China.
The first three envoys from the Indian side were
Zafarullah Khan, K. P. S. Menon and K. M. Panikkar.
On the Chinese side, the envoys were Shen Shihhua, T. K. Tseng and Lo Chia-lun. Initially, the
Indian envoys were stationed in Chongqing but
with the end of the War, the Indian embassy
shifted to Nanjing which once again became the
headquarters of the Chinese government. After
India became independent in August 1947, the
status of the envoys on both sides was raised to
that of Ambassador. This marked the establishment
of diplomatic relations between the modern states
of India and China for the first time.
1949 to the Present Day: Growing
Engagement in Diverse Spheres
After the establishment of the People’s Republic of
China (PRC) on October 1, 1949, India and PRC
established diplomatic relations on April 1, 1950.
India became the first country outside the socialist
group of countries to establish an embassy in the
PRC. When the Indian embassy held its first official
reception on the occasion of India’s Republic Day
in Beijing, on January 26, 1951, Chairman Mao
Zedong personally attended the function and
spoke warm words about India-China friendship.
Since then, the relations between the Republic of
India and PRC have had some ups and downs but
currently they are on a path of rapidly growing
interaction in many spheres.
India and China stepped up their bilateral
diplomatic engagement in the mid-1950s. Premier
Zhou Enlai visited India from June 25-28, 1954
while Prime Minister Nehru visited China from
October 19-30 the same year. Both visits were very
warmly received by the public in both countries.
Zhou Enlai visited India again in 1956 and 1960.
While trade had begun to pick up again from 1951,
15
Cultural Contacts
exchange and cooperation. Thereafter, exchange
of visits by the top leaders of both countries
developed rapidly and has become the norm.
Among the important such visits that have taken
place in subsequent years are those of Premier Li
Peng (1991), President R. Venkataraman (1992),
Prime Minister Narasimha Rao (1993), President
Jiang Zemin (1996) President Narayanan (2000),
Premier Zhu Rongji (2002), Prime Minister
Vajpayee (2003), Premier Wen Jiabao (2005,
2010), President Hu Jintao (2006), Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh (2008, 2013) and President
Pratibha Patel (2010). A very large number of
agreements have been signed between the two
countries to enhance their levels of cooperation in
diverse spheres and also towards the maintenance
of peace on the borders.
One of the most significant aspects of the
relations between China and India in recent times
has been the spectacular increase in economic
and in particular commercial interaction. Direct
trade was resumed in 1977 and agreements were
signed to enhance trade and commerce between
the two countries, but the total trade volume
remained under US$ 3 billion in 2000. However,
this figure soared astronomically to over US$
60 billion by 2010, making China India’s largest
trading partner and making India China’s seventh
largest export destination. This marked a new
phenomenon in the relations between India and
China in modern times. The main exports from
India to China are iron ores, slag and ash, cotton,
yarn and fabrics, copper, gems, chemical products,
etc. China has mainly exported nuclear reactors
and boilers, electrical machinery, iron and steel,
organic chemicals and fertilisers and so on. The
balance of trade is in favour of China at present.
Chinese investments in India amount to over US$
300 million, while Indian investments in China are
over US$ 430 million. A large number of Indian
companies have set up their offices or branches in
China including TCS, Wipro, Infosys, Dr Reddy’s,
Reliance, NIIT, Binani Cement, Mahindra &
Mahindra and so on. At least 10 Indian banks have
established branches in China. Similarly, Chinese
companies like Huawei Technologies, ZTE, Haier,
Sinosteel, Sino Hydro Corporation, Baoshan Iron &
Steel Ltd. and so on, have set up base in India. The
possibilities of setting up industrial parks by China
in India are also being explored.
Along with the growth of economic ties between
the two countries, the number of Indians and
Chinese visiting each other’s countries, and
also living and working there has also grown
considerably. Apart from Hong Kong, there are over
20,000 Indians living in China currently and the
number continues to grow. They are predominantly
on April 29, 1954, the two countries signed the
“Agreement (with exchange of notes) on trade and
intercourse between the Tibet region of China and
India”. The first-ever trade protocol was also signed
by both sides. In this period the main exports from
China to India were rice, sorghum, soybean, raw
silk, machinery, transformer, wool, caustic soda
and paper, while India mainly exported to China
jute, rice, beans, tobacco leaf, chemicals, medicine,
mica, electric fans, woollen fabrics and machinery.
The preamble to the 1954 trade agreement
contained the formulation of the Five Principles
of Peaceful Coexistence also termed Panchsheel.
These were intended to set a principled foundation
for the peaceful relationship between India and
China. A modified version of the Panchsheel was
adopted at the conference of Afro-Asian nations
held at Bandung, Indonesia, in April 1955.
Through much of the 1950s, regular educational,
cultural
and
scientific-technical
exchanges
between India and China which had been stepped
up from the 1940s, continued. Many delegations
were exchanged between the two countries. Noted
Indian artists like B. R. Sinha and the scholarphilosopher Rahul Sankrityayan visited China and
interacted with their counterparts there. Indian
films particularly Awaara and other films starring
Raj Kapoor became very familiar to Chinese people.
The developments leading up to the 1962 border
clash between the two countries and its aftermath
led to a disruption in the normal interaction
between India and China for a number of years.
A few attempts were made in the 1970s to revive
contacts, particularly through the agency of Dr
Basu who had been part of the Indian Medical
Mission during World War II. Dr Basu visited
China several times from the mid-1970s to the
mid-1980s and when he died, his ashes were
scattered both in India and China as per his wishes.
A few other goodwill and informal exchanges also
took place in this period, but contacts remained
limited although preparations were being made
for the revival of relations. In 1979, the Indian
Foreign Minister A. B. Vajpayee became the first
high level Indian dignitary to visit China after
many years. In early 1980s, Indian and Chinese
leaders met each other on the sidelines of various
international summits.
The visit of the Indian Prime Minister Rajiv
Gandhi to China from December 19-23, 1988,
marked the resumption of high level ties and a
significant step towards normalisation of relations
between India and China. Apart from meeting the
Chinese Premier Li Peng, Gandhi also met Deng
Xiaoping and other important Chinese leaders.
Agreements were signed on science and technology
cooperation, civil air transport and cultural
16
Cultural Contacts
other cultural festivals as well as youth delegations
and sports and media exchanges. Academic
exchanges between scholars from India and China
are also increasing steadily and cover diverse
branches of knowledge. Apart from officially
sponsored forms of cultural exchange, there are
other trends as well. Indian Yoga, food, fashion
and films are gaining popularity in China. The
popularity of Chinese language courses, Chinese
martial arts and certain forms of Chinese medicine
is also increasing in India.
Finally, an important trend is the growing
cooperation between India and China in regional
and global forums. A milestone in this regard
was the joint statement issued on the occasion of
Premier Wen Jiabao’s visit to India in April 2005
which established a Strategic and Cooperative
Partnership for Peace and Prosperity, indicating
that both sides would regard their relations not
merely from a bilateral perspective, but from
a larger global strategic perspective. On issues
concerning international trade, regional security,
maritime security, environmental problems and so
on, there is greater cooperation and coordination
between India and China. The growing economic
strength of China and India has increased their
sense of responsibility in international affairs.
It has also led to greater interest globally in the
relationship between the two countries.
students (over 8,000), traders and businessmen
and professionals spread across many provinces
of China. Tens of thousands of Chinese have also
visited India over the last decade. Many come to
visit the places of Buddhist pilgrimage in India. As
well, a growing number of Chinese are working
as software professionals, chartered accountants
and entrepreneurs in India. The development
of people-to-people contacts has reached levels
unprecedented in India-China relations although
the number is still small given the size of China
and India and their populations.
The Rajiv Gandhi visit of 1988 gave a boost
to cultural exchanges between India and China.
Numerous cultural delegations have been
exchanged since then. Festivals of India and China
have been organised in each others’ countries.
Notable instances of cultural cooperation included
the construction with Indian assistance of a
Buddhist temple of Indian style in Luoyang and
the establishment of a Xuanzang Memorial Hall at
Nalanda, the site of the famous educational centre
visited by Xuanzang in India in ancient times. The
Cultural Exchange Programme launched after the
visit of Premier Wen Jiabao in December 2010
in particular has triggered activity in various
spheres including exchanges of visits of writers and
performing artists, archaeologists, archivists, and
others as well as the organising of film festivals and
17
Cultural Contacts
Cultural Contacts
II
Commercial Interactions
between India & China
19
Cultural Contacts
20
Cultural Contacts
Commercial Interactions between India & China
21
Cultural Contacts
Commercial Interactions
between India & China
Overview
It is recorded in the Chinese work, Han Shu, in
the Record on Geography, that there had already
been sea trade between southern India and China
in the 2nd century BCE. The main goods from India
at that time included "bright pearls, jewels (glass),
rare stones and exotic things," and the goods from
China were mainly gold and "za zeng" (all kinds of
silk fabrics). Ancient coins of the Han Dynasty also
have been unearthed in southern India, which prove
the existence of trade at that time. In the section
on the Biography of the Western Regions in the Han
Shu are recorded the products and ancient coins in
some parts of India at that time, such as Kashmir.
It says, “The ground is flat, and the climate is mild,
there is alfalfa, weeds and odd trees”. “They plant
grain and all kinds of fruit such as grapes.” Also,
“the residents there are very skillful, they carve on
various materials, build palaces, weave wool fabrics,
embroider cloth and prepare various dishes. There
are gold, silver, copper and tin vessels. Bazaars
are situated along the roads. The currencies are
gold and silver, with an image of a horse in front
and a human face on the back. They have fengniu
(zebu), buffalo, elephants, dogs, macacas, kongjue
(peafowl), pearl, coral, amber and gems.” Among
these, many were already exported to China before
the Common Era.
Dunhuang mural paintings (picture of the travelling merchants),
preserved in cave number 296 in the Dunhuang Mogao caves in
Gansu Province, China
The history of commercial exchanges between India
and China is very long. More than 3,000 years ago,
a large number of seashells from the coast of the Bay
of Bengal was unearthed in Sichuan and Yunnan.
These seashells were ancient currencies, indicating
that there had been trade contacts between Sichuan,
Yunnan and countries such as India and Burma
(Myanmar) at that time. India was the origin of
Asiatic cotton, with a long history of producing cotton
textiles. A piece of cotton cloth from more than 3,000
years ago was unearthed in Fujian, China, which is
the earliest evidence of cotton cloth ever discovered
in here. Since there was no cotton in China at that
time, it is considered by many scholars that this piece
of cotton cloth probably came from India.
During 4th century BCE, there were records about
silk (kauseya) and Chinese silk in sheaves (cinapañña)
in the Arthashastra, the ancient Indian work written
by Kautilya. Silk was also mentioned in other ancient
works such as the two great Indian epics, the Ramayana
and the Mahabharata. This indicates that Chinese silk
had been introduced to India before the Common Era.
According to the great Chinese work of history,
the Shiji, in the Biography of Dayuan, cloth and
bamboo cane produced in Sichuan had been seen in
Bactria during Zhang Qian’s mission to the Western
Regions. This indicated that Sichuan products had
long been introduced into India via Yunnan and
then further transported to Bactria. People already
knew at that time that Sichuan merchants smuggled
goods from Yunnan to northeast India.
Tang dynasty women embroidering
In short, during the 2nd and 1st century BCE,
many goods were introduced into China from
India, mainly directly as trade and also to a
lesser extent as “tribute”. In fact, the so-called
22
Cultural Contacts
Yuezhi people had already established the Kushan
Empire, ruling the northwestern region of India.
Due to Ban Chao’s efforts, the so-called Silk Road
was kept open in this period, allowing Chinese
silk to be successfully transported to the
northwestern region of India via the route through
the Western Regions.
During the 4th and 5th century CE, there were both
government envoys and merchants plying this route,
the Yunnan-Burma overland route and the South
China Sea route. Among the large number of Indian
monks in China, some came together with the trade
caravans via the Western Regions route, while others
came in merchant ships by sea. For example, Faxian,
who travelled by the overland Western Regions route
when he went to India, took the sea route on-board a
merchant ship when he came back.
In the Song Shu section on the Biography of the
Barbarians, it was recorded that in the 5th year of
the Liu Song Dynasty (428 CE), envoys from south
India came to China and submitted their credentials,
bearing “delicate treasures like diamond rings and
Mollet gold rings, and one red cockatoo and one white
cockatoo.” This indicates that south Indians were
familiar with China and that the practice of “tribute
trade” continued. Information about China was
transmitted back to India through these merchants.
“tribute” was also a kind of trade practice which
has been called “tribute trade”. Under this system,
merchants from countries surrounding China
presented themselves as envoys and gave gifts
to the Chinese emperors, and in turn the Chinese
emperors granted rewards to them. This satisfied
the desire for prestige on the part of the emperors,
while at the same time it allowed the merchants
to be received with great courtesy and to realise
much profit.
Necklace of precious gems in the
Harappan culture
1st-6th century CE
The Chinese work Hou Han Shu (History of
the Later Han Dynasty), in the Biography of the
Western Regions, recorded the products of India,
including elephants, rhinoceros, the hawksbill sea
turtle, gold, silver, copper, iron, lead, tin, etc. It
also mentioned percale, woollens, spice, jaggery
(unrefined w), pepper, ginger, black salt, etc. This
indicates that all these Indian products had been
familiar to China during the 1st and 2nd century CE.
Because China at that time lacked the technology to
produce glass, Indian glass was even more famous
in China, and there are mysterious references to
“the treasury mirror of Shendu (ancient India)” in
Chinese historical records.
During this period, trade in silk between India
and China continued. During 80-89 CE, a Greek
who resided in Egypt had recorded that Chinese
silk and silk products were sold to the West via
Bactria after reaching there from India. This is
similar to the narrative about the Former Han
Dynasty when it was revealed that cloth from
Shu (Sichuan) and Qiong bamboo cane were
transported to Bactria via India, via the YunnanBurma route. Although India in this case was just
a point en route for trade with regions further
west, silk and silk fabrics were also consumed in
India. In sections 11 and 168 of the Indian work
Manu Smrti, it was said that whoever stole silk
would be punished with no food and only milk for
three days.
Meanwhile, according to the Hou Han Shu, in the
section on the Biography of Ban Chao, it is said that
in the 9th year of Jianchu (84 CE), Ban Chao (32-102
CE) dispatched envoys to “present many delicate
silk fabrics to the king of Yuezhi.” At that time the
Trade and presentation of tribute to the emperor
The section on the Biography of the Western Regions
in the Wei Shu mentions that India produced “mani
beads (cintamani) and coral”, and that some places
“produce gold, white sandalwood, jaggery and
grapes.” “Tribute” from Indian envoys included
horses, black camels, gold, silver, etc., and silk
fabrics were the main exports from China. The
reference to envoys Dong Wan and Gao Ming going
to the Western Regions bearing silk in the Taiyan
period (435-440 CE), in juan 102 of the Wei Shu,
indicated that silk was an important part of the gifts
sent by Chinese emperors.
In the section on “Tribes” in the Liang Shu, more
products from India were listed, such as mink, rose
beads, gold thread fabrics, golden felt, superior
fur clothing, curcuma aromatica, etc. It was also
recorded that “the rose bead is like mica in shape
23
Cultural Contacts
trade bureaus had been set up at large ports along the
coast in the heyday of the Tang Dynasty, which were
in charge of the maritime trade. At that time, Indian
merchant ships were coming to China with large
amounts of “treasure”. The Tōdaiwajō tōseiden by Yuan
Kai recorded that in Guangzhou, “there were numerous
ships on the river from Brahmana, Persia and Kunlun
carrying mountains of spice and treasures.” Even after
the mid-Tang period, the foreign trade bureaus at the
ports along the coast continued to function and trade
to China from India also continued. According to
Chinese sources, products were exported to China
from India even in the late Tang period, and rhinoceros
was one of them. Belts decorated with rhinoceros horn
were particularly appreciated in China. Products
exported to India from China were mainly silk
products. According to Juan 198 of the Jiu Tang Shu, in
the 11th year of Zhenguan (637), when the ruler of
Kashmir presented a famous horse, “Emperor Taizong
praised its sincerity and rewarded it with coloured
silk.” During the reign of Emperor Xuanzong (713741), Indian envoys were “rewarded” with brocade or
rough silk, usually 500 bolts on each occasion.
and violet gold in colour with a brilliant light; it is
as thin as a cicada’s wings, and like left over yarn
when stacked.” “The curcuma aromatica is peculiar
to Kawmira (Kashmir), with a splendid yellow
colour, just like the lotus.” The curcuma aromatica
here is the snow lotus (saussurea involucrata). At
the beginning of the Tianjian period of the Liang
Dynasty (502 or 503 CE), the Gupta king in India
dispatched envoys to China, bearing among other
things, “glass, spittoons, spices, cotton, and so on.”
6th ~mid 10th century CE
Although the Sui Dynasty of China (581~618)
did not last long, there are nevertheless records
of diplomatic and commercial exchanges during
that period. “Every year in the first month of
the lunar calendar, envoys from many countries
would come to pay their respects”, and “many
surrounding tribes would come and present their
local products”. According to the Sui Shu, in the
Section on the Western Regions, Emperor Yang
(reigning from 605-618) dispatched Wei Jie and
Du Xingman to serve as envoys to the countries in
the Western Regions. They went to Kawmira and
brought back cups made of agate, which was a rare
precious stone at that time.
In the Tang period, Indian states dispatched
envoys and presented local products on many
occasions. For example, in 619, the ruler of
Kashmir dispatched envoys who presented
many gifts including golden locks, crystal cups
and jujube-like glass. In June 637, they again
dispatched envoys bearing Buddhist relics (sarira)
and superior quality horses. In the 16th year of
Zhenguan, they recorded as having “presented a
special kind of mouse with a sharp mouth and red
tail, which could eat snakes. If someone was bitten
by a snake, the mouse would smell and urinate on
the sore, and the sore would immediately heal.”
This was a reference to a mongoose, Nàkula in
Sanskrit, commonly known as Naula). In the same
year, Oddiyana (Swat Valley in Pakistan today)
dispatched envoys to present camphor. Around the
20th year of Zhenguan, Harsha Sīlāditya, king of
Magadha, presented fire pearl, tulips and banyan
plants. Juan 100 in the Tang Huiyao recorded all
kinds of plants introduced from places in India,
such as banyan, tulip, heliotrope, sow thistle and
Hu celery. There were also records of gifts including
all kinds of drugs, carrots and fine horses.
After middle of the 8th century CE, there were fewer
references in historical records about Indian envoys
coming to China to pay “tribute”, but this does not
mean that Indian products did not reach China after
that. In fact, sea trade in Tang Dynasty had already
advanced considerably, and the products imported
from India were much more than “tribute”. Foreign
Black Rhinoceros
In the Tang period, monks also took silk with
them during their journeys to the west, which is
another way that Chinese silk was introduced into
India. For example, in the Biography of San Zang of
Da Ci’en Temple, it is mentioned that Xuanzang used
to give brocade to the temples in India. The Da Tang
Xi Yu Qiu Fa Gao Seng Zhuan (Biography of Eminent
Monks Who Sought Dharma in the West in the Great
Tang) also has references to Chinese monks taking
silk to India.
Mid 10th ~mid 14th century CE
During this period, trade between the coastal regions
of east and south China and the coastal regions
of India expanded greatly with many merchant
ships plying to and fro. Among the many foreign
merchants gathered at that time in the large Chinese
ports like Guangzhou and Quanzhou, there were
24
Cultural Contacts
wrote descriptions of agriculture, harvest, markets,
revenues and currencies of the places mentioned. In
his work, Daoyi zhilüe (A brief account of the island
peoples), which was based on his travels, he listed
the products of Bengal. He wrote that it was rich
in jute cloth, byssus cloth, tula-cotton, and peacock
feathers. He noted that among the items traded with
China were “south and north silk”, “five-coloured
raw silk”, cloves, amomum kravanh, bluish white
vases and white tassels. His work too would have
been an important source of trade information for
Chinese merchants and the government.
The Italian Marco Polo, who served as an official
under the Yuan Dynasty, noted the presence of
Indian merchants at the port of Fuzhou. He wrote
that “many merchant ships arrive at this port.
Indian merchants bring all kinds of pearls and
jewels here and sell them and make huge profits.
This river (Minjiang River) is not far from Zaytun
(Quanzhou), and the water flows into the sea. The
ships from India row up the river to Quanzhou
city.” His reference to the huge quantities of pepper,
sandalwood and medicinal materials to be found in
Quanzhou was probably an indication of the extent
of trade with India, since India was very likely the
source of much of these products. About the region
of Malabar, Marco Polo said it produced pepper,
ginger, cinnamon and cotton cloth, and that “ships
from the southern provinces (of China) carry copper
for balance. They also carry gold brocade, silk,
gauze, bullion and many medicinal materials that
Malabar doesn’t have to exchange with the goods
in this place.”
Silk and silk fabrics formed the main exports
from China. According to juan 489 in the Song Shu,
Chinese emperors would generously reward the
envoys who came to pay tribute from all parts of
India with silk. Indian monks who came bearing
Buddhist scriptures and Buddha statues, would be
rewarded with “purple cassocks and bunches of
silks”. Of the Chinese silk that was transported to
India, only some part was bought locally, while
the rest was transshipped to other countries. For
example, in juan 2 of the Song period work Ling Wai
Dai Da (Lands beyond the passes) by Zhou Qufei,
merchants from China, after arriving at Kollam
(Quilon) on the Malabar coast, would then go on to
the Persian Gulf and Red Sea area in smaller boats.
There are many references to Chinese silk being
shipped to India in Yuan dynasty records as well.
Porcelain was another important commodity
in the foreign trade of China in this period.
Although historical sources do not record much
about the export of Chinese porcelain to India
during and before the Tang Dynasty, nevertheless
archaeological excavations have yielded some
quantities of porcelain or porcelain chips of the
many Indian merchants. Many Chinese merchants
also sailed to India in this period, particularly to
South India, although it appears that they were
mostly sojourners who moved back and forth from
their bases in Southeast Asia rather than settlers.
These features point to the convenience of sea
transportation and to the advanced nature of trade
between India and China at this time.
A scene from street number 13 in Guangzhou during the Qing dynasty
Chinese records such as the Song Shi (History of
the Song dynasty) recorded the kinds of products
brought over from India. In the 8th year of Dazhong
Xiangfu, the Chola ruler “despatched special 52
envoys to present local products, an item of pearlembroidered clothing and a hat, 21,100 taels of
pearls, 60 pieces of ivory and 60 jin of frankincense.”
Envoys Srisamanta and some others “also dedicated
6600 taels of pearl and 3300 taels of spice.” In
the 10th year of Xijing (1077), the Cholas again
dispatched 27 envoys with gifts of pearls, glass
dishes, rhinoceros horn, frankincense, rose water,
asafoetida, borax, clove, etc.
Works like the Zhufan zhi of Zhao Rushi, then
a Superintendant of Maritime Customs at the
Chinese port of Quanzhou, recorded in detail the
products of India. Products from Numburi (on
the Malabar coast) included pearls, cloths in all
colours, cat’s eye, black indigo, Flame of the Forest
plants, coconut, sappan wood, etc. Products from
the Chola kingdom included pearls, ivory, coral,
glass, areca-nut, coloured silk cloth, silk cotton
cloth, and so on. Other things mentioned are goats,
cattle, pheasants, parrots, coconut, jackfruit, white
jasmine, hibiscus, corn poppy, lotus and water
plantain. This information would have been useful
to Chinese merchants seeking to develop trade with
these regions of India.
Wang Dayuan was another person from the period
of the Yuan dynasty, which followed the Song
dynasty, who recorded the products to be found
in India. In addition to this, Wang Dayuan paid
much attention to the economy and trade, and he
25
Cultural Contacts
late Tang Dynasty (9th to early 10th century CE)
in India and Pakistan. Literary sources for this are
available from the Song period. Juan 489 of the
Song Shi mentions that in 1077, 27 Chola envoys
were rewarded with porcelain vessels among other
things. The Zhufan zhi also mentions Chinese traders
carrying porcelain with them to southern India. In
the record of goods traded between India and China
in Wang Dayuan’s Daoyi zhilüe, various kinds of
porcelain are mentioned, including “bluish white
porcelain”, “thick bowls” and “bluish white vases”.
In his description of Quanzhou port, Marco Polo
mentions seeing a large amount of porcelain waiting
to be transported overseas. He mentioned that “such
porcelain is sold to India and other places, even
Maghrib of my country. This is the best in all kinds
of porcelain.”
A shipwreck from the Song dynasty in China, preserved in the Quanzhou
Overseas Museum in China on the history of communications
as well as dark brown glazed pottery relics from
South of China were unearthed in Chandravalli, a
Neolithic site in what is now south central Karnataka.
Along with them, coins of the Northern Song in the
Shenzong Period (1068-1085) were unearthed as
well, which indicated that those porcelain arrived in
the period 1078-1085 or later. French excavations
at Arikamedu near Pondicherry on the southeast
coast of India and other excavations have also led
to the discovery of Chinese porcelain sherds. These
have been found together with coins of the Northern
Song period and copper coins of the Chola Dynasty
from the 11th to 12th century CE. All this shows that
Chinese porcelain was being shipped to different
parts of India continuously during several hundred
years from the 9th to 13th century CE.
Sugar and steel were also among the items exported
from China to India in this period. In modern Hindi,
Bengali and Nepali, white sugar is called cini, which
means “Chinese”. Wang Dayuan wrote in the Yuan
period that among the goods traded between Chinese
merchants and southern Indians were “white sugar”
and “sugar icing”. The word “cinaja” in Sanskrit,
meaning “steel”, also carries the literal meaning of
“made in China”. Although ancient India produced
and exported steel, in certain periods Chinese steel
was also imported into India. Ibn Muhdhih, an Arab
geographer in the 9th-10th century CE, once saw an
observatory in Kashmir which had been made of
Chinese steel. This indicates that Chinese steel was
being imported into India even earlier. Wang Dayuan
wrote that Chinese merchant ships in his time
often carried “ironware”, “bar iron”, “steel cooking
vessels”, “needles”, etc., as trading goods.
Fragments of Celadon or Chinese porcelain discovered
from under the water in the South China Sea in China
Porcelain and porcelain sherds have been
discovered in South Asia. For example, a batch of
Chinese pottery from the Song and Yuan periods
has been found by the Archaeological Authority
of Pakistan since 1958 at Banbhore, 64 km south
of Karachi. Earlier excavations conducted in 1854
at Brahminabad about 80 kmeters northeast of
Hyderabad in Sindh Province yielded a large amount
of ceramic chips which are now housed in the British
Museum. These date from the end of the Tang
Dynasty to the end of Song Dynasty. Investigations
conducted by Aurel Stein in the Makran Area along
the coast of Balochistan also yielded a bluish white
porcelain from around the 10th century CE. Celadon
from the Longquan kilns of the Song Dynasty and
ceramic white ware from Fujian and Guangdong
Mid 14th-mid 17th century CE
In the early Ming period, envoys came from
different parts of India bearing gifts that indicate
the range of products that could have been traded as
commodities between India and China. These gifts
included certain herbal remedies for detoxification,
giraffes, superior quality horses, gold, silver, glass
26
Cultural Contacts
Although a large amount of raw silk was transported
to India during this period, it was mainly for re-export
to Europe, and local sales in India were quite limited.
Moreover, according to records in the Ying Ya Sheng
Lan and other Ming era works, Indian countries were
already able to manufacture silk, and it was no longer
rare for people there to use silk products.
The same was true for Chinese c. In the late Ming
period, the Dutch East India Company established
bases for trade with China in Southeast Asia and
Taiwan, and used to purchase large amount of
Chinese porcelain at very low prices which they
would transport to the southeast coast of India,
and then ship to Europe. Large amounts of Chinese
porcelain have been found in different places in
India, not just in the coastal regions but also in
the interior, like in Assam in Northeast India. It is
apparent that it had become a fashion among the
rulers, courtiers and high officials of various Indian
states to collect Chinese porcelain at that time.
The history of tea exports to India from China
is not very long, with the custom of tea drinking
in India only going back to the era of the Mongol
conquests in Asia. The Indian word for tea, “Chai”,
is very similar to that in Mongolian, Turki, Persian,
Portuguese, Greek and Russian. Early Ming records,
such as the works of Ma Huan, Fei Xin and Gong
Zhen who had travelled to the west together with
Zheng He, do not contain any references to Indians
drinking tea, while on the contrary, there were
records of other beverages consumed by Indians
such as cow milk, rose water, mulse and all kinds
of wine. They observed the food habits of Indians
very carefully, and it is unlikely that they would
not have noticed the custom of tea drinking among
Indians if there was any. In fact, Ma Huan’s Ying Ya
Sheng Lan said categorically that “no tea was sold
on the market”, while the work Records of Western
Countries also said that there was no tea drinking
custom in India. It is likely that tea drinking was
picked up in India only under the influence of
the large amounts of tea shipped through India
to the West by the British and Dutch East India
Companies.
Metal goods were also among the goods traded
between India and China in this period. According
to Wang Dayuan’s Daoyi zhilüe, in the 13th century
CE, goods carried by Chinese merchants to India
often included “ironware”, “bar iron”, “iron ding”
and “needles”. In the early Ming period, besides
iron and steel, other metals and metal ware were
transported to India. Gold, alluvial gold, Yunnan
leaf gold, silver, pure silver, copper cash, copper
ding, copper wire, lead, tin and hydrargyrum were
all mentioned as exports to India in Ming era works
like Xing Cha Sheng Lan, Ying Ya Sheng Lan and
Records of Western Countries. Due to the advances in
implements, rhinoceros horn, peacocks, parrots,
cambric, tula-cotton, icing sugar, frankincense,
rosin, herbs, hemp vine, cutch, lac, vine rattan,
ebony, sappan wood, pepper, the plant ardisia
maculosa Mez, byssus thread, pepper, gems, coral,
gardenia, sandalwood, tin, etc.
Chinaware/porcelain from Longquan in China,
preserved in the Indian Museum
Apart from these references to the gifts borne by
envoys from India, Chinese works from this period,
including the Ying Ya Sheng Lan, Xing Cha Sheng
Lan and Records of Western Countries, give detailed
descriptions of the products of India.
During this period, the main products exported to
India from China were silk fabrics, porcelain and tea.
In the early Ming period, a part of the silk exported
to Indian states from China formed part of “tribute
trade”, that is to say, the gifts given by Chinese
emperors to the rulers of Indian countries. These
usually included silk products, including luxurious
silk fabrics, leno, woolen brocade, coloured silk and
clothes, veils and canopies made of silk. From the
middle of the 16th century CE, however, the Ming
Dynasty implemented a ban on maritime trade
or intercourse with foreign countries due to the
invasion of Japanese pirates. Thereafter, the export
of Chinese silk to India was mainly in the form of
private trade.
The major trading companies of western powers
such as those of Portugal, Holland and Britain
gradually penetrated the intra-Asian trade and also
came to control the silk trade between India and
China. Western merchants regarded India as an
intermediate station, through which they transported
large amounts of raw silk from China to Europe for
sale there. For example, the quantity of raw silk
transported by Portuguese colonists from Macao to
Goa was more than 3,000 piculs each year during
1580 to 1590, and was up to 6000 piculs in 1636.
27
Cultural Contacts
Chinese maritime commerce from the Song period,
Chinese copper cash had even become a form of
currency in some coastal regions of India.
Mid-17th century to 1949
With the end of the age of the great ocean-going
Chinese ships and Chinese merchants directly
carrying their goods to Indian ports, the trade
between India and China did not end but altered
its form and orientation. This was the period of a
flourishing junk trade between China and Southeast
Asia. Indian and Chinese goods were often exchanged
in Southeast Asian ports such as Malacca. However,
there is evidence of the resumption of direct trade
between Surat, the leading port at this time on the
west coast of India, and China from the last quarter
of the 17th century CE. Chinese porcelain, tea,
Chinese gold, lacquer work, copper and vermilion
were exported to India in return for silver, spices,
sandalwood and other items. However, some of
the merchandise imported by Surat merchants was
re-exported to the Persian Gulf and Red Sea area.
There is also some evidence that by the early 18th
century, this trade with China had entered a period
of stagnation.
Transaction in tea in the 18th century between Chinese merchants and
businessmen of the Dutch East India Company
China substantially. From the last quarter of the
18th century CE, raw cotton from western India and
opium from both Bengal and western India (Patna
and Malwa opium) began to be exported to China
in huge quantities to pay for the rapidly escalating
import of tea into Britain from China. Whereas in
1765, the quantity of opium imported into China
was less than 200 chests per year, and was mostly for
medicinal use, by the turn of the 19th century, this
figure had increased to 4,000 chests. In 1830-1834,
it increased to 17,000 chests, and by the time of the
outbreak of the First Opium War in 1839, it had
reached a stupendous 40,000 chests per year. After
the Second Opium War broke out in 1858, China
was forced to sign a treaty with Britain legalising
the import of opium. Opium imports from India
continued to increase until 1884, when the quantity
started to gradually decrease, because by this time
China had also increased its cultivation of opium.
On the eve of the First World War, the quantity of
opium imported into China had decreased to below
4,000 chests.
Raw cotton remained one of the mainstays of
Indian exports to China in the 19th century. The region
of Gujarat in western India produced a short staple
cotton that was suited to the handloom weaving
industry of China at that time. British traders, as
well as Indian traders like Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy,
made considerable profits from the cotton trade,
which also gave a boost to the shipbuilding industry
in western India.
The store house for tea at Guangzhou during the Qing times in China
The arrival of the European monopoly trading
companies in the Asian waters was a new and
significant feature of this period. Initially, these
companies participated in the trade without altering
its structure significantly. However, Dutch Batavia
soon became an intermediate station in the trade
between India and China. Western ships in the East
Indies loaded up with spices and other goods which
they carried to Guangzhou. From there, they carried
porcelain and silk to Surat to exchange for cotton,
sugar, gum and textiles, returning to Guangzhou
with the monsoon winds. However, the rapid growth
of the tea trade between China and Europe, and the
establishment of the colonial power of the Western
countries in India and other Asian countries,
changed the nature of the trade between India and
28
Cultural Contacts
From1864 to 1891, the annual total volume
of direct trade between India and China was
27.77 million haikwan taels on an average. This
figure rose in the 20th century. In 1926, the total
volume of trade between the two countries reached
95,113,114 haikwan taels, of which the total value of
goods exported to China from India was 79,191,013
haikwan taels. During this period, products exported
to China from India were mainly cotton, rice and
cotton yarn. Besides these, China also used to import
from India flour, sugar, coal, kerosene, cement, tea,
jute and various kinds of cloth.
During this period, products exported to India
from China were mainly silk, tea and beans. Besides
these, other exports to India included eggs, peanuts,
cowhide, sesame, China wood oil, coal, cotton yarn,
pig iron, etc. It is worth noting that while cotton
yarn had earlier been exported from India to China,
during this period China began to export cotton yarn
to India. This was a reflection of the development of
cotton yarn manufacture in China, particularly from
the time of the First World War.
Trading in porcelain at Jingdezhen during the Qing times
In the second half of the 19th century, manufactured
cotton yarn, the product of India’s earliest modern
industry, the textile industry, started to become the
main product exported to China by India. During
1872~1873, the total volume of export of Indian
cotton yarn was 1.8 million pounds, of which 1.2
million pounds were exported to China. After that,
the volume of exports of Indian cotton yarn increased
year by year. While from 1874~1879, the average
annual exports were about 9 million pounds, by
1894~1899, it was 180.9 million pounds. At first,
Indian cotton yarn was mainly sold in Shantou and
Guangzhou, and then it gradually extended to east
China, central China, north China, northeast China
and southwest China. It was not until 1914~1915
that the volume of export of Indian cotton yarn to
China decreased to 134 million pounds due to its
displacement by Japanese cotton yarn.
In the trade between the two nations in the
middle of 19th century, the volume of goods
exported to India from China was much less than
that of goods exported to China from India. China
faced a huge trade deficit, which required silver to
pay for the balance. The main goods of India were
opium, cotton, wheat and jute, mainly exported to
China; while the main goods of China were raw
silk, porcelain, tea and medicinal materials, mainly
exported to Britain, USA, France, Netherland and
Spain. According to statistics, during the period
1834~1845, the annual average value of the goods
imported from China by India was only 1/80th of
the value of the goods exported from India to China.
So, the net value of silver transported to India from
China reached about 1.5~2.5 million pounds. The
goods exported to India by China in this period
included, besides raw silk, tea and porcelain, rock
candy, white sugar, alum, silk and satin, camphor,
paper, homespun, etc.
1950~2000
Following the establishment of the People’s
Republic of China, in 1954 the governments of
India and China signed the first trade agreement
between the two countries. In this period, goods
exported to India from China mainly included rice,
broomcorn, beans, raw silk, machines, transformers,
wool, caustic soda, paper, etc. Goods exported to
China from India mainly included hemp articles,
rice, beans, tobacco, chemicals, drugs, mica, electric
fans, woolens and machines.
The export trade of tea leaf production and processing
during the Qing times
After a disruption of the trade in the 1960s and
early 1970s, trade between India and China began
to revive in the 1980s. In 1977, direct trade was
resumed; in 1984, the two countries signed an
official trade agreement; in November 1985, the
two countries signed a trade protocol; in 1988, there
was established a minister-level economic, trade
and scientific and technological cooperation group.
29
Cultural Contacts
In the 1980s, goods exported to India from China
mainly included raw silk, silk products, edible
vegetable oil, coal, mercury, antimony, petroleum,
petrochemicals, drug, etc. At the same time the
products exported to China from India included iron
ore, chrome ore, manganese ore, steel products,
tobacco, leather, power generating equipment, etc.
In 1982, the value of trade between India and China
stood at 145 million USD. From 1984 to 1990 it
grew year by year on the whole. The volume of
trade further increased in the 1990s. By the year
2000 it had reached a total of 2.91 billion USD.
Since then, trade between India and China has
grown at a phenomenal rate, and is the most dynamic
element in the relationship at the present time.
Currently, China is India’s largest trading partner.
However, there is a distinct imbalance in the trade,
with the balance of trade in China’s favour, and the
figure is only a small proportion in the total volume
of foreign trade of the two countries. Measures are
being taken to try and diversify and strengthen the
structure of the trading relationship between the
two countries.
18 in Book One of Duan Chengshi’s Miscellaneous
Morsels from Youyang cites relevant passages from
Traveling Notes on the Western Regions in the Great
Tang Dynasty, as well as pointed out that there were
two Sanskrit names of the bodhi tree, in which ‘
阿湿曷咃娑力叉’ (A shi he ta suo li cha) was the
transliteration of Asvattha-vrksa in Sanskrit.
Products
Bodhi Tree
The Bodhi Tree is a kind of arbor from the species ficus
microcarpa of the Moraceae family of plants, and its
scientific name is Ficus religiosa. The Sanskrit name
of the bodhi tree is pippala, which is transliterated
in Chinese as Biboluo (毕钵罗, 卑钵罗 and 庳钵罗).
It is said that the Sakyamuni was enlightened on the
Diamond Throne under a bodhi tree outside Gaya,
Magadha (in present-day Bihar, India). The tree was
called bodhi, and its free translations were ‘the tree
of the Way’, ‘enlightenment tree’, ‘bodhimandala
tree’, ‘thinking tree’, etc. ‘Juan’ 8 of the Chinese
work Traveling Notes on the Western Regions in the
Great Tang Dynasty recorded that the original bodhi
tree had a yellowish white stem and green leaves,
and that it did not wither away, but thrived both
in winter and summer. When the Buddha lived, the
tree was supposed to have been one hundred chi*
in height, and its height was four or five zhang even
after having been cut several times. Kings in later
generations conducted Buddhist ceremonies around
the Bodhi tree, and collected its leaves as auspicious
relics, while many Chinese monks who visited India
to seek Dharma, including the famous Xuanzang,
visited the holy relic of the tree. Envoys from China
in the reign of Zhenguan of the Tang Dynasty
displayed sacrificial offerings and "kasayas" (robes
worn by monks) in the temple beside the tree. Tang
envoys also erected a monument in the temple in
the 5th Year of the Xian Qing reign (660 CE). Juan
Book made out of Bodhi leaves in Ming China
Since the bodhi tree was connected with the
enlightenment of the Buddha, a part of this tree
was transplanted in China. It is said that Tripitaka
Zhi Yao came from India by sea in the first year
of Tianjian of the Liang Dynasty, planted a bodhi
tree in front of the altar of Guangxiao Temple,
Guangzhou and predicted that later generations
would have real Bodhisattvas (meaning Hui Neng,
the sixth Patriarch of the Chan sect) to enlighten
the people there. Thereafter, bodhi trees were
planted in places such as Guangdong and Yunnan
in China and elsewhere. Pi Rixiu, a poet in the Tang
Dynasty wrote a Poem on Tiantai Guoqing Temple in
Qi and Liang Style. In it, he wrote, “I walked 10 li on
Guoqing Road of Songmen and fed monkeys on the
platform beside the Bodhi tree. I wondered why it
rained on such a sunny day, it turned out that the
sea wind brought the waterfall.”
Bodhi trees and their leaves from India were often
offered as tribute or presents. Juan 54 in the Book of
the Liang Dynasty recorded that the Panpan kingdom
dispatched envoys to present true relics and painted
pagodas of the Bodhi kingdom and offered bodhi
leaves and the plant Lindera thunbergii Makino
in August of the sixth year of the middle Datong
(534 CE). The Old Book of the Tang Dynasty juan 198
30
Cultural Contacts
present-day Gorakhpur. The work Travelling Notes
on the Western Regions in the Great Tang Dynasty
(juan 6) described the sala trees seen by Xuanzang
there, “The trees were similar to the Quercus
dentata but their bark was bluish white, and leaves
were bright and smooth. The four trees were very
high and the Buddha entered nirvana here.” ‘娑罗’
(Suoluo) was the transliteration of sala in Sanskrit.
Juan 1 of Shen Qing’s Record of North Mountain
in the Tang Dynasty explained that, “It is named
sala in Sanskrit and it is called jiangu here and it
doesn’t wither away in winter.” The explanation
on "sala forest" in juan 23 of Hui Lin’s Sound and
Meaning of All Sutras differed somewhat. “The sala
tree is called gaoyuan here and it is higher than
other trees in a forest. It was translated as 'jiangu'
wrongly in the past because sala was similar to
the pronunciation of Para. If it is called 'jiangu',
the sound of the same has to made by turning the
tongue. If it is called 'gaoyuan', it might be done by
pronouncing it straight without any turning of the
tongue.” 'Jiangu' corresponds to the Sanskrit 'sàra',
whose pronunciation is similar to Sala.
recorded that King Silajita of Magadha sent envoys
to offer fire balls, tulips and bodhi trees in the 15th
year of Zhenguan. According to the General History of
Chinese Buddhism, monks of Kaibao Temple returned
from India and offered Sanskrit sutras, a pagoda
of Buddha’s relics, bodhi leaves and peacock tail
brushes in March of the third year of Taipingxingguo
(978) of the Northern Song Dynasty. Similarly, the
sramana Guangyuan of Chengdu, on his return from
the western paradise, went to the royal house of the
prince of western India named Motunangbiao to
offer as presents a seal of the Buddha’s head crown
(skull bone relic), palm tree leaves and leaves of
the Bodhi tree in December of the seventh year of
Taipingxingguo (982 CE). Indian monks, including
Niweini, came to China and offered to the court
Buddha’s relics, Sanskrit sutras, bodhi leaves and
bodhi prayer beads in the first year of Xianping in
the Northern Song Dynasty (998 CE). The monk
Mulasiji from Kashmir is also recorded as having
offered Sanskrit sutras and bodhi leaves in March
of the second year of Jingde (1005); while five
years later, the Indian monk Juejie came to China
and brought relics, palm-leaf scriptures, a genuine
bodhimanda and bodhi leaves in the third year of
Dazhongxiang. Huaiwen who had gone to the West
three times, returned from the Indian kingdom
of Magadha bringing fragments of the Buddha’s
bone, pattra-leaf sutras, pattra, bodhi leaves, ashoka
leaves, bodhi prayer beads and 19 texts based on the
monument of the western paradise.
The bodhi tree had influence on ancient Chinese
literature. In the Sutra of the Sixth Patriarch, Shen
Xiu wrote a gatha in which he said, “The body is
the wisdom tree. Your heart is a stand of a mirror
bright. Frequently wipe it. Don't let it be dusty.” In
turn, Hui Neng wrote the gatha saying, “There is no
wisdom tree nor a stand of a mirror bright. Since all
is void where can the dust alight?” They were the
most famous gathas related to the Bodhi tree in the
history of Chinese Buddhism. Thus, the Bodhi tree
is important in the transfer of plants between China
and India as well as an important article in Chinese
and Indian Buddhism and diplomatic intercourse.
(Chen Ming)
[1 chi is approximately equal to one foot in
length; 10 chi make up 1 zhang]
Śāla grove after the rains
Juan 54, 'Record of Foreign Countries', in
the Book of the Liang Dynasty recorded that the
state of Funan sent envoys to offer auspicious
Indian sandalwood images, sala leaves, fire balls,
curcuma aromatica and storax in the 18th year of
the Tianjian period (519 CE). Duan Chengshi’s
Miscellaneous Morsels from Youyang recorded that
Anxi monks from the Western Regions went to
the court to offer sala leaves in the first year of
the Tianbao period in the Tang Dynasty. Zhang
Wei wrote, “Offering Sala Leaves” for the Anxi
provincial governor and praised the excellent
characteristics of the tree, saying that, “It doesn’t
shield common grasses and harbour evil birds.”
As a Buddhist holy tree, sala trees were planted in
many Chinese temples. The entry on Sala in Volume
961 of the Taiping Imperial Encyclopaedia quoted
Sheng Hong’s Records of Jinzhou and recorded
a miracle about how a sala tree was grown in a
monk’s room of Xian’an Temple in Baling in the
1st Year of Yongkang of the Jin Dynasty and was
Sala Tree
The sala tree (commonly known as sal) is a perennial
evergreen arbor of the Dipterocarpaceae family. Its
scientific name is Shorea robusta. Its original home
is in the Indian and Malayan rainforests and it is
one of the Buddhist holy trees. Sutras record that
the Buddha Sakyamuni entered nirvana between
the two sala trees beside the Ajitavatã River
outside the capital of Kuśinagara (35 km east of
31
Cultural Contacts
recognised by foreign monks later. Li Yong, the
governor of Hai Zhou wrote the Sala Tree Tablet
in the 11th year of Kaiyuan of the Tang Dynasty
(723 CE) in Huaiyin County, Chuzhou. There is
also the Tablet of the Sala Tree Song in the ruins
of Xiangshan Temple in Beijing’s Xiangshan Park
which was made on imperial order in the 38th Year
of Qianlong in the Qing period (1773). The poem,
carved in four scripts - Manchu, Mongolian, Han
Chinese and Tibetan - praised the Sala tree which
had been planted there for 1,000 years. Ouyang
Yongshu wrote his Poem of the Sala Tree which
went as follows, “There are many rare trees in Yi
and Luo. Sala trees were once famous, they are
often seen in Buddhist temples and they grow best
under the moon.” Therefore, the sala tree is not
only an illustration of the transmission of plants
between China and India but also played a role in
the spread of Buddhist culture.
(Chen Ming)
An Aśoka tree pruned into the shape of an umbrella
“The Queen saw a huge tree named Asoka in
the garden, its flowers were fragrant and fresh
and its leaves were very luxuriant.” Juan 6 of
the Travelling Notes on the Western Regions in the
Great Tang Dynasty recorded that Xuanzang visited
Lumbini and saw that the Asoka tree under which
the Buddha was born had withered away. Because
the Asoka tree was related to the birth of the
Buddha, it became one of the Buddhist holy trees
and all ancient Indian stone sculptures or frescoes
describing the birth of the Buddha painted the
image of the tree. The artistic way of depicting the
Asoka tree was introduced to China from India. In
the frescoes at Qizil and Dunhuang which depict
the birth of the Buddha, the image of the tree
appears in many places.
Duan Chengshi’s Miscellaneous Morsels from
Youyang (juan 3) claimed that the “flowers of the
Asoka bloom once women touch them.” Some
species of the Asoka were planted in South China.
Moving Indian Buddhist stories which feature the
Asoka tree are popular in China.
(Chen Ming)
asoka tree
Asoka is a kind of tree belonging to the
Caesalpiniaceae family. Its scientific name is Saraca
Asoca, originally grown in India, Indo-China and
the southwestern region of China. It is one of the
Buddhist holy trees. ‘无忧’(wu you)is the name
of the Asoka in Chinese and its transliteration is
a shu jia written with different characters (‘阿输
迦’, ‘阿输柯’, ‘阿叔迦’, ‘阿菽迦’, etc). Juan 09 of
Baochang’s work, the Sanskrit-Chinese Lexicon,
says that A shu jia shu 阿菽迦树 (Asoka tree) must
be pronounced as A shu jia 阿输迦, and must be
translated as wu you 无忧 (meaning, one without
sorrow). Juan 10 of the same work has Asoka 阿输
迦 referred to as wu you hua shu 无忧华树 (Asoka
flower tree). Juan 26 of Huilin’s Sound and Meaning
of All Sutras refers to A shu jia shu 阿叔迦树 (Asoka
tree) as wu you shu无忧树. Juan 03 in Collection of
Terms in Translation has A shu jia阿输迦 pronounced
as ‘A shu ke’ 阿输柯 (Asoka). The Great Treatise on
the Perfection of Wisdom also translates it as wu you
hua shu 无忧华树.
The Sutra on Cause and Effect wrote that Queen
Maya went to Lumbini Garden on February 8, saw
an Asoka flower and raised her right hand to pick
it but her baby (the prince Siddhartha, the future
Gautama Buddha) was born from her right flank.
Many sutras recorded that Queen Maya, the mother
of the Buddha Sakyamuni, who had returned to her
family to give birth according to the convention of
the time, passed Lumbini Garden and gave birth
to Prince Siddhartha under the Asoka tree. Juan
1 of the Sutra on Causes and Effects of the Past
and Present, translated by the Indian Tripitaka
Gunabhadra in the Song Dynasty, described the
tree specifically,
Clover
In the family Leguminosae, muxu (clover) is a general
term for wild flowering annual and perennial herbs
which belong to the genus, Medicago. Its Latin name
is Medicago sativa Linn. It is also called ‘Musu’ (here
‘su’ represents different characters in Chinese),
Guangfeng Grass, Huaifeng Grass and Lianzhi
Grass. With its introduction from India and the
Western Regions (present-day Xinjiang), clover was
gradually developed into a common native product
in China from an exotic plant.
The word for clover (Muxu) in Chinese is actually
a transliteration of a foreign word. In Sino-Iranica,
B. Laufer adduced its origin as buksuk or buxsux
in Persian, burchak in Turkic or buso in Jirachi (a
Caspian dialect). However, it is not conclusive. In
Chinese versions of Buddhist scriptures, various
32
Cultural Contacts
brought back grape and clover seeds. The clover
seeds later spread as horse feed from the Northwest
to many other regions of China. In Tang poet Wang
Wei’s poem, entitled Seeing Lieutenant Liu Off to the
Protectorate of the Pacified West, it is mentioned,
“Clover together with steeds were introduced into
China; grapes were brought back by Han envoys.”
Another Tang poet, Bao Fang, depicted the same
scene in two lines in his Random Thoughts, “From
time to time, the heavenly horses feed on alfalfa, ‘Hu
ren’ (the non-Han people from the Western Regions)
for years have offered their best grape wines!”
Upon its introduction into central China, clover
not only served as horse feed but was also used as a
herb and food. Its medical functions were seen in Tao
Hongjing’s Alternative Records of Famous Physicians.
In the Tang work Materia Medica for Dietotherapy,
it was written that clover can be mixed with sauce
or used for cooking porridge or congee. It can
“benefit the organs and help one keep fit. Also, it
can clear away harmful heat (‘qi’) and free the small
intestine to remove heat-toxin.” In Yuan Dynasty,
it was widely planted to feed the huge number of
horses needed by the regime’s military operations.
Besides, the prescription to make clothes fragrant
recorded in Sun Simiao’s work Valuable Prescriptions
for Emergency, also used clover fragrance.
(Chen Ming)
transliterations of it were listed, such as, Muxuxiang
(fragrance of clover), also known as Saibeilixiang
(Murti Mandala and Incantation Sutra), Muxuxiang,
i.e. Saibilijia (Volume 7, Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sutra
translated by Yijing), Sabilijia, also called Muxu
in Persian (Volume 5, Usnisa Vijaya Dharani
Sutra) and (Sa)bilijia, Muxuxiang (Most Secret,
Well-Established Dhāraṇi of the Vast Gem-Encrusted
Tower translated by Bodhiruci). According to the
collation of the Chinese version with the original
Suvarṇaprabhāsa Sutra, Saibeilixiang, and Sabilijia
were all transliterated from ‘Sprikka’. They were the
same terms used in two sutras of the Tang Dynasty;
according to Li Yan’s Miscellaneous Names in Sanskrit,
‘Muxu, is a transliteration of svista’ and the ChineseSanskrit Buddhist Dictionary also followed the same
wording. In any case, muxu is no doubt a foreign
word regardless of its various transliterations.
Cucumber
Trapusa is a species of cucurbitaceous plant, also
known as teasel gourd, cucumber or trichosanthes
cucumeroides. Its scientific name in Latin is Cucumis
sativus. Its country of origin is India. The history
of the cultivation of trapusa is very ancient, with
many varieties. It could be divided, in light of its
ecological features into big trapusa, small trapusa,
fruit trapusa, quadri-leaf trapusa and hothouse
trapusa. Since its introduction to different regions
of China, it has become a common vegetable on the
household menu.
It is said that Zhang Qian, who was sent by the
emperor of the Western Han Dynasty on a diplomatic
mission to the Western Regions, brought back to central
China the seeds of this plant. Hence, it was called
the gourd from Hu, referring to the non-Han people
inhabiting that region in ancient China. Later, it was
renamed cucumber (huanggua). There are two versions
about its renaming. In the first version, the 拾遗本草
(Shiyi bencao) compiled by Chen Cangqi pointed out,
“To avoid the taboo of Shi Le, the northerners changed
its name to cucumber, and this name has persisted
to the present day.” Because Shi Le, king of the later
Zhao kingdom belonged to the Hu nationality, he did
not want to hear this reference to ‘Hu’ in connection
with this plant. The second version is as follows. It
is recorded in the Gleaners’ Record, composed by
Clover
Clover has many varieties and the most famous
one is Medicago sativa which was used to feed
livestock. The Chinese work Compendium of Materia
Medica, says, “The plant grows from its perennial
root and can feed cattle and horses.” Clover
originated from Persia and was introduced to India
and various countries in the Western Regions.
Kophen produced clover along with sandalwood
trees, pagoda trees, Catalpa trees, bamboo and so
forth. In Dayuan (present-day Ferghana in Central
Asia), horses loved eating clover. It is said that the
herb was introduced from the Western Regions
after the famous envoy Zhang Qian went there
during the Wudi Emperor’s reign in Han Dynasty.
After that, clover gardens appeared in the capital of
Chang’an. As recorded in Volume 1 of Record of the
Western Regions in the History of the Han Dynasty,
after Dayuan was conquered, the King of Dayuan
offered their horses as tribute and the Han envoys
33
Cultural Contacts
they are known as the “three pungent medicines”,
“three pungent spices”, “three hot drugs” or “three
pungent drugs”. Pepper has traditionally been a
major commodity in the overseas land and sea trade
of India and has also been commonly used in the
traditional Chinese medicine and food.
Pepper is one of the favourite condiments and
also one of the main spices carried in the maritime
trade between Asia and Europe. Pepper’s major
medicinal value, according to traditional Chinese
medicine, lies in its stimulation function, which
can reduce qi and remove cold and stimulate
secretion in the stomach to help digestion. Pepper
has played an important role in the history of
Indian drugs for several centuries. It has long been
considered and used as aromatic stimulant and
carminative to expel gas from the gastro-intestinal
tract. It works well in treating dyspepsia, flatulence
and hemorrhoids and sometimes, it can be used as
an anti-malarial drug. Pepper can be also used as
external medicine.
The History of the Later Han Dynasty (juan 78)
first recorded that pepper originated in India. The
Record of the Western Regions of the Great Tang by the
famous monk Xuanzang recorded that schinus molle
originated in A Zha Li kingdom and that schinus molle
looked very much like the pepper of Shu. The You
Yang Essays by Duan Chengshi recorded that pepper
originated in Magadha and was called marica. It
said that it looked like the Han pepper and tasted
pungent and was usually used as seasoning.
In medieval Buddhist literature, marica is written
as Mo Li Zhe (摩梨遮), Mo Li Zhe (么哩者), Mo Li
Zhe (末栗者), Mo Li Zhe (摩唎遮) and Mo Lian Zhe
(摩练遮). There was a close relationship between
pepper and the Magadha kingdom. Pepper was an
expensive imported commodity in the Tang period.
For instance, when the household of the wealthy
prime minister Yuan Zai under the Emperor Daizong
of the Tang dynasty (762-779 CE) was raided after
he relinquished office, countless precious objects
were found including 800 hu of pepper.
Du Bao of the Tang dynasty, alternately titled the
Gleaners Record during the reign period of Daye, that
emperor Yang of the Sui dynasty had named huchuang
胡床 as jiaochuang 交床. The emperor also renamed
Cucumber
hugua as the "white dew" cucumber (bailu huang gua),
and eggplant as the purple gourd from the Kunlun
(mountains).” The written record titled Zhen guan
zheng yao, compiled by Wujing of the Tang dynasty
confirms that during the fourth year of the Daye reign
period of the Sui dynasty emperor Yang, this change
in name was brought into effect.
In the Sanskrit version of the Thousand Character
Classic compiled by Yijing of the Tang Dynasty,
cucumber was transliterated as duoluobusuo and its
Sanskrit equivalent is ‘trapusa’. In the Chinese version
of the Buddhist Sutras, we find the same translation
of the name. In the work, Biography of Sakyamuni
Buddha, a trader’s name was given as Dilifusuo with
the added note, “Hu gourd as pronounced by people
in the Sui Dynasty.” The monk Yijing translated it as
cucumber in the fifth volume of the Buddhist classic,
Legend of a Poor Monk. From the Sanskrit version of
Legend of a Poor Monk, we know that the Sanskrit
equivalents of this term are trapusã or trapuùã
while Hu gourd and cucumber are just its colloquial
versions. Watermelon is called tarbuza by Indians
today which originated from the Persian language
and bears a clear resemblance to trapusa.
(Chen Ming)
PEPPER
Pepper is a kind of liana vine that originated in India.
The term generally refers to the dried or ripe fruit
piper nigrum. The Sanskrit term for pepper is marica
or maraca and it is known as black pepper in English.
Another Sanskrit term for pepper is ūṣaṇa meaning
hot. Together with long pepper and dried ginger,
Pepper
34
Cultural Contacts
many occasions. A Study of the Eastern and Western
Oceans by Zhang Xie of the Ming period that pepper
in Calicut was valued at 200 fen per 400 catty. The
Statutes of the Ming Dynasty in its special regulations
on trade, mentioned pepper, pomade, herbs and
other objects. Pepper from South Asia and other
places were purchased based on the price fixed
by the imperial storehouse, namely, three strings
per catty. Prices varied according to the different
origins of the product. The Ming dynasty imported
a great quantity of pepper. According to the record,
in March of the first year of the Zhengtong period
(1436), the imperial court imported 300 kg of
pepper which showed the large amount of pepper
imported from South Asia. Pepper was also closely
related with people’s daily life. In the 22nd year of
the Yongle period (1424), the government stipulated
that the salaries of civil and military officials in
Beijing would be converted into and paid in the
form of pepper and hematoxylin, of which pepper
was valued at 16 strings per catty.
(Chen Ming)
The nature and usage of pepper was recorded in
the Materia Medica of the Tang Dynasty in Overseas
Medicinal Plants by Li Xun of the five dynasties,
the Ri Huazi Medicinal Plants, Augmented Materia
Medica and Classified Materia Medica of the Song
Dynasty, and in the Compendium of Materia Medica
of the Ming Dynasty and other traditional Chinese
writing on herbs. The third volume of The Account
of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas by the Chinese
monk Yi Jing also pointed out that ginger, pepper
and long pepper had the function of dispelling
cold. In the Buddhist medical system, there are
five medicines that can be taken freely for general
well-being namely pepper, Haritaki, āmalaka,
Bingxile and long pepper. Among the esoteric
Buddhist documents translated in Chinese namely
the Saptabuddha aṣṭabodhisattva mahādhāraṇī sūtra
(the mahādhāraṇi sūtra chanted by the seven
Buddhas and the eight Bodhisattvas) and the
‘Bodhisattva Avalokiteṣvara Cintāmaṇi dhāraṇī sūtra’
(the Cintāmaṇi dhāraṇī sūtra of the Boddhisattva
Avalokiteṣvara), pepper is mentioned as serving as
an important ingredient for eye drops. In several
esoteric rituals, pepper was also seen as bringing
rain, the rule of joy and happiness, good luck and
respect when used. In the medical manuscripts
unearthed in Dunhuang written by Chinese and
non-Chinese (Sanskrit, Uighur, Khotanese, etc.),
prescriptions containing pepper were relatively
common which reflected the specific impact of
Indian pharmacology. In the Song Dynasty, the
sixth chapter of Eyes of Humans and Gods by Huiyan
and Zhizhao, and the eighth chapter of the Jingde
Transmission of the Lamp recorded that “Persians eat
pepper” which indicated that in the Tang and Song
periods the image of Persians, Indians and people
of the southern seas in the eyes of the Chinese was
deeply influenced by social factors. It is also a simple
and clear manifestation of cultural exchange.
The pepper trade between ancient India and
China was mainly documented in Chinese literature,
especially in those works of literature about the
traffic between China and foreign countries as well
as literature about the southern regions. In the
Siming (now Ningbo) port of the Southern Song
Dynasty, the pepper imported from South Asia was
considered as one of the most valuable goods.
The Daoyi zhilue, written by Wang Dayuan of
the Yuan period, said that pepper, mostly stored in
warehouses, was produced in Calicut (Kerala), India
but the quality was worse than that in Shimosato
(another place in Kerala). Two-tenths of the value
of the pepper trade went as tax. Shuyuzhouzilu, a
record of the countries around China, written by
Yan Congjian of the Ming Dynasty, recorded that
Bengal was the source of pepper. Bengal paid
tribute including pepper to the Ming Dynasty on
Bhallataka
Bhallataka is a kind of anacardiaceae plant in India.
Its Latin scientific name is Semecarpus anacardium
L. and its fruit, stem and oil can all be used as
medicine. Its translated English name is MarkingNut which means Semecarpus fructus. Bhallataka
is one of the medicines introduced to China from
ancient India.
A brief guide to the processing of
Chinese medicine by Lei Gong, this book
is preserved in the library of the research
institute of Chinese traditional medicine
In the translated Chinese version of Buddhist
scriptures, the transliterated names of Bhallataka
include “Boluodejia” (Volume II of the Scriptures
of Powerful Wushuse King Moming translated by
Ajitasena, Tripitaka of India, north to China in
35
Cultural Contacts
prescriptions of bhallataka. This medicine was used
by doctors of the main stations of Silk Road including
Tochara (present-day Sinkiang), Khotan (located
at the south edge of Tarim Basin), Tubo (presentday Tibet) and Uygur (present-day Sinkiang) and
transmitted to Dunhuang and central China. The
use of it undoubtedly influenced traditional Chinese
doctors of Tang and Song Dynasties. They used
bhallataka for hair blacking, which reflected the
general mood of society of Tang and Song Dynasties
namely pursuing longevity.
Ancient bhallataka was also transmitted to
Persia (present-day Iran), Arab, Greece and Rome.
Doctors mainly use its juice or fruit as medicine
to treat the discomfort of central nervous system,
epilepsy and improve memory. The herb works
and medical prescription collections such as AlQanun fi al-Tibb by Ibn Sina, Al-Saydanah fi’l-tibb
by Al-Biruni, Al-Kulliyyat by Ibn Rushd (Averroes
in Latin), Kitab al-jami‘fi-mufradat al-adwiya
wa al-aghdhiya by Ibn Al Baytar and The Small
Dispensatory by Sabur Ibn Sahl all record the
properties and usage of bhallataka. Bhallataka
was also called habb ai-fahm (nut of apprehension)
and famous for its capability of enhancing and
improving memory. The use of bhallataka by Islam
medical science was transmitted to China again
through Huihui Formularies of Yuan Dynasty. The
remaining volumes of Huihui Formularies have
reserved two groups of names of bhallataka namely
the translations of Arabic baladhur and Persian
baladur, “Baladu’er”, “Biladi’er”, “Biladu’er” and
“Boladi’er” and translations of Arabic anaghardiya
or anaqardiya (Greek anacardia), “Anha’erdiya” and
“Anjia’erdiya”. The related medical prescriptions
in Huihui Formularies such as “Dabiladi’ermazhun”,
“Biladi’ermazhun”,
“Xiaobiladi’ermazhun”,
“Mazhunbiladi’er”,
“Mazhunibaladu’er”,
“Anha’erdiya” and “Dawawuxisana” can basically
be deemed as the interpretations of bhallataka
prescriptions from Islam medical works in China.
The spread of bhallataka in our country has two
different historical periods and respectively came
from Indian medical science (including Buddhist
medical science) and Islam medical science but
the source is actually Indian ayurveda. Although
bhallataka is not a very famous medicine, its use and
spread process are quite complex and from which
we can get a glimpse of the diversity of influences of
ancient Indian medical culture to medical sciences
of many East and West areas.
(Chen Ming)
Tang Dynasty), Baluodeji (Volume I of Suxi Jieluo
Scriptures translated by Shujiapoluo, Tripitaka of
India of Tang Dynasty), Baluodeji (Volume I of Suxi
Jieluo Scriptures) and Poluodajia (Volume 17 of
Fundamental Shrauta sutra of Generous Manjushri
translated by Tianxizai of Northern Song Dynasty)
and the translated names are “Indian lacquer wood”
and “dye wood”.
In literature on traditional Chinese medicine of
the Tang and Song Dynasties, this medicine has two
names, “Poluode” and “Poluole”. The etymology of
the latter one may be Tocharian language bhallàràk.
The properties of this medicine was firstly recorded
in the Gleaning Chinese Materia Medica written by
Chen Cangqi of Tang Dynasty: “Poluode, with acrid
flavour, warm and non-toxic, is mainly for cool air
mass, warming the middle, nourishing waist and
kidney and breaking the hypochondroium abdominal
mass. It can dye moustache and hair into black. Its
tree is like willow and seed is like castor bean. It
grows in Western countries.” Bhallataka was listed
as a newly added medicine in Precious Herbs of
early Song Dynasty. The “prescription of change
of white hair and moustache in Recent Effect” of
Medical Secrets of an Official (Volume 32) written
by Wang Tao of Tang Dynasty, “prescription of
lead comb for black moustache and hair” and
“prescription of permanent maintenance of blackdyed moustache and hair” in Imperial Benefits of
Time of Peace and Prosperity (Volume 41) written
by Wang Huaiyin et al. of Song Dynasty and F043
“prescription of change of hair” in Dunhuang
mainly use this medicine to dye moustache and
hair. The records of this medicine in works of
traditional Chinese medicines and herbs after
Tang and Song Dynasties basically repeated that
in Gleaning Chinese Materia Medica and didn’t
add new knowledge. The pictures of bhallataka
described in Herb Essentials and Addendum of
Tripterygium Wilfordii Preparation Enchiridion of
Ming Dynasty are not the material description of
this medicine but artistic imagination. Ancient
Japanese scholars’ knowledge of bhallataka mainly
derived from doctors of central China such as the
Records of Herb Colour leaves by Weizong Jujun and
Introduction of Herb Family by Songgang Xuanda.
In the medical books of ancient ayurveda system,
such as Caraka-samhita, Susruta-samhita and
Astanga-hrdaya-samhita, bhallataka is one of the
common medicines. The prescriptions prepared
with it, such as bhallataka crisp and bhallataka
oil, are mainly used for rasayana-tantra and hair
blacking. Bhallataka is also used in many sadhana
drubtabs of Esoteric Buddhism. It can be found
from the unearthed documents that The Bower
Manuscript excavated in Kuqa and Jivaka-pustaka
and Siddhasara excavated in Dunhuang all include
cotton
Cotton is a fibre plant which belongs to the genus
gossypium in the mallow family Malvaceae, originally
produced in the subtropical zone. There are different
36
Cultural Contacts
Foreign Countries in the Song period several centuries
later recorded that products of Namburi (Ma’bar
in South India) included foreign cloth in different
colours and douluo cotton. Products of the Chola
kingdom were said to include coloured silk cloth
and Ceiba cloth. The Record of Eminent Monks in the
Southern Seas compiled by Chen Dazhen et al., in the
Yuan period noted that varieties of cloth made in
present-day South Asia included white foreign cloth,
flower foreign cloth, bi cloth, sheared flannelette
and sheared coarse cloth etc. Tribute offered by
different Indian states to the Chinese emperor in the
Yuan Dynasty included such cloth. Wang Dayuan’s A
Brief History of Island Countries from the Yuan period
recorded that Banavasi in India (southeast of Karwar,
in Karnataka) made fine cotton cloth. Textiles made
in Bengal included bi cloth, gaoni cloth, douluo
cotton etc. Other areas including Bhandari are
recorded as making textiles such as "douluo" cotton,
"badan" cloth, big hand towels, cotton cloth, big
flower towels, silk cloth, "pisang" cloth, fine cloth,
cotton piece goods etc. The Travels of Marco Polo
recorded that Indian Malabar (the south-western
coast of India) made black pepper, ginger, cinnamon
bark and cotton cloth, and Chinese merchants went
to India by ship and brought fabrics, precious metals
and traditional medical materials with them, taking
back local specialties. Juan 5 in Mao Ruizheng’s
Record of the Interpreters of the August Ming wrote
that tribute offered by Kulam (Kollam in present-day
Kerala) in the fifth year of Yongle (1407) included a
pearl umbrella, white cotton cloth and black pepper.
Again, it was mentioned that tribute offered by
western countries included a black and yellow tiger
and a douluo cotton quilt in the 21st year of Yongle
(1423). Ma Huan’s Overall Survey of the Oceans Shores’
in the Ming Dynasty recorded that Bengal produced
five or six types of fine cloth, including bi cloth
and turmeric cloth. During the reign of Zhengtong
of the Ming Dynasty, Bengal offered white bi cloth
and douluo cotton as tribute. Juan 326 of the History
of the Ming Dynasty mentions that tribute from
Kulam included white cotton cloth, while tribute
from Calicut included danbolan cloth and bi cloth.
After the late Ming and the early Qing periods, the
trade between India and China was increasingly
controlled by the West, as India came under British
colonial domination. From the 1780s, raw cotton
from western India was increasingly exported to
China, to pay for the rapidly escalating imports of
Chinese tea by the British. The export of raw cotton
played an important role in the growth and early
development of the port of Bombay (now Mumbai),
and in the development of the shipbuilding industry
in this region. Later in the 19th century CE, with
the growth of the modern Indian textile industry,
cotton yarn began to be exported from India to
categories including African cotton, Asian cotton,
upland cotton, island cotton, etc. Asian cotton
originated from India. Its Sanskrit name was Karpāsa
and it was translated as “吉贝” (jibei) and “劫贝”
(jiebei) in Chinese. Fa Yun pointed out in juan 7 of
A Collection of Terms in Translation that “劫波育”
(jieboyu) or “劫贝” (jiebei) is silk cotton. It is “迦波
罗” officially. The tree is named after its flower and
can be woven into cloth. It is named “氎” (die) in
Gaochang. It is as big as a tree south of Kophen while
its size is small in the north and its shape is like the
local mallow. It has a shell which can be cut for a
catkin-like flower. It can be woven into cloth.” White
cotton meant cotton cloth woven with wild African
cotton carried along the Silk Road in Central Asia,
and sometimes it also was called Pahat in ancient
Turkish. In India, cotton used for cloth was called
Tūla, which was translated as 'douluo’ in Chinese.
Hui Lin described “douluo’ cotton in juan 11 of Sound
and Meaning of All Sutras saying that “douluo cotton
was very soft, just like willow catkin or grass catkin”.
In juan 7 of A Collection of Terms in Translation, it was
explained: “Douluo cotton can also be called duluo
which is the name of a tree. The cotton is from the
tree, and it is named so. It is like willow catkin, or
translated as willow flower. It is called douluo flower
and also known by the name maomao.”
Asian cotton
A piece of plain-woven cloth unearthed in a boatlike coffin in Wuyi Mountain, Chong’an, Fujian, in
the early 1980s dates back about 3,000 years. It is
the earliest cotton cloth in China which shows that
the history of India-China trade in cotton cloth is
very long. African cotton (levant cotton) with short
and thick fibre was introduced into western China
from Africa in the Eastern Han Dynasty (1st to 3rd
century CE). Cotton cloth and cotton clothes have
been unearthed in places such as the southern part
of the Tarim basin, Hetian and Lop Nor in Xinjiang
several times. Cotton textiles unearthed in the ruins
of Niya in 1959 showed that cotton cloth had been
very common in that area in the later part of the
Eastern Han Dynasty. Juan I of Zhao Rushi’s Record of
37
Cultural Contacts
was used as medicine occasionally, it was mainly
used for flavouring and colouring materials in
religious ceremonies. Volume 6 of the Sarvāsti-vāda
translated by Yi Jing recorded eight main Indian
pigments and colours: red purple dye, red violet dye,
saffron, cinnabar/vermilion, deep greenish black or
deep green or deep blue, alizarin red, yellow lead
and sappan lignum. Monks were not allowed to use
them to dye clothes.
China. At the end of the 19th century CE, Indian
yarn dominated the import market for cotton yarn
in China. By the second decade of the 20th century
CE, the Chinese manufactured cotton yarn industry
developed and the import of cotton yarn from India
was greatly reduced. However, in this period, trade
in raw cotton and cotton yarn, as well as in varieties
of piece goods including unbleached cloth, coarse
cloth, fine cloth, foreign standard cloth and twill
cloth, etc. continued. It can be said that cotton and
cotton cloth were historically India’s main exports to
China and made an important contribution to IndiaChina economic exchange.
(Chen Ming)
saffron
Saffron is a kind of perennial flower of crocus of
the freesia genus as well as a common flavouring.
It originated in South Asia and is known as kuïkuma
in Sanskrit, jáphrán in Bengali, zafran or kesar in
Hindi, safran in Marathi and saffron in English,
and its scientific name is Crocus sativus. Saffron’s
Sanskrit name has several transliteration forms
in China, such as Guanjiumo (官久摩), Tujumo (
荼矩磨), Tujumo (荼矩么) etc. Its transliteration
in Volume 7 of the Asokavadana translated by
Tripitaka Samghavarman was 官久摩 but in the
annotated translation of the text it was written as 翻
郁金香 (fanyu jin xiang). The flavour was introduced
from the central part of India to Kashmir (Jibin).
Yujinxiang (saffron), is not what is often seen
today as the herbaceous tulip plant under the lily
family, but it refers to saffron (Crocus Sativus). The
Siddhasara-Nighantu pointed out that “asra is also
called kuïkuma”. Xuan Ying’s Sound and Meaning of
Red tulip in meticulous intricate
Indian embroidery
Many places in India abound with saffron. The
Book of the Liang Dynasty (juan 54) recorded that
“saffron originated from Kophes, the colour of the
flower was yellow and fine and it was similar to the
hibiscus flower and was wrapped in many layers as
in the case of a lotus flower. People of that country
plucked the flowers and offered them to Buddhist
temples. They would accumulate the fragrant dead
wood from the plant every day so that they could
be used as manure. Businessmen bought them from
the temples and sold them to other countries.” Yi
Jing’s An Account of Buddhism Sent from the South
Seas described the origins and circulation of Indian
medicines and wrote that “haritaki grew mostly in
the west, saffron grew in the north and the west
abounded with asafoetida; borneol was rarely found
in the South Seas. Three types of cardamom grew
in Douruo. Two-coloured lilacs grew in the Kulun
Kingdom.” Travelling Notes on the Western Regions in
the Great Tang Dynasty also recorded the origins of
various fragrant medicines. In Juan 1, we find the
reference that Kapisa “was famous for horses and
saffron. The kingdom had many rare goods.” Juan
3 mentions that Uddiyana “abounded with grapes,
while sugar cane was rare. It produced gold and iron,
and it is suitable for saffron.” Darel of Uddiyana
“abounded with gold and saffron.” Kashmir “was
famous for dragon studhorses, saffron, fire balls and
herbs.” Juan 12 similarly contains a reference to
Saffron
All Sutras pointed out that “kuïkuma is the name
of a tree and comes from Kophen and its flowers
are yellow. After picking them, they are then left
in a place to rot and become soft and mushy. The
juice is pressed and mixed with other materials to
yield a flavour and the flower dregs are fragrant and
can be also made into a flavouring.” While saffron
38
Cultural Contacts
which could produce an immediate effect. This was
an Indian prescription and its main functions were
to cure diseases including deafness and blindness
as well as prematurely greying hair and to protect
teeth and prolong life. The prescription used four
herbs including altemanthera juice, raw fructus oil,
lactogenesis and liquorice, with saffron and was
very effective. Juan 2 of the work Flavor Vehicles by
Zhou Jiazhou (1582-1658) quoted from the Overall
Survey of Land, the observation that Samarkand in
Central Asia was a great country in the Western
Regions, which abounded in yellow saffron looking
like cotton rose hibiscus.
Thus, we can see that saffron was used as an
item in diplomatic exchanges as well as a flavouring
in religious ceremonies and in daily life. It was a
popular commodity in both India and China and it
was introduced into China from different countries
including India.
(Chen Ming)
Jabula, saying that it “abounded with flowers and
fruits, and is suitable for saffron.” The Dunhuang
text of Hui Chao’s Memoir of a Pilgrimage to the
Five Regions of India recorded that Kophen (Kamãr)
“was famous for syzygium jambos (rose apple),
barley, wheat and saffron, etc.” The Brief Account
of the Wei Dynasty and Chen Zangqi’s Supplement
to Materia Medica recorded the place of origin and
properties of saffron. It grew in Da Qin (the Chinese
name for the eastern part of the Roman empire)
and it produced flowers in February and March
with colours like red and blue. Its flowers could be
picked in April and May. Its taste was bitter, flat
and atoxic; it could expel all foul odours and get
rid of evil air and diseases in bodies. Owing to its
fragrance, it would be used in aromatic drugs.
The section on Records of Foreign Countries in
Juan 54 of the Book of the Liang Dynasty recorded
that Funan sent envoys who offered auspicious
Indian sandalwood images, sala leaves, fire balls,
saffron and storax in the 18th year of Tianjian
(519 CE). Several places offered saffron as tribute
to the Tang Dynasty as well. In Juan 198 of the
Book of the Old Tang Dynasty, it is recorded that
King Siladitya sent envoys to Chang’an in the 15th
year of the Zhen Guang reign (641 CE), and sent
envoys several times with offerings of saffron and
bodhi trees. Essentials of the Tang Dynasty (Juan
100) recorded that Kapi offered saffron in the
21st Year of Zhen Guang (647). It noted that “its
leaves looked like those of the ophiopogon root,
its flowers bloomed in September and looked like
cotton rose hibiscus in purple and green and its
fragrance can be smelt from over 10 steps away. It
doesn’t have seeds, so it must be planted from the
root.” Juan 221 of the New Book of the Tang Dynasty
recorded that the king of the Dong’an Kingdom in
the Western Regions sent envoys to offer Persian
mules, bigleaf hydrangea, saffron and refined
sugar in the 22nd year of Kaiyuan (734 CE). The
scholar Edward Hetzel Schafer pointed out that
this kind of plant was introduced into China in the
Middle Ages and that saffron powder sold well in
the Tang Dynasty. At that time, it was used as an
aromatic drug/medicine made out of the fragrance
of the plant to treat toxins in the body. The Tang
and Song Materia Medica and the Compendium of
Materia Medica of the Ming Dynasty recorded the
properties of saffron.
Juan 17 of Sun Simiao’s Valuable Prescriptions for
Emergency noted that the prescription for lavender
incense used aromatic drugs such as holy basil,
lilac, green cinnamon, green ‘mu xiang’ (radix
saussureae), thick leaf croton (croton crassifolius),
saffron, sweetgum, mastic etc. Juan 31 of Wang
Tao’s Medical Secrets from the Royal Library referred
to a lotus herbal ointment made out of lotus seeds
ZEBU
Fengniu is a kind of mammalian bovid with sarcoma
on its shoulders and back which is native to India. Its
alternate names include Fengniu (here, Feng refers
to different characters in Chinese) and Zebu and
it was famous for the physical characteristic that
“there is eminentia (protuberance) of flesh in their
neck.” According to the archaeological evidence,
the domestication of Zebu began in the region of
southern Asia 8,500 years ago. In the unearthed
cultural relics from the Indus Valley Civilisation
period, there are to be found seals depicting the
Zebu. In ancient Indian myths, the most famous
bull of this kind is Nandi, the mount of Siva. Owing
to this, this kind of bull has been worshipped by
Hindus in India.
Detail from an Indian painting of an ox
There are many records in documents of the
Han and Tang dynasties of Fengniu in India and
the Western Regions of present-day China. Han
Shu - Biography of the Western Regions recorded
39
Cultural Contacts
Star Raft recorded in detail the trade in porcelain
between Zheng He’s fleet and the countries it
visited. Apart from gold, silver, satin, dyed silk, etc.
Bengal was supposed to have the greenish white
flower porcelain also. This means that in this period
Chinese porcelain was popular in India and ordinary
merchants were engaged in buying and selling it.
that there were animals such as Fengniu, buffalo,
elephants, big dogs, macaca and peacocks in
Kawmira (present-day Kashmir). The History of the
Later Han Dynasty (Juan 180) recorded that there
were rare and valuable animals, such as lions,
rhinoceros, Fengniu, peacocks and sparrows in
Antiochia where the land was hot and wet. In the
Wei and Jin dynasties, as well as the Sui and Tang
dynasties, both Qiuci (present-day Kuqa, Xinjiang)
and Samarkand (the region between the Syr Darya
and Amu Darya) had Fengniu.
There was no Fengniu in Central China previously
and they were introduced from India and the
Western Regions. In June of the second year of
Yangjia in the Eastern Han period (133 CE), Shule
(present day Kashgar, Xinjiang) presented the court
with lions and Fengniu. In the Western Jin Dynasty,
countries in the Western Regions offered more
than 200 species of rare animals such as Ferghana
horse, asbestos linen, Fengniu, peacocks and huge
elephants as tribute. Fengniu had been introduced
in the south of China even earlier. In the Classic
Book of Mountains and Rivers, Fengniu was known
as the “wild ox of the South.”
(Chen Ming)
Porcelain
Chinese porcelain
Porcelain was one of the main articles traded
between ancient India and China. Since the Tang
and Song dynasties, porcelain has been one of
China’s major exports. Porcelain exported from
China in the late Tang and Five dynasties period was
unearthed in the ruins at Arikamedu and Korimedu
in Puducherry in southern India. Chinese porcelain
has also been excavated from Banbhore near Karachi
and Brahminabad in Sindh, Pakistan and from other
parts of South Asia including Sri Lanka. Porcelain
exported to India reached port cities of the Indian
subcontinent by sea via the Malay Peninsula from
Chinese ports such as Guangzhou and Quanzhou.
Juan 1 in Zhao Rushi’s Record of Foreign Countries
from the Song period recorded that merchants
of Namburi traded in porcelain. Wang Dayuan’s
A Brief History of Island Countries from the Yuan
period recorded that there were many varieties
of porcelain including greenish white porcelain,
green porcelain, coarse bowl and greenish white
flower porcelain among goods being traded in the
Indian subcontinent. Volume 2 of the Travels of
Ibn Battuta mentioned that the best porcelain was
made in Guangzhou and Quanzhou and that it was
exported to many places including India and even
reached as far as Maghreb, Africa. Jingdezhen in
the Ming period was the main source of porcelain
exported from China. During Zheng He’s maritime
expeditions, the main commodity carried by his
fleet was porcelain. Fei Xin’s Overall Survey of the
Juan 326 of the History of the Ming Dynasty recorded
that tribute offered by Bengal included the greenish
white flower porcelain. The Mongolian court too
used to use wonderful Chinese porcelain in the
17th century CE. With the coming of the Age of the
Great Voyages in the 16th and 17th centuries CE,
the Dutch East India Company and the British East
India Company began to play the main role in the
circulation of Chinese porcelain. Large quantities of
porcelain were transported to the southeast coastal
areas of India, and then trans-shipped to Europe.
More than 10,000 pieces of porcelain could be
loaded onto a ship.
As a byproduct of the trade between the Chinese
coast and Bombay (Mumbai) starting from the later
18th century CE, a significant quantity of Chinese
porcelain was imported by Bombay traders. As a
result, several museums in India as well as a number
of Parsi families who were connected with the
China trade, have significant collections of Chinese
porcelain today.
(Chen Ming)
silk
The production of silk has always been identified
with the Chinese civilisation and it is widely accepted
that the Chinese people have developed the art and
technique of silk-making for a longer time and to a
higher level of sophistication than any other people.
40
Cultural Contacts
and Rome as testified to in the Greek work The
Periplus of the Erythraean Sea. Chinese silk came to
India both via the Central Asian route and also very
likely from southwest China via Assam.
Given the importance of silk to the Chinese
economy, there were strict prohibitions against the
technique of silk production being made known to
the outside world. Nevertheless, Chinese sericulture
and silk-making techniques did find their way out
of China and into other societies. It is believed that
Chinese sericulture reached north India in the 3rd
century CE. It was probably carried by travelling
Buddhist monks and built upon already existing
methods of silk production in India. It is also possible
that the technique of producing the characteristic
muga silk of Assam, which involves drawing the silk
thread after the moth has come out of the cocoon,
was brought to the region through the migration of
Tibeto-Burman peoples.
Even though India produced its own silk during
the Gupta period (4th-6th centuries CE), there was
continued demand for Chinese silk which was of a
different quality. There are a number of references
to the import of Chinese silk into India particularly
from the 7th and 8th centuries CE. The 8th century
CE text Kuvalayamala records that Indian merchants
were engaged in silk trade with Southeast Asia and
China. The demand for painted silk fabric from
China is described in Malatimadhavam and the Jaina
Mahakayas and is also mentioned by 8th century
CE Indian writers such as Dandin, Rajasekhara,
Damodara Gupta and Dhanapala. Chinese sources
record that Tang embassies as well as Chinese
pilgrims to India carried with them large quantities
of Chinese silk, both to defray their expenses and to
make religious donations and purchase commodities
related to Buddhist practices. The demand for
Chinese silk began to decline only after the 11th
century CE, with north India becoming a major
production centre for silk. Nevertheless, even as late
as the 13th and 14th centuries CE, there is evidence
of a large amount of Chinese silk coming into India
through ports on the Malabar and Coromandel
coasts and through Bengal.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Silk is produced by unravelling the filament of the
cocoon spun by certain species of moth which is
then woven to produce silk cloth. Although Chinese
silk has, from antiquity, been the home of the finest
domesticated and processed silk, the technique of
producing raw silk from a number of wild species
of moth has been known to many other societies
including India. For instance, recent studies have
revealed the presence of silk in sites of the Indus
Valley Civilisation in present-day Pakistan. Dating
back to the 3rd millennium BCE, this is the earliest
evidence of silk outside China.
Stone image of Han dynasty weaving in China
The earliest archaeological evidence for silk
in China dates back to about 2570 BCE from the
Huzhou Neolithic site of Qianshanyang. Chinese silk
is identified with the domesticated species of moth,
Bombyx mori. The silkworms are reared primarily
on a diet of white mulberry leaves. The silkworm
cocoons are boiled in a slightly alkaline solution in
order to remove a gum called sericin. By boiling the
cocoons before the moths come out, it is possible to
draw out an unbroken filament which results in a
very fine quality of the silk.
Princess in natural silk
Chinese silk was known and prized in India
since early times, quite possibly as early as the
5th century BCE. The term cinamsuka, referring
to silk cloth from China, was mentioned in the
Brhadkalpabhasya and in the famous Indian epic
Mahabharata. Another version, probably with a
design, was known as uchitra cinamsuka. The term
cinampatta was also known in this period. Chinese
silk flags (cinamsukamketo) are also mentioned in
the Sanskrit play Sakuntala by Kalidasa. A Chinese
type upper garment used by Indian royalty in the
early years of this era was known as cinamcolaka.
Chinese silk was not only in demand within India
but from India it was shipped further west to Arabia
embroidery
Embroidery in China is a form of textile art going
back to ancient times. Embroidered Chinese textiles,
especially silk, always constituted a valued item of
export to other countries. However, it is only in
the 19th century CE that Chinese embroidery found
a ready market in India and came to influence
Indian textile traditions. This was a result of the
maritime trade between China and western India
and especially Bombay (Mumbai) in that period.
Indian merchants of the Parsi community were
41
Cultural Contacts
borders were embroidered. Gara saris that depicted
typical scenes from Chinese life were called by the
Parsis as "cheena cheeni no garo".
The popularity of Chinese embroidery was such
that Chinese peddlers used to regularly visit homes
in the towns of western India, such as Bombay,
Surat and Bharuch, bringing embroidered wares
from China for sale. They could be seen in the
streets of these towns as late as the 1960s. Chinese
embroiderers themselves also sometimes came
to India. Over the course of time, embroidery
workshops were set up in some of these places in
which Indian craftsmen were trained in Chinese
style embroidery. Lately, there has been a revival
of interest in this tradition, particularly among the
Parsi community and efforts are being made to
keep it alive.
(Madhavi Thampi)
very active in this trade and travelled regularly
to Canton, Macau and Hong Kong. In this period,
a flourishing export art industry, including
embroidery, had developed around Canton that
catered to the tastes of European and other foreign
merchants. Parsi merchants visiting Canton were
struck by the beauty and fine workmanship of the
Chinese embroiderers and they started to purchase
embroidered silk pieces to take back home. As
the demand for Chinese embroidered goods
began to grow in India, visiting Parsi merchants
began to commission Chinese embroiderers to
produce goods according to the needs and tastes of
their community.
cat’s eye
Cat’s Eye is a kind of chrysoberyl (which is also
known as chrysoberyl jade). Zhao Rushi’s Records
of Foreign Countries (Juan 2), written in the Song
period, had this description of it: “Cat’s Eye was
thumb-sized ie it was a small stone and was as clear
as a Cat’s Eye, and so it got its name.” Juan 2 of
Zhou Qufei’s Lingwai daida (Notes from the land
beyond the passes) in the Southern Song Dynasty
pointed out that in the Chola kingdom in South
India, “to make ring agate, they always use things
like Cat’s Eye.”
Chinese embroidery on a Parsi saree
The embroidery of the Guangdong region was
considered one of the four great styles of embroidery
in China even though it is believed to have started
fairly late, towards the end of the Ming Dynasty
(late 16th and early 17th centuries CE). To suit the
tastes of the Parsi women, who were their principal
customers in India, the Chinese embroiderers
adapted their craft. Their embroidery, in white or
light coloured threads, was usually done on a dark
background of red, purple or black silk, using a very
fine satin stitch, or the tiny kha-kha stitch which
gave the impression of the cloth being covered with
seed pearls. The typical Chinese motifs that were
used included flowers according to the seasons
such as peonies, plum blossoms, chrysanthemums
and lotuses. Bamboo, pomegranates, peaches
and animals and birds of all descriptions, such as
the pheasant, peacock wild geese and the crane
which were also very common. One of the most
vivid examples of the interpenetration of Chinese
and Indian textile traditions was the heavily
embroidered saris worn by Parsi women called the
gara. The embroidery on these gara saris was either
done by Chinese embroiderers or else was done in
imitation of the work of Chinese embroiderers. The
embroidery sometimes covered the whole sari while
often the body of the sari was left plain and only the
Cat’s eye
The Yuan period work by Wang Dayuan, Daoyi zhilue
(A Brief History of the Island Countries) claimed that
Udaipur in present-day Odisha in India produced
cloth, "Cat’s Eye", sapphire and kingfisher feathers.
Both "Cat’s Eye" and "Cat’s Eye stone" in Ma Huan’s
Ming period work, Yingyai shenglan (the Overall
Survey of the Ocean’s Shores) were considered
precious gems. Zhang Hongzhao pointed out in
Stone Elegance that "Cat’s Eye" could be divided
42
Cultural Contacts
rituals. In Fa Yun’s Collection of Terms in Translation
(Juan 7) it is written that “dukūla is fine cloth.”
In the same Juan, it is further mentioned that “屈
眴 'quxuan/qushun' (Kārpāsa) can be referred to as
the larger woven variety of fine cloth. It is woven
with cotton flowers in a blue black colour. It is also
that variety of fine cloth which is used to kāsāya
(weave), one that has been handed down by the
Dharma (Buddhism).”
In Translated Bengali Terms recorded in Shen
Maoshang’s Extensive Records of Four Foreign Lands
from the Ming period, there is an entry on “fine
cloth: dukūla”. Wang Dayuan’s A Brief History of
Island Countries written in the Yuan period recorded
that Banavasi (southeast of Karwar in present-day
state of Karnataka in India) “made fine cotton cloth,
and people on ships exchanged it for tin”. Men and
women in Bengal “wrapped their heads with fine
cloth and wore long gowns.” Textiles made in Bengal
included “‘bi’ cloth, ‘gaoni’ cloth, ‘douluo’ cotton,
etc.” Many men and women in Sindh (in present-day
Pakistan) also wore “long gowns made of fine cloth”.
Records of Eminent Monks in the South Seas compiled
by Chen Dazhen et al, in the Yuan period recorded
that varieties of cloth made in South Asia included
white foreign cloth, fancy patterned cloth of foreign
origin, ‘bi’ cloth, sheared flannelette, sheared coarse
cloth etc. It is recorded that tribute offered by Indian
states in the Yuan period included foreign cloth. Ma
Huan’s Overall Survey of the Oceans Shores in the
Ming period mentions that Bengal produced five or
six types of fine cloth. One of them was named ‘bi’
cloth and its local name was ‘byramput’. It was over
three "chi" in width and five "zhang" and six or seven
"chi" in length and it was as fine as pink letter paper.
Other species included turmeric cloth, ‘sanah-baf’
in Farsi, cāwtar (沙榻儿, sha ta er in Chinese) and
malmal etc. During the reign of Zhengtong of the
Ming Dynasty, Bengal offered white "bi" cloth and
"douluo" cotton as tribute. In Juan 326 of the History
of the Ming Dynasty, the gifts sent by Kulam included
white cotton cloth while those sent by Calicut
included "danbolan" cloth and "bi" cloth.
(Chen Ming)
into three types ie crystal, crocidolite (Tiger’s Eye
and Eagle’s Eye) and chrysoberyl (which was also
called chrysoberyl Cat’s Eye and oriental Cat’s Eye).
Ancient West Asia, India and China often traded
gems and Cat’s Eye was one of them. Persian and
Arabian merchants were good at identifying gems,
and many of them came to China to engage in trade.
Juan 186 of the History of the Song Dynasty recorded
that an imperial decree was issued in the first year
of Jianyan (1127) declaring that foreign merchants
were forbidden to import precious and impractical
things such as terebinth, ring agate and Cat’s Eye.
Linschoten’s Voyage to the East Indies recorded that
the best cat’s eye was from areas such as Ceylon (Sri
Lanka) and Pegu. Ceylon Cat’s Eye was also called
cymophane, which was light green with a hard
texture, beautiful colour and highly valued. Indians
attached much importance to the properties of this
gem and often brought it to China to sell at a high
price because they knew it was much appreciated
by the Chinese.
(Chen Ming)
fine cloth
Xibu is the Chinese term for a particularly fine cloth
produced in India in ancient times. The characters for
this in ancient China included sui (繐) and zhu (纻)
etc. The Analytical Dictionary of Characters writes that
sui (繐) refers to fine white kapok cloth from Sichuan.
If the cloth is fine and thin, it is called "xibu". Also,
hu (纻) is fine cloth.” Sichuan cloth was transported
to eastern India via Yunnan and Myanmar and then
re-transported to other areas in India and to Daxia
(Bactria) in the early Western Han period. When
Zhang Qian visited the Western Regions, he saw
articles such as Sichuan cloth and Qiong bamboo
transported from north India in Daxia.
Early Modern Era
Opium Trade
Cotton cloth
The trade in opium was one of the main forms of
commercial interaction between India and China in
the 19th century CE. Conducted under conditions of
British colonial domination of India, it had a major
impact on the relations between China and Britain
and between China and the West as a whole. It
was the immediate cause of the two Opium Wars
(1839-42 and 1858-60). It significantly affected the
Since India was the land of origin of Asian cotton,
it is natural that it has been the original producer
of cotton cloth. Buddhist Sutras contain quite a few
descriptions about Indian cloth. The fine cloth of
ancient India was actually quite a rare commodity.
Tantric believers often used white cloth or fine
cloth to paint images of Avalokitesvara for Tantric
43
Cultural Contacts
particularly acute for Britain after the passing of the
Commutation Act in 1784 by the British Parliament,
which, by drastically lowering the duty on tea, led
to an exponential increase in tea imports. Initially,
the British sought to make up for the trade deficit
by exporting raw cotton from western India for
which there was a market in China. This was the
beginning of the so-called triangular trade between
China, Britain and India. However, from the early
decades of the 19th century CE and particularly
after 1820, opium became the chief export to China
from India.
Initially, virtually all the opium sold in China
from India was grown in Bengal and Bihar and was
known as Bengal or Patna opium. However, from
early 19th century CE, opium from the western part
of India, known as Malwa opium, also began to find
a market in China and eventually overtook Patna
opium in sales. Unlike Patna opium, Malwa opium
was not grown under the East India Company’s
supervision but by a large number of private
cultivators. Malwa, being cheaper than Patna
opium, had bigger sales and greatly expanded the
market for the drug in China.
An elaborate network of cultivators, brokers,
shippers, agency houses and agents, closely linked
with the East India Company and its officials, was
involved in the shipping of opium from India to
China. It has been estimated that opium revenues
comprised about 17-20 per cent of the government
revenues in India in the heyday of the trade. On the
China coast, British, Indian, American and other
traders colluded with local smugglers, officials
and merchants to bypass the strict prohibitions on
opium. British and other opium smugglers brought
the opium to various secret locations up and down
the China coast in order to expand their sales as
much as possible. The highly addictive nature of the
drug made it ever harder for the Chinese authorities
to contain the trade.
The adverse consequences of the opium trade
for China were many. China’s once favourable
balance of trade began to reverse itself and silver
The opium warehouse of the British East India Company in India
economic and social conditions in China, through
its effects on trade flows and fiscal stability, and
through the devastating effects of addiction to the
drug among different strata of Chinese society.
It also contributed to the breakdown of existing
structures of trade and authority in China. At the
same time, the opium trade also had a significant
impact on the revenues of the British administration
in India and on the economies of those Indian
regions that were connected with the production of
and trade in opium.
Opium had been imported to China primarily
by Arab and Turkish traders since the 7th and
8th centuries and was used mainly for medicinal
purposes. The consumption of opium in China as a
narcotic dates from early 18th century CE. In 1729,
the Yongzheng emperor issued an imperial edict
prohibiting the domestic sale and consumption
of opium and later the import of opium was also
specifically prohibited. Nevertheless, opium
continued to be smuggled into China.
The growth of the opium trade in the 18th century
CE was directly linked with the interests of the
British East India Company. After the battles of
Plassey (1757) and Buxar (1764), the British East
India Company gained control over large parts of
eastern India. As part of its efforts to raise revenues,
the Company organised the large-scale cultivation
of opium in areas under its control. The Company
was reluctant to carry contraband opium in its
own ships to China, in order not to jeopardise its
highly profitable trade with China. So, it auctioned
the opium to private traders who smuggled it into
China. The Company derived huge profits from the
sale of opium in this manner. The sale of opium to
China also served another purpose. In the course of
the 18th century CE, the export of tea from China
to Britain increased rapidly. The balance of trade
became increasingly unfavourable to Britain as the
market for British products in China did not expand
much and consequently Chinese tea had to be paid
for mainly with silver bullion. The problem became
Chinese people smoking opium
44
Cultural Contacts
point, there developed a preference for the coarse
type of yarn produced by the Indian mills in the
Chinese handloom industry.
began to flow out of the country in increasing
quantities. This had a destabilising effect on the
currency, causing particular hardship to cultivators
whose tax payments had to be made in silver. The
smuggling of opium on a large scale contributed
to corruption and administrative breakdown in
affected sectors. The effect of opium addiction on
human productivity and on social life cannot be
measured. The impact on the Chinese military forces
amongst whom opium addiction spread rapidly was
particularly alarming from the point of view of the
imperial government. All this prompted the Jiaqing
emperor and his high officials taking a firm decision
to enforce the existing regulations and clamp down
on the opium trade. To put this policy into effect,
the emperor despatched the Imperial Commissioner
Lin Zexu to Canton in 1839. As is well-known, Lin
Zexu’s efforts to put an end to the opium trade were
met with Britain’s decision to launch the naval
attack on China, known as the First Opium War
which resulted in China’s defeat. After the Second
Opium War, the Qing government was compelled to
legalise the opium trade in 1860.
In spite of the legalisation of the opium trade,
the Chinese government continued to try and place
restrictions on the trade throughout the 19th century
CE. Opium production within China itself also
began to give competition to opium imports from
the last decades of the 19th century CE. Eventually,
an agreement was signed by the British envoy in
China and the representative of the Chinese foreign
ministry, the waiwubu on May 8, 1911, to end the
export of opium to China by 1917. However, the
uncertain political situation in China resulting from
the "Revolution of 1911" affected sales of imported
opium and brought a premature end to the opium
trade. The trade came to an end finally with the
cessation of all transactions at the Bombay Opium
Warehouse at the close of 1913.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Cotton weaving factory of Yihe opened up in Shanghai in 1895
From an average of just 2,000 bales of cotton yarn
per year in the period 1875-79, by 1895-99 the
Chinese market imported an average of 452,000
bales of yarn from India per year. The market share
of Indian mills rose to 96 per cent, compared to
that of Britain which dropped to four per cent. Of
the total exports of cotton yarn from the mills of
Bombay, the exports to China exceeded 92 per cent
for the entire period from the 1870s to the first
decade of the 20th century CE. This shows that the
trade with China played a very important role in
stabilising the Indian textile industry in its early
decades of growth. Among the well-known mills of
Bombay that supplied the China market were the
China Mills, Moon Mills Jacob Sassoon Mills, and
Tata’s Swadeshi Mills.
india-china
Cotton yarn trade
Manufactured cotton yarn was one of the main
exports from India to China in the last quarter of
the 19th century CE and the early years of the 20th
century CE. The earliest Indian textile mills which
were established in the 1850s initially produced
cloth for the domestic market but they soon
found that they could not compete with imported
British cloth. Therefore, from the 1870s, Indian
textile entrepreneurs, many of whom already had
experience of trading with China in commodities
like raw cotton and opium, turned to the China
market where there was a demand for cotton yarn.
Although China had been importing manufactured
cotton yarn almost entirely from Britain until that
Cotton yarn spindle
From the turn of the 20th century CE, however,
Indian cotton yarn exports to China began to decline
mainly on account of competition from Japanese
yarn which was cheaper. In 1906, India still supplied
77 per cent of Chinese yarn imports but a decade
later, Japanese yarn exports had overtaken India’s
exports. By 1924, the Indian share of the Chinese
cotton yarn market had fallen to 24 per cent. By
this time, Chinese production of manufactured
cotton yarn had also begun to displace both Indian
and Japanese imports. The decline in yarn exports
45
Cultural Contacts
to China almost immediately affected the textile
industry in India with several mills in Bombay
having to close down fully or partially. However,
in the long term, it was one of the factors that led
to the industry in India reorienting itself to produce
cloth for the domestic market again, instead of
focussing on producing yarn for export.
(Madhavi Thampi)
1940, it became a founding member of the Hong
Kong General Chamber of Commerce, and in 1952,
it joined the Indian Chamber of Commerce Hong
Kong. Some of the major sectors in which it has been
involved are agri business, metals and minerals and
ship-chartering. Textiles and housewares are other
major areas in which the group is involved.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Abdoolally Ebrahim & Co
E D Sassoon & Co
Abdoolally Ebrahim & Co, (today known as the
Abdoolally Ebrahim Group, AEG) was one of the
earliest Indian companies to set up in Hong Kong,
just after its establishment as a British colony. It is the
oldest firm in Hong Kong surviving under its original
name and is the oldest surviving client of the Hong
Kong and Shanghai Banking Corporation (HSBC).
E D Sassoon was the second of eight sons of David
Sassoon, founder of the wealthy and powerful Sassoon
group of companies that had major commercial,
industrial and financial interests in China from
the mid-19th to mid 20th century CE. Belonging to
the Baghdadi Jewish community, David Sassoon
arrived in Bombay as a refugee in 1832 and very
quickly moved into the China trade. Bombay was
the headquarters of their business empire for about
one century although various members of the family
eventually relocated to England in later decades.
The Sassoons initially derived most of their
profits from the opium trade in which they had a
commanding presence. Later, they diversified into
many different lines of business, becoming one of
the most prominent business families of Hong Kong
and Shanghai. E D Sassoon, who was first sent to
China by his father in 1844, eventually separated
from the parent Sassoon Company. In 1872, he set
up his own company known as the E. D. Sassoon
Company with its headquarters at 5 Renji Road in
Shanghai. In Chinese, it was known as the (New
Sassoon) company, to distinguish it from the
original Sassoon Company. Eventually, under
the two subsequent heads of the company, Jacob
Sassoon and Victor Sassoon, it went on to become
the dominant Sassoon company in China.
Shaikh Jaffer E Ebrahim
The company was founded in 1842 by Seth
Ebrahim Noordin, a member of the Dawoodi Bohra
Muslim community from Bombay. Dawoodi Bohras
from Gujarat have played a significant role in the
overseas trade from western India to the Persian
Gulf and East Africa as well as to various ports in
East and Southeast Asia. Initially trading in cotton,
silk, opium and tea, the company has over the
decades expanded and diversified into many other
areas. It was one of the companies whose opium
stocks were confiscated just prior to the Opium
War, which received compensation for it in 1864.
The AEG began the first cross-harbour ferry service
between Tsim Sha Tsui and Central in Hong Kong in
1842. In the same year, it opened offices in Canton
and Shanghai. In Shanghai, its office was located
on the Shanghai Bund. Although they vacated that
office following the revolution, they reopened it in
2004. Since then, they have opened branch offices
in Shenzhen and Dalian as well.
In Hong Kong, the AEG’s headquarters since
1920 has been located at 20 Stanley Street. In
Shaxun mansion in Shanghai
Apart from their interests in the opium trade,
E D Sassoon Company had a thriving cloth business,
importing cloth from Britain and supplying it to the
46
Cultural Contacts
most prominent stores on Shanghai’s Nanjing and
Tianjin Roads. They also had a profitable insurance
business. From the end of the 19th century CE, they
ventured into manufacturing, setting up spinning
and weaving factories, and rice, paper and flour
mills as well as breweries. Among their most
successful ventures was their involvement in real
estate. They controlled the Hua Mao Real Estate
Company, Shanghai Real Estate Company and Far
East Real Estate Company. Some of the most iconic
buildings on the Shanghai Bund were owned by
them. They owned among others the Huamao Hotel,
Cathay Hotel, Guo Tai Grand Theatre and the grand
building they constructed in 1928 known as Sassoon
House. In the insecure conditions of China in the
1920s and 1930s, they made huge profits through
the issue of shares and bonds. The E D Sassoon
Company was also prominent in the business life
of Hong Kong although their interests reduced after
the beginning of the 20th century CE.
The main business interests of the E D Sassoon
Company in Shanghai were wound up by Victor
Sassoon in 1948 but they continued to receive rent
from their many properties there for some years
until these were finally taken over by the Chinese
Government in 1958.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Ludunzhi hospital in Hong Kong, China, founded in the middle of the
19th century by the family of Ludunzhi
1756. In this period, as a by-product of the tea trade
between China and Britain, raw cotton from western
India began to be shipped to Canton (Guangzhou)
to pay for the rapidly growing export of tea from
China. Enterprising Parsi merchants were among
the earliest to profit from the spurt in trade between
Bombay and China from the last quarter of the
18th century CE. One of the earliest Parsi firms
to be established at Canton was that of Cowasjee
Pallanjee & Co (1794). The great Parsi merchant
and benefactor Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy, who played
a major role in the growth of Bombay in the first
half of the 19th century CE, made his fortune in the
trade with China. The raw cotton and opium trade
and the shipping business with China contributed
to the rise of many other prominent Parsi families
as well, including the Banajis, Wadias, Petits, Tatas,
Dadiseths, Camas and others. Later, when several
leading Parsi businessmen ventured into the newly
emerging cotton textile industry in India in the
second half of the 19th century CE, they exported a
significant portion of the cotton yarn produced in
their factories to China.
The Parsi merchants showed a greater willingness
to travel and reside in China than any other Indian
merchants involved in the China trade. Jamsetjee
Jejeebhoy himself travelled several times to China as a
young man. As a result, hundreds of Parsi men in the
19th century CE were to be found in Canton, Macau
and later Hong Kong, Shanghai and other Chinese
ports. In the early years of the 19th century CE, at times
there were more Parsis in Canton than there were
British. They were often referred to by the Chinese as
baitouren (whiteheads) on account of their distinctive
white caps. Before the Opium War, Parsis lived in
Macau and in the foreign factories on the Canton
waterfront. One of these even came to be known as the
‘Parsi factory’. Parsi cemeteries in Canton and Macau
have tombstones dating back to 1829.
Parsis played a pioneering role in the early
settlement and development of Hong Kong after
Parsis
The Parsis are an Indian community of ethnic
Persian origin who are followers of Zoroastrianism.
The original Parsis migrated to the west coast of
India in the 8th or 10th centuries CE to avoid religious
persecution in their original homeland of Persia.
Originally a largely agricultural community, they
later ventured into and made their mark in trade
and modern industry. From the later 18th century CE
until the early 20th century CE, they played a major
role in the overseas trade from the port of Bombay
(Mumbai), particularly in the trade between Bombay
and the China coast.
A Parsi family in India
The earliest Parsi merchant known to have sailed
to China was Heerjee Jeevanjee Readymoney in
47
Cultural Contacts
location on the trading routes between Central Asia
and India gave it an advantage in trade. Shikarpuri
traders were mainly Hindus who for several
decades functioned under the patronage of the
Durrani rulers of Afghanistan. They were known
for their sophisticated banking systems, which
included the issuing of bills of exchange (hundis)
which lent a degree of security and stability to the
trading activities across a wide arc of Central Asia.
Although never large in number, Shikarpuri
traders could be found in many of the major oasis
towns of Xinjiang. In towns like Yarkand, their
number was large enough for them to be able to
maintain their own resthouses which were known
as "Hindi serais". Shikarpuri traders rarely settled
down in Xinjiang, but would come for short trips
without their families. They were known as very
shrewd moneylenders who would lend small sums
of money to a large number of people at high rates
of interest. Their moneylending activities frequently
brought them into conflict with the local people.
Moneylending was also, strictly speaking, illegal
according to local laws. However, the role the
Shikarpuri merchants played in providing quick and
easy credit was important to the bazaar economy
and accounts for the fact that they were tolerated by
both the authorities and the local populace. In the
early decades of the 20th century CE, their number
in Xinjiang dwindled to almost nothing.
(Madhavi Thampi)
1842. Among those who purchased land on the
Hong Kong waterfront in the first land auction
conducted by the British authorities on the island in
June 1841, were Dadabhoy Rustomjee, Heerjebhoy
Rustomjee, Framjee Jamsetjee and Pestonjee
Cowasjee. Starting out initially in the import-export
trade from Hong Kong, the Parsis soon ventured
into diverse business activities, including real
estate, share brokerage, the hospitality industry,
banking and so on. One of them, Dorabji Naorojee,
founded the cross-harbour transport service that
evolved into Hong Kong’s famous "Star Ferry"
service. The Parsis were also known for their
involvement in charitable activities in Hong Kong.
The individual, who played the pioneering role in
the establishment of the University of Hong Kong,
was a Parsi businessman known as H N Mody. The
Ruttonjee family established one of the earliest antituberculosis sanatoriums on the island.
This community played an interesting role in the
transmission of cultural influences from China to
India in the 19th century CE. Deeply impressed by the
skill of Chinese silk embroiderers at Canton, Parsi
merchants commissioned Chinese embroiderers to
produce beautifully embroidered silk for the sarees
worn by the women of their families back home.
This was the origin of the famous Parsi gara saris,
which have become an intrinsic part of Parsi textile
culture. Parsi merchants imported large quantities
of Chinese porcelain, furniture and other artefacts
which had a significant impact on the lifestyle of the
elite in Bombay at that time. They also commissioned
Chinese painters like Lamqua and others to paint oil
portraits of themselves and their families.
With the changing occupational structure of the
Parsi community back in India, the number of
Parsi traders and businessmen in China began to
dwindle in the early 20th century CE. Nevertheless,
there continues to exist a small but flourishing Parsi
community in Hong Kong today whose links with
China go back many generations.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Ismaili traders
Traders from the Ismaili Muslim community from
western India formed an important segment of the
Indian mercantile community on the China coast in
the 19th century CE. The Ismailis were a traditional
trading community who took advantage of the new
opportunities held out by the European penetration
of Africa and Asia. Although better known for their
commercial role in East Africa, they also had their
presence in eastern Asia. In the early 19th century
CE, like the Parsi and Jewish traders from India,
they engaged in trade in raw cotton, opium and
other products of western India. Among them was
the firm of Cassumbhoy Nathabhoy which was
operating in Canton (Guangzhou) in the 1830s. After
the establishment of the British colony in Hong Kong
in 1842, some of the Ismaili merchants shifted base
from Canton to Hong Kong. An 1864 list of 28 Indian
traders compiled by the Hong Kong government
contains the names of 15 Ismaili traders and firms.
Abdoolally Ebrahim & Co, which was founded in
1841, remains today the oldest firm operating in
Hong Kong under its original name. Established by
Ebrahim Noordin, it traded in beans, spices, raw silk,
sugar and cotton yarn among other things. By and
large, the Ismaili enterprises were family firms. Some
Shikarpuri financiers
During the 18th and 19th centuries CE, merchants
from the town of Shikarpur in Sindh (present-day
Pakistan) played a very important role in the caravan
trade between India and Central Asia. They were
particularly important as financiers for this trade
which played a significant role in binding together
the economies of northwestern India, Afghanistan,
southeastern Iran and several khanates of Central
Asia. In this context, Shikarpuri traders were to be
found in the bazaars and towns of Xinjiang as well.
Shikarpur in Sindh was not a place which
could boast of its own agricultural products
or manufactured goods. However, its strategic
48
Cultural Contacts
to Hong Kong to assist in the business. Jamsetji
Nusserwanji, the real founder of the family’s
fortunes, spent four years in China from 1859 to
1863 during which he opened a branch of the firm
in Shanghai as well. In the great Bombay stock
market crash of 1864, the Tatas was among the
many business firms of Bombay that was badly
jolted and they temporarily retrenched their China
business interests. A few years later, however,
Nusserwanji visited China and Japan and tried
to revive the firm’s branch in Hong Kong. He
collected porcelain and other items of art during
this trip, marking the start of the Tata collection
of oriental art which is now housed at Chhatrapati
Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly the
Prince of Wales Museum) in Bombay. Nusserwanji
invested funds in a firm run by two of his
brothers-in-law, Dadabhai and Sorabji, which had
been trading for some time in East Asia under the
name D C Tata, and the firm was renamed Tata &
Co Nusserwanji and his son J N Tata occasionally
retained some interests in this firm which was
managed by Dadabhai and then his son.
When the Tatas entered the textile manufacturing
business in India just like some other Indian
businessmen they began to export the chief product
of their mills, cotton yarn, to China. By the end of
the 19th century CE, the Indian share of the market
for imported cotton yarn in China had risen to 96
per cent. Before the Tatas, it was believed that only
lower quality cotton yarn produced in India would
sell in the Chinese market. However, in the Tatas’
Swadeshi Mills in Bombay, a fine quality cotton
yarn was produced that also sold very well in China.
In the early part of the 20th century CE, however,
Indian cotton yarn was displaced in the China
market first by Japanese manufactured yarn, and
then by yarn produced in Chinese factories.
For a few years in the later 19th century CE, the
Tatas had also sought to challenge the monopoly of
the big European shipping companies in the routes
to the East. They set up their own Tata Line in
collaboration with the Japanese shipping company,
Nippon Yusen Kaisha. However, in the fierce "freight
war" that was waged by the European shipping
companies against this new entrant to the field, the
Tatas suffered losses and had to withdraw from the
steam navigation business.
Although trade with China was never the main
focus of the Tatas’ enterprise, it nevertheless played
some role, especially in the early phase of their
growth. In the last few years, the Tata Group once
again established its presence in China in various
sectors. These include information technology, steel,
engineering and consumer products. At present, the
Tata Group has over 3,000 employees in China.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Lao Huo Hua “Zhuangyuan Jidi”, published as a
overseas version in Hong Kong
of the Ismailis acted as brokers for Parsi firms
while others were independent merchants. Records
show that in 1920, there were 240 Ismailis in
Hong Kong but their number was only 60 by 1938.
Some Ismaili merchants also established their
base in Shanghai and took advantage of growing
opportunities there. Families such as the Tyabjis,
Roghays, Ghattys and Kurs made considerable
fortunes from trade with China.
(Madhavi Thampi)
The Tatas
The Tatas are one of the most prominent business
families of India with extensive business interests
both in India and abroad in diverse sectors such
as iron and steel, textiles, power, automobiles,
information technology and so on. Primarily known
as pioneers of Indian industry, they began their
operations as a trading firm in the middle of the 19th
century CE. Their trading links with China date back
to this period.
Members of the Tata family
The founder of the business, Nusserwanji Tata,
in December 1859 established a firm called
Jamsetji & Ardeshir in Hong Kong’s Hollywood
Road, with two partners, Premchand Roychand
and Kaliandas. This firm imported opium and
cotton from India, and exported tea, silk, camphor,
cinnamon, copper, brass and Chinese gold.
Nusserwanji sent his son, Jamsetji Nusserwanji,
49
Cultural Contacts
The Harilelas
Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy
The Harilelas are currently the most prominent
business family of Indian origin in Hong Kong. They
wholly-own the multi-million dollar Harilela Group
of Companies which has a very strong presence
in the hospitality industry in Hong Kong besides
having substantial real estate and other business
interests in Hong Kong and outside. Their presence
on the China coast dates nearly one century back
when Naroomal Lilaram Mirchandani arrived in
Guangzhou (Canton) from his home province of
Sindh (then a part of India and today in Pakistan).
He set up a shop to export antiques primarily to
Europe from China. After several years, in 1930, he
brought his wife and sons over to join him in China.
Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy (1783-1859) dominated
Bombay’s trade with China in the first half of the
19th century CE. An orphan from the small town of
Navsari in Gujarat, he came to Bombay (Mumbai)
as a youth to assist in his uncle’s bottle-selling
business. Sensing the boom in the export trade in
raw cotton to China, Jamsetjee was quick to seize
the opportunity. He made several trips to China
in quick succession in the first decade of the 19th
century CE and thereby established the foundations
of a flourishing business. It was in the course of
one of his voyages that he became acquainted with
William Jardine who later co-founded the wellknown China coast firm Jardine Matheson & Co.
After 1807, Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy directed his vast
and expanding commercial empire from Bombay.
He dealt mainly in raw cotton and opium trade
with China. He was the principal shipper of opium
to Jardine Matheson & Co, in China and was an
immensely powerful figure in the trade from Bombay.
His ships, such as Good Success, Bombay Castle, Fort
William, Charlotte and so on, were familiar sights in
the Canton-Macau region. A large number of smaller
merchants who engaged in trading with China from
Bombay consigned their goods to his shipping
business. Apart from his close relations with other
Indian merchants and with British merchants in
Bombay and the China coast Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy
also had good relations with Chinese merchants at
Canton (Guangzhou), especially the wealthy Hong
merchant, Howqua (Wu Bingjian).
H N Harilela
Since the antiques business was hit hard by the Great
Depression of the 1930s, the Harilelas reoriented
their business. They set up a mail order custom
tailoring business that became very successful. They
managed to survive through the difficulties caused by
the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong during World
War II. After the War, they were commissioned to
produce uniforms for the British army which helped
them to prosper further. However, in 1960, under
the aegis of the newly-formed Harilela Group, the
family once again reoriented their business interests,
moving into the real estate business and hospitality
industry. They acquired substantial property in Hong
Kong’s most prestigious locations. Among the many
hotels that they own and operate are the Holiday Inn
Golden Mile in Hong Kong and the Westin Resort
in Macau. Four generations and about a hundred
members of the Harilela family reside together in a
huge mansion in Kowloon Tong.
The current chairman of the group, Hari Harilela,
has served as Hong Kong Affairs Advisor to the
Chinese Government and in 2000, a was awarded
the Gold Bauhinia Star by the Hong Kong Special
Administrative Region government. The Harilelas
are a good example of versatility and business
acumen displayed by Indian entrepreneurs who
have managed to overcome challenges and thrive
in the turbulent conditions of 20th century CE China.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy Tata and his
Chinese scribe
From the 1840s, changes in the maritime trade
between India and China including the influx of private
British traders and the appearance of steamships
worked to the disadvantage of Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy
and his commercial empire. His firm no longer
dominated this trade, particularly after his death in
1859. Nevertheless, Jamsetjee Jejeebhoy remains
an iconic figure in the history of Mumbai, especially
because of his numerous charitable activities which
50
Cultural Contacts
established the firm of Hormasji Mancherji Cama’s
Sons in China in 1842. Hormasji’s grandson was K R
Cama. He was sent to China from Calcutta in 1850
to join his uncle’s firm, Messrs Ruttonji Hormasji
Cama & Co of Canton. He became a partner of this
firm in 1852 and spent a total of four years in China
until 1854, after which he returned to India.
The life and career of K R Cama is illustrative
of the connection of Bombay traders, particularly
of the Parsi community, with China in the 19th
and early 20th centuries CE. The wealth that some
of these merchants acquired through China trade
enabled them on the one hand to move into other
business ventures in industry and finance and on
the other hand to engage in philanthropic activities
back at home. Even while he was in China, K R
Cama made numerous endowments for educational
purposes back in India. After his initial forays into
business, K R Cama devoted himself to his reformist
activities and educational reform. He played an
active role in the Asiatic Society of Bombay as well.
(Madhavi Thampi)
included his role in setting up some of Mumbai’s
best-known hospitals and educational institutions. An
interesting legacy of Jamsetjee is the voluminous
letters he left behind which are preserved even till
today in the library of the University of Mumbai and
which are among the main sources we have for the
early growth of trade between Mumbai and China.
(Madhavi Thampi)
K R Cama
Kharsedji Rustomji Cama (1831-1909) was an
eminent Parsi social and religious reformer and
educationist. He was a multifaceted personality
and scholar whose name was associated with many
educational institutions in his native city of Bombay
including the University of Bombay.
H N Mody
Hormusjee Naorojee Mody (1838-1911), a Parsi
merchant from Bombay (now Mumbai), was a
leading entrepreneur and philanthropist of Hong
Kong. He accumulated considerable wealth from
his diverse business enterprises but is remembered
today mainly for the pioneering role he played in
the establishment of the University of Hong Kong.
K R Cama
He took particular interest in female education. He
also actively campaigned to reform the practice of
Zoroastrianism in India, aiming to purge it of what
he believed were unnecessary rituals. He came from
a long line of China traders and himself had spent
some years doing business in China as a young man.
The first members of the Cama family to establish
trading links with China were the brothers,
Mancherji and Edalji Cama. Of Mancherji’s three
sons, all of whom traded with China, one of them
H N Mody
H N Mody arrived in Hong Kong in 1860 (some
sources say in 1858) from Bombay on the suggestion
of his uncle, Jehangirjee Buxey, to help him with
his auction business. In the 1860s, he appears to
have worked in the opium trading firm of S A Seth
and also the Bank of Hindustan, China and Japan
before taking over the auction house of his uncle
after the latter’s death. While working in the bank,
Mody got acquainted with the Calcutta Armenian
Catchik Paul Chater with whom he formed a highly
Bell Tower of Bombay University
51
Cultural Contacts
successful business partnership later under the
name of Chater & Mody in 1868. It ventured into
share brokerage and also into real estate. Early
on, they realised the potential of Kowloon on the
mainland opposite Hong Kong island and heavily
invested in property and development in Kowloon.
Today, there exist a Mody Road and Mody Square
in Kowloon’s Tsim Sha Tsui area, named after H N
Mody. Chater & Mody was famed for its harbour
development and land reclamation schemes in
Kowloon and Hong Kong including the Praya
Reclamation scheme along the northern waterfront
of Hong Kong island.
H N Mody was known for his many charitable
endowments in Hong Kong, including towards the
building of a Seaman’s Institute and a Soldiers’
and Sailors’ Home. However, his outstanding
contribution to the growth of Hong Kong was his
work to establish the University of Hong Kong at
a time when few considered it important that this
largely commercial colony have its own institution
of higher education. Mody pledged then a huge
sum of $1,50,000 provided that the sum could be
matched from other sources. He persisted with
the project in the face of initial indifference until
finally, the foundation stone of the main building
of the university was laid in March 1910, a year
before he died. On the 90th anniversary of the
inauguration of the University of Hong Kong on
June 17, 2002, a bronze bust of Mody was installed
in the Main Building in recognition of his role in the
establishment of the University.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Chater came to Hong Kong in 1864 as a clerk in
the Bank of Hindustan, China and Japan. With the
help of the Sassoon business group, he ventured
into share brokerage and had great success. In
1868, he established a flourishing partnership with
the Parsi businessman Hormusji N Mody under the
name Chater & Mody. But his major achievement
was in the sphere of real estate development,
helping to develop a significant portion of the
island’s Central district. In 1886, he set up the
Hong Kong and Kowloon Wharf and Godown
Company to develop Kowloon Harbour on the
mainland and Kennedy Town in the northwestern
part of the island. His grandest project, however,
was the Praya Reclamation scheme to develop
the central waterfront area on the northern shore
of Hong Kong island. This was done through the
company which he formed in1889, Hong Kong
Land. He was a visionary who pushed to bring
electricity at an early stage to Hong Kong through
his Hong Kong Electric Company which he formed
in 1889. In recognition of the role he played in
Hong Kong’s development, he was appointed to
the Executive Council of Hong Kong in 1896 and
knighted by the British government in 1902. He,
however, continued to support institutions back
in India like his alma mater, the well-known La
Martiniere College in Calcutta.
Chater bequeathed most of his estate, valued
at nearly $5 million, to Hong Kong on his death
including the fabulous mansion ‘Marble House’ on
Conduit Road. After the death of his wife in 1935,
this became the residence of the Commander-inChief of the Navy. He also built up a very valuable
art collection which includes some of the best
visual representations of life in the ports of the
China coast in the 19th century. Although most of
the collection was destroyed during the Japanese
occupation what remains is housed in the Hong
Kong Museum of Art today.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Paul Chater
Catchik Paul Chater (September 8, 1846 – May 27,
1926) was an Armenian businessman from Calcutta
who played a major role in the early development
of Hong Kong. His Chinese name was Zhe Da 遮打.
There are many monuments to Chater in Hong Kong
and the centrally located Chater Garden on Hong
Kong Island is named after him.
Ellis and Elly Kadoorie
Ellis Kadoorie (1865-1922) and Elly (Eleazer
Silas) Kadoorie (1867-1944) were two brothers
from the Baghdadi Jewish community of Bombay
who established the foundations of a big business
empire in Hong Kong during the late 19th century.
Today, CLP Holdings, the main company of the
Kadoorie Group, which was founded in 1890,
supplies power to a major portion of Hong Kong.
The total wealth of the family is estimated to be
nearly US$10 billion.
Elly Kadoorie came out to Hong Kong at the
age of 15. He initially worked for the immensely
successful fellow Jewish business family, the
Sassoons, and served in Shanghai, Tianjin, Ningbo
Catchik Paul Chater
52
Cultural Contacts
of education. Among other things, Ellis Kadoorie
established a school for Chinese boys in Hong Kong
which was acknowledged by the British authorities
there to be "one of the finest school buildings in
the Colony". He built five other schools as well for
Chinese students including in Guangzhou (Canton)
and Shanghai. He also set up a school for Indian boys
in Hong Kong as he believed that their requirements
were different from those of Chinese students.
Kadoorie Family
and other treaty ports. Although he prospered in
the service of the Sassoons, he decided to set up on
his own, borrowing some money from his brother
Ellis who joined him in Hong Kong in 1883. He set
up the brokerage firm of Benjamin, Kelly and Potts
in Hong Kong. The brothers also developed their
business interests in Shanghai. During the period
of World War I, they acquired stakes in the China
Light Company in Hong Kong and in Hong Kong
and Shanghai Hotels. In Shanghai, Elly Kadoorie’s
residence was the fabulous Marble Hall which he
built on what is today’s Yan’an Xi Lu. During the
Japanese occupation of Hong Kong and China, Elly
Kadoorie was interned first in Hong Kong and then
in Shanghai. He died in Shanghai in 1944 just after
being released from the Zhabei internment camp on
medical grounds.
The Kadoories were well-known for their
charitable endowments, particularly in the sphere
The Marble Hall, residence of Ellis and Elly Kadoorie in Shanghai, now
known as the Children's Palace of the Chinese Welfare Association.
After the death of Ellis and Elly Kadoorie, their
business empire was managed by Elly’s sons,
Lawrence and Horace.
(Madhavi Thampi)
53
Cultural Contacts
Cultural Contacts
III
Science & Technology
55
Cultural Contacts
56
Cultural Contacts
Science & Technology
57
Cultural Contacts
Science & Technology
Overview
400 CE. Having the longest history of over 1,500
years, its impact on Indian astronomy was the most
profound. The others included āryapaksa founded
in 500 CE, the ārdharātikapaksa established also
in 500 CE, the Saurapaksa created in 800 CE and
the Ganeśapaksa launched in 1500 CE. With the
spread of Islam into India, an Islamic astronomical
period existed between 1600 CE to 1800 CE. This
was followed by the British colonial rule which
witnessed a period of direct contact with modern
and contemporary Western astronomy.
Foreign astronomy made frequent inroads
during the long history of India. Yet in spite of
absorbing several foreign elements, the indigenous
Vedic astronomy preserved itself and continued
to flourish. With the spread of Buddhism in the
east, this Vedic astronomy was also introduced
into China. Transmission of Vedic astronomical
knowledge can be found scattered in translated
Buddhist classics and in various other kinds of
historical texts of China. It covered the following
areas: i) cosmology ii) constellation system iii)
movements of the sun, moon, solar and lunar
eclipses iv) seasons and calendars and v) planetary
motion and ephemeris.
It was early Indian or Vedic knowledge of
cosmology that was transmitted to China along
with Buddhism. This contained the concept of kalpa
(aeon), cyclical model of destruction and creation,
cosmic structure and dimension etc. According to
the Buddhist world view, a kalpa (eg. vivartakalpa)
begins with the arising of primordial wind leading
to the creation of a structure of universe or cosmos
after the destruction of everything by fire at the
end of a kalpa. The world thus completes a turn
of the wheel of life and it will then be recreated.
Buddhist classics describe ancient Indian cosmic
structure in terms of the unity of theory of
relativity and quantum theory – in the cosmos/
universe everything exists on an enormous wind
wheel whose thickness is about 1,600,000 yojanas
(Vedic measure of distance, which according to
some estimates approximated one yojana to 8 miles
in modern measurement). There is a water wheel
on the wind wheel, which is 1,200,000 yojanas
thick, of which 320,000 yojanas from the surface
Exchanges in science, technology and medicine are
one of the important components of the history of
India-China cultural interactions. Beginning with
the period of the Qin and Han Dynasties (c. 3rd
century BCE) to the end of the Qing Dynasty (1911),
both countries had uninterrupted exchanges in the
area of science and technology though its intensity
varied between frequent and occasional over the
long course of time. The major areas and nature of
these exchanges were as follows:
Exchanges in the Field of Astronomy
Astronomy was a well-developed knowledge
system in ancient India. Indians observed and
described various astronomical phenomena using
advanced mathematical calculation and formulae.
According to Professor David E. Pingree, ancient
Indian astronomy can be divided into five periods,
namely, the Vedic Period (from 1000 BCE to about
400 BCE), Babylonian Period (from 400 BCE to 200
CE), Hellenistic Babylonian Period (from 200 CE to
about 400 CE), the Greek Period (from 400 CE to
1600 CE) and the Islamic Period (from 1600 CE to
about 1800 CE).
Astronomical Science in the Vedic Period, as
found preserved in the Four Vedas including the
Rigveda, is characterised by its mostly localised
Indian content. In the Babylonian Period, many
Mesopotamian astronomical elements were
integrated into Indian astronomy. This included
methods of measuring length and change of
time as well as mathematical models, time units
and instruments originated from Babylon. In
the Hellenistic Babylonian Period, inputs from
the Greeks modified and expanded Babylonian
astronomy. Its contents included descriptions of
planetary configuration as well as issues such as
solar and lunar eclipses, length of shadow and
so on. Some of its contents were preserved in
Pañcasiddhāntikā which was written sometime in
575 CE. The Greek Period of Indian astronomy,
lasting over 1,000 years produced many outstanding
Indian astronomers and classics contributing to
the successive formation of five astronomical
schools (paksas). Among them, the earliest was
the Brāhmapaksa which was established in circa
58
Cultural Contacts
Buddhist classics. The system of 28 constellations
is consistent with those of ancient China while the
system of 27 constellations excluding Abhijit (niu
xiu) is the result of adjustment to match the Indian
local constellation system with that of foreign
zodiacal signs. The most complete description
of 27 constellations is seen in Xiuyaojing (Book
on the Nakshtras and the Luminaries) written and
translated in Chinese by Monk Amoghvajra (Bu
Kong) during the Tang dynasty. In the translated
sutras, the size of the constellations have a kind
of uneven division but its random nature is
not similar to the 28 constellations of ancient
China where the size of each is irregular and all
of which could be divided into three types – ie
wide, narrower and the narrowest. In the Buddhist
classics such as Xiuyaojing (Book on the Nakshtras
and the Luminaries), there is also a tendency to
make uniform the size of each constellation which
is the result of the influence of the entry and
spread of the western astronomical system based
on 12 equatorial constellations or signs of the
zodiac in India. Further, the number of stars in the
constellation systems in sutras greatly differs from
that of ancient China, with only five constellations
having completely the same number of stars.
Astronomical instruments to gaze at constellation
configurations and its product names also have
special Indian characteristics.
As for movements of the sun and moon, many
translated sutras mention that they moved around
Mt Sumeru propelled by the wind wheel. The height
of the solar and lunar orbital motions is half of Mt
Sumeru, ie 42,000 yojanas. The diameter of sun was
51 yojanas, and of the moon 50 yojanas. The sun
moved around Mt Sumeru Mountain, day and night
causing alterations and seasonal changes in the four
continents. In Li shi a pi tan lun (Treatise on Creating
the World of Abhidharma), the Chapter 19 of Volume
5 entitled ‘Motion of the Sun and the Moon’ mentions
that there are 180 paths for the solar movement
and 15 paths for the lunar movement. In half-ayear, the sun transits from one solar path to the
next consecutively each day and after reaching the
outermost it returns to the innermost solar path. This
model helps better explain the changes in the time of
sunrise azimuth and the length of day. As far as the
lunar path is concerned, each lunar path is equal to
12 solar paths. The distance between the outermost
(southernmost) and innermost (northernmost) path
of the 180 solar paths is 290 yojanas. The sun and
moon travel their next successive path on each day.
The centre of illumination of sunlight is a ball with
the diameter of 721,200 yojanas.
As for solar and lunar eclipses, translated sutras
explain that the eclipse cycle takes place every six
months and are caused by Asurindaka Rahu who
are compressed into a gold wheel. The combined
diameter of the water and gold wheel is 1,203,450
yojanas and its circumference is triple the diameter.
The gold wheel is placed in the centre of Sumeru
Mountain [which according to various legends is
a mandala (circular figure symbolising universe)
like complex surrounded by mountains and seas
with planets circumambulating it]. Both its height
over the surface and depth below surface are each
said to be of 84,000 yojanas. It is surrounded by
seven Gold Mountains in turn. There are four
continents outside the seven Gold Mountains.
These are Wheel Ring Mountains outside the four
continents. The depth of seven Gold Mountains
and the Wheel Ring Mountains under the surface
are equivalent to that of Mt Sumeru but height
and width of each diminishes according to their
distance from Sumeru. There are eight seas among
nine mountains, in turn, the earlier seven seas are
“inner seas”, the innermost sea is 80,000 yojanas
in width, and the periphery is 240,000 yojanas in
circumference. The width of each of the next six
seas are reduced by half in turn. The eighth sea
is the “outer sea” and was 321,000 yojanas in
width. This ancient Indian cosmic model is similar
to the ancient Chinese canopy cosmic model but
presently there is no certain evidence about the
close connections between the two.
In Chinese translation of Buddhist classics, it
is worth paying attention to the rendering of the
Indian constellation system, the problem of the
beginning constellation/nakshatra, its total sum of
as well as the size, the number of stars and the
shape of each of the constellations. Before the
spread of the Indian constellation system, China
had a set of its own indigenously developed similar
system. Chinese translation of names of the Indian
constellation evinces three characteristics: i) A large
part has been translated into known constellation
names in Chinese ii) another large part is the
transliteration of Sanskrit pronunciation of names
into Chinese iii) translation of literal meaning of
names in Sanskrit into Chinese. However, only one
such case is found in sutras translated into Chinese
(henceforth, referred to as translated sutras). The
Citra in Indian constellation system is different from
that of ancient China. In the Chinese translation
of Buddhist classics, Jiao xiu (Spica) is considered
as Citra, but there are also cases of conflating
Krttika and Aśini with it. Obviously, using Spica as
Citrā is to keep consistency with ancient Chinese
constellation system. Recognition of Krttikā as the
Citra was the characteristic of the ancient Indian
system which reflected astronomical adjustment
for precession of equinoxes and is a later addition
to the translated sutra. Two constellation numbers,
ie 27 and 28 appear in the Chinese translation of
59
Cultural Contacts
books similar to ancient Indian calendars, besides
the Jiuzhi Calendar, the Futian Calendar can be
considered as representative. It originated from
Indian astronomy and was popular among the
Chinese during the late Tang Dynasty. Its main
contents are however now untraceable. According
to the inference of Sou Neiqing, the Guangzhai
Calendar compiled by Gautama Luo might be “a kind
of astronomical almanac calculating astronomical
phenomena based on Indian astronomy.”
As far as the knowledge of planets is concerned,
translated sutras primarily relate to planet names and
orders, its dimensions and sizes and its movements
and calendars, especially, the two lunar nodes,
ie Rahu and Ketu are also regarded as planets. In
translations, planets are named either according to
ancient Chinese names or provided transliterated
names. Their orders sometimes are sequenced
according to an ancient Chinese order of five
elements and sometimes are based according to the
intensity of luminance of each plane. The Xiuyaojing
(Book on the Naksatras and the Luminaries) describes
it according to their speed “from fast to slow.” Planet
movements and calendars are prominently shown in
Qi yao rang zai jue (Expelling Fated Calamities under
the Seven Lumnaries) (see the entry on Qi yao rang zai
jue for details).
Generally speaking, Indian astronomy spread
over China early during a large span of time
from the 3rd century to the 10th century. Relevant
materials have, therefore, been preserved sparsely
and it is hard to connect its contents with certain
classics of astronomical schools in different periods.
However, the influence of Indian astronomy on
China which reached a climax, especially during the
Tang Dynasty can still be traceable. In his preface
to Shen long licun (Celestial Dragon Calendar), Li
Jiao writes that Chinese and Indian astronomers
“worked together even though they had different
Cover of the Jiuzhi Calendar
hides the sun and the moon with his hands. Textual
sources, outside the translated sutras, inform us
that Indian astronomy transmitted to China was
good in the skill of calculating the eclipse. These
note the calculation method of the Indian monk,
Kasyapa Xiaowei. This is found in Volume 33 of
Jiu Tangshu (Book of the Later Tang) attached to the
Eclipse Calculation Skill of Lin Deli (Linde Calendar)
as an annexure entitled `Indian Method of Kashyap
Xiaowei and Others’ (see the entry of ‘Kasyapa
Xiaowei’ for details). In Volume 34 of the same
book, there is another entry attached to the chapter
on ‘Eclipse Calculation Skill of Dayan Li (Dayan
Calendar)’ which describes the Indian ‘method to
judge eclipse’ descended from the Indian monk,
Kumara (see the entry on ‘Kumara’ for details).
Furthermore, the Jiuzhili (Jiuzhi Calendar), edited
and translated by Gautama Siddha introduces
Indian eclipse calculation method in detail (see the
entry on 'Jiuzhi Calendar' for details).
Contents related to “lunar month” of ancient
Indian seasons and calendars are also recorded in
translated sutras which are rich in detail and include
division of season, month names, concepts of white
month and black month, arrangements of large
month and small month, placement of leap month,
changes in day and night time-length, division and
name of day and night time etc. The Volume 48
of Da zhi du lun (Great Treatise on the Perfection of
Wisdom) defines four kinds of months, which are
so-called “solar month”, “karma month”, “lunar
month” and “nakshatra month”. Here, the “solar
month” is one-twelfth of the length of a tropical
year, “karma month” is one-twelfth of an ideal
year (which consists of 360 days), “lunar month”
connotes synodic month and “nakshatra month”
refers to sidereal month. Several forms of seasonal
changes in the length of shadow at noon are given
in sutras. Datasheets in Shi fei shi jing (Sutra on Time
and Non-Time) are most detailed. As for complete
Rubbings of Essays of Gautama Siddhartha
60
Cultural Contacts
styles and skills” and made common efforts to
compile calendars. The most common evidence is
that of the Dayanli (Dayan Calendar) compiled by
the Chinese monk, Yi Xing and the Japanese monk,
Saicho, who came to China in the Tang Dynasty
to seek Buddhist learning. Their work Neizheng
Fofa xiangcheng xie mai pu (Blood Spectrum of Inner
Realization of Dharma) describes that “monks of
both Tang Chinese and Indian Sanskrit tradition
participated in a joint discussion meeting and
together committed themselves” to finally complete
“a fixed and authoritative classic” which as part of
the Chinese calendar history became a model for
calendars for later generations.
Exchanges in the field of
Medical Sciences
Fragments of Dunhuang Dharani Sutra, now in the
possession of British Library, London
In ancient Eastern medical systems, China’s
traditional medicine and India’s Ayurveda, Siddha,
Unani and Islamic medicines had a long and rich
history of progress and enormous contributions
to protect and preserve human health. These
classical medical systems mutually transmitted
and shared knowledge. This was most apparent in
the extensive penetration and diffusion of medical
knowledge and skills between China and India,
primarily through Buddhism in the medieval
period. Indian Āyurveda had three representative
books (Mahā-triya) ie Caraka-samhitā of Caraka,
which mainly discussed internal medicine; Śuśrutasamhitā of Śuśruta, which was related to surgery;
Aśtāngahrdayasamhitā of Vāgbhatta which paid
attention to both internal medicine and surgery.
The pathogenesis in Āyurveda is directly based
on the “theory of harmony and balance of three
humours/ essences.” The human body is made up of
three essences, ie vāta’/‘vāyu (wind), pitta (bile) and
kapha (phlegm) and any imbalance among the three
leads to tridośa, “three causes” or “three disease
elements”. A disease caused by the disturbance in
three humors is referred to as “three-in-one disease”
or “three-for-one disease” etc. If the three humors
are balanced, the human body will be healthy; if the
three humours are imbalanced, a human being will
suffer from illness. Besides having the Āyurvedic
theory of three humours/essences for pathogenesis,
the Buddhist medical system primarily applies
the concept of four elements forming the body.
The abnormality of one leads to 101 diseases and
of more than one similarly to 404 diseases and
so on. The earliest scripture Ren shen si bai si bing
jing (Classic on Four Hundred and Four Diseases of
Human Body) and the Ren bing yi bu neng zhijing
(Classic on Incurable Human Diseases) are taken from
Volume I in Xiu xing di dao jing (Classic on Path to
Cultivation) which was edited and translated by the
Indian monk, Dharmaraksa, during the Western
Jin dynasty and records the pathogenesis theory of
Buddhist medicine. With translated classic/sutras as
a medium of introduction, Buddhist medical theories
appeared in traditional Chinese medicinal works.
Tao Hongjing collected Ge Hong’s Zhou hou jiu zu
fang (Handbook of Prescription for Emergency) and
changed its name to Hua Yang yin ju bu que zhou hou
bai yi fang (Complements of Prescription for Emergency
Written by the Hermit of Huayang). The modification
in the book’s name came from the theory of “four
elements for human health and abnormality of
one element for one hundred and one diseases.”
Volume II of Aversion to Wind in Zhu bing yuan hou
lun (Treatise on the Pathogenesis and Manifestations
of All Diseases) written by Chao Yuanfang in the Sui
Dynasty, places all the 404 kinds of diseases in sutras
under the category of wind disease. Thus, there
were 404 kinds of wind diseases. Chao Yuanfang
then used the concept of five colours based on the
theory of five elements to make it compatible with
the theory of five winds. In his Zhu bing yuan hou
lun (Treatise on the Pathogenesis and Manifestations
of All Diseases), chapter X of volume XXVI entitled
`The Parasitic Poison Diseases’ is devoted to
“detoxification” and describes theories of “four
elements for health” and “four abnormalities”. Sun
Simiao of Tang Dynasty in the Preface of Volume I
of his Bei ji qian jin yao fang (Valuable Prescriptions
for Emergency), discusses Fourth Diagnosis adopting
the theory of the sutra that “earth, water, fire and
wind as well as harmony preserves humans.” He
thus professed that, “Abnormality of one element
will lead to 101 diseases” to “abnormality of one
Qi will lead to 101 diseases.” Volume XXVII of
Bei ji qian jin yao fang (Valuable Prescriptions for
Emergency) mechanically applies the concept of 404
diseases to the theory of five viscera and changes
“earth, fire, water and wind” into “cold, hot, wind
61
Cultural Contacts
in seven days” and “doctor king” coming from
India’s taixiang (fetal phases) theory, considerably
influenced traditional Chinese medicine and Tibetan
medical literature.
Although there are no Chinese versions of the three
major medical dictionaries of the Indian Āyurveda,
many texts of the Indian medical literature have
been translated into Chinese. In the period of the
Northern Dynasty, the Chinese Dharma branch
translated 20 volumes of Bo luo tian men (Brahman
Astronomy) and Wu ming lun (Treatise on Five Fields
of Knowledge); (this includes “firstly, Treatise on
Sound; secondly, Treatise on Prescription; thirdly,
Treatise on Technique; fourthly, Treatise on Curse;
fifthly, Treatise on Seal”), for Yuwen Hu. During
the Southern Liang Dynasty, Ruan Xiaoxu’s Qi lu
(Seven Collections) records 10 volumes of Mo he
qu hu guo fang (Journey of Mo hu to Hu Countries).
Compiled by Maha Hu monk, this appears to be a
foreign medical book from the name of the compiler
and the book. One volume of Za Rong Di fang
(Miscellaneous Notes on the Rong and Di (tribes)) was
compiled by Emperor Wu of the Song Dynasty, and
contained medicinal prescriptions from nations in
the Western Regions or surrounding areas of the
Northwest. Volume XXXIV entitled Jing ji zhi san
(Third Record to Religious Texts) of Sui shu (Book
of the Sui Dynasty), describes over 10 medical
books of India and the Western Regions, including
four volumes of Longshu Pusa yao fang (Nagarjuna
Medicinal Prescriptions), 23 volumes of Xiyu zhu xian
suo shuo yao fang (Medicinal Prescriptions of Fairies
in the Western Regions), (one volume of catalogue
and 25 volumes of texts), 10 volumes of Xiang shan
xian ren yao fang (Medicinal Prescriptions of Nine
Fairies of Fragrant Mountain), three volumes of Xi
yu bo luo xian ren fang (Medicinal Prescriptions of the
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna), four volumes of Xiyu mingyi
suo ji yao fang (Invaluable Prescriptions Collected by
Famous Doctors in the Western Regions) (12 volumes
of texts), 20 volumes of Bo luo men zhu xian yao
fang (Medicinal Prescriptions of Brahman Fairies),
five volumes of Bo luo men yao fang (Medicinal
Prescriptions of Brahman), two volumes of Qipo suo
shu xian ren ming lun fang (Prescriptions for Immortals
Described by Jīvaka) (one volume of catalogue and
three volumes of texts), 10 volumes of Gan da
li zhi gui fang (Gāndhāri Recipes to Treat Demons),
four volumes of Xin lu gan da li zhi gui fang (the
Newly Recorded Gāndhāri Recipes to Treat Demons)
(five volumes of texts and errors), two volumes of
Longshu pusa he xiang fa (Methods of the Bodhisattva
Nāgārjuna for Compounding Perfumes) and one
volume of Longshu pusa yang xing fang (Bodhisattva
Nāgārjuna’s Prescription for Spiritual Cultivation).
Like Mo he qu hu guo fang (Journey of Mohe to Hu
Countries), this batch of medical books must be
Diagrams on Daoist exercises (involving breathing, stretching, and self
massage), and healing exercises dating from the western Han dynasty
excavated at Mawangdui in Changsha, Hunan
and air.” Volume XXI of Wang Tao’s Wai tai mi yao
fang (Medical Secrets from the Royal Library) which
was written during the Tang Dynasty, copies the
contents of Tianzhu jing lun yan (Indian Sutras and
Shastras on Ophthalmology). This was interpreted
by Hu monks in the Western Regions to the Daoist
priest Xie. Many theoretical sections of Indian
Buddhist medicine could be witnessed in traditional
Chinese literature unearthed from Dunhuang.
P2115V of Dunhuang ms., Zhang Zhongjing wu zang
lun (Treatise on the Five Viscera of Zhang Zhongjing)
(Book A) quoted the exposition of sutras that
“health is based on four elements and five skandhas,
and abnormality of one element will lead to 100
diseases.” P3655, Ming dang wu zang lun (Treatise on
the Five Viscera of Mingtang) had the sentence that
“the human body is composed of four elements and
lives on five cereals.” P2675, Xin ji bei ji jiu jing (New
Collective Moxibustion Techniques for Emergency)
adopted the theory that “health is based on four
elements, and abnormality of one vein will lead to
100 diseases.” The common phrase “abnormality
of one element” in Indian Buddhist medical theory
was changed into the typical traditional Chinese
phrase “abnormality of one vein.” Moreover, Daoist
classics and divination literature also adopted the
concept of “abnormalities of four elements” and
“404 diseases” of the Indian sutras. The transition
from “abnormality of one element” to “abnormality
of one vein”, or “abnormality of one qi (air)” in
traditional Chinese classics and Dunhuang literature
reflects that some traditional Chinese physicians
(cum Buddhists) recognised and accepted certain
practices of the Indian Buddhist medical theories.
Their acceptance was, however, not based on
total imitation; rather they applied it as a model
for transforming and improving its application by
adding core elements of local culture consciously
within the outer shell of imported foreign culture.
Through the transition from “one element” to “one
vein” or “one qi”, traditional Chinese physicians
linked the traditional pathogenesis theory with
the Buddhist pathogenesis theory. Furthermore, it
must be noted that the terms such as “one change
62
Cultural Contacts
sa zhi bing he yao jing (Sutra on the Use of Medicinal
Herbs for Healing by the Thousand-eyed and Thousandhanded Avalokiteśvara), Fo shuo wen shi xi yu zhong
seng jing (Sūtra on Jīva’s Inviting Many Priests to
Wash Themselves in a Bath-House), Yan shou ming
jing (Sūtra on Life Extension), Yan Jiu ji jing (Sūtra
on Curing Diseases), Shen mi yao fa jing (Sūtra on the
Hidden and Important Law of Meditation), Fo shuo tai
bao jing (Garbha Sūtra), Chu yi qie ji bing da luo ni
jing (Sarvarogapraśamani Dhāranī Sūtra), Fo shuo chu
kong zai huan jing (Sūtra on Eliminating Disasters and
Diseases Preached by Buddha), Jia ye xian ren shuo
yi ji nu ren jing (Sūtra on Obstetrics Spoken by the
Sage Kāśyapa), Wu fen lu: yao fa (Vinaya of the Five
Categories: Medical Methods), Mo he send zhi lu: Ming
za tong ba qu fa (Mahasangha-vinaya: Vagga Methods),
Si fen lu: yao jian du (‘Vinaya of the Four Categories:
Medical Khandha), Shi tong lu: ji yao fa (Ten Vinaya
Recitations: Medical Methods), Jin guang ming jing:
Chu bing pin (‘Sūtra of Golden Light: On Eliminating
Diseases), Jin guang ming zui sheng wang jing: chu
bing pin (Suvarnaprabha-sottamaraja: On Eliminating
Diseases) and so on. In the process of seeking
Buddhist learning from India or in participating in
sutra translation, Chinese Buddhist monks recorded
some Indian medical contents in their works.
The eminent monk Yi Jing seeking Dharma in the
Tang Dynasty discussed medical contents in three
chapters of volume III in Nan hai ji hui nei fa zhuan
(An Account of the Inner Law Sent Home from the
South Sea) ie “Disease Sources”, “Methods to Take
Medicines” and “Medicines Eliminating Diseases”.
Yi Jing acquired the knowledge of medicine in
India’s Nalanda Monastery and the contents such as
“Sutra on Medicine preached by Bhagavant” were
authentic Indian medical knowledge which provided
accurate and new information to Chinese scholars.
Traditional Chinese “herbalism” witnessed
extensive development in the Tang Dynasty. Sun
Simiao quoted the theory of the great Indian doctor
‘Jīvaka’ in Volume I in Qian jin yi fang (Supplement to
Invaluable Prescriptions for Ready Reference) that “all
things under heaven are medicines.” Undoubtedly,
the thought that all things were medicines largely
broadened the vision of doctors. Many Indian
medicines entered China, and Indian studies on
herbs were translated into Chinese. During the Tang
period, Indian Master Dharmacandra (called Fa Yue
in Chinese) “was proficient in Tripitaka and had
good knowledge of medicine.” Volume XIV of Yuan
Zhao’s Zhenyan xin ding shi jiao mu lu (Catalogue
of Buddhist Teachings Newly Established in the
Zhenyuan Era) records that Dharmacandra arrived
in Chang’an in the 20th year of Kaiyuan Reign
(732 CE), “offered astrology, medical prescriptions,
palm-leaf scriptures, herbals and sutras as tributes.
His disciple, Monk Li Yan translated Fang yao
translated Chinese versions and their translation,
introduction and communication are consistent with
the eastern spread of Indian religion. The famous
catalogue of Chinese medical books entitled Riben
guo jian zai shu mu lu (Catalogue of Books Extant in
Japan), compiled by Fujiwara no Sukeyo (828-898)
lists several kinds of medical books with names of
Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna and Jīvaka, thus indicating
influence of some elements of Indian medicine.
For example, there is one volume with the title
Longshu pusa he xiang fa (Methods of the Bodhisattva
Nāgārjuna for Compounding Perfumes), one volume
of Jīvaka on Qipo fu lingsan fang (Decomposed Recipes
of Poria), 12 volumes of Jīvaka entitled Qipo mai
jue (Qipo on Impulse) (annotated by Shi Luoshi) and
one volume of Longshu pusa yan jing (Bodhisattva
Nāgārjuna’s Classic on Eyes), one volume of Longshu
pusa yinfa (Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna’s Indian Method)
and one volume of Longshu pusa ma ming pusa mi
fa (Secret Methods of Bodhisattva Aśvaghoṣa and
Bodhisattva Nāgārjuna). Besides these books which
were translated directly into Chinese, some Indian
medical books were translated into medical texts in
dialects of Xinjiang areas. Bao wei er xie ben (Bower
Manuscript), Yi li qing hua (Siddhasra) and Qipo
shu (Jīvaka-pustaka) are characteristic examples
of such translation. Moreover, all Tibetan medical
books containing some “medical knowledge and
application” from the Great Sutra are translated
from Indian texts, while Tibetan medical classics
and literature including Si bu yi dian (Standard
Medical Texts in Four Parts) and Yue wang yao zhen
(Medicine Treasures of Moon King) also contain rich
Indian medical knowledge. Translated classics/
sutras too are comprehensive in content and
provide extensive medical knowledge. In Buddhist
Tripitakas, there are sutras expounding medicines
or subjects related to it. These primarily include
Fo shuo Fo yi jing (Buddhavidya Sūtra), Fo shuo
yi yu jing (Bhaiśjya Upamāna Sūtra), Fo shuo liao
zhi jing (Buddhist Sūtra Explaining the Treatment of
Haemorrhoids), Qian shou qian yan guan shi yin pu
Medicine of the ethnic Tibetans from China,
Materia Medica in four parts, preserved in the
museum at Lhasa in Tibet
63
Cultural Contacts
(Japan) Ji xin fang (Essence of Medical Prescriptions)
and in several other works written by Chinese
physicians of later generations. They have preserved
innumerable Indian medical prescriptions and
methods of treatment (for example, India’s method
for anesthesia and golden needle for ophthalmology).
These provide an important testimony to exchanges
in the medical field between India and China.
Knowledge of Indian medicines also spread to China
through Persia and Arabia. For example, in the
Tang Dynasty, Sanlejiang (three forces liquid) syrup
“via Persia” originated from three fruit medicines
(‘harītakī’, ‘terminalia billerica’ and ‘amlaphala’) in
India. There were multiple Indian medicines and
prescriptions in the Islamic medicine book named
Hui hui yao fang (Prescriptions of Hui) which was
translated in the late Yuan Dynasty and the early
Ming Dynasty. Particular attention must also be
paid to the exchanges in medical sciences through a
third country providing the bridge.
Handed down from generation to generation,
many anecdotes and stories of ancient Indian medical
experts, especially Jīvaka and Nagarjuna exist in
China. Evidence of many eminent foreign monks
who were proficient in medicine are also available.
They include An Shigao, Dharmakāla, Kumārajīva,
Buddhayaśas,
Dharmaksema,
Gunabhadra,
Ratnamati, Jnānagupta, Prajnā, Bodhiruci, Atikuta,
Divākara, Devaprajnā, Amogha and Vajrabodhi.
Some of them came from India, taught medicine and
made valuable contributions to the spread of the
science of healing in China through the translation
and communication of Indian medical texts.
During the Sui and Tang period, there was
also much development in alchemy and multiple
methods of making a variety of chemical compounds
for medicine. The Daoist alchemy not only used
many medicines from India but also attracted many
rasāyana masters and alchemists from foreign
countries. Elderly Indian Brahmin rasāyana masters
Nārāyanasvāmin and Lokāditya came to China in
the era of Emperor Taizong and Emperor Gaozong in
the Tang Dynasty. Alchemist Nārāyanasvāmin made
macrobiosis/longevity medicines in Jinbiaomen.
The chief of the Chinese military, Cui Dunli
supervised him and ordered people in the country
to collect rare medicines and innumerable precious
stones to help him make the drugs. The Medicines
were made eventually, but they were found to be
ineffective, so he was repatriated. According to
Italian scholar Antonino Forte’s study, the elderly
Brāhmana rasāyana master who held the ordination
ceremony for Kang Fazang was Śākyamitra from Sri
Lanka. Śākyamitra lived with Lu jia a yi duo (Ajita)
in Penglai Palace and Kang Fazang was one of the
participants in the medicine-making activities in the
palace. Śakyamitra who visited Wutai Mountain and
(Rediscovery of the lost) Compendium of Medical Herbs
(Prescriptions) and Ben cao (Herbals) sutras with
his master, for the emperor.” This was because
properties of Hu medicines were little known in
China, and the medical circles especially needed
to know the characters of these foreign medicines,
judge their authenticity, compare them with local
medicines, and add them to the daily used medical
books. A large quantity of medicines were recorded
and applied in Chinese medicine from Su Jing’s Xin
xiu ben cao (Newly Revised Materia Medica), Chen
Cangqi’s Ben cao shi yi (Compendium of Materia
Medica), Zheng Qian’s Hu ben cao (Hu Materia
Medica) in the Tang Dynasty, Li Xun’s Hai yao ben
cao (Overseas Materia Medica) in the Five Dynasties,
Su Song’s Ben cao tu jing (Illustrated Classics of
Materia Medica) and Tang Shenwei’s Zheng lei ben
cao (Classified Materia Medica) in the Song Dynasty
to Li Shizhen’s Ben cao gang mu (Compendium of
Materia Medica in the Ming Dynasty. India’s ‘piperis
longi’, ‘harītakī’, ‘terminalia billerica’, asafoetida,
amlaphala, borneol oil, litharge, refined sugar,
rhinoceros horn, radix curcumae, sal ammoniac,
logwood, birthwort root, dipterocarpaceae, mastic,
spica nardi and various kinds of aromatic drugs,
were widely used in traditional Chinese herbal
and prescription classics and some of them became
common traditional Chinese medicines without
foreign colourings. From the Han dynasty, the
trade in medicine between India and China had
continued without any interruption. This provided
necessary material foundations for the development
of India-China exchanges in medical sciences. A
large quantity of Indian medical prescriptions
and skills (such as Indian massage methods and
ophthalmological gold needle techniques etc) were
preserved in Sun Simiao’s Bei ji qian jin yao fang
(Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency) and Qianjin yi
fang (Supplement to Invaluable Prescriptions for Ready
Reference), Wang Tao’s Wai tai mi yao fang (Medical
Secrets from the Royal Library), Tanba Yasuyori’s
64
Cultural Contacts
can be regarded as the first work related to the study
on comparison of India-China algorithm. The Indian
calendar calculation works, which were introduced
in China before the Tang Dynasty, included three
volumes of Po luo men sun fa (Brahman Algorithm),
one volume of Po luo men yin yang suan li (Brahman
Yin-yang Calculation Calendar) and three volumes
of Po luo men suan jing (Brahman Calculation Sutra),
which were recorded in Sui Shu: Jing ji zhi (Book
of the Sui Dynasty: Records on Sutras). During the
Tang Dynasty, an Indian astronomer based in China,
Gautama Siddhartha, compiled 120 volumes of Kai
yuan zhan jing (Classic of Astrology in the Kaiyuan
Period) and part of Jiu zhi li (Jiuzhi Calendar) (ie
Volume 104 Algorithm) recorded nine numerical
codes in Indian algorithm and decimal null/
invalid point symbols. Gautama Siddhartha also
introduced the Indian mathematical knowledge of
taking measurements with an arc and sine function
table at the interval of 3°45′. This was a significant
contribution in the history of exchanges between
India and China in mathematics. Commenting on
Indian astronomical algorithms, the Xin tang shu
(New Book of the Tang Dynasty) in its Volume
XXVIII, writes that “calculation was written in
characters (written calculation) rather than in a
planned manner. Algorithm was so complicated,
the accurate number may be obtained through
luck, but it cannot be regarded as proper
standard method. Astronomical algorithms were
so confused that they could not be explained on
first sight.” These derogatory words showed that
ancient Chinese scholars could not understand the
Indian astronomical algorithms profoundly.
Ancient Indian knowledge in metrology spread
through the translated sutras. In the Wu state during
the Three Kingdoms Period, in the translation of the
Indian Tripitaka’s Mo deng jia jing (Matangi Sutra),
Zhu Luyan and Zhi Qian in their chapter VI entitled
‘Observing Disaster and Auspiciousness’ records
Indian jin and liang algorithms. This includes the
conversion relations among weight units such as
wheat, soybean, Suvarna, ‘zhu’, ‘liang’, ‘jin’, ‘Para’,
‘cuo’, ‘ju’, ‘bo xi ta’, Magadha ‘Bo xi ta a’ and so
on. The Matangi Sutra also provided information
regarding methods of division and calculation of
distance – li and you xun (yojana) as well as of using
a water clock for measuring time, length of day and
night and seasons. The other translated version of Mo
deng jia jing (Matangi Sutra) entitled She tou jian tai ze
er shi ba su jing (Sutra on Twenty Eight Constellations
Remonstrated with the Prince), (translated by Indian
Dharmaraksa in the Western Jin Dynasty) narrates
in a much more detailed manner, the distance
measurement in yojana and li, and the knowledge
of distinguishing tastes and cereals. Methods of
writing and remembering large and small numbers
Zhi Falin who came from Lingshi County, Fenzhou
to collect saltpeter were the same person. According
to the investigation of He Bingyu, Du Gutao who
was the author of Dan fang jian yuan (Alchemical
Sources) was a foreign pharmaceutical dealer in the
late Tang Dynasty (or the Southern Tang Dynasty),
and had excellent proficiency in alchemy. These
alchemists living in China came from India, Sri
Lanka and Central Asia (for example, Kang Fazang)
and each of them undoubtedly introduced some
Indian alchemical methods to China. On the one
hand, Chinese Daoists absorbed and transformed
contents of foreign medicines and on the other,
they also propagated Daoist medical knowledge
(especially alchemy) outside China. The gold
medicines refined by the Daoists were frequently
sought by the Hun people (Hun merchants), who
purchased and sold it among Hun countries in the
Western Regions, thus spreading some alchemical
technologies to India, Persia and the Arab world and
influencing foreign medicines. The medical text of
Siddha in South India in particular records that there
were two Chinese Daoists (Bogar and Puëipari/
Pulipanni) among 18 Siddhars (saints). Relations
between Tamil alchemy and Daoism reflect mutual
communication of ancient India-China alchemy and
deserves much further research.
Exchanges in the field of
Mathematics and Metrology
Both Ancient India and China possessed excellent
advanced knowledge of mathematics. The Vedas
are a repository of the most ancient Indian
mathematics. Sheng fa jing (Sulba Sutra or Śulbasūtra)
is the most important classic on mathematics in
India. This includes geometric contents, questions
in algebraic calculus in architecture as well as
approximation of circumference ratio. There is
a symbol representing the number zero on a 9th
century stone tablet in Gwalior, India. The external
spread of Indian numerical codes via Arabia is
also one of the important contributions in the
history of mathematics in the world. Liu Ping,
the scholar who participated in the translations
of sutras in Dharmagupta’s translation institute in
the Sui Dynasty was proficient in mathematics and
compiled one volume on Nei wai bang tong bi jiao
shu fa [Internal-external Mastery and Comparison
with Mathematics (or External-internal Mastery
and Comparison with Mathematics)]. This sums up
mathematical names and calculation methods in
sutras translated into Chinese and compares them
with the corresponding Chinese units and numbers
ie “adopted mathematical methods in sutras to
compare with the Eastern Xia” so that Indian
mathematical terms and numbers in the process of
sutra translation could be standardised. This book
65
Cultural Contacts
and influence between ancient Chinese and Indian
mathematics needs further extensive probing.
in sutras also had some influence on China. The
Suan xue qi meng (Enlightenment of Mathematics) by
Zhu Shijie, a mathematician of the Yuan Dynasty,
recorded the Indian maximal numbers such as “sands
of the Ganges”, asamkhya, na yu ta, “incredible”
and “numerous”, and the minimal numbers such as
“sand”, “dust”, “dirt”, “tiny”, “insignificant”, “vague”,
“prowl”, “instant”, “moment”, “fillip”, “ksana”,
“six virtues”, “voidness”, “emptiness”, “clearness”,
“purity” and so on.
British scholar Joseph Needham and Chinese
scholar Qian Baocong thought that ancient Indian
mathematics was also influenced by China. In Zhong
guo shu xue shi (A History of Chinese Mathematics),
Qian Baocong listed 14 kinds of evidence including
place value digitals, four arithmetic operations,
fraction, three columns, arch area and ball volume,
simultaneous linear equations, negative number,
Pythagorean proposition, circumference ratio,
method of double differences, linear congruence,
indefinite equation, extraction of root and the
method of making the sine table to prove that
Indian mathematics was influenced by Chinese
mathematics. Indian scholar B S Yadav thought
that historically both India and China had
substantial exchanges in mathematics but similar
computational problems such as folding bamboo
and ball volume equation in Chinese and Indian
mathematical works do not fully explain the nature
of mutual exchange. The issue of mutual exchange
Exchanges in the Field of Technology
i) Fagoted Iron Forging: As a kind of high-quality
steel product, fagoted iron was a significant item in
the history of India-China exchanges in technology.
Metallurgical techniques in ancient India were
rather developed. The “Delhi Iron Pillar” forged
in about the 4th century is a typical representative
example of this technology. As far as steel-making
technologies are concerned, India developed a
kind of ultra-high carbon steel, namely the Wootz
steel, which was produced after refinement in
a cauldron. Later introduced in areas of ancient
Persia, Damascus (Syria) and Europe, this was
widely known as “Indian iron”. The Sanskrit name
of fagoted iron was “pina” as mentioned in Li yan’s
Fan yu za ming (Miscellaneous Names in Sanskrit)
compiled in the Tang Dynasty. Hui Lin points out in
volume XXXV of the book, Yi qie jing yin yi (Sounds
and Meanings of All the Sutras), that the “fagoted iron
came from Kophen (present Kashmir) and foreign
countries mixed it with other iron. This was refined
and superior to other iron.” The Wei shu: Xi yu zhuan
(Book of the Wei Dynasty: Legend of the Western
Regions) notes in general that Persian products
included fagoted iron and the earliest record
appeared in the literature on the history of the Han
Dynasty. Records related to fagoted iron in Zhou shu
(Book of the Zhou Dynasty) and the Sui shu (Book
of the Sui Dynasty) are, however, earlier than that
of Wei shu (Book of the Wei Dynasty). Following the
records in early Chinese literature, it can be said that
the central plains of China began to learn about the
foreign fagoted iron sourced from Persia and Caoguo
(same as Jibin/ Kapisha/ Kashmir) in the Northern
and Southern Dynasties. Among the translated sutras,
the earliest reference to fagoted iron is found in Bu
kong juan suo zhou jing (Amoghapasha Hridaya Sutra)
translated by Indian Tripitakacharya Jñanagupta in
the Sui Dynasty. It says that. “If one’s curses need to
be broken, his or her image shall be made with flour,
mud or max, and then fagoted iron shall be used
as a knife to cut it.” The word “fagoted” had two
meanings – firstly, it was the transliteration of a loan
word; secondly, it was iron from Jibin (Kashmir).
According to Indian Tantric literature such as Ta
luo ni ji jing (Dharani-samuccaya Sutra) translated by
Indian Tripitakacharya Atigupta, fagoted iron was
used to make Buddhist instruments including vajra
pestle with metals such as gold, silver, red copper
and tin etc. Yuan Zhen, a poet in the Tang Dynasty,
wrote in his poem Feng he che xi da fu Li Deyu shu
meng si shi yun (Forty Verses Describing Dreams to
Respond to the Scholar-official of West Zhejiang Li
Deyu) that “diamond drill cuts jade and fagoted iron
Iron Pillar in New Delhi
66
Cultural Contacts
sword peels feathers” which meant that knives and
swords made from fagoted iron were very sharp.
According to the studies of Qian Wei, a scholar of
history of metallurgy, the Jin tai zu shi lu (Authentic
Records of Emperor Taizu of Jin) mentions that “Liao
used fagoted iron as its state title although it was
hard, it would finally be destroyed.” This however,
cannot be regarded as the definitive evidence of
Khitan people having grasped the forging technology
for preparation of this kind of special steel. This
may have been fabricated by the Jin people. The
establishment of a “Fagoted Iron Bureau” in the
Yuan Dynasty is recorded in the Yuan shi: xuan
ju zhi san (History of the Yuan Dynasty: Record of
Election III). The use of the name “fagoted iron”,
however, cannot be truly regarded as evidence of
the introduction of this metallurgical technology
in China. It may have been used to manage Semu
ironsmiths from Central and West Asia. In view
of the lack of reliable evidence of fagoted iron
production in the Central Plains of China, new
knowledge on the development of metallurgy
arising out of archaeological excavations in Xinjiang
provide more valuable evidence on sources and
expansion of fagoted iron technology. According to
Shen Maoshang’s Si yi kuang ji (Extensive Records of
Four Borders), fagoted iron was made in Huozhou,
Xinjiang (present-day Hala), about 70 li to the
west of Liucheng and 30 li to the east of Turfan.
Huozhou offered fagoted iron knives and files, as
well as various kinds of clasp knives and diamond
drill as tribute. Fagoted iron was also made in
Hami Region, Xinjiang during the Ming period, and
there were iron ores which could be used to refine
it. The “fagoted iron was made from whetstone,
also known as “iron stone” and it was obtained by
cutting the stone,” (also referred to Official Records
of Hami). The Si yi kuang ji (Extensive Records of Four
Borders) mentions that Bengal (ie undivided Bengal
region) also made fagoted iron knives. Fagoted
iron products are recorded more extensively in the
Ming Dynasty. Cao Zhao’s Ge gu yao lun (Important
Theory of Assessing Antiques) notes that it came from
the Western Regions and its surface had spiral and
sesame snowflake-like patterns. Polished fagoted
iron knives and swords can be verified by their
spun golden alum pattern, while the fake ones are
distinguishable by their black colour. Fang Yizhi in
Volume VII of his Wuli xiao zhi (Physics Knowledge)
also refers to the same method for verification.
ii) Glaze Firing Chinese characters meaning
“Glaze” can be written in many ways like吠琉璃, 鞞
瑠璃, 毘瑠璃, 流离 and吠努璃野 is the transliteration
of Sanskrit word vaidurya. In sutras, it is generally
regarded as one of seven treasures (that consisted
of gold, silver, glaze, glass, tridacna, red pearl
and agate), most of which came from the Western
A snuff bottle of Qing Period with flowers interlocked with scroll design
Regions. The Wu du fu (Wu Capital Rhapsody)
which was written by Zuo Si (whose style name
was Taichong) in the Western Jin dynasty mentions
that “glaze and jade are precious”. Volume XI of Yi
qie jing yin yi (Sounds and Meanings of All Sutras)
written by Hui Lin in the Tang Dynasty refers to it
as “natural treasure in dark green, clear and bright,
which cannot be refined by the common stones and
fires in the world.” The technology for firing glaze
was introduced in China from the Western Regions in
the period of the Northern and Southern Dynasties.
Volume CII entitled Legend of the Western Regions of
the Wei shu (Book of the Wei Dynasty) records the
following in the time of Northern Wei’s Emperor
Tuoba Tao. "(Emperor Shizu) was on the throne,
one man from the Kushana country (Great Yueshi
Country) did business in the capital. He could cast
stone into a five-coloured glaze. He demonstrated it
in the capital by collecting ores from the mountains
and casting it on the stone. The casting was
successful and the end product was brighter and
more beautiful than the western glaze. He was then
summoned to the imperial palace which could hold
over 100 people and all were surprised to see its
bright colours and thought that it was made by god.
From then on, the Chinese glaze was considered
inferior and people didn’t value it.” The technology
for firing glaze was introduced into Luoyang from
the Great Kushana Empire in the northwest of India
and Central Asia, during the Northern Wei Dynasty.
It thus appears to have certainly originated in India.
Five-coloured glazes fired with this technology can
be favourably compared with the ones imported
from the western regions. From the Northern Wei
Dynasty to the prosperous Tang Dynasty, Chinese
craftsmen gradually mastered the art of making
fake and imitation glazes. Volume XVIII of Yi qie
67
Cultural Contacts
jing yin yi (Sounds and Meanings of All Sutras) points
out that “glazes are blue/ green treasures, and
there are authentic and fake ones. It is difficult to
obtain authentic glazes which are made by foreign
countries. Fake glazes are refined from stone in the
country and dyed into five colours.” From then on,
glazes became an essential component of decoration
and have been found fused in the construction of
palaces, temples, mausoleums and other such
representative architecture of ancient and modern
China. The technology for firing glaze developed
then has more or less remained the same till the
present time.
iii) Sugar-making Technology: The origin and
development of technology for manufacturing sugar
is one of the most representative successful examples
of mutual exchanges and interaction between India
and China. Professor Ji Xianlin’s History of Sugar
Cane is a wonderful work describing significance
of the technology of cane sugar making in China’s
exchanges with the outside world. India was one of
the original producers of cane sugar and had a highly
The data chart of the world's oldest sugar mill outlined
in an Indian Jain classic
were assigned to Eastern Xia. Under an imperial
order, they went to Yuezhou, and successfully made
sugar with cane.” The Xin tang shu: xi yu lie zhuan
(New Book of the Tang Dynasty: Miscellaneous Records
of the Western Regions) mentions that Emperor
Taizong sent envoys to visit India’s Magadha region
and learn the method for making sugar. Further,
Yangzhou’s cane was used to make Chinese sugar,
“whose colour and taste were better than that of
the Western Regions”. Its quality exceeded that of
Indian sugar. Descriptions about the Indian method
for making sugar at the back of Dunhuang Fragments
P.3303 mentions that five Indian regions in the west
make three kinds of cane sugars, and two of them
can be used to make the best granulated sugar and
‘śakkara’. Leaves of sugar canes are cut off, each
section is then cut into five inches in length, and then
all are put into a large wooden mortar pulled by a
bull. The method for juicing canes was same as that of
extraction using the Kolhu (ox-driven pestle) device
recorded in traditional Indian literature. The socalled “sha ge leng” (‘śakkara’) was the same as ‘she…
jia luo (śarkarā’)’ mentioned in the Tang Buddhist
character book entitled Tang-Fan liang yu shuang dui
ji (Collections interfacing in two languages – Tang and
Sanskrit). This meant ‘shi mi’ (refined sugar) was the
transliteration of ‘śarkarā’ in Sanskrit. Refined sugar
(white sugar) was used in medical prescriptions or
dietetic therapies in the Tang Dynasty. The Shi liao
ben cao (Dietetic Materia Medica) of the Tang Dynasty
states that the refined sugars (white sugars) “from
Middle Sichuan and Persia were superior. Eastern
Wu also had sugar, which was inferior to those in the
two places.” The refined sugar had the function of
“eliminating hot membrane and brightening eyes”.
Indian medical books and their translated versions
propagated in the Western Regions in the Tang and
Sui Dynasties, such as the Bao wei er xie ben (the
Bower Manuscript), Yi li jing hua (Siddhasra) and Qipo
shu (Jīvaka-pustaka) refer to medical prescriptions
with granulated sugar and refined sugar which
undoubtedly promoted the propagation of the
method for making sugar in China. However, the
pharmaceutical scope of granulated sugar became
narrower and narrower from the Tang Dynasty to
the Ming and Qing Dynasties and it basically turned
Recreating the Tang scenery (recorded in
Ming Dynasty’s Song Yingxing)
developed technology for making sugar. India’s
famous medical classic, Śuśruta-samhita (Sha wen ben
ji) and the definitive treatise on government, Arthasastra (Li lun) refer to the existence of five types
of sugar named according to different colours and
purities. In Buddhist Vinaya literature translated into
Chinese, various varieties of ancient Indian sugar and
its application in daily life are recorded. The term
cane sugar (‘gan su’ 甘蔗) is written in several ways
in Chinese literature, eg 'gan zhe竿蔗', 'shu zhe 薯
蔗', 'zhu zhe诸蔗', 'zhu zhe诸柘', 'zhu zhe竹蔗', 'du
zhe杜蔗' and 'du zhe 都蔗'etc. These transliterated
words explain its origin in foreign countries. Chinese
sugar probably appeared in an era between the Three
Kingdoms and the Tang Dynasty or the Southern and
Northern Dynasties. Volume IV entitled ‘Legend of
Xuanzang’ in Dao Xuan’s book, Xu gao ceng zhuan
(Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks) written
in the early Tang Dynasty, refers to Tang Emperor
Taizong’s dispatch of Wang Xuance to India as an
envoy who “recruited monks of Bodhi Temple as
sugar craftsmen. Two craftsmen and eight monks
68
Cultural Contacts
into pure edible food. After the Indian method for
making sugar was introduced in China, Chinese
craftsmen over a long time continuously improved
and perfected it. He Qiaoyuan of Ming Dynasty’s
Min shun an chan zhi (Records of Southern Products
in Fujian) describes the decolourising method in the
Yuan Dynasty, which improved sugar quality greatly.
Similar technology for making sugar was seen in
various kinds of references such as in Fang Yizhi’s Wu
li xiao zhi (Physics Knowledge). Song Yingxing’s Tian
puspa-sita as the most superior sugar in ancient India
which was also known aspadma-cini (lotus sugar),
phul-cini (flower sugar) and bhura (powder sugar)
in Bengal region. The latter names of the superior
white sugar in Bengal obviously indicate Chinese
connections which can be found from the two words,
ie padma-cini and phul-cini. Therefore, China learned
the technology for making sugar from India early,
then improved it and developed the white sugar
technology after great efforts and finally exported
it to the region of Bengal and India. This evinces
long and deep mutual cultural exchanges between
ancient China and India.
iv) Paper-Making Technology: Before the
discovery of paper, people in ancient India used broad
leaves of palm plants, birch barks, leather, wood
chips, iron and copper plates to write chronicles. In
China, during the middle of the Eastern Han Dynasty,
Cai Lun improved paper-making technique, and the
use of paper gradually became popular. Direct trade
contacts between India and China were established
from the early Western Han Dynasty. During the
late Eastern Han Dynasty, visiting Indian monks and
merchants became familiar with the paper. Soon,
paper along with silk became important items for
import to India. The paper-making technique might
have been introduced into India between the Jin
Dynasty (265-420 CE) and the Tang Dynasty (618-907
CE). There is, however, still no accurate and direct
historical evidence for its movement to India. After
the Tang Dynasty, India-China traffic and cultural
exchanges became deeper and more frequent. The
Sanskrit name of “paper” was Jia jia li (kākari) in Yi
Jing’s Fan yu qian zi wen (Thousand Sanskrit Words).
The Sanskrit name of kākari or kākali for “paper”
was also included in another Sanskrit-Chinese book
in the Tang Dynasty, ie Li Yan’s Fan wen za ming
(Miscellaneous names in Sanskrit). This indicates that
India had the word for “paper” by the Tang Dynasty.
Extrapolating from this, it may be argued that the
“kākari” in Sanskrit (“kāgad” in Hindi and “kāgaz”
A surviving section from the Dunhuang
Collection written in Chinese on the
sugar manufacturing method of India
gong kai wu (Creations of Heaven and Human Labor)
defines this kind of bleaching technology during
the process of refining white sugar as the method
of “showering yellow mud”. It can be said that the
method of showering and bleaching yellow mud was
the great invention in the history of sugar-making
technology in China. After the Chinese technology
for making sugar was improved, China obviously
again began to export white sugar of higher quality
to India. Ma Huan’s Ying-yai sheng-lan (Overall Survey
of the Ocean’s Shores) records that the Bengal region
(present-day Bangladesh) had sweet food items such
as cane, white sugar, granulated sugar, icing sugar,
candy and so on. Gong Zhen’s Xi yang fan guo zhi
(Annals of the Foreign Counties in the Western Ocean)
records that Bengal made products such as granulated
sugar, white sugar and icing sugar. Volume CCCXXVI
of Ming shi (History of the Ming Dynasty) and Volume
CXVIII of Ming hui dian (Collected Ming Statutes),
constituting the Library of Four Treasures record
that tributes offered by Bengal included icing sugar.
Professor Ji Xianlin believes that Chinese technology
for making white sugar was introduced in India in
the second half of the 13th century and it reached
Bengal via the overseas/maritime Silk Road. The
Indian 16th century classic Bhavaprakasa refers to
Golden official paper, western Han
69
Cultural Contacts
is found in Liang shu xi bei zhu rong zhuan (Book of the
Liang Dynasty: Records of Northwestern Barbarians)
that states, “There were many grass and trees, fruits
looked like silkworms and contained fine threads.
It was called ‘white stack’, and the people used it
to weave cloth, which was soft and white, and was
traded in the market.” Dunhuang documents refer to
a large number of “cotton” items, that included both
cotton flower and cloth, official cloth which was
turned over to governmental authorities and clothes
used by temples and common people that were
made of one of the species of cotton cloth. Dunhuang
transported a lot of cotton cloth from Xinjiang’s
Tulufan (Turfan) area which was called Anxi cotton
and Xizhou cloth. The cotton planting technique
was propagated from Gansu Corridor into places
like Dunhuang. During the Song Dynasty there was
further massive increase in cotton cultivation with
its entry into China through the maritime route. It
extended to places like Yangtze River Valley and
West Shaanxi in the Central Plains. Several Chinese
books discuss the importance and significance of
cotton. Shi Zhao’s Tong jian shi wen (Explanation
of Comprehensive Mirror for Aid in Government)
describes methods for planting and weaving cotton.
Volume II of the official book Yi sang ji yao (Brief
Points of Agriculture and Silkworm) of the Yuan
Dynasty emphasises advantages of cotton planting.
The Yuan Government established a Silk Cotton
Promotion Office to manage cotton planting. During
the Ming Dynasty, Xu Guangqi’s Yi zheng chuan
shu (Complete Work of Agricultural Administration)
quotes Wang Zhen’s Yi sang tong shi (Comprehensive
Exposition of Agriculture and Silkworm), to describe
specific methods for planting cotton. After the
in Urdu in later generations), “kāgaz” in Farsi and
“kāgad” in Arabic may have originated from “kagas”
in Old Uighur. This may illustrate that Xinjiang’s
Turks introduced the paper-making technique into
India during the early 8th century. Volume IV of Yi
Jing’s Nan hai ji hui nei fa zhuan (An Account of the
Inner Law Sent Home from the South Sea) describes
Paper manufacturing (preserved in Ming China’s
‘Nong zheng quan shu’ by Xu Guangqi)
that India “made earthenware bottom and developed
terracotta images, or printed silk and paper and
paid tribute everywhere… Western Buddhists and
laymen lived on it.” Terracotta images of Buddha on
paper confirm that Indians had paper for daily use
at that time. In terms of scale and quality of papermaking technique, the Chinese technique imported
to the Arab Region after 751 AD was better than
that of India. There appeared to be two routes for
the transmission of paper-making technique into
India. The first was from Xinjiang via Kashmir and
the second was from Tibet via Nepal. The number of
available Indian texts or manuscripts indicates that
the use of paper in India increased gradually between
11th-12th century. The Indian paper-making technique
also over time extended from Kashmir and Punjab to
South India and its scale of production accordingly
enlarged. The level of paper-making technique in
some areas of India had become very high by the
Ming period with success in manufacturing multiple
grade papers such as Grade I white paper etc Ma
Huan’s Yingya shenglan (Overall Survey of the Ocean’s
Shores and Gong Zhen’s Annals of the Foreign Countries
in the Western Ocean) record that the Grade I white
paper made from bark in Bengal was as smooth and
fine as chamois leather.
v) Cotton Production and Textile Technology:
India was both the place of origin as well as the
earliest place in the world for the cultivation and
production of Asian cotton. The earliest cotton and
cotton cloth were introduced from India into China.
Archaeological excavations in China indicate that
cotton cultivation began in areas such as Minfeng
(Niya), Hetian (Khotan) and Tulufan (Turfan) in
Xinjiang from the Han Dynasty onwards. The earliest
record of cotton (African cotton) cultivation in
Gaochang (present day Tulufan/ Turfan), Xinjiang,
Preserved in Ming China’s ‘Nong zheng quan shu’ by Xu Guangqi
late Ming Dynasty, cotton cultivation became very
popular in China.
Exchanges in the Field of Architecture
Both in ancient India and China, knowledge and
skills in architecture were well-developed. The
knowledge of Buddhist art and architecture was
70
Cultural Contacts
“all of its style was based on the Western Region.”
This indicates that it was built completely according
to the layout pattern of Indian temples. With the
development of close contact through the maritime
Silk Road, Indians came to China for a living. Hindu
Brahmanical temples were built in Guangzhou in
the Tang Dynasty and a ‘Śiva’ temple was raised in
the famous ancient trading port in Quanzhou during
the Song and Yuan Dynasties. Its stone engravings
depict themes from relevant Hindu religious
scriptures and are still visible. During more modern
times, Chinese-styled temples as well as wooden and
stone pagodas (eg temples in China Town and in
Indian Buddhist centres for pilgrimage) have been
built by Chinese in India. These could be considered
as representative examples of Chinese architecture
in India.
At the beginning of the introduction of Indian
Buddhism, Chinese temple architecture followed the
Indian Buddhist grove-styled temple layout with a
pagoda at the centre and temple halls built around
it. By the time of Jin and Tang Dynasties, temple
halls gradually became the central part of the main
building and the pagoda was either placed at a noncentral position or moved out of the temple. Chinese
Buddhist temple layout gradually further integrated
with traditional Chinese palace architecture and the
main halls began to be standardised, with Mountain
Gate, Heavenly King Hall, Mahavira Hall, Dharma Hall
and Tripitaka Pavilion becoming the essential body of
the temple. Its style over the time became more and
more localised, and adopted Chinese architectural
colorings for the Buddhist temples. Yet the close
linkages of Chinese Buddhist architecture with those
of Indians especially in grottoes, pagodas, Dharani
sutra pillars and engravings, cannot be denied.
(Niu Weixing & Chen Ming)
introduced in China by Indians monks who came to
China to propagate Buddhism and Chinese monks
who visited India to seek Dharma. Xuanzang’s
Da tang xi yu ji (Travelling Notes of the Western
Regions in the Great Tang Dynasty) notes in detail
the architecture of a Buddhist temple in the famous
Nalanda Monastery. Volume I of Yi Jing’s Da tang xi
yu qiu fa gao seng zhuan (Biographies of the Venerable
Zhao xian Buddhist stone pillar of dharani
(religious chants), located in the city of Zhao
xian in China’s Hebei province. It happens to
be the tallest existing Buddhist stone pillar in
China, rising up to almost 16 m.
Monks of the Great Tang Dynasty Who Studied Buddhist
Classics in the Western Regions) too illustrates in
detail architectural scale, layout, materials and
technologies of the Nalanda Monastery. This, in fact,
gives us a valuable first-hand record of the ancient
Indian Buddhist temple architecture. Two volumes
of Dao Xuan’s Zhong tian zhu she wei guo qi huan shit u
jing (Illustrated Scripture of Jetavana Vihara of Śrāvastī
in Central India) claims it to be “written by Monk
Shi in South Mountain in a ‘state of enlightenment’.”
Some of its description of architectural layout
of Jetavana Vihara of Sravasti in Central India,
however, came from records of the Indian monks.
Certain stylistic architectural designs of the Indian
Buddhist temple architecture more or less influenced
the construction of Chinese Buddhist temples. Some
Indian monks who visited China during the Sui and
Tang Dynasties were proficient in architecture and
participated in designing or construction of Chinese
Buddhist temples. The Longmen Indian Temple
in Luoyang, Henan was built by Tripitakacharya
(dharma master) Bao Siwei depicting abdication of
throne and adoption of monastic life by the Indian
prince, Siddharth Gautam. According to records in
Volume III of Song gaoseng zhuan (Biographies of
Eminent Monks Compiled in the Song Dynasty), Bao
Siwei built his temple on Longmen Mountain and
Mathematics and
Astronomy
Ancient Indian
Mathematics and
Astronomy
A kind of knowledge hierarchy which was applied to
observing and describing astronomical phenomena,
as well as to giving explanations and predictions via
mathematical methods was developed in ancient
India. According to the opinions of D. Pingree,
Indian ancient astronomy can be divided into five
periods orderly as Vedic Period (about 1000-400
BCE), Babylonian Period (about 400-200 BCE),
Hellenistic Babylonian Period (about 200-400 CE),
Greek Period (from 400-1600 CE) and Islamic
Period (from 1600-1800 CE).
71
Cultural Contacts
According to history, though foreign astronomy
made inroads in India several times, Vedic
astronomy as the indigeneous Indian astronomy
was still preserved though various methods while
blending with other external astronomy. Meanwhile,
such Indian ancient astronomy blended with other
external astronomy spread to China along with
the eastern spread of Buddhism. Moreover, the
detailed description of the spread of Indian ancient
astronomy knowledge to China can be found in
Chinese Buddhist Scriptures and various other
historical records, and the contents thereof can be
divided as follows: 1. Cosmology 2. Constellation
system 3. Running of the sun and the moon, eclipses
4. Season and calendar 5. Running of planets and
calendar thereof.
The cosmology knowledge introduced along
with Buddhism shall belong to early India mainly
including the concept of Kalpa, cyclic destruction
and creation of cosmos, size and measurement of
cosmos etc. Buddhism world view believes that at
the beginning of Kalpa, the cosmos with certain
structure is constructed via wind while the whole
world is destroyed completely at the end of Kalpa
thus forming one cycle and then recreating the
world. The Indian ancient cosmic structure is
quantitatively described in Buddhist scriptures as
follows: All things in the cosmos are located on a
large wind wheel without edge, with the thickness
The astronomical data of the Vedic Period is
mainly preserved in Vedas such as Rig-Veda,
thus constituting the most indigenous astronomy
in India. During the Babylonian Period, a large
Stone inscription in Gwalior, India from 9th century CE
number of Mesopotamian astronomical contents
were blended in Indian astronomy, including the
method of describing day length changes, other
parameters, mathematical models, time units,
instruments etc derived from Babylon. Then, the
astronomy of Babylonian Seleucid Period which
was adapted by Greeks, was introduced into
the Hellenistic Babylonian Period including the
description of the planetary configuration, the
geometric calculations etc concerned to eclipses,
shadow length etc and meanwhile some contents
were preserved in Pañcasiddhāntikā completed
around 575 CE. Successively, a lot of astronomical
talents came out in the Greek Period that the Indian
astronomy lasted for more than one thousand years,
many classic works were created and Pakṣa was also
formed. Therein, Brāhmapakṣa was first established
(400 CE) and lasted for the longest time (more than
Ancient text books on Mathematics
1,500 years) thus having a far-reaching influence
and the rest are as follows: āryapakṣa established
in 500 CE, ārdharātikapakṣa established in 500 CE,
Saurapakṣa established in 800 CE and Gaṇeṣapakṣa
established in 1500 CE. Along with the introduction
of Islam into India, India experienced an Islamic
Period between 1600 CE and 1800 CE, and after
that the country came in direct contact with western
modern astronomy.
New Delhi’s Jantar Mantar observatory is located at Sansad Marg,
New Delhi in India. It was built in 1724.
72
Cultural Contacts
which is translated into Chinese according to the
literal meaning of the Sanskrit constellation name can
be found in Chinese Buddhist Scriptures. The Citrā of
Indian constellation system is different from that in
ancient China and besides Spica, Kṛttikā and Asvini
are also taken as Citrāin Chinese Buddhist scriptures.
Obviously, Spica is taken as Citrā in order to remain
the same with Chinese ancient constellation system.
Moreover, Kṛttikā is taken as Citrā diagnostically in
ancient India meaning the constellation where the
spring equinox is located but taking Asvini as Citrā
successively in Chinese Buddhist scriptures aims at
reflecting the adjustment due to precession. There are
two kinds of constellation amount, namely 28 and 27,
in Chinese Buddhist scriptures. The 28 constellation
system is consistent with ancient China on amount,
however, the 27 constellation system excluding
Abhijil is the Indian local constellation system
which is the adjusted product aiming at matching
with the signs of the zodiac. The most complete
and clearest descriptions for the 27 constellation
system in Chinese Buddhist scriptures first appeared
in Sutra on Taking Auspices by Celestial Constallations
and Bodies translated by Tang Bukong. However,
the width of the constellations in Chinese Buddhist
Scriptures division is mainly an uneven division and
the unevenness is not ruleless as that in ancient China
and can be roughly divided into wide, secondary
wide and narrow. From Sutra on Taking Auspices by
Celestial Constellations and Bodies and other Buddhist
scriptures, we also can find a trend of unifying the
widths of the constellations which shall be influenced
by the introduction of signs of the zodiac into India.
Additionally, in Buddhist Scriptures, the star numbers
thereof as 1,600,000 yojanas. A water wheel is set
on the wind wheel, with the thickness as 1,120,000
yojanas and the surface of 320,000 yojanas is
coagulated to form gold and land wheel. The
Diagram of the four divisions of the twenty eight
constellations, namely, Azure Dragon, White Tiger,
Vermilion Bird, and Black Tortoise.
diameter of the water wheel and the gold wheel are
both 1,203,450 yojanas and the perimeters thereof
are three times the diameters. Sumeru is located
centrally on the gold wheel with the outflow height
and the underwater penetration both as 84,000
yojanas and with seven gold hills orderly embracing
externally; four great regions are located outside the
seven gold hills while Cakkava is located outside the
four great regions. The underwater penetration of
the seven hills and Cakkava is the same with that of
the Sumeru but the outflow height is orderly halved,
and the widths of the hills are equal to the outflow
height. Among the above nine hills, there are eight
seas with the first seven seas as the inland seas, the
width of the innermost sea is 80,000 yojanas and the
perimeter thereof is 240,000 yojanas. The widths of
the rest of the six seas are orderly halved and the
eighth sea is open sea with the width as 321,000
yojanas. This Indian ancient cosmos model is similar
with the Chinese ancient canopy heavens cosmos
model but there is still no definite evidence to prove
the correlation.
We need to pay attention to the name translations,
the Citrā issue, the constellation amount, the
constellation width, the configuration etc of the Indian
constellation system in Chinese Buddhist Scriptures.
Before the Indian constellation system was introduced
to China, a set of similar constellation system had
already formed in China. The name translations of the
Indian constellation in Chinese translation process
have the following three conditions: 1. Most of the
constellations are translated into Chinese existing
constellations 2. Some of the constellations are
translated into Chinese via transliteration according
to Sanskrit pronunciations 3. Only one example
Diagram on astronomy, Qing Xiao Yun Cong
73
Cultural Contacts
by Indian Buddhist Kumāra is also attached to the
article of Eclipse Theory in Taien Calendar of Volume
34 of Old Book of Tang (refer to article “Kumāra”
for details). In addition, the Indian eclipse method
translated by Gautama Siddha clearly introduces the
Indian eclipse calculation method (refer to article
‘Jiuzhi Calendar’ for details).
The contents related to the season and the calendar
of ancient India are abundantly recorded in Chinese
Buddhist scriptures mainly including season division,
month name, concept of the white moon and black
moon, arrangement of a solar month of 31 days and a
solar month of 30 days, inserting of leap month, day
and night length change, division and denomination
of day and night etc. Four kinds of different definitions
for the month are given in Volume 48 of Great Treatise
on the Perfection of Wisdom namely “Solar Month”,
“Karma Month”, “Lunation Month”, “Nakshatra
Month”. Therein, “Solar Month” is one-twelfth the
length of the tropical year, “Karma Month” is an ideal
year (360 days as an ideal year), “Lunation Month”
is namely the synodic month and “Nakshatra Month”
is namely the sidereal month. And several sheets of
the shadow length change during seasonal variation
are also given in Buddhist Scriptures and Time and
Non-Time has the most detailed data. Except Jiuzhi
Calendar, Futian Calendar which originated from
Indian astronomy and was popular among Chinese
folks during the late Tang dynasty is a representative
of the complete writings similar with Indian ancient
siddhanta, but the main contents have been lost. In
addition, Guangzhai Calendar written by Gautama
Ambrosius is presumed to be a kind of astronomical
table for calculating astronomical phenomena
according to Indian astronomy.
Indian Observatory at Jaipur, located in Rajasthan, India
of the constellation systems are greatly different from
that in ancient China and the star numbers of only
five constellations are totally the same. Meanwhile,
the names of the implements or the products used for
describing the constellation configuration also have
an Indian characteristic.
In regard to the running of the sun and the moon,
several Chinese Buddhist Scriptures mention that
the sun and the moon run around Sumeru while
being supported and blown by the wind wheel
and the running height is half height of Sumeru,
namely 42,000 yojanas. The diameter of the sun is
51 yojanas while that of the moon is 50 yojanas. The
four continents experience day and night alternative
as well as seasonal variation along with the running
of the sun around Sumeru. Volume V “Orbits of
The Sun And The Moon 19th” in Abhidharma Theory
mentions: the sun has 180 orbits while the moon has
15 orbits. The sun continuously transits from one sun
orbit to another sun orbit every day in half-a-year
and then returns to the innermost sun orbit from the
outermost sun orbit orderly which can reasonably
explain annual variation, such as Sunrise azimuth
change, day and night length change etc. As for the
orbits of the moon, one moon orbit is equivalent to
12 sun orbits, the sun and the moon repeatedly run
between the most southern sun orbit and the most
northern sun orbit between which the distance is
290 yojanas. Meanwhile, it also mentions that solar
radiation shapes in a sphere with the diameter as
721,200 yojanas.
According to Chinese Buddhist scriptures, eclipses
were caused by Asurindaka Rahu with his hands
covering the sun and meanwhile six eclipse periods
were mentioned. From other document literatures
except Chinese Buddhist scriptures, we can know
that the Indian astronomy introduced in China
featured the eclipse theory. Moreover, “Kasyapa
Harvey Indian Method” which is an Indian method
for calculating eclipses is attached to the article of
Eclipse Theory in Linde Calendar of Volume 33 of
Old Book of Tang (refer to article “Kasyapa Harvey”
for details) and one paragraph of Indian eclipse
method which is “Eclipse Cutting Method” spread
A page in the Ancient Calendar in the Dai language
74
Cultural Contacts
to the opinion of Joseph Needham, the earliest
dot or zero symbols, appeared in two inscriptions
in Cambodia and Sumatra. This year was taken
to be the starting point of Sakha calendar and the
inscription belonged to Sakha 605th year. Therefore,
if the Sakha Calendar started from 78 CE then the
inscription belonged to 683 CE. According to another
view, if the Sakha Calendar started from 128 CE then
the inscription belonged to 733 CE, which is a little
later than the compilation time of Jiuzhi Calendar.
In nine chapters of Mathematical Book written by
Qin Jiushao of Song Dynasty (1247 CE), zero was
changed into a hollow circle which is the same as
its modern form. At present, there is still no clear
evidence to indicate that using the hollow circle as
the zero symbol in the ancient Chinese mathematics
books originated from India.
(Niu Wexing)
The following planet knowledge is mainly
involved in Chinese Buddhist scriptures: planet
name and order, planetary scale, travelling range,
planetary calendar etc. Especially, Rahu and Ketu
are also taken as planets. Sometimes Chinese
ancient names are adopted as the names of the
planets but sometimes the transliteration names
are adopted. And the orders of the planets are
sometimes determined by the order of Chinese
ancient generation among five elements and
sometimes determined by the brightness thereof,
and meanwhile the orders “From Fast to Slow” are
also given in Sutra on Taking Auspices by Celestial
Constellations and Bodies. In addition, the travelling
range of the planets and the calendar thereof are
intensively described in Expelling the Seven Planets’
Fated Calamities (refer to Expelling the Seven Planets’
Fated Calamities for details).
Since Indian astronomy was introduced in
China in the early times and had a large time span
(from 3rd to 10th centuries CE), thus the related
materials are piecemeal preserved till now and it
is also difficult to establish the correlation between
the astronomical contents thereof and certain
astronomical classics of Pakṣa in different Indian
periods. However, we are still able to trace the
impact of Indian astronomy on Chinese astronomy
and such impact most seriously influenced Chinese
astronomy in Tang dynasty. Li Qiao mentioned
in Shenlong Calendar Serial that the Indian and
Chinese astronomers were different from each
other but they had the interlinked astronomy
thoughts and fought for modifying the calendar
together. The most classic works shall be Taien
calendar as Japanese Buddhist Saicho who came
to Tang for Buddha dharma described in Dharma
Blood Spectrum that “Tang and Brahman Buddhists
communicate and reach an agreement” thus
completing the classic works in Chinese calendar
history and becoming the model of later calendars.
(Chen Ming & Niu Weixing)
Portraits of
Constellation Gods
Painting of constellations was a kind of subject for
painting that started in India and also an implement
used for sacrifice via the introduction of Esoterism.
As communications between India and China
flourished since the Tang Dynasty, the paintings of
constellations prevalent in India gradually spread to
China. Zhang Sengyao was a painter in Liang dynasty
whose three pieces of paintings were said to be the
earliest record of constellation paintings ie Painting of
Nine Constellations, Painting of Saturn, Paintings of Five
Planes and Twenty-eight Constellations. If these records
are true, they show that as early as the Liang Dynasty,
China began to take in Indian star-god pictures.
However, scholars mostly deem that there was some
doubt that the star-god paintings emerged in Liang
Dynasty and the real author of those paintings should
be someone in the Tang Dynasty instead.
The paintings of celestial gods were divided into
two categories, one of which was regarded as such
artistic works as Paintings of Five Planes and Twentyeight Constellations. The other of which was used in
sacrifice like the paintings of various star-gods and
Buddha in Buddhist texts.
Terms, Items
ZERO
Zero is a numerical code denoting “nil”. Although the
decimal system was adopted in ancient China quite
early, there was still no special symbol to denote zero
and in case of zero in number writing, the position
of zero was replaced with a blank. When translating
Jiuzhi Calendar in the sixth year of Emperor Kaiyuan
(718 CE), Gautama Siddhartha introduced the Indian
numerical symbol of zero to China at the beginning of
the Jiuzhi Calendar in “Number Accounting Method”.
He said that when counting up to 10 place one dot
in the blank as a mark in order to make the blanks
have marks and thus prevent mistakes. According
Tang dynasty Liang Lin Zan’s ‘Diagram of the five stars and twenty
Tibetan deities’. This picture is preserved at the art gallery in the city of
Osaka, Japan.
75
Cultural Contacts
paintings, after being introduced into China, could
be only regarded as the paintings of that certain
stage, while those paintings in India had evolved
into other forms. The second reason was that, after
the introduction into China, they were transmitted
secretly so not much was exposed to the world
besides the limited number of paintings were
incapable of representing the whole characteristics
of India-originating paintings. The third reason
was that the Buddhist texts and art works probably
were endowed with some elements of Central Asia.
(Li Hui)
Painting of Five Planes and Twenty-eight Constellations,
in Chinese art history, was passed as an exclusive
painting subject, the content of which included
pictures of five planes and those of 28 constellations.
There were five types available in the world which
were listed in order of authors’ times respectively –
Tang, Song, Yuan and Ming, Paintings of Five Planes
and Twenty-eight Constellations collected in Osaka
Metropolitan Museum of Art, Painting Rolls by Song
People collected in the Palace Museum, Constellation
Paintings by Yuanzixia and Constellation paintings
by Qiuying collected in America Metropolitan
Museum of Art. The picture of Mars in Painting of Five
Planes and Twenty-Eight Constellations was collected
in Osaka Metropolitan Museum of Art.
There was a large number of Buddhist texts
which illustrated the paintings of star-gods. Brahma
Navagraha Fire, Seven Constellations Resisting
Calamities, Picture of Fire were all collected in
Tripitake and they illustrate the paintings of
nine constellation gods. However, Buddhist texts
collecting paintings of 28 constellations and zodiacs
were rare with an exception of Picture of Fire which
collected a combination of paintings of various
constellation gods.
There were numerous paintings of star-gods
available in Dunhuang accounts. Their popularity
was due to their increasing inroads in folk customs
and beliefs as well as prevalvence of Esoterism.
People believed that the unfavourable effects
arising from vicious constellations could be warded
off or weakened by means of enshrining pictures
of constellation gods and holding proper rituals.
Calamities could be diminished by prayers and
blessings. The folk belief thus accelerated the
popularity of constellation paintings.
Picture of Fire, Collected in Toyota temple, in
Tripitake, at the seventh roll, pages 693-704
Picture of Buddha was a painting assembling
Buddha and various constellation gods. It shared
the effect of diminishing calamities and praying
blessings. However, in this painting, Buddha dwelt
at the centre and the other constellation gods
gathered around.
Painting of Buddha and Five Planes, collected in
British Museum, NO. 1919,0101,0.31
Constellation-god paintings that were made as art
works and those out of Chinese Buddhist texts were
obviously closely related but differed in properties.
For example, a prominent change often is reflected
in alteration of the constellation gods’ riding
animals in painting of Five Planes and Twenty-eight
Constellations to their crowns in Buddhist texts.
Until today, constellation paintings that were
introduced in China cannot match Indian passon paintings. The first reason was that star-god
painting has been a long-evolving subject. These
Personalities
Zhen luan
Zhen Luan was a Chinese mathematician from
Wuji, a county in present day Hebei Province in
the Northern Zhou of the Southern and Northern
Dynasties. His dates of birth and death are
unknown. Zhen Luan was a military officer and
a governor in Hanzhong city before and after
the middle of 6th century CE. He was a Buddhist
and good at arithmetic. He wrote three books on
Theory Against Taoism, two books on Five Classics
of Arithmetics, five books on Five Cao Arithmetics,
two books on Seven Luminaries of Calendar Art,
nine books on Nine Chapters of Mathematics Art,
one book on the Notes of Zhoubi Mathematics Art
etc. The name of the books that Zhen Luan noted
are three books of Xia Houyang Mathematics Art
and Zhang Qiujian Mathematics Art; three books
of Sun-Tzu Mathematics; one book of the Summary
of Mathematics; and one book of Three Kinds of
Mathematics. He developed the Tianhe Calender
which was implemented in 566 CE, the year of
Tianhe in Northern Zhou and was used for the next
12 years.
In the fifth year of Tianhe ie 570 CE, Zhen Luan
was ordered by the Emperor Wu to learn Buddhism
and Taoism in detail to confirm their length and
determine their true and fictional portions. This
A picture of the book, 'Legacy of the Record of the technique of
counting', an ancient block-printed edition of Mao jin ji of the
Chongzhen reign period of the Ming Dynasty.
76
Cultural Contacts
Yixing
is the primary content of his book, Theory against
Taoism. Because Zhen Luan was a Buddhist, he was
seriously against all kinds of points of Taoism and
in 36 articles of the book, he referred to some of
India’s universe/cosmos theories, such as inexorable
doom, universe of 1,000,000,000 universes and
trayastrimsa.
The Summary of Mathematics was written by
Xuyue in Han dynasty and is noted by Zhen Luan.
Qian Baocong thought that the book was both
written and noted by Zhen Luan and its authorship
is inadvertently attributed to Xuyue but some other
scholars believe that it was truly authored by Xuyue
and noted by Zhen Luan. The writer narrates in
first person that he met Liuhong when travelled
to Mountain Tai and Liuhong told him that he had
learned three kinds of scale system and 14 kinds of
noting numbers from Tianmu whom he encountered
in mountains.
What Liuhong mentions is the three kinds of scale
system. The bottom in 10 multiply 10, the middle
in 10,000 multiply 10,000 and the top in number
changed when there is no number. Ten multiply
10 is 100, 10 multiply 100 is 1000 and 10 multiply
1000 is 10,000 and so on. Ten thousand multiply
10,000 means 10,000 multiply 10,000 is a hundred
million and then billion, a hundred billion etc. The
number changes when there is no number means a
hundred million, billion and a hundred billion. This
so-called number changes is the same as the point 45
in Buddhavatamsaka-Mahavaipulya-Sutra translated
by Siksananda in Tang dynasty; the article 25 of
The King of Hearts Bodhisattva Asks the Monk Named
A Seng in book 29 translated by Buddhabhadra in
Eastern Jin Dynasty and the Bodhisattva Arithmetics
in book 10 named Never Thinking of Liberated World
When All of the Elites Doing Good translated by Tang
monk Prajnaparamite Kawmira. If the Summary of
Mathematics was truly written and noted by Zhen
Luan, the way to getting involved in the arithmetics
is easy for him.
There is a sentence that reads, if you don’t know
how the Ksana rushes, how could you know peasant
woman in ups and downs of time; if you don’t know
the small, how could you know Buddhist cosmology
in the body of the Summary of Mathematics. In this
sentence, the words Ksana and Buddhist cosmology
are used in Buddhism, and Ksana hadn’t been
translated by its pronunciation into Buddhist Sutra
in Xuyue’s time so there is a strong evidence of it
being treated as Zhen Luan’s book and the fake one
being written by Xuyue. Zhen Luan referred the time
and length units in Lankavatara Sutra, four concepts
of the world in Buddhavatamsaka-MahavaipulyaSutra and the small, middle and the big Buddhist
cosmology when he noted the sentence.
(Niu Weixing)
Yixing was born in 683 CE and died in 727 CE.
His common name was Zhangsui and the Buddhist
name was Jingxian. He was also called Monk
Yixing, Acharya Yixing, or Honored Yigong. He was
a Chinese monk and astronomer in Tang dynasty.
He and an Indian monk, Subhakarasimha, translated
seven books of the Great Buddhist Blessing Sutra that
is Mahavairocana Tantra. Besides this, Yixing wrote
20 books of the Notes of the Great Buddhist Blessing
that is the Notes on Mahavairocana Tantra. Ordered
by Xuanzong Emperor, he developed the Dayan
calendar. Also, for calculation of auspicious and
inauspicious time, four books on Buddhist tantrism
are classified under Yixing’s name which include
one book each on Timing Ritual, Another Line Method
of Seven Telecom Stars, Methods of Protecting the Big
Dipper and ROM: Obsidian Brahma Fire.
Yixing was born in a very reputed family. His
great grandfather, Zhang Gongjin, had assisted
Emperor Taizong Li Shimin and was involved in
the Xuanwu Gate Incident. He was one of the 24
Meritorious Statesmen of Lingyan Pavilion but as time
went by the fortune of his family declined. After
his parents’ death, Yixing became a monk and went
to Song mountain to observe Shramana’s silence.
In order to avoid being called by the government,
he hid in Mt Dangyang in Jingzhou, and travelled
to the south. In fifth year of Kaiyuan, 717, Yixing
was called into the capital by Xuanzong Emperor
and translated the Indian Tantrik Classics together
Yixing
with Subhakarasimha and Vajrabodhi. In ninth
year of Kaiyuan, 721, he made new calendar under
the order of Xuanzong Emperor. In the 12th year of
Emperor Kaiyuan (724), Huangdaoyouyi was made
and declared a national astronomical measurement
standard. In the 15th year of Kaiyuan (727), when
the draft of the new calendar was made, Yixing
had died. Zhangshuo and the Calendar Officer
Chen Xuanjing made up the draft into 52 books
77
Cultural Contacts
Moving Table is calculated starting from the farthest
point of earth.
If the influence of the India astronomy is only
vaguely observed in Yixing, it cannot be denied
that, the way that the idea of India Calendar or
the Western Calendar he directly referred from
Mahavairocana was used to define the terms of
astronomy and calendar showed that Yixing had
grasped the India calendar sufficiently. In other way,
the name of the Dayan Calendar came from the way
of great changing in the Confucianism classic, Book
of Change. Yixing had read Taoist classics intensively
when he was young, so we can see that Yixing had
gotten the classics of Confucianism, Buddhism and
Taoism. Also we can see the content of astrology of
Taoism in his ROM. Obsidian Brahma Fire.
We have no historical records of the way Yixing
received the knowledge of the Indian astronomical
calendar. But as both Chinese and Indian scholars had
personal exchanges at that time, there must be books
on astronomy coming into Tang dynasty. For example,
the book 198 of Tang Annals recorded, Kawmira had
sent ambassadors to Tang in seventh year of Kaiyuan
(719), and paid in tribute an astronomy book, some
secret prescriptions and foreign medicine. Further, the
book 971 in Ce Fu Yuan Gui read that in June of the
seventh year of Kaiyuan, Tuhuoluo Country had paid
tribute to astronomers. After setting things right in the
state, Xuanzong Emperor paid more attention to the
cultural construction and amendment of the calendar
was one of the great measures undertaken then.
In sixth year of Kaiyuan, 718, Xuanzong Emperor
ordered Zhaitan Xida to translate Jiuzhi Calendar. Iin
seventh year of Kaiyuan, some books on astronomy
came from Jibin country and astronomers from
Tuhuoluo country joined them. All of these could
have prepared the groundwork for the amendment
of the calendar. Xuanzong Emperor thought highly of
Yixing, and gave him full authority to pursue the work
of amendment. Therefore, Yixing, who was proficient
on ancient India language, could check up the foreign
astronomy books kept in the library of royal household
and conveniently consult the astronomers.
(Niu Wexing)
and presented them to the government. In the 17th
year of Kaiyuan, 729, the new calendar, the Dayan
Calendar, came into use.
Yixing had made a lot of innovations in the Dayan
Calendar. These reflect the influence of the foreign
knowledge on astronomy. Firstly, Yixing made a
correct description for the uneven movement of
the sun for the first time in Few Examples of the Sun
Astronomical diagram/figure of the
Song Dynasty on a stone tablet
Full and Empty in Dayan Calendar and the shape
of Sun in the Dayan Calendar with the maximum
differential centre value calculated as 143’.29. Some
scholar point that this result is almost the same as
the differential center value 143’.38. Probably the
latter was influenced in some ways by the Indian
astronomy as mediation. Secondly, Yixing made a
Tangent Table in Dayan Calendar which was treated
as the first one in the history. Some scholars thought
it was transformed from the Tangent Table in Jiuzhi
Calendar by Yixing but some others insist that it
was his own invention in the form of the Chinese
aboriginal astronomy and calendar. Thirdly, while
introducing the uneven movement of the FiveStar Anniversary, Yixing referred to the Indian
calendar. He thought that every star has its specific
love and hate relations when it meets good stars,
it moves faster; when it meets bad ones, it moves
slower. Fourthly, the Calculating Eclipse Arithmetic
mentioned in Few Examples of Sun Eclipse of Dayan
Calendar is corresponding with the method of
calculation in Jiuzhi Calendar. Fifthly, the method
of calculation of vanishing and offsetting in Dayan
Calendar is obviously originated from India. For
example, book five in the Abhidharma Theory has
expressed the similar idea. Sixthly, some results in
Dayan Calendar were based on the adoption of the
division of 360 degree for the whole day. The Moon
Dharmacandra
Dharmacandra (652-743 CE) was an eminent
monk from eastern India who came to China and
disseminated Dharma in the Tang Dynasty. His
abbreviated name is Damozhan which was called
Fayue in Tang Dynasty and his personal deeds were
recorded in the 14th volume of New Directory for
Buddhism in Zhenyuan Period written by Yuanzhao.
He once took a trip to central India and was
deemed as a citizen of Magadha. Dharmacandra
made great contributions to the cultural exchange
between India and China by the transmission of
78
Cultural Contacts
recorded that Dharmacandra, the eminent monk
proficient in Tripitaka, had come to offer medicine,
new conjuration, various kinds of scriptures in
Sanskrit, Theory for Governing the Country, Astrology
Records, and Various Prescriptions in Sanskrit.
Dharmacandra had paid tribute to the court many
times. His Theory for Governing the Country referred
to Artha÷àstra written by Kauñilya, a minister of
Chandragupta of the Maurya Dynasty in India. The
Astrology Records is, without any doubt, a work for
astrology, while “Various Prescriptions in Sanskrit”,
just as its name implies included books on
medical prescriptions in Sanskrit. The Incantation
– Preface of Thousand–eyes and Thousand-arms
Avalokiteshvara Dharani, translated by Zhitong of
Tang Dynasty recorded that Damozhantuo, a monk
in Brahman of Udyana country (present-day Swat
Valley, Pakistan), “translate sutras according to the
orders” and offered Bodhisattva and incantation
as a tribute. Damozhantuo mentioned there was
actually Dharmacandra.
(Chen Ming)
ancient books and records and through translation
of Buddhist scriptures and texts on Arthashastra,
medical science, astrology, pictures of esoteric
Buddhism and occult techniques.
Dharmacandra has a good knowledge of Tripitaka
and medical science. He used the materials
according to specific conditions and travelled far
and wide to disseminate dharma. In Qiuci (Kuqa in
Sinkiang now), he met his apprentice, Satyacandra
Kasyapa
Kasyapa Xiaowei was an astronomer who worked
in the astronomy institution in the Tang Dynasty.
He belonged to the family of Kasyapa, one of the
three great Indian astronomical families that came
to China in the Middle Ages. There is not much
description about Kasyapa Xiaowei’s deeds. After
the Linde Calendar in Old book of Tang History
narrated the method for calculating the eclipse,
there were 400 words involved in the Indian method
that he preached. This mainly explained that the
Indian Eclipse Calculation Method calculated eclipse
points according to the speed of sun and moon.
This is a different method from what is recorded in
Linde Calendar that calculates eclipse points using
a different formula created according to shuowang
(lunar) great eclipse points. Additionally, Old book
of Tang also narrated presages about lunar eclipse,
such as “the moon is wet as sweat”, it’s different
from Chinese astronomical narrations and compares
with Indian Sanskrit astronomical documents.
The Indian Eclipse Method recorded here is close
to Vasistha Paulisa’s system for calculating lunar
eclipse. There is no lunar eclipse from 13 degree to
15 degree but the lunar eclipse takes place within
13 degree (12 degree 15 cents in Chinese). Vasistha
Paulisa’s calculation method was recorded in verse
1 through 10, chapter VI in Five Great Siddhantas
(Pañca Siddhanta) by Varaha Mihira.
There were another two Kasyapas who worked for
Tang who could be identified. One is Kasyapa Ji who
was an astronomical officer in Jingyuan in the Period
of Zhenguan (627-649 CE). Another one is Kasyapas
Zhong (or Zhi Zhong) who was a historiographer for
Sanskrit text of 'Favourable Opinions' (Li lun)
(Zhenyue in Tang Dynasty; the surname is Bunaxian
which is also called Liyan) and then devoted
themselves to translation together. In the 18th year
of Kaiyuan period (730), they were recommended
to enter court by Lu Xiulin, the military governor in
Anxi. In the 20th year of Kaiyuan period (732), they
arrived in Chang’an and entered the court. There
they presented the court with occult techniques,
medical prescriptions, Buddhist books, medical
herbs and sutras etc. In the years that followed,
the translated versions of Medical Prescriptions and
Chinese Herbal Medicine were published. They not
only offered material objects of medical herbs but
also helped translate books on medical prescriptions
and Chinese herbal medicine. These medicines
and books which were derived from India or the
Western Regions, were a great event for exchange
of Chinese and Western medicine. During the years
when they stayed in Chang’an, they also translated
Buddhist scriptures, such as Prajna Paramita Heart
Sutra for Ordinary Buddhist Monks. In the 29th year
of Kaiyuan period (741), they left Chang’an and
returned to India, by way of the Shaqi, Western
Liang. Unfortunately, he caught an illness halfway
and died in Cakra Temple of Khotan in the second
year of Tianbao Period (743). The 971st volume,
Wai Chen Bu – Tribute Four, Ce Fu Yuan Gui
79
Cultural Contacts
Right General of Royal Guards and he was rewarded
for dedicating an extol song to Queen Wei in the
second year of Period of Jinglong (708 CE).
(Zhou Liqun)
Gautama family was frequently used and considered
most appropriate.
In the Gautama family, Gautama Siddhartha had
made outstanding contributions to astronomy.
According to the records in Volume 1 of Kai Yuan
Zhan Jing, in Jing Yun second year (711), Emperor
Ruizong of Tang, Gautama Siddhartha was ordered to
hold the repair work for the armillary sphere which
was built by Emperor Ruizong of Northern Wei
Dynasty, which he completed in Xiantian second
year (713 CE) of Emperor Xuanzong. Old Book
of Tang-Astronomical Log recorded that Gautama
Siddhartha was ordered to translate the Indian
calendar Jiuzhi Calendar in Kaiyuan second year
(718) of Emperor Xuanzong (refer to Article Kai Yuan
Zhan Jing). According to textual research, Gautama
Siddhartha was ordered to compile Kai Yuan Zhan
Jing after February, Kaiyuan second year (714),
and he completed the compilation before Kaiyuan
14th Year (726). Kai Yuan Zhan Jing compiled by
Gautama Siddhartha collected many astronomical
data during ancient and mediaeval times in China.
Additionally, the translation and Jiuzhi Calendar
collected and recorded in Kai Yuan Zhan Jing are the
Chinese Indian Calendar preserved till now.
(Niu Weixing)
Gautama Siddhartha
Gautama Siddhartha was a popular Indian
astronomer who came to China and joined the Tang
state as the Imperial astronomer in the early period
of 8th century CE. Dates of his birth and death are
unknown. As an imperial astronomer (the highest
position in imperial astronomical organisation), he
compiled Jiuzhi Calendar and Kai Yuan Zhan Jing,
comprising in total of 120 volumes.
From the epitaph of Gautama tomb explored
by Xi’an Historical Relic Administrative Office in
May 1977, we know about Gautama Siddhartha’s
progenitor and later generations with names in the
following order Gautama Yi, Gautama Luo, Gautama
Siddhartha, Gautama Zhuan (the fourth son of
Gautama Siddhartha). Gautama Zhuan had six sons,
with the first names in order of seniority being
as Sheng, Bian, Yu, Huang, Yan and Mao. When
referring to Gautama’s progenitor, it said on the
epitaph that he moved from central Indian region to
China and then settled in Chang’an (today’s Xi’an,
Shaan’xi). The epitaph also mentions that Gautama
Zhuan’s great-grandfather, Gautama Yi, was an
eminent monk but entered the imperial court. But
from Gautama Siddhartha’s father, namely Gautama
Luo on, all the four successive generations held posts
of imperial astronomer, astronomical supervisor,
judge etc in astronomical organisation of Tang totally
for more than 100 years. At that time, people called
Gautama Siddhartha as “Gautama Supervisor” and
called the Indian calendar of Gautama’s family as
“Gautama Calendar”. When noting Sutra on Taking
kumara
Jumoluo (Kumāra) was an astronomer who worked
in an astronomy institution in the Tang Dynasty.
His Sanskrit name was Kumāra which means boy
or prince and was one of the commonest names in
India. Both the books of Tang history mentioned
Jumoluo once as an appendix for recording the
eclipse calculation method of Dayan calendar.
The main content was to introduce the eclipse
calculation method by judging the sun preached by
him, which indicated that he was good at eclipse
calculation method and his method could be used
with Dashu. The constellation’s name Yuche in
Indian Astronomy Method was preached by him and
it corresponded to Number Jianglou in Chinese and
Constellation Yuche was Aries. Yuche sounded similar
to “iku” in Akkadian, and E.KUE in Sumerian of
Aries. It probably provided proof that Chinese Twelve
Numbers was the evolution of Babylon’s Twelve
Constellation. Further, the Jumoluo Occult Sciences at
West Gate was mentioned in the contents of Indian
Astronomy in General History was probably written
by Jumuoluo.
(Zhou Liqun)
Kaiyuan Zhanjing
Works
Auspices by Celestial Constellations and Bodies, Yang
Jingfeng mentioned that currently there were three
Indian calendars respectively – from Mahakasyapa
family, Gautama family and Kumara – and stored
in Court Historian Library but the calendar from
Kai Yuan Zhan Jing
Kai Yuan Zhan Jing is a Chinese ancient astronomy
and astrology work. With the full name as Da Tang
80
Cultural Contacts
and the corresponding divinations were collected
and recorded in volumes 111-120.
On the whole, Kai Yuan Zhan Jing is a classic
Chinese ancient astrological pandect. Such Chinese
traditional astrological pandect was organised for
compilation by an Indian astronomer who came and
took a post in Tang. So this work fully reflected the
depth and width of Chinese and Indian astronomy
exchange – undoubtedly Gautama Siddhartha well
mastered these Chinese traditional astronomical
and astrological contents. Jiuzhi Calendar collected
and recorded in volume 104 was an only exception
for the Chinese traditional astronomical astrology.
Jiuzhi Calendar is an Indian calendar which was
translated by Gautama Siddhartha in Kaiyuan sixth
year (718 CE) according to the imperial order and it
has also not been recorded in other Chinese ancient
historical materials. So Kai Yuan Zhan Jing is the
only resource for it. Jiuzhi Calendar is the first to
introduce the writing symbol for zero (refer to the
entry on “zero”) and the arithmetic for sine function
and sine function table in trigonometry. It also
distinguished perigee and winter solstice as well as
apogee and summer solstice via ecliptic system of
coordinates and geometrical method and introduced
the method for calculating the visible diameter
change of the moon (refer to the entry on “Jiuzhi
Calendar”) etc. All the above-mentioned were the
newly introduced materials for Chinese mathematics
and astronomy in those times. Moreover, Jiuzhi
Calendar is an important exhibit historically for the
scientific communication between India and China
and has been well preserved till now by virtue of Kai
Yuan Zhan Jing.
(Niu Weixing)
Kai Yuan Zhan Jing was compiled by Gautama
Siddhartha between 718-726 CE. Kai Yuan Zhan
Jing was once lost after the Tang Dynasty but was
rediscovered at the end of the Ming Dynasty and
then handed down up to now.
A picture of the book Kaiyuan Zhanjing
Kai Yuan Zhan Jing totally includes 120 volumes
wherein the cosmic theories of various scholars
are collected and recorded in volumes 1 and 2.
Various phenomena related to the sky and earth
and the corresponding divinations were collected
and recorded in volumes 3 & 4. Phenomena related
to the sun and divinations thereof are collected
and recorded in volumes 5-10. The astronomical
phenomena related to the moon and the divinations
thereof were collected and recorded in volumes
11-17. The treatises pertaining to the astronomical
phenomena, such as condition of the five planets,
apparent motion, planet-occulting/ approachingfixed star, mutual occulting/ approaching of
planets and divinations thereof were collected
and recorded in volumes 18-59. The astronomical
phenomena pertaining to the fixed stars including
28 constellations and three asterisms and the
divinations thereof were collected and recorded
in volumes 60-70. The descriptions pertaining
to the occasional astronomical phenomena such
as shooting star, guest star, comet etc and the
corresponding divinations were collected and
recorded in volumes 71-90. The descriptions
pertaining to various climatic phenomena and
the corresponding divinations were collected
and recorded in volumes 91-102. Lin De Li Jing
written by Li Chunfeng of Tang Dynasty has
been copied in volume 103. Jiuzhi Calendar was
recorded in volume 104. Shang Yuan Ji Nian
and other basic constants of 29 calendars from
6th Pre-Qin period to Shenlong Calender of Tang
Dynasty were collected and recorded in volume
105. The ancient fixed star map provided with an
introduction for the position difference between
currently measured positions and the old star map
was collected and recorded in volumes 106-110.
The descriptions pertaining to various vegetation,
birds, beasts, humans, ghosts, implements, etc
Jiuzhi Calendar
Jiuzhi Calendar is the only Chinese translation
for Indian calendar preserved till now which was
translated by Indian astronomer Gautama Siddhartha
in Emperor Xuanzong the sixth Year of Emperor
Kaiyuan (718 CE) in the Tang Dynasty according
to the imperial order (refer to entry on “Gautama
Siddhartha”) and was collected and recorded in
Volume 104 of Kai Yuan Zhan Jing compiled by
himself (refer to entry on Kai Yuan Zhan Jing).
Currently, there is no conclusive proof on the
existence of a Sanskrit original manuscript for Jiuzhi
Calendar. However, according to the researches of
scholars, the contents thereof are closely related
to the Indian astronomical work Pancasidhantika
(about 550 CE which to a large extent relates to
Khandakhadyka, 665 CE).
The Jiuzhi Calendar was the carrier for the spread
of many mathematical astronomical contents into
China. For example, the Indian mathematical concept
for zero (refer to the entry on “zero”) entered China
81
Cultural Contacts
produces some unfocussed impacts on date calendar
and divination. A saying of “Seven Luminaries
Are Directly Used for Prediction, this Divination Is
Special” is included therein. Additionally, “Seven
Luminaries Are Directly Used for Prediction” herein
refers to a method for selecting auspicious days and
fortune telling on the basis of seven luminaries –
namely “Week” as stated by later generations (refer
to entry on Sutra on Taking Auspices by Celestial
Constellations and Bodies). Meanwhile, this record in
Jiuzhi Calendar indicates to the first reference of the
appearance of week calendar mode known till now.
(Li Hui)
Sardulakarnavadana
Modengjia Scripture (Śārdūlakarṇāvadāna) is a
Chinese translation of Buddhist metaphor scripture
involving knowledge of Indian astronomy. It was
translated by Zhiqiangong and Zhuluyan in the
period of Three Kingdoms. There are two versions
of this translation in volumes 2 and 3. It narrates a
story that a Chandala girl picked up Ananda but she
was finally converted by Buddha. The story includes
rich content on constellation and divination. Besides
Chinese, there are Tibetan, Sanskrit and more than
10 different versions.
The name of the original Sanskrit version
is Śārdūlakarṇāvadāna while for Chinese, it is
Modenjia. Tibetan version’s is called sTag rNa’i
rTogs pa brJod pa and its free translation is Tiger
Ear Metaphor Scripture abbreviated as Tiger Ear
Scripture. Modengjia in Modengjia Scripture is the
transliteration of Mātaṅga in Sanskrit. It is the
name of Chandala girl’s mother in the story. The
part of pre-life story in the metaphor scripture’s
Sanskrit version narrates that Brahman the Great
Puṣpakārin questioned the King of Chandala
Triśaṅku in the ancient time. The latter gained
appreciation of Brahman the Great by his erudition,
reinterpretation of caste, retrospect of Vaishya’s
root and listing of horoscope prediction. The
conversation between Brahman the Great and King
of Chandala involved all kinds of discussion on
horoscope and early Indian calendar etc including
names and features of constellations; degrees of
day and night, seasons of long and short, degrees
of instant; units of length, units of gold’s weight
and units of grain’s bulk. They also discussed
fate of those who are born under each of the
constellations; prediction about cities constructed
under constellations; prediction about rain in
the last month in summer under constellations;
prediction about lunar eclipse under constellations;
suitable and unsuitable things under constellations;
degrees of syzygy and day and night, length of
shadow, changing of seasons; prediction about
earthquakes’ result; prediction about releasing of
Jiu yao in Guangsheng xiasi frescoes/mural paintings (Yuan Dynasty).
It is now preserved in Horatio Nelson’s museum.
for the first time via this Indian calendar. In terms of
astronomical calculation, Jiuzhi Calendar, at least,
introduces six western astronomical elements to
China: 1. 360°circumference division 2. Counting
method for 60 binary 3. Ecliptic coordinates system
4. Definition of distinctions between perigee and
winter as well as between apogee and summer
solstice 5. Method for calculating the visible
diameter change of the Moon 6. Sine function
calculation method and sine function table.
The translated contents of Jiuzhi Calendar include
the motions of the Sun and the Moon and the eclipse
portion but are not related to planetary motion,
so it is difficult to speculate whether the Sanskrit
original manuscript includes planetary theory or
not. However, as far as the eclipse part is concerned
as the Chinese ancient astronomy does not include
any geometrical method, it always lacked in terms
of eclipse calculation. The appearance of Jiuzhi
Calendar accordingly provides a totally new technical
reference for Chinese ancient calendar compilation.
As far as the impact of Jiuzhi Calendar on Chinese
calendar is concerned, there is a “Public Record” in
Chinese astronomy history in New Book of Tang that
informs that “Taien Calendar is an incomplete copy
of Jiuzhi Calendar”. Taien Calendar is one of the
important calendars in the history of China, created
by Buddhist astronomer Yi Xing (refer to the entry
on “Yi Xing”). In consideration of the Buddhist
identification, generally, the most subsequent
Chinese ancient astronomers and modern
researchers for astronomical history believe that
Taien Calendar refers to or adapts some contents of
Jiuzhi Calendar.
Jiuzhi Calendar not only greatly influences
Chinese mathematical astronomy but also probably
82
Cultural Contacts
another translated version of Modengjia Scripture.
This includes rich material on horoscopy and
the translation date of Twenty-eight Constellations
Scripture of Prince Shetoujian can be identified to
the Western Jin Dynasty by Zhufahu. Therefore,
the Chinese versions series of Tiger Ear Scripture
can be counted as early Chinese translation copies
of Buddhist horoscopy material. In the area of
Dunhuang and Turpan, fragmentary transcript
of Modengjia Scripture (S.3374 etc), fragmentary
transcripts of Sanskrit version (Or.15010/6 and
Or.15010/20 etc) and also the relevant TwentyEight (seven) Constellation Horoscopy Book were
unearthed. The documents can prove that there
are basis for mixed explanation of divinations of
lunar eclipse, interfluves and earthquake in Tiger
Ear Scripture’s Sanskrit version. Meanwhile, it
also illustrates that Tiger Ear Scripture influenced
people’s lives in the Western Regions.
After Tiger Ear Scripture came into China, the
emotional entanglements between Ananda and
Modeng girl (Chandala girl) sparked a lot of
interest among the people. Generally speaking, the
Surangama Sutra written by Buddhists in the Tang
Dynasty set their story as the rallying cause. In
the pictures for Surangama Sutra, Modeng girl and
Ananda could be frequently seen. There were many
works in the the Yuan Dynasty and the Ming Dynasty
that took this story as the prototype. In Republican
Period, Shang Xiaoyun’s drama Mengdengjia Girl
and Zhang Daqian’s picture Modeng Girl copied
from the grotto provided the Modeng girl as a
plump artistic image and the word “Modeng”
(modern) became famous in Shanghai, spread over
by people. But in India, this story was buried in
the dust of history for a long time. Between 1933
to 1938, Rabindranath Tagore adapted the story
into a drama Chandalika (Chandala Girl), hence the
Indian literary and art circles paid attention to this
interesting story again, and the drama was played
all over the world from time to time until today.
(Zhou Liqun)
Illustration of 'Leng Yan Jing Shujie Meng Chao'
prisoners and features of good and evil occurred
under constellations, among others.
Among so many Chinese versions of Tiger Ear
Metaphor Scripture, the most complete and most
closest to the original version is Modengjia Scripture.
Modengjia Scripture consists of seven collections:
Women Collection of Conversion, Karma Collection
of Going, Actual Collection of Truth Showing,
Question Collection of All Human, Picture Collection
of Constellation, Auspicious Collection of Calamity
Perceiving and Discern Collection of Lightening. The
content of the last three collections are about
horoscope and take up 50 per cent of the whole
scripture. They depict all kinds of predictions that
occurr in light of the moon’s position in different
constellations by themes. When Modengjia Scripture
depicts horoscope, its depiction method is that of
gathering a certain number of prediction themes
into one collection with the translator adding the
name of the collection. But the Sanskrit version of
Tiger Ear Metaphor Scripture’s depiction method is
according to chapters, its division method is same
as the Indian classical divination book, Guangji
(Bṛhatsaṃhitā) which is divided into chapters
(Adhyāya). In Book of Sui History and Confucian
Classics, there is the earliest recording about the
names of seven Indian astronomy books that came
to China and Modengjia Scripture, Picture Collection
of Constellation were recorded as a separate
document of Picture Collection of Constellation from
Modengjia Scripture.
Historically, materials on horoscopy is included
in Chinese translations of Buddhist scriptures.
These are referred in Constellation Divination
Method of Esoteric Buddhism, which primarily
have been discussed in Constellation Scripture of
Auspicious and Inauspicioul, Day and Time, Kind
and Wick Talked by Manjusri Bodhisattva and other
Immortals, Modengjia Scripture, and Twenty-Eight
Constellations Scripture of Prince Shetoujian. TwentyEight Constellations Scripture of Prince Shetoujian is
Sardulakarnavadana,
Pictures of
Constellations
Sardulakarnavadana,
picture
collection
of
constellation, is an ancient horoscopy book that
came to China from India. The astronomy division in
Book of Sui History, Confucian Classics recorded this
book’s name, set the section of Picture Collection of
Constellation Fifth in volume of Modengjia Scripture as
a separate document. Picture Collection of Constellation
had never appeared as a separate document before
that. Probably because of its special content, the
ancient directory editors put it under astronomy
content separately. This collection mainly depicts 28
83
Cultural Contacts
rich content on horoscopy and a complete story.
Its horoscopy involves number of stars and width
of each constellation, two equinoxes and two
solstices, names of Muhurta (units of time), weights
and measures, divination for birth time in certain
constellation days, divination for building a city
in which certain constellation days, divination
for raining in certain constellation days and
constellations interfluves, etc. Different from that
the Indian astronomy terminologies in Modengjia
Scripture were translated with corresponding
Chinese native vocabularies, the terminologies
in Twenty-Eight Constellations Scripture of Prince
Shetoujian were translated by the more direct free
translation, the names of 28 constellations were
translated as Name, Araise, Deer’s Head etc but not
the common vocabularies in Chinese such as Mao
Xiu, Bi Xiu, Zi Xiu etc this was a trait when the
scripture was translated.
Among the transcripts of Chinese, Sanskrit,
Tibetan, the most important copies are the Sanskrit
Fragmentary Transcript in Western Region. A copy of
the similar transcript appeared in Nepal in the 17th
century. The latter is not only of a later period but
also includes many later additions. But the Sanskrit
Fragmentary Transcript in Western Region transcribed
in about the 4th century is slightly later than the
Chinese translation Twenty-Eight Constellations
Scripture of Prince Shetoujian and earlier than that of
the Tibetan translation in the 9th century. Therefore,
the Sanskrit Fragmentary Transcript in Western
Region possesses important value for understanding
Chinese, Sanskrit and Tibetan version of this
scripture. As far as comparison between the Sanskrit
and Chinese versions is concerned, it may be noted
that the early Sanskrit version of Tiger Ear Metaphor
Scripture came to China by the Silk Route in the
western part in China. It coincided with the main
transmission route of early Buddhism.
(Zhou Liqun)
constellations’ number of stars, shape of stars, time of
running, names of the stars’ gods, sacrifice items, and
the distribution of four-direction’s constellations, etc
this collection has an important value for advancing
Indian horoscopy knowledge that spread in China
(refer to Modengjia Scripture).
(Zhou Liqun)
Prince Shetoujian’s
Twenty-eight
Constellations Scripture
Twenty-eight Constellations Scripture of Prince
Shetoujian is a Chinese translation of a Buddhist
scripture that discusses ancient Indian astronomy.
The translator is Zhufahu in Western Jin Dynasty.
This scripture was handed on for thousands of years
and is an interesting combination of a vivid story and
knowledge of ancient horoscope. This scripture has
several parallel versions such as Sanskrit, Chinese,
Tibetan and Uighurs, from 4th-19th centuries CE.
Its Sanskrit version is known as Śārdūlakarṇāvadāna
and the one in Tibetan is sTag rNa’i rTogs pa brJod
pa. This can be simply be translated as Tiger Ear
Metaphor Scripture in accordance with its Sanskrit
and Tibetan titles. Shetoujian in the title TwentyEight Constellations Scripture of Prince Shetoujian
is the transliteration of Chandala prince’s Sanskrit
name Śārdūlakarṇa in his pre-life story, its meaning
is “tiger ear”.
There are two kinds of Sanskrit fragmentary
transcript of Twenty-eight Constellations Scripture
of Prince Shetoujian unearthed in Western Region:
(i) Sanskrit fragmentary transcript StP: SI_1942
stored up in St Petersburg which was written in
about 4th century in Brahmi script with its content
mostly related to horoscopy (ii) Weber transcript
MS. Sansk.e.23 (P) is stored in Oxford library,
Constellation Scripture
The full name is Constellation Scripture of Auspicious
and Inauspicious, Day and Time, Kind and Wick Talked
by Manjusri Bodhisattva and other Immortals and it
includes two scrolls. It was translated in 759 CE by the
eminent Esoteric Buddhist monk Amoghavajra (705774), one of the four great scripture translators in
Tang Dynasty. According to its content, Constellation
Scripture is believed to consist of Amoghavajra’s oral
account in light of his understanding about Indian
horoscopy as well as records and annotation of his
students Shi Yao and Yang Jingfeng. The second
scroll is the version of Amoghavajra’s translation
with the help of Shi Yao, and the first scroll is the
annotation version of Shi Yao’s translation annotated
by Yang Jingfeng.
Twenty eight constellations mirrored/
reflected in the Tang Dynasty stone tablets
it appears that it contains the previous part to the
St Petersburg’s transcript by script, paper and content.
There are three fragmentary transcripts of its Chinese
version unearthed in Dunhuang, ie S.6024, S.1648,
Russian Дx0059, they can be joined together.
Twenty-Eight Constellations Scripture of Prince
Shetoujian is the earliest extant document with
84
Cultural Contacts
27 Xiu’s Duty Table in Constellation Scripture
Month
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
1
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Can
Gui
Zhang
Jiao
Di
Xin
Dou
Xu
2
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Yi
Kang
Fang
Wei
Nv
Wei
3
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Zhen
Di
Xin
Ji
Xu
Shi
4
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Jiao
Fang
Wei
Dou
Wei
Bi
5
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Kang
Xin
Ji
Nv
Shi
Kui
6
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Di
Wei
Dou
Xu
Bi
Lou
7
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Fang
Ji
Nv
Wei
Kui
Wei
8
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Xin
Dou
Xu
Shi
Lou
Mao
9
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Wei
Nv
Wei
Bi
Wei
Bi
10
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Ji
Xu
Shi
Kui
Mao
Zi
11
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Dou
Wei
Bi
Lou
Bi
Shen
12
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Nv
Shi
Kui
Wei
Zi
Jing
13
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Xu
Bi
Lou
Mao
Shen
Gui
14
Zhang
Zhen
kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Wei
Kui
Wei
Bi
Jing
Liu
15
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Nv
Shi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Gui
Xing
16
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Xu
Bi
Wei
Bi
Shen
Liu
Zhang
17
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Nv
We
Kui
Mao
Zi
Jing
Xing
Yi
18
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Xu
Shi
Lou
Bi
Shen
Gui
Zhang
Zhen
19
Di
Xin
Ji
Nv
We
Bi
Wei
Zi
Jing
Liu
Yi
Jiao
20
Fang
Wei
Dou
Xu
Shi
Kui
Mao
Shen
Gui
Xing
Zhen
kang
21
Xin
Ji
Nv
We
Bi
Lou
Bi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Jiao
Di
22
Wei
Dou
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Zi
Gui
Xing
Yi
Kang
Fang
23
Ji
Nv
We
Bi
Lou
Mao
Shen
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Di
Xin
24
Dou
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Jing
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Fang
Wei
25
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Gui
Zhang
Zhen
kang
Xin
Ji
26
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Liu
Yi
Jiao
Di
Wei
Dou
27
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Xing
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Ji
Nv
28
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Zhang
Jiao
Di
Xin
Dou
Xu
29
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Yi
Kang
Fang
Wei
Nv
Wei
30
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Zhen
Di
Xin
Ji
Xu
Shi
Black Month
White month
Day
luck, evil, woe and blessing, according to the good and
evil of Xiu and Yao which is on duty that day. These
contents belonged to an Indian native horoscopy
before the influence of Greece.
Xiu’s Duty and Yao’s Duty’s timing system is the
key to these two divinations.
Xiu’s Duty: Twenty-seven Xius are on duty by
turns that go round and begin again. But there are
some special cases. The time cycle of 27 Xius in the
ideal Indian year cycle – 360 lunar days included in
Constellation Scripture’s main content can be summed
up in two parts: Xiu Duty’s Divination and Yao Duty’s
Divination. Constellations (Xiu Yao) features good and
evil so there is the distinction between lucky and evil
when different constellations on duty. The fortunetelling method that the Constellation Scripture provides
is to predict one’s life according to the relationship
between one’s birthday and Xiu Duty and Yao Duty.
The method for picking an auspicious day that the
Constellation Scripture provides is to predict one day’s
85
Cultural Contacts
Twenty-eight Xius’s Duty Table as Annotation in Constellation Scripture
Month
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
1
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
2
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
3
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
4
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
5
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
6
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
7
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
8
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
We
9
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
10
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
We
Bi
11
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
12
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
13
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
14
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
We
Bi
Lou
Mou
15
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
16
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
17
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
18
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
19
Jiao
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
20
Kang
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
21
Di
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
22
Fang
Wei
Dou
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
23
Xin
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
24
Wei
Dou
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
25
Ji
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
26
Dou
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
27
Niu
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
28
Nv
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
29
Xu
Shi
Kui
Wei
Bi
Shen
Gui
Xing
Yi
Jiao
Di
Xin
30
Wei
Bi
Lou
Mao
Zi
Jing
Liu
Zhang
Zhen
Kang
Fang
Wei
Day
duty turns, that go round and begin again. Yao’s Duty
appeared in Navagrahe before Constellation Scripture
was translated (ref. clause Navagrahe), but the fortunetelling method and method for picking an auspicious
day according to Yao’s Duty appeared completely in
Constellation Scripture first.
Due to that, the Chinese adopt the 28 Xius’ system
but Constellation Scripture adopts the Indian 27 Xius
system. So Yang Jingfeng added one new table when
he annotated it according to Chinese 28 Xius.
one year. After 13 cycles of 27 Xius, 351 days are
taken and nine days are left so this ephemeris sets:
January 30 and February 1, February 30 and March
1, March 30 and April 1, April 30 and May 1, May 30
and June 1, August 30 and September 1, September
30 and October 1, November 30 and December 1,
December 30 and January 1, these nine consecutive
two days (last day of this month and first day of
the next month) share one Xiu. Yao Duty: Sun,
Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn are on
86
Cultural Contacts
and Flowing Pearl Magic Arts and a table same as 27
Xius’ Duty Table in its scroll XXI Twenty-eight Xius
Delivery Magic from Evil by Looking Constellations’
Status. Obviously, Taoism adopted 27 Xius’ Duty
system in Constellation Scripture completely and
built its own math and magic system on the former’s
foundation. And calendar system like Xiu’s Duty
often appeared in the latter calendars.
Seven Yaos’ Duty diffused into Chinese folk
culture widely. There are a large number of
contents about Yao’s Duty’s astrology in the books
in Dunhuang. In the calendar books in Ming
Dynasty and Qing Dynasty, the Honey day’s (day
of Sun) calendar annotation can be seen; its origin
might be the method for picking an auspicious day
in Constellation Scripture.
In the Heian period in Japan, Monk Kukai brought
Constellation Scripture into Japan. Xiuyaoism and
Xiuyao Horoscope were developed on this foundation
in Japan.
(Li Hui)
Brahman Siddhanta
Brahman Siddhanta (Brahmasphuṭasiddhānta) is
a classical Indian astronomy book. Its Sanskrit
name is Brahmasphuṭasiddhānta which can be
freely translated as Brahman Clear Siddhanta. This
book was written by Brahmagupta (597–668 CE)
in 628 and had a great influence on subsequent
Indian astronomy and even on Islam and western
astronomy.
Brahmagupta spent most of his life in Bhillamala
(ie Bhinmal in India), Rajasthan, therefore he was
called “the teacher of Bhillamala” (Bhillamalācārya).
There are many unique traits of the book he wrote
include understanding about “zero’s” mathematical
role, algorithms of positive and negative numbers,
method for calculating square root, solutions for
linear and quadratic equation, rules of addition
series, Brahmagupta theorem etc. This book was
composed of poetic verses but not math symbols.
Traditionally, the ancient Indian astronomers
were divided into five sects, Brahman Siddhanta
belonged to the classical books of Brahman Sect
(Brahmapakṣa). Brahman Sect was the oldest one
among the five sects in the “Greek Period” of ancient
Indian astronomy, it originated from Western India
ruled by Gupta Dynasty in about 5th century,
and then spread to northern India. According to
D. Pingree’s opinion, the origin of Brahman Sect’s
astronomical knowledge was a non-Ptolemaic
traditional astronomy school under the influence of
Aristotle’s philosophy in ancient Greece. The Indian
astronomy books spread into China in the period of
the Six Dynasties, Sui Dynasty and Tang Dynasty
may relate to this school. Book of Sui History,
Confucian Classics, seven astronomy documents,
Picture of the Chi sheng guang fo and the five planetary deities, painted
by the Tang Dynasty artist Zhang Huai Xing in the 4th year of the Qian
ning period (897). The text in tough silk fabric is preserved in London
museum. The painting has zhisheng guangfo as the central figure with the
five constellations surrounding it. These constellations have been painted
as human forms/figures. They are the eastern (year) star represented as
the lotus in their hands; the planet Mars represented as weapons from
all four directions; the planet Venus represented as the music flowing
in from the direction of the Tibet Autonomous Region; the northern
morning star represented as the paper and painting brush held in the
hand; and the planet Saturn represented by the monk’s staff in his hand.
Twenty-Eight Xius’s Duty Table as Annotation in
Constellation Scripture
Fortune-telling method and method for picking
an auspicious day of Constellation Scripture diffused
into Chinese native religion Taoism. Taoist Sutra
recorded a math and magic book named Golden Lock
'Da Sui requesting for the Dharani Sutra' (Song
engravings). Also depicting the zodiac chart of 28
constellations and stars.
87
Cultural Contacts
second, to understand the origin of illness whether it
be caused by wind, phlegm, saliva or various types
of colds, whether the illness is acute or due to the
season; third, to understand the antidotes eg there
are salves, cough remedies or emetics, laxatives,
nose drops or aromatic medication; fourth, to be
skilled in treating illnesses without fear of a relapse.’
Analysing methods for classification of disease and
investigation of its causes, it states the basic tridoşa
principle of ancient Indian medicine kapha – tan 痰
(phlegm), vāta – feng 風 (wind) and pitta – danzhi
胆汁 (bile) and general methods of treatment.
Medical specialties that were prominent in ancient
Indian medicine, Kāyācikitsā, Kaumārabhŗtya,
Śālākya and Vişagārapraśamana received great fillip
with the transmission of the science of medicine.
Indian ophthalmology eg was acknowledged for
its sophistication. Wang Tao王 焘 (CE 670-755),
in his famous medical compilation Waitai miyao
外台秘要 (Medical secrets of an official) included
a work on ophthalmology that claimed an Indian
origin, viz, Tianzhu jing lunyan 天竺經論眼 (Indian
classic of discussion on eyes). Two more Chinese
ophthalmic works with Indian connections namely
Longshu (pusa) yanlun龍樹菩薩眼論 [Discourse of
(Bodhisattva) Nāgārjuna on Eyes] of 9th century
CE and Longmu zong lun 龍木總論 [Någårjuna’s
Comprehensive Treatise] in late 11th century or early
12th century appeared soon after.
Primary elements and their role in the formation
and working of the human body were transmitted
through translation of Buddhist texts like
Viśuddhimagga of the 5th century CE. These texts
informed that: “In this body what is stiffness and
harshness is the Pŗthvī or earth element. What is
fluidity or cohesion is Āpa or water element, what is
maturing or heat is Teja or fire element, and what is
distension or movement is Vāyu or wind element.”
Pharmaceutical ideas and medicines were
introduced too. One Indian monk named Bao
si wei jing 寶思惟靜 or Ratnacińtā translated
Bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara’s Cintāmaṇidharaṇi
classic in the Tang Dynasty. Indian medicines like
Hu jiao 胡椒 or pepper, Niu huang 牛黃 or dried
gallstone of domestic cattle etc to treat eye diseases
are mentioned in this text. Moreover, it includes
treatment for diseases like juvenile glaucoma,
pterygium using ointments made from the drugs
Long nao xiang 龍腦香 and She xiang 麝香. A
Buddhist sutra Surańgamasūtra explains how the
Buddhists identified a drug by its physical properties
such as taste, its physiological effect (like poisonous
or non-poisonous) or its so-called intrinsic nature
ie hot/ cold. Surańgamasūtra was translated by
Pāramita around 705 CE and is part of the Chinese
Buddhist canon. Earlier, Surańgamasamādhisūtra
was translated by Kumårajiva around CE 350.
ie 21 volumes of Brahman Astronomy Scripture
(Original name: Talks of Brahman Immortal She), 30
volumes of Astronomical Talks of Brahman Immortal
Jiejia, one volume of Brahman Astronomy, one
volume of Brahman Astronomy, Picture Collection of
Constellation, three volumes of Brahman Arithmetic,
one volume of Brahman Calendar, three volumes
of Brahman Arithmetic Scripture. There is, however,
only Modengjia Scripture, Picture of Constellation
that exists in the world now, (ie Picture Collection
of Constellation the Five of Modengjia Scripture in
Buddhist Library). Some scholars think that all the
other six documents have Brahmin in title which
probably indicates that these books belonged to
the Brahmin School in India. The Indian Brahmin
astronomical knowledge that appeared in the
contents of Book of Sui History was just a flash in the
pan. After two Books of Tang History, there were no
references of astronomical books originating from
India recorded in any historical books.
(Zhou Liqun)
Medical Sciences
Cikitsāvidyā
Concerned with suffering and illness as well
as healing and deliverance of humankind,
Buddhism had a special place for Cikitsāvidyā, or
Bhaişajyaśāstra (medicine), since its inception. The
Pundit-monks were well acquainted with medicine
because of their formal training in Pańcavidyā. They
practiced various medical specialties including
surgery and provided treatment to the residents of
monasteries as well as to the lay people in need.
They were the first transmitters of ancient Indian
medicine to China.
The monks used cikitsāvidyā in three ways. First,
the scientific medical terminology for ridding
the body of an illness was used as a metaphor to
explain the doctrine of deliverance from worldly
existence. Second, psychosomatic diseases were
treated by magico-religious remedies like prayers
or invocations to Buddha, Nagarjuna or Jivaka
or charms to be carried to drive away evil spirits.
Lastly, medicine and surgery were practiced to
relieve the human body of physical suffering. Thus,
medicine developed as an integral part of Buddhist
culture in China.
The cikitsāvidyā entered China through translation
of Buddhist sutras from texts like Samyuktāgama.
For example, a sutra translated in Chinese at the
beginning of the fourth century CE invokes Buddha
and explains that the great king of physicians is the
one ‘who is able to realise the following principles;
first, to understand the illness well which means to
be able to differentiate between the various illnesses;
88
Cultural Contacts
Buddhism can thus be credited for introducing
ancient Indian medicine with its concepts,
techniques and drugs into Chinese culture thus
contributing to the overall evolution of medicine in
medieval China.
(Vijaya J. Deshpande & Kamal Sheel)
Indian Medical Science and
Its Transmission to China
Science and technology display a phenomenon of
universality in their development. They tend to
quickly expand and facilitate connections in the world.
Diffusion of ideas and techniques from one culture
to another through intentional or unintentional
transmission had been observed since ancient times.
It spreads over a long period of time, even a few
centuries. One such significant transmission occurred
between India and China during the early medieval
period when Sino-Indian Buddhist contacts were
followed by scientific/ medical contacts.
Cover of Liao Yu Chun's book,
Ayurveda: India's traditional medicine
body and health. Among the post-Sushruta works,
Aşţāńgahŗdayasamhitā, by Vågabhata, is of foremost
importance, for its scope and popularity. Several
prominent medical works and their commentaries
came about the following centuries eg
Mādhavanidānan (6/ 7th century CE), Kalyāņakāraka
(9th century CE), Śārangdharasamhitā (13th century
CE), Bhāvaprakāśa (16th century CE) etc.
By the time Buddhism established itself in India
and began its outward transmission to Central and
East Asia particularly to China, Korea and Japan, the
Indian medical system, its prominent theories and
disciplines were already defined. It has remained a
controversial point whether the Buddhists borrowed
medical concepts from Indian medicine and gave
them the philosophical overtures or vice versa. Some
scholars are of the opinion that significant growth
of Indian medicine took place in early Buddhist
monastic establishments followed by its later
Hinduisation.3 Buddhist canonical literature is full
of cursory references to medicine and surgery, but
they do not reflect deeper medical insights. It ought
to have been the case if the Buddhists were to be
credited with significant development in medicine.
Therefore, for all we know, it was the Buddhists who
borrowed the concepts of Ayurveda that reached
China with Buddhism in the 2nd/ 3rd centuries CE.
Ancient Indian Medicine –
Roots and Development
The Indian medicine followed a developmental
pattern that was no different from other ancient
cultures. It started off with demonology and magical
medicine. This is observed in Atharvaveda, which
is considered to be the first recognised scientific
text composed during the 7th-8th centuries BCE.
Cures suggested were both magic spells and plant
remedies. Yet Atharvaveda and other Vedic literature
also reveal roots of various medical disciplines like
Buddhism and Medicine
Buddhists were deeply concerned with human
suffering and illness. Nirvāna being considered as
the state of the deliverance from all sufferings, the
one who leads men to it ie Buddha was equated to a
physician. Therefore, the name Bhaişajyaguru or藥
師Yao shi, ‘The medicine-teacher’ or Bhaişajyarāja
藥王Yao wang, ‘The king of medicine’ was given
to him. A healthy body was considered as a prerequisite for the peaceful pursuit of knowledge and
enlightenment. To assist the layman and monks alike
in its achievement was the prime duty of Buddha
and Bodhisattvas. After recognising “suffering” as a
Fragments containing records of Indian medicine unearthed on
the Silk Route
anatomy, embryology and ophthalmology. The
first rational approach to medicine is seen in the
composition of Carakasamhitā and Suśŗtasamhitā
when the indigenous medical philosophy that
provided a theoretical foundation for etiology
and treatment of diseases viz, the Tridoşa theory
evolved.1 Along with the Pańcamahābhūta2 theory,
it reflected contemporary ideas of cosmology,
elemental theory and its relation to the human
89
Cultural Contacts
meditation, Dhyāna from which evolved the Zen
sect of Buddhism in Japan. A Buddhist monk Ta Mo
or Bodhidharma, in CE 527 taught martial arts to
the Chinese Buddhist monks at Shao Lin monastery
and his method finally evolved into what is known
as Shao Lin School of martial arts.
“noble truth” ie inevitable part of life, the subsequent
truths were recognised as “cause of the suffering,
the path to overcome it, and its final stopping”.
These four truths correspond to diagnosis, etiology,
therapeutics and recovery in medical terminology.4
Buddhists’ commitment to medicine paved
the way for entry of ancient Indian medicine or
Ayurveda into China and its eventual absorption in
Chinese body scientific.
Chinese Absorption of Indian Medicine
Medical knowledge which permeated in this early
period through the translated Buddhist texts was
effective in introducing new ideas of composition of
human body and evolution of diseases into China.
Chinese medical theories were so far based on the
theories of Yin and Yang symbolism – the male and
female. This classified all the objects in the universe
into these two categories depending on their nature,
based on the five elements – wood, fire, earth, metal
and water, the vital energy qi and the blood. Writings
of Tao Hongjing (5th century CE) depicted influence
of Buddhist four element theory for the first time.
Gradually, Ayurvedic concepts, methods and
medicines took root in China. It was manifest
in diverse ways like Buddhist Canonical works,
medical treatment provided by monks, Legends of
Buddha and Bodhisattva as Bhaişajyaguru, medical
manuscripts like Qiposhu or Jīvakapustaka found in
Dunhuang caves and pictures of medical treatment
and engravings of medicinal formulae as in ‘Cave
of prescriptions’ in Longmen (Dragon gate) caves at
Loyang in north China. Finally, Chinese historical,
popular as well as medical literature, also depicted
Ayurvedic influence.
Before long, standard medical works began
referring to Indian medicine and surgery as seen
in Sun Simiao’s 孫思邈writings.8 He was a famous
medical personality who lived in 7th century CE. He
had studied Buddhism and Taoism too. His work
also lists several medicinal formulae attributed to
Jīvaka,9 a great medical personality of ancient India.
Transliterated Sanskrit terms pointing at
Ayurvedic connections are numerous in Sun Simiao’s
works eg “Agatuo” 阿迦陀 for “Agada” meaning
disease-free, “Ka mo lo” 迦摩羅for “Kāmalā” or
jaundice and translated term “Zuo dao yao” 座導
藥 for “Bastinetra” both meaning sitting-directing
medicine ie a suppository. Although suppositories
were used in China earlier as seen in “Sengshenfang”
(profound medicinal formulae of the Buddhists),
a 5th century work but they were not under this
name.10 Sun Simiao also introduced concepts of
healing of mental sufferings by means of “Chan” 禪
for Dhyāna, and a method of Indian massage “An
mo fa” 按 摩 法 and called it a Brahmin’s method.
Sun Simiao was interested in Taoism as well as
Buddhism so he was called “a new Vimalakirti”.
Demieville11 comments on Sun’s Buddhist
connections as follows:
Travels of the Buddhist Monks
Buddhism reached China in the 2nd century CE
via Silk Route. Soon there was a regular flow of
Buddhist monks between India and China. Chinese
monks visited India for pilgrimage and also to
collect canonical works. Buddhism thrived in
China during the Tang Dynasty and the number
of Buddhist monasteries and temples increased
rapidly. The early Tang emperor Taizong (627650 CE) developed contacts with several Indian
kingdoms including Magadha that was ruled by the
powerful king, Harşavardhana. Nalanda University,
therein, was a famous seat of learning at that time
and Chinese Buddhist monks visited it in large
numbers. Since interests in Indian medicine and
other sciences were growing, these monk-travellers
wrote about the distinctive nature of Indian
medicine in their travelogues.5 By and large, under
the directive of Tang emperors, Chinese monks and
visitors searched for famous Indian doctors and
drugs. Practice of medicine in Chinese monasteries
also grew rapidly and it is reflected in literature,
cave inscriptions and carvings of the time.
Xuanzang, 玄奘 during CE 629-645 and Yijing ,
義淨 between CE 671-695 visited India. During
their stay, they made Indians aware of the Chinese
techniques of accupunture and pulse examination.
On their return journey, they carried with them
Buddhist works with their innumerable medical
references. Also, valuable information on medicinal
plants, methods of treatment, organisation of free
hospitals and dispensaries.
Indian monks visited China often to participate
in the translation of Indian-Buddhist texts into
Chinese. Because of Buddhists’ interest in medicine,
their scriptures often referred to it. Among the
medicine-related essays some mentioned medicine
in general6 and others to some specific discipline of
medicine like pediatrics, ophthalmology, women’s
diseases etc.7 Standard Ayurvedic treatments of
internal medicine and surgery are also mentioned.
Furthermore, they often cite “Tridoşa” theory
that forms the basis of diagnosis and treatment
in Ayurveda.
With Buddhism, concepts of hot and cold food
came into Chinese medicine. Also, healing of mental
suffering was advocated and thus arose the art of
90
Cultural Contacts
apparent in the case of ophthalmology. The very
first mention of ophthalmic surgery in Chinese
medical works is found in Sun Simiao’s work. He
refers to cutting a white growth in the eye in the case
of disease “pterygium” in his work “Prescriptions
Worth a Thousand Pieces of Gold”.14
There are several references in Chinese historical
documents which refer to Indians performing
successful eye surgeries. Even popular literature
was no exception. Famous Chinese poet Bo Juyi
(772-846 CE) in one of his poems, refers to a classic
of Nagarjuna – the Doctor and a medicine called
“Drug of Bright Eyesight”15. Yet another poet Liu
Yuxi (772-842 CE) wrote in his poem, entitled “The
Brahmin Priest Physician Who Bestowed Eyes”,
how an Indian monk, who also happened to be a
physician, removed cataract opacity from his eyes
and enabled him to see clearly once again. These
poems suggest that Nagarjuna was considered as
an authority on eye diseases at that time. His book
was well-known and specially the method of golden
needle for the removal of cataract was famous
as an effective surgical treatment introduced by
the Indians.
Since ophthalmology and surgery were not
developed in China at that time, these ideas aroused
the curiosity of Chinese Buddhists who were the
elites of that society interested in various scholarly
pursuits including medicine.
“Sun Simiao, was an eclectic author, conversant
with the philosophies of the diverse Chinese schools
– chiefly with Taoism but he was interested in
Buddhism as well; a contemporary even nicknamed
him "a new Vimalakirti",” (Jiu Tang Shu 舊唐書,
卷: 4a-b). To be a good physician, he says in the
introduction (Taoist Canon 道藏1: 1b-2b), “It will
not suffice to be versed in Confucian and Taoist
literature: no one who has not read Buddhist books
will experience love, compassion and the joy of
renunciation. One will not know when approaching
patients vow to convey succour to all animate
beings in all their sufferings, without distinction of
rank, fortune, age, beauty, friendship or intimacy,
nationality (Chinese or Barbarian) or intelligence.
One will not succeed in considering all patients, with
even mindedness, as one’s most dear friends.” This
quote reflects Buddhist medical ethics beautifully.
Surgery in Chinese Medicine
Ancient Indian medicine freely prescribed both
medical and surgical treatments. The situation was
different in the case of ancient Chinese medicine
where surgery, together with anatomy, was still the
most primitive branch of medicine. The reason is
two-fold. One being the Confucian doctrine which
regarded human body as a sacred gift from one’s
parents, not to be mutilated in any way, came in the
way of any development in the field of anatomical
knowledge and surgery. The second was the
prevalent medical philosophy which was based on
the idea that imbalance of Yin and Yang gives rise
to an illness. As a result, to counter this imbalance,
pharmaceutical drugs were prescribed and usual
treatment for any malady was administration of
drugs. Before the introduction of Indian surgical
ideas Chinese medicine had not developed surgery to
any noticeable extent. This is perhaps the reason why
Indian ophthalmic surgery sent waves in the then
Chinese medical circle and it was willingly absorbed
in their traditional system.
Cover of Chen Ming's book, Medieval
Medicine and foreign culture
Ophthalmology
When Buddhists wrote their philosophical literature
they compared “removing ignorance by means of
wisdom” to “taking away cataract, using a golden
needle”. Even a symbolic operation of cataract with
a probe was part of initiation ritual for monks, is
described in a work which was translated into
Chinese sometime in 4/ 5th centuries CE.
“Tathagata” surpasses mundane physicians in
ophthalmology because he understood how to cut
off the cataract (timira) of ignorance with the iron
of wisdom.12
“Also, the Buddha, the king of physicians or
Vaidya-Rāja clears away the membrane or Paţala, of
ignorance with a golden needle.”13
These and the other similar ideas expressed
in Buddhist canonical literature, which became
abundant in China by 4/ 5th centuries CE, turned out
to be an eye-opener to the Chinese, both figuratively
and literally. Influence of Indian medicine is most
Indian Ophthalmology and
its Special Features
Sushruta in his work, Suśŗtasamhitā, introduced
various topics related to the eye, its morphology,
91
Cultural Contacts
Firstly, during Tang Dynasty there appeared Indian
Classic of Ophthalmology compiled in 752 CE. A
little later, there was another text by Bodhisattva
Nagarjuna entitled ‘Treatise on Ophthalmology’
which must have been written around the mid-8th
century CE.17 This is the one which was mentioned
in the poems mentioned earlier. Then yet another
work appeared early in 12th century CE by the
name ‘Nagarjuna’s complete treatise’18.
There were many new trends in Chinese
ophthalmology as a result of the Indian influence.
The classification of eye diseases was now based on
anatomy, and treatments suggested were combination
of Indian surgical methods and traditional Chinese
methods of internal medicine. Ophthalmic surgery in
all its aspects was introduced into Chinese medicine
at this time. Inclusion of certain drugs in the
prescriptions eg “Amalika” which was called A mo
qin 阿黎勒 “Haritaki” or 訶黎勒He li qin in “Triphalā”
translated as 三果, “Chakshus” or Jue ming zi決 明
子and “Jaţāmańsī” or Ma xi and黃連 Huang lian in
Chinese, further suggest a useful integration of the
two medical systems.19
Entry of Indian knowledge provided foundation
for the establishment of ophthalmology as a separate
discipline in Chinese medicine and remained a
dominant element in its development for over a
millennium, in its various aspects such as medical
philosophy, etiology, nosology, diagnosis, treatment,
medical writings and education. As to ophthalmic
surgery the Indian imports remained the sole dominant
factor till perhaps the entry of western surgery.
and relation of its parts ie the muscles, blood,
white and black parts and empty channels, to five
principal elements viz bhu, agni, jala, vayu and
akasa meaning earth, fire, water, wind and aether,
respectively.16 Then came the eye diseases and
their etiologies. Susruta classified the eye diseases
in a number of different ways eg they were based
on 1. morphology of the eye, 2. curability of eye
diseases, 3. etiology of eye diseases and lastly 4.
the treatment. This was a novel approach for that
period. Classification of diseases in other ancient
cultures used to be chiefly based on the symptoms
only. Susruta discussed altogether 76 eye diseases
which included diseases of junctional areas, eyelids, conjunctiva, then those of cornea and also
those of the inner parts of the eye like various kinds
of cataracts, glaucoma and night blindness.
Treatment suggested by Susruta is of three types:
1. general 2. local and 3. surgical. General treatment
includes purification of the body. The local treatment
includes spray, fomentation, application of fine
powders in the eye and chemotherapy. Surgical
methods include scraping, cutting, needling,
puncturing or trephining.
Ancient Indian medical men tried to diagnose
the eye diseases on the basis of the lesion location,
symptoms and pathogenesis. Functioning of the
inner parts of the eye eg the optic nerve or the
relation of the flow of aqueous humour to intra
ocular pressure, all this was unknown at that time.
Yet they recognised diseases like optic atrophy and
glaucoma to be different from cataract. They could
recognise this from their experience. Incurability
of optic atrophy and also that of the final stages
of glaucoma was known to them. Temporary
relief of elevated ocular pressure was achieved by
bloodletting, sometimes using leeches.
Ideas like classification based on anatomy of
the eye involving basic principles of surgical
interventions, eg removal of cataract opacities,
polypus-like growths, cautery to stop the unwanted
growth, epilation and tearing of the eyelid in the
case of entropion and bloodletting to relieve the
intra-ocular pressure in the case of glaucoma, as
well as pharmaceutical prescriptions which are
miotic/ mydriatic or germicidal in their application,
agree basically with the modern understanding of
the diseases and their treatment.
Other Medical Disciplines - Gynecology
With ideas and techniques, technical terms traversed
too eg Nao sha for Navasāra ie Ammonium chloride
and Totamu for Tutthanāga ie zinc (frequently
used in alchemy and metallurgy) and Zuo dao yao
for Bastinetra which was employed in gynecology.
Medical personalities like Jīvaka or Qi po 耆婆,
Kaśyapa or Ka ye fo 迦葉佛 and ‘Rāvaņa’ or Lu fu na
囉哺拏 are mentioned in the context of gynecology,
obstetrics and pediatrics respectively.20 Both Jīvaka’s
and Kaśyapa’s names are closely related to ancient
Indian female pathology and pediatrics.21 Likewise
Rāvaņa’s name is associated with pediatrics in
ancient Indian medicine.
As monastic medicine flourished, gradually some
monasteries became famous for their medical
treatment. The Monastery of Benevolent Aid or惠
濟寺 Huijisi is located at the Xiaoshan county in
Zhejiang province of China. It is locally called 竹林
寺 Zhulinsi or the Bamboo Grove Monastery. It has
been famous for its practice of medicine till the 19th
century. Monks of the Bamboo Grove Monastery
were regarded as experts in the treatment of
women’s diseases. 22 Yixinfang also quotes a Sanskrit
Nagarjuna in Chinese
Ophthalmological Works
From the 6th century CE onwards there appeared
several Chinese texts which mentioned Indian
medicine, and especially Nagarjuna’s ophthalmology.
Also three prominent works on ophthalmology
which appeared in China over a period of some
four-five centuries were related to Indian medicine.
92
Cultural Contacts
of Taoist Scriptures in the Period of Wanli. In his later
years, he lived in seclusion in the Luofu Mountain,
Guangdong province, to study alchemy, and his
study made a far-reaching influence on medical
Dharaņi or Mantra from a canonical work大集陀羅
尼經 Da ji tuo lo ni jing (Mahādhāraņī classic). It is
to be uttered to ease difficult childbirth.23
Pharmaceutics
The Bibliography of Sui Dynasty (581-618 CE) enlists
Indian books on scientific topics like mathematics,
pharmaceutics and astronomy. They were attributed
to Bodhisattva Nagarjuna and Brahmin sages. As
the use of Indian drugs increased, they found entry
in Chinese pharmacopoeia eg 本草拾遺 Bencao
shiyi (a supplement for the pharmaceutical natural
histories) of 725 CE by Chen Zangchi. He added 368
new entries including阿勒勃 A-le-bo or Āragvadha
(Cassia Fistula L). He also wrote about波羅門皂莢
Bolomen zaojia (Brahmin Soap Bean Tree, Glenditsia
Sinensis). 段成式 Duan Chengshi has also described
it in his work 酉陽雜俎 Yu yang za zu (Miscellany of
Yuyang Mountains) of 860 CE. Again, Buddhist cave
engravings viz Longmen caves and others included
pharmaceutical formulae.
The Silk Road not only carried Chinese
porcelain, gun powder and paper but also the art
of accupuncture and pulse examination to the
West. Similar was the case when Indian spices,
precious stones traversed to foreign lands, Buddhist
philosophy and the pragmatic knowledge went
along. Just as medicine came in handy to the
Christian missionaries, it became bait for the
sympathetic reception of Buddhist faith in China.
Silk Route, which linked China to India, Arabia
and further west, was thus a bridge between the
eastern and Western civilisations where along with
exchange of goods it promoted scientific exchanges
and mutual cooperation in their development.
Vijaya J. Deshpande & Kamal Sheel
Ge Hong
science to later generations. According to Study on
Five Internal Organs by Zhang Zhongjing, Dunhuang
manuscript collected by the French National Library,
the alchemy of Huainan Gehong was very effective
and mysterious and had remained a secret recipe for
later generations and the prescriptions of Ji Yan were
widely used by people. It shows that Geng Hong’s
alchemy or way of becoming immortal is highly
valued by later generations. After his death, his
Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies was further
supplemented by Tao Hongjing, a famous medical
scientist in the Liang Dynasty of the Northern and
Southern Dynasty, and the new book, totalling 101
chapters, was renamed as the Supplement of Handbook
of Prescriptions for Emergencies for One Hundred and
One Diseases by Huayang Hermit. The “One Hundred
and One Diseases” in the title is based on a theory
in Buddhist texts that, a man’s body is made up of
four major elements namely “earth”, “water”, “fire”
and “wind”, and the discordance and imbalance of
one of them will cause one hundred and one kinds
of diseases. It demonstrates that traditional Chinese
medicine scientists in the Northern and Southern
Dynasty had acquired preliminary understanding of
the Indian medical theory of Buddhism and took it
down in their own writings.
(Chen Ming)
Personalities
Ge Hong
Ge Hong (282-364 or 343? CE) was a Taoist and
medical scientist in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317420), styled as Zhi Chuan, also known by his literary
name Bao Puzi. He was born in Jurong, Danyang
(present-day Jurong County, Zhenjiang City,
Jiangsu province) and was widely referred to as
“Taoist Immortal Ge”.
Ge Hong was an expert in alchemy and medical
science. He was also a master in Taoism and
Confucianism and wrote a number of books in his
life, including The Master of Preserving Simplicity,
The Tales of Immortals, Handbook of Prescriptions for
Emergencies and Yuhan Prescriptions. It is said that
the famous Chinese literary sketches, A Miscellany
of the Western Capital, is also one of his works.
There are a total of 13 books by him collected in the
Orthodox Collected Taoist Scriptures and Supplement
Tao Hongjing
Tao Hongjing (456-536 CE) was a very famous
Taoism thinker, medical scientist, spagirist and
litterateur in the Southern Dynasties (including four
dynasties of Song, Qi, Liang and Chen). He was born
in Moling, Danyang (present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu
Province) and styled Tong Ming, also well-known by
his literary name Huayang Hermit. His posthumous
title was 'Zhen Bai'. Many of his books widely cited
the terms of Indian Buddhist medicine.
Tao Hongjing lived in three dynasties of Song,
Qi and Liang and was an expert in both Buddhism
93
Cultural Contacts
as “Jade and Stone”, “Herb”, “Insect and Beast”,
“Fruit”, “Vegetable”, “Food” and “Disused”.
Now, there are two editions of Collective Notes
to the Canon of Materia Medica available in the
world, one is collected in the library of Ryukoku
University in Japan, a manuscript of Buddhist
texts from Dunhuang Caves Temple discovered by
Otani Expedition during their third exploration.
The front of the original volume (the serial
number is Dragon 530) is Collective Notes to the
Canon of Materia medica and Mahaprajnaparamita
Upadesha while the back is Dharmagupta-vinaya
Buddhist Monk Pratimoksa. This is the foreword
of Volume I of the book and its contents were
basically completely preserved. The other edition
is collected in the National Library of Germany,
the fragmented pieces of Collective Notes to the
Canon of Materia Medica unearthed in Turpan,
codenamed as ch. 1036v. This is the Volume III of
the book, transcribed at the beginning of the Tang
Dynasty (the start of seventh century). The other
books written by Tao Hongjing include Essentials
of Nature Cultivation and Longevity, Zhen Gao and
Supplementary Records of Famous Physicians and so
on. About more studies on Tao Hongjing, please
refer to Collected Essays on Tao Hongjing (Qilu
Publishing House, 2003).
(Chen Ming)
Tao Hongjing
and Taoism, thus being widely recognised as the
“Prime Minister in the Mountain”. Most of his
life stories are recorded in Book of Liang, Volume
51, History of Southern Dynasties, Volume 76,
Recording of Huayang Hermit and Biography of
Huayang Hermit Tao, etc. He was very fond of
reading The Tales of Immortals by Ge Hong in his
childhood and then in his adulthood, he became
an official but later he unexpectedly chose to live
in seclusion in the prime of his life by retreating to
Maoshan to explore Taoism for years during which
he created the Maoshan Fraction, and eventually
grew into a leading authority in the development
of Shangqing Taoism. Tao was also very interested
in Buddhism and maintained a very close personal
relationship with Emperor Wu of Liang Dynasty,
a firm believer in Buddhism. As a very excellent
thinker proficient in medical science, Tao Hongjing
made the 86-chapter Handbook of Prescriptions for
Emergencies by Ge Hong (living in the Eastern
Jin Dynasty) into a great medical book totalling
101 chapters which he renamed as Supplement of
Handbook of Prescriptions for Emergencies for One
Hundred and One Diseases. And in the foreword, he
quoted one saying from Buddhist texts that a man’s
body is made up of four greatest elements, “earth”,
“water”, “fire” and “wind” and the disharmony
and imbalance of one of them will cause 101 kinds
of diseases. It is based on the theory of 404 kinds
of diseases in Sutra of Medicine. We can recognise
how deeply Tao was influenced by the Buddhist
theories of medicine by the book’s name in which
he added One Hundred and One.
Meanwhile, Tao Hongjing, on the basis of
reviewing and revising Chinese Ephedra from Shen
Nong’s Chinese Materia Medica, added some new
knowledge on medicine found at his time into his
book Collective Notes to the Canon of Materia medica,
another classic for the development of the Chinese
traditional medicine and herbalism. The book is
available in the three volume or seven volume
version, collecting 730 kinds of drugs which are
first categorised in accordance with the property
of a medicine and include such seven categories
Sun Simiao
Sun Simiao (?-682 CE) is the greatest physician of
the traditional Chinese medicine. He was born in
Jingzhao Huayuan (present-day Yao County, Shaanxi
Province) and lived for more than 100 years, whose
life story and achievements can be found in Old Book of
Tang. He is widely known as one of the Three Medical
Sages in China along with Zhang Zhongjing and Li
Shizhen, one of the “Three Greatest Taoist Medical
Scientists” with Ge Hong and Tao Hongjing as well
as the King of Medicine with temples built all over
the country for people to worship his contributions.
His works absorbed a large scale of the essentials
of ancient Indian medical and Buddhist knowledge,
a vivid embodiment of influence of Indian medical
science on traditional Chinese medicine.
Sun Simiao showed his intelligence when he was a
little child and he was able to recite 1,000 words a
day. As a quite knowledgeable person, he was very
fond of discussing Taoism and dissecting various
Schools of Thought and was an absolute expert in
medical science and as a gentleman of noble nature
and unsullied character, he never sought fame and
wealth but lived in seclusion, practised medicine
and tried his best to help the poor. He wrote a large
number of books in his life among which Essential
Recipes for Emergency Use (finished in 652 CE with
5,300 prescriptions in total) and Supplement to
94
Cultural Contacts
Invaluable Prescriptions for Ready Reference (finished in
682 CE, collecting 2,571 prescriptions), each totalling
30 volumes, are the most important classic literature
in the history of Chinese traditional medicine. The
two books systematically summarised the medical
achievements before the Tang Dynasty and the
author’s practical experience, and can be rated as the
earliest encyclopaedia on clinical medicine.
Sun Simiao’s works have been dramatically
influenced by foreign culture with great absorption
of Buddhism and Indian medical knowledge. Among
them, Essential Recipes for Emergency Use-Volume
One adopted the theory of the “404 Diseases” from
Buddhist texts, but changes the idea of the “disorder
of ‘earth’, ‘water’, ‘fire’ and ‘wind’, the cause of
diseases” into the “irregularity of Qi, the cause of
diseases”. Sun Simiao also copied the theory of
General Treatise on the Cause and Symptoms of Diseases
(by Chao Yuanfang) in his book. In Essential Recipes for
Emergency Use-Volume 27, he said, “Various diseases
can deteriorate the functions of the five internal
organs; each of the organs corresponds to 81 kinds of
illnesses; coldness, heat, wind and Qi altogether can
lead to 404 kinds of illnesses in total”.
His saying applies the five-internal-organ theory
of traditional Chinese medicine to the theory of 404
Picture of Sun Simiao feeling the pulse
the foreign prescriptions such as Agada Pill and
Jivaka’s Recipe for Malignant Diseases. The Rhizoma
Atractylodis Pill includes various aromatic drugs like
fructus chebulae, pistacia lentiscus, radix curcumae,
styrax and aconitum napellus etc all from India and
Persia. Agada Pill makes good use of such five herbs
as pterocarpus indicus, barberry, madder root, radix
curcumae and pepper similar to the Mahà-gandhahasti-agada in Caraka-saühità, another classic of
Indian Ayurveda. There are also “Jivaka Decoction”,
“Beisang Decoction” (from Persia and Ta Chin,
the latter referred to as Eastern Rome in ancient
China), “Drug Infusing Method in Wine” in Jivaka’s
Prescription-Study on the Diagnosis and Treatment of
Diseases Caused by Wind, “Jivaka’s Prescription for
Various Diseases of Internal Organs and Replenishing
Life Extension Recipe” and Bans for Family Harmony,
and so on, all pertained to foreign medical science.
The Acorus Calamus Prescription in Supplement to
Invaluable Prescriptions for Ready Reference is typically
a foreign prescription which was brought to China
by the envoy sent by Tripitaka Dharma Master Bamo
Midi from the kingdom of Magadha in ancient India
and Tujue in the eighth year of Daye Period (612
CE) and then translated by Master Zhuju in Pureland Monastery on July, 23, the sixth year of Wude
(623 CE) Sun Simiao learnt a large amount of foreign
medical knowledge by the eminent monks of Middle
Earth, which were collected in his own works and
Sun Simiao
diseases in Indian Buddhism medicine, and changes
the “earth, fire, water and wind” into “coldness,
heat, wind and Qi”, which demonstrated that Sun
Simiao’s medical ideas have both absorbed and
revised something of the Indian medical science.
In Essential Recipes for Emergency Use, there are also
Jivaka Pill for Various Diseases and Indian massages
etc and the latter can also be found in Taiqing Daolin
Health Conservation Theory and this is the first
time that this essential Yoga practice method in
India was translated into the classic of traditional
Chinese medicine.
Supplement to Invaluable Prescriptions for Ready
Reference is based on the theory that almost every
material on earth is the panacea to a specific kind
of disease. Volume 21 of the book lists some of
95
Cultural Contacts
even appropriately revised in accordance with the
theory of traditional Chinese medicine. His works
further strengthened and enlarged the influence of
Indian medical knowledge and Buddhism thought on
traditional Chinese medicine.
(Chen Ming)
Wang Tao
Wang Tao (670-775 CE or 690-756 CE), born in Mei
County, Shaanxi Province (present-day Mei County,
Shaanxi Province), is a renowned medical scientist
of the prosperous period of Tang dynasty. He is
the author of Arcane Essentials from the Imperial
Library, a well-known medical book which recorded
lots of medical knowledge of India and was widely
Tang Dynasty physician-scholar Wang
Tao’s ‘Wai Tai Miyao Fang Shu’
ideas. However, he was demoted due to the marital
upheaval, and then dismissed to Fangling (presentday Fang County, Hubei Province) and later he took
the office of prefecture chief of Daning (Xi County,
Shanxi Province). Wang Tao travelled a lot of
places around the country and made good use of his
medical knowledge and some classical prescriptions
to save ordinary people’s lives. He devoted himself
into medical science and eventually through years
of painstaking efforts, completed the compilation
of Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library in the
11th year of Tianbao period (752 CE), an immortal
book focussing on the discussion and exploration
of medical science and an invaluable asset through
generations. His works also include Summary of
Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library (10 volumes
in total), On Recipe for Lacteal Calculus in Essentials
of Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library (two
volumes), Bright Hall Moxibustion Therapy (or Bright
Hall Acupuncture and Moxibustion Chart), Prescription
for Typhoid fever in Arcane Essentials from the Imperial
Library Volume One and Two or Medical Secrets from
the Royal Library and so on. Arcane Essentials from
the Imperial Library, which is 40 volumes in total,
collecting a total of 10 classic books from the Han
to Tang Dynasty, absorbed the advantages and
essence of each book, and it is no wonder that
medical scientists in later generations all believed
that a person cannot be a good doctor if he’s never
studied the prescriptions in Arcane Essentials from
the Imperial Library and explored the discourse on
prescription in Essential Recipes For Emergent Use.
Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library extracted
a great amount of foreign medical knowledge and
was therefore one of the most valuable resources to
study the medical communication from six dynasties
of Sui and Tang Dynasty.
(Chen Ming)
Wang Tao
acclaimed as the most essential collection of
historical materials on the history of the IndiaChina Medical Communication.
Wang Tao’s life story and experience is attached
after Biography of Wang Gui in the New Book of
Tang. Wang Gui (571-639) is the great-grandfather
of Wang Tao, once assumed several important posts
such as Privy Counsellor and Director of the Board
of Rites after engaging in politics. The epitaphs of
Wao Tao’s grandson, Wang Shizheng and greatgrandson, Wang Tan have both been unearthed,
which offer a short introduction to his official
positions. Wang Tao was in poor health when he
was a little child but he was very kind and obedient
and treated his parents very well, and in order to
treat his mother’s disease, he pushed himself very
hard to explore medical science and even travelled
with some famous doctors at his time across the
whole country, in the process of which, he almost
acquired all of the skills and knowledge of that
doctor. Though the medical achievements he made
are not as influential and far-reaching as those of
some medical giants such as Sun Simiao, his skill
and experience is undoubtedly profound and deep.
He was once appointed as supervising secretary,
managing numerous volumes of literature and books
in Hong Wen Library for more than 20 years and
during this process, he read a wide range of books
and managed to acquire their essentials and main
Li Shizhen
Li Shizhen (1518-1893 CE) was an expert of
traditional Chinese medicine in the Ming Dynasty,
and wrote Compendium of Materia Medica which was
96
Cultural Contacts
the great work of Chinese pharmaceutical science.
He absorbed the achievements of pharmaceutical
science development in past dynasties, recorded
knowledge of multiple foreign medicines and wrote
Compendium of Materia Medica which became an
important historical book to study ancient Sinoforeign (especially India-China) medical exchanges.
Li Shizhen, whose courtesy name was Dongbi,
was also known as Binhu. He came from Qizhou,
Hubei (Qichun, Hubei). He was born in a well-known
family of traditional Chinese medicine. Being edified
by what he saw, he visited famous doctors and
accumulated many medicine books while especially
being fond of conducting site investigations on
herbal medicines, and finally compiled Compendium
Compendium of Medical Herbs compiled by Li Shizhen
five viscera, strengthen muscles and bones and help
in digestion. It could reduce weight and was good
for facial appearance after having been taken for
a long time. So it was called as salsify. Common
people obtained it after the spread from the palace
and Tantric Master Amoghavajra presented it to
court officials and further extended the scope of its
use in China. Li Shizhen absorbed the achievements
of previous literature as well as corrected previous
errors, supplemented new recognition and methods
of medicines, and made some Indian medicines (such
as haritaki and chavica roxburghii) which became
common drugs of traditional Chinese medicine and
gradually lost the characteristics of foreign culture
and completed the process of thorough localisation.
(Chen Ming)
Li Shizhen
of Materia Medica in 1578 after nearly 30 years of
great effort. This was considered to be the ultimate
work in the history of ancient traditional Chinese
medicine. It had 52 volumes, divided into 16 parts
and 56 categories and collected 1,892 medicines
including 374 new medicines. The book collected
widely from medical books and Buddhist explanation
classics and added annotations of transliteration
forms for Sanskrit medicine names from India and
Central Asia. In terms of collected Indian medicines,
the main original versions of Compendium of Materia
Medica were Supplement to Materia Medica of Chen
Cangqi in the Tang Dynasty and Classified Materia
Medica was finished by Tang Shenwei in 1082, who
was the folk doctor in the Northern Song Dynasty.
Particularly the latter had many revised versions. It
had 30 volumes, collected 1,746 medicines and was
claimed as a great achievement integrating herbalism
of previous generations and the Tang and Song
Dynasty. Compendium of Materia Medica recorded
multiple medicines related to India such as black
pepper, nutmeg, asafetida, rhizoma picrorrhiza,
aragbadha, emblic leafflower fruit, terminalia
belerica, haritaki, long pepper, dutchmanspipe root
and benzoin etc as well as rhizoma curculiginis
offered by Brahmin monks to Emperor Xuanzong of
Tang in the first year of Kaiyuan of the Tang Dynasty
(713). It was named Asvagandha in Sanskrit and
could dispel wind-evil, warm waist and feet, nourish
George Hatem
George Hatem (1910-1988 CE) was a modern
Chinese expert on venereal diseases and leprosy.
He was an Arab American and his family origin
was Lebanon. He was born in Buffalo, New York
in the United States of America on September 26,
1910. He died on October 3, 1988 in Beijing. He
was a famous international communist fighter
and won the Gandhi International Leprosy Award
granted by India because of his outstanding medical
achievements.
George Hatem began to learn medicine in 1927
in America, received a medical doctor degree from
University of Geneva Switzerland in 1933 and came
to Shanghai to investigate the conditions of tropical
disease in the same year. In the spring of 1936,
with the help of Song Qingling, George Hatem and
Edgar Snow arrived in North Shaanxi and engaged
in disease prevention, treatment and scientific
research for decades in China since then. During
the period working in hospitals of Yan’an, George
Hatem received Indian doctors including M. Atal,
D. S. Kotnis and B. K. Basu who came to support
the Anti-Japanese War, and they exchanged ideas
97
Cultural Contacts
mutually and worked together. After the founding
of the People’s Republic of China, George Hatem
became the first foreigner who was approved to join
Chinese nationality. As one of the pioneers of the
health service of New China, he helped establish
Central Institute of Dermatology and Venereology,
committed himself to prevention and research of
venereal diseases and leprosy and found effective
methods to treat syphilis which was suitable for
China’s conditions. He set up comprehensive
Tang Youzhi teaching opthalmology students
Beijing Guang’anmen Hospital and China Academy
of Chinese Medical Sciences and engaged in clinical,
research and teaching related to ophthalmology.
The gold needle couching originated from ancient
India, and was recorded in Medical Secrets from
the Royal Library written by Wang Tao in the Tang
Dynasty but it had been lost in China and India for a
long time. Since 1960, Tang Youzhi restored to use
the gold needle couching successfully and solved the
problem of the early complication such as glaucoma
after operative incision on pars plana and couching
clinically. In 1966, the couching was recognised
by Ministry of Health and was promoted as the
first scientific research achievement of traditional
Chinese medicine which was verified by Chinese and
western medical experts scientifically. Tang Youzhi
conducted the golden needle couching for important
domestic and foreign political members such as Mao
Zedong, Prince Penm Nouth of Cambodia, Kim II
Sung of North Korea, Wahid of Indonesia etc and
made them recover their eyesight.
In 1981, Tang Youzhi, the then deputy director
of China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences,
led the delegation of traditional Chinese medicine
visited India. They visited six Indian cities and
widely discussed traditional medical theories
George Hatem
research bases to prevent leprosy in Hai’an County
of Jiangsu province and Chao’an County of
Guangdong province and made great contributions
to eliminate venereal disease and leprosy in China.
George Hatem developed cooperation and exchange
in Chinese and foreign medical circles actively
and as the advisor of China Ministry of Health, he
led a delegation of 10 people to participate in the
12th International Conference on Leprosy in India.
In 1985, he held the first International Exchange
Conference on Leprosy in China. In his later years,
he visited different areas with poor health and
made his due contribution to prevention of leprosy
on an international level. George Hatem’s medical
achievements were recognised by the world and
he was granted with the American Damien-Dutton
Leprosy Award in 1982. He received the Gandhi
International Leprosy Award granted by India in
1988 which was of great importance in the modern
India-China medical exchange history.
(Chen Ming)
Tang Youzhi
Tang Youzhi (1926) is an ophthalmology expert of
traditional Chinese medicine. His style name was
Kunwu, he came from Hangzhou City, Zhejiang
Province and his main achievements are restoration
and innovation of ancient Chinese “gold needle
couching” originated from India.
He began to learn ophthalmology from his
teachers since 1942. He studied in medical
department of Beijing Medical College from 1952 to
1957. After graduation, he successively worked at
Tang Youzhi performing operations
98
Cultural Contacts
16th centuries CE in China. Some of them mention
Nagarjuna as the author, others have “Discourse
on Eyes” as the title, yet their contents point to
Nagarjuna’s text as the source which point to 72
kinds of eye diseases and their prescriptions. Almost
a century before Bo Juyi’s reference to Nagarajuna,
Indian ophthalmology was noted by Chinese medical
writers in Tianzhu jing lunyan 天竺經論眼 “Indian
Classic of discourse on eyes” which was part of a Tang
work viz. Waitai miyao外臺秘要 “Medical secrets of
an official’ compiled by Wang Tao in 752 CE.
and technologies of both countries with peers in
India’s medical circle. At Varanasi, the delegation
got together with several hundred of experts of
Traditional Indian Medicine Institute and watched
the documentary film of Chinese doctors including
Tang Youzhi doing “the gold needle couching”.
Indian experts felt surprised and pleased to see
the revival of this unique ancient skill. This was a
much told story in the modern India-China medical
exchange history.
(Chen Ming)
NAGARJUNA - THE PHYSICIAN
Nagarjuna is a name common to several famous
scholars in ancient and medieval India linked with
correlated areas like Buddhist philosophy, tantrism,
medicine as well as alchemy, all of whom lived in
the period ranging from 2nd to 9th centuries CE.
He connected with the revision of Susŗtasamhitā, an
ancient Indian work on medicine, especially surgery.
He is traditionally considered to be the author of its
last chapter that includes ophthalmology.
In Chinese history, Nagarjuna’s name (recorded
in Chinese as Long Shu龍樹, Long Shan龍勝or Long
iMeng龍猛, literally, Dragon tree, Dragon conqueror
and Dragon the brave or transliterated as 那伽閼剌
樹那) appears in two contexts. The first as a “Second
Buddha” – the founder of Madhyamak philosophy
of Mahayana Buddhism who contributed 24
philosophical works to the Chinese Tripitaka. The
second as a great doctor with specialisation as
an ophthalmologist producing several works on
medicine on topics ranging from pharmaceutics,
compounding of perfumes and incense, nourishing
the vital essence and ophthalmology.
The bibliography of the “History of the Sui
Dynasty” (581-618 CE) mentions 12 titles on
medicine authored by Indians out of which three
are attributed to Nagarjuna viz Pharmaceutics of
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna (Longshu pusa yaofang龍
樹菩薩藥方), Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s Methods
for Compounding Perfumes and Incense (Longshu
pusa hexiang fa 龍樹菩薩和香法) and Bodhisattva
Nagarjuna’s method for nourishing the vital essence
(Longshu pusa yangxing fang 龍樹菩薩養性方).
Unfortunately, none are available now.
Further, in the 9th century CE, Nagarjuna’s name
appears in a poem entitled Mu-bing目病 (eye
disease) of Bo Juyi白居易 (772 - 846 CE), the famous
poet of the Tang dynasty (CE 618-907). It was about
ophthalmology. Bo Juyi had a serious eye-disease in
his old age. He subsequently refers to his problem in
many poems referring to “Nagarjuna’s classics” and
“a drug for clear eyesight”.
After the first allusion in Bo Juyi’s poem, Nagarjuna
and his work are repeatedly mentioned in medical
works and compendia written between the 9th and
Nagarjuna (Fotucheng)
Nagarjuna’s “Discourse on Eyes” mentioned by
Bo Juyi is preserved in a later medical compendium
viz. Yi fang lei ju醫方類聚 (a collection of various
medical prescriptions) which was compiled by Jin
Li-meng, a Korean who studied medicine in China
at the beginning of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644
CE). The first essay in this book categorically states
that the method for the removal of cataract was first
taught by Bodhisattva Nagarjuna.
Nagarjuna’s
Longmu
Zonglun
龍木總論is
included in a later work Michuan Yanke Longmu
Zong Lun 秘傳眼科龍木总論 which secretly passed
down comprehensive discourse of Nagarjuna on
ophthalmology that appeared around the 13th
century CE and was used as standard text for
students of ophthalmology till the 16th century CE.
Even the standard examination paper for Tai yi ju,
the imperial medical service contained excerpts
from Nagarjuna’s works.
From the contents of the doctor Nagarjuna’s works
in Chinese, it is apparent that the ancient Indian
ophthalmology influenced Chinese ophthalmology
in various ways eg etiological, morphological, as
well as related to classification of eye diseases. This
suggests the prominent position Nagarjuna enjoyed
in medieval Chinese medicine and his contribution
to the historical evolution of ophthalmology in India
as well as in China.
(Vijaya J Deshpande & Kamal Sheel)
Buddhacinga (Fotucheng)
Buddhacinga (232-348 CE) was an eminent monk
from the Western Region who visited China in the
late Western Jin Dynasty. His last name before
99
Cultural Contacts
pravrajana was Bo. Buddhacinga’s stories have been
recorded in the 10th volume of Biography of Eminent
Monks, “Log of Buddhism and Taoism” in Book of Wei
and “Biography of Buddhacinga” in the Book of Jin.
Buddhacinga himself made significant contribution
in the dissemination progress of Buddhism in China.
After his arrival in China, Buddhacinga
disseminated Buddha Dharma with his magical
skills and expertise in ingenious technologies.
It is said that he was good at spellings and was
capable of ordering ghosts and spirits with sesame
oil-rouge mixture painted on his hand, he could
see scenes thousands of miles away through his
hand. By hearing sound of bells, he could read
good or bad omens; by washing gut near pools,
he could purify his body; moreover, he could
construction of over 1,000 temples and enrolled
over 10 thousand students which is why his stories
are still spreading in the later ages and affecting
more people. There are transcripts of Stories and
Luck of Monk Buddhacinga (No. S.1625va, P.2680j)
and Glorifications about Arhat Buddhacinga – the
Monk (No.0276vc) unearthed from the Dunhuang
Sutra Cave. There are also wall paintings about
Buddhacinga in middle section of the northern wall
of No.323 Early-Tang Dynasty grotto among Mogao
Grottoes, including Picture of Buddhacinga Educating
Shi Le, Picture of Buddhacinga Extinguishing Fire in
Youzhou, Picture of Buddhacinga Reading Omens by
Hearing Bells, Picture of Buddhacinga Washing Gut by
River. Such paintings are of rather important value
in the study of Buddhacinga’s life and transmission
history of northern Buddhism in Later Zhao Dynasty.
(Chen Ming)
Jīva
Jīva (Jīvaka) is an Indian monk who visited China
in the late West Jin Dynasty. Jīva is transliterated
from Jīva or Jīvaka in Sanskirt. His story is recorded
in “Part I of Miracles”, ninth volume of Biographies
of Eminent Monks. Jīva introduced magical Indian
invocation therapy into southern China.
By maritime route, Jīva travelled from India,
Kingdom of Funan to Jiaoguang. After stepping
on China’s land, Jīva continued his journey,
passed by Xiangyang and eventually arrived in
Luoyang in late years of Emperor Jinhui’s govern
(306). He believed that palaces in and around the
urban area of Luoyang was constructed by divine
Buddhacinga (Fotucheng)
also summon rains to put out fire on his whim.
Buddhacinga possessed splendid healing skills, he
could treat people’s difficult diseases and patients
would recover just as he said. He also possessed
profound understanding in Buddhism dharma with
incomparable explanation profession and a great
goal of spreading great dharma, he was never
short of words in discussions; Shi Le, Shi Hu, Guo
Heilue and other people educated by Buddhacinga
all began to uphold benevolent rules for saving
all creatures on earth and enrolled masses of
followers. Buddhacinga’s dharma dissemination
later became foundation for thriving of northern
Buddhism in the period of the 16 Kingdoms and
primarily created the dissemination mode of
Buddhism-Monarch (Imperial Power) Combination.
Buddhacinga eventually passed away in fourth
year of Yonghe (348) during the rule of Emperor
Jin Mu at the age of 117 years. Buddhacinga
had students like Shi Daoan and Zhu Fatai and
they were all knowledgeable people with high
morales. Since most stories about Buddhacinga
contained mysterious and divine elements, these
have foreshadowed his otherwise excellent
accomplishments in Dharma and righteous deed.
His stories are categorised in Biographies of Eminent
Monks by people in later generations.
Buddhacinga is of quite some divinity. He
assisted Shi Zhao for over 30 years, organised
'Shi Hua Yuanliu
Yinghua shiji' Jiva
treating his patients
craftsmen from the Trayastrimśa heaven. Jīva
possesses untrammelled, magical characteristics
and biblical arts of healing, and has been involved
in two medical affairs in China. One affair is about
Teng Yongwen who was the governor of Hengyang
County and was lodged in Manshui Temple. Teng
was affected by some tough disease which twisted
his legs and affected his ability of walking. Jīva
sprayed some conjured water with a willow vimen,
on Teng’s leg and his disability healed. Another
100
Cultural Contacts
Treatment Methods of Buddhist Diseases). Esoteric
Treatment Methods of Buddhist diseases includes
two volumes and involves “72 treatment methods
of Aranya heart disease”, “treatment method of
choke”, “treatment method of walker’s corruption
and obscenity”, “treatment method of sore-prone
disease”, “treatment method of violation of
commandment”, “treatment method of indulgence
in music”, “treatment method of enjoyment in
extolling Buddhist verses”, “treatment method of
diseases caused by flood”, “treatment method of
headache, ophthalmodynia and epicophosis caused
by internal heat”, “treatment method of insane
disease due to fear of inauspicious things predicted
during samadhi”, “treatment method of gale” and
“treatment method of various uneasy diseases
of tyros caused by ghosts and goblins” mainly
to adjust and treat different unwell and chaotic
phenomena during the process of studying Buddha
dharma. Recently, some scholars think that this
scripture was made in Central China which have
not been confirmed.
(Chen Ming)
affair is about a dying patient who had been affected
by heatstroke. Jīva placed an empty bottle on the
belly of the patient and covered the bottle with a
white cloth. Then, Jīva cast thousands of spells and
forced disgustingly smelly foul materials hidden
in the patient’s stomach into the bottle and saved
the patient’s life. As for dharma dissemination,
instead of those profound philosophies and ideas,
Jīva advocated to act more and speak less. Most
stories about Jīva are quite singular, it is said that
he could form double-gangers to perform dharma
dissemination and was capable of many other
mysterious skills. Some people believe that Jīva was
performing some magic of forbidden willow spell
and such kind of magic actually originated from
an ancient philosophy in the Western Regions but
not in India and they took fine willow vimen found
in a tome along the south path of the Silk Road as
proof for such opinion. Methods involving spraying
water with willow vimen were actually rarely seen
in documents about Indian Esoteric Buddhism. In
Jīva’s story, willow vimen was just applied as a tool
for healing magic while the key for the magic was
the conjured water. Therefore, it is not necessary to
identify Jīva’s healing method as a kind of ancient
witchcraft belief from Western Regions.
Jīva (Jīvaka) is also the Chinese name of another
eminent healer from India (see the “Qipo” entry).
(Chen Ming)
Jīva Jīvaka
Jiva Jivak, or Jivaka Komarbhacca (in Chinese
Qi Po), is famous as the doctor of Lord Buddha.
Introduced to China through the translated Buddhist
Tripitakas, he became a celebrated personality
of ancient Chinese medicine on account of his
excellent accomplishments in the field of medicine
(gynecology, obstetrics and pediatrics) and surgery
(especially neurosurgery). In Sanskrit, Pali, Chinese
Buddhasena
Buddhasena [Buddhasena] was an eminent monk
of Kasmira, Uttarapatha (now Kashmir) who came
to China in Northern Liang Dynasty (397-460 CE).
His name can be transliterated into Fuoduoxian and
Fuodaxian and the meaning is a soldier or general.
Buddhasena was the master of Sarvastivada and
inheritor of Buddha dharma later. He converted
the people in Kasmira and was the leader of the
third training. He once studied Buddha dharma
with Bhadrabahu and his disciples then spread
it to Central China. According to the Records of
Buddhist Esoteric Treatment Scriptures, Volume
nine of Record Set of Tripitaka written by Sengyou,
Buddhasena was very talented. He recited a mass
of gatha, was proficient in Buddha dharma and
researched Buddhist and non-Buddhist classics
deeply so that he was then called “the disciple of
the most excellent master”. Buddhabhadra once
learned from Buddhasena and translated two
volumes of Dharmatrata Scriptures after coming to
China. The king of Hexi areas of Northern Liang
learned Buddha dharma from Buddhasena in Qumo
Emperor Temple of Khotan with his brother, Juqu
Anyang marquis Juqu Jingsheng who translated
the Buddhist scriptures he recited namely Buddhist
Esoteric Treatment Scriptures (also named as Esoteric
Fragments of the 'Five Buddhist
Scriptures' now in possession of
Chinese Tibetan Museum
and Tibetan traditions, he is considered to be the
son of an unwed mother, probably a courtesan of
the famous Magadh king, Bimbisara. He had been
thrown out of his place of birth and was found alive
(hence his name from the Sanskrit root, jiva meaning
life) and raised by the king’s son, Abhaya. Jīvaka
was written as Qi Po耆婆 in Chinese. Many other
phonetically equivalent characters were also used
101
Cultural Contacts
women’s standard diseases) and Ka ye jin jie jing
迦葉禁戒經 (a classic of Kaśyapa’s prohibitions for
pregnant women) . Fa Xian in the late 10th century
CE translated Ka ye xian ren shuo yi nu ren jing 迦
葉仙人説醫女人經 (a classic on women’s diseases as
told by the Sage Kaśyapa) into Chinese.
(Vijaya J Deshpande & Kamal Sheel)
to represent Qi Po eg 耆域 Jiva, 時縛迦 Jīvaka. The
word, Qi气, which means “life force” in Chinese, has
probably originated from the Sanskrit term Jīva.
Some scholars date Jivak to the 5th century CE.
All versions of his life story refer to his interest
in study of medical sciences and then going out
possibly to Taxila for a long advanced training
in medicine and neurosurgery. He probably had
training under Ótreya (Ótreya Punarvasu), the
famous sage who learned medicine from Bhårdvåja
and whose disciple was Agniveßa. There are
many narratives in various canonical texts about
his successful treatment of kings, merchants and
commoners and their family members. He thus
earned fame and wealth and was honoured with the
title of “king of physicians” by his King, Bimbisara.
According to a legend, he was assigned to Buddha
as his personal physician by the King and treated
Buddha for ailments contracted in the course of
travel. In various stories, it is claimed that Buddha
told him: “I heal the soul, you heal the body”.
There are numerous references to Jīvaka in
later Chinese works both historical and medical.
For example, in the history of Sui Dynasty, a
section is attributed to Qi Po. In a contemporary
medical compendium viz Zhu bing yuan huo lun,
諸病源候論 (a complete discussion of the origins
and symptoms of diseases) written by Chao Yuan
Fang in CE 610, some medical treatise of Qi Po
(Jivaka) are mentioned. Sun Simiao, a well-known
medical writer of the time, known as the “king of
pharmaceutics” writes: “A great medicine man of
India, Jīvaka has said that all things under heaven
have medicinal efficacy.” His two compilations
Beiji Qianjin Yaofang 備急千金要方 (Emergency
medicinal formulae worth a thousand pieces of
gold) and its supplement Qianjin Yifang 千金翼
方 (Supplement to the medicinal formulae worth
a thousand pieces of gold), there are medical
prescriptions attributed to Qi Po.
Excavations of the Dunhuang caves in the early
20th century unearthed some medical manuscripts
as well. One is named Qiposhu 耆婆書 or
Jīvakapustaka which was written both in Sanskrit
and Brāhmi. It has been extensively studied by Chen
Ming as well as Jean Filliozat. A Japanese scholar,
Tanba Yasuyori in 984 CE made a collection of
Chinese medical works viz Yixinfang. These include
formulae for women’s diseases like stomach ache
during menstruation, pregnant women’s problems,
treatment for infertility etc. It thus appears that the
incomplete work Qiposhu (Jīvakapustaka) is a short
version meant for practical use.
A Central Asian prince monk, An Shikao, is
said to have translated two works in 147 CE that
were accredited to Jīvaka-Kaśyapa. They were Nai
nu qi po jing 佛説柰女耆婆經 (Jīvaka’s classic on
Works
Valuable Prescriptions
for Emergency
Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency was a famous
work of traditional Chinese medicine in the Tang
Dynasty. The author was the famous Tang medical
scientist, Sun Simiao. The book reflected the
tendency of traditional Chinese medicine to absorb
knowledge of Indian medicine and Buddhism.
Sun Simiao collected medical books from different
schools and massive folk prescriptions in successive
‘Beiji Qianjing Yaofang’ (Valuable Prescriptions
for Emergency)
dynasties, learned from sutras extensively, deleted
complicated contents, absorbed advantages of
various schools, and compiled the book in the third
year of Yonghui period (652). The book’s name came
from the sentence that “importance was attached
to human life, it valued a thousand pieces of gold
and virtues exceeded relief in a region so it was
named”. Valuable prescriptions for Emergency had 30
volumes, dividing into 232 sections, covered over
5,200 prescriptions and had rich collections and
profound contents which was a great medical work
in the nature of encyclopedia and made outstanding
contributions to the development of traditional
Chinese medicine for later generations.
Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency had important
clinical values and it has been circulated, copied and
102
Cultural Contacts
and Indian medicine had active effects on Sun
Simiao’s knowledge structure and clinical thinking
which made him one of the main driving forces
in the change of medical knowledge in traditional
Chinese medicine history. On the other hand, the
foreign knowledge further enlarged its influences on
China because of the collection in his work.
(Chen Ming)
issued for thousands of years which was carved and
printed for over 30 times. The book has different
versions, volumes and words differ slightly and it is
divided into three great systems: the official carved
version revised by Medical Book Revision Bureau of
the Northern Song Dynasty, the manuscript of the
Tang Dynasty which wasn’t revised by courtiers of
the Song Dynasty and the version of Orthodox Taoist
Scriptures in the Ming Dynasty. The books has also
other names like Newly Carved Valuable Prescriptions
of Saint Sun, Authentic Valuable Prescriptions, Valuable
Prescriptions of King Medicine (combined issue of
Supplement to Valuable Prescriptions) etc.
Sun Simiao “was good at talking about theories
of Lao Tzu, Chuang Tzu and various schools of
thoughts and was proficient in explaining classics”
so Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency “collected
widely and deleted complicated contents” and
quoted deep knowledge from Buddhist and Indian
medicine. “Virtues of a great doctor” in its Volume
1 Preface Case proposed that “all people shall be
equal including the rich and the poor, the old and
the young, the beautiful and the ugly, the resentful
and kind-hearted friends, Chinese and foreigners,
the wise and the stupid, who shall be treated as
close relatives in terms of treatment with diseases”.
It showed influences of the Buddhist concept of
mercy. In the matter of theory of causes of disease,
the Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency, absorbed
the theories of “body being composed of the four
elements including earth, water, fire and wind”
as well as “404 diseases” of Indian Buddhist
medicine. Replacing “101 diseases being caused
by one great abnormity” with the theories of “Qi”
and “spirit” of traditional Chinese medicine, Sun
Simiao writes that the “abnormity of one Qi leads
to 101 diseases, 404 diseases are caused by action
of the four spirits”, which reflected his acceptance
of foreign medical knowledge.
Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency also contained
some prescriptions using Indian medicines. Its
Volume 12 of Gallbladder had the section on “Pills
and Powders for 10,000 Diseases” and recorded 13
prescriptions, among which “Jivaka Pill for Ten
Thousand Diseases” was the most representative
medicine. The pill for 10,000 diseases “had mainly
bezoar, so it was also named bezoar pill; it was named
Jivaka pill because of the good doctor Jīvaka”. Jīvaka
was a famous doctor recorded in Indian sutra using
his name to name a medical prescription showed that
Sun Simiao knew about Indian medical thoughts and
Jivaka prescriptions to some extents, and absorbed
them. Volume 27 of Cultivation of Temperament
in Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency collected
“Indian massage which was a Brahman method”.
This was a relatively rare Indian massage method in
Chinese literature. On one hand, Buddhist thoughts
Supplement to Valuable
Prescriptions
Supplement to Valuable Prescriptions It was a
famous traditional Chinese medicine book in the
Tang Dynasty. The author was the excellent medical
scientist Sun Simiao in the Sui and Tang Dynasty.
The book was as important as Valuable Prescriptions
for Emergency to study India-China medical culture
exchange in the period of the Six Dynasties as well
as the Sui and Tang Dynasty.
After Sun Simiao compiled Valuable Prescriptions
for Emergency in the third year of Yonghui Period
of Emperor Gao in the Tang Dynasty (652 CE), he
was worried about omissions, so he collected secret
prescriptions for another 30 years, including Treatise
on Febrile Diseases of Zhang Zhongjing, combined
clinical experience of dozens of years and compiled
Supplement to Valuable Prescriptions. The two books
were an excellent match like flying birds so that
readers could cure diseases, keep healthy and
benefit greatly. Supplement to Valuable Prescriptions
also had 30 volumes, supplemented over 2,000
ancient prescriptions which weren’t collected in
Valuable Prescriptions for Emergency. The part of
Medicine Record in the preface of the book collected
over 800 medicines and greatly enriched materia
medica knowledge in the Tang Dynasty.
Sun Simiao absorbed medical knowledge from
Indian Buddhism actively and held a positive
attitude towards the famous doctor Jīvaka in the
era of Buddha. He accepted Jīvaka’s theory that
“all things were medicines”. “Section II Medicine
Names” in volume I of “Outline of Medicine Record”
of Supplement to Valuable Prescriptions wrote that
“the great Indian doctor Jīvaka said that all things
under the heaven were panaceas. Everything was a
medicine. The one who knew this was a great doctor.”
This medical thought that “all things were medicines”
broadened Sun Simiao’s vision and widened the
scope of herbalism, and had great significance. Under
the influence of this thought, Sun Simiao absorbed
a lot of folk or foreign medicines. Compared with
Newly Revised Materia Medica, Valuable Prescriptions
for Emergency and Supplement to Valuable Prescriptions
had 680 more kinds of medicines, medicine species
were enriched greatly and the thought had played
an active role in promoting development of materia
medica in later generations.
103
Cultural Contacts
in the recuperating way”, “prescription of asafoetida
pill”, “prescription of kuhseng and nitrel liquor”,
“prescription of great white paste”, “prescription of
great black paste”, “prescription of great white paste”,
“prescription of immersion soup”, “innocence pill for
one hundred fears”, “prescription curing ten leprosy
diseases” and “magic prescription curing leprosy” in
volume 21 Ten Thousand Diseases and “prescription
of the great doctor Jīvaka curing 10,000 diseases of
viscera, tonifying and prolonging life” in volume 22
Flying and Refining came from Indian prescriptions.
As for “the prescription taking calamus”, Sun Simiao
clearly recorded that “Indian Tripitaka Dharma
Master Varmanmiti from Rajagrha City, Magadha
Kingdom became was an envoy of Tujue in the 8th
year of Daye Period and it was translated by the Great
Virtue Master of Luozhou and Master Ju in Pure Land
Temple on July 23, the sixth year of Wude Period.
Master Ju was Master Xing Ju in the early the Tang
Dynasty. The source of “immersing method in liquor”
attached to “the prescription of kuhseng and nitrel
liquor” was “from Treatise on Prescriptions of Jīvaka:
Method Curing Moderate Gale”. Supplement to Valuable
Prescriptions kept many Indian prescriptions and
used much more prescriptions of Indian medicines
including asafoetida, especially flavour prescriptions
including lavender.
Supplement to Valuable Prescriptions also collected
medical mantras with Indian Tantric colour, such
as “spell eliminating ghosts” in volume 13 and
“method of forbidden order for harmonious family”
in volume 30 of Forbidden Sutra, Part II, which
showed that Sun Simiao absorbed knowledge of
Indian medicine and religion. Although Jīvaka’s
medical prescriptions under the pen of Sun Simiao
has source factors of Indian medical science, they
had not been pure Indian prescriptions. A lot of
elements of traditional Chinese medicine and
Taoist medicine had been added, which showed
the tendency of combining Chinese medical science
with Indian medical science in the Tang Dynasty.
(Chen Ming)
Sun Simiao also paid attention to a combination
of Indian and Chinese medical principles. Volume 21
“Jīvaka’s Curing Malignant Diseases” of Supplement
to Valuable Prescriptions pointed out that “there
were 404 disease winds. Generally speaking, there
were five types, ie they were caused by five winds.
Every hundreds of disease is related to five internal
organs, and each internal organ may cause 81 kinds
of diseases altogether 404 diseases. Every disease
shall be treated with the category well known.” The
sayings that “there were four hundred and four kinds
of disease winds” and “each internal organ had 81
kinds in terms of the five internal organs”, reflected
that Sun Simiao tried to combine the Indian medical
theory of “404 diseases” with inherent theories of
traditional Chinese medicine (such as the theory of
‘Qianjin Yifang’ (Supplement to
Valuable Prescription)
five elements and the concept of viscera pathology)
and further enriched the traditional Chinese medical
pathological theories. Supplement to Valuable
Prescriptions kept many prescriptions named after
Jīvaka. As early as in 1936, Fan Xingzhun pointed
out in the paper, Study on Prescriptions in the Western
Regions that “acute conjunctivitis prescription”
and “prescription curing acute conjunctivitis” in
volume 11 of Children’s Eye Diseases of Supplement to
Valuable Prescriptions, “prescription taking calamus”
and “Jīvaka soup – the prescription for extreme
deficiency, cold wind, weakness and colourlessness ”
in volume 12 of Cultivation of Temperament, “sulfur
grundum simmering – the prescription for flaccidity
of lower limbs and cold caused by deficiency” in
volume 17 Apoplexia Part II, “honey simmering –
the prescription for consumptive thirst”, “goat spinal
cord simmering – the prescription for consumptive
thirst, dry mouth and throat moistening” and “honey
simmering – the prescription for thirsts” in volume
19 Miscellaneous Diseases, “Ajanta medicine – the
prescription for diseases which can be helpful for
look and cure diseases after taking for a long time
Arcane Essentials from
the Imperial Library
Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library is the
most important collection of the large medical and
pharmaceutical books during the Tang Dynasty.
Compiled by Wang Tao (670-755 CE or 690-756 CE)
during the 11th year of Tianbao period (752 CE), the
book treasures a large collection of knowledge on
ancient medical science and Buddhism of India, an
embodiment of great influence of Indian medicine
on China before the Tang Dynasty.
With 40 volumes and 1,104 categories in total,
Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library always
probes into the causes and development of a disease
104
Cultural Contacts
widely collected the ancient and current discourses
on prescriptions. A lot of books on which the
quotations of Arcane Essentials from the Imperial
Library were based were lost and therefore, this book
is the only way for people to understand how those
lost books had absorbed the outside culture and
how they were transformed. Arcane Essentials from
the Imperial Library recorded immense information
on outside medical science, the most important
part of which is the 21st volume Tianzhu Scriptures
on Eye Preface One, written by a Longshang Taoist
priest whose surname is Xie, living at the beginning
of the Tang Dynasty to the most prosperous period
of Tang. It’s said that Xie acquired knowledge
from a Serindia monk in Qizhou (now Jinan City,
Shandong Province). Tianzhu Scriptures on Eye is a
miniature of ophthalmology knowledge in India
including the Four Element Theory of Buddhism
and traditional technique for couching cataracts
which is not merely the very important and
valuable historical materials for later generations to
understand the Indian ophthalmology knowledge
but also boasts essential clinical value for today’s
ophthalmic medical practice. Arcane Essentials
from the Imperial Library quotes so many things
from Jinxiao Prescriptions which are basically the
effective time-honoured one from the beginning of
the Tang Dynasty to the prosperous Tang period.
Among them, the Brahmin monk therapy for
diseases caused by wind, therapy for heat-toxicity
by alchemical medicine and disease that hands and
feet are unable to coordinate, Alternanthera Sessilis
Cream which originally belongs to Brahmin’s
prescriptions and Liaosan, 50-year Red Eye and
Bingtaichi prescription in Essential Prescriptions
Compiled by Cui Zhiti which are strictly based on
medicine in west regions of Tang as well as the
Gentiana Macrophylla Cow Milk Soup in Xu Renze’s
Prescriptions are all the best examples of outside
prescriptions transmitting and gaining popularity
in China during the Tang Dynasty. Several
prescriptions in Jinxiao Prescriptions include some
drugs which obviously are foreign drugs such as the
He Lile, Persian verdigris, sweet basil, arrowhead,
and long pepper. Most of the prescriptions we see
in Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library are
similar with those in Yajur (Life) Veda classics of
India, representing the great influence of ancient
Indian medicine on traditional Chinese medicine
in Tang Dynasty.
(Chen Ming)
and then recommends the appropriate prescriptions.
It is based on General Treatise on the Cause and
Symptoms of Diseases by Chao Yuanfang and Essential
Recipes for Emergent Use by Sun Simiao and records a
total of more than 6,000 effective prescriptions, all
classified into proper categories and covering a wide
range of areas. The book quotes lots of ancient classic
prescriptions and writings by influential people in
history “from the period of patron of agriculture all
the way down to the prosperous Tang Dynasty, the
book almost contains everything that is valuable and
precious to medical science”. It collects an enormous
number of ancient prescriptions with reasonable and
unique interpretation and analysis, and compared
with Essential Recipes for Emergent Use which is divided
‘Waitai Miyaofang’ (Arcane
Essentials from the Imperial Library)
into two volumes, Arcane Essentials from the Imperial
Library seems more precise and convincing by clearly
showing the origin of quotations, by which, people
view it as a mirror of classic historical books. As a
result of treasuring many medical literature before
the Tang Dynasty with clear annotation of origin of
quotations, the book provides so much convenience
for scholars in later generations to trace the source,
and thus be able to outline a clear and accurate picture
of development of medical science from Han to Tang
Dynasty, and it can be viewed as one of the three
valuable collections for us to explore the medical,
social and literature history of the Tang Dynasty.
In 1069, a re-proofreading and re-printing job was
carried out by Cheng Yandao but unfortunately it was
not done perfectly. So Lu Xinyuan in Qing Dynasty
wrote the book The Correction and Complementation
to Arcane Essentials from the Imperial Library and in
Japan, there is the photo-offset copy of Song Dynasty
edition by Seikado Bunko Library. As of now, the
checking and annotating version of Arcane Essentials
from the Imperial Library by Gao Wenzhu is the most
popular one.
Wang Tao made good use of collection of books
in Hong Wen Library (created in Tang Dynasty) and
Bodhisattva
Nagarjuna’s Treatise on
Ophthalmology
It was a kind of ophthalmology work named after
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna in the Middle Ages and
105
Cultural Contacts
Volume 26 of Prescriptions of Medical Heart written by
Japanese Yasuyori Tanbo (912-995 CE) quoted two
entries of Nagarjuna’s Prescriptions which were witch
ways for respect and love between men and women
rather than flavor methods. Bodhisattva Nagarjuna
and Flavour Methods shall be the same as that in Book
of the Sui Dynasty: Confucian Classics Records. It shall
be related to Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s Seal Treatise on
Five Sciences quoted in Book II of Nagarjuna’s Treatise
on Five Sciences. Catalogue of Books Seen in Japan also
compiled similar Secrets of Nagarjuna’s Treatise on
Five Sciences and Nagarjuna’s Methods to Leave Seal.
Nagarjuna’s Treatise on Ophthalmology was
relatively famous in the Tang Dynasty. Bai Juyi
the author was unknown. It was similar to Indian
Sutra and Shastra on Ophthalmology quoted from
the Medical Secrets from the Royal Library written
by Wang Tao in the Tang Dynasty and the name
of Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s Sutra on Ophthalmology
reflected the historical fact that ancient Indian
ophthalmology knowledge was popular in China.
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s Sutra on Ophthalmology was
one volume of Nagarjuna’s Treatise on Ophthalmology
recorded in the books such as Chongwen Overall
Catalogue and Reading Record in Chief’s Residence,
etc., Reading Record in Chief’s Residence said that,
“Buddhist sutra of Bodhisattva Nagarjuna can cure
eye diseases. According to its statement, it integrates
prescriptions which can treat with seventy two eye
diseases”. The book described causes and treatment
methods of eye diseases and explained the couching
methods in detail. The original Bodhisattva
Nagarjuna’s Treatise on Ophthalmology was lost and
some contents were quoted in Volume 64 and 65
of Collection of Prescriptions compiled by Kim Yemong of North Korea in the Ming Dynasty. The
ophthalmology works such as Nagarjuna’s Treatise,
Longmu’s Treatise and Nagarjuna’s Overall Treatise
on Secret Ophthalmology etc were named after
Nagarjuna by later generations.
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna, as a medical scientist, was
a character different from Bodhisattva Nagarjuna,
the Mahayana founder in the history of Buddhism.
Volume 34 of Confucian Classics Records III of Book of
the Sui Dynasty recorded dozens of names of medical
books of India and the Western Regions including
four volumes of Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s Prescriptions,
two volumes of Bodhisattva Nagarjuna and Flavour
Methods and one volume of Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s
Healthy Methods. Chinese medical books in Catalogue
of Books Seen in Japan were introduced from China,
the medical books named after Bodhisattva Nagarjuna
included one volume of Bodhisattva Nagarjuna
and Flavor Methods, one volume of Bodhisattva
Nagarjuna’s Sutra on Ophthalmology, one volume of
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s Seal Methods, and one volume
of Bodhisattva Nagarjuna’s Secrets of Bodhisattva
Asvaghosa (written by Shramana Shanti, and some
versions claimed that it was “written by Shramana
Bohdi”), in which some Indian medical elements were
included. These classics may be copied and compiled
by Chinese monks or foreign sutra translators
according to some contents in Indian Buddhist
sutras. Bodhisattva Nagarjuna and Flavor Methods
shall be Volume nine of Fei Changfang’s Records of
Three Treasures throughout Successive Generations and
one volume (Common Fifty Methods) of Bodhisattva
Nagarjuna and Flavor Methods quoted in Volume four
of Dao Xuan’s Buddhist Catalogue of the Great Tang
Dynasty was translated by Indian Tripitaka Dharma
Master Ratnamati in the period of Emperor of Liang.
The Treatise on Opthalmology
wrote in the poem Eye Disease that “Nagarjuna’s
Treatise is spread on desk and semen cassiae torae
is stored in a box. No prescriptions are helpful in
the world, and gold needle operation will be a
try.” This is an example of “gold needle operation”
(couching) in Nagarjuna’s Treatise on Ophthalmology
which was popular in the society. There were Indian
monks who were good at curing eye diseases with
gold needle in the Tang Dynasty, for example, Liu
Yuxi’s For Oculist Brahman Monk described that “the
master is good at gold needle operation, why does
he think about ways of enlightenment.” In 2012,
Indian scholar Vijaya Jayant Deshpande published
Restoring the Dragon’s Vision – Nagarjuna and
Medieval Chinese Ophthalmology with the Chinese
scholar Doctor Fan Jiawei from Hong Kong in
Chinese Culture Center of City University of Hong
Kong, and translated Nagarjuna’s expositions on
ophthalmology in ancient Chinese literature into
English which is another good example of modern
India-China medical exchange.
(Chen Ming)
Sutra of
Buddhist Medicine
Buddhist sutras for medical knowledge in ancient
India was translated in the Three Kingdoms
period. Its full name is Dharma Sutra of Buddhist
Medicine and there are also other translated names
including Buddhist Medical Classic and Dharma
Medical Classic. It had one volume in total and
106
Cultural Contacts
preface and annotations are included. Lore Sander
thought that The Bower Manuscript which was
written in the pattra-leaf brich bark was a product
of Kashmir. The language used was Sanskrit, mixed
with some folk adage. In addition, it was copied
in the Gupta period in which the typeface style
of Mathura and Rajasthan-Malawi are included.
It is supposed to have been written in the later
period of Gupta Dynasty (about 320-550) in India,
namely in the beginning or middle period of the 6th
century. However, there is another possibility that
it was brought to Xinjiang by the Buddhists who
transmitted the Indian culture.
For The Bower Manuscript, much significance was
attached to its medical contents. It is not the only
material of Indian medicine copied in Sanskrit, but
also a demonstration for the medical achievements
of ancient India. There were three volumes of
medical content in which the first one is a remaining
chapter with five leaves, 132 odes in total and no
title. It directly starts from a kalpa for making up a
the translators were Zhu Luan, a Buddhist monk
of India and Zhiyue of Yuezhi who came to Wu
in the Three Kingdoms Period. The Sutra had
exerted certain influence on the medical theory in
ancient China.
The Sutra of Buddhist Medicine has short contents.
Baochang and Zhisheng, scholars of Buddhism
Catalogue, thought that it was, in fact, selected and
translated from a long Buddhist text instead of a
complete sutra and that it should be an abbreviated
sutra. The Sutra of Buddhist Medicine, from the
perspective of Buddhist medical knowledge,
explained the basic theory of Buddhist medicine
in ancient India including theories like Four
Discordance (earth, water, fire and wind), Si Bai Si
Bing, Diseases and Diets in Four Seasons, Ten Causes
of Falling Ill, Nine Causes of Dying, Four Kinds of
Foods, Six Causes of Vegetarianism, Five Crimes
of Eating Too Much and Various Kinds of Pains.
It embodied the fundamental view of primitive
Buddhism in India on physical and mental health
as well as protection against diseases. It stated in
the sutra that the human body is composed of four
elements including earth, water, fire and wind and
once the four elements are in disorder, a disease will
come. In addition, seasonal variation, improper diet
as well as bad psychological status and living habits
will in company with growth and decline of the
four elements, throw internal mechanism of human
body into disorder thus causing diseases. Four
Discordance, Si Bai Si Bing, the essential theories in
the sutra, have exerted certain influence on medical
concepts in ancient China to some extent. Some
scholars thought that there were Yin-Yang and Five
Elements as well as Taoism regimen in the sutra. So,
it was an apocrypha, in which the contents were
obtained from Taoism scriptures and the contained
information was inaccurate.
(Chen Ming)
Cover of Bower Manuscript.
English version
prescription, in which miraculous medicinal benefits
of garlic were described including the origin of
garlic, the name and nature of the item, Garlic
Festival, as well as the prescription of garlic and
other medicines and their effects. The next section
of the manuscript seemed like a small tantra, which
composed of illogical sections including emphasis
on digestive ability, methods for obtaining a good
memory, instructions for pharmaceutics, all kinds of
prescriptions, methods for curing eye disease, usage
of sticking plasters on face, eyewash and methods for
controlling alopecia and maintaining the black colour
of hair as well as methods for curing cough and other
diseases. The second volume of The Bower Manuscript
is Nàvanãtaka (also translated as Jingzhi) which was
relatively complete with 32 leaves, 1,119 odes in
total. It was a practical medical formulary which
was compiled based on various kinds of effective
prescriptions for immortals recorded in medical books
and its introductory title is Nàvanãtaka. Belonging to
another medical tradition in ancient India namely
hand-me-down apart from “Agnive÷a” and “Bheóa”,
Bower Manuscript
Bower Manuscript is a Sanskrit text found in Kuqa,
Sinkiang in 6th century CE. It has seven remaining
volumes in which the medical contents showed us
the achievements of ancient India and the influence
on Chinese medicine.
This batch of manuscripts was derived from
an ancient site near Kuqa, Xinjiang in 1889 and
was obtained by Hamilton Bower, Lieutenant of
British Forces, the next year. Without a title, the
original manuscript was generally called The Bower
Manuscript by the Academia for convenience. The
original volume was later collected by the Bodleian
Library of Oxford University. A F Rudolf Hoernle
(1841-1918) spent more than 20 years in working
on a research on it and published three books in
which board charts, translation, transliteration,
107
Cultural Contacts
medicine as well as extra-territorial medicine and it
is also of great significance to the comparative study
of Chinese and Western medicine.
The fourth and fifth volume of The Bower
Manuscript is relatively short and the contents are
related to the kalpa called Pà÷aka-kevalã which is a
kind of Geomancy for predicting the future by dicing.
There are 64 kinds of dicing methods in the fourth
volume while the fifth volume is a remaining chapter
about the dicing. The sixth volume, together with the
seventh volume, is a volume of Dhàraõã scriptures
including incantation used for those hurt by snakes
and other demons. The name of the scripture is
Mahàmàyårã Vidyàràj¤ã.
Starting from The Bower Manuscript, the discovery
of these ancient manuscripts directly stimulated
M A Stein. In 1990, he began his first exploration to
the Western Regions, which initiated an international
wave of archaeological exploration to this area. It
was the wave of large-scale investigation, exploration
and cultural relic collection that eventually enabled
Dunhuang Studies and Turpan Studies to be the
international knowledge branches attracting much
attention in the 20thcentury.
(Chen Ming)
Nàvanãtaka covers all aspects of internal medicine.
There were previously 16 volumes in Nàvanãtaka but
now only 14 exist which illustrate the use of medical
butter, medical oil, enema, tonic, medical gruel,
aphrodisiac, collyria, hair lotion, neochebulinic acid,
trogopterus dung and Whiteflower Leadword Root as
well as prescriptions for pediatrics, pregnant women,
praying for children and longevity. However,
pestilence, hydrargyrum and opium were not
mentioned. A basic framework for life, Veda in India,
has emerged in The Bower Manuscript. For example,
it described the Sanye Theory, the role of digestion in
health, terms for diseases as well as the diversity of
drug preparation. The third volume is the remaining
one of an ancient medical book or dispensatory.
There are missing contents both in the beginning and
Bower Manuscript, now in the possession of Oxford University Library
end, with four leaves and 72 odes in total. Viewing
from its contents, the arrangement, approximately
for the first three chapters within the second volume,
was relatively disorderly. The forms of medical herbs
covered by it were: oiling agent, powders, smearing
agent, butter agent, pills and syrups.
The Bower Manuscript is obviously related to
Buddhism. At that time, Buddhism, with a wide
coverage, was at its booming period and the Canon
of Medicine in Central Asia and Xinjiang was
absolutely to be influenced by Buddhism. Those
books and records for medicine were probably
written by Buddhists or their followers. The academic
significance of The Bower Manuscript lies, at least, in
three aspects: It recorded the names of many ancient
famous doctors and their prescriptions which enabled
people to gain a more intuitive understanding of
the medical achievements in India. Being a foreign
culture, it exerted influence on medical science,
not only to Xinjiang but also to other nationalities.
It helped save some historical data of ancient India
which can be used for discussing the folk-customs
significant to folk life and medical treatment. The
medical prescriptions in The Bower Manuscript were
collected from medical books in India such as Caraka
Samhita, Pilu Samhita, and Susruta Samhita etc while
other contents were probably from some kalpas and
tantras of even earlier times. The Bower Manuscript is
characterised by selected prescriptions, an elaborate
selection for basic health and curing special diseases.
Like the Jīvaka-pustaka and Siddhasara, The Bower
Manuscript also plays an important role in researches
on inland Chinese medicine, ancient Xinjiang
Siddhasàra
Siddhasàra is a very important classic medical literature
laying special emphasis on clinical knowledge which
was written by Ravigupta in mid-7th century CE
in India. The book is available in several versions
of the Chinese Northwest ancient languages and
contemporary Chinese and is well known as one of
the representative writings on Ayurveda medicine
which has been widely spread into the East.
Siddhasàra is the Sanskrit name of the book, also
known as Xi Tan Suo Luo by transliteration in Chinese.
The full name of this book can also be VaidyàkaSiddhasàra which means Medical Achievements
Essence in Chinese. Ravigupta, the writer, is the son
of Durgagupta, a famous veterinarian proficient in
treating horse’s disease and the brother of Devagupta.
There is, however, very little information about him.
Siddhasàra is the selection of medical prescriptions
featuring medical treatise. It carefully collects those
effective prescriptions from a range of medical books
and is divided into 31 chapters in accordance with
the newest methods of edition and arrangement at its
time. The first four chapters of which mainly focus
on traditional theories, thus making the book a great
Canon of Medicine. The second and third chapters
talk about the nature and effect of a variety of drugs,
which is similar to the herbalism writings of the
Chinese traditional medicine. From the fifth to the 30th
chapter, based on different symptoms, the causes and
categories of various diseases and the prescriptions
in particular are presented. The last chapter can be
108
Cultural Contacts
understanding of new knowledge. In the meantime,
there is another possibility that other books in
Serindia (ancient Xinjiang province and the Middle
East region) or some local things were also added.
There are some prescriptions in Siddhasàra, which
could also be found in The Bower Manuscript, a medical
writing in the 6th century unearthed in Kuqa, Xinjiang
province of China, in Jãvaka-pustaka, a bilingual
canon of medicine in both Sanskrit and Khotanese
unearthed at the same time with the Dunhuang cave
for preserving Buddhist sutras and in Prescriptions
of Miscellaneous Diseases written in Uighur script of
Turpan and rGyud-bzhi which had been passed down
through generations as well as in some Chinese ancient
medical writings uncovered in Serindia. And even the
Ghent Azalea Leaf Powder in Kharoùñhi, one of the
earliest fragmentary prescriptions known currently,
can also be seen in Siddhasàra. Just like the Bower
Manuscript, Siddhasàra has also been transmitted
throughout the culture circle around Serindia in the
ethnic minorities’ language and the Ghent Azalea Leaf
Powder is just a good example. Siddhasàra, along with
many other Indian medical masterpieces, has greatly
enriched medical science of the Middle Ancient Times
across Serindia and meanwhile, polished it with the
distinct characteristics of Indian medical science.
The Indian Canon of Medicine in Sanskrit-Siddhasàra
(Zhonghua Book Company, 2002) written by Chen
Ming, firstly translated Siddhasàra into Chinese, thus
offering a window for people to explore and study
ancient medical history of India.
(Chen Ming)
regarded as a supplementary instruction of different
medical methods which allows the book to be a giant
medical masterpiece. The whole book introduces the
treatment of a wide variety of diseases concerning
internal medicine, surgery, pediatrics and gynecology
and so on.
The contribution that Siddhasàra has made
is its unique and special method of edition and
arrangement. Its structure, in the history of India
medicine, can be viewed as a turning point. Before
this book, Caraka-saühità, a monograph focussing on
internal medicine and Suśruta-samhitā and Aùñàïgahçdya-saühità, monographs on surgery are all books
arranging their contents in line with Aùñàïga,
the traditional classification method of Ayurvedic
medicine. After Siddhasàra, Màdhava-Nidàna or
Cover of Chen Ming's 'Indian
medical Classics' in Sanskrit
(Research on Siddhasara)
Màdhava Nidànam, written by Màdhavakara or
Màdhava in short, was not divided into different
segments but only composed of 70 chapters, each
of which mainly probes into various prescriptions
and therapies for just one disease. And such an
arrangement thus became the editing standard for
the medical literature of later generations in India.
Siddhasàra treasures a large number of valuable
clinical prescriptions, however, if as far as the
transmission and communication of the Indian
ancient medical culture is concerned, its significance
is of more importance. The book was translated into
Tibetan in the 9th century, into Khotanese in the 10th
century and into Uighur in the 13th century. Some of
its contents were also spread in Arabia around the
end of the 9th century or the beginning of the 10th
century. The Khotanese version Siddhasàra (Ch ii
002 or P.2892v) was found in the Dunhuang cave for
preserving the Buddhist sutras which was the longest
manuscript in Khotanese that existed. Compared to
Siddhasàra in Sanskrit, the Khotanese and Tibetan
versions have both been added with quite a few
of new information which means there were some
annotations about the original work after it was
introduced in some places such as Tibet, Kingdom
of Khotan and Dunhuang for the sake of easier
Jivaka pustaka
The Jãvaka-Pustaka is a book for medical prescription
written in medieval Khotanese and Sanskrit
discovered in a Dunhuang cave for preserving
Buddhist Sutra. Jãvaka-Pustaka was discovered by
A Stein in Dunhuang and was later collected by the
library in London-India Affairs, (now it is collected
by the Collection Department of East-India Affairs in
British Library). There it is numbered Ch.ii 003 (the
new number is IOL Khot 87-110). Jãvaka-Pustaka
reflected the influence of Veda medicine in India to
medicine in Xinjiang regions of China.
Jãvaka-Pustaka is a classical Indian medical work.
Along with Siddham as a symbol, it includes, at least,
four parts of medical literature and is characterised
by the best collections of medical prescriptions.
There are 91 existing prescriptions in Jãvaka-Pustaka
and these prescriptions are divided into four forms:
“Agada Prescription”, “Butter Prescription”, “Oil
Prescription” and “Powder Prescription”. In JãvakaPustaka, the prescription is arranged in accordance
with different forms of the medicament and medical
theory is not involved. The Sanskrit edition of Jãvakapustaka is the original text while the Khotan edition
109
Cultural Contacts
joy and happiness with the blessing of gods and all
living creatures immersed themselves in the bliss of
five desires with plants and natural things as their
food; kings were honest and just and people were
not worried about life, senility, illness and death.
This is what the very beginning of the world looked
like in the genesis mythology of Buddhism, similar
with the creation myths in The Medium Works of
Hinayana Sutra (Volume 39), Scripture of the Origin of
is its translation. However, one edition is not directly
correlated to the other and sometimes there are gaps
and omissions in contents.
Jãvaka-Pustaka is the product of Indian medical
culture and there are many prescriptions which can
be sourced from Veda Literature in early times; it
is, at the same time, an example for Khotan to learn
from Indian Medicine. When Jãvaka-Pustaka was
translated into Khotan, they incorporated the original
knowledge form their own medical practice as well
as the local medical knowledge into the translation,
which was equipped with “creative compositions”.
Jãvaka-pustaka in Khotan is, in fact, not a faithful
translation to the original Sanskrit edition. The main
changes, as compared to the Sanskrit edition, in
Khotan were: There were more functions for a certain
kind of prescription and a certain kind of prescription
was composed of different medicaments. There
were more medicaments for composition of one
certain kind of prescription. There were more names
for these prescriptions, the medicaments were in
different forms, there were specialised explanations
for collective noun of medicaments and there were
detailed descriptions for the process of pharmacy.
The indigenous dose unit was used and typical
Buddhist medical terms such as “Si Bai Si Bing” were
mentioned. Jãvaka-Pustaka is one of the products for
exchange and blending of Vedic medicine in India
and indigenous medicine in the Kingdom of Khotan.
(Chen Ming)
'Fragments of Classics on Medicine'
from Turfan now in Russia
Brahman Brahmin (Volume II), Abhidharma Theory on
the Creation of the World and Shunzheng Theory.
Essentials of Prescriptions by Various Medical Scientists
(Volume I) cannot be found in ancient medical and
historical booklist of past dynasties thus being viewed
as a valuable unique copy. It is the selected works of
medical prescriptions, collecting the essentials of a
great variety of medical books and documents. The
Ch.3725v Fragmented Pieces is only the foreword of
the book which can be regarded as the introduction
of Buddhist medicine in the broad sense.
The name of the book is similar with those of
Bibliography of Chronicles of the Sui Dynasty and
Collection of Important Prescriptions by Famous
Medical Scientists in Western Regions in meaning
which implied the real nature of the literature itself.
It shows, at that time, there were various medical
books featuring diverse characteristics in the
Western Regions whose contents were transcribed
or assembled from the medical works of previous
dynasties. In effect, regardless of “Essentials of
Prescriptions” or “Collection of Important Prescriptions”,
both can be viewed as the accurate translation of the
word samgraha in Astanga-samgraha, a giant medical
masterpiece in India in the 7th century. Essentials of
Prescriptions by Various Medical Scientists, Collection
of Important Prescriptions by Famous Medical Scientists
in Western Regions and Astanga-samgraha all boast
similar nature, representing the close relationship
between the Indian and Western medical science
as well as the great influence of translation of the
Indian medical literature on the development of the
traditional Chinese medicine.
(Chen Ming)
Essentials of Prescriptions
by Various Medical
Scientists
Essentials of Prescriptions by Various Medical Scientists
is a great medical book compiled in the Tang Dynasty
and unearthed in the Jiaohe Ruins, Turpan, Xinjiang
province, with only some fragmented pieces left
today. Now collected by the Berlin National Museum,
Oriental Division, numbered as Ch.3725v, these
fragmented pieces bear the distinct traces of Indian
Buddhist knowledge that has been deeply integrated
into Chinese medical literature.
Essentials of Prescriptions by Various Medical
Scientists, if judged by its contents, has something to
do with Ba Zhu (Дх09888, front and back), and also
fragmented pieces collected in Dunhuang Documents
collected by Soviet Union and Prescription for Heartache
Caused by Ghosts (Дх09170, front and back). The front
of the fragmented pieces of Essentials of Prescriptions
by Various Medical Scientists is the Study of Jivaka on
Internal Five Organs and these pieces have six lines
in total. The first line is Essentials of Prescriptions
by Various Medical Scientists Volume One while the
other five describe the situation at the beginning of
the creation of the earth and heaven in the genesis
mythology of Buddhism when everyone lived with
110
Cultural Contacts
TECHNOLOGICAL
EXCHANGES
7 quoted “pepper wine method” in Records about
Vast Topics where the cold or hot wine can be drunk
after smashing one liang of dry ginger and 70 peppers
into powder, mixing five litres of spring wine and
juice of five pomegranates, warming it on fire. This
“Biba wine” formulated by Hu people was a common
Indian pepper medical wine and had the function
of curing diseases. Important Means of Subsistence
for Common People recorded multiple wine-making
methods with pungent and fragrant materials such
as black pepper, dry ginger, caryophyllus and Piper
longum Linn etc which witnessed eastern propagation
of ancient Indian medical wine.
(Chen Ming)
Qi Min Yao Shu
Important Means of Subsistence for Common People
(Qimin Yaoshu) was a comprehensive agricultural
book in the Northern Wei period and was one of
the four ancient “agricultural books” as well as
the earliest and most systematical important book
in global agriculture history. It was written by Jia
Sixie between 533-544 CE. The book recorded some
crops from foreign areas (including Indian crops) and
provided relevant knowledge. It was an important
historical book to know about Sino-foreign (including
India-China) agriculture knowledge exchanges.
Important Means of Subsistence for Common People
had 10 volumes and 92 chapters. It expounded
comprehensive contents in the aspects of agriculture,
forest, animal husbandry, sideline production and
fishery such as fruits, vegetables, crops, agriculture,
horticulture,
forestation,
farming,
brewage,
breeding and relief etc. It was claimed as one of
“ancient Chinese encyclopaedias” and had profound
influences. Volume 10, “foreign products including
five cereals, fruits, melons and vegetables” recorded
over 100 tropical and subtropical plants and over
60 wild and edible plants, included varieties such
as cucumber, coriander, shallot bulb, rocambole,
walnut, celery, clover and grape etc. Volume 10 of
Important Means of Subsistence for Common People
quoted growth season of Indian wheat from Records
of Countries in the Western Regions, “wheat is grown
on the Winter Solstice ie November 6 and it is ripe
on December 16 which is called as the 12th month
of the lunar year”. It also quoted records related
to the thinking tree (bodhi) from Records of Song
Mountain. This tree is the Indian Ficus bodhi tree
and its scientific name is Ficus Religiosal. Historical
materials such as bodhi tree in Important Means of
Subsistence for Common People and Mochu tree from
Simhala (or Sri Lanka) have certain values to study
history of crop plantation in China and South Asia.
Important Means of Subsistence for Common People also
collected methods of some foreign species. Its Volume
Sugar Making
India is one of the countries in the world which have
a long history of sugar making and consuming. China
is the near neighbour of India and they both have had
close exchanges of technology in sugar making for
more than a thousand years.
The earliest sweets in ancient China were not made
of sugar. Yi and Tang, as the main sweets during the
times from the Zhou Dynasty (1046 BCE-256 BCE)
to the Northern and Southern Dynasties (420 CE589 CE), were made from rice, wheat or barley. It
was much late when sugarcane was introduced and
planted from abroad, and, as a precious variety of
crops, it was not afforded by normal families for a
long period of time.
Sugarcane was generally cultivated during
the times of Northern and Southern Dynasties.
However, its planting region was confined to south
China. There are various theories about the native
habitat of sugarcane and quite a lot of scholars
produce linguistic evidence in favour of India as the
homeland of sugarcane. They argued that the name
of a country in central Bengal was Gauóa and this
word was derived from Sanskrit guóa meaning sugar.
Besides, one of the most famous families in ancient
India was Ikùvàku and its name came from Sanskrit
ikùu meaning sugarcane. India has a long history of
sugarcane planting partly because the environment
of many places. Bengal, for instance, is very suitable
for sugarcane growing. All these tend to form the
grounds for the argument favourable to India as the
native habitat of sugarcane.
In China, the cane sugar-making seemed to begin
at some time between the Three Kingdoms (220 CE280 CE) and the Tang Dynasty (618 CE-907 CE),
while the Northern and Southern Dynasties merits
special attention. Being left behind in technology
Chinese decided to learn from their neighbours.
During the reign of Tang Taizong (598 CE- 649 CE),
he sent envoys to India to get the sugar-making skill.
It is recorded in vol. 221 of New Annals of Tang
Dynasty that “the king of Magadha, a former vassal
Qi Min Yao Shu's book
111
Cultural Contacts
And in Bengal, at the same time, puùpasità was also
called padma-cãnã or phul-cãnã. Since cãnã had the
meaning of Chinese, it implies that Chinese white
sugar had been imported and its relevant making
technology introduced into India before 16th century.
Therefore, it seems to be able to conclude that China
and India had learnt from each other to make high
quality sugar and through this kind of exchange, they
both contributed much to the improvement of sugarmaking technology in the world.
(Ge Weijun)
state of Central India Kingdom, lived in the city of
Pàñaliputra which was situated at the south bank of
Gaïgà. In the 21st year of Zhenguan Era (627 CE649 CE), a diplomatic mission was sent by him to
the royal court of the Devaputra (Tang Taizong) with
as a present the palà÷a(?), a sort of tree like white
poplar. And Taizong also sent a mission later on with
the duty to get the sugar extracting technology.”
It is also recorded in vol. 4 of Continuation of the
Biographies of Eminent Monks that “Tang Taizong
sent Wang Xuance and 20 other persons in search for
craftsmen skilled in making gritty-honey among the
monks in Mahàbodhi Monastery. Two craftsmen and
eight monks came to Eastern Xia (China) and were
soon despatched to Yuezhou (nowadays Shaoxing,
Zhejiang Province) where they successfully made
sugar from sugarcane”. Here the gritty-honey was
the ancient name of granulated sugar. By acquiring
the Indian technology, China made considerable
progress in sugar-making. Also can be found in books
like Tangshuangpu by Wang Zhuo is a well-known
tradition of Tang Dynasty about a monk named Zou
who taught the sugar-making technology to the
people in Suining, Sichuan province.
Song Yingxing made his comment on this matter in
his famous book Tiangongkaiwu published in Ming
Dynasty, saying, “China knew nothing in ancient
times about the fact that sugar could be made from
sugarcane. It was Western monk Zou who imparted the
technology to the local people when living in Suining
during Dali Era (766 CE-779 CE) of Tang Dynasty.
Sugarcanes are widely planted now in Sichuan and
they are actually introduced from Western Regions
gradually.” It is clearly indicated that the cane sugar
has its origin in Western Regions including India.
Another example, a Dunhuang fragment found in the
early 20th century, is still more concrete. It is about
the sugar-making process written in Chinese and a
kind of high quality cane sugar called Shageling is
mentioned here. According to Prof Ji Xianlin, this
curious word is the transliteration of Sanskrit ÷arkarà
meaning granulated sugar. This is good evidence that
Indian sugar making technology spread widely and
had a remarkable influence in ancient China.
However, having mastered the technology learnt
from India, Chinese workers exerted their effort
for generations and achieved excellent progresses
including invention of the method to decolourise
the granulated sugar. In the light of the evidences in
books such as Minshunachanzhi and Wulixiaoshi, it
can be sure that, at least, before Ming Dynasty (1368
CE-1644 CE), China had been able to produce high
quality white sugar on a grand scale. In India, on
the other hand, two new names of sugar, puùpasità
and sitopalà, appeared in a well-known medical
book, Bhàvaprakà÷a of 16th century. Both of these
compounds had the same word sita meaning white.
Tea Cultivation
Indigenous tea plants have been growing in the hilly
areas of Assam and Northeast India for a very long
time. The use of the leaves for brewing and drinking
by local people has also been practiced. However,
systematic cultivation of tea in India, based on
Chinese tea plants and Chinese tea cultivation and
processing methods, began in the 19th century.
Given the enormous quantities of tea that Britain
purchased from China, the British were very keen to
find a way to cultivate tea within their own empire.
The “discovery” by British botanists that a variety
of tea plants was flourishing in Assam, led them
to decide on the hills of Assam and north Bengal
as a suitable region for beginning the systematic
cultivation of tea. During the visit of the British
envoy, Lord Macartney to China in 1793, tea plants
were smuggled out of China to India but these failed
to flourish. Initially, the British East India Company
was reluctant to jeopardise its monopoly of trade
with China by smuggling out tea plants and trying
to undercut its own profitable trade in Chinese tea.
However, with the end of the Company’s monopoly
in 1833 and faced with financial difficulties in its
administration in India, it began to actively encourage
the cultivation of tea in India. In 1834, it set up a
Tea Committee and sent G. J. Gordon to China for
this purpose. Apart from acquiring Chinese tea seeds
and tea seedlings, the company’s representatives
were charged with recruiting Chinese tea growers
and persuading them to go to India. In this venture,
Classic of Tea
112
Cultural Contacts
In 1908, Zhu Kezhen began to study in Shanghai
Fudan Public School. In 1910, he went to the United
States and studied at the College of Agriculture,
University of Illinois at public expense. In 1913,
he obtained the Bachelor’s degree in Agronomy.
Afterwards, he studied meteorology in the
Department of Geography of Harvard University
Research Institute and obtained the doctoral
degree in 1918. In 1927, he became the dean of the
Department of Geosciences of the National Southeast
University. In 1928, he served as the head of the
Institute of Meteorology of Academia Sinica. He also
used to teach at Wuchang Higher Normal School,
the National Southeast University and National
Central University and took part in the founding of
the Geographical Society of China. In April 1936,
he became the President of Zhejiang University. In
1948, he was elected as academician of Academia
Sinica. After the founding of the People’s Republic of
China, he successively worked as the Vice President
of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Vice President
of China Association for Science and Technology,
Director General and Honorary Director General of
Chinese Meteorological Society and Director General
of Geographical Society of China.
He published an article, Southeast Monsoon and
Rainfall in China (Acta Geographica Sinica, Edition
1, 1934), in which he compared the similarities and
differences between Indian monsoon and Southeast
Song Dynasty (Picture of dou cha)
they faced many difficulties as actual tea-growers
in China were reluctant to emigrate. Efforts were
then directed to recruiting Chinese labourers from
Penang and Singapore, even though many of them
were not at all familiar with tea cultivation. A total
of about 300 Chinese were sent to Assam to engage
in tea cultivation. The first Chinese tea-grower came
over to Assam in 1832 and worked in the Chubwa
tea estate. The first export of tea to Britain made in
India by Chinese cultivators took place in 1838. The
Assam Tea Company was formed in 1839. With the
invention of airtight Wardian cases, it became possible
to transport hundreds of thousands of Chinese tea
seedlings by sea to Calcutta via Hong Kong.
The British made two innovations to the process
of tea cultivation. One was the cultivation on a large
scale in huge tea estates. The other was mechanisation
of the processing of tea leaves including withering,
rolling, breaking, drying and sifting. Together with
the introduction of new methods of cultivation and
plucking, these enabled the tea industry in India and
Ceylon where tea cultivation on similar lines was
introduced to forge ahead. The reliance on skilled
Chinese tea growers was virtually eliminated by
the plantation method of cultivation which could
be operated with large numbers of unskilled labour
sourced in India itself. From forming 91.4 per cent
of tea imports into Britain in 1866-70, the share of
Chinese tea exports to Britain steadily decreased to
just 4 per cent in 1905 with most of the tea imported
into Britain coming from India and Ceylon, instead.
By the 1880s, tea planters in India also gradually
came around to the view that the indigenous variety
of tea plant was more suitable for cultivation than the
hybrid tea plant based on Chinese seeds and seedlings
that had been used earlier.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Zhu Kezhen
Asian monsoon by quoting the historical data
about the journey of an eminent monk, Fa Xian in
Jin Dynasty to India by sea. He also compared the
similarities and differences between Chinese and
Indian constellations in The Time and Place of the
Origin of the 28 Lunar Mansions (Thought and Times,
Edition 34, 1944) and pointed out that Chinese and
Indian 28 lunar mansions were of the same origin
while Chinese 28 lunar mansions were originated
from the Shang and Zhou Dynasties. In November
1946, he went to Calcutta India and visited VisvaBharati University and University of Calcutta, and
was received by Tan Yunshan and Zhou Dafu et al.
(Liu Lei)
Zhu Kezhen
Zhu Kezhen (March 7, 1890-February 7, 1974) was a
Chinese meteorologist, geographer and an educator.
He was styled Ou Fang and born in Dongguan Town,
Shaoxing County, Zhejiang province (present-day
Shangyu County, Zhejiang Province). He used to be
academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences.
113
Cultural Contacts
Cultural Contacts
IV
Exchanges based on
BuddhisM
115
Cultural Contacts
116
Cultural Contacts
Exchanges Based On Buddhism
117
Cultural Contacts
Exchanges based on
buddhisM
Overview
Both India and China are ancient countries in world
civilisation. The Chinese have always called India
Tianzhu or Shendu. Volume 118 of the Hou Han shu
(History of the Later Han) says : “Tianzhu, also called
Shendu, is located thousands of miles southeast of
the Yuezhi. Its customs are the same as those of the
Yuezhi. Its terrain is low and the weather is hot.”
Much before the beginning of the Christian era,
during the time of the Han Dynasty, India and China
had established commercial exchanges. In the first
year of Yuanshou of the Han, the Imperial Court
sent Marquis Zhang Qian to Daxia (Bactria) to forge
an alliance with Daxia and to stop the harassment
by the Xiongnu. When Zhang Qian saw fabrics from
Shu and bamboo being traded in the markets of
Bactria, he asked where the goods had come from.
The answer was: “They come from Shendu in the
southeast, several thousands of miles from here.
They were traded by merchants from Shu.” Volume
116 of the Shi ji (Record of the Historian) informs us
that more than 2,000 years ago, there already were
commercial exchanges between these two nations.
The fabrics of Shu and the bamboo, seen by Zhang
Qian in Bactria, were from present-day Sichuan
in China and they had been sent to the Indian
market and then on to Europe. But the most unique
aspect of exchanges between India and China was
not commercial but religious and cultural. In this
respect, Buddhism played the most important role.
Kāśyapa Mātaṅga Memorial and Dharmaratna Memorial at
the While Horse Temple, Luoyang, Henan Province, China
has also influenced the lives of Chinese people for
more than 2,000 years and still plays an important
role. In the two-way communication of Buddhism
and culture between the two countries, the main
aspect is the transmission of Indian Buddhism to
China. The Chinese traditional culture and thought
also to some extent were once transmitted to India.
In 3rd century BCE, Indian Buddhism began
to expand to other areas. It was transmitted to
Sri Lanka via southern India where it was called
“Southern Buddhism”. In China, one stream entered
via Thailand and Myanmar and spread to the frontier
minorities in Yunnan such as the Dai and Achang.
This is known as “Yunnan Theravāda Buddhism”.
“Northern Buddhism” was the section which moved
from northern India and finally entered China
through Central Asia. It was further sub-divided
into two main sub-systems. One primarily spread
in the region of the Han ethnicity. The second one,
known as Tibetan Buddhism, spread among the
Tibetan and other nationalities. There are four main
northern transmission routes of Indian Buddhism.
The first one is the ancient Silk Road which goes via
Jibin (present Kashmir region) and reaches Central
Asia. It enters the Western Regions, ie, the Xinjiang
region of China and finally arrives in the interior
mainland area. The second one goes via Myanmar
along the ”Yangchuan ancient path” to Dali in
Yunnan. It then enters the interior area. It is called
“’ācārya’ Buddhism.” The third one goes via Nepal
enters the Tibetan region and reaches Mongolia
I.
Buddhism originated in India. During the Han
Dynasty, the Chinese knew about Indian Buddhism.
Volume 118 of the Hou Han shu (History of the Later
Han) records: “(India) is a country near by the sea
where soldiers do battle on elephants. Its people are
weaker than the Yuezhi. They practice the Buddhist
path of non-violence, and that has become their
custom. Buddha is named Fo (in Chinese).” Buddhism
has been the bond in the religious and cultural
exchanges between the two countries. Dominating
international communication of religion and culture,
it was the most important basis for foreign relations
between the peoples of ancient India and China. It
118
Cultural Contacts
and Qinghai. It then enters mainland China. It is
called Tibetan Buddhism. The fourth one goes via
the Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean and the islands of
the Southeast Asia and finally arrives in Guangzhou,
and then spread to the interior area.
The area of Xinjiang in the Western Regions was
incorporated in China as early as the Han Dynasty.
The central government installed a governor to
administer the Western Regions. Indian Buddhism
was transmitted to the Western Regions, ie, to
Xinjiang in China before the Christian Era. This can
be seen in the archaeology of the Western Regions.
Volume II of the Gaoseng zhuan (Biographies of
Eminent Monks) explains that Taizu of the Liu Song
once sent the Śramaṇa Daopu with 10 scribes to the
West to search for Buddhist sutras. Daopu “travelled
through the countries of the Western Regions. He
witnessed worshipping of the venerable images and
the carrying of the Buddhist alms bowl. He also saw
four pagodas and trees along the road as well as
(hallowed) footprints and images; there was none
he did not meet with. He was versed in Sanskrit and
equipped with writings in languages of different
countries. He travelled through different areas.”
Daopu travelled thoroughly and explored the
Western Regions and found Buddhism widespread
there. In the region of Xinjiang, two great centres of
Buddhism were formed in Qiuci and Hotan. In the
land of Qiuci, both the greater and lesser vehicle
(Mahāyāna and Hīnayāna) were developed. In
Da Tang Xiyu ji (Great Tang Dynasty Record of the
Western Regions), Volume 12, master Xuanzang of
the Tang thus describes Qiuci: ”More than a hundred
temples and more than 5,000 monks. They practice
Sarvāstivāda, Buddhism of the lesser vehicles. The
teachings of the sutras and the rituals of the vinaya
come from India and what they read is in their own
language...”. The You fang ji chao (Abstract of Travel
Records) mentions– “In this land of Qiuci, there are
many temples and many monks. They practice the
law of the lesser vehicle. They eat meat and shallots
etc. The Han monks practice the law of the greater
vehicle.” Buddhism developed vigorously under the
protection of the king of Qiuci. Buddhism of the
greater vehicle spread to Hotan. In Faxian zhuan
(Biography of Faxian) it is written that: “he reached
Hotan on the fifth day of the first month on his way
(to India). This country was rich and the people
prosperous. They all practiced the law (dhamma).
They entertained each other with the joy of the
law. The saṅgha counted over 10,000 people. They
mostly studied the greater vehicle and all had plenty
of food. The people of that country live scattered
and in front of each home, there always is a small
stupa. The smallest can be about a zhang high. They
have made square rooms for guest monks. Their
temples are called qumodi. They are temples of the
greater vehicle. Three thousand monks eat together.
When they enter the dining hall, they are dignified
and orderly and they sit down in the proper order.
They are all silent and their bowls do not make a
sound. The pure eat more. They may not call each
other but they make hand gestures.” Because the
Western Regions were far away from China’s Central
Plain, the influence of Chinese culture was less.
Buddhism, which is prevalent there, mainly reflects
the influence of the Indian religion and culture.
During the period of the Eastern Han, Indian
Buddhism began to enter China’s interior area. The
Chinese saw India as the “Buddhist country in the
West.” There is a famous legend about the entry
of Buddhism in China. It tells that one night in
the seventh year of Yongping of Emperor Ming of
the Han (64 CE) was keeping vigil at his mother’s
ancestral tablet in his palace in Luoyang. In a dream
he saw a spirit who came flying in the sunlight in
front of his palace. The next morning he gathered
his important ministers in front of the palace and he
held a meeting inquiring which spirit was the spirit
of his dream. Great minister Fu Yi bravely stood up
and explained: “I have heard it said that someone
who has obtained the path in India in the West,
is called “Buddha”. He can fly in the sky and his
persona has the light of the sun. I am afraid that the
spirit in your dream was “Buddha”!” When Emperor
Ming heard this, he was very glad. He decided to
send the envoys, Cai Yin and Qin Jing, to India.
The envoys met eminent Indian monks She Moteng
(Kāśyapa Mātaṅga) and Zhu Falan (Dharmarājan/
Dharmaratna) in the country of the Greater Yuezhi
in Central India. They returned together with them
to Luoyang using white horses to carry Buddhist
scriptures and a Buddha image. Four years later,
Emperor Ming ordered the construction of the
Baima (White Horse) Temple in the capital Luoyang,
bringing worshippers to the Buddha image and to
the eminent monks. Furthermore, in Luoyang they
translated the first Buddhist scripture, the Sishier
zhang jing (Sutra of 42 Sections). Introduced to
Photo of the Sutra of Forty-two Chapters
119
Cultural Contacts
China because of the dream of Emperor Ming of the
Han, Buddhism to a great extent, transformed the
spiritual and the cultural lives of the Chinese.
Buddhist cultural exchange between the two
countries was carried out by Buddhist monks who
went East or who came from the West. From ancient
times, the Silk Road has been an important passage
for relations of China with the outside world and for
trade. She Moteng and Zhu Falan were the precursors
for Buddhist exchanges between India and China.
Buddhists have been following the caravans of
merchants on this road. The Shijia Fangzhi records:
“Before Qin and Zhou people were still simple. They
did not go far away. That is why they sent envoys to
engage. They were limited to the Divine Land. After
Han and Wei, the literacy was widespread. Talents
were well-developed and their learning reached
farther. Therefore, premises for interpreters were
built in Gao street. They went beyond Kongsang and
crossed the Kunlun Mountains. They went beyond
Jitian and passed Niaoxue. Beyond their region,
they could still pursue Lungwen blood-sweating
thoroughbred horses. The treasures of bright
jewels and of blue kingfisher feathers were brought
forward from the horizon. They exhausted their
troops and engaged in war. They truly made their
troops suffer in Dayuan. They upheld moderation
and filled up lakes. They trusted that the king’s
commands were without abuse. When Xianzong
felt it was auspicious, he established the source of
kindness. They served their faith and cherished the
path. From then on, it gradually became prosperous.
Or noble-mindedness arose in the borderlands and
they cast away their lives in the four directions. Or
they spread conversions with the law, bringing their
policies to the eastern spaces. Or they opened up
the teaching track themselves, not going far to look
for scriptures. Or they personally went to peruse
divine signs and established customs. While this
was quite frequent, they also turned to the teaching
of Śākyamuni. And so, making a general distinction,
the opening up of the spirits generally began during
the former Han. Up to the great Tang, several
envoys went and came back in succession,about
20 times. Zhang Qian went in search of the source
of the Yellow River, something ordinary, but he
established the name of the Buddha and then
Buddhism began its gradual conversions.”
The meaning of this passage is that before Qin and
Zhou, the teaching of Buddhism had not started yet
in China. Exchanges were limited just to the Divine
Land. After Han and Wei, the horizon gradually
broadened. In their pursuit of the blood-sweating
precious horses and rare treasures, people went
searching in the four directions. Then they gradually
undertook to expand their military operations
Memorial in commemoration of Faxian’s return
to the shore of China at Laoshan, located at
Qingdao in Shandong Province
abroad. But seen from the angle of culture, the
spread of the Buddhist teaching was the beginning
of the journey of the conversion to kindness and
propriety. Believers were willing to lay down their
life for their belief, looking for scriptural texts and
sending delegations. For example, tradition says
that Xianzong of the later Han, Emperor Xiaoming,
dreamed about a golden person one night. When he
sent his senior secretary Cai Yin and the scholar Qin
Jing, to India in search of the teachings of Buddha
and when he invited the ‘śramaṇas’ Jiaye Moteng
(Kāśyapa Mātaṅga) and Zhu Falan (Dharmarājan/
Dharmaratna) to China, Buddhism began its spread
in China. Zhu Fahu (Dharmarakṣa), a ‘śramaṇa’ from
Dunhuang during the Eastern Jin, travelled through
36 countries in the West and along the way he
translated the Da ji Hu jing (Great Sutra presented by
the West). In Chang’an, he erected a temple outside
of the Qing gate. Shi Baoyun, a śramaṇa from
Liangzhou during the Eastern Jin, and Shi Faxian,
Shi Zhiyan, etc, entered India and understood the
meaning of their sounds. They returned to Chang’an
and to the region south of the Yangtze River and
they carefully translated their scriptures. Shi
Zhimeng, a śramaṇa from Jingzhao, went with 15
companions to the West from Liangzhou, to the
countries of Shanshan and reached Jibin (Kashmir).
He met five hundred arhatas, explored the local
customs and returned. Most famous, of course, is
Xuanzang, the śramaṇa from the Great Zhuangyan
Temple in the capital of the Great Tang. In the third
year of Zhenguan, he went by himself to the West
in search of Buddha’s original teachings. He crossed
120
Cultural Contacts
150 countries on his way. He translated scriptures
by imperial command and he wrote the Xi yu ji
(Record of the Western Regions).
In the history of the interactions of ancient
China with the outside world, Buddhism plays an
important role. During the long period of more
than a thousand years from the Han Dynasty to the
Ming Dynasty, more than a thousand people have
travelled one after another along this road. Chinese
and foreign monks have travelled back and forth in
order to propagate Buddhism. This has without any
doubt promoted religious and cultural exchanges
between the two countries.
The Han, Jin, and the Northern Dynasties, up to
Sui and Tang is the period when Chinese and Indian
Buddhist interactions peaked. Apart from the
eminent Chinese monks – Zhu Fahu, Shi Baoyun,
Shi Faxian, Shi Zhiyan, Shi Zhimeng, and others –
master Faxian was the earliest one. At the advanced
age of 60, he left the country all by himself. On
his way, he passed through shifting sands, he
crossed natural barriers and he went West without
stopping. It is recorded that “He followed his path,
forgetting about his own body and yielding to fate
he propagated the law”. In the history of Chinese
Buddhism, he was the first monk who went all the
way to India and studied there a heroic undertaking
in search of scriptures. When he finally reached
India, he became the first Chinese Buddhist monk to
appear at the main Buddhist sites. He also recorded
with brush in hand, the situation in India at that
time in his Fo guo ji (Record of Buddhist Countries).
He left valuable historical material for the later
generations. Jiumo Luoshi (Kumārajīva) was
another famous scholar who had studied in India.
After returning to China, he dedicated himself to the
propagation of Buddhism. Buddhist monks during
the Northern Dynasties went one after another to
India, either alone or as a group. The eminent monk
from Youzhou, Tanwu Jie, led a group of 25 people
and went West in the first year of Yongchu of the
Liu Song (420 CE). Twenty people died on the way,
one after another, and those who were left, visited
many places in India. They brought back the belief
in Guanyin (Avalokiteśvara) which would later
become widespread in China. The śramaṇa of the
Former Wei, Daoyao, the śramaṇa of the Chongli
Temple, Huisheng and Songyun from Dunhuang
travelled with the support of the court to different
countries in northern and central India. During
the Northern Qi, a group of 10 monks, śramaṇas
Baoxian, Daosui, Sengtan, Zhizhou, Sengwei, Fabao,
Zhizhao and others went in search of the dharma in
India for seven years and they made pilgrimages to
the holy places. In short, these pioneering eminent
monks and groups “who had all passed beyond the
hindrance of the desert and crossed dangers or who
Statue of Xuanzang, Yuhuagong Palace,
Tongchuan, Shaanxi Province, China
had crossed passes gazing into the mist, or who met
together and investigated, and who had probably
lost eight or nine out of 10”, already had produced
a base and a foothold on Chinese territory, thus
exerting their influence. At the same time, the
appearance of Chinese monks in India attracted the
attention of the Indian courts. The great king, Shili
Jiduo (Śrīgupta), had great respect for the Chinese
monks and he ordered the donation of land and the
construction of a “Zhina (Chinese) Temple”. There
the Chinese monks could stay. He further allocated
24 great villages to them. Therefore, the Wei Shu
recorded: “Śākyamuni has passed away but he has
left his traces, his nails and teeth in India. They now
still exist. As the Middle Regions come and go, they
do call to see them”.
During this period, apart from Chinese monks
going to India in search of the law and to obtain
scriptures, there were even more Indian monks
who came to China to transmit the scriptures and
to bring precious objects. She Moteng and Zhu
Falan had set an example for those who came later.
They came in succession, uninterruptedly. During
the period of the Western Jin, the Indian monk
Qiyu reached Guangzhou, the area of Xiangyang
etc, by sea. He further cured people in Luoyang.
During the period of the Eastern Jin (317-420 CE),
the number of Indian monks who came to China
steadily increased. They carried many scriptural
texts and they transmitted the Buddhist teachings
then flourishing in India. All these monks arrived
either over land or by sea in Chang’an in China,
or in the big city of Guangzhou. After they
had arrived in China, they actively translated
Buddhist scriptures in cooperation with Chinese
monks. They accepted students and resolved their
doubts. They discussed Buddhist studies and while
the monks of both countries worked together,
Buddhism in China prospered. The ideas of the
greater and of the lesser vehicle were introduced
and vinaya was instituted. Moreover, the Dilun
121
Cultural Contacts
numerous archaeological excavations. Xuanzang
studied and lived in India for 17 years and was
successful in achieving his aims. Declining various
offers to stay back in India, he returned to China via
over the land route.
Yijing, succeeding Xuanzang, went to India in the
second year of Xianheng (671 CE) and he studied for
10 years. He returned to China with many scriptural
texts via the maritime road. He compiled Nanhai ji
gui zhuan (Account of Buddhism Sent from the South
Seas). He left precious geographical and historical
materials about Buddhism and many countries in
India and Southeast Asia. Besides them, there were
Huiri a disciple of Yijing, Wukong-a śramaṇa from
Jingzhao during the Tang, Xuanzhao - a śramaṇa
from Taizhou, Daoxi and Shibian - śramaṇas from
Qizhou, Daofang and Daosheng - śramaṇas from
Bingzhou, Modi Senghe - a śramaṇa from Jingzhao,
Xuanhui - a śramaṇa from Chang’an, Mingyuan,
Yilang and Yixuan - śramaṇas from Yizhou,
Daolin and Wuxing - śramaṇas from Jingzhou,
Lingyun - a śramaṇa from Xiangyang, Sengzhe - a
śramaṇa from Lizhou, Zhihong - a śramaṇa from
Luoyang and numerous other śramaṇas and devout
descendants from unknown places studied in India
for many years and ultimately returned home.
Their studies and experiences enriched the content
of Buddhist and cultural exchanges deepening
further the relationship between India and China.
They compiled works about the study of India, eg,
Zhong Tianzhu xing ji (Record of Travels to Central
India), Tang Xiyu tu zhi (Records and Maps of the
Western Regions during the Tang), Xiyu zhi (Record
of the Western Regions). Yancong, a monk in the
translation office of the Shanglin Academy in the
Eastern Capital of the Sui, translated, at the request
of Indian monks in Rājagṛha, the Renshou sheli rui
tu jing (Text about Auspicious Maps of Relics during
Renshou) and the Xiangrui lu (Record of Auspicious
Things) from Chinese to Sanskrit, and transmitted
them to India.
During this period, the number of Indian monks
who came to China also peaked. The Indian monks
Damo Bore (Dharmaprajñā) and Naliantili Yeshe
(Narendrayaśas) received a courteous reception
from the court. Piniduo Liuzhi (Vinītaruci) received
instruction from the monk Sengcan, the third
patriarch of the Chan school in China. Damo Jiduo
(Dharmagupta) and Shena Jueduo (Jñānagupta)
presided over the Translation Hall during the Sui.
Boluopo Jialuomiduoluo (Prabhākaramitra), Adi
Quduo (Atikūṭa/Atigupta), Fachang and Anan
Lümucha, Jiaye (Kāśyapa) and others brought letters
from the Indian monks, Zhiguang (Jñānaprabhā)
and Huitian (Prajñādeva), paying respect to
Xuanzang. They received gifts from Xuanzang.
Nati, Naluo Ersuopo, and Lujia Yiduo prepared a
(Daśabhūmikasūtraśāstra/Daśabhūmivyākhyāna)
school which had characteristics of different
schools, the Shelun (‘Mahāyānasaṅgraha’) school,
the Sanlun (Madhyamaka) school, and other
Buddhist schools appeared too. Out of respect
for the monks, the Imperial Court built temples
especially for them. For instance, the Indian dhyāna
master Fotuo (Buddhabhadra) was paid a great
honour by Emperor Xiaowen of the Northern Wei.
He built the Shaolin Temple for him on Mount Song.
The dhyāna master from southern India, Puti Damo
(Bodhidharma), landed in Guangzhou and later
arrived in the Shaolin Temple. He was honoured
as the first patriarch of the Chan School in China.
The Indian monk, Damo Bore (Dharmaprajñā),
was appointed as the clerical official "Governor
Zhaoxuan" by the Court of the Northern Qi.
II
The Sui-Tang period saw the summit of Buddhist
exchanges between India and China. The coming
and going of monks of both countries also reached
its climax. Master Xuanzang was the most famous
and most successful monk during that period. In
the third year of Zhenguan (629 CE), he went
from Chang’an to the West. He arrived in the
highest institution of learning in central India,
in the monastery of Nālandā and studied with
bhadanta Śīlabhadra. He studied Yogācāra and
every treatise of the greater and of the lesser
vehicle. He compiled the Hui zong lun (Treatise
about the Teaching of the Community) and the Zhi
e jian lun (Treatise about the Establishing of Wrong
Views). Because his scholarship was outstanding,
he was honoured as one of the 10 most virtuous
monks in the monastery. He further participated in
the great religious gathering without restrictions
(pañcavārṣika) in the city of Kanyakubja organised
by the Indian Buddhist world. In the gathering, he
debated heretics. He obtained the titles of “Divinity
of the Greater Vehicle” (Mahāyānadeva) and of
"divinity of deliverance" (Mokṣadeva). Meanwhile,
he was requested by King Śīlāditya to translate the
Da sheng qi xin lun (Mahāyānaśraddhotpādaśāstra)
and the Dao de jing (Canonical Text about the Way
and its Power) of Laozi from Chinese to Sanskrit.
This was the first translation of Dao djing in a
foreign language for transmission to India. He
specially wrote the Da Tang Xiyu ji (Record of the
Western Regions during the Tang), 13 volumes, about
Buddhism and the historical and geographical
conditions in 138 countries of India and of the
Western Regions which he had crossed and about
which he had information. He provided authentic
basic materials for the writing of early Indian
history. Later, during the colonial period in India,
his work became a significant basis for conducting
122
Cultural Contacts
The court granted him the title of noble doctor and
promoted him to treasurer, ceremonially at the
level of the three supervisors. It installed him as a
duke, with revenue of 3,000 households. After his
death, he was given the title of minister of works,
of Tripiṭaka with wide knowledge and abundant
eloquence.
Buddhism during the Tang not only spread within
Han territory but also reached Nanzhao in Yunnan
and the Tubo territory of Tibet. In these areas there
were also Indian monks living there. In the 7th
century, the Indian A Zali (also given as A Zhali)
(Ācārya) and his master Zantuo Jueduo (also given as
Shili Daduo) (Candragupta or Śrīdatta) came to the
country of Nanzhao from Mojietuo (Magadha) and
spread esotericism. He was respected by the king of
Nanzhao, Xi Nuluo. They erected five esoteric altars
and promoted yoga. The group of Zantuo Jueduo
and Zhang Zichen, Luo Luoyi and others formed
the “seven masters of Nanzhao”. They promoted A
Zhali’s teaching. The Indian monk Li Chengmei and
his disciple Chan Hezi, reached Dali from central
India in the 9th century and introduced the belief in
Guanyin to the country of Nanzhao.
The Tibetan region originally practiced the
traditional teaching of Bon. The Tibetan king Songzan
Ganbu sent people to Sri Lanka to find out an image
of Guanyin with 11 faces, made of 'uragasāracandana'
(sandal). They also went to the border area of
India and Nepal, asking for an image of Guanyin,
made of haricandana (this image now still is in the
Potala palace). Songzan Ganbu adopted a policy of
kinship with the nations in the neighbourhood. He
asked for Tang princess Wencheng in marriage and
became a relative of the Tang Court, establishing
friendly relations. Princess Wencheng brought a
Buddha image from the Han territory. The Chan
School of Han Buddhism had already entered this
region. Songzang Ganbu further married princess
Chizun (Bhṛkuṭī) who brought a Buddha image
from Nepal. During the first transmission of Tibetan
Buddhism, the Han Chinese master Da Tianshou,
the Tibetans Tunmi Sangbuzha, Damo Kuoxia and
Lalong Jingangxiang, the Indian master Gu Sare and
the Brahmin Shang Jieluo (Śaṅkara), the Nepalese
master Shiluo Manshu and others cooperated with
each other translating Buddhist scriptures and
restoring temples. In 794 CE, Tibetan King Chisong
Dezan personally presided over a debate between
the monk of the Chan school, Mohe Yan (Mahāyāna),
and Lianhua Jie (Padmaśīla), on the merit of sudden
and gradual insight. Mohe Yan finally lost and the
Chan School withdrew from Tibetan territory. The
esoteric school of Indian Buddhism thus began to
spread its influence in the Tibetan territory.
With the support of Chisong Dezan, Buddhism
developed in Tibet but at the same time, it was
“long life medicine” for the Tang emperor. Dipo
Heluo (Divākara), Huizhi (Prajñājñāna), Fotuo Boli
(Buddhapāla), Ani Zhenna, Puti Liuzhi (Bodhiruci),
Sengqie Fandamo, Mouni Shili (Muniśrī), Shiluo
Batuoluo (Śīlabhadra), Puti Xian (Bodhirṣi), the
śramaṇa Jin Juzha and others came to China and
translated scriptural texts. They also introduced
the belief in Guanyin (Avalokiteśvara) and Wenshu
(Mañjuśrī) to China. Building “Indian style temples”
and bringing latest esoteric texts of Indian Buddhism,
they advanced knowledge of India and attracted
great attention from Chinese Buddhists. Moreover,
the Indian monk Damo Zhannieluo (Dharmacandra)
was good at medical prescription. In Chang’an, he
offered books about medical prescriptions, Indian
medicine and herbs. He translated some volumes of
the Yifang ben cao (Herbal Prescriptions), the Pubian
zhizang bore xin jing (Scriptural Text about the Heart
of Prajñā, of Samantajñānagarbha). Bore (Prajñā)
and the Persian monk Jingjing (Adam), together
translated scriptural texts and also represented the
court as envoys to northern India and Kashmir in
search of Sanskrit texts. Jueduo (Gupta) went to
study under Huineng, the sixth patriarch of the
Chan school and he offered the Sanskrit text of the
Huayan jing, Puxian xing yuan pin (Avataṃsakasūtra,
Chapter about Samantabhadra’s Practice) to the Tang
Court, copied in his own hand by the king of the
country of Wucha (Uḍa) in southern India. Eight
people, śramaṇas from the Da Puti (Mahābodhi)
Temple in Central India and two craftsmen came
to China during the years of Zhenguan and they
transmited the technique of making sugar. They
made rock-honey with sugarcane from Yuezhou
(present Shaoxing in Zhejiang). Because of their
remarkable success, many were commended
by the Court and were given the purple robe
and called Sanzang (Tripiṭaka). The “three great
beings of Kaiyuan”, persons who came to China
and who transmitted Indian esotericism during
the years of Kaiyuan of the Tang, Shan Wuwei
(Śubhākara), Jingang Zhi (Vajrabodhi), and Bukong
(Amoghavajra), were the monks whose influence
was greatest among many Indian monks. They
arrived in Guangzhou by ship and went north to
Chang’an to transmit the newest wave of Indian
Buddhism. The Court thought highly of them and
both commoners and elites respected them. Bukong
was specially famous as Tripiṭaka and dharma
master, propagated esotericism and was renamed
at court. He performed initiation (abhiṣeka) for the
emperor. His position was prominent. He also went
by decree to the five regions of India and to Sri
Lanka in search of esoteric scriptures. Promoted
by the three great beings, Buddhist esotericism in
China prospered. An esoteric school was established
and Bukong himself gained a special reputation.
123
Cultural Contacts
influenced Tibetans on a large scale, letting them
go forth and receive the precepts. Groups of monks
began to be established in the Tibetan territory.
The seven Tibetans who were first to receive the
precepts were called “seven enlightened persons.”
At the same time, the Tibetan King also sent sons
of the nobility and other people to India to study
and get training as talented translators. The Indian
monks Vimalamitra, Buddhaguhya and others
actively spread the Buddhist teachings in Tibet.
The Esoteric School of Buddhism thus began
to spread. But following the death of Chisong
Dezan and his son, Xide Zudun, ministers who
did not believe in Buddhism took control of the
government. In 841 CE, Tibetan King Lang Damo
began to persecute Buddhists. Tibetan Buddhism
then entered a period of decline. In history, this is
recognised as the period of the first propagation of
Tibetan Buddhism.
also opposed by some nobles who believed in
the teaching of Bon. The Indian monk, minister
Sanang, went to the Indian court and performed
ceremonies at the holy places of the Mahābodhi
Temple and of the Nālandā Monastery. In Nepal,
he met master Jingming [also translated as Jihu
(Śāntipāla)] and invited him to Tibet to propagate
the law. The Indian monk Ānanda won over Bon
followers in debates and he established the position
of Buddhism in Tibet.
The first temple, the Sangye Temple, was erected
in the Tibetan area, with paintings and drawings
modeled after the Feixing Temple (Odantapuri)
in India. The Tibetan King also invited a disciple
of Jingming, master Padmasaṃbhava. Through
the actions of Padmasambhava, Buddhism in the
Tibetan area developed further. Twelve bhikṣus,
who followed the vinaya of the Sarvāstivāda
school, were invited to Tibet from India. They
Xuanzang’s & Yijing’s Journey to India
Qusha (Shule)
Gostana
(Khotan)
Jalandhara
Sindh
Gurjjara
Mathura
Tubo
Srughna
Shravasti
Kanauj
Mahesvarapura
Malava
Surashtra
Maharashtra
Ujjayini
INDIA
East
China
Sea
Tang
Kapisi
na
Yamuer
Riv
Langala
Liangzhou
Bohai
Sea
Chang’an
Parvata
Simhapura
Mulasthanapura
Nafubo
(Shichengzhen)
Zhemotuona Loulan
(Boxianzhen)
Kasmira
Gandhara
In
Rivdus
er
Caojuzha
(Jaguda)
Udyana
Kosala
iang
Changj ze)
(Yangt
Kapilavastu
Pundravardhana
Kapisi
Yumen
Pass
Kucha
Zhuojujia (Zhujubo)
Nirangcheng
Khabandha
Tocharians
lls
Aqini
Hi
Gaochang
(Yanqi/Karasahr) (Xizhou)
River
Yellow
Iron
Gate Pass
Balkh
M
ou
nt
ai
ns
(Tashkent
Suiye
Issyk-Kul
Lake
Kausambi
Samarkand
shi Talas
ng
Ka Chach
Vaishali
Varanasi
Gan
ges
Prayaga Magadha
Champa
Nalanda
Monastery
Tamralipti
CHINA
Kamarupa
Guangzhou
Samatata
Udra
Kalinga
Konkanapura
South
China Sea
(Zhanghai)
Chola
Dravida
Nicobar Islands
(Narikira)
Kedah
Sr
iv
ija
ya
Xuanzang Travels to India
Xuanzang’s Return Journey
Melayu
Srivijaya
Yijing’s Journey
124
Cultural Contacts
III
time of Emperor Huan, there was a śramaṇa from the
country of Anxi, An Jing (recorded as An Shigao).
As scriptures kept arriving in Luo, his translations
were most intelligible. In the time of Emperor Ling,
the Yuezhi śramaṇa Zhi Qian, the Indian śramaṇa
Zhu Foshuo and several others translated Buddhist
scriptures. Scholars think that Zhi Qian’s translation
of the two volumes of Nihuan jing (Parinirvāṇasūtra)
most coherently conveys the fundamental meaning.
At the end of the Han, the Prefect Zhu Rong also
honoured the law of Buddha. In the time of the
Three Kingdoms, a śramaṇa from the Western
Regions, Kang Senghui, came to Wu with Buddhist
scriptures and translated them. The ruler of Wu, Sun
Quan, respected him greatly. During Chuzhong of
the Wei, the Chinese for the first time engaged with
Buddha’s precepts and practiced taking the tonsure
to become monks. Chinese records notes that first a
śramaṇa from the Western Regions came here and
translated the Xiao pin jing (Lesser Scriptural Text
ie, the Aṣṭasāhasrikā). There were, however, many
mistakes, from beginning to end, and one could
not understand it. During Ganlu, another śramaṇa,
Zhu Shixing went to the Western Regions, to the
country of Hotan and obtained the 90 chapters
of the text. During Yuankang of the Jin, he went
to Ye and translated it with the title Fang guang
bore jing (Scriptural Text about Shining Prajñā).
During Taishi, the Yuezhi śramaṇa, Zhu Fahu
Dharmarakṣa) travelled to several countries in
the West, obtained many Buddhist scriptures and
translated them in Luo, counting many divisions.
The spread of Buddhism to the East was smooth
from this time on.”
The Sui shu describes the situation of monks in
Chinese Buddhism. It also points out the problems of
translation during the early propagation of Buddhism
in China, and its spread and transmission. From
Wei-Jin and the Northern and Southern Dynasties,
the Chinese had already begun translation activities
in general. In Chang’an in the North and in Jinling
in the South they established several translation
offices. Zhu Fahu, Jiumo Luoshi (Kumārajīva),
Faxian, Zhendi (Paramārtha) and others, all were
famous translators then. They brought out a great
quantity of scriptural texts and they promoted
the development of translation activities for the
Buddhist teachings. The period of the Sui and the
Tang saw the peak of translation activity in Chinese
Buddhism.
With the support of the Imperial court, Xuanzang,
Bukong, Yijing and others established translation
bureaus for Chinese Buddhism during the Tang
period. Once organised, the translation system
was complete. Most scriptural texts of Indian
Buddhism were translated by Chinese Buddhists.
The amount of translated volumes reached more
An important aspect of the exchange of Buddhism
and culture between India and China is the
complete and thorough study made by Chinese
Buddhists about Indian Buddhist scriptures. India
used curved Sanskrit letters and China used square
Chinese characters and ideograms. If one wants to
understand the theories and the thought of Indian
Buddhism, one has to break through the barrier
of characters. That is why in China a long period
of several hundreds of years was dominated by
translation activities. Sui shu (History of the Sui),
volume XXXV, mentions: “The investigation of books
and records started before the Han when they were
not transmitted to China yet. Some say that they had
long been spread but in the time of the Qin, they
were destroyed. Later, Zhang Qian was sent to the
Western Regions where he heard about the teaching
of Buddha. In the time of Emperor Ai, the learned
disciple Qin Jing sent Yi Cun to orally preach the
scriptures of Buddhism. It was not believed when it
was first heard in the heartland. Emperor Ming of
the later Han dreamed at night that a golden person
came flying to his palace. He asked his court about
it and when Chuan Yi replied it was the Buddha,
the emperor sent his secretaries, Cai Yin and Qin
Jing to India to enquire about him. They obtained
the Buddhist text Sishier zhang (Forty-two Sections)
and a standing image of Śākyamuni. They returned
East with the śramaṇas, She Moteng and Zhu Falan.
While Yin was on his way, a white horse carried the
scripture and that is why he erected a Bai Ma (White
Horse) Temple to the west of the Yong Gate of the
city of Luo to place it there. The scripture was kept
in a brick room of the Lan Terrace and the painted
image was on the Qingliang terrace on the Xianjie
Hill. In the time of Emperor Zhang, the prince of Chu,
(Liu) Ying, was known for his respect for the law of
Buddha and numerous śramaṇas from the Western
Regions who kept arriving with Buddhist scriptures.
During Yongping, Falan also translated the Shi zhu
jing (Daśabhūmikasūtra). The other transmitted
translations often were incomprehensible. In the
Statue of Kumārajīva, located in front of the Kizil Grottoes, Baicheng,
Xinjiang Province, China
125
Cultural Contacts
Buddhism required people to practice filial piety,
follow the constant obligations of morality and
ethics and preserve rules of social order. For
instance, when Buddhism was just introduced
to China, it attached itself to Huang-Lao. At that
time, people saw it as a kind of stratagem,or they
saw it as one popular belief or magic current at
the time. Translated Buddhist scriptures often
borrowed the terminology of the Confucianists
and of Daoists or of Daoism. Subsequently, the
influence and the strength of Buddhism gradually
increased. Its special characteristics came to the
fore, little by little. Its way of thinking and the
nature of its culture gained the attention of the
people, and at the same time, with the support
of the court, especially with the support of the
ruling classes, Buddhism began to be established
together with Confucianism and Daoism. In the
end, it stood like one of the three legs of a tripod.
The study and the assimilation of Indian Buddhist
theories and its teaching and thought demonstrate
cosmopolitanism of the Chinese people. Indian
Buddhism thus finally gained great lustre in China.
Xiang jiao (teaching of images) is a special
appellation used in Buddhism for Buddhist art
such as Buddhist images and paintings. Its studies
facilitate our historical comprehension of the
process and the development of Buddhism for more
than 2,000 years. The origin and rise of Buddhist art
in China owe much to the influence of the Indian
Buddhist Art. Scholars generally divide the art of
Indian Buddhist images into four periods: The first
one is from the 3rd century BCE beginning with
Emperor Aśoka, up to hundred years after him.
In this period, Buddha’s images had not as yet
appeared. There just were artistic representations of
persons, spirits, animals etc, which had a relation
with Buddha’s life and with stories. Reaching a
considerable number during a short period, these
art figures were powerful and majestic as well as
prosperous and moving reflecting awesome energy.
The lion’s throne and relief sculpture now kept in
the Sarnath Museum is a representative work of
this period. The second period is that of Gandharan
art which characterises the Mahayana Buddhist art
form of India. It witnessed emergence of images of
the Buddha and of bodhisattvas. Because they had
absorbed the sculptural art of ancient Greece in
their creative technique, the models possessed a
strong and realistic feeling. The engraved Buddhist
images had deep eyebrows and a high nose and the
ornaments were simple, the lines protruding. The
third period was that of Gupta art, from about the
middle of the 4th century to about the middle of the
7th century. This was the most prolific period for the
production of Buddhist images which reflected the
return of the art to native roots and local tradition.
than 5,000. From the Song period onward, Chinese
translations of Indian Buddhist scriptural texts
gradually decreased but, on the other hand the
work of Tibetan translations entered its peak.
Large quantities of Indian esoteric scriptures were
translated. This work continued up to the end of
the Ming. After that, translation activities in both
Han and Tibetan Buddhism basically stopped. The
translation of the Indian Buddhist texts not only
accelerated the spread of the doctrines and theories
of Indian Buddhism in China but also produced a
long lasting influence on the Chinese language
and its characters and on thought and culture. It
facilitated the introduction of Indian religion and
thought to the Chinese people. On the basis of
translated Indian texts, Chinese Buddhists arranged
the framework of the Three Storehouses (Tripiṭaka)
of Buddhism. They brought out Chinese and Tibetan
editions to organise the scriptural texts in the great
Tripițaka. At the same time, they also transmitted
Chinese traditional scriptures to India. For example,
responding to the request of the Indian king Jieri
(Śīlāditya) during the Tang, Chinese Buddhists
translated the scriptural text of Daoism, the Dao
de jing’ (Classic of the Way and its Power) to Sanskrit.
Buddhism was obviously the most characteristic
feature of the cultural exchange between India and
China. Before the introduction of Buddhism, the
traditional Chinese thinking stressed on human
values. “Not knowing life, how can one know
death!” Considerations about the meaning of
human life and about the understanding of life
were not profound. Buddhism aroused the interest
of the Chinese in the fate of human beings and life.
The Chinese learned that, apart from the path of
filial piety, there also was the theory that life is
suffering, the theory of deliverance through the
eightfold path of leaving suffering and obtaining
happiness. The Buddhist theories of the greater
and of the lesser vehicle of Indian Buddhism were
fully transmitted to China. However, except for
the areas of national minorities in Yunnan, in all
the other areas of China Buddhism of the greater
vehicle was prevalent. The study of ‘prajñā’ and of
consciousness only (vijñānavāda) and the theories
and the teaching of the esoteric vehicle were all
spread in China to different extents. The scriptures
of these different schools were translated into
Chinese and/or Tibetan. The Chinese embraced
an attitude of learning an ideology that came from
outside. In the process of learning, they combined
Buddhism with traditional Chinese thinking and
made several changes and elaborations to the
thoughts and the concepts of Indian Buddhism.
This drew the Buddhist world closer to traditional
Chinese thought through absorption of elements
of both Confucianism and Daoism. The sinicised
126
Cultural Contacts
Its models had a light feeling. The Buddhist images
were elegant but not overly so. In the treatment of
some parts, they paid more attention to detail. The
carving of ornaments and of the background was
complicated. The technique was fine and smooth
and the lines were graceful. They were very rich
and moving. Concerning basic similarity, they
paid even greater attention to the spiritual effect.
From form to content, they give expression to a
high degree of integration of aesthetics. The fourth
period is that of the art of esotericism and starts
from the 8th century on. The art of Buddhist images
during that period received even more the artistic
influence of Brahmanical Hinduism. Artistic models
were exaggerated and the depiction of the parts
became complicated. There was, however, a lack of
innovation and the emphasis was on stylisation.
Indian Buddhist art entered China after the second
period. The earliest art are the wall paintings of the
dwellings in Kezi’er (Kizil) in the district of Baicheng
in the Xinjiang area. Its paintings offer the life of the
Buddha and Buddha’s birth stories (Jātakas). This
art is also shown in the Buddhist caves of Kumutula
(Kumtura) and in the Buddhist caves of Senmusemu
(Simsim) in the district of Kuqa. In the picture
Temptation by Māra’s Daughters of Kizil cave 76, in
the centre there is an image of the emaciated body
of Śākyamuni practising asceticism, very similar to
Gandharan sculptures. Gupta art of the third period
was even better transmitted to China, in the Mogao
grottoes of Mingsha Mountain in Dunhuang, in the
rock caves of Bingling Temple in Yongjing, and
in the rock caves of Maijishan in Tianshui. There
are also the rock caves of Yulin in Anxi, the rock
caves of Yungang in Datong, Shanxi and the caves
of Longmen in Luoyang, Henan. In such places,
its art is represented. It has influenced the artistic
production of Chinese painting. The painting of the
Buddha image in "Cao’s Clothing coming out of the
Water" of painter Cao Zhongda during the Northern
Qi in China was probably inspired by Buddhist
images of the Mathurā art style of the Guptas. The
art of the fourth period is mainly manifested in the
art of the thangkas of Tibetan Buddhism. In brief,
the influence of Indian art on Chinese Buddhism
is comprehensive. Chinese Buddhists took in the
basics of Indian Buddhist art but in the end, they
began to form their own artistic style of creating
Buddhist images.
The influence of the construction of Indian
Buddhist pagodas on Chinese Buddhist architecture
is obvious. After the death of the Buddha Śākyamuni,
his physical body (śarīra) was transformed to relics.
These were collected by eight kings in the area
and distributed over pagodas which were built
for worshipping. When Buddhism entered China,
relic worship also followed. The scriptures record
Image of Xuanzang, an illustration from the Marathi textbook
for the primary school
that there are three great relics of the Buddha in
China. The first is the finger relic in the Famen
Temple in Shaanxi, China. The second is the tooth
relic in the Lingguang Temple in Beijing. The third
is skull bone relic in Nanjing. In the world there
presently are few famous tooth relics of the Buddha.
Southern Buddhism worships Buddha’s tooth relic
in the Temple of Buddha’s Tooth in old Kandy, Sri
Lanka. Northern Buddhism has Buddha’s tooth relic
in the Lingguang Temple in Beijing, Buddha’s tooth
relic in the Taizi Ling Zong (Divine Footprint of the
Crown Prince) Pagoda of the Baoxiang Temple in
Wenshang, and Buddha’s tooth relic in the wooden
pagoda in the district of Ying, Datong, Shanxi etc.
Historical records mention a total of more than 70
such places of worship in China. Now there still are
more than 30 places left.
Moreover, the phonology of Indian Buddhism
also had its influence on Chinese characters. After
the Chinese had received Indian phonetics, they
produced their own system of four tones. Chinese
literature too received the influence of Indian
Buddhism and culture. This could be witnessed in
adoption of the narrative (avadāna) literature of
Buddhist literature, the vocabulary used etc.
IV
By the Song period, the process of sinification of
Buddhism had completed. Most scriptures of Indian
Buddhism had been transmitted to China and they
had been translated. Meanwhile, the process of the
decline of Indian Buddhism had also begun. The
main current now was the trend for the esoteric
vehicle (Vajrayāna) school of Buddhism. In Song
times, they continued to use the system of the Tang
and established a state-run Yijing Yuan (Translation
Bureau). In the fourth year of Qiande (966 CE),
eminent monks like Xingjin and 157 others were
sent to the Western Regions as well as to Kashmir
and other parts of India in search of the law
127
Cultural Contacts
and sent them to India. He exhorted them to invite
master Bao Jingang (Ratnavajra) from the land of
Kaśmīra, master Damo Boluo (Dharmapāla) from
eastern India and master Moni Zhou (Maṇidvīpa)
from the land of Jialu in the West. They further
learned two tantras and a compendium from master
Bore Fuli from central India (1: Jimi (Guhyasamāja);
2: She zhenshi jing (Tattvasaṃgraha) and also the
She zhenshi jing qingxi zang she lun (Compendium
of the Storehouse of Joy from the Tattvasaṃgraha).
From Moni Zhou and Damo Boluo they learned
the Duanchu e zhang xu (Tantra about the Doing
Away with the Obstacles of Evil) and a commentary.
They learned the Mantuoluo sanbai sishi zun (340
Venerables of the Maṇḍala), made by Shengtian, and
the Maṇḍala ritual of the Jimi (Guhyasamāja) (made
by the bodhisattvas Fo Zhizu and Longmeng). From
master Bao Jingang, they learned Shilun (Kālacakra)
and the Si jingangzuo xu shi lun (Explanation of the
Tantra about Four Vajrāsanas). The Tibetan monk
Yangrongba Shenghui received the precepts from
Fahu (Dharmapāla) and further went to Nepal to
study vinaya under Zhi Dajia. In Nepal, Kashmir and
other regions, he studied all exoteric and esoteric
teachings with each great master and vinaya
specialist (vinayadhara). He further invited Zuo
Xinkai, Zuo Lianmi, Fo Xiangjing, Fohu Lianhuami
and others to come to Tibet to translate exoteric
and esoteric discourses. He specially attached
importance to the translation of Yoga texts and
the Jimi xu (Guhyasamājatantra), and propagated
them on a large scale. He later also invited the two
masters, Fahu and Huihu, to transmit the precepts.
The Tibetan King, Guanghu’s eldest son, Jixiang Zhi,
selected the intelligent youths, Zhuomi Shijiazhi
(994-1078 CE) and Daluo Tongjing, and sent them
to India to study the dharma, the vinaya and also
prajñā (indicating the teaching of the Xianguan
zhuangyan lun (Abhisamayālaṅkāra) and esoteric
spells. The two later went to the Vikramaśilā
Monastery to study the dharma under six great
masters (Jijing from the eastern gate, Yuzizai
Cheng from the southern gate, Bore Shenghui from
the western gate, Na Reba from the northern gate
and Bao Jingang and Zhi Jixiang from the centre).
Zhuomi was close to master Jijing for eight years.
He also studied the law under other masters and
himself became a great master. He further went to
eastern India and thoroughly received initiation
(abhiśeka) from master Hui Wangming and also
his instructions to understand the scriptures and
practices. He also obtained the teaching about the
path and its fruition (lam-rim). In 1044, master Jiaye
Daluo came to the Tibetan area and studied under
Zhuomi for five years. Zhuomi studied altogether
for 13 years in India and Nepal. His influence on
Tibetan Buddhism is tremendous. His disciple,
(Dhamma). Zhixuan, śramaṇa from Quanzhou,
Daoyuan, śramaṇa from Cangzhou, Jicong, śramaṇa
from Bianjing, Guangyuan, śramaṇa from Yizhou,
Zhongda, śramaṇa from Taiyuan, Keyun, śramaṇa
from Xihe, Huaiwen, śramaṇa from Bianjing and
others, more than 140 persons, returned home from
India. They brought back mainly esoteric scriptures.
They at the same time promoted the popularity of
the belief in bone-relics of the Buddha during the
dynasties of Song and Liao.
The practice of movement of Indian monks
to China, however, continued and their number
did not diminish at all. During the period of the
Northern Song, there were Fatian (Dharmadeva),
a monk from central India, Tian Xizai (Śāntideva),
Shihu (Dānapāla) and others. They all were famous
eminent monks of that time. They were received
by the Song Emperor and the purple robe was
bestowed on them. It was arranged for them
to translate scriptural texts in the Translation
Bureau. There further were Fahu (Dharmapāla),
a monk from Kashmir, in northern India, Richeng
(Sūryayaśas), a monk from central India, Tian
Jixiang, Zhi Jixiang, Jin Zongchi, and others. They
also worked in the Translation Bureau. There were
also the śramaṇas from Mojietuo (Magadha), Bo
Taluo and Lifu Riluo, Manshu Shili (Mañjuśrī),
śramaṇa from central India, Su Getuo, sramaṇa
from western India, Butuo Chiduo, śramaṇa from
Nalantuo (Nālandā) Monastery, Jialan Nashandi,
śramaṇa from northern India, Juejie, śramaṇa from
central India, and others, more than 80 persons.
They propagated the Buddhist doctrine, scattered
over other areas. Because of the weakness of the
Song, the Xixia (Western Xia), the Liao and the Jin
in the North had also established their dynasties
around the same time. They also accepted the
belief in Buddhism. Some monks who came from
India, went to their areas via the Han territory eg,
Zongxian, a monk from central India; Cixian, a
monk of the esoteric school and Moni (Maṇi), an
Indian monk. They served as national preceptors of
the Qidan. Sutuo Shili, a monk from the Nālandā
Monastery in central India, came sailing to China
with his disciple, Fotuo Shili and seven others.
They arrived on Mount Wutai in China and paid a
respectful visit to the divine remains.
Tibetan Buddhism, at this time, entered the socalled period of the later propagation of Buddhism.
Through the common efforts of Tibetan and Indian
monks, some Tibetan monks arrived in India in
search of the dharma and many famous Indian
monks came to Tibet to expound the scriptural texts.
This led to the overall revival of Tibetan Buddhism.
With greater support of the Tibetan King Songnei,
Buddhism became renowned and its knowledge
spread. He selected 21 youths from the area of Alisan
128
Cultural Contacts
lived for 150 years. His teaching formed a separate
branch, Xiang ba of the Jiaju (Bka’-brgyud) school.
By the end of the Yuan Dynasty, Indian
Buddhism had entered its final decline and it did
not have any influence. Buddhist and cultural
exchanges between India and China were basically
interrupted. There were, however, some scattered
Indian monks who came to the Han region of China
to transmit the teaching. They practiced the secret
doctrine of union of male and female and they
were opposed by Chinese traditional ethics. For
instance, western monk during the Yuan, Hamo
(Hama), transmitted the yantie’er (In Chinese:
Great happiness, mahāsukha) way at the court.
“The Emperor then gave the instruction to make
the western monk, Situ (Minister).” In the end, he
was strictly forbidden to enter the court. Indian
monk Zhikong stayed for a long time in the area of
Yan. “The Emperor was astonished and presented
him a black robe with golden motifs. He sent him
back but the next year he called him back. He
ordered him to build an altar to pray for rain. He
immediately agreed. He was given the name Jizhao
Yuanming (Quiet and shining bright light). He was
given the task to aid the hungry and the weary and
he was ordered to head the Haiyin Chan Temple...
From the prime minister down to the soldiers and
brave warriors, there was none who did not seek
refuge with him.”
During the Ming Dynasty, very few monks came to
China. “Because some Buddhist scriptures had been
lost, the court ordered Chan master Zongle of the
Tianjie Temple and more than 30 of his disciples to
go to the Western Regions to look for them.” Chan
master Huiri from the eastern sea “stayed in India
for about 25 years.” After his return home, he was
treated with respect by the Court. “He was asked
about the path to be rescued or to go down in the
sea and he fully explained the reasons.” Zhiguang
“was sent to the Western Regions. He crossed a
bridge with a single plank and rope and he arrived
in the Indian country of Nibalafan. He proclaimed
the teaching and made conversions. He called on
master Mage Putu and passed on the Jingangman
translator Maba (1012-1097 CE) called Fahui went
three times to India. He was close to Nare Ba, Mile
Ba, Jingxian, Pangting Ba and other great masters.
He learned the teaching of the Jimi (Guhyasamāja),
Shengle (Cakrasaṃvara), Shuangxi Jingang (Hevajra),
Mohemoye (Mahāmāyā), Si zuo (Four Āsanas) etc
and became the refuge for the Sajia (Sa-skya) school
of Tibetan Buddhism. Translator Kuoku Balaze, a
disciple of Zhuomi Guai, also went three times to
India. He was close to 72 great masters, siddhas. He
stayed there for a very long period with translator
Jingxian and studied the Jimi (Guhyasamāja) and
the teaching of the Longmeng school. He translated
works such as the Shengle Jingang kongxing xu
(Cakrasaṃvaratantra), Si zuo xu (Tantra abouth
Four Āsanas), Mohemoye xu (Mahāmāyātantra), and
the Shuangxi Jingang xu (Hevajratantra). The great
translator Luodun Xierao (1059-1109 CE) was in
Kashmir for 17 years to study. He studied logic
(hetuvidyā) from Lita Xian and from Shangen Wang
and from Sana and Kuomi Qimei and others; he
learned the five treatises of Maitreya and all exoteric
and esoteric teachings. After his return to Tibet, he
translated commentaries about logic and Paradise
(Vyūha). He propagated logic, prajñā, Ru xing lun
(Bodhicaryāvatāra), etc. Translator Bacao Richeng
also went to Kashmir and studied there for 23
years. He invited master Jiana Jiafuma to Tibet to
translate the discourses of Yuecheng (Candrakīrti)
and of the Zhongguan (Madhyamaka) School. The
theories of the Yingcheng (Prāsaṅgika) branch of
Indian Buddhism thus greatly prospered. In 1042
CE, the venerable A Dixia (Atīśa), an Indian monk,
arrived in Ali in Tibet and propagated vinaya. He
compiled Buddhist scriptures and contributed to
a Buddhist renaissance. Interaction with Indian
Buddhism impelled the overall prosperity of Tibetan
Buddhism. Many different schools of Tibetan
Buddhism have an important link with the monks of
this period. Apart from the Sajia (Sa-skya) School,
the Jiaju (Bka’-brgyud) school and the Jiadang
(Bka’-gdams) School, pious Kings studied Shilun
(Kālacakra) from Zhuodun Nanglaze from Kashmir,
and the teaching of scriptures and treatises of the
Jimi (Guhyasamāja). They became the forerunners
of the Juenang (Jo-nang) school. The Indian
Padang Basangjie transmitted the teaching of
boreboluomiduo (prajñāpāramitā) which became the
fundamental teaching of the Xijie (Zhi-byed) school.
Yoga master Qiongbo went seven times to India to
study. He was close to many people there, of whom
the main were the following six: Da Jingangzuo,
Mile Ba, Juduo Yuqie, Luohouluo Juduo, Nigu
Kongxingmu and Lechengjiu Kongxingmu. After his
return to Tibet, he built 108 temples in the area of
Xiang. He promoted Buddhism for 30 years. He had
more than 80,000 disciples and it is claimed that he
Ruins of Nalanda monastery, Bihar, India
129
Cultural Contacts
came to China and he consulted the layman Yang
Renshan. They both agreed to revive Indian
Buddhism. Dhammapala described the condition of
Buddhist sites in India. The Chinese found out about
a great gathering to revive the Bodhi tree in the
twin forests outside of the city of Kuśinagara. For
the Buddha’s birthday each year, Buddhists from
every country gathered together about one month
and 30,000-40,000 people a day (visited the place).
Master Qingfu from Chengdu, Sichuan, went at the
end of the Qing to India via Myanmar. “When the
master was in India, he stayed altogether more than
a year. He travelled all over the five parts of India
and visited places: where Buddha was born, where
he meditated and realised the path and where he
preached the law and died.”
(vajramālā) altar 42 times. He greeted the precious
Diyong Pagoda and the people of the Western
countries respected him. Shi Fanliang went to the
Western Regions. Emperor Wen Taizong thought
that his going and coming were difficult and he
further discussed theories of the Tripiṭaka with him.
His comprehension was profound and he enjoyed
it.” Sangke Bala, a man from central India, travelled
together with Zhiguang to China. “Taizong advanced
the purpose of the master and he ordered him to
promote the teaching to the foreigners... he was in
charge of the altar or he assisted in the propagation.
He made the esoteric vehicle known, abundantly
and widely.” Master Jusheng Jixiang, in Sanskrit,
Paṇḍita Sahajaśrī, was someone from Kapilavastu
in central India. He was of kṣatriya lineage. After
he had entered China, he first went to the Shouan
Chanlin in Wutai. Later, he stayed on Mount Jiang
in Nanjing. "Those who took refuge gathered like
wind and rain." Diwa Dasi, someone from eastern
India, stayed in the Qingshou Temple in Beijing,
China. "He liked the serenity of ponds and trees. To
the right of a dragon spring he built a hut and stayed
there. This gave him satisfaction and he did not go
to town any more. His replies and uprightness of
character were not common. His attainments were
great." Even though there were not many Indian
monks who came to the Han region of China during
this period, nevertheless all monks who came to the
Han region were respected by the Chinese. They
were given favourable treatment. But in Tibet the
interaction with India remained uninterrupted. The
monks who came and went to Tibet and to India,
were mainly concentrated in the region of Bengal.
The traditional Buddhism from northern and central
India was no longer a factor.
During the Qing Dynasty, Buddhist exchanges
between India and China did not continue. The
Chinese did not know anything about the situation
of Indian Buddhism. Due to developments in
means of transportation, some individual Chinese
monks went to the Buddhist holy places in India
to pay obeisance to the Buddha. In 1891, Damo
Boluo (Dhammapāla) convened an international
conference of Buddhists in Bodh Gayā. A Chinese
delegation attended. At the end of the Qing and
the beginning of the Republic master Wanhui from
Sichuan wanted to rescue the Buddhist cause by
“going West in search of the law.” During the reign
of the Guangxu, emperor went from Guiyang to
Yunnan. He made a detour via Myanmar to India
and he looked for learning in a Sanskrit school in
Benares/Varanasi. He studied Sanskrit, Hindi and
the Ṛgveda. He later went to the Asiatic Society
Library in Kolkata and undertook the task of putting
in order the Chinese books. In the reign of Guangxu,
the Sri Lankan monk Damo Boluo (Dhammapāla)
V
In the early 20th century CE, exchanges between
the two countries gradually increased. Buddhism
was still the common bond. In 1940, China entered
the period of its War of Resistance. Master Taixu
led a group on a visit to Southeast Asia and
he publicly advocated resistance to Japan. On
January 11, 1940, Taixu went to Kolkata, India,
via Myanmar. After that he went to the Buddhist
holy places and paid his respects. He received a
warm welcome from Indians everywhere. In every
place in India, Taixu gave speeches and lectures.
He praised the influence of Indian Buddhism on
Chinese Buddhism and he encouraged the increase
of cultural exchanges between the two countries.
He said: “In ancient China, Indian culture entered
through Buddhist relations but during the Zhou
and Qin in China the doctrines of Confucius, Mozi,
Laozi, and Zhuangzi were hardly transmitted to
India. Recently, the Department of Chinese at the
Visva-Bharati has undertaken the task to import
Chinese science and culture to India. It would
on the other hand also introduce modern Indian
culture to China. In this way, Chinese culture can
become a mutual confluence. China will have a
good understanding of ancient Indian culture.
But, because of its isolation for about a thousand
years, China still needs a better understanding and
dissemination of modern Indian culture. India’s
ancient Buddhism has spread to every country
but unlike other nations where it is one-sided, in
China it is most complete. Especially the greater
vehicle developed by Longshu (Nāgarjuna) and
Wuzhuo (Asaṅga) really has to be transmitted
again to India.”
Taixu introduced the revival of Chinese
Buddhism to the Chinese in India. He pointed out
that “Chinese Buddhism is on the way from decline
to revival.” He urged the Indian Chinese to set up
Buddhist organisations, with the belief that ”if
130
Cultural Contacts
in the whole world as one’s object.” He travelled
to the Buddhist countries of Myanmar, India and
Sri Lanka and engaged with the Buddhist scholars
and believers in the different countries.He thus
believed that he could really unite all Buddhists
in the world and let Buddha’s light illuminate the
whole world because "truly representing eastern
culture, only Confucianism and Buddhism can do
that. Buddhism basically aspires to save the world
with kindness and compassion and to save all
beings. The spirit of egolessness and of fearlessness
can remedy the disadvantages of western
technological civilisation." In order to strengthen
Buddhist and cultural exchanges between China
and India, Taixu specially sent five monks to India
to study Buddhism. After completing their studies,
these monks returned home and became famous
Chinese scholars at the time. They made active
contributions in the development of India-China
Buddhist culture.
At the same time, as Jiang Weqiao has written,
influenced by Western and Japanese studies,
the Chinese scholarly world believed that ”the
history of Buddhism could now for the first time
be systematically investigated through the use
of the scientific methods of Western scholars
and could gradually be sorted out. Japanese
scholars continued this. Our Buddhists were
previously also influenced by India. When they
unknowingly had to pay attention to history, they
occasionally wrote about it and they just limited
themselves to biographies and records and to the
year of composition. If one looks for a systematic
general history of Buddhism in ancient books,
it is absolutely not there, much to the regret of
scholars.” Gong Jun has written that, “Buddhism
was finally not a product of the Chinese soil but
it originated as a creation of Indian civilisation.
Traditional expositions of Chinese religious history
for the most part consider Chinese Buddhism as
central. But as a brief comment on Indian religious
history, in the spread of contemporary intellectual
historical concepts, an important inspiration
shows up in the writings about a general history
of Buddhism, namely that, when dealing with
Chinese Buddhist history, one has to be able to
understand Indian religious history to the extent
that only through the investigation of the history
of Indian thought and culture (Indology) one can
obtain true understanding.” In the context of the
above, the Chinese intellectual and the Buddhist
world pay great attention to investigation and
research of the Indian Buddhist history and Indian
Buddhist philosophy. Wang Enyang put forward
that “because Buddha’s law began in India,
Indian Buddhism is fundamental to the study of
Buddhism.” Research scholars like Gong Jun paid
Chinese Buddhist Temple at Sarnath, India
they can set up Buddhist societies, this will, on
the one hand, raise the morality of countrymen
residing abroad and also advance even more
their spirit of unity. On the other hand, because
India is the homeland of Buddhism, even though
there now are no monks and temples, Buddhist
thought still fills the mind of everyone in India.
Moreover, Sri Lanka and Myanmar all have their
Buddhist organisations in India. We must also
have matching organisations, set up Buddhist
teams of Overseas Chinese and have Buddhist
relations with Indians and with every country. It
can strengthen us internationally. I hope you can
set up divisions of Buddhist societies, in order to
increase the well-being of all, to increase harmony
between China and India and to internationally
strengthen the power of our Chinese Republic!”
Under the influence of Taixu, the Chinese in
India set up organisations. They restored Chinese
Buddhist temples in Kolkata, Bodh Gaya etc.
The Chinese Buddhist temple of the Deer Park
(Sarnath) was built through the contribution of
an Overseas Chinese from Singapore, Li Juncheng.
Furthermore, there were many Tibetan lamas
living and studying in the different holy places in
India and they built Tibetan temples. Taixu was a
propagator of world culture. He sent his disciple,
Fafang, to South Asia and to southeast Asia to study
and to propagate Chinese Buddhism of the greater
vehicle. Master Fafang took up a teaching post at
the Visva-Bharati, Santiniketan in West Bengal,
India. He thought that “when we understand the
present, study the law of Buddha and propagate
Buddha’s law, it is just not enough to take China
as one’s object. Because we must save China, we
have to save the world first. When the whole
world knows peace and when humankind knows
happiness, only then can China be saved. That
is why one should take world Buddhism as one’s
object when studying Buddha’s law now. When
propagating Buddha’s law, one must have mankind
131
Cultural Contacts
a climax. The Indian Government organised a
grand ceremony to celebrate 2,500 years of
Buddha’s nirvana. China’s Premier Zhou Enlai
sent a message of congratulations. At the time, the
Indian monks Bhikku Jagdish Kāśyapa and Rahul
Saṅkṛityāyana and their organisations came under
the programme for Buddhist exchanges. Leaders
of the Chinese Buddhist world: Master Banchan
(Panchen Lama), Zhao Puchu, President of the
Buddhist Association and other public figures of
the Buddhist world often led delegations on visits
to India. Such visits by the Buddhists strengthened
the friendship between the two countries. After
1959, a group of believers of Tibetan Buddhism
went to India. Their influence on the development
of Indian Buddhism at the time was very great. After
1970, more Taiwanese Buddhists went to India on
a pilgrimage. At its peak, there once was a group
of 200 Buddhists on a pilgrimage to India. After
2000, Chinese Buddhists on pilgrimage to India
became ever more numerous reaching more than a
hundred thousand in a year. India-China Buddhist
and cultural exchanges have become a great source
of binding together the religion and culture of both
countries, now and in the future.
Famen Temple, Fufeng County, Shaanxi Province, China
considerable attention to the source, thinking that
“the prevalent awareness of general history cannot
only orderly present the development of the whole
of Buddhism in this style of compositions but it can
help us see in them the rules of rise and decline of
Buddha’s law, letting us benefit from the history.”
Under the influence of this trend, the Buddhist
world has offered important points for study and
research in the history and philosophy of Indian
Buddhism. Master Taixu also thought that “in the
research of principles in China, looking over the
texts, there just has never been a system. Every
school or sub-school of venerables just succeeded
one another since ancient times. Now, in the
light of research about the methods of the history
of world religions, it is not the same as before.”
And so, against this background, all books writing
about Buddhist history go back to India. They
pay particular attention to the theories of two
great schools in Indian Buddhism: Zhongguan
(Madhyamaka) and Weishi (Vijñānavāda). The
study of Buddhist philosophy, which had almost
discontinued in the past in India, revived with
the input from Chinese language materials on
Buddhism. This is one of the greatest contributions
to Indian Buddhism brought by the studies of the
Chinese Buddhist world and by its academia in the
recent past.
In the present age, India-China Buddhist and
cultural exchanges have entered a completely
new phase. In 1947, India became an Independent
Republic. Following the trend of the development of
world Buddhism, the new government paid attention
to Buddhism. In 1954, Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai
concluded a friendship treaty with Indian Prime
Minister Jawaharlal Nehru which emphasised
“Five Basic Principles of Peaceful Coexistence.”
For these “Five Principles”, Indian Buddhists used
the Buddhist technical term pañcaśīla namely “five
precepts”, conveying a sense of pride. In 1956, the
activities for the revival of world Buddhism reached
Sects
Chinese Buddhism
After long-term interpretation, translations, lectures
and research on Buddhist scriptures, Buddhism got
introduced to China thus forming various academic
and religious sects with national characteristics
meanwhile externally spreading to Korea, Japan
and Vietnam.
Early introduction
In recent archaeological discovery, statues of
Buddha has been found in tombs of the Eastern
Han Dynasty at Pengshan, Sichuan and the cliff
inscriptions of Buddha has got discovered in
Kongwang Mountain at Lianyungang. It is said that
the introduction of Buddhist scriptures is started
at the oral introduction of Borobudur scriptures
(Buddhist scriptures) from Yi Cun who was the
envoy of Da Yue Shi Tribe to Jing Lu in the first
year of Yuan Shou in Han Dynasty (2 BCE). But
it is difficult to ascertain the scripture to which it
belonged to since it has been lost for a long time.
The Sutra of 42 sections, which was taken from the
Western Regions by the envoy of Emperor Ming in
Yongping years (58~75), is conventionally taken as
the evidence of the original introduction of Buddha
Dharma into China but in recent years its historical
veracity has been doubted making it a controversial
evidence. While an exact date for the entry of
132
Cultural Contacts
Buddhism in China is still doubtful, it is, however,
certain that by the Common Era Buddhism had
to spread to Chinese Han regions, especially
intensively in areas like Chang’an and Luoyang as
well as Pengcheng (Xuzhou) etc. Buddha was then
initially considered as a kind of supernatural being
so much so that Emperor Huan of Han sacrificed
for the Buddha along with the Yellow Emperor
[Huangdi] and the founder of Taoism, Lao Zi and
recognised Buddhist monks as necromancer.
3rd and 4th centuries CE
After the Han Dynasty, Buddhist monks of India,
Parthia and Kang Ju, such as Dharmakala,
Dharmasatya, Samgha-varman etc successively
came to Luoyang, the capital of Wei State to engage
in translating the Buddhist scriptures. Then, Zhi
Qian, Kang Senghui etc came to Jian Ye, the
capital of Wu State (present Nanjing, Jiangsu) for
promoting Buddhism. Zhi Qian won the courteous
reception of Sun Quan and was knighted as a
learned scholar and a temple was established for
Kang Senghui. Dharmakala and Dharmasatya were
skilled at the study of temperament, thus translating
one volume of Mahasanghikavinaya namely Seng
Qi Jie Xin which advocated the monks to abide
by the Buddhist system and the commandment.
This was the first original material for the
foundation of Buddhism in China. Dharmasatya
also translated one volume of Dharmagupta-vinaya
in Baima Temple. Additionally, Kang Senghui is
credited with the translation of four works such
as Uqradatta and The Sutra Of Eternal Life. The
translation of Buddhist scriptures in Wu State was
started in Wuchang and was popular in Jianye. Zhi
Qian devoted himself to the translation of Buddhist
ancient books and records related to Hinayana and
Mahayana Vinaya-sutra totally to 88 books and
118 volumes of which 51 books and 69 volumes
still exist. Kang Senghui also translated nine
Longmen Grottoes, Luoyang, China
volumes of A Collection of the Six Perfection, namely
Sat-Paramita – Samgiti. At that time, popular texts
of both Hinayana and Mahayana were part of the
translation activities wherein Hinayana focussed on
Buddhism and laid emphasis on mental cultivation
(“follow your mind”), Mahayana laid particular
emphasis on Hannya. In a word, the translations
of Buddhist scriptures and the promotion and
the research on Buddhism belief had laid the
preliminary foundation for the development of
Buddhism during the period of Wei-Jin, Northern
and Southern Dynasties. Additionally, numerous
temples and Buddha figures were constructed in
that period but only a few has remained preserved
till now.
5th and 6th centuries CE
Most of the emperors of the Southern Dynasties of
Song, Qi, Liang and Chen believed in Buddhism.
Emperor Liangwu sincerely believed in Buddhism
and called himself “san bao nu” [three precious
slave] and wanted to be a Monk for four times
and was finally redeemed by the money provided
by the state. He established a large number of
temples and expounded the texts of Buddhism by
himself and held large-scale fast ceremonies. There
were 2,846 temples in Liang Dynasty including
82,700 monks and nuns. In Jiankang (present-day
Nanjing, Jiangsu) alone, there were more than 700
temples, including 10,000 monks and nuns. Though
Buddhism was officially prohibited during the period
of Emperor Taiwu of Northern Wei and Emperor Wu
of Northern Zhou but in general practice even the
emperors of these dynasties supported Buddhism.
Emperor Wencheng of Northern Wei ordered to
excavate Yungang Grottoes at Datong and Emperor
Xiaowen ordered to build Longmen Grottoes in
honour of his queen mother after moving the capital
to Luoyang. At the end of the Northern Wei Dynasty,
there were totally 415 books and 1,919 volumes
Grotto 20, Yungang Grottoes, Datong, Shanxi, China
133
Cultural Contacts
Shou years, there were 3,792 important temples
and 2,30,000 monks in the country who wrote
46 books and 3,28,616 volumes, reviewed and
corrected 3,853 old scriptures, built and repaired
15,08,940 stone Buddha figures.
Tang Dynasty is the greatest and most prosperous
age of Chinese Buddhism. Although the emperors
of Tang Dynasty called themselves the descendants
of the ancestor of Laozi and respected Taoism,
they actually also concurrently adopted Buddhism.
Emperor Taizong of Tang received assistance
from monks in his efforts to unify the state and
bring peace to disturbed areas. So instantly after
inheriting the throne, he sent out an imperial decree
to establish temples at the “war-disturbed places”
in the country and founded the scripture translation
school at Da Ci’en Temple so as to invite the wellknown monks at home and aboard to translate and
promote scriptures and cultivate a large number
of eminent monks and scholars. After Emperor
Gaozong inherited the throne, official temples
were established in the capital and various cities in
order to pray for peace and prosperity. Moreover,
Empress Wu Zetian ordered to establish Da Yun
Temple at various cities. During the whole Tang
Dynasty, the Buddhist monks were highly respected
and received many honours and rewards. Monk
Amoghavajra once served for Emperors Xuanzong,
Suzong and Daizong of Tang and was promoted as
Su Guo Gong (a Chinese nobility title) and after
his death, Emperor Daizong of Tang cancelled the
morning court meetings for three days so as to
grieve over his death. There were many famous
Chinese monks in Tang Dynasty whose a deep
and wide comprehension of Buddhist philosophy
far exceeded those of the previous generations.
These monks laid the theoretical foundation for
establishing various religious sects with national
characteristics. Meanwhile, Buddhist beliefs were
also widely accepted by the masses thus leading
to the growth of folk tales, narrative literature etc
which greatly contributed to the development of
architecture, sculpture, painting, music etc and
enriched the Chinese culture and art. In Tang
Dynasty, a large number of foreign monks and
scholars came to China to engage in missionary work
and Buddhist scriptures translation. Meanwhile
many Chinese monks (such as Xuan Zang, Yi Jing
etc) travelled to India for pilgrimage and studies.
Their works spread Chinese Buddhism to Korea,
Japan, Vietnam and Java (present-day Indonesia)
and strengthened the relationship between China
and other Asian countries on religion, culture and
commerce. However, during the 5th Huichang
Year (845 CE), there was large-scale persecution of
Buddhists due to social and economic reasons etc
Emperor Wuzong ordered to expropriate the landed
of Buddhist scriptures, about 30,000 temples and
two million monks and nuns. In the Northern Qi
Dynasty, the monk administrators took charge
of about 4 million monks and nuns and 40,000
temples. In the Northern and Southern Dynasties,
a large number of foreign monks came to China to
promote Buddhism, which included such famous
monks like Gunavarman, Gunabhadra, Paramartha,
Bodhiruci, Ratnamati etc. Additionally, a number of
Chinese believers also came to India for the study
tour, for example, famous Fa Xian, Zhi Meng, Song
Yun, Hui Seng etc came to India for pilgrimage and
carried back numerous Buddhist scriptures.
7th ~ middle 10th centuries CE
The development of Buddhism in Wei-Jin Northern
and Southern Dynasties created the ideological
and economic conditions for establishing the
Buddhist sects with Chinese characteristics in Sui
and Tang Dynasties. After unifying the Northern
and Southern Dynasties, Emperor Wen of Sui sent
out an imperial decree to construct one temple
for each of the Five Mountains and recover the
temples and Buddha figures which were prohibited
in the Northern Zhou Dynasty. Additionally, the
state temple – Da Xing Shan Temple which was
used to execute Buddhism policies was established
in the capital, namely Da Xing City (Southeast
Chang’an city of Han Dynasty). During Ren Shou
years (601~604), 111 dagobas were established in
the country and the places for translation were also
widely arranged for collecting Chinese and foreign
translators to translate and expound Buddhist
scriptures. Inheriting the Buddhism protection
policy of Emperor Wen of Sui, Emperor Yang of
Sui established the famous Huiri (Jñānādivākara)
Bodhimanda in Yangzhou as the centre for
spreading Buddhism and continued to develop
the previous translation activities. Buddhism thus
became very popular in that period. During Ren
The imperial palace hall of the Daxingshan Temple, Xi’an, Shaanxi
Province, China
134
Cultural Contacts
Sichuan). In the first Tai Ping Xing Guo year (976
CE), 1,70,000 monks were taken across, and the
scripture translation school was established within
five years to recover the scripture translation which
was interrupted for up to 170 years since the sixth
Yuan He Year of Tang Dynasty (811 CE). Although
the scale of scripture translation was greater than
that of the Tang Dynasty, the achievement thereof
was poorer. The Chan Buddhism, especially Lin
Ji and Yunmen, was most prosperous among the
religious sects followed by the Tian Tai, Hua Yan,
Vinaya Schools and the Pure Land Sect. Since
sects like Hua Yan Chan and Nian Fo Chan etc
were combined with each other and advocated
“consistency of Buddhism (Tian Tai Hua Yan) and
Chan” and “consistency of contemplation and Chan”,
they were widely popular. Additionally, the Tiantai
sect which was divided into Shanjia and Shanwai
sects as well as the Nianfo Chan association was
greatly prosperous and had a great influence over
the masses. In the fifth Tianxi year (1021 CE), there
were 4,60,000 monks and nuns and 40,000 temples.
The year 1021 was, therefore, regarded as the peak
period of development of Buddhism in the Northern
Song Dynasty. During the period of Emperor
Huizong (1101~1125) since the imperial court
sincerely believed in Taoism, an order was issued
to integrate Buddhism with Taoism and change the
Buddhist temple into Taoist temple. Buddhism thus
once again suffered from persecution.
In the Southern Song Dynasty, Jiangnan Buddhism
was still prosperous. Sects other than Pure Land and
Chan, however, gradually fading due to the official
restrictions on the development of Buddhism.
Because Chan sect did not reserve any word records
and not focus on scriptures, it had a small impact
during Huichang Buddhist persecution and wars
of the Five Dynasties. The Pure Land Sect focussed
on whole heartedly chanting the name of Amitabh
Buddha so it was simple and easy. Meanwhile,
the Chan monks after the Northern Song mostly
belonged to Pure Land Sect so Pure Land Sect could
continue to be prosperous till modern times.
Confucianism and neo-Confucianism of Song
Dynasty not only absorbed the thought of Hua Yan
and Chan sect to enrich the contents thereof but
also criticised and rejected Buddhism. Ouyang Xiu
was the most well-known Buddhism excluders but
the rejection was once opposed by Qi Song monk,
the prime minister of Song Dynasty namely Zhang
Shangying, Li Gang, Liu Mi etc. Zhang Shangying
wrote The Sastra on Protecting the Dharma and
created Three Religions Compromise Theory. The
thought of Kong Zi was the same as those advocated
by Buddhism. Confucianism could be used to cure
skin disease, Taoist could cure blood vessel disease
and Buddhist were to cure bone marrow disease so
The horizontal inscribed board at the Xiangji Temple of the Buddhist Sect
of Pure Land Buddhism, Shenheyuan, Xi’an, Shaanxi Province, China
property of the temples, destroy Buddhist temples,
derobe Sramana and force the monks to resume
secular life. According to the records of Tang Hui
Yao, about 4,600 temples and 40,000 Buddhist
buildings such as monasteries, Caturdesa etc were
destroyed at that time. Properties of temples were
also expropriated and 2,60,500 monks and nuns
were forced to resume secular life. Obviously,
Buddhism suffered from a great persecution..
The flourishing development of Buddhism
promoted emergence of independent sects and
schools of Mahayana during the Song and Tang
dynasties. For example, the Tiantai Sect was
founded Zhi Yi; the Three Treatise School by Ji
Zang; the Dharma Character School by Xuan Zang
and Kui Ji; Vinaya Schools by Dao Xuan, Fa Li
and Huai Su respectively at the South Mountain,
Xiang Bu and East Tower; the Pure Land Sect which
was initiated by Tan Luan of the Northern Wei
Dynasty, continued by Dao Chao of Sui Dynasty and
integrated by Shan Dao of Tang Dynasty; the North
and South Schools of Chan Buddhism respectively
established by Daman Hongren’s follower Shen Xiu
and Hui Neng; “the Five Schools of Chan Buddhism
(namely Weiyang, Linji, Caodong, Yunmen and
Fayan)” successively appearing at middle Tang
Dynasty; the Hua-yen school established by Fa Zang;
and the Esoteric Buddhist Sects founded by Indian
monks Subhakarasimha, Vajrabodhi, Amoghavajra
and Hui Guo. Many of these Mahayana sects
were introduced overseas instantly after their
establishment thereof along with the development
of external communication in China in Sui and
Tang Dynasties.
Middle 10th ~ middle 13th centuries CE
At early Northern Song Dynasty, the imperial court
adopted the protection policy for Buddhism. In the
first Jianlong year (960 CE), 8,000 monks were
taken across and successively 157 monks such as
Xing Qin were assigned to India for seeking Buddha
Dharma, and meanwhile Zhang Congxin was order
to engrave Tripitaka at Yizhou (present Chengdu,
135
Cultural Contacts
by himself and advocated that all sects shall chant
the name of Buddha thus imposing an important
impact on Buddhism of modern times. Emperor
Qianlong issued Qianlong Version Tripitaka and
edited Combined Tripitaka of Man, Han, Meng
and Zang which certainly drove the development
of Buddhism. Since the late Qing Dynasty, Yang
Wenhui, Ouyang Jingwu and others established
scriptures inscription office, Buddhist college,
Buddhist association etc under the promotion of
Japanese and Western Europe Buddhist research
and thus opened a new era for researching the
philosophical connotations of Buddhism. Modern
Chinese intellectuals, such as Kang Youwei, Tan
Citong, Zhang Taiyan, Liang Qichao, and others
were all influenced by Buddhism. Liang Qichao’s
famous work Belief of Kindness was inspired by the
Buddhist philosophy. Additionally, a large number
of famous monks, such as Yue Xia, Di Xian, Yuang
Ying, Tai Xu, Hong Yi and others contributed to the
promotion and development of modern Buddhism
in China to a prosperous and flourishing belief.
(Huang Xinchuan)
Painting depicting unity between the three religious doctrines of
Buddhism, Daoism, and Confucianism, Qing Period
the real intention of the three sects were consistent
with each other. Moreover, San Jiao Ping Xin Lun
created by Liu Mi also had the same purport.
Middle of 13th ~ 19th centuries CE
The governor of Yuan dynasty advocated Tibetan
Buddhism but also adopted the protection policy for
Chinese Han Buddhism. Chan Sect and Rissh Sech etc
in Buddhism continued to spread and develop with
increased temples and monks and nuns. From Shi
Zu to the 28th year of Yuan (1291 CE), there were
42,318 temples, 2,13,000 monks and nuns in the
country and meanwhile, strict monk administrators
were set in centre and local governments so as to
supervise the monks. Moreover, Rectified Baizhang’s
Commandments by Imperial Order was issued and
enforced and the famous Tripitaka of Puning Temple
was also engraved in that period.
After the period of Emperor Wanli of Ming
Dynasty, Zhu Hong, Zhen Ke, De Qing and Zhi
Xu emerged and further internally developed the
theories of Chan sect, Buddhism, Rissh sect etc.
They externally combined with Confucianism,
Buddhism and Taoism. Such an integration was
greatly welcomed by literatti and officialdom and
believed by the common people. This also promoted
development of Buddhism with more Chinese
characteristics.
During the early Qing Dynasty, the imperial
family believed in Tibetan Buddhism and adopted
the policy of restricting Chinese Han Buddhism. The
restriction was slightly relaxed during the period of
Emperor Kangxi and Emperor Kangxi. They invited
eminent monks who had gone into seclusion at the
late Ming Dynasty to return back and make decadent
Buddhism active again. Emperor Yongzheng paid
attention to Tibetan Buddhism but he advocated
that Confucianism and Buddhism shall run parallel
in the same system and various sects of Buddhism
shall be fused with each other. He also prepared The
Magic Book pick differentiation and Yu Xuan Yu Lu
Tiantai School
Tien-Tai School is the earliest Buddhist schools
established in China and is named after Mount
Tiantai because its founder Zhiyi of the Sui Dynasty
lived there.
Tien-Tai School honoured Indian Longshu
(Nagarjuna) as its initial patriarch, Huiwen in the
Northern Qi Dynasty (550-577) the second, Huisi
the third, Zhiyi the fourth, Guanding the fifth,
Zhiwei the sixth, Huiwei the seventh, Xuanlang the
eighth and Zhanran the ninth.
In the first year of Tian Jia Period of Emperor
Wen of Chen Dynasty (560 CE), Zhiyi, the founder
of the school, followed Huisi, his teacher to study
Fahua Samadhi at the Dasu Mount (presentday Xinyang, Henan) and finally gained the true
essence. He came to Jinling (present-day Nanjing,
Jiangsu) in the first year of Guangda Period (567
CE) and was invited to live in the Waguan Temple
to deliver lectures on Saddharma Pundarika and
paraphrase Mahāpraj¤āpāramitā Upadeśa where he
not only addressed speeches but also wrote books
and set up his own theories. In the seventh year
of Taijian Period of Chen Dynasty (575 CE), Zhiyi
led his over 20 disciples including Huibianto to
live in Mount Tiantai for 10 years and established
the Tien-Tai School. Finally, Zhiyi died in Sui
Dynasty and was buried at the foot of Xinchang
Buddha in Zhejiang. His disciple Guanding who
was faithful in promoting his theories and essences
built the Guoqing Temple. The Tien-Tai School
then blossomed to its peak but declined soon after
his passing away. With support from emperor
136
Cultural Contacts
Puṇḍarīka (The Lotus of the True Law) as its basis so
it was also called Nichiren Buddhism.
The Tien-Tai School took Saddharma Puṇḍarīka as
its tenets, Mahāpraj¤āpāramitāśāstra (Great Treatise
on the Perfection of Wisdom) as its guidelines and
the Nirvana Sutra as its basis and Prajna Sutra as
its method to visualise the truth. Varieties of sutras
were cited to increase creditability and various
scriptures were referred to gain success. In addition
to inheriting and developing the One Noting Mind
and Three Reflections of Huiwen and Huisi, the
School also absorbed thoughts of the “Three
Treatises” that was popular in the Southern Dynasty
and Praj¤ā and inherited critically the ten Panjiao
(analysis and judging on for teaching) of North and
South. As a result, theories of the Tien-Tai School
are combination of the Southern philosophical
connotations and the Northern’s emphasis on the
practices in the Northern and Southern Dynasties
(420-589 CE). It proposed to make use of Samatha
and Vipasyana equally for learning theories and
contemplating.
According to Huisi, all things in the world were
unreal. All phenomena were seen as the substratum
of existence and phenomena were empty of selfnature. Phenomena were seen as unchanging and
undifferentiated substratum of existence which was
untruth designation. All things arose from causes and
there was no constantly unchanged substance,which
was called as “emptiness”. But “emptiness” was also
a part of the dharma-nature instead of being beyond
the nature or being produced and worked out, which
was called the “Middle Path”. Therefore, all things
were neither totally empty nor entirely untruthful,
but half-empty, half-untruthful. It was empty,
untruthful and half-empty and half-untruthful at
the same time. None of these three elements may
exist if they are independent without relying on the
other two. Reflecting emptiness and untruthfulness
from the middle path showed the wholeness of
these three elements which was regarded as their
integration. As regards to meditation and practice,
the Tien-Tai School demanded “reflecting emptiness,
untruthfulness and the middle with one mind” to
cast off avidya and acquire liberation and Nirvana.
The Tien-Tai School stressed that thoughts and
true suchness were the same because that all things
were products of the moment of thought, existed
in the “Ten Realms”, of which were composed by
the six mortals like gods, human beings, asuras,
hell denizens, hungry ghosts and animals and the
four immortals like śrāvakas, pratyeka-buddhas,
bodhisattvas and buddhas. The six mortals could
ascend to the level of the Buddha and the Buddha
could also appear in the six mortals. The “Ten
Realms” were composed by themselves mutually
and all constituted the “Hundred Realms”. What
Xuanzong, Suzong and Daizong of Tang Dynasty,
the ninth patriarch of the school Zhanran began
to revive it by following transmitted knowledge,
spreading their doctrines and confronting other
schools. During the Song Dynasty, the Tien-Tai
School was divided into two wings: Shanjia Wing
and the Shanwai Wing. The Zhili branch living in
Siming (present-day Ningbo, Jiangsu) considered
itself to be the straight successor of the Tien-Tai
School and called itself, the Shanjia Wing, while
the other branch with Wu’en, Hongmin, Yuanqing,
Tianzhao and Zhiyuan as representatives and
holding different thoughts was degraded as the
Shanwai Wing. These two wings violently debated
on various aspects of Tien-Tai doctrines when the
Zhili branch moved ahead. However, after that, the
the Tien-Tai School gradually tended to fall in silent
oblivion. In Ming Dynasty, the founder pavillion of
the Tien-Tai School was rebuilt and its ancestral
temple with carved scriptures was repaired towards
the end of Qing Dynasty. Guxu and Dixian of early
Republic of China further advanced the School and
spread its doctrines across China. Today, Yanxu,
Xingci, Jingquan and a number of eminent monks
are expanding doctrines of this school with great
commitment. Since the Yuan Dynasty, the TienTai School has, however, been not as popular as
ever before. It later grew in the form of a religion.
The contemporary development of the school
has been emphasised and studied in detail by
modern scholars.
When Zhiyi was alive, he simply made narration
instead of writing so that his disciple Guanding
recorded and edited the “Three Major Masterpieces
of Tien-Tai School” namely Saddharma Puṇḍarīka
Sūtra Sentences, Saddharma Puṇḍarīka Sūtra Doctrines
and Maha Samatha Vipasyana which were considered
as the essential classics of Tien-Tai School. Besides,
there are “Five Short Classics of Tien-Tai School”,
namely, Guan Yin Xuan Yi, Guan Yin Shu, Jin Guang
Ming Xuan Yi, Jin Guang Ming Sentences and Guan
Jing Shu. The Tien-Tai School regarded Saddharma
Guoqing Temple, Tiantai mountain, Zhejiang Province, China
137
Cultural Contacts
Icchantika never lost the goodness but stopped to
conduct goodness. So it could be said that goodness
and evilness existed in everything. The three
dharma ie, citta-dharma, Buddha Dharma and Sattva
Dharma, all have the 3,000 worlds and integrate
with each other in spite of their differences in
nature, cause and effect. That is why no difference
exists in the three dharma. Siming Zhili (960-1028)
of Shanjia Wing in Song Dynasty proposed the
theory of “following other theories according to the
conditions” which means that the truths proposed
by other schools are not contained in the different
things and are separated with the things. Therefore,
it was also called the “other theory” or “but theory”
or “one theory”. According to the perfect teaching,
the true suchness contained different phenomena
which combined into each other. All dharma were
left alone to be what they really were, that is, all
performed according to conditions and remained
unchanged. To be unchanged was to follow
conditions which meant to be unchanged. This was
“following one theory according to the conditions”.
On the contrary, the Shanwai Wing insisted on
contemplation out of true thought and valued the
spirit of natural thought. From the Yuan Dynasty
period onwards, the theoretical aspect of the School
failed to make any significant new additions and the
successors approached Tien-Tai by means of deep
meditation which promoted the blending of deep
meditation and theories of the Tien-Tai School.
In respect of meditation and practice, Tien-Tai
School proposed the three contemplations in one
thought and the 3,000 worlds in single thought,
there were such four kinds of meditative formats as
long-sitting, long-walking, sitting-waking and halfsitting and half-walking. Prior to the beginning of
meditation, the 25 varieties of conducts ought to be
made including acquiring five favourable conditions,
cleaning five desires, casting five coverings,
adjusting five matters and doing five dharmas. The
10 objects were contemplated at the time of formal
practice namely five skandhas, vexation, sickness,
karma, mara, samatha, all evil sight, arrogance,
two vehicles and Bodhisattva. Ten contemplation
methods
were
used
including
meditating
inconceivable objects, arousing buddhi heart, resting
the thought beyond samatha and vipasyana, cutting
persistence, recognising block, adjusting aids, aiding
against blocks, placing, tolerating, and liberation
from love while the precedence obtained were the
six contained in perfect teaching including principle
Buddha, name Buddha, contemplation Buddha,
similarity Buddha, breaking-demonstrating Buddha
and ultimate Buddha.
Since the Tang Dynasty, the Tien-Tai School
began to spread to foreign countries, successively to
the northern Korea, the southern Korea and Japan,
Tiantai mountain
the “Ten Realms” relied on were form, sensation,
conception, conduct and consciousness which
further constituted the “secular world” while
rivers, mountains and lands constituted the “nonsentient world”. All the three worlds existed in the
“Ten Realms”, thus totally having 30 varieties of
worlds. There were 3,000 varieties of worlds in the
“Hundred Realms” that’s “one mind creates 3,000
worlds”. Meanwhile, this “one mind” is neither
outside the three thousand worlds nor in the front
of them but contains them.
The Tien-Tai School was also divided into
five different Buddhist periods ie the period of
Avatamsaka, the period of Agamas, the period of
Vaipulya, the period of Prajā and the period of
Dharma-pundarik/Nirvana period and declared that
the Tien-Tai School lied in the highest Avatamsaka
period. It was divided by the four-fold methods
and four doctrines, the former meant such forms
or methods as employed by Śākyamuni, including
sudden enlightenment teaching, gradual teaching,
secret teaching and variable teaching; the doctrines
were explanations made by Śākyamuni based on the
profoundness, including tripitaka teaching, shared
teaching, distinctive teaching and perfect teaching.
The eight teaching methods were integrated in
the four periods of Dharma-pundarik. Saddharma
Puṇḍarīka was the saying at the last term and was
considered as the ultimate of teaching with pure
perfection and exclusiveness and the best among
the eight teaching methods. The Tien-Tai School
thus belonged to a complete Buddhism with perfect
doctrines. It was founded by Zhiyi, spread widely
by its fifth patriarch Guanding and prevailed for a
time but gradually perished. At the middle of Tang
Dynasty, Zhanran further proposed that Buddha
existed everywhere in the nature, that is, Buddha
was ubiquitous in all realms, never blocked by the
consciousness or by the nature. Therefore, it could
be said that Buddha existed in even a single grass,
a rock or a dust. All contained 3,000 worlds and
defilement, purity, virtuousness and evilness could
all be seen as natural virtues. Śākyamuni never got
rid of evil but could avoid conducting evils and
138
Cultural Contacts
decline after Zhizhou and became oblivious by the
time of the Song Dynasty. With decline in direct
contact with India, this sect withered and became
the most short-lived sect. In the late Ming Dynasty,
Faxian School once had influence on many thinkers
like Wang Fuzhi (1619-1692 CE) whose Vein of
Faxian had quite a refined analysis on basic concepts
of “Ci’en School”. During the period of the Republic of
China (1912-1949 CE), there was once a renaissance
of the Consciousness-Only School. Public figures in
Buddhist circle set up research institutions to cultivate
Buddhist talents and found some lost ancient books
about Faxian School from Japan to collate sutra and
scriptures and published philosophical texts. Lay
Buddhists under the leadership of Ouyang Jingwu of
Nanjing China Buddhist College believed that Faxian
and Consciousness-Only were two different schools.
But Taixu proposed opinions from perspectives of
development of Buddhist thoughts and believed
that Faxian and Consciousness-Only were the same
school. Some people thought that the ConsciousnessOnly School contained a number of positive factors,
therefore, Faxian was taken as a compulsory course,
which was known as “Faxian as the standard for the
teaching dharma”.
Faxian School claims that there are “Six
sutras and Eleven Scriptures”, the basic text of
the Sect. Six sutras refer to Avatamsaka sutra,
Sajdhinirmocana-sutra, Sutra on Merits and Virtues
of the Buddha, Abhidharma sutra, Lankavatara sutra,
and Ghana-vyūha-sūtra, while the 11 scriptures
are
Yogacarabhumi-sastra,
Aryavacaprakaranasastra, Mahayana sutralamkara, Pramanasamuccaya,
Mahāyāna-samgraha-śāstra, Bhumi-sastra, Yogacaravada Sastra, Alambanapariksa, Vimsatika Vijnapti
Matrata Siddhih, Madhyanta Vibhaga Tika, Mahayan
abhidharma Samuccaya Vyakhya. Among the six
sutras and 11 scriptures, VijnaptimatratasiddhiSastra, Yogacarabhumi-sastra and Samdhinirmocanasutra are fundamental sutras and scriptures. Another
saying proposes, “One main and 10 branches”,
that is, Yogacarabhumi-sastraas the main sutra and
another 10 as branches which included Mahāyānaśatadharma-prakāśamukha-śāstra,
Pañca-skandhaprakaraņa, Aryavacaprakarana-sastra, Mahāyānasamgraha-śāstra, Mahayanabhidharma Samuccaya
Vyakhya, Madhyanta Vibhaga Tika, Vimsatika
Vijnapti Matrata Siddhih, Vijnaptimatratasiddhitrimsai-kakarika-sastra,
Mahayana-sutralamkara
and
Yogacara-vada
Sastra.
Annotation
on
Vijnaptimatratasiddhi-Sastra by Kuiji, The Cheng
Weishi Lun Liao-yi-deng by his disciple Huizhao and
The Cheng Weishi-Lun-Yanmichao by Zhizhou are
the renowned “three masterpieces of Yoyacara” and
are basic books for understanding Yogacara theories.
With its deep level in theory and thought,
Faxian School is one of the most closely connected
where it witnessed phenomenal development and
have maintained influences even today.
The Tien-Tai School continued to have an impact
on Chinese Buddhism and many persons studying
Buddhism take great interests in its theories. As one
sect of Chinese Buddhism, it attracts both scholars
and believers.
(Huang Xianian)
Faxiang School
Faxiang School is a school of Buddhism originated
in China. It was founded in Chang’an (present Xi’an)
in Tang Dynasty (618–907 CE) by Master Xuanzang
who spent 17 years in India, travelling and studying
under various Buddhist masters.
After the 1st century CE, Yogacara with doctrines
of consciousness-only started to appear in Indian
Mahayana. Additionally, with the theory teaching
that our understanding of reality comes from our
own mind, it is also named as the Vijnaptimātratā
School (“Consciousness-Only School” in Chinese).
Faxian School obtained its name because of dealing
with the phenomenal appearances of dharma.
Xuanzang was given strong support and many
assistants by the Tang Dynasty, the Faxian School
therefore flourished at that time. Xuanzang’s
disciple, Kuiji, is considered to be responsible for
the development of the Consciousness-Only School.
Since he lived in Ci’en Temple in Chang’an for a
long time, he was addressed respectfully as “Master
Ci’en” and the Faxian School was also named as
the “Ci’en School”. Another sect opposite to Kuiji
was Ximing School founded by Silla monk Yuance.
Kuiji’s disciple Huizhao (650-714 CE) endeavored to
vindicate the teaching of his master and “Ci’en Sect”
entered into a period of great prosperity. Huizhao’s
disciple Zhizhou (668-723 CE) treaded on the heels
of his master and wrote books and developed his
propositions. However, Faxian School began to
Statue of Xuanzang, Dacien Pagoda, Xi’an,
Shaanxi, China
139
Cultural Contacts
sects with the Indian Buddhism. It advocates the
ideology of “Consciousness Only” believing that
all kinds of things and phenomena in the world
are gained by subjective consciousness of human.
The central doctrine of the School is that of eight
consciousnesses, that is, five sense consciousnesses
including eyes, ears, nose, tongue and body,
the sixth or sense-center consciousness which
forms conceptions, the seventh or thought-center
consciousness (manasvijnana) which wills and
reasons on a self-centered basis and the eighth or
storehouse consciousness (alaya). The last one is the
most important as it is the source of all phenomena,
and can produce manifestation of the world which
is named as the “seed consciousness”. Besides
emphasising “consciousness” as the universal
noumenon, the system of the school also constructs
five dharma and hundreds of changes, proposing in
the final analysis that matters in the world rest on
five dharma and its hundreds of manifestations. Five
dharmas include: (1) Citta (2) Cetasa (3) Rūpa (4)
Citta-viprayukta-dharma and (5) Asamskrta-dharma.
Citta-dharma has eight types of changes, and
belongs to brain thinking phenomenon. Caitasikadharma refers to 51 kinds of changes generated in
concert with heart such as all annoyances. Rūpa
refers to matter; however, it generates from heart
consciousness, and has 11 types of changes. Cittaviprayukta-dharma has 24 types of changes, that
is, phantasm of universal changes which are not
influenced by Citta and Caitasika-dharma such as
time, space, quantity, scale, gain and loss, birth and
death, character and so on. Asamskrta-dharma has
six changes, that is the still and permanent stage
of dharma without birth, death and changes. This
is the truth shown in the Buddha dharma, and the
fundamental of the Consciousness-Only School.
Five dharma and hundreds of manifestations are
the perspectives of Vijnaptimātratā School on the
whole world, with Citta and Cetasa belong to mental
phenomena, Rūpa and Citta-viprayukta-dharma
to natural phenomena and Asamskrta-dharma to
realm pursued by philosophy and religion. They
form various kinds of relationships. Among these
relationships, heart consciousness is the highest,
without which all matters in the universe cannot
exist. Tri-svabhava is the epistemology in Yoyacara
for observing the creation of all things in the world.
The so-called Tri-svabhava refers to parikalpitahsvabhava, paratantra-svabhava and parinispannasvabhava. Parikalpitah-svabhava insists that the
cognitions on the world of all living creatures are
the cognitions generating from abhuta-kalpana and
acquisitive instinct. Paratantra-svabhava states that
since all things on earth are dependent arising
from others, relationships of dependent co-arising
exist between all things on earth and without
Sequence in the path of Mahāyāna: the
stately Sūtra of emancipation
this relationship nothing on earth can originate.
Parinispanna-svabhava identifies that after getting
to know the two misunderstandings of cognitions
of sentient beings on parikalpitah-svabhava and
paratantra-svabhava, practitioners will know that
natures of all things on earth are empty and will
achieve satisfactory sunyata cognition which is
also called asthusness, bhuta-samjna, dharmadhatu,
dharma nature, nirvana and so on and is the supreme
valid cognition. There are progressive relationships
among the three, with parikalpitah-svabhava as
the universal phenomena of people’s cognition,
paratantra-svabhava as relationships founding in
people’s cognition and parinispanna-svabhava as the
ultimate completeness of the cognition. Faxian School
believes there are four kinds of cognitions including
division of characteristics, division of seeing, selfwitnessing aspect and re-witnessing aspect. Division
of characteristics refers to external matters which
can be perceived by eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body
and consciousness, that is, objective existing matters.
Division of seeing refers to the reaction on external
matters generating from six cognitions, that is, the
objective knowledge of people. Self-witnessing
aspect refers to further cognition based on division
of seeing, that is, subjective cognizance. Rewitnessing aspect refers to the ultimate and absolute
correctness of cognition. Vij¤aptimātratā School had
a metaphor on four kinds of cognitions, division of
characteristics like the cloth, division of seeing like
the scale, self-witnessing aspect like counting the
size of the measured cloth and re-witnessing aspect
like proving the correctness of the result. The theory
of four kinds of cognition is the unique proposition
of Yogacara and one of precise theories of Yogacara
masters. Pancagotrāni theory includes Shravakayana
caste, pacceka caste, Buddha caste, indefinite caste
140
Cultural Contacts
Tripitaka (Three Treasures) in Turo. In the heyday
of Buddhism, Tibet banned the spread of Buddhism,
making Tibetan Buddhism entre into centennial
dark ages.
Bastan pa phyi dar started from the 10th century
CE and ended during the emergence of dge lugs
pa in the 15th century CE and it lasted for 400 to
500 years. In bstan pa phyi da, Tibetan Buddhism
resurrected in Tibet and ushered a new era after
being banned for a period when some young
Tibetans converted to Buddhist and went to India to
study. In the early 10th century CE, a large number
of young Tibetans went to India to study dharma,
of which lo chen rin chen bzang po (958~1055
CE), vbrog mi shakya ye shes (993~1074 CE), nag
tsho lo tsaw ba tshul khrims rgyal ba (1011~1064
CE) and mar pa chos kyi blo gros (1012~1097 CE)
stood out from others. After completing study in
India and returning to hometown, they taught sutra
and dharma and translated sutra at the same time,
launching a campaign for spreading Buddhism
in Tibet. It is worth mentioning that Aatisha (982
~1054 CE) made disciples and taught dharma in
Tibet, making a great contribution to the formation
and development of various Tibetan Buddhist sects.
Tibetan Buddhism is renowned for complete
Tripitaka (Three Treasures), namely Sutra Pitika,
Vinaya Pitika and Abhidharma Pitika including
Chinese Tripitaka of bkav vagyur ( Sutra Pitika
and Vinaya Pitika) and bstan vgyur (Abhidharma
Pitika) as well as numerous well-preserved and
spread literatures and sutras which boast allinclusive contents and encompass rig gnas bcu
such as technology, medicine, phonetics, Astika,
Buddhism, rhetoric, rhetorique, prosody, drama and
astrology and humanities and social sciences and
natural science including Buddhism, philosophy,
logic, history, culture, ethics, moralities, geology,
ecology, literature, arts, architecture, astrology,
calendar and medicine.
Tibetan Buddhism acquired mastery of theg
dman (sthaviravada), theg chen and rdo rje theg
pa (Trantrism), Tripitaka (Three Treasures) or
three teachings and developed Tibetan Buddhist
theoretical system and practice methods for
percept lineage, systematic doctrines, sectarian
insights, Tantric lineage, practice sequence and
achieving complete Buddihahood. Therefore,
Tibetan Buddhism is characterised by integration,
system and lineage. Additionally, it achieved great
attainments in theoretical system such as Tantric
lineage, reincarnation of living Buddha, temple
education, religious rites, literatures and sutras,
Nyaya sutras and Madhyamika and developed unique
sectarian style and distinctive religious culture.
Tibetan Buddhism split into more than 20
relatively independent sects and schools with
and outcasts. These five caste theories are the basis
to demonstrate the enlightenment. The former
four castes can achieve the buddhahood of arhat,
Bodhisattva and Buddha, however the last one can
not become Buddha. Besides, Faxian School made
contributions to the development of Buddhism
tsema by the need of debates. The Yogacara theory
has played an important role in promoting the
altitude of Buddhism on philosophising, therefore,
it is emphasised and studied by intellectuals fond of
thinking in successive dynasties.
In the late 7th century, Faxian School was
introduced to Japan and Silla and so far there are
still many people studying Yogacara.
(Huang Xianian)
Tibetan Buddhism
Bod brgyud nang bstan chos lugs, also known as
Tibetan Buddhism, is one of Chinese major Buddhist
sects, Mahayana Buddhism, one of three languages
of Buddhism.
Tibetan Buddhism emerged in the 8th and 9th
centuries CE and matured in the 12th and 13th
centuries CE and it was characteristic of Indian
Buddism in the middle and late period. In the 7th
century CE, Buddhism spread from India, Nepal, the
Tang Dynasty and the Western Region to Tibet and
evolved into Tibetan Buddhism characterised by
humane and geological environment, undergoing
epoch-making dynastic history of bstan pa snga dar
and bstan pa phyi dar.
Bstan pa snga started from King Songtsan Gampo
(the middle 7th century CE) and ended in the
period of Gldarma banning Buddhism (the middle
9th century CE) and it lasted for about 200 years,
entering into a golden period of Buddhism spreading
to Tibet and evolving into Tibetan Buddhism. In the
8th century CE, Tibet sent envoy to India to invite
eminent monks such as Santiraksita/zhi ba vtsho
(the 8th century CE), pad ma vbyung gnas (the 8th
century CE), Bimalamitra (the 8th century CE) and
Kamalashila (740-795 CE) to build temples, form
monk groups, translate Sanskrit scriptures and teach
Image of Princess Wen Cheng at Jokhang Temple, Lhasa, Tibet, China
141
Cultural Contacts
ma, nye brgyud gter ma and zab mo dag snang gi
brgyud pa. In reality, ring brgyud bkav ma and nye
brgyud gter ma spread and zab mo dag snang gi
brgyud pa depended on ring brgyud bkav ma and
nye brgyud gter ma and thus it was not classified as
an independent lineage system.
Ring brgyud bkav ma went through the early,
intermediate and late development stages and
became a sect boasting long history and orthodox
dharma lineage in Tibet. The sutras such as sgyu
vphrul, vdus pa mdo and sems phyogs expounded
the doctrine of Ring brgyud bkav ma. It is worth
mentioning that gnyags dzanya na ku ma ra (the
8th century CE) in the early stage, gnubs sangs
rgyas ye shes (772~867 CE) in the intermediate
stage and zur gsum in the late stage all made a great
contribution to promoting the development of Ring
Brgyud bkav ma.
Zur po che shakya vbyung gnas (1002-1062
CE), zur chung shes rab grags pa (gsang bdag sgro
phug pa, 1014~1074 CE) and zur shakya seng ge
(gsang bdag sgro phug pa, 1074~1134 CE) were
collectively known as zur gsum. After zur gsum
preached ring brgyud bkav, especially gsang bdag
sgro phug pa developed many disciples, ring brgyud
bkav spread widely. When it spread to mdo khams,
ring brgyud bkav was called khams lugs.
Nye brgyud gter ma is the most important Sharia
teaching lineage of Nyingma and its dharma lineage
traces its history back to bstan pa snga dar (the 8th
century CE). Eminent monks such as pad ma vbyung
gnas stored Tantric sutras, Buddha statues and
sacred vessels in different secrete places and named
it gter ma. In bstan pa phyi dar (the 12th century
CE), many Tertons appeared with legend unearthed
the Terma and built temples to teach it, creating
Terma lineage system. Nye brgyud gter ma split into
byang gter and lho gter.
Byang gter was founded by Terton rig vdzin rgod
ldem dngos grub rgyal mtshan (1337-1409). After
unearthing mdzod lnga and other Terma sutras at
the age of 19, he compiled and taught Terma and
founded byang gter. The temples such as rdo rje
The Tripiṭaka edition composed by Jinzhi, preserved at the Drepung
Monastery, Lhasa
different doctrines and distinctive style, including
five major sects such as dge lugs pa, rnying ma
pa, sa skya pa, bkav brgyud pa, jo nang ba plus
other sects and schools such as bkav gdams pa, zhi
byed pa, gcod lugs and bu lugs. In particular, bkav
brgyud-pa featured complicated dharma and many
branch sects including three dharma lineages such
as shangs pa bkav brgyud, mar pa bkav brgyud
and dwags po bkav brgyud. Among them, dwags
po bkav bragyud developed its own style and had
four branch sects such as karma bkav brgyud,
tshal pa bkav brgyud, phag gru bkav brgyud and
vbav ram bkav brgyud and eight branches such as
vbrug pa bkav brgyud, vbri gung bkav brgyud, stag
lung bkav brgyud, gayav bzang bkav brgyud, khro
phu bkav brgyud, shug gseb bkav brgyud, yel pa
bkav brgyud and smar tshang bkav brgyud, which
spread across Tibet.
Meanwhile, Tibetan Buddhist sects emerged and
developed in an imbalanced way. Due to variation
in space and times and subjective and objective
conditions, some sects such as shangs pa bkav brgyud
were ephemeral; some sects such as Kadampa and
Zhi-byed-pa assimilated into other sects by means of
proselytism and the dharma lineage had link with
others; some sects such as dwags po bkav brgyud
achieved prosperity and spread widely.
Tibetan Buddhism spread in the minorities’ areas
where Tibetan, Mongolian, Tu Nationality, Yugur
and Naxi Nationality resided, some domestic regions
such as Wutai Mountain in Shaanxi and Chengde,
Hebei Province and some foreign countries and
regions such as Bhutan, Nepal, India, Mongolia,
Russia, North America and Europe.
(Kalsang gyal)
rnying ma pa Sect
Mying ma pa, one of the major sects of Tibetan
Buddhism, the dharma lineage sourced from bstan
pa snga dar (the 8th century CE) and it was called
mying ma by posterity to distinguish from gsar ma
founded in bstan pa phyi dar. Rnying ma pa had
three major lineage systems of ring brgyud bkav
Mindrolling Monastery, Lhasa,Tibet, China
142
Cultural Contacts
brag dgon and dzogs chen dgon were representative
temples that preach the doctrine of byang gter.
Lho gter was founded by Terton gter bdag rat
na gling pa (1403~1482 CE) who complied and
collated Terma Part Ⅰunearthed by nyang nyi ma
vod zer (1124~1192 CE), Terma Part Ⅱunearthed
by gu ru chos kyi dbang phyug (1212-1273 CE) and
Terma unearthed by himself and founded lho gter.
The temples such as Mindroling Kloster and Palyul
Temple were representative temples that preach the
doctrine of lho gter.
Nyingma eminent monk Klong chen rab vbyams
pa (1308-1363 CE) built thar pa gling in Bhutan/
vbrug yul. Then, Nyingma spread to regions such
as vbras ljongs, Nepal and India and built many
temples in different regions and Nyingma monks
went to rdzogs chen dgon to study Buddhism in
the 1950s.
(Kalsang gyal)
Many eminent monks stood out from others
and formed different schools such as Exoteric
Buddhism, Tantric Buddhism and Tantric lineages.
For Exoteric Buddhism, gayg phrug sangs rje dpal
(1350~1414 CE) imposed the precepts for studying
and practicing the doctrine of Exoteric Buddhism
and his disciple rong ston smra bavi seng ge (13671449 CE) carried forward the precepts. In 1435
CE, rong ston smra bavi seng ge built na len dra
in vphan po ( present-day Lin Zhou County, Lhasa)
and established teaching system for studying and
sa skya pa Sect
sa skya pa, one of the major sects of Tibetan
Buddhism and its Buddhist dharma lineage,
attributed to Indian master birlawpa and Tibetan
translator vbrog mi shwakya ye shes (993-1074)
who went to India to study Buddhism dharma and
returned to Tibet to teach vkhon dkon mchog rgyal
po (1034-1102). In 1073, vkhon dkon mchog rgyal
po built temples and taught Buddhism dharma,
founding sa skya pa that advocated, preached
and practiced lam vbras. Sa skya gong ma rnam
lnga, namely, kun dgav snying po (1092~1158
CE), bsod nams rtse mo (1142~1182 CE), grags
pa rgyal mtshan (1147~1216 CE), kun dgav rgyal
mtshan (1180~1251 CE) and vgro mgon vphags
pa blo gros rgyal mtshan (1235~1280 CE) made a
great contribution to promoting the development
of sa skya pa.
Sa skya pa was in its heyday in the Yuan Dynasty,
fell into decline in the Ming Dynasty and was at
a low ebb in the Qing Dynasty. With its temples
distributed across Tibet, Sa skya dgon in sa skya
County, Shigatse, Tibet was renowned as an
ancestral temple and central temple.
Since the foundation, sa skya adopted family
hereditary system. In the late Yuan Dynasty (1324
CE), the sect split into four bla brangs, namely, gzhi
thog, rin chen sgang, lha khang and dus mchod that
had their own people, land and religious power. In
the middle of Ming Dynasty, the hereditary system of
gzhi thog, rin chen sgang, lha khang was ceased and
dus mchod held the dharmaraja power of Sa skya.
Subsequently, dus mchod split into phun tshogs
and sgrol ma whose immediate family members
succeeded as dharmaraja in turn with the religious
power of sa skya in name only. Actually, they were
granted limited appeal and power.
Drepung Monastery, Lhasa, Tibet
Sakya Monastery in Shigatse, Tibet, China
practicing the doctrine of Exoteric Buddhism to
teach monk tshad ma rnam vgrel, mngon par rtogs
pavi rgyan, dbu ma, mngon pa mdzod, sdom gsum
rab tu dbye ba and other sutras. Na len dra used
to house 700 to 1,000 monks and some eminent
monks who completed their study built temples and
preached Buddhism dharma in different regions.
Therefore, dbu ma established many branch temples
and had important influence on Tibetan Buddhism.
Tantric Buddhism featured three major Buddhist
dharma lineages, namely, ngor lugs, rdzong lugs
and tshar lugs. Among them, ngor lugs lineage was
founded by ngor kun dgav bzang po (1382-1456
CE). In 1429 CE, ngor kun dgav bzang po built Ae
lwang chos idan in ngor in Shigaste, Tibet (presentday Kangma County, Shigaste, Tibet) and taught
Sakya Tantra, founding the Tantric lineage of ngor
lugs which spread widest among other Tantric
143
Cultural Contacts
1100 CE) and Matripa. Tibetan eminent monks such
as mar pa chos kyi blo gros (1012-1097 CE) and
khyung po rnal vbyor (990-1140 CE) went to India
and studied sutras under the instruction of Naropa
and Maidripa for many times and returned to Tibet
to teach sutras and founded “bkav brgyud pa”.
“Bkav brgyud pa” splits into “mar pa bkav
brgyud”, “shangs pa bkav brgyud” and “dwags po
bkav brgyud”. The former was ephemeral and the
latter spread widely and evolved into four branches,
namely, “karma bkav brgyud”, “tshal pa bkav
brgyud”, “vbav rom bkav brgyud” and “phag gru
bkav brgyud”. In the Qing Dynasty, “tshal pa bkav
brgyud” and “vbav rom bkav brgyud” demised.
Since modern times, “bkav brgyud pa” spread to
India as well as other regions and built temples and
formed monk groups there.
“Karma bkav brgyud pa”, one of four sub-sects
of “Bkav brgyud pa”, was founded by Bkav brgyud
pa (1110-1193). In 1157, Master dus gsum mkhyen
pa built “karma lha steng dgon”, also known as
karma “gdan sa dgon”, in Karma Village, Chamdo
County, Kang Prefecture, Tibet and preached the
doctrine and ritual practices of “bkav brgyud pa”
and his Buddhist teachings, founding “karma bkav
brgyud pa” as the first branch of “bkav brgyud
pa” and named the sect after his temple. In 1189,
dus gsum mkhyen pa built “mtshur phur dgon”
in stod lung sde chen. Altogether, there were two
ancient temples. Subsequently, mtshur phur dgon
was extended as ancestral temple of “karma bkav
brgyud pa”.
“Karma bkav brgyud pa” is renowned as the first
Tibetan Buddhist sect that built the living Buddha
reincarnation system and developed several living
Buddha reincarnation systems characterised by
Black-hat Sect Living Buddha System and Redhat Sect Living Buddha System, having profound
religious influence on Tibetan Buddhist believers.
In modern times, “Karma bkav brgyud pa” spread
to Sikkim in India and built temples. “Tshal pa bkav
brgyud”, one of four sub-sects of “bkav brgyud pa”,
was founded by zhang tshal pa brtson vgrus grags
(1123-1194), disciple of Dog polha-rje.
Zhang tshal pa brtson vgrus grags, also known as
Bla ma Zhang, was born in skyyi shod (present-day
Caibazhu Village) in Lhasa, Tibet, with original
name of “dar ma”. Because Bla ma Zhang’s father
was a layman Buddhist who practiced Tantric
Buddhism, Bla ma Zhang was edified by his father
and obtained insight into Buddhism. At the age
of nine, he began to study esoteric Buddhism and
toured mdo khams. At the age of 26, he received
Bhikshu precepts and was given the name of zhang
tshal pa brtson vgrus grags. In 1153, he was granted
an opportunity to meet sgam po ba tshul khrims
snying po, nephew and disciple of Dog polha-rje
Monks at the Sakya monastery in Lhasa
lineage of sa skya pa. In the Qing Dynasty, Aelwang
chos ldan and dgon chen were renowned as temple
for preaching the Trantric lineage of ngor lugs.
Rdzong lugs split into rdzong ba snga rabs or mus
srad pa and rdzong ba phyi rabs. The Buddhism
dharma originated from bstan pa bsod nams rgyal
mtshan (1312-1375 CE) and rdzong pa kun dgav
rgyal mtshan (1382-1446 CE) studied and preached
dharma, founding rdzong ba snga rabs or mus srad
pa. In 1464 CE, thu ston kun dgav rnam rgyal (14321496 CE) built gong dkar rdo rje gdan (vajrasana
dgon) in Gongga County, Shannan Prefecture, Tibet
as preaching centre to teach the Tantric lineage
of rdzong lugs and come up innovation, founding
rdzong ba phyi rabs, also known as gong dkav ba.
As direct Tantric lineage of sa skya pa, Tshar
lugs, also known as hearing lineage of Tantra, was
founded by blo gsal rgya mtsho (1501-1561 CE).
Although it enjoyed prestige within and outside sa
skya pa, tshar lugs didn’t spread wider than Tantric
lineage of ngor lugs. In the Qing Dynasty, sa skya
dgon at Shigatse of Tibet and surrounding temples
were known as temples for preaching tshar lugs.
In history, sa skya pa attached importance to
studying Sanskrit and carrying out academic
exchange with Indian scholars. Saban kunga
gyaltsen debated with six Indian scholars and
defeated them, wining reputation across Tibet and
starting the campaign for studying Sanskrit.
In modern times, sa skya pa spread to Nepal and
India and built many temples.
(Kalsang gyal)
bkav brgyud pa Sect
bkav brgyud pa, one of Tibetan Buddhist sects and
its dharma lineage originated from Indian eminent
monks Ti lo pa (988-1098 CE), Na ro pa (1016-
144
Cultural Contacts
in vbri gung. In 1179 CE, he started massive
construction and extended the small temple into
vbri gung mthil. In particular, rin chen dpal carried
out religious activities such as preaching Buddhist
dharma and precept, abstaining from alcohol and
meat and teaching unique esoteric Buddhism and
consequently vbri gung mthil became a temple in
which many monks practiced, founding vbri gung
bkav brgyud pa.
In modern times, vbri gung bkav brgyud pa spread
to India and built temples, having certain religious
influence on believers.
“Stag lung bkav bgyud”, one of eight branches
of “bkav brgyud pa”, was founded by stag lung
thang pa bkra shes dpal (1142-1210 CE), disciple
of phag mo grub pa, who studied the phag gruvi
bkav brgyud. In 1180 CE, he built stag lung dgon
in stag lung and developed disciples to teach
Buddhist doctrines, preach precepts and increase
the number of monks, founding stag lung bkav
bgyud. Subsequently, sangs rgyas vod (1251-1294
CE), disciple of stag lung thang pa bkra shes dpal,
went to western Kham to spread Buddhism and built
rib bo che dgon in Leiwuqi County. Stag lung bkav
bgyud had two well-known temples, among which
stag lung dgon is the upper main temple and also
named as yar thang dgon and ri bo che dgon is the
lower main temple and also named as mar thang
dgon, each with 3,000-4,000 monks, respectively.
“Vbrug pa bkav brgyud”, one of eight branches of
“bkav brgyud pa”, was founded by gling ras pad ma
rdo rje (1128-1188 CE), disciple of phag mo grub
pa. Gling ras pad ma rdo rje was born in Niangdui
Village, Tibet, and studied medicine since childhood.
At the age of 17, he converted to Buddhism and
studied esoteric Buddhism, famous for proficiency
in incantation. When he was 38 years old, he went
to gdan sa mthil and became a disciple of phag mo
grub pa to study Tantra. Subsequently, he travelled
around Tibet and taught local personages. In his later
years, vbrug pa bkav brgyud developed disciples
and taught tantra, laying a doctrine foundation for
founding of vbrug pa bkav brgyud.
Gtsang pa rgya ras ye shes rdo rje (1128-1188
CE), heir disciple of gling ras pad ma rdo rje built
and became his disciple to study the tantra of dwags
po bkav brgyud including Mahamudra. In 1175 CE,
bla ma zhang built tshal pa dgon in Caigongtang
Village nearby Lhasa and developed disciples
to teach Buddhist doctrine with the support of
Tibetan aristocratic descent Gar Family. In 1187,
he built tshal gung thang dgon in the vicinity of
tshal pa dgon and both tshal gung thang dgon and
tshal pa dgon were well-known temples of tshal pa
bkav brgyud.
In 1268 CE, sangs rgyas dngos grub, abbot of
tshal pa dgon, was conferred a title of high-ranking
official and “Tshal pa bkav brgyud” became an
important sect that adopted the theocratic system.
With the emergence of dge lugs pa, tshal gung thang
dgon and tshal pa dgon were transformed into the
temples of dge lugs pa and tshal pa bkav brgyud
assimilated into dge lugs pa.
“Vbav rom bkav brgyud”, one of four sub-sects
of “bkav brgyud”, was founded by dar ma dbang
phyug (the middle 12th century CE), disciple of
Dog polha-rje, who built vbav rom dgon in Angren
County, shigatse and developed disciples to teach
Tantric Mahamudra and Exoteric Mahamudra at the
temple, founding vbav rom bkav brgyud.
After dar ma dbang phyug passed away, his family
members succeeded as abbot of vbav rom dgon and
vbav rom bkav brgyud was demised due to the
constant conflicts within the family. The doctrine
and ritual of vbav rom bkav brgyud were still
preached and practiced at several temples in mdo
khams (Yushu Prefecture, Qinghai).
“Phag gruvi bkav brgyud”, one of four sub-sects
of “bkva brgyud”, was founded by phag mo grub pa
(1110-1170 CE), one of four well-known disciples of
Dog polha-rje. There are different historical records
on his family background and clan family and Pha
gruvi bkav brgyud integrated with Lang Family to
achieve mutual development and prosperity. In
the late Yuan Dynasty, the theocratic Phagmodru
regime was established and “phag gruvi bkav
brgyud” became another sect that came to power in
Tibet after sa skya pa.
Phag gruvi bkav brgyud had profound influence
on society and split into eight relatively independent
branches, namely, vbri gung bkav brgyud pa, stag
lung bkav brgyud, vbrig pa bkav brgyud, gyav bzang
bkav brgyud, khro phu bkav brgyud, shug gseb bkav
brgyud, yer pa bkav brgyud and smar tshang bkav
brgyu, spreading across Tibet.
“Vbri gung bkav brgyud pa”, one of eight
branches of “bkav brgyud pa”, was founded by rin
chen dpal (also known as skyob pa vjig rten mgon
po, 1143~1217 CE), disciple of phag mo grub
pa. Rin chen dpal was born in dan-ma (presentday Dengke County, Ganzi Prefecture, Sichuan
Province) and served as an abbot of a small temple
Chupu Monastery, Duilongdeqing County, Tibet, China
145
Cultural Contacts
tsha (1118-1195) and kon ldan ras pa (1148~1217),
disciples of phag mo grub pa. After completing
study, they returned to hometown and built temples
to preach Buddhist dharma, founding kho phu bkav
brgyud. In the middle 14th century CE, kho phu
bkav brgyud was declined.
“Shug gseb bkav brgyud”, one of eight branches
of “bkav brgyud pa”, was founded by tshul khrims
blo gros (1144-1204), disciple of phag mo grub pa.
In 1152, he became a disciple of phag mo grub pa to
study Buddhist dharma. In 1181, he built shug gseb
dgon at Niepu and founded shug gseb bkav brgyud
which was declined and disappeared gradually.
“Yel pa bkav brgyud”, one of eight branches of
“bkav brgyud pa”, was founded by ye-shes-brtsegspa, disciple of phag mo grub pa, who built Yel-phu
temple and developed disciples to teach Buddhist
dharma and found yel pa bkav brgyud. The heir
disciple of ye-shes-brtsegs-pa built Dana Temple in
present-day Angqian County, Qinghai province and
the dharma lineage continues till today.
“Smar tshang bkav brgyud”, one of eight branches
of “bkav brgyud pa”, was founded by shes rab ye
shes, disciple of phag mo grub pa, born in western
Kham and birthday and death date were unknown.
Shes rab ye shes went to Tibet to study Buddhism and
then returned to hometown to build the zhok dgon
housing 2,000 monks and then kao dgon to educate
and edify many monks, founding smar tshang bkav
brgyud, also known as maba bkav brgyud.
Bkvav brgyud preached phag rgya chen po and
advocated practicing na ro chos drug which had its
roots in Tantric lineage attributed to Indian master
Kukkuripa and thus named after Kukkuripa. Phag
rgya chen po and na rochos drug completed with
each other.
(Kalsang gyal)
Monastery of the Kagyu School of the
Tibetan Buddhism
klong rdol dgon nearby Lhasa, ra lung dgon in ra
lung and vbrug dgon in Qushui County in southwest
Lhasa, founding vbrug pa bkav brgyud. Vbrug pa
bkav brgyud chose vbrug dgon as main temple
at first and then ra lung dgon as main temple to
preach the doctrines, also known as middle vbrug
pa bkav brgyud.
In 1241 CE, lo ras pa dbang phyug brtson vgrus
(1187-1250 CE), disciple of gtsang pa rgya ras
ye shes rdo rje built dkar po chos lung dgon as a
main centre for preaching Buddhist doctrines and
developed many disciples. Additionally, he also
built temples and spread Buddhism in different
regions, founding upper vbrug pa bkav brgyud. In
1226 CE, rgod tshang ba mgon po rdo rje (11391258 CE), another disciple of gtsang pa rgya ras ye
shes rdo rje built rgod tshang dgon in Shekar Village
to develop disciples and teach Buddhism dharma
and trained many well-known disciples, founding
lower vbrug pa bkav brgyud.
Vbrug pa bkav brgyud mainly spread to the
Kingdom of Bhutan with many temples and lots
of disciples.
“Gyav bzang bkav brgyud”, one of eight branches
of “bkav brgyud pa”, originated from ska ldan ye
shes seng ge (unknown-1207) and founded by chos
smon lam (1169-1233). Skal ldan ye shes seng ge,
disciple of phag mo grub pa, built so ras dgon after
completing study and developed disciples to teach
Buddhism dharma. Among his disciples, chos smon
lam became his heir. In 1206, chos smon lam built
gyav bzang dgon in gyav bzang and founded gyav
bzang bkav brgyud. He formed an alliance with
local government and was conferred the title of
high-ranking official in Yuan Dynasty.
“Khro phu bkav brgyud”, one of eight branches of
“bkav brgyud pa”, was founded by rin po che rgyal
dge lugs pa Sect
dge lugs pa, also known as Bkav gdams pa gsar ma, is
one of major sects of Tibetan Buddhism, commonly
known as “Yellow-hat sect” in Chinese, which was
founded by Tsong kha pa (1357-1419).
The dharma lineage originated from Candrakirti/
Zla ba grags pa (600-650) and Aatisha (982-1054)
and Tsong kha pa treasured and preached dbu
ma la vjug pa by Candrakirti/Zla ba grags pa and
byang chub lam sgron by Aatisha as the basis for
establishing the doctrine of Dge lugs pa.
In 1409, Tsong kha pa succeeded in holding the
Monlam (or Grand Summons ceremony) at Jokhang
Temple for the first time, creating a great sensation
among monks and believers and winning religious
prestige as well as raising social status for Tsong
kha pa. In the same year, Tsong kha pa built dgav
ldan rnam par rgyal bavi vgling in vbrog ri bo che
(present-day Dazi County, Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous
146
Cultural Contacts
stong from generation to generation. After the sixth
generation of disciple Kun Spangs Thugs Rje Brtson
Vgrus (1243-1313 CE) built temple and developed
the gzhan stong school into jo nang pa, byang sems
rgyal ba ye shes (1257~1320 CE), Mkhas Btsun Yon
Tan Rgya Mtsho (1260~1327 CE), Dol Po Ba Shes
Rab Rgyal Mtshan (1292~1361 CE), lo tsa ba blo
gros dpal (1299~1353 CE), hyogs las rnam rgyal
(1306~1386 CE), nya dbon kun dgav dpal (1345
~1439 CE), kun dgav grol mchog (1507~1569 CE)
and da ra na tha (1575~1634 CE) stood out from
others and made a great contribution to promoting
the development of jo nang pa.
In particular, da ra na tha who was well versed
in Sanskrit and frequently contacted with Indian
monks in Tibet and composed rgya gar chos vbyung
based on their oral information. In Buddhist
history, the works played a vital role in studying
the history of Buddhism in India and had a wide
influence on India-China cultural exchange. Thus,
it was translated into Chinese, English and other
language versions. In 1615, da ran a tha built rtag
brtag dam chos gling in present-day Lazi County,
Shigatse, Tibet and invited 20 artisans from Nepal
to make sculptures and draw paintings and thus the
Buddiha statues and murals there were full of Nepal
and Indian Buddhist artistic style.
After da ra na tha passed away, jo nang pa fell into
decline. In the early Qing Dynasty, its temples in
Tibet were disappeared. However, eminent monks
built temples and preached dharma in mdo khams
(some Tibetan autonomous prefectures in Sichuan
and Qinghai) and continued the Buddhist lineage of
jo nang pa till today.
In 1425, drung rrna shri (or dkav bzhi pa rin chen
dpal, 1350-1435 CE) built dpal vdzam thang chos sde
in vdzam thang (present-day Rangtang County, Aba
Tibet Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province)
and preached the doctrines and ritual practices of
jo nang pa in accordance with the instruction of
Chogle Namgyal. Subsequently, his heir disciples
such as chos rje rgyal ba bzang po (1419~1482
CE), tshes bcu rrna kwirti and Aa rge nyi ma vod
zer extended temples and established the temple
Region) and founded Dge lugs pa centering around
dgav ldan dgon.
In 1416, Tsong kha pa instructed his disciple
vjam dbyangs chos rgyal (1379-1449) to build vbras
spungs dgon pa in the western suburb of Lhasa. In
1418, his disciple byams chen chos rgyal (or Shakya
Yeshe, 1352-1435) built se ra theg chen gling in
the northern suburb of Lhasa. The construction of
three major temples in Lhasa laid a solid religious
foundation for dge lugs pa.
After three major temples were built in Lhasa,
dge vdun grub pa (1391-1474) built bkra shes lhun
po in gzhis ka rtse in 1447. Before long, stod shes
rab bzav po built stag movi chos sde in mngav ris
and smad shes rab bzav po built chab mdo dgon in
Ganden Monastery of the Gelugpa sect, Tibet
khams. From then on, Dge lugs pa established its
stable temple organisations in the entire Tibetan
area and the late comer came at the top. In the early
16th century CE, Deg lugs pa took shape in Tibet
and developed on an unprecedented scale in Tibetan
Buddhist history.
In the Qing Dynasty, Dge lugs pa was in its heyday
and became the most influential mainstream sect
in Tibetan Buddhism. What’s more, three major
temples in Lhasa (dgav ldan dgon, vbras spungs
dgon pa and se ra theg chen gling), bkra shes lhun
po, stag movi chos sde, tar lamasery, labuleng si and
chamdo champa ling still have a profound influence
in minorities regions where Tibetan, Mongolian, Tu
Nationality and Yugurs resided.
In modern times, Dge lugs pa spread to India
and built many temples in India. In south India, it
replicated three major temples in Lhasa (dgav ldan
dgon, vbras spungs dgon pa and se ra theg chen
gling). Dge lugs pa houses numerous monks and has
a great influence.
(Kalsang gyal)
jo nang pa Sect
jo nang pa, one of the major sects of Tibetan Buddhism
and the Buddhism dharma originated from yu mo
mi bskyod rod rje (in the 11th century CE), who
founded gzhan stong and believers preached gzhan
Monastery of the Jonang sect, Tibet, China
147
Cultural Contacts
layout of the coexistence of chos rgyal dgon, tshe
bcu dgon buit in 1456 and gtsang ba dgon built in
1730. Additionally, they set up the living Buddha
reincarnation system for living Buddha chos rje,
tshes bcu and gtsang pa, etc.
Gtsang ba dgon developed into a central temple
for lineal Buddhism dharma lineage of jo nang pa
and extended its religious influence. Additionally, it
had established many branch temples in surrounding
areas such as Sichuan Aba Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture and Qinghai Golog Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture. In the late Qing Dynasty, jo nang pa
built a total of more than 30 temples which were
mainly distributed in mdo khams.
(Kalsang gyal)
Aryasta-sahasrika-prajnaparamita-sutra in Tibetan
the basic idea and understands the objective things
according to this basic idea, so as to cut off or put
out all the pains and troubles. But Xi Jie Sect does
not escape and negate the reality but transform the
bitter troubles in real life into the things that can be
used in Buddhism by understanding their meanings
and mind, and finally cut off all troubles and
achieve the Buddhist result. Xi Jie Sect thinks that
the external objective phenomena and all things lie
within the wise hear, so all things the heart shows
are distinguished. If you can understand the heart
and distinguish the doubtful heart, the Wudu that
causes people to worry will become Wuhui or Wuzhi
that is the thought of enlightenment.
Xi Jie Sect is a sect that focusses on Buddhist
practice and cultivation, and it requires that each
practitioner that “body, following three doctrines.
Road, into the ascetic. Result, altruism”. The
practice of religious doctrines and arguments
should be clear and that is the condition and quality
that the practitioners must have. Pa Danbasanje
thought the carriage cannot run on the road without
being treated clearly; the water cannot flow in
the winding and rugged channels; the dirty water
is difficult to show images; the burnt pots are
water-proof and if the root is not clean the merits
and virtues will not appear. Therefore, Xi Jie Sect
requires the practicers to practice in order. First of
all, to cultivate the “Savaka Curse” in accordance
with the guru’s Buddhist thoughts. Second, to
pursue solitary enlightened one and cultivate
“the Curse of Solitary Enlightened One”. Third, to
enlighten the compassion and practice “Bodhisattva
Duozhi Curse”. To cultivate in order, to understand
the nature of heart with altruism and without
differentiation and to put out all the troubles and
pains are very important for Xi Jie Sect.
The practicer of Xi Jie Sect often cultivate in the
barren hills and forests, the snow-capped mountains
and the cemeteries. The famous “Cultivating
Method of Yoga in Cemeteries” is a kind of secret
method to cultivate in the cemetery. They think that
cultivating in the cemetery is good for understanding
thi byed Sect
Thi Byed Sect (Xi Jie Sect) is one of the sects of
Tibetan Buddhism in China. It was set up by Pa
Danbasanje (pha damba sangje, unknown-1117), a
famous eminent monk and mahasiddhas from the
south India, in the middle of the 11th century CE.
“Xi Jie” (thi byed) is from Tibetan Language that
means “still quiescence” or “to quench”. Its Tibetan
full name is “Du A Xi Jie” (sdug bsng thi byed) that
means “to perish the pain”. It is said that studying
the doctrines and arguments of Xi Jie Sect can
quench or eliminate all the troubles and pains in
the world, hence it got the name “Xi Jie Pai”. From
the 11th-15th centuries CE, this sect had ever had a
great impact in Tibet. But later its impacts gradually
faded away.
The doctrines and arguments of Xi Jie Sect are
based on the Prajna Paramita and combine the
Asceticism of Yoga which aim at quenching or
eliminating all the pains and troubles. Xi Jie Sect
believes that Ben Zong Sect concentrates six kinds
of Prajna inheritance of Pa Danbasanje that is the
essential inheritance inheriting from Tushita Palace,
the Dragon King’s Palace, Wu Zhangna (Ougran),
East India’s Pangalo (Phan Kiara) and South India’s
Bedara (bedhala) and the south of Candanavana. At
the same time, this Sect absorbed Pa Danbasanje’s
four kinds of inheritance of Shastras which are
the secret key to the inheritance of Yidam, the
common inheritance of the 54 male and female
Yoga practicers, the fantastic inheritance of the 36
mahatmas and the special inheritance of Dakini
XinSui. All those as the secret teachings and simple
methods of freeing from samsara, constitute the
distinctive characteristics of Xi Jie Sect.
The source of the right views or thoughts of Xi Jie
Sect can be originated back to Prajnaparamita,and
all thoughts or sutras are in accordance with the
Nagarjuna. The right views of Xi Jie Sect are
not beyond those of Madhyamika. It takes the
understanding of the nature, wisdom and mind as
148
Cultural Contacts
The Outline of the Overall Doctrines, Scatter-Gather,
The Mutual Touching of the Mouth and Nose and
The Later Wideness; the main classics of Sojo
Gantownbel include The Teaching of 54 Male and
Female Siddhas, The 51 Edge-removing Teaching
Method, The Doctrine Biographies of 32 Gurus,
The Biographies of 17 Sages, The Classification
of the Method to Open Eyes, The Classification
of the Method to Dakini, The Teaching of Timer
and Microtimer, 106 Cognitive Methods, Not
Covered, Peace and Quiet, Dorje Sattva Tunnels,
and The Big and Small Dhyana Seiza Methods; the
classics of Wofgang Yasitenza include Respectively
Using of Doctrines along with Paramita, Eight
Characteristics of Abhisamaya, Paramita Sutra, The
First Characteristic of Morality, To Teach People to
Quite Catur-satyas, and Practicing the Scattering.
The representatives of the small branches are Gussie
Orizaba (bge bshes graw ba), Gussie Djerba (bge
bshes lce ba) and Jiang Gadams (ljang bkav gdams
pa). The main classic of Gussie Orizaba is Nine
Kinds of Methods to Extinct the Bright Torch. The
main classics of Gussie Djerba include The Common
and Different Paramita, The Common and Different
Esoteric Buddhism and other 108 kinds of teaching
methods. The main classic of Jiang Gadams is The
No-character Teaching of Paramita etc.
The late inheritance is called “the Secret and oral
inheritance of Xi Jie Sect” and also called “the Three
Gurus’s Only Inheritance” which began after the
construction of Xi Jie Sect’s basic dojo –Lang Kuo
Temple (glang vkhor). The successor is Jiangqu Sanhua
Gongga (1062-1124) who is one of the disciples of
the four Yoga sects. His main classics include The
Mahamudra of MoZhu ba, Amala (the teaching of Pa
Danbasatngjie), The Essence of the Points of Ming
and The Practical Cultivation, including common
teaching methods like The Practice Xian Mi Jing Xu,
Pro Training and Ear Teaching, Essence of Amala, All
Volumes of Juanluo and different teaching methods
like The Overall Outline of Tantra Gyu, The Guide for
Abhisheka Gradual Path, Three Secret Libraries and
Eight Aquarius.
The three big branches and some small branches
have ever been spread in the entire Tibetan area. In
the later 16th century, Xi Jie Sect gradually declined
and its thoughts and sadhana drubtab were also
brought into the Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya and Deluk
of Tibetan Buddhism. And many classics about Xi
Jie sect have been lost.
(Deji zhuoma)
the change and bitterness of life and can remove
the “Avidya”. So Xi Jie Sect advocates penance and
transforms all the troubles or wrong things into
the path to Buddhism or helpful friends. It also
advocates the understanding of the nature of mind
and the empty nature of things. Therefore, people
can abandon greedy thoughts and the troubles of
Avidya, and quench pains to attain enlightenment.
Xi Jie Sect always stresses the “empty self-nature” so
as to reflect the thought of Prajna or Madhyamika.
The classics of Xi Jie Sect were written by Pa
Danbasanje’s disciples according to his dictation.
Because Pa Danbasanje taught disciples according
to their aptitude and an uncountable number of
people, the classics of this sect are numerous and
complex. His disciples also added a lot of classics
according to Pa Danbasanje’s thoughts. That not
only formed many different thoughts and also
formed various classics of inheritance branches.
The inheritance of Xi Jie sect can be divided into
early, mid-term and late inheritances and some
small or fragmented inheritance branch. The early
inheritance began when Pa Danbasanje went to
Tibet for the second and third time and the main
successor is Chane Bernard Gu Haya (Dznyvan gu
hya) in Kashmir. In that year when Pa Danbasanje
passed through Kashmir, he gave The three Books
of Xi Jie Ming Deng, The Cultivating Method of
Yamantaka and The Sixteen Classics to Chane
Bernard Gu Haya and the inheritance was formed
after him and spread in Tibet. That was called the
early inheritance by Tibetan Buddhism.
The mid-term inheritance compromises three big
branches and a number of small branches which
began when Pa Danbasanje went to Tibet for the
fourth time. The representatives of the three big
branches are Magon Cogihige (ma chos kyisherab) in
Yar lung, Sojo Gantownbel (sochung dge vdun vbar)
and Wofgang Yasitenza (skam yeshe gyaltshan). After
they respectively got the knack from Pa Danbasanje,
they created their own inheritance of thoughts and
had ever had a certain of influence on the history
of Xi Jie sect. All these three representatives have
many classics. The main classics of Magon Cogihige
include Top 64 Stones Introduction with Xu Method,
Deveioubg Bidgucukka, Make a Detour to Practice,
Theravada Buddhism
in Yunnan
A school of Buddhism in China. As the followers are
mostly the ethnic minority of Dai, it is also known
as “Dai Buddhism”.
Wooden block-printed edition of Buddhist Sutras
149
Cultural Contacts
the degree of strictness with the commandments
(such as vegetarian and non-vegetarian etc) and the
loudness and speed of reciting incantations.
Yunnan Theravāda Buddhism is a religion
followed by all the residents. Men are obliged to
spend some time in a monastery, at least, once in
a lifetime. Generally, when serving as monks in
the temple, the young aspire to serve Buddhism
and at the same time learn Buddhism and culture
in the temple. Only those who have served in a
monastery would obtain their rightful place in
society and gain respect. Theravāda temples are
located throughout the Dai-inhabited area, forming
the view of “every village has a Buddhist temple,
and every family has a Buddhist shrine”. The
monasteries are of four levels. At the top is the
general temple of an administrative area which is
responsible for coordinating Buddhist activities
for Buddhists, promulgating related religious
regulations, formally approving the promotion of
the monks and holding religious ceremonies for
newly reported officials and senior chieftains. At
the second are the general monasteries of Mengs in
charge of their respective religious affairs within the
Meng. A number of central uposatha monasteries
comprising four temples in the same area or more
villages are the third-level monasteries responsible
for the monthly Buddhist practice activities on the
routine day, the supervision of the monks observing
the commandments, the approval and appraisal
of monk promotion. At the bottom are the village
temples responsible for the daily worshipping and
chanting activity courses of the villagers and the
Buddhist education and cultural training for young
people. The orders of the monks vary with the region
and the sects. Run has eight levels while Baizhuang
and Duolie have four levels respectively. Theravāda
has no bhikkhuni but has female Buddhists who can
only be engaged in charity but not host Buddhist
activities.
Yunnan Theravāda Buddhism has its own classic
Tripitaka written with the sound of southern
disseminated Tripitaka in the Pali language. The
texts are written in four languages of Daile, Daina,
Daibeng, and Jinpingdai on pattra leaves or dogskin paper. The writings of eminent monks and
scholars of all ethnic groups and Dai translations of
important sutras and notes are also included in the
Buddhist scriptures.
Important Buddhist festivals include the WaterSprinkling Festival, Yu’anju, Haogan Festival etc
during which the people will have a great time.
Theravāda Buddhism joined the Buddhist
Association of China after 1949 which has played
an important role in making the Chinese Buddhism
integrated from the content to the form.
(Huang Xianian)
Southern Buddhism Temple at Menghan County, Xishuangbanna,
Yunnan, China
Theravāda Buddhism is mainly distributed in two
parts of Yunnan province. One is Xishuangbanna Dai
Autonomous Prefecture, Simao, and Lincang areas;
and the other is Dehong Dai Jingpo Autonomous
Prefecture and Baoshan area. It was disseminated
roughly between the 6th and 7th centuries and is
popular among the Dai, Blangs, Achangs, some of
the Vas and people of other nationalities. Burmese
Buddhism was the first school of Buddhism to
be introduced in China but went into decline
later due to the war. After the 8th century, Han
Buddhism also had an impact on this area. In 12th
century CE, Thai Buddhism was disseminated into
Xishuangbanna area. Soon, Burmese Buddhism
found its way into Dehong area which underwent
great development after the 15th century and has
survived till today.
Dai Buddhism mainly comprises of two sects due
to different dissemination paths: Run and Baizhuang.
Each sect is divided into several sub-sects.
Run spread from the northeast area of Thailand
and consists of two subsects of “garden temple sect”
and “lotus temple sect”. The former is also named
Baisun, popular in the large Menglong, Jinghong,
and Menghan regions along both sides of Lancang
River. The latter is also known as Baiba which is
distributed at the mountainous area of Xiding Bulang,
Mengzhe, Menghai, and Menghun barrage areas.
Baizhuang, also known as “the temple sect”, belongs
to the Buddhism sect disseminated from Myanmar.
With relatively early introduction, it is mainly
distributed in Dehong Prefecture and the residential
areas of Dai, Benglong and Achang minority groups
in Baoshan area. Baizhuang and Run have the most
monks with the greatest influence and constitute
the main body of Yunnan Theravāda Buddhism.
Besides the two main sects, there are the Duolie and
Zuodi sects that also belong to the Burma Buddhism
system. They have four sub-sects of Dagongliang,
Suteman, Ruijing and Mianzuo, and are popular in
Mangshi, Zhefang, Mengding and other areas with
temples but no monks today. These sects, having
basically the same doctrines and systems, differ in
150
Cultural Contacts
Acharya Buddhism
only obtain his religious name after the authorities
of a county applied to the Central Government on
his behalf. Without a legal status, he could not hold
religious services for the masses.
Acharya Buddhism has declined in modern times.
Most of the hereditary acharyas have given up their
religious positions and are engaged in farming
nowadays. Scriptures-chanting is merely their side
occupation.
(Lan Jifu)
It is a Buddhist cult among the Bais inhabiting Dali,
Yunnan, China. It is a sect of Tantrism or esoteric
Buddhism. The Sanskrit term acharya means guru
or teacher. Buddhism practiced by the Bais allows
an acharya to get married and beget offspring.
His position as a priest is hereditary. In 8th-9th
centuries, Tantrism was in vogue in India and some
acharyas went to Dali, Yunnan to do missionary
work. In 839 CE, Acharya Candragupta reached
Nanzhao, a kingdom in Dali then. King Quan
Fengyou appointed him as state mentor and married
his younger sister to Candragupta. Since then on,
acharyas enlisted the support of the political power
and financial charity of the Nanzhao upper ruling
classes and went in for large-scale construction of
Buddhist temples and images, absorbed followers
among the Bais. Consequently, Tantrism developed
vigorously and acharyas became state mentors first
of the Kingdom of Nazhao (738-902 CE) and then
the Kingdom of Dali (937-1254 CE) for generations.
The influence of Acharya Buddhism began to
wane gradually in the upper society of the Bais
since the 13th century, but it was still flourishing in
rural areas. Acharyas once called upon the people
of various nationalities to resist against rulers of the
Yuan Dynasty (1206-1368 CE) and the Ming Dynasty
(1368-1644 CE). As a result, Zhu Yuanzhang,
Emperor Taizu of the Ming Dynasty, once banned
the dissemination of Acharya Buddhism. However,
he later abolished his prohibition and set up an office
to administer the affairs of Acharya Buddhism. Zhu
Di, Emperor Chengzu of the Ming Dynasty, once
ordered the acharya of Beitangtian, Dali to go to
Beijing to pray for his blessings. Nevertheless, during
the reign of the Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty
(1616-1911 CE), the office in charge of affairs with
regard to Acharya Buddhism was revoked.
Acharyas performed various duties and ceremonies
including Buddhist scriptures reading and funerals.
As the host of a Buddhist altar, an acharya, since the
reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty, could
Buddhist Sacred
Places
Lumbini
One of the four holiest pilgrimage sites of the
Buddhists, Lumbini, is the birth place of Siddharth
Gautam. It is located in the southern terai region of
Rupandehi (Rummindei) district of Nepal bordering
with India. It is believed that the wife of Shakyan
king Shuddhodan, Queen Mayadevi, stopped in
Lumbini gardens/ forest on the way to her parents’
home in Devdaha (about 35 km from Lumbini).
Attracted by the beauty of evergreen forest having
abundance of sal trees in the shadow of Himalayan
mountain ranges, she decided to rest here. According
to several accounts, while watching the beauty of
the garden/forest standing under a sal tree, Maydevi
had labour pain. Holding the drooping branch of the
tree she gave birth to Prince Siddharth– the future
Buddha. The most widely accepted date of Buddha’s
birth is Viasakh Purnima (ie, full moon day in AprilMay) 563 BCE. Some controversy about the date,
however, still exists. Lumbini thus became among
the most sacred places of the Buddhist religion.
Incidentally, Devdaha, the ancient capital of
Koli(ya) Kingdom was not only the Siddharth
Gautam’s maternal home. It was also the home of
his step-mother Prajapati Gautam as well as of his
wife, Yashodhara’s father, King Suprabuddha.
The discovery of Buddha’s birth-site owes much
to travel descriptions of Faxian and Xuanzang.
Following the leads provided by both the Chinese
travellers and the discovery of an Asokan Pillar at
Rummindei by the Nepali archaeologist Khadga
Samsher Rana in 1896, several archaeological
excavations, the latest of which was conducted
recently between 1990s and 2000s jointly by
Nepalese and Japanese archaeologists, claim
to have found the exact location of Siddharth
Gautam’s birth.
The Rummindei Asokan Pillar inscription
announces that when King Devanampriya
Priyadarshi (Asoka) had been anointed 20 years,
he himself visited this place and worshipped at
Shaxi xingjiao temple, Jianchuan County, Yunnan Province, China
151
Cultural Contacts
believed to have spent first 29 years of his life here.
It was then the capital of ancient Shakya Republic
of which Siddharth Gautam’s father, Shuddhodana,
was an elected king. Considered among the earliest
republics of the world, the Shakyas belonged to the
16 mahajanpadas (republics) of the 6th century BCE.
The discovery of the exact site of Kapilvastu
owes to the travel records of Faxian and Xuanzang.
During their visit, both these Chinese travellers
found the capital city and the surrounding towns
destroyed, desolate and only sparsely populated
for long. The whole region was divided into many
small states ruled by several kings. The land was
fertile and the people peaceful. They located
the remains of old palatial buildings as well as
about 1,000 sites of a monastery. By the time of
Xuznzang’s visit there were about 30 monks of
the Hinyana sect living in a monastery and there
were two non-Buddhist [Íaiva ?] temples. Faxian
refers to remains of drawn images, erected topes
and constructed marks/ chaitya related to the
narratives of the early life of Siddharth Gautam.
On the basis of these records, archaeologists have
located the site at Tilaurakut in Nepal.
Yet recently, some archaeologists have made
claims that Piparhawa, in the border-district of
Siddharthnagar in India and about 40 km from
Tilaurakut in Nepal, is the site of historical
Kapilvastu. Remains of a large Asokan Stupa over
a Shakyan stupa with Buddha’s urns in it and an
inscription proclaiming it to be the the Kapilvastu
Buddhist Mahavihara were found there. Some
historians link Kapileshwar in Orissa (now Odisha)
with historical Kapilvastu. The controversy
remains unresolved.
Near ancient Kapilvastu
was Nigrodhārāma (in the present village of
Kudan which is about 6 km from Tilaurakaot,
Nepal) where archaeologists have found a site of
monastery. According to several accounts, Buddha
was provided a residential place here in the banyan
Ruins of Lumbini
this spot. He erected a structure/ stone pillar with
wall here to mark that the Blessed One (Buddha
Sakyamuni) was born here. In mark of respect for
the Blessed One, Lumbini was exempted from the
payment of state taxes. The pillar has an additional
inscription carved by the early 14th century local
king Ripu Mall to record his pilgrimage. By the 15th
century, the place fell into historical obscurity due
to various reasons.
Excavations in Lumbini have now unearthed
ruins of ancient monasteries and stupas of various
Buddhist sects from 3rd century BCE to 15th century
CE, the Mayadevi temple– where the exact spot of
Buddha’s birth is marked by an ancient rock stone
and the famous bathing pond famous as Pushkarni
(where according to legends Mayadevi bathed
before the delivery).
Presently, Lumbini has once again gained the
fame as one of the holiest Buddhist pilgrim sites. Its
renovation and development tasks are being carried
out under the UNESCO’s World Heritage schemes
and the Lumbini Development Trust. In 2006,
the Nepal Government established the Lumbini
Buddhist University there. A large Peace Park has
been developed with Chinese help. There are also
plans to have temples of different sects of Buddhism
from various Buddhist countries be built there.
With increase in pilgrim tourists world-calls hotels
and restaurants are developing. A China-based
Asia Pacific Exchange Cooperation Foundation has
reported to have signed a deal to invest $3 billion
to develop Lumbini. Similar proposals are also afoot
from other countries. Lumbini has thus woken up.
(Kamal Sheel)
Kapilvastu
Kapilvastu, located in the western part of present
day Nepal and bordering India, is most famous
as a Buddhist site linked with the childhood of
Siddharth Gautam (Buddha) and the early phase
of his life after attaining enlightenment. Born
in nearby Lumbini village, Siddharth Gautam is
Ruins of Kapilavastu
152
Cultural Contacts
grove by a Shakyan-turned-Buddhist monk to stay
during his visits to his home town. It is believed that
he preached cula dukkhakkhandha sutta, sakka sutta,
madhupindika sutta and promulgated several vinaya
rules here. Yet in the absence of further concrete
evidences, Tilaurakut in Nepal is widely believed to
be historical Kapilavastu and the site at Piparhawa
was located, an extension of large Kapilvastu
kingdom where a large Shakyan Monastery under
the control of Buddhist sangha.
(Kamal Sheel)
Sambodhi is the first name used for the Uruvela
village in an Asokan Rock Edict of 256 BCE. Another
name Bodhimanda refers to a circular area around
the Bodhi tree which was, according to Kalingabodhi
Jataka, covered with clean and shining sand without
a blade of grass growing on it with surrounding
trees and shrubs bending in its deference. The
name, Vajrasan, derives from the famous "Diamond
Throne" meditation seat, sitting over which Buddha
received enlightenment. However, Mahabodhi was
the most commonly used name until the rediscovery
of the site in the mid-19th century.
According to Buddhist texts, more than 2,550
years ago, Siddharth Gautam spent six years in
Uruvela [Bodhgaya] subjecting himself to intense
penance and fasting. Failing to attain the required
knowledge, he accepted the rice pudding from
a local woman devotee Sujata who lived just
across the Niranjana River. Finally after deep
meditation for three days under a peepal tree, he
attained enlightenment and became the Buddha
on Vaishakh Purnima (full moon day in April-May).
He then spent seven weeks in seven different sites
here in contemplation before setting off to Sarnath
in Varanasi to announce his newly discovered
knowledge, wisdom and truth. From Sarnath, he
returned to Uruvela again on the way to Rajgriha.
He met here three ascetic brothers, Nadi Kasspa,
Gaya Kassap and Uruvela Kaasap. Deeply impressed
by his serenity and wisdom, they along with their
1,000 disciples requested to be ordained as monks
and proceeded to Rajgriha with him. Buddha
probably never returned to this place again.
The holy site of Bodhgaya initially developed
around the Bodhi tree and the Vajrasana. The Bodhitree shrine, which later became the Mahabodhi
Mahavihara [temple], was built by the Emperor
Asoka in the 3rd century BCE. The structure of the
temple underwent many changes over the time.
During the Sunga period (2nd-1st centuries BCE) a
two storied structure enclosing the tree and a stupa
were erected and the stone meditation seat was
decorated with a diamond-shaped design pattern.
The original Mahabodhi temple [mulagandhakuti]
had been built by the second half of the 6th century
CE, with extension and addition during the Pala-Sen
dynasty (10th-12th centuries CE).
Bodhgaya had become a famous Buddhist pilgrim
centre by the time of Asoka whose visit to the
city of Sambodhi [Bodhgaya] is recorded. Since
Buddha’s time, patronised by men and women of
both royal and commoner households as well as
by monks and seekers of knowledge, it has been
at the centre of the Buddhist pilgrimage map.
Among famous earliest visitors from abroad, one
finds evidence of Sri Lankan monk Culla Tissa
and a group of lay pilgrims making their way to
Bodhgaya
Bodhgaya is the place where Gautam Buddha
attained enlightenment. It is one of the four holiest
sites which Buddha himself recommended his
disciples to visit for pilgrimage. The other three
are Sarnath, Lumbini and Kushinara. Bodhgaya is
originally a village at the fringes of the ancient city
of Gaya and not far from Nalanda, Rajagriha and
Patliputra (Patna) in southern Bihar.
It was historically known as Uruvela and was
situated at the banks of River Niranjana (Lilanjan)
which merged with the holy River Falgu that flowed
past the city of Gaya. According to 5th century
commentator Dharmapala, the name Uruvela derived
from the abundance of sand (vela). Others link its
name to the existence of a or many vilva trees (Aegie
marmelas) there. Archaeological excavations of the
local village site, however, reveal that it was an area
with human settlement dating at par with Indus
Civilisation of about 4,500 years ago.
After its linkages with Gautam Buddha and
the disappearance of its original name due to
disuse, it was referred to differently as the city of
Smbodhi [Complete Enlightenment], Bodhimanda
[Enclosure containing the holy Bodhi tree],
Vajrasana [Diamond throne] or Mahabodhi [Perfect
Knowledge/ Enlightenment] until its present name
Bodhgaya gained popularity after the rediscovery of
this site with a large temple and other ruins in the
early 19th century.
Bodhgaya, Bihar, India
153
Cultural Contacts
Vajrasana
Vajrasana, translated often as Diamond Throne,
refers to the stone seat decorated with diamond
pattern surface on which Gautam Buddha sat in
meditation and attained
enlightenment under
a peepal tree [Ficus Religiosa or Bodhi tree] in
Uruvela village (Bodhgaya). It is also known as
the Victory Throne of all Buddhas (Sabbabuddhanam Jayapallankam) or the Navel of the Earth
(Pathavinabhi). The Vajrasana and the peepal tree
are recognised as the most significant sacred spots
for Buddhists. The Mahabodhi Temple, which was
later erected to enshrine the place, was called
(Vajrasana Gandhakuti). It was believed that when
the universe will be finally destroyed, this would be
the last place to disappear and that it would also
be the first place to form with the beginning of
the re-evolution of the universe. Emperor Ashoka
built a red sandstone structure with railings here in
the 3rd century BCE to mark the exact spot of the
meditation seat. Until the popularity of the name
Bodhgaya for Uruvela, the place was for some times
also known as Vajrasana.
In Pali texts, the most often quoted story is that
Buddha went into extreme austerities in the banks
of Niranjana River for six years but was not able to
attain "supreme knowledge". He then accepted the
sweetened rice-milk from a local village girl, Sujata.
Gaining strength from it, he sat in deep meditation
under a peepal tree facing east on a kush-grass mat
offered by a local grass-cutter with a strong resolve
that he would not rise until the attainment of perfect
enlightenment. Disturbed by the power of his
meditation, Mara (the god of illusion and worldly
vices) first sent his beautiful daughters and apasaras
(celestial maidens) to break his resolve and lure
him to worldly pleasures. When they failed, Mara
sent bolts of lightning, wind and heavy rain oneby-one,and finally his demonic armies. None could
dissuade Gautam Buddha from his virtuous path.
The railings of the Bodhi temple at Bodhgaya
Bodhgaya in about 100 BCE. Inscriptions and other
material evidences indicate visit and renovation of
this place by disciples from Sri Lanka, Myanmar,
China, Nepal, Tibet, Sumatra, Vietnam and other
Buddhist countries. In 4th century CE, Sri Lankans
built the great Mahabodhi Monastery which later
grew into a great monastic university for the study
of Theravada Buddhism. Buddhaghosa wrote both
the Atthasalani and the now lost Nanodaya at this
monastery. Other famous names associated with it
include Chinese monks Ijing, Jin Hong and Xuan
Chao, south Indian monk Dharmapala, who was
the author of the Madyamakacatuhsatika, Kashmiri
scholar Ratnavajra, Tibetan Tsami Lotsawa Sangye
Trak, Sri Lankan Anandashri etc. Chinese travellermonks Faxian and Xuanzang provide the earliest
detailed description of the place identifying areas
of its sacred sites. The last one to write about the
place was Tibetan scholar-monk Dharmasvamin
who came there in 1234 CE and found the place
deserted with only four monks staying there. A
series of attacks by Indo-Turkic rulers since the 12th
century led to its fast decay.
Rediscovered during the colonial period in a
decayed state, its restoration commenced first by
Francis Buchanan in 1811-12 and finally, in 1881
by J D Beglar under the supervision of Alexander
Cunningham. After the initial renovation of the
temple, the first International Buddhist Conference
was held in Bodhgaya in 1891. This brought this
famous sacred site once again on the pilgrim tourist
map. In 1956, the 2,500 the anniversary of Buddha
was celebrated here under the auspices of the
Government of India with participation by a large
number of representatives from different Buddhist
sects and countries. In 2002, the Mahabodhi
Temple complex was declared a UNESCO World
Heritage Site. Bodhgaya is now fast developing as
an internationally recognised Buddhist religious
and pilgrim centre with Buddhist chanting in
different languages of various countries buzzing
the area and temples, monasteries and parks
of different Buddhist sects and countries being
erected all over the place.
(Kamal Sheel)
Vajrasana
154
Cultural Contacts
Meditating on Vajrasana with his hand touching
the earth, he conquered all of them through the
strength of his virtue and compassion and attained
the perfect enlightenment on the full moon day of
the fourth month of lunar calendar. He became the
Buddha, the "Enlightened One".
Xuanzang’s travelogue also provides other legends
for the place. He describes that the Vajrasana was
located in the middle of the enclosure surrounding
the Bodhi tree. This "diamond throne" has come
up in the beginning of Bhadra-kalpa (refers to the
recreation of the universe in the present aeon)
and stands at the centre of three "meta-thousand"
worlds. Appearing on the surface of the earth, it
is connected below with the golden wheel. Made
up of the hardest stone (diamond), it was known
as the Vajrasana because in Bhadra-kalpa, 1,000
Buddhas had meditated here and were enlightened.
It was also known as the Bodhi-mandapa. Standing
still even at the time of an earthquake, this was
the place which provided Buddha protection to
pursue his meditation without any interruption.
Buddhism, it was believed, would decline with
the sliding down of the Vajrasana to the earth.
To protect it, kings and emperors had installed
two statues of Avlokitaeshwara befitting its size.
Xuanzang, however, found the statue in the south
had already slid down to the chest thus indicating
the decline of Buddhism. Similar legends are found
in Buddhagosh’s discourses too.
Presently adorned beautifully with golden clothes
and colourful umbrella, this is a must-visit place in
the Mahabodhi Temple complex for pilgrims.
(Kamal Sheel)
Pipal/Bodhi trees
granted him the boon that anybody performing
worship in the area covered by his body shall
attain salvation. The Vishnupada (Vishnu’s footstep)
Temple erected there later commemorates that
event and is the most famous and holiest temple
of the city. Another legend found in Mahabharat as
well as in Buddhacharita attribute the name of the
city to the holy residence of a most respected sage
called Gaya. Xuanzang in his travelogue too refers
to this story.
Historically, Gaya has been known as a prominent
city under the Magadh empire. During the time of
Bimbisar, the fifth king of the Sisunaga dynasty
in 600 BCE, the city became more famous as it
came into the limelight because of its significant
association with Lord Gautam Buddha and
Mahavir. After the brief rule of Nandas, the city
came under the Mauryans whose great emperor
Ashoka,] patronised the city after having embraced
Buddhism. The famous Mahabodhi Temple and
Ashokan Pillars adorned the city. During Gupta
dynasty, it became the headquarters of Bihar district.
The Guptas were followed by the Palas whose king
Dharamapala built/ rebuilt the present Mahabodhi
Temple at Bodhgaya. During his visit to Xuanzang,
he found it inhabited by about 1,000 respected
Brahmin families belonging to earlier sages. They
had their own exalted social status independent of
the King’s political authority. Between 12th and
18th centuries, Gaya was ruled by the Muslims like
Bakhtiyar Khilji and Shershah Suri until it came
under the control of British after the battle of Buxar
in 1764. It became an independent district in 1865
and after India’s Independence, it was incorporated
in Magadh Division in 1981.
Most of the references of Gaya describe it as
an important centre of pilgrims for Hindus. It is
believed that offerings made here in the name of
ancestors earned enough merits for a person to get
rid of all the sins and attain salvation. The spiritual
merit of Gaya is mentioned in Mahabharata as well
as in Puranas like Padma, Naradiya, Varaha, Kurma,
Garuda and Vayu. Lord Rama came to this city with
Gaya
Among the ancient living cities of India, Gaya has
been famous for both of its Hindu and Buddhist
connections. Situated at the bank of River Falgu
(referred in Ramayana as Niranjana), it actually
encompasses the historical village of Bodhgaya
(about 11 km), the place where Buddha achieved
enlightenment. It is not far from Patliputra (about
100 km), the ancient capital of Magadh and
Maurya kingdom, or Patna, the present capital of
modern Bihar province. Ancient cities of Vaishali,
Rajagriha, Nalanda (about 70 km) are also close-by.
It is surrounded by small rocky hills (Mangla-Gauri,
Ram-Shila and Brahmayoni) by three sides and the
river flowing on the fourth (eastern) side.
The history of origin of Gaya is shrouded in
legends. In Puranas, the city’s name is linked with
the tale of a demon Gayasura who lived here and
attained divine power after severe penance. Fearful
of his power intruding the work of gods of Heaven,
Lord Vishnu killed him by pressing his chest and
body down to earth by his foot. He, however,
155
Cultural Contacts
his wife Sita to perform offering-ceremonies for
his departed father, King Dashrath. Even now, the
city is visited by hundreds and thousands of Hindu
pilgrims to worship for their ancestors. Beside the
famous Vishnupada Temple (renovated by the Devi
Ahilya Bai Holkar in the 18th century) and the
sacred Akshyavat (the everlasting banyan/peepal
tree), there are sacred shrines on the hilltop at Rama
Shila, Mangla Gauri and Brahmayoni and are part of
the pilgrimage circuit. Bhumihar Brahmins, known
as Gayawal Pandas, are the traditional priests here.
Buddhist tradition regards the footstep in the
Vishnupad Temple as those of Gautam Buddha
(who is regarded by a section of Hindus as an
incarnation of Vishnu). Buddhists, however, regard
the Brhmayoni Hill (Xuanzang refers to it as GayaShir), an important sacred place. Buddha preached
the Fire Sermon (Adittapariyaya Sutta) to a 1,000
former fire-worshipping ascetics who all became
enlightened while listening to this discourse. Ashoka
had built many stupas on the way to this hilltop.
Presently, Gaya is the second largest city of Bihar
province and an important hub of social, political
and intellectual activities of the region.
(Kamal Sheel)
Dhamekh Stupa, Saranath
reason for him to be so selfish and cruel. He must
follow his dharma. He then immediately issued a
royal order granting full protection to deer there.
The forest area became known as the protected place
offered to deer as their share of "royal inheritance"
ie, Mrigdaya or Mrigdava. This story is also referred
in Xuanzang’s travelogue.
The full name of this place was Rishipatan [Isipatan]
Mrigdaya/ Mrigdava [Migdaya]. Mahavastu Avadan
mentions that it was so called because remains of the
bodies of hundreds of Pratyeka-Buddha (sages) fell
here. These Buddhas, who lived here, were advised
by the gods to vacate this place for the arrival of
Gautam Buddha. They, therefore, attained nirvana
and went to heaven. They burnt their bodies while
going up and its remains fell here. The place was
then called Rishipattan. These two names based on
two different stories when joined together became
Rispattan Mrigdava (present-day Sarnath).
Following the above names for Sarnath in
Buddhist texts the Chinese translation refer to it
as Luye [鹿野] = Deer Forest; Xianren luye yuan
[仙人鹿野苑]= "Deer Forest" Garden for Sages
Luye yuan zhong xianren zhuchu [鹿野苑中仙人住
處] = Abode of Sages in the "Deer Forest" Garden;
Xianmian chu [仙面處]= Place Where Sages Are
Seen Shi lu lin xianren duochu [施鹿林仙人堕處] =
Place for Sages in the Bestowed Deer Forest; Xianren
duochu luye yuan [仙人堕處鹿野苑] = Sages’ Abode
in "Deer Forest" Garden; Xianren duochu shi lulin
[仙人堕處施鹿林] = Sages Abode in Bestowed
"Deer Forest" etc.
(Kamal Sheel)
Mrigdava
In Buddhist texts, Sarnath, one of the four most
significant spots of Buddhist pilgrimage, is referred
alternatively as Mrigdava/ Mrigdaya, or by its full
name Rishipattan Mrigdava in Sanskrit and Isipatan
Migdaya in Pali. Mrigdava literally means deer
forest while Migdaya indicates place offered to a
deer as their share of "inheritance". Rishipatan/
Isipatan refers to a place where bodies of sages fell.
The historical origin of these names is not known.
Avadana and Jatak stories, however, tell about
legends associated with these names. In Mahavastu
Avadana as well as in Nigrodhmigjataka, there is
a story about the king of Kashi, Brahmadutt, who,
frequently indiscriminately hunted deer in the
nearby forest. Many a time, injured by his arrows,
the deer used to run away deep in the forest where
they either died due to their wounds or became
easy prey of other animals or birds. Distressed by
such wanton destruction of their herd, the deerleader met the king and offered to send him one
deer daily to stop the indiscriminate hunting. The
king accepted the proposal. One day, it was the turn
of a doe to go to the king. She was pregnant so she
appealed to the leader that she be exempted until
the delivery of a fawn. Pitying her condition and
finding no one else offering to go, he himself went to
the king to maintain his promise. Surprised, the king
asked him the reason for offering himself. When he
heard the full story, he felt that if an animal could
be so upright and compassionate then there was no
Sarnath
Lord Buddha proclaimed four holiest pilgrimage
sites of Buddhism which were related to important
events of his life. Of these four sites, Lumbini was
related to his birth, Bodhgaya to his enlightenment,
156
Cultural Contacts
of Turko-Muslim kings followed by ransacking by
local roving powerholders for building material,
Sarnath was completely destroyed.
The glorious heritage of Sarnath was finally
uncovered by the British archaeologists, especially
A C Cunningham during the 19th century. They
found tall and huge Dhamekh stupa, foundation
remains of Dharmarajika Stupa (bricks of which
were pillaged aand used as building materials in
Varanasi), severely destroyed Chaukhandi stupa
constructed to spot the site of Buddha’s meeting with
five ascetics – later over which Akbar constructed
a memorial to mark his father Humayun’s hiding
place after defeat by Sher Shah Suri. They also
found ruins of Mulgandhkutivihar. (In 1930, Sri
Lankan monk Anagarik Dharmapal constructed a
new Mulgandhkuti Temple there.) They also found
the Ashokan Pillar broken, with its top which had a
statue of four lions that has been declared a national
symbol and is now adorning the Sarnath museum.
Besides this, located in Sarnath are also Jaina and
Shaiva temples.
Now fast developing as the Buddhist pilgrim
centre, almost all the major Buddhist countries
have their temples here with each representative
having the architecture of their respective native
land. A Chinese temple was constructed in 1939
by donations from Fukienese Buddhists through
the Kolkata-based Chinese Association in India.
The modern Thai Temple there has a huge statue
of Buddha. Recently, Koreans and Japanese too
have built their temples besides one old one
by Myanmar. It is now a part of much-travelled
Buddhist tourist circuit.
(Kamal Sheel)
Sarnath to his first sermon and Kushinara to his
attainment of nirvana. Sarnath is thus famous as the
place where Buddha set in motion the wheel of law
(Maha-Dhammacakkappavattana), by preaching his
first five ascetic companions the fundamentals of
Buddhism ie, Four Noble Truths and Eight Paths as
well as several other suttas [discourses/ teachings].
He thus laid the foundation of Buddhist dharma
and sangha which spread both in India and abroad,
making Buddhism once the largest religion of the
world. Located close to Varanasi-Kashi in eastern
Uttar Pradesh, it is historically known as Rishipattan
or Ishipattan (place of sages) and Mrigadaya (deer
park). The popular name Sarnath is derived from its
association with Rishi Sarangnath (master of deer),
a Saiva sage.
Sarnath is widely referred to in various Buddhist
writings. The Jatakas have several stories connected
with events and activities as well as several legends
about Lord Buddha there. Both Faxian and Xuanzang
found it to be a grand and flourishing place.
During his visit in the early 5th century CE, Faxian
noted four stupas and two monasteries here. Two
centuries later, Xuanzang witnessed the whole area
to be religiously very active. In Varanasi, the city
under whose boundary was Sarnath, he found over
30 monasteries and approximately 3,000 resident
monks of Sammatiya sect. Sarnath was surrounded
by a wall. Within it were buildings and pavilions as
well as several lakes and gardens built in line with
good planning. Near 1,500 monks of Sammitiya
sect lived there. There was a tall and huge temple/
monastery with a golden top shaped like a mango.
The temple had a copper statue of Buddha in
dhammchakkapavattan style. He noted many stupas,
some of which were more than 200 feet in height.
There was also a 70 feet stone pillar which was very
soft, shining and had inscriptions.
Xuanzang observed the grandeur of art and craft
that characterised Sarnath during the Mauryas,
Sungas, Kushanas and the Guptas and were evident
in Dhamekh and other stupas, Ashokan Pillar, the
Buddha statue and scores of various artifacts. The
Sarnath School of Buddha sculpture produced
the most beautiful stone statue of the preaching
Buddha, the style of which was emulated in India
and abroad and particularly in pre-Angokorine
Cambodia.
Coomaraswamy noted this statue as
one of the three best sculptures of the world. Sarnath
retained its charm even during the Pala period.
Plunder by Afghan-based Mahmud Ghajni's and
Ghori’s invasions in the first and decades of 11th
century Sarnath. Kumardevi, wife of Govindchandra
(1114-1154 CE) of the Gahadavala dynasty, built a
large monastery at Sarnath which is probably the
last impressive monuments raised here. By the
beginning of 13th century, the periodic onslaught
Shravasti
Once among the six largest and flourishing cities of
ancient India, Shravasti was the capital of the Kosala
kingdom during 6th century BCE. By this century, it
had almost vanished. The city remained in oblivion
until Alexander Cunningham discovered its ruins
Ruins of Śrāvasti
157
Cultural Contacts
it to be a city in fast decline. They witnessed and
identified most of the places referred to in the Pali
texts. Xuanzang found two Ashokan stupas and
piillars at the eastern gate of the city.
Shravasti is also famous as a Jain sacred place
where it is also known as Kunalnagari, Chandrikapuri
and Manikpuri. It was associated with the 3rd Jain
Tirthankar Sambhavanath as well as with the last
Tirthankar, Lord Mahavira, who spent several
chaturmaas in the city. Kosal King Prasenjit was
a follower of the latter. According to Jaina texts,
many of the shresthis (businessmen), as well as
members of the royal family from the city embraced
Jainism. This included famous businessman,
Nagdutta, and son of King Jitshatru, Mrigdhwaj.
The ancient Shobnath Temple and other Jaina
monuments indicate strong Jain connection. During
10th and 11th centuries CE, the city was ruled by
successive Jain kings like Mayurdhwaj, Hansdhwaj,
Makardhwaj Sudhavadhwaj and Suhridhwaj.
(Kamal Sheel)
in 1862. Its geographical location is in northeast
Uttar Pradesh in Sahet (modern Gonda district)
and Mahet (modern Baharaich district), along the
bank of River Rapti, which led to the creation of a
modern Shravasti district with the Bhinga town as
its headquarters by carving out Bharaich and Gonda
districts. It is about 150 km away from Lucknow,
the capital of Uttar Pradesh.
Not much is known about the origin of ancient
Shravasti. According to Vishnu Purana, the city was
founded by Ishvaku King Shravast or Shravastak,
along the bank of Achirvati river. In Pali Tripitika
texts, Buddhaghosh writes that the city was named
Savatthi after the Sage Savattha who lived here.
At another place, Pali texts note that it was named
Sravasti because everything for human consumption
and entertainment was available in this mega town
and capital of the powerful Kosal kingdom that had
a large population and market.
Shravasti has been referred as one of the richest
cities of Buddha’s era. It was connected with all
the other five largest cities through trading routes.
The route from Shravasti to Rajgriha was the most
famous and frequented. According to Buddhist
Sanskrit text, Divyavadan, this commercial route
passed through the ancient cities of Setatya, Saket,
Kapilavastu, Kushinagar, Pava, Bhagnagar and
Vaishali. It had to cross River Ganges for which boats
were arranged by either Licchavis of Vaishali or the
rulers of Magadh during the time of Ajatshatru.
Another commercial route that connected Shravasti
with Paithan (Pratishthan/ Pishtapuram) was the
illustrious capital of Satvahana empire in southwest
India. This touched the cities of Saket, Kaushambi,
Vidisha, Gonaddha, Ujjain and Mahishmati.
Most of the references to Shravasti, however,
relate to its Buddhist and Jain connections during
the era of the Kosal kingdom. Buddha spent 24
chaturmaas (four-month rainy season) in Shravasti.
The most famous Buddhist monastery, Jetvanaram,
was located here. This was constructed by a local rich
merchant, Anathpindaka (Sudatta), and donated to
Buddha. Its magnificent entrance gate was built by
Kumar Jeta. Another famous monastery was built by
Vishakaha Mrigarmata under the direction of Monk
Mahamodglayana and was known as Purvaram
monastery because of its location near the eastern
gate of Shravasti. King Prasenjit also constructed
a monastery for Buddhist nuns, Rajkaram, here.
On the request of Mahaprajapati Gotami, Buddha
had preached a sutta (verse) of Majjhimnikaya. In
fact, Buddha presented the maximum number of
discourses on suttas and Jatak stories in this city.
The dreaded robber and murderer, Angulimal, was
ordained here.
Both Faxian (5th century CE) and Xuanzang (7th
century CE) had travelled to Shravasti. Both found
Rajgriha
Now a small decrepit town known as Rajgir, the
ancient city of Rajgriha, was the famous capital of
the mighty Magadh kingdom of ancient India until
the rise of Patliputra in 5th century BCE. Located
close to Nalanda (Bihar), it is about 100 km from
Patna (Patliputra) and 75 km from Gaya. According
to Ramayana and ancient Puranic texts, the city
was founded by Brahma’s grandson King Vasu and
was called Vasumati. In the period of Mahabharat,
with the founding of a dynasty by Brahadrath, it
became known as Brahadrathpur. A successor of this
dynasty was the legendary king Jarasandh. It was
then also known as Girivajra (ie, mountain-fenced
or collection of hills) because it was surrounded
by five hills. In the Mahabharat, these hills are
mentioned as Vaibhara, Varaha, Vrishabh, Rishigiri
and Chaityaka. The Pali texts identify them as
Vebhara, Pandava, Vepulla, Gijjhakuta and Isigili.
Later Buddhist and Jain texts as well as Xuanzang’s
accounts. identify the city also as Kushagrapura.
According to available historical evidence, it was
King Bimbisara (6th century BCE) of the Haryanka
dynasty who built or rebuilt it and named it Rajgriha
meaning "the abode of royalty".
Modern archaeological excavations trace the
history of Rajgriha to 1,000 BCE. However, this
ancient city gradually lost its pre-eminence due
to various reasons including the shift of capital to
Patliputra. Much information of its physical setting
is available through the travel records of Chinese
traveller-monks – Fa Xian, Xuanzang and Yijing
which note the existence of an old and a new city
and describe that the city lies within a valley and
is surrounded by low-lying hills. It is demarcated
158
Cultural Contacts
and Ajatsatru are well recorded. The Pali texts
indicate it to be a favourite place of Gautam
Buddha. According to legends, King Bimbisara
respectfully received Gautam Siddharth as the son
of kshatriya Shakya King Shuddhodan and made
him promise to visit him again after attaining
enlightenment. Buddha kept his promise. Not only
did he visit Rajgriha soon after his enlightenment
but also ordained Bimbisara and his large retinue
to his newly established Buddhist fold. Bimbisara
dedicated his favourite Venuvana garden to Buddha
and his disciples after building a vihara [monastery]
there. This was the first Buddhist monastery.
Buddha spent many rainy seasons [chaturmasa] here
and visited this city for the last time just before his
Mahaparinirvana [ultimate liberation of soul] in
Kushinagar. A Pali text describes his happiness and
fascination with different sites of the city. These are
identified and are now pilgrimage sites and tourist
attractions. Buddha’s famous disciples, Sariputta
and Moggallana, belonged to this place. Soon after
his death, the first Buddhist Council [Sangiti] was
held here under the leadership of Mahakassapa to
codify his teachings.
Similarly, the city is also linked with Lord Mahavir,
the last (24th) and the most famous Jain Tirthankar
[enlightened immortal]. The Jain texts record that
he spent 14 chaturmasa [four months] here and had
many disciples which included King Ajatshatru. It is
one of the important pilgrim centres for Jainas. The
hills of the city are adorned with Jain temples and
many Jain legends are linked with it.
Modern Rajgir is now a famous tourist spot with
many popular ancient sites like Jarasandh’s akhara
[wrestling ground or gymnasium], Ajatshatru’s Fort,
the prison where Bimbisara was detained, Cyclopean
Walls, Sonbhanadar (gold treasury), Saptaparni
and Pippila caves, site of Venuvana Monastery,
Griddhakuta hill, hot springs etc. Among the recent
addition is the World Peace Stupa containing a large
statue of Buddha. It has been built by the Japanese
at an altitude of 400 meters and can be reached by
a ropeway. Numerous ruins and sites linked with
landmark historical events in India bear testimony
to its illustrious past.
(Kamal Sheel)
Bath at the hot spring of Rājagr̥ha, India. According
to legends, Buddha would bathe at the hot springs
near the south-west cliff of the Vaibhara Giri Hill. It
is said that there were 500 hot water springs here.
by an earthen embankment (the Inner Fortification)
which associated with the Outer Fortification, a
complex of cyclopean walls that runs (with large
breaks) along. New Rajgir is defined by the larger
stone embankment constructed outside the northern
entrance of the valley to the plain. These are dated
to the period of Bimbisara and Ajatshatru in the 6th5th centuries BCE. When the Chinese Buddhist monk
Faxian visited Rajgriha in the early 5th century CE, he
found the city largely shorn of its earlier splendour.
He however, noticed many monasteries and stupas.
This included one constructed by Ajatshatru over
his share of Buddha’s relics which were divided
into eight portions and distributed among claimant
neighbouring kingdoms; as well as a large stupa
with the elephant-capital on top of the pillar, later
built there by Emperor Asoka. During his visit to
the city in the middle of 7th century CE, Xuanzang
too notes the decline of the city but located various
sites connected with historical Buddha. The city,
according to literary evidences, survived until 12th
century CE. Lost for seven centuries with even its
exact location erased from historical memory, it
was later rediscovered by British archaeologists
during the colonial period following the Chinese
travellers’ records.
The city has been referred to in numerous Hindu,
Buddhist and Jaina texts. Its fame is linked to the
exploits of Mahabharat’s powerful legendary King
of Magadh, Jarasandh who had many battles with
Lord Krishna. Jarasandh, was finally killed in a duel
by Bheem, one of the famous Pandava brothers,
with the help of Krishna. The city’s linkages with
historical Buddha and Jain Thirthankar Mahavira
as well as with contemporary kings, Bimbisara
Griddhkuta Hill
Famous as a favourite rainy season retreat of Gautam
Buddha, Griddhkuta Hill (Vulture’s Peak) is one of
the five large hills that surround the ancient capital
of Magadh, Rajagriha or Giribraja (see the entry).
GriddhkutaIt was so named because it resembled
the beak of a vulture. In Pali texts, Attakatha, the
other four hills are known as Pandava, Vemar, Isigili
and Vupullu. The Jain text, Vividhatirthkalpa, refers
to Griddhkuta as Ratnagiri and other hills have
159
Cultural Contacts
so melancholic that he spent the whole night there
chanting Surangama sutra in a cavern there. He,
however, found the large brick prayer hall where
Buddha preached in ruins and identified the place
where Buddha’s protection saved Ananda from evil
designs of Mara and the cavern where Buddha and
Arhatas meditated.
Two centuries later, when Xuanzang was asked
by the king of Turfan reasons for his perilous
visit to India, he replied that it was "to kneel at
the Griddhkuta (Vulture’s Peak) to show respect
for Buddha and prostrate on the hill for receiving
Buddha’s blessings". In his description of the visit
to Griddhakuta, he notes the existence of stairways
that King Bimbisar had built to facilitate people
to go up to the top of the hill to listen to Buddha.
There were two small stupas on the way. The one
designated the spot after which the movement of
carriages of kings and members of royal family
was prohibited. The other indicated the place up
to which common people could go. On the western
slope of the hill, there was a large and tall prayer
hall where Buddha used to preach. Xuanzang found
there a large standing statue of Buddha in sermondelivery pose. He details all other places that were
linked with different events in Buddha’s life like the
place when the stone thrown by Devdutt fell, the
stone house/cave where he meditated, the spot of
his meditative perambulation/ stroll, the hole in
stone created by his extending hand from another
cave to protect Anand from Mara, the stone slab with
clear white and shining lines appearing on account
of Buddha drying his robe there, his footprints on
the stone, etc.
Presently, a World Peace Pagoda and Nipponzan
Myohoji Temple adorn the top of the hill which
could also be reached by a ropeway constructed by
the Japanese. This is now an important pilgrimage
site of the Buddhists.
(Kamal Sheel)
The memorial archway at Gr̥ddhakūṭa Hill, India
been mentioned as Vipulgiri, Udayagiri, Sonagiri
and Vaibhargiri. These hills had connections with
Gautam Buddha and Lord Mahavir. As such both
Buddhist and Jain texts had accorded it a sacred
status, declaring it an important pilgrimage centre
for their respective followers.
Pali texts link many of the significant events
of Buddha’s life to Griddhakuta Hill. He met and
ordained here the Magadh King Bimbisara and
his royal retinues. While living at this place, he
delivered many of his sutras during interactive
sessions with monks and disciples. This included
the famous Sadharmpundrika Sutra (Lotus Sutra) and
Mahaprajnaparmita (Perfection of Wisdom) Sutra.
It is said that Buddha’s cousin, Devdatt, made an
attempt on his life by throwing a large slab of stone
on him which injured his toes and fell here. When
Bimbisar was imprisoned by his son, Ajatsatru, on
a hillock, he wanted his prison to be so constructed
that he could see Buddha passing by in the morning
and evening. This was also the final resting place
for Buddha before he departed to Kusinara for his
Mahaparinirvana (total liberation).
The hill existed as a famous Buddhist pilgrim
place when Faxian (5th century) and Xuanzang (7th
century) visited the place. Both devoted specific
separate sections in their travelogue on their visit
to the hill. In a moving description, Faxian writes
about spending a night on the top of the hill. He
describes going up to this beautifully green and the
highest of the five surrounding hills with incense
sticks, flowers, oil and lamp along with two longtimer resident monks for making his offerings.
Looking at Buddha’s footprints and abode, he was
overfilled with emotion. He writes: “Here Buddha
delivered the Surangama (a Mahayana Buddhist
Sutra linked with Nalanda’s Buddhist school which
literally meant "indestructible"). I, Faxian, was born
when I could not meet with Buddha. And now, I
only see the footprints which he has left, and the
place where he lived and nothing more.” He became
Vaishali
Vaishali was among the largest and most flourishing
cities during the Buddhist era of ancient India.
Governed by the Khastriya Lichchavi clan under
the Vajjian confederacy, it was the capital of the
Lichchavi Republic which is historically considered
among the earliest democratic states of the world.
It was located on the banks of Gandak River and
was on the trade route connected in north with
Shravasti and Kapilavastu and in south with
Rajgriha. Like many other ancient cities of the
Buddhist era, it too was lost in oblivion. Its exact
location and identification owe much to travel
records of Faxian and Xuanzang. In 1861, following
their travel path mentioned in these records, famous
British archaeologist Alexander Cunningham
160
Cultural Contacts
he spent a chaturmaas (rainy season) in the city
and later came here several times. Many of his
Vinay Suttas were first enunciated here like Mahāli,
Mahāsíhanāda, Cúla Saccaka, Mahā Saccaka,
Tevijja, Vacchagotta and Sunakkhatta. These also
included the Ratan Sutta, mentioned by both Faxian
and Xuanzang with reference to Vaishali, which
he prescribed to people there to rid the city of all
misfortunes and evil. During his last visit to the city,
he confided to his disciple, Anand, of his impending
Mahaparinirban and made his last journey to
Kushinagar after leaving behind his alms bowl. The
city is also linked with Buddha’s ordaining of his
stepmother, Maprajapati Gotmi, and establishment
of sangha for the Buddhist nuns. In fact, many of
the organisational ideas of sangha were derived
from the governing practices of the city. The famous
city courtesan, Amrapali/ Ambapali became his
devotee here and donated her mango grove. After
the Mahaparinirvana of Buddha, Lichchavis built a
stupa over their share of his relics. Later, another
larger stupa with a pillar crowned by a beautiful
Asiatic lion was erected by Emperor Asoka. There is
also a stupa over the relics of his foremost disciple
Ananda. The second Buddhist Council was convened
here in 383 BCE by the King Kalashok to resolve
schism in the Buddhist order.
Vaishali’s linkages with Jainism were equally
intimate. Lord Mahavira, the last Tirthankar of the
Jains, was born in Kshatriyakund at the outskirts
of the city to King Siddhartha and Queen Trishila.
He lived there till the age of 22. After attaining
enlightenment, he returned here and spent 12 of
his 42 rainy seasons. Presently, the Government of
Bihar celebrates the birthday of Lord Mahavir on the
full moon day in Vaishakh (mid-April) as Vaishali
Mahotsava (Great Fair). The place has become
a famous tourist site. Besides ruins of various
monuments linked with Buddhism and Jainism,
there is a huge mound with a circumference about
1 km which is said to be the ancient parliament
house of Lichchavis as well as a coronation tank in
the sacred water of which an elected representative
was anointed before swearing-in. Among the
modern addition is the World Peace Stupa built by
Japanese Buddhists.
(Kamal Sheel)
located its ruins in Basarh village in the district of
Muzzaffarpur, Bihar. The old district has now been
carved to create the modern district of Vaishali with
its headquarters in Hajipur, about 50 km to the
north of Patna, the capital of modern Bihar.
The origin and early history of Vaishali is not
widely known. The city and the legends of its
origin are, however, mentioned in Hindu, Buddhist
and Jain texts. According to some Hindu texts, it
was founded by King Vishala and was, therefore,
named Vaishali. Tracing its history, Vishnu Purana
mentions its 34 kings starting with democratic
conscientious Nabhaga to Sumati who is considered
to be a contemporary of Ayodhya’s King Dashrath
(father of lord Rama). Pali texts note Vaishali
as a rich and flourishing city with numerous
buildings and ponds, with a large population.
Due to an expanding settlement, its boundaries
were extended three times. It, therefore, became
famous as Vaishali. Buddhaghosh too refers to this
explanation for the name of the city. Jatak stories
describe three large surrounding boundary walls of
the city adorned with towers. Jain texts mention
one of the walls covering the city of Vaishali
and two others protecting the suburban cities of
Vaniyagama and Kollaga. They describe it as a
beautiful garden city surrounded by forests or a
well-endowed heavenly city. The city thus appears
to be flourishing by 6th century BCE. Faxian in 3rd
century CE finds that many of the buildings still
exist. It had, however, declined to a great extent
by the time of Xuanzang’s visit (7th century CE)
who notes flourishing agricultural fields and fruit
gardens but only a few remains of its thousands
of old buildings and hundreds of monasteries, and
a greatly reduced population. Of all the sectarian
disciples, digambaras (Jaina) were most.
The name and fame of Vaishali owes to its Buddhist
and Jain connections. Prince Siddharth first came
here from Kapilavastu after renunciation in search
for enlightenment. Udraka Ramaputra and Alara
Kalama of Vaishali were his first spiritual masters.
Five years after the attainment of his Buddhahood,
Kushinagar
Among the four holiest pilgrimage sites highlighting
landmark events of Buddha’s life, Kushinagar is
linked with his last sermon and Mahaparinirvana
(complete extinction/ passing away). Located in
the eastern part of India’s Uttar Pradesh province
and bordering Nepal, it is about 52 km from
Gorakhpur. Presently a small town, it finds earliest
references in Ramayana as the city of King Kushha,
Asokan Stone Pillar at Vaiśali
161
Cultural Contacts
Drona intervened and divided his ashes into eight
equal parts and distributed it to representatives of
eight kingdoms for preserving as relics. The Mallas
erected a big stupa over his ashes at the cremation
place. Later, Emperor Ashoka renovated and
expanded the stupa. According to legends, he further
divided Buddha’s ashes and built more than 84,000
stupas over the relics.
Both Faxian and Xuanzang refer to their visit to
Kushinagar and describe various legends associated
with Mahaparinirvana of the Buddha. Faxian found
in existence various stupas and viharas though he
writes that, “In the city, the inhabitants are few and
far between comprising only the families belonging
to the (different) societies of monks.” By the time of
Xuanzang’s visit, Kushinagar had, however, become
a lonely and desolate place with many of its grand
structures in ruins. Based on their description in the
Chinese travelogues, these sites were rediscovered
during the British colonial period due to efforts of
explorers and archeologists like E. Buchanan, H H
Wilson, A C Cunningham, A C L Carlleyle and others.
After identification of the site by Cunningham,
Carlleyle in 1876 was successful in locating the
famous temple containing the large Buddha statue
in lying/ nirvana state that was referred to by
Xuanzang. After this discovery, Kushinagar began
to regain its fame as one of the four most important
Buddhist pilgrimage sites. Many sites connected
with the Mahaparinirvana of the Buddha have now
been found and excavated by archaeologists.
Modern Kushinagar consists of many Buddhist
temples and viharas of different Buddhist sects
from regions of China, Japan, Korea, Sri Lanka,
Myanmar, Thailand etc that surround the restored
ancient sites like Nirvana Stupa, Mahaparinirvana
Temple, Mathakuar Temple and Ramabhar Stupa.
The Archaeological Museum is noteworthy for its
valuable collection of different remains dating back
to the 3rd century BCE. It may be noted that the city
was found to have an association with Parinirvana/
passing way of Lord Mahavira, 24th Tirthankar of
the Jainas in the nearby Pawa (present-day Fazil
Nagar) which was the second capital of Mallas.
(Kamal Sheel)
Maha Nirvana Stupa and Mahaparinirvana Temple, Kuśinagar, India
the son of Ayodhya’s legendary king, Lord Rama.
During Buddha’s time, Kushinagar and Pava were
two important places located on the link traderoute passing through the Republic of Mallas and
connected with ancient highways. In Jatakas, this
city is known as Kushavati and elsewhere is also
called Kushinara and Kasia.
According to Buddhist texts, the Republic of Malla
was divided into two parts with one governed by the
Kusinerika Malla having its capital in Kushinagar,
and the other by Paveyakka Malla with capital
in Pava. River Kakutha was the boundary line
separating these two kingdoms. Gautam Buddha
loved his Malla admirers and the region. During
the course of his wanderings, he visited this area
several times. At the age of 80, when he decided
to take his last voyage from Rajgrha to Kushinagar,
his disciple, Anand, resisted saying that this was
a small uncivilised rural town. Buddha, however,
reminded Anand that this was, in fact, Kushavati, a
well-known, highly civilised and prosperous capital
of King Mahasuddassana and preached to him about
Mahasuddassana Sutta. It is said that Buddha mostly
stayed in Baliharan in Kushinagar. But during his
final visit, he chose Upvattan forest area covered
with sal trees as his last stop. Out of his three
discourses for the Bhikku, known as Kusinara Sutta,
two were delivered at Baliharan and the last one
was at Upvattan. Having falling ill after having
taken the meal served with sukaramaddava at the
house of his disciple, Cunda, in Pava, just before his
death, he invited the Bhikkus to satisfy their queries
if any. They all, however, remained silent. He then
finally left his body lying under two huge sal trees.
Buddha’s body was laid in state for seven days at a
coronation hall/ Chaitya of the Mallas and offerings
were made to him. The last rites, it is said, were
performed by Mahakashyap of the Mallas at Mukut
Bandhana, Ramabhar (in Kushinagar) on the banks
of Hiranyavati River. There were scrambles among
the kings to collect his ashes. Finally, a Brahmana
Mahabodhi Vihar
Mahabodhi Vihar refers to the main Buddhist temple
at Bodhgaya (Uruvela) at the spot where Gautam
Buddha attained enlightenment. The Vihar includes
the famous Bodhi tree (Ficus Religiosa or the peepal
Tree) and the Vajrasana (Diamond throne). The
original temple existed as tree shrine (bodhi-ghar)
with railings constructed by Emperor Ashoka in
3rd century BCE. Its earliest depiction is found on
reliefs at Bharahut (c. 80 BCE) and Sanchi (c. 25
BCE) stupas. This indicates its early recognition
162
Cultural Contacts
fruit). The main building consisted of three storeys
and the outer gates of the building had niche like
chambers in right and left sides. The left side had
a statue of Boddhisattava Avalokiteshwar and the
right had Bodhisattava Maitreya. Both the statues
were made of silver and were of 10 feet in height.”
He also notes existence of a small temple made by
Emperor Asoka and many other smaller temples and
stupas erected by his disciples. The temple housed
a seated Buddha, which according to legends is the
exact replica of the historical Buddha created by the
Maitreya Buddha himself. This became the model
of many later Buddhist images. According to an
inscription of 588-89 CE, this image was renovated
by a Sri Lankan devotee, Mahånåman.
The temple underwent further extension and
renovation during the Pala-Sena dynasty (10th12th century). Mahabodhi Vihar, which now exists,
is the renovated structure of the same building. Its
flourishing state and active status is also evidenced
by two Chinese Song dynasty inscriptions of the late
10th and early 11th centuries. Other contemporary
inscriptions note rulers of Sri Lanka, Nepal, Myanmar
and other Buddhist countries funding restoration
and development projects. The temple site had such
an appeal that its replicas were made in Myanmar,
Nepal, Thailand, China and Tibet which provide
beautiful models of this grand temple complex.
By the 12th century, with the rise of Indo-Turkic
Muslim rule and the decline of Buddhism in the
Indo-Gangetic area, the temple gradually decayed as
the protector-monks abandoned the place. Deserted
by the original Buddhist caretaker–monks, the place
was then annexed by a local Brahmin leader as his
private property. The ownership matter was finally
resolved through a long legal battle waged by famous
Sri Lankan monk, Anagarika Dharmapal, through
a 1949 special Bodhgaya Temle Management Act
that transferred it to a trust with equal number of
Buddhist and Hindu representatives under the local
district magistrate.
"Buried under accumulation of rubbish", the
temple was rediscovered during 1811-12 by Francis
Buchanan. It was later excavated by Major Mead
in 1863. The King of Myanmar also sent people
to clean the site. In 1878, Dr Brajendra Lal Mitra
published his work on the Temple of Bodhgaya.
In 1879, A Cunningham found the site was still
not satisfactorily excavated and restored. Finally
in 1881, British engineer J D Beglar was entrusted
with the task of the full restoration of the temple
and its site. The excavated temple was, however,
found in a very fragmentary condition. Beglar then
restored the temple mostly using its 12th century
stone model available in a museum in Kolkata.
Once restored, the temple complex again became
an active site of Buddhist pilgrimage with numerous
as one of the most significant Buddhist centres of
worship. So much so that until the popularity of
the name of this place as Bodhgaya in the 19th
century and after the disappearance of its original
name Uruvela due to disuse within two centuries of
Buddha’s enlightenment, it was known as Sambodhi,
Bodhimanda, Vajrasana and Mahabodhi. The most
long-lasting and popular name was, however,
Mahabodhi which was still being used when A
Cunningham visited the place in mid-19th century.
The Mahabodhi Vihar has gone through several
structural changes during its existence. The original
tree shrine was expanded into a two storeyed
structure enclosing the tree in Sunga period (2nd
-1st century BCE) with Vajrasana and the Bodhi tree
as main objects of veneration. The first mention of
the rising of a structural temple is found in Faxian’s
travelogue who visited the place in 5th century CE.
He notes a tall tower standing near the sacred tree
and Vajrasana. Depiction of tower–shrines on reliefs
of the Kushana period, link structural expansion
of the temple to 1st-3rd centuries CE. By the time
of Xuanzang’s visit (7th century CE), a large brick
temple of the late Gupta style had been erected
there. Xuanzang provides a detailed description of
the temple, stating – “The Vihar stood in the east of
Bodhi tree and was about 170 feet high. It was made
of blackish-blue fired bricks and covered with lime.
Golden figures of Buddha adorned all the niches
carved in each row. All the four sides of the wall
were full of heavily ornamented wonderful designwork depicting strings of pearl or figures of gods.
Surmounted on the spire of the Vihar was a gilded
bronze model representation of aamlak (mango
Mahābodhi Temple, Bihar, India
163
Cultural Contacts
place several times. It was also the birthplace of
Sariputra, one of the great disciples of Buddha.
According to Jain tradition, the historic discourse
between Lord Mahavira and Gosala took place at
Nālandā. Lama Taranath associates this place with
the Mauryan king Aśok (268-231 BCE) who built
a great Buddhist temple here and Nagarjuna (150
CE), the famous Mahayana philosopher.
Nālandā came into the limelight when the Gupta
King Kumargupta I, also known as Sakrāditya, (c.
415-455 CE) selected this place as an "auspicious
spot" for building a monastery. By the middle of
the 6th century CE, under the successive patronage
of different Gupta rulers, it developed into a
Mahāvihāra (large academic institution) with a
huge campus. The majesty and grandeur of the
campus, particularly its tall and stately towers
soaring above the encompassing wall, caught and
ravished the eyes of all who saw it. Benefactions
of Harshavardhana, the ruler of Kanauj (606-646
CE) and the Pāla rulers, Dharmapala (783-820 CE)
and Devapala, (c. 810-850 CE) further sustained
the activities of Mahāvihāra till the end of the 12th
century CE.
Throughout its existence of about seven centuries,
Mahāvihāra played a key role in promoting SinoIndian cultural relations. It was host to hundreds of
scholar-monks not only from China but also from
other parts of Central and Southeast Asia as well
as from Japan and Korea. Detailed accounts of its
superior academic environment by Faxian, Xuanzang
and Yijing indicate its global reach. Following either
the land route via Khotan in Central Asia or Tibet
and Nepal or by the sea-route via Tamralipti to India,
these monk-scholars aimed to earn spiritual merit by
pilgrimage to study Buddhism in its homeland and
collect authentic Buddhist texts. The most prominent
among them was Xuanzang who visited India from
630 to 642 CE and stayed in Nālandā for about
four to five years. He specialised in the Yogacara
School of Buddhism under the abled-guidance of
the chief abbot-rector, Íilabhadra. In 645 CE, he
returned to China carrying back some images of
Buddha and several hundred copied texts and notes.
His travelogue, Xiyuji and biography, Fa-shi-chuan,
inspired many new works on India and created an
unprecedented interest in Indian culture in China.
Another notable visitor to Nālandā was Yijing who
spent about 10 years in Nālandā. On his return home,
he translated no less than 56 works in 230 volumes
and introduced into China practically the whole texts
of Vinaya belonging to the Mulasarvāstivadin School.
The Chinese texts have also preserved biographies of
67 Chinese pilgrims who had been to India during
the second half of the 7th century CE. Among them
are found some Koreans and Central Asian monks
who were educated in China and went to Nālandā
buildings, stupa and parks built by devotees from
various Buddhist countries. In 2002, the temple
complex was declared as a UNESCO World Heritage
Site on account of it being one of the few examples
of the earliest classical-styled, brick structured,
large temples in India as well as its connection
with Buddha and his times. The preserved temple
complex now consists of monuments linked with the
first seven weeks of his enlightenment ie, the giant
Bodhi Tree [religiosa ficus], Vajrasana [Diamond
Throne], Animeshlochan Chaitya [prayer hall], the
Ratnachakrama [Jewelled Ambulator], Ratnaghar
Chaitya [Jewelled Temple], a pillar marking the
site of the Ajapala Nigrodh Tree, the Lotus Pond,
and the Rajyatana Tree. Most recently in 2013, the
vault of the temple was covered with 290 kg of gold
donated by the Thai Buddhist disciples.
(Kamal Sheel)
Nalanda
Located near Patna and Gaya in Bihar, Nālandā
rose to be the most famous seat of education and
learning in India after the destruction of Taxilā
by the Huńas in the 5th century CE. The name
Nālandā was perhaps derived from the word, Nālā
meaning "lotus stalks". Situated near the ancient
cities of Pātalipūtra (now Patna) and Bodhgaya
(now Gaya) and within easy reach of trade
routes between upper India and Magadha and
the Gangetic riverine traffic, Nālandā, according
to legend, was "influential, prosperous and full
of folk". Lord Buddha is said to have visited this
An image of Xuanzang preserved in the
Tokyo National Museum
164
Cultural Contacts
kingdoms of Southeast and East Asia.
In 12th century CE, Nālandā succumbed to the
onslaught of Muslim invaders. Tibetan sources
indicate several raids by the Turks. In about 1205
CE, the Mahavihara was destroyed and burnt by
Bakhtiyar Khilji. Subsequent raids totally destroyed
it by 1400 CE. It was during the British period that
the massive remains of Nalanda were unearthed by
archaeologists. With the Buddhist revival in India,
a new Mahavihara (Nalanda Nava Mahavihara)
was established in 1951 due to the efforts of
Ven. Bhikku Jagadish Kashyap. He also brought
a portion of Xuanzang’s remains from China to
enshrine here. Now with promises of financial help
from the governments of China, India and many
other countries, a massive Nalanda University is
gradually coming up there. Nalanda is thus once
again on the path to revival.
(RK Sinha & Kamal Sheel)
Ruins of Nalandā, Bihar, India
from China. The first noted scholar of Nālandā
to go to China in the Tang period in 627 CE was
Prabhakaramitra on the invitation of the Prince
of Gaoping. Later, Subhākarasinha (716 CE) and
Buddhakirti (989 CE) also went to China.
The Chinese accounts tell us that Nalanda
accommodated about 1,500 teachers and 10,000
resident monk scholars during its heyday. The
process of admission to the Mahāvihāra was
elaborate and tough with only one or two out of 10
getting admitted. Once admitted, monks and scholars
studied works related to Mahāyāna, Hīnayāna (18
sects), the Vedas and the five traditional areas of
knowledge (pancvidyå), namely Hetuvada (logic),
Śabdavidya (grammar and philosophy), Cikitsāvidya
(medicine), Silpakarmavidya (fine arts) and
Adhyātmavidya (metaphysics).
Buddhism entered a new phase during the Pāla
period (750-1175 CE) and came to be dominated
by Tantrik Buddhism. Tantric texts were
introduced in China as early as the 8th century
CE by Vajrabodhi (719 CE) who presented a
copy of Mahāprajňapārimitā Sutra to the Chinese
Emperor and Amoghavajra (724 CE). But it was
Tibet which emerged as the main centre of Tantric
Buddhism. Sino-Indian cultural relations continued
thereafter. During the Song period (960-1127 CE),
two Nālandā scholars, Dharmadeva (973 CE) and
Buddhakirti (989 CE), visited China. This was
also probably due to the efforts of Pāla rulers to
protect their commercial interests in the Buddhist
Vikramasila Mahavihara
Founded by King Dharmapala (783-820 CE) and
located near Bhagalpur in Bihar, Vikramaśīlā
Mahāvihāra [university-monastery] was an
important centre of education and learning in
eastern India for more than four centuries of the
Pāla rule (750-1175 CE). In Tibetan accounts,
which are the main sources of information,
Vikramaśīlā Mahāvihāra holds the same position of
pre-eminence as is accorded in Chinese accounts
to Nālandā. The Pāla patronage of the Buddhist
mahāvihāras was a step towards reorganisation of
Buddhist education in the emerging socio-economic
conditions, with the specific purpose of reviving
Buddhism in India and protecting their commercial
interests in the Buddhist kingdoms of South East,
North and North East Asia.
Scholars differ when it comes to the meaning of
Vikramaśilā. Some argue that the name originated
from its location on the bluff rock hill, denoted
in Sanskrit as Śilā. Others emphasise that the
name Vikramaśīlā conveys the sense of a strong
moral conduct signified by the Sanskrit term, Śīla.
The word Vikrama, in Indian tradition signifies
strong or powerful attributes. The location and
identification of the mahāvihāra defied a final
answer until archaeologists from Patna University
exposed a considerable monastic settlement at
village Antichak, about 47 km East of Bhagalpur
district in Bihar, during the period 1960-1969. The
location of the exposed settlement on a broad and
steep hill, south of the Ganges river, was similar to
that described in the Tibetan accounts and so the
remains were finally accepted to be those of the
Vikramaśilā Mahāvihāra.
The exposed monastic settlement is a quadrangle
with a double terraced central caityā in a cruciform
Xuanzang Memorial Hall in Nalanda
165
Cultural Contacts
that certain features of tāntrism had their sources in
the trans-Himalayan region, particularly in NorthEastern India or on its borders. By 7th century CE,
we have definite evidence of an active land route
connecting Assam in Eastern India with South West
China through the Patkai Hills and upper Myanmar.
A reflection of this close connection could be easily
found in the race for supremacy in Tibet among
the followers of Cĥan meditational school of China
and Indian Buddhism, dominated by miracles and
magic during the rule of Dharmarāja khri-srongIde-btsan (755-797 CE). The race ended with the
declaration of the Indian School of Buddhism as
the state religion of Tibet by the Dharmarāja. This
declaration marked a significant turning point in
the dynamics of future cultural exchange between
India, Tibet and China. Vikramaśilā Mahāvihāra
thus became the central place of India’s relationship
with Tibet. It also became the centre for translating
Buddhist texts into Tibetan. Many Buddhist scholar
monks from Vikramaśīlā – namely – Sarvajňādeva
Jīnamitra, Dānaśīla, Dharmakāra, Tilopā, Nāropā
and Atiśa went to Tibet. Among them Atiśa,
also known as Dīpańkara Śrijňāna, was the most
prominent. During his stay in Tibet from 1041-1054
CE, he reformed Tibetan Buddhism and composed
the famous texts Bodhi-patha-pradipa and EkaviraSādhana-nāmā. The most popular face of his reform
was the worship of Goddess Tārā.
The galaxy of acāryās associated with the
mahāvihāra made the institution the last beacon
of Buddhist philosophy marked by strong Tantric
characteristics. The Siddhas [enlightened one],
namely Saraha-pā, Naro-pā and Santi-pā were
associated with the mahāvihāra. Both the acāryās
and the siddhās contributed immensely towards
fostering the basic belief in tantric Buddhism that
the Universe is identical with Buddha and that all
its dimensions and qualities consist of Buddha.
Their works and efforts acted as a fulcrum between
Vajrayāņa and Sahajayāna and laid the basis for the
establishment of Lamaism in Tibet.
Hindu-Buddhist rivalry for acquiring space in
the emerging religious thought streams gradually
affected the activities of the mahāvihāra which was
finally destroyed by ruthless Turkish onslaughts by
early 13th century CE.
(R K Sinha & Kamal Sheel)
Painting depicting Venerable Atiśa preaching dharma, Tibet
shape, having four shrine chambers with pavilions.
The central caityā, rising to a height of 16.25
metre, could be reached through a pathway.
Tibetan accounts mention about six entrance
gates manned by eminent scholars who screened
admission to the mahāvihāra. Thus, we have the
names of Ratnākaraśānti (East Gate), Vagīśvarakīrti
(West Gate), Naropa (North Gate), Prajňākaramati
(South Gate), Ratnavajra (First Central Gate) and
Jnānaśrīmitra (Second Gate). The exposed monastic
complex includes 208 cells with a verandah.
The outer wall has 20 projected circular cells
and 20 rectangular cells. A unique feature is the
underground cells which may have been used by
monks for meditation. Remains of a huge library
building with a manuscript section have also been
excavated. According to Lama Taranath, during
the period of King Rampala (1076-1132 CE), when
Abhyākara Guptā was its head, there were 108
professors and 1,000 inmate student monks. The
number of monk scholars in the 12th century has
been estimated to have been around 3,000. No
definite evidence of land grants to the mahāvihāra
exists. It appears to have met its expenditure though
the state’s assignment of the revenue collected from
surrounding villages. Although only one mound out
of the nine has been excavated, the establishment is
shorn of urban relics which characterised the earlier
mahāvihāras like Nālandā.
Under the patronage of the Pāla rulers, Vikramaśilā
Mahāvihāra rose as the major centre for studies on
Tantric Buddhism and its offshoots – Vajrayāņa and
Sahajayāna. Tantric Buddhism originated in India in
between the 3rd and 5th centuries CE but it flourished
largely in Tibet, China and Central Asian countries.
In Tibet, it was introduced by Indian scholar-monks
like Śāntarakşita (700-770 CE), Padmasambhava
(720-800 CE) and Kamalśila (720-790 CE). The close
connection between Eastern India, Nepal, Tibet and
China during this period has led scholars to believe
Monasteries
Mount Wutai
Mount Wutai, also known as the Mount Qingliang,
is one of the four Buddhist holy mountains, which
is located on Northeastern Wutai County, Xinzhou,
Shanxi province.
166
Cultural Contacts
east, there is a Bodhisattva dwelling named as the
Mount Qingliang. In the past, Bodhisattvas always
chose this place to live and Manjusri was just one
of them who had 10,000 retinues. This also has
nothing to do with Mount Wutai. Therefore, Mount
Wutai is not famous during the eastern and western
Jin Dynasty and Northern and Southern dynasties.
In the 7th century, due to the decay of Buddhism
in India and prosperity in China and also due to
China’s geological position which is in the north
east of India and Mount Wutai’s climatic features
of being icy cold in winter and snowing in summer,
the Mount Wutai was called as Mount Qingliang so
that Dharani Sutra says: Buddha told Vajra Secret
–Traces Spirits that after he passed away, there was
a country named Dazhendan in the northeastern
Jambu-dvipa. A mountain named Wuding was
just located there which was also the dwelling of
Manjusri and a place for him to disseminate the
dharma”.
During Northern Wei and Northern Qi Dynasty,
Mount Wutai was gaining attention from the emperor.
In Sui Dynasty, Yang Jian, the Emperor Wen of Sui
(581-604) once ordered to establish a temple in each
plateau of the Mount Wutai to enshrine and worship
Manjusri but none of them is reserve up to now.
Present-day Wanghai Temple in the east plateau,
Falei Temple in the west plateau, Puji Temple in the
south plateau, Lingying Temple in the north plateau
and Yanjiao Temple in the middle plateau were
all established after the Tang Dynasty and it was
just in this Dynasty that Mount Wutai was ushered
into its prime, especially after Buddhist tantra
was formed in China and Manjusri, as the God of
tantra, was specially worshipped and respected. Not
merely did the Chinese Buddhism circle think of the
Mount Wutai as the ashram of Manjusri, but foreign
Buddhists also had such kind of thoughts and paid
a visit to this place. Through incessant exploration
and expansion of later generations, especially after
Tibetan Buddhism made this place a Buddhist holy
land, Mount Wutai became even more famous with
a large number of grand Buddhist events launched
Buddhist Temple at Wutai Mountain, Shanxi, China
Definition
Mount Wutai can be explained in the broad and
narrow sense. From the perspective of the narrow
sense, Mount Wutai just means five plateaus ie east
plateau, west plateau, south plateau, north plateau
and middle plateau, each of which is flat on the top
thus being literally named as Mount Wutai (the Five
Plateau Mountain in Chinese). In terms of broad
sense, Mount Wutai includes the five plateaus as well
as the areas around them and the central zone is the
Taihuai town which is encircled by five plateaus.
The east plateau, also referred to as Wanghai Peak
(sea viewing in Chinese) measuring 2,795 m above
sea level, is a good place to view the sea in Autumn
when the weather is fine. This is also why people
give it this name. The south plateau is 2,458 m
above sea level and during summer, there are lots
of wild flowers and fine grass everywhere at the top
just like its another name the Jinxiu Peak (prosperity
and luxury in Chinese); the west plateau, which is
2,773 m above sea level, is called as Guayue Peak
(which means moon hanging above the mountain in
Chinese) because when the moon comes out in the
west, it’s just like a bright mirror hanging above the
top of the peak; the north plateau, 3,061 m above
sea level, is also named as Yedou Peak (since it rises
directly into the sky as if it were able to touch the
stars); the middle plateau which measures 2,894 m
above sea level features huge rocks and green grass
and tresses and therefore, is called as Cuiyan Peak
(the prosperity of green plants in Chinese).
History
According to legend, Indian eminent monks
Kāśyapamātanga and Dharmaratna who are among
the first group of Indian monks coming to China,
once arrived at the Mount Wutai and believed it as
the residence of Manjusri and therefore, suggested
Emperor Ming of Han to build a temple here. There
are three kinds of views about the connection
between Manjusri and Wutai Mountain. The first
one is that Manjusri lived in Himalayas but later,
the snow-capped mountain was changed into the
Mount Qingliang just like what the Avatamsaka
Sutra · Bodhisattva Dwellings says: In the north-
Xiantong Temple at Wutai Mountain, Shanxi, China
167
Cultural Contacts
survived and eventually accompanied him to Mount
Qingliang. Three of his disciples returned and the rest
all died. Sudhaśrī passed away in the Lingjiu Peak,
east plateau and his sarira was taken back to India
by his disciples. Master Sahajasri, another Indian
monk who arrived at the Mount Wutai in 1369 to pay
respect to this world renowned Buddhism holy land.
Later, he went to Nanjing to do missionary work and
returned to Mount Wutai again before death. Sha-kya
ye-shes, an Indian monk, descendant of Sakyamuni,
paid a pilgrimage visit to Manjusri at Mount Wutai in
1414. He lived in Xiantong Temple and returned to
his own country in 1431. There were also thousands
of unknown pilgrims who once visited the Mountain.
Main hall of the Nan Chan Temple, Wutai Mountain, Shanxi, China
here. Gradually, this mountain, along with the areas
around it, developed into the greatest centre of
Buddhist culture in Northern China. Today, it has
a total of 95 temples in various sizes, recognised as
the biggest Buddhism temple complex in China and
listed into the Directory of World Cultural Heritage
by the United Nations Educational Scientific and
Cultural Organisation in 2009.
Mount Wutai is not only a place collecting the
essence of Buddhism culture but a historical witness
of culture exchange between China and India. There
are a large number of names of places which have
a close link with the Buddhist holy lands of India
and Buddhism celebrities such as Griddhraj Parvat,
Narayana, Guanyinping, Samantabhadra Pagoda,
Rahu Temple, Luohantai, Jingangku, Dishigong etc.
After Tang Dynasty, Mount Wutai cultivated a large
group of eminent monks thus making a significant
contribution to the prosperity of Buddhism culture
in China. In addition, some Indian monks also came
to this place to worship Manjusri, disseminate the
dharma and translate Buddhism scriptures such as
Buddhapala from Kawmira (present-day Kashmir)
on northern India who, after hearing of Manjusri
living in Mount Wutai, crossed the desert, travelled
thousands of miles and eventually arrived at Mount
Wutai in 676 CE, it is said that he came to Mount
Wutai with a tin staff (Khakkhara) in his hand,
worshipping and weeping piously. Later, he came to
Changan (present-day Xi’an) to translate Buddhism
scriptures and it is said that he lived in seclusion
at Jingangku of Mount Wutai in his later years.
Amoghavajra, an Esoteric Buddhism monk in Tang
Dynasty who came from north India, was praised
highly by the emperor since he admired Manjusri
very much and then sent to Mount Wutai in the
summer of 770 CE to preside over a dharma event
and perform meritorious works for the emperor for
three months. During the Southern Song Dynasty,
Sudhaśrī, a monk of the Nalanda Monastery, highly
admired the Avatamsaka Sutra and Mount Qingliang
and he, at the age of 85, led seven of his disciples
to come to China by sea. During a journey full of
hardships and dangers, only one of his disciples
Major Temples
Currently, there are six State Protected Historic
Sites and 15 Shanxi Province Protected Historical
Sites at Mount Wutai.
Xiantong Temple
According to legend, during Yongping Period of the
Later Han Dynasty (58-75 CE), Dafulingjiu Temple,
one of the earliest temples in China was built at
Mount Wutai whose name can be originated from
the Griddhraj Parvat of India since the west of the
mountain was just like the Griddhraj Parvat. It is
located in north of Taihuai town ie the original
foundation of present-day Xiantong Temple. In the
Yuanhong period of Emperor Xiaowen of Northern
Wei (471-499 CE), the Dafulingjiu Temple was
expanded and renamed as the Garden Temple. Later,
Emperor Taizong of Tang (627-649 CE) rebuilt the
Xiantong Temple. During the period of Empress Wu
Zetian (684-704), the Garden Temple was expanded
and as a result of the newly translated Avatamsaka
Sutra in which Mount Wutai was mentioned, the
temple was renamed as Avatamsaka Temple. From
then on all the way to the Hongwu Period of the Ming
Dynasty (1368-1398 CE), a large-scaled overhaul
was conducted and the temple was renamed as
Xiantong Temple. As the time rolled into the Qing
Dynasty, the temple was repaired several times and
gradually formed into the size we see today. It totals
more than 400 rooms and occupies an area of more
than 80,000 sq m thus well-known as the biggest
temple at Mount Wutai.
Foguang Temple
Foguang Temple is located at Mount Foguang, 25
km away from the north east of Wutai County. It was
originally built in the Yuanhong period of Emperor
Xiaowen of Northern Wei and then became very
famous. In the temple, a hexagonal pagoda named
as Zushi Pagoda (Master Founding Pagoda) is a relic
of the Northern Wei Dynasty. The Maitreya Pavilion,
rebuilt in the Tang Dynasty, seems huge, majestic
168
Cultural Contacts
original establishment is unclear. The temple is
rebuilt on the Jianzhong, third year of Emperor
Dezong of Tang (782 CE) and the Great Buddha’s
Hall (Mahavira Hall) built at that time has
successfully survived from numerous natural and
manmade disasters and has been preserved up to
now as the only one wood structure architecture
established during the Tang Dynasty, we can see
today. The statue of Sakyamuni, the founder of
Buddhism, along with the colourful statues of its
disciples, Bodhisattvas and heavenly king are all the
relics of the Tang Dynasty, a perfect embodiment of
sculpture style of that time.
(Xue Keqiao)
and impressive. It was damaged in a fire during the
Huichang fifth year (845 CE), and rebuilt until the
Dazhong 11th year (875 CE). Now, the temple still
treasures some precious cultural relics and artworks
such as frescos, statues and stone Dhanari column of
Tang. What’s more, the Manjusri Hall built during
the Jin Dynasty is maintained and treasures six
statues including Manjusri’s statue which can be
dated back to the Jin Dynasty.
Rahu Temple
Rahu Temple is located on the east of the Xiantong
Temple in Taihuai town which is named after Rahula,
son of Sakyamuni. Manjusri is enshrined here. It
was originally built during the Tang Dynasty and
then became the monastery of Tibetan Buddhism.
During the first stage of the Qing Dynasty, several
emperors once paid a pilgrimage visit to the temple
and granted funds to repair and expand the temple
so its scale was increasing gradually. Now there are
more than 500 halls and monk room. It was said that
Rahula looked up to Manjusri so he celebrated the
birthday of Manjusri on June 14 in lunar calendar
every year. Up to now, lamas in the temple also
follow this custom. They dance in strange clothes
and masks on this day.
Mount Putuo
Mount Putuo is among the four Buddhist holy
mountains in China, located in the sea, east of
Zhejiang province, which is one of the islands of
the Zhoushan Islands measuring 12.7 sq km. It is
governed by the Putuo County and widely known
as the generic terms of Buddhism architectural
complex in the island built to worship and enshrine
the Goddess of Mercy.
Historical Background
Mount Putuo has a close link with the belief in
Avalokitesvara (Guanyin). In a Buddhism scripture,
The Sutra on the Completion of Brightness, translated
by Zhiyao, a foreign eminent monk in the Later
Han Dynasty, the name of Guanyin was mentioned.
The book was translated in the Zhongping second
year of Emperor Ling of Han (185 CE). After that,
in Infinite Life Sutra translated by Kang Sengkai
in 252 CE, Guanyin was the retinue of Amitabha.
In 406 CE, Kumarajiva successfully translated
Saddharmapundarika Sutra in which, not merely
did Guanyin have magic power but was able to
change into 33 different shapes and save ordinary
people out of disasters and suffering with different
Jinge Temple
Jinge Temple is situated on the Northwest of
the south plateau, 15 km far away from Taihuai
town. It was built in the Dali fifth year of the
Emperor Daizong of Tang (770 CE). At that time,
Amoghavajra, an eminent monk from India, was
ordered by the emperor to make merit and build
the temple at Mount Wutai. It was named as Jinge
Temple (Golden Pavillion in Chinese) because its
tiles were made out of copper and painted with gold.
Avalokitesvara, the Goddess of Mercy, is enshrined
as the main Buddha. In the temple, there are more
than 2,000 statues of a variety of Buddhism figures.
Shuxiang Temple
Shuxiang Temple is built to pay respect to Manjusri.
There is a huge Manjusri statue in it which is why the
temple was named Shuxiang Temple. It was located
in the southwest of Yanglin Street, Taihuai town. It
was built during the Tang Dynasty and rebuilt in the
Yanyou period of Yuan Dynasty (1314-1320). Later,
it was completely damaged in the fire. In Chenghua
23rd year of Ming Dynasty (1487), the temple was
built again and in the Hongzhi ninth year (1496), a
gigantic statue of Manjusri riding on a lion, which is
nine metre high, was erected in the temple.
Nanzen-ji Temple
Nanzen-ji Temple is situated on the west of Lijia
town, southwest of Wutai County. The time of its
Fayu Temple, Mount Putuo, Zhejiang, China
169
Cultural Contacts
Mount Putuo was appointed as the ashram of
Guanyin to mainly pay homage to Avalokitesvara
(Guanyin). According to the records of Buddhist
scriptures, the island was also widely thought of as
similar as Potalaka (Putuo in short), the residence
of Avalokitesvara in south India. Then Potalaka
was divided into two parts: Mount Pota and Mount
Laka. Mount Laka is also on this island.
identities. From then on, the influence of Guanyin
was drastically enhanced. Around 420 CE, the
earliest clay sculptures of Guanyin were built in
the 169 caves in the Bingling Temple of Gangsu
province. In the meantime, people along the regions
south of the Yangtze River also began to establish its
statues which showed the Chinese people had begun
to worship Guanyin. Among the mythical stories
created during the Northern and Southern Dynasties,
there were some stories about Guanyin helping
people in distress. In 663 CE, Master Heun Sang
finished the translation of Mahā-prajñāpāramitāsūtra which further propelled the Chinese people’s
belief in Guanyin. Since the mid-6th century CE,
under the influence of Esoteric Buddhism, the
images and statues of Guanyin with multiple arms
and heads showed up. During this period, Yaogupta
translated the 11th-side Avalokitesvara Mantra Sutra
and Avalokiteshvara Amoghapasha Mantra. Later,
from the Tang Dynasty to Song Dynasty, a large
number of similar Buddhism classics were translated
by Master Xuanzang, Vajrabodhi, Amoghavajra,
Bodhiruci, Fatian, Tianximie and Dharmabhadra
thus ushering the Chinese Esoteric Buddhism into
its prime and endowing the image of Guanyin with
so many changes.
Status quo
Mount Putuo owned more than 200 temples,
Buddhist
nunneries
and
thatched
tents
accommodating more than 4,000 monks during
the era of Republic of China. Later due to major
historical changes, there are now just more than
20 temples and Buddhist nunneries with more
than 20 sight spots. Puji Temple, Fayu Temple
and Huiji Temple are the three greatest temples
on Mount Putuo. Puji Temple is located south of
Baihuangding, Mount Putuo. Originally built in the
Yuanfeng third year of the Northern Song Dynasty
(1080) and expanded in the Wanli 33rd year of the
Ming Dynasty (1605), Puji Temple was destroyed
by the armed forces of Netherlands on the fourth
year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty
(1665) and was rebuilt on the 38th year of the reign
of Kangxi (1699). At present, there are more than
200 palace halls and rooms covering an area of
11,400 sq m. The main palace hall was rebuilt on
the ninth year of the reign of emperor Yongzheng
(1731) and could accommodate more than 1,000
people for religious services. The sitting statue
of Avaloktesvara and statue of Thousand-Hand
Guan-yin are both modern works. Fayu Temple
is located east of Baihuangding at the foot of the
Guangxi Peak. It was built in the eighth year of the
reign of Emperor Wanli, Ming Dynasty (1580) and
originally named as Haichao Nunnery and later
renamed Huguo Zhenhai Temple. The temple was
once damaged by fire but in the 28th year of the
reign of Emperor Kangxi, Qing Dynasty (1689), it
was rebuilt and renamed Fayu Temple on the 38th
year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi, with an area
of about 8,800 sq m. In the Hall of Avalokitesvara
Buddhisatva, a huge statue of Avalokitesvara was
consecrated with the statues of 18 Arhats on both
sides. Huiji Temple is located at the top of Mount
Putuo. At first, there was just a stone pavillion with a
Buddhist statue for people to worship on its original
location but later it was built into Huiji Nunnery.
In the 58th year of the reign of Emperor Qianlong,
Qing Dynasty (1793), the Nunnery was rebuilt and
expanded into Huiji Temple. As they rolled into the
33rd year of the reign of Emperor Guangxu, Qing
Dynasty (1907), another large-scaled expansion for
the temple was completed.
(Xue Keqiao)
Development
According to records, during the Dazhong period
of the Tang Dynasty (847-860 CE), an Indian
monk came to an overseas island around Zhejiang
province, who burnt his 10 figures to express his
strong desire to see Avalokitesvara (Guanyin) and
Guanyin eventually showed up. And therefore, this
island was closely connected with Guanyin. In 858
CE, Huie, a Japanese monk got a Guanyin statue
from Mount Wutai. On its way home, he stopped
on the island to rest. However, he encountered a
huge storm so he had to live on this island and
later built the Not-willing-leave Guanyin Temple.
From then on, the belief of Guanyin began to
become very popular on the island. In the Jiading
seventh year of the Southern Song Dynasty (1214),
Memorial Archway at Mount Putuo, Zhejiang, China
17 0
Cultural Contacts
Mount E'mei
Mount E'mei is among one of the four holiest
Buddhist mountains in China. It is located in
E'mei, Leshan City of Sichuan province. According
to legend, the mountain was the ashram for
Samantabhadra to make its presence and power
felt and disseminate dharma.
Introduction
Today, the scenic region of the Mount E'mei covers
154 sq km, including four great mountains, ie DaE, Er-E, San-E and Si-E. Mount E'mei, generally
speaking, refers to Mount Da-E, also known as the
main peak of Mount E'mei. The top of the peak is
called Wanfo Peak (Thousands of Buddha Peak
in Chinese) which is 3,099 m above sea level and
wriggles more than 50 km from the top to bottom. As
of now, there are about 26 temples in the mountain
which mainly include Baoguo Temple, Fuhu Temple,
Qingyin Pavilion, Wannian Temple, Xianfeng
Temple, Huazang Temple etc. accommodating
around 300 monks and nuns. In 1982, Mount E'mei
was approved by the State Council to be in the first
category of national scenic areas. In 1996, it was
listed by the United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organization into the World Heritage
List. In 2007, Mount E'mei was officially approved
by the National Tourism Administration to be a five
star A Tourist Scenic Area.
The main hall of the Huazang Temple on Mount E'mei, Sichuan, China
enough. Originally, Daoism was very popular here
and during the period of Eastern Jin Dynasty, there
were Daoists who came to Mount E'mei to practice
Daoism. In Tang and Song Dynasty, Daoism and
Buddhism began to co-exist in the mountain and
from then on, Buddhism began to prevail over
Daoism and became well-accepted. During Ming
Dynasty, Buddhism was ever-popular and Daoism
became gradually weaker and weaker and at this
period, the number of Buddhists on Mount E'mei
became more than 1,700 persons with nearly 100
temples of different sizes scattered all over from top
to bottom. By the end of Qing Dynasty, the number
of temples had increased to more than 150.
The history of Mount E'mei as the ashram of
Samantabhadra can be traced back to the Eastern
Jin Dynasty. According to legend, Puxian Temple
was already built at that time which was the
predecessor of present-day Wannian Temple. The
temple was renamed Baishui Temple during Tang
Dynasty. People during the period of Northern Song
Dynasty had already enacted a huge copper statue
of Samantabhadra in Mount E'mei and this was the
reason for renaming the Baishui Temple as Baishui
Samantabhadra Temple and from then on, the belief
in Samantabhadra dramatically enhanced.
History
According to legend, Buddhism was introduced
into Mount E'mei during 1st century CE and at the
end of Han Dynasty, the Buddhists began to build
temples here. But this does not appear to be reliable
Major Temples
Baoguo Temple, sitting at the foot of Mount E'mei
was originally named Huizong Temple. It was
built during the reign of Emperor Wanli, Ming
Dynasty (1573-1620 CE), and rebuilt during
the reign of Emperor Kangxi (1662-1722 CE).
It treasures a huge number of cultural relics, the
most important of which include (1) the 14-floor
red copper Avatamsaka Sutra pagoda is 7 m high,
made in Ming Dynasty and carved with 4,700 small
Buddhism statues and entire Avatamsaka Sutra (2)
the Buddha statue was made out of colour ceramic
glaze and was built in the 13th year of the reign
of Emperor Yongle, Ming Dynasty (1415) which
is 2.47 m high with glittering and translucent
colour. The Wannian Temple, originally named
Puxian Temple, was built during the Eastern Jin
Dynasty (4th century CE). It was renamed as
The hilltop of Mount E'mei, Sichuan, China
171
Cultural Contacts
to learn Buddha Dharma during Kaiyuan period
of Tang (713-741 CE) and lived in Mount Jiuhua
to practice Buddhism. Some local rich men built
temple for him. In the Zhide second year of Tang
Dynasty (757 CE), the temple was completed. From
then on, Kim Gyo-gak began to accept disciples to
promote Buddhism and gradually became more and
more famous. He even attracted many monks from
Silla to learn Buddhism from him. He lived at Mount
Jiuhua for more than 10 years and passed away in
the Zhenguan 10th year of the Tang Dynasty (794
CE) at the age of 99. His body still seemed alive
even after three years. People, in accordance with
so many magic events that took place before and
after his death, believed he was the reincarnation of
Ksitigarbha and with reverence called him golden
Ksitigarbha. Therefore, Mount Jiuhua became the
ashram of Ksitigarbha. Later, with some major
changes in the Tang, Song and Yuan Dynasties,
Mount Jiuhua Buddhism was greatly developed
until the early Ming Dynasty and reached its peak
in the Qing Dynasty. At that time, there were
around 300 temples accommodating more than
4,000 monks in the mountain. Since 1978, a grand
Ksitigarbha Dharma assembly would be held by
the Mount Jiuhua Buddhist Association each year
to pray for world peace. In 2013, the consecration
ceremony for the 99 m high outdoor bronze statue
of Ksitigarbha was grandly launched at the Dayuan
Cultural Park of Mount Jiuhua. The statue was made
of more than 3,000 bronze plates which consumed
over 1,100 tonnes of bronze with three elevators
inside it to carry visitors to the top.
Baishui Temple in the Tang Dynasty and as Baishui
Samantabhadra Temple in the Northern Song
Dynasty. During the period of the reign of emperor
Wanli, Ming Dynasty, a palace hall made out of
bricks was built there so emperor Wanli named
it as Shengshou Wannian Temple and the name
of Wannian Temple still exists. The brick palace
hall was also named Wuliang Hall which boasts of
significant research value from the perspective of
architecture. Inside the hall, there is a huge copper
statue of Samantabhadra riding a six-tooth white
elephant measuring 7.35 m high and weighing 62
tonnes. This was built in Taipingxingguo 5th year
of the reign of Emperor Taizong, northern Song
Dynasty. Until now, it has stood there for more
than 1,000 years.
(Xue Keqiao)
Mount Jiuhua
Mount Jiuhua is one of the four Buddhist holy
mountains in China in Qingyang County, Chizhou
of Anhui province. It was called Lingyang Mountain
or Jiuzi Mountain in ancient China. During Tang
Dynasty, Li Bai, the famous poet, and his friends
made a trip to this mountain and noticed its nine
peaks which look like a lotus and thus renamed it
as Mount Jiuhua.
Mount Jiuhua, as a nation-level scenic spot,
occupies an area of 334 sq km, whose highest peak
is the Shiwang Peak, 1,342 m above sea level.
Within 100 km around the mountain, there are 99
peaks, all boasting beautiful views. On a horizontal
inscribed board, Emperor Qianlong (1736-1795)
entitled Mount Jiuhua as The First Mountain in
southeast China. As one of the Buddhist holy lands
in China, Mount Jiuhua has 99 temples in total,
nine of which are listed as nation-level key temples
and 30 of which are province-level key temples. The
famous temples include Ganlu Temple, Huacheng
Temple, Zhiyuan Temple, Zhantanlin Huiju Temple
etc. At present, Mount Jiuhua has about 600 monks,
treasures 6,300 Buddhism statues and more than
2,000 precious historical relics.
According to legend, Kim Gyo-gak (696-794 CE),
an eminent monk from ancient Silla came to China
Roushen Palace (Flesh Body Palace)
Since Tang Dynasty till now, there have been many
Buddhists following golden Ksitigarbha’s lead, thus
establishing the tradition of flesh body Nirvana
in Mount Jiuhua. There were 15 monks and nuns
who underwent flesh body nirvana and now there
are flesh bodies of five eminent monks available
for believers to worship. The Flesh Body Palace is
where the body of golden Ksitigarbha is saved and
there was a flesh body pagoda in the palace. During
the reign of Emperor Wanli, Ming Dynasty, the
government granted heavy funds to rebuild the flesh
body pagoda of golden Ksitigarbha and great hall
outside the pagoda. The palace was rebuilt again
in the 22nd year of the reign of emperor Kangxi,
Qing Dynasty (1683) and was later repeatedly
rebuilt in 1886, 1914, 1955 and 1981. Currently,
it covers an area of 705 sq m. Each year, on July
15th of the lunar calendar, when Ksitigarbha was
born and on July 30th of the lunar calendar when he
became immortal, his believers and followers surge
to Mount Jiuhua to burn incense, chant sutras and
even keep watch at night.
Tiantai Temple at Mount Jiuhua Anhui, China
17 2
Cultural Contacts
witnessed several vicissitudes, repeated damages
due to wars and was rebuilt several times. Its size
was the highest during the rule of Wu Zetian in the
Tang Dynasty and it received a maximum of 3,000
monks at a time. In 1555 CE, when Huang Jin held
the position eunuch and the Governor, he renovated
the White Horse Temple. To a large extent, the
present scale and layout of the White Horse temple
is from that time. After the establishment of the
People’s Republic of China, the government has
rebuilt the temple several times - in 1952, 1954
and 1959. In 1961, the White Horse Temple was
declared as a national cultural relic protection unit
by the State Council.
Statue of Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha at Mount
Jiuhua Anhui, China
Huacheng Temple
Huacheng Temple is located in the middle of Jiuhua
Street, on a small town in the mountain 600 m above
sea level. It is the most time-honoured temple and
also the main temple in Mount Jiuhua, built on the
Longan fifth year of Eastern Jin Dynasty (401 CE)
and in which the golden Ksitigarbha once practised
Buddhism for a very long time. The temple was
officially named Huacheng Temple on the Jianzhong
first year of the reign of Emperor Dezong, Tang
dynasty (780 CE) and a year later, it was determined
as the ashram of Ksitigarbha. The temple reached its
peak in the Ming and Qing Dynasty.
The main gate of the White Horse Temple at Luoyang, Henan, China
Zhiyuan Temple
Zhiyuan Temple is well-known as the most majestic
temple in Mount Jiuhua which is named after
Jetavana, a holy land of Indian Buddhism. Originally
built during the reign of Emperor Jiajing, Ming
Dynasty (1522-1566), the temple gained great fame
since the Jiaqing period of Qing Dynasty (17961820) when it was expanded.
(Xue Keqiao)
White Horse Temple
White Horse Temple is China’s first governmentrun temple. It is located in Luoyang City, Henan
Province which is known as the birthplace of
"Chinese Buddhism".
According to historical records, in 67 CE,
Emperor Han Mingdi dreamt of a golden person.
He then sent messengers towards the West in
search. In 68 CE, Indian Monks, Kāśyapamātanga
and Dharmaratnawas, on invitation arrived in
Luoyang on a white horseback carrying Buddhist
scriptures and statues. The following year emperor
Hanmingdi ordered the construction of a Buddhist
Monastery in the northern part of Royal Road,
three miles outside the Xiyong Gate and named it “White Horse Temple.” From the date of completion
of construction, the White Horse Temple has
Indian-style Buddhist Hall at the White Horse Temple,
Luoyang, Henan, China
In 1997, the Religious Affairs Bureau of Luoyang
made an overall planning for the White Horse
Temple. It was decided to build a “International
Buddhist Monastery Hall” in the western side
of the temple building. In April 2005, Chinese
Premier Wen Jiabao and Indian Prime Minister
Dr Manmohan Singh signed the memorandum of
“India’s Indian-style Buddhist Hall in the White
Horse Temple in Luoyang, China.” In April 26, 2006,
the groundbreaking ceremony of the construction
was held at the White Horse Temple. On May 29,
2010, the hall was officially inaugurated with the
17 3
Cultural Contacts
away from the capital city all the way down to
the Famen Temple and free food and drinks were
available on the way for anyone who participated
in the event. A guard of honour for the Buddha’s
relics was performed under the guidance of imperial
palace guards with the escort of ministers, famous
monks and other dignitaries. During the whole
process, banners and flags covered the sky, great
music filled the air and ordinary people lined on
both sides of the road for a good look at this grand
ceremony. Decorated archways stood up on each
street in the capital city of Chang’an, Tang Dynasty.
The Emperor himself waited with reverence for
the arrival of the Buddha bones standing on the
city gate tower while the ministers and citizens
stood on both sides of the street. The relics, after
arrival, would be worshipped for three days in the
imperial palace and then sent to various temples
in the capital city for people to worship them. On
this occasion, ministers and rich people rushed to
donate money, ordinary people from all over the
country took their sons and old parents to receive
blessings and some of the believers even indulged
in self sacrifice by breaking their arms or fingers or
burning their hair or arms to display their loyalty
and devotion. In January next year, the bones were
sent back to the Famen Temple, which called for
another event of ostentation and extravagance. This
was the last known public event to worship Buddha
relics according to the ritual in Buddhism. The finger
sarira (relics) of Sakyamuni and thousands of rare
treasures would remain buried in the underground
palace beneath the pagoda during the subsequent
period of 1,113 years. The underground palace
then President of India, Pratibha Patil, attending
the inauguration ceremony. The hall is located in
the western side facing the east, it is around 100 m
long from east to west and stretches around 60 m in
width from north to south. It occupies a construction
area of about 3,450 sq m, the main building is about
30 m high, inside is enshrined a Buddha statue up to
4.5 m high. This resembles India’s World Heritage
Site of Sanchi Stupa in its design and construction.
The Indian Government sponsored a fund of Rs 50
million for the completion of the Hall, it is the first
overseas Buddhist hall construction funded by the
Indian Government.
(Zhang Ran & Qiao Anquan)
Famen Temple
Famen Temple (Famen Vihar) is one of the most
renowned Buddhist temples in China situated at
Fufeng County, Baoji, Shaanxi Province. It is famous
for treasuring the finger sarira (relics) of Sakyamuni.
Famen Temple was built during the late Eastern
Han Dynasty (second half of the 2nd century CE)
and was originally referred to as Asoka Temple.
At first, it was just a pagoda built over the relics
of Buddha. Later a temple was constructed next to
the pagoda. According to legend, after unifying the
India, Asoka the Great divided the Buddhist relics
into 84,000 shares and sent spirits to deliver them
to various countries for the purpose of promoting
Buddhism. Pagodas were built by people to worship
those relics. It’s said that these relics reached 19
places in China and the Famen Temple, also known
as the Asoka Temple was just the fifth. In 494 CE and
602 CE, the pagoda was opened twice for believers
to worship the relics. In the Wude seventh year of
Tang Dynasty, the temple was officially renamed
as “Famen Temple” by the emperor and during
Zhenguan period of Tang Dynasty (627-649 CE), the
pagoda was opened three times. The pagoda was
originally named as Grave of Saints and then it was
turned into a four-level wooden building with a new
name as Huguo Zhenshen Pagoda (Buddha Pagoda
for the protection of country) in Tang Dynasty.
Inviting and welcoming the Buddha’s relics was
the grandest Buddhist event during Tang Dynasty,
which was launched every 30 years. There were
eight emperors of Tang inviting Buddha bones six
times into the imperial palace for worship and sent
them back twice to the Famen Temple to show
respect. Each time the event was marked by a grand
campaign with the involvement of a large majority
of people. The most impressive one took place in
the Xiantong 14th year (873 CE) with two years
of careful preparations before the official launch
of the event. When the relics were welcomed,
endless stream of horses and carriages was seen
day and night along the road more than 100 km
Pagoda at the Famen Temple, Fufeng County, Baoji, Shaanxi, China
174
Cultural Contacts
exchanges between India and China. In the seventh
year of Kaihuang period Sui Dynasty (587 CE), a
Buddhist scriptures Translation Institute was built in
the temple and many famous translators of Buddhist
scriptures from India such as Narendrayasas,
Jnanagupta, Dharmagupta etc. resided and worked
there. In the third year of Zhenguan Period, Tang
Dynasty (629 CE), Master Prabhamitra from Nalanda
Monastery of India presided over this institution.
Between the fourth and eighth year of the Kaiyuan
period (716-720 CE), Esoteric Buddhist monks,
the so-called Three Great Beings in the Kaiyuan
period of Tang Dynasty, known as Subhakarasimha,
Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra translated more than
500 historical classics of Esoteric Buddhism here.
In the 15th year of the Tianbao period (756 CE),
Tang Dynasty, Daxingshan Temple was presided
over by Amoghavajra, an eminent monk who was
the royal preceptor for three emperors of Tang
Dynasty, Xuanzong, Suzong and Daizong. He had
once launched Esoteric Buddhism rites for the
dissemination of dharma. Moreover, there was the
Amoghavajra Tripitaka Stone Tablet in the temple
built during the first year of Jianzhong period of
Tang Dynasty (780 CE).
后世,大型善寺多次被毁,也多次被重建。1945
年,太虚法师等于寺内创设世界佛学苑巴利学
院。1955年,政府拨款全面大修。1983年被国务院
列为全国重点开放寺院之一。Famous Chan master
Yi Xing also lived in the temple to study and research
in astronomy, mathematics and shastras (classics),
and made a tremendous contribution to the ancient
astronomy of China. During his time, Daxingshan
Temple was one of the three greatest translation
institutes for Buddhist scriptures in Chang'an and
also the birthplace of Chinese Buddhist Tantrism.
In the later period, Daxingshan Temple was
damaged and rebuilt several times. In 1945, some
people led by Master Taixu established the World
Buddhist Center for Pali Studies here. In 1955, the
Chinese government allocated funds for a thorough
The Relic of the Buddha’s Finger at
Famen Temple, Shaanxi, China
continued to remain closed even at the time of
establishing the dagoba.
However, in August 1981, the dagoba built during
the Ming Dynasty collapsed by half and then finally
in the spring of 1987, an archaeological team
discovered and opened the underground palace
and thus uncovered the finger sarira (relics) of
Sakyamuni and a large number of other precious
ancient cultural artifacts.
(Xue Keqiao)
Jianchu Temple
Jianchu Temple (Jianchu Vihar) is one of the most
time-honoured temples in China. Dabao’en Temple
is just its predecessor. In 247 CE, Kangsenghui, a
monk from the Western Regions (a Han Dynasty
term for the area west of Yumenguan including
what is now Xinjiang and parts of Central Asia)
came to Jianye (now Nanjing) to promote Buddhism
and disseminate dharma. He successfully convinced
Sun Quan, the King of Wu kingdom of the Three
Kingdoms period, to believe in Buddhism and then
the King issued an order to establish a temple for
him. Since it was the first Buddhist temple built
in Jianye, it was originally called Jianchu Temple.
The location of the temple is called Fotuoli where
Kangsenghui once lived. Later, Jianchu Temple was
renamed several times, changing from Changgan
Temple in the Southern Dynasty, Tianxi Temple in
Song Dynasty to Dabao’en Temple in Ming Dynasty.
(Xue Keqiao)
Daxingshan Temple
Daxingshan Temple (Daxingshan Vihar) is a wellknown Chinese Buddhist temple located at Nan
Xiaozhai, Xi’an City, Shaanxi Province. It was built
between the Taishi and Taikang years of the reign of
Emperor Wu, Jin Dynasty (265-289 CE) and as one
of the oldest temples in Xi’an has lasted for more
than 1,700 years. The temple was originally named
Zunshan Temple and then renamed as Daxingshan
Temple during the Kaihuang period of the Sui
Dynasty (581-604 CE), when Xi’an was expanded.
Daxingshan Temple can be referred to as
a memorable place in the history of cultural
The main hall of the Daxingshan Temple, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
17 5
Cultural Contacts
reconstruction of the temple and listed it in 1983
into the category of the “National Important
Temples Opened for the Public”.
(Xue Keqiao)
Asoka Temple
Asoka Temple (Asoka Vihar) is one of the timehonoured temples in the history of China, located
on Mount Asoka in Yínzhou district of Ningbo,
Zhejiang Province.
According to legend, during the period of King
Asoka (3rd century BCE), the legendary emperor
who created the Maurya Dynasty in India, held
the third Samgiti, also the greatest in size in the
history of Buddhism in Pataliputra (present-day
Patna) during which the Tipitaka was compiled and
organised. His children and some monks were sent
to the different places in the world to disseminate
and promote Buddhism. By the records of Buddhism
scriptures, King Asoka also took out Buddha Sarira
from Limnophila Aquatica (Grand Pagoda) in Rajgir
and divided it into 84,000 parts. Then he ordered a
spirit which could fly to establish a total of 84,000
pagodas all over the world in one night. It was
rumoured that he built 19 dagobas in China, one
of them located in Yin County, Zhejiang province.
Now, the only history relic saved till today is the
dagoba of King Asoka.
According to historical records, in the Taikang
third year of the Western Jin Dynasty (282 CE),
an eminent monk, Huida, looked for the dagoba
at the foot of Mount Mao and then built a cottage
room there to live and protect the dagoba. This is
the original location of Asoka Temple. The temple
was originally built on the Yuanjia, second year
of the Southern Dynasties (425 CE) and expanded
twice in the Yuanjia 12th year (435 CE), thus
laying the solid foundation for the development
of the Temple. In the Putong third year of the
Liang Dynasty (522 CE), the emperor bestowed a
horizontal inscribed board with the words, Asoka
Temple on it and then the name of the temple was
officially established. Another saying goes like this
- in the Yixi first year of the Jin Dynasty (405 CE),
people established a pavilion on the dagoba in a
Archway at the Asoka Temple, Yinzhou, Zhejiang, China
bid to protect it and this was the origin of the Asoka
Temple. In later dynasties, the temple was rebuilt
and repaired repeatedly, thus forming into the size
we see today. In 1983, the temple was selected
by the State Council of the People’s Republic of
China as the National Key Temples of Buddhism
in Han Nationality Regions. Asoka Temple is very
famous since it is a remarkable dagoba. It covers
an area of more than 60,000 sq m with more than
600 rooms and the area of structure is around
more than 30,000 sq m. In 1987, there were
over 70 monks living there. The temple treasures
some very valuable historical relics such as the
calligraphy by celebrities in various dynasties and
in the Depository of Buddhist Sutras, there are the
Qing Dynasty version of Longzang which totals
7,247 volumes and Qishaban Tibetan Tripitaka,
both of which are rare collections. In 2006, Asoka
Temple was listed by the State Council into the
Sixth Group of the National Key Cultural Relics
Protection Units.
(Xue Keqiao)
Tanzhe Temple
Tanzhe Temple (Tanzhe Vihar), known as the oldest
temple in Beijing, is originally named as Jiafu
Temple and later renamed Xiuyun Temple. There
was a dragon pond behind the temple and cudrania
tricuspidata in the mountain, therefore, it was
named “Tanzhe” temple.
It is located in Mentougou district, Beijing, 40
km away from downtown Beijing. The temple is
extremely huge. The inside area of the temple is 2.5
hectare with a total of 943 rooms among which 638
rooms belong to the ancient architecture, while the
outside area is 11.2 hectare. The temple remains
in the style of Ming and Qing Dynasty and is quiet
famous for being the biggest architectural complex
of ancient temples in Beijing.
Tanzhe Temple was originally built in the Yongjia
first year of Jin (307 CE) or the Jianxing fourth
year (316 CE). During Wansui Tongtian period of
the reign of Queen Wu Zetian, Tang Dynasty (696-
Asoka Temple at Yinzhou, Zhejiang, China
17 6
Cultural Contacts
making it to be the biggest royal temple in Beijing.
Later, several emperors paid a visit to the temple or
granted funds to maintain it.
Tanzhe Temple is a witness for the cultural
exchange between India and China. In Ming
Dynasty, Diwadasi, an eminent monk from eastern
India once practiced Buddhism in the temple and
was buried there after he passed away.
(Xue Keqiao)
Lingyin Temple
Lingyin Temple (Lingyin Vihar) is one of the oldest
temples in China which stands at the foot of the
mountain on the west of the West Lake, Hangzhou.
It was originally built in the Xianhe first year of
Eastern Jin Dynasty (326 CE).
According to legend, Master Huili, an eminent
monk from west India, once roamed in Zhejiang
province. When he arrived at Wulin (present
Hangzhou), he saw a peak and said: “This is just like
the small mountain ridge located on the Griddhraj
mountain of India. I have no idea when did it fly here?
When Buddha lived in this world, they preferred to
live in seclusion as immortal spirits. Therefore, he
built a temple in front of the mountain and called
it, Lingyin Temple (Temple of Soul’s Retreat).
When the temple was built, Buddha dharma had not
been well recognised in China. During the reign of
emperor Wudi of the Southern Liang Dynasty (502
to 548 CE), the temple was expanded and in the Dali
sixth year of Tang (771 CE), a major restoration was
carried out. After that, the temple became more and
more popular attracting thousands of people to burn
incense and long for the blessing of Bodhisattva.
During the Huichang fifth of Tang (845 CE) the
temple, however, was damaged once again and
the monks were dismissed. Another two projects
for rebuilding and expansion of the temple were
launched during the Five Dynasties after which
Tanzhe Temple, Beijing, China
697 CE), Tanzhe Temple was enlarged and became
very popular. Many believers would come to burn
incense here, thus making it the most important
temple in Youzhou. On the Huichang fifth year
of Tang (845 CE), Li Yan, the Emperor Wuzong
of Tang (841-846 CE) disapproved of Buddhism
and as a result Tanzhe Temple was abandoned.
Later, the temple was restored again but suffered
with sluggish development. In the Jin Dynasty,
several Zen masters in Tanzhe temple gained wide
recognition from public and the temple restored
reputation again. In the Huangtong first year of
Jin Dynasty (1141), the emperor himself paid a
pilgrimage visit to Tanzhe Temple. He issued an
order to repair and expand the temple. As the
time went into Yuan Dynasty, princess Miaoyan,
daughter of Kublai Khan, became a nun at Tanzhe
Temple and spent her entire life there. At the end of
Yuan Dynasty, Emperor Shun (on the throne from
1333-1368), who was a firm believer of Buddhism,
paid a special attention to Tanzhe Temple. He once
invited Zen Master Xue Jian of Tanzhe Temple to
enjoy dinner cooked by his younger sister with him.
Such a special treatment is said to be unprecedented.
Yao Guangxiao, an important minister during the
early Ming Dynasty, was originally a monk with
Dao Yan as his dharma name, who once helped
Zhu Di (on the throne from 1403-1424) to usurp
the throne. Afterwards, he resigned and returned
to Tanzhe Temple to practice Buddhism and
Emperor Zhu Di visited him over and over again.
Most of the emperors of Ming Dynasty and their
wives were all firm believers of Buddhism and the
government granted funds repeatedly to overhaul
and expand Tanzhe Temple. In the 25th year of the
reign of Emperor Kangxi, Qing Dynasty (1686), the
Emperor came to the temple to pilgrimage Buddha
for several days and lavishly granted funds. In the
31st year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi, Emperor
granted 10,000 taels of silver to rebuild the Tanzhe
Temple. In the 36th year of the reign of Emperor
Kangxi, Qing Dynasty, the Emperor made a trip to
the Tanzhe Temple twice and gave it a namet, thus
Lingyin Temple at Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
17 7
Cultural Contacts
the temple regained its momentum and became
very popular again, accommodating more than
3,000 monks. Hangzhou is the capital city of Song
Dynasty and during this period, several emperors
paid a pilgrimage visit to the temple thus allowing
the Lingyin Temple to develop greatly. During
the period of the reign of Emperor Shunzhi, Qing
Dynasty (1644-1661), Master Jude, abbot of the
Lingyin Temple, collected money for the repair and
maintenance of the temple and spent 18 years to
bring a completely new outlook for the temple. In
the 28th year of the reign of Emperor Kangxi, Qing
Dynasty (1689), the Emperor made an inspection
trip in the south, and personally inscribed four
words “Yun Lin Chan Temple” for Lingyin Temple.
In 1936, the temple was damaged in fire, but after
1949, several large-scale repair and maintenance
projects were carried out for the temple. Now, it has
become prosperous and popular again with many
people eager to burn incense and worship there.
(Xue Keqiao)
translation work and was, therefore, known as the
ancestral Chamber of the Three Treatise School.
Portrait of Kumarajiva
The dagoba of Tripitaka Dharma Master Kumarajiva
in the Yaoqin period is the most valuable historical
relics in Caotang Temple. According to a legend,
after Kumarajiva passed away and was cremated,
his body was burned into ashes but his tongue was
not damaged. His disciple collected his Sarira and
established a dagoba in memory of him. However,
the current dagoba was not the original one but
built during Tang Dynasty.
(Xue Keqiao)
Shaolin Temple
Shaolin Temple (Shaolin Vihar) is a well-known
Buddhist temple in China, located in Mount Shaoshi,
13 km from the west-northern Dengfeng, Henan
Province. It is one of the best embodiments of the
India-China cultural exchange.
Shaolin Temple was built in the ninth year of
Taihe period, Northern Wei Dynasty (495 CE).
On the east of Mount Songshan, is Mount Taishi
while Mount Shaoshi is on the west. Shaolin
Temple gained its name because of its location
in the bamboo forest of Wuru Peak (Five Breast
Peak) in Mount Shaoshi. In the third year of
Xiaochang period, Northern Wei Dynasty (527 CE),
Bodhidharma, an Indian monk, came to Shaolin
Temple of Mount Songshan. Since then, Shaolin
Temple became well-known in the world.
According to historical records, Bodhidharma was
the prince of a country in south India, who gave up
the throne for Buddhism and later came to China by
sea. First he went to Jinling (present-day Nanjing) to
meet Xiao Yan, Emperor Wudi of the Liang Dynasty
(on the throne from 502 to 547 CE) and then started
a journey northward, during which he passed by
Luoyang and eventually settled at the foot of Mount
Songshan. In a rock cave of Shaolin Temple, he sat
in meditation facing a wall for the entire nine years
Caotang Temple
Caotang Temple (Caotang Vihar) is one of the
most time-honoured temples in China and also the
earliest Translation Institute Buddhist Scriptures in
the history of Chinese Buddhism. It is situated about
15 km from the south of the Qin town, Hu County,
Shaanxi province.
The temple was originally known as Da Temple.
In the Hongshi third year of the later Qin Dynasty
(401 CE), Emperor Yaoxing invited Kumarajiva,
an eminent monk from the Western Regions (Han
Dynasty term for the area west of Yumenguan
including what is now Xinjiang and parts of Central
Asia) to Chang’an and arranged him to live in the
temple to translate Buddhist scriptures. From then
on, the temple was named Caotang Temple. Later,
the temple experienced rise and fall with the change
of dynasties and its name was also changed several
times. After 1949 CE, the Chinese government, along
with the Japanese Buddhist societies, frequently
granted funds to restore it thus allowing the temple
to gradually expand into the size it is seen today.
Caotang Temple had close ties with Kumarajiva, a
prominent Buddhist master in the history of Chinese
Buddhism and also an eminent and extraordinary
translator of Buddhist scriptures. He was skilled
in both Sanskrit and Chinese and translated 94
Buddhist scriptures in 425 volumes in his entire
life. Ji Zang, an eminent monk in the early stage
of Tang Dynasty, created the Three Treatise School
on the principle of three shastras - Madhyamaka
Shastra, Sata-shastra and Dvadashamukha Shastra, all
translated by Kumarajiva and honoured him as the
ancestor of Three Treatise School. Caotang Temple
was a place where Kumarajiva once conducted
Pagodas at the Shaolin Temple, Dengfeng county, Henan, China
17 8
Cultural Contacts
cleared Scripture. In this sense, Shaolin Kung Fu can
be traced back to Bodhidharma.
(Xue Keqiao)
Yongning Temple
Yongning Temple (Yongning Vihar) was the biggest
temple in Luoyang during Northern Wei Dynasty.
Today, only the historic site of the temple exists.
According to the Records of Qielan at Luoyang
Volume I, Yongning Temple was originally built
in the Xiping first year of the reign of Emperor
Xiaoming, Northern Wei Dynasty (516 CE) and
seemed very majestic and great with a huge ninefloor wooden pagoda rising directly into the sky. It
could be seen even from a place 100 li away. On the
north side of pagoda, there was a majestic palace
hall, inside which a titanic golden Buddhism statue
stood measuring about 6 m high. Moreover, there
were also 10 golden statues as tall as an ordinary
person and three Buddhism statues with real pearls
dotted on it as well as five Buddhism statues knitted
with gold wire and two Buddhism statues made out
of jade, all boasting exquisite workmanship. Outside
the palace hall, there were more than 1,000 rooms
decorated with carved beams and painted rafters.
All of Buddhism scriptures and statues introduced
from foreign countries were preserved in this temple
surrounded by tall walls and full of luxuriant. Wellspaced trees formed into an elegant and unforgettable
landscape. On the top of the wall there was a jack
rafter covered by tiles just as similar as the walls
of the royal palace. The temple had four doors and
among them the south gate was the front gate with
a three-floor gate house. The gate houses for the
east and west were both of two-floor buildings and
north gate had no gate house. Between these four
gates stood four human statues embodying the men
of unusual strength and statues of four lions. At that
Entrance to Shaolin Temple
and began to accept students and disseminate the
dharma. Today, Damo Cave in Shaolin Temple is
just the place of Bodhidharma sitting in meditation.
During Tang Dynasty, Zen Buddhism was officially
established
which
recognised
retroactively
Bodhidharma as the Adiguru of Chinese Zen. Zen
is a product of Indian Buddhism in China and has
a certain relationship with Bodhidharma’s thought
and practice. Therefore, Shaolin Temple became the
“ancestral Chamber” of Zen.
During the early stage of Tang Dynasty when Li
Shimin, Emperor Taizong of Tang (599-649 CE)
was still the prince of Qin, he fought against the
local forces, during which he was greatly helped by
13 monks from Shaolin Temple. When he became
the emperor, he set up a monument in the temple
to commend the monks of Shaolin Temple who
were all skilled at Kung Fu. The monument can
still be found in Shaolin Temple today. With the
permission of the Emperor, the monks of Shaolin
Temple could practice martial arts, eat meats
and drink wine. From then on, Shaolin Kung Fu
gained more and more recognition around China.
According to a legend, Shaolin Kung Fu has a very
close link with Bodhidharma. It is said that MuscleBone Strengthening Exercise, widely known as
the source of Shaolin Kung Fu, was created by
Bodhidharma. In an iron box left by Bodhidharma
when he passed away, there were two books ie
Muscle-Bone Strengthening Exercise and Marrow-
Fragment of a sculpted face, from Yongning Temple
belonging to the period of Northern Wei Dynasty,
preserved in the Luoyang Museum, Henan, China
17 9
Cultural Contacts
time, Bodhidharma, an eminent monk from the
Western Regions, came to China and when he saw
the temple. He was deeply impressed by its majesty
and exquisiteness and believed it the only one in the
Jambu-dvipa. In February of Yongxi third year of
the Northern Wei Dynasty (534 CE) the pagoda was
damaged in the fire which lasted for three months.
The same year Northern Wei Dynasty was toppled.
In recent years, the Chinese archaeology world,
after conducting a survey and excavation job on the
Yongning Temple, discovered that the boundary
walls of the temple were rectangular. It measured
305 m from north to south and 260 m from east
to west. The base of the pagoda was located right
in the middle of boundary walls which was square.
On the north of the pagoda, there was a large relic
of rammed earth, known as the base of the main
palace hall measuring more than 60 m from east to
west with a total area of over 1,300 sq m. The front
gate, pagoda and main hall were all located on the
verge of axle line and the pagoda was, of course, the
most important building. The halls were behind the
pagoda which was a typical layout for a Buddhist
temple construction during early ancient China.
There were a huge number of damaged Buddhist
statues made out of clay and building materials
such as stone statues, tiles and eaves tiles unearthed
during the survey and excavation.
(Xue Keqiao)
Jiming Temple, Nanjing, China
Ming Dynasty (1387), when it was restored and
eventually renamed as the Jiming Temple. Later, it
was once again rebuilt during the Tongzhi period of
Qing Dynasty (1862-1874) and was scaled down in
size. In 1966, Jiming Temple was seriously damaged
and the Nanjing government finally granted funds in
1982 to rebuild it. From then on, the temple became
a famous scenic place for visitors and worshippers
in Nanjing.
(Xue Keqiao)
Xiangguo Temple
Xiangguo Temple (Xiangguo Vihar), a Chinese
ancient Buddhist temple also known as Daxiangguo
Temple, is located in the downtown of Kaifeng,
Henan Province.
Xiangguo Temple was originally built in the
Tianbao sixth year of Northern Qi Dynasty (555 CE)
and named as Jianguo Temple at that time. In the
Tang Dynasty, the temple was rebuilt and renamed
as Daxiangguo Temple and became very famous
since its name was given by the emperor himself.
It was a huge temple with luxurious buildings
everywhere. The temple in Tang Dynasty treasured
lots of renowned fresco created by some masters
such as Wu Tao-tzu. There are also many excellent
sculpture works of Yang Huizhi, a sculptor in Tang
Dynasty. In Song Dynasty, Xiangguo Temple was
like a Royal Temple, many famous monk in the
temple were granted title by the emperor. During the
period of the reign of Emperor Taizu, Song Dynasty
Jiming Temple
Jiming Temple (Jiming Vihar) is one of the oldest
temples in Nanjing, located in Mount Jilong.
It was originally built in the Datong first year of
Southern Liang Dynasty (527 CE) and was named
as Tongtai Temple. At that time, there was a sevenfloor Buddha pavillion and a nine-floor pagoda
in the temple, together with six large palaces and
more than 10 small halls and Buddhist prayer
rooms. Emperor Wu of Liang (502-548 CE) was
a famous Buddhist in Chinese history who made
great contribution to the development of Chinese
Buddhism. According to historical records, he went
to Tongtai Temple as a servant several times and
then asked the imperial court to redeem him with
a large sum of money. The fund so received would
go directly and completely into Tongtai Temple. He
did this successfully for three times and the temple
therefore became extremely rich with luxurious
buildings everywhere. However the fourth time,
he encountered a rebellion and was besieged in
the temple until death. Tongtai Temple was also
destroyed in the rebellion. In later ages, the temple
was rebuilt many times but became much smaller.
It was renamed again and again as the Qianfo Yard,
Jingju Temple, Yuanji Temple, Fabao Temple etc
until the 20th year of the reign of Emperor Hongwu,
Entrance to the Daxiangguo Temple in Kaifeng, Henan, China
180
Cultural Contacts
and worship of Bu Dai monk - the incarnation of
Maitreya. On both sides of it stands four Heavenly
Kings. Mahavira Hall, for people to pay respect to
Sakyamuni, the founder of Buddhism, Manjusri and
Samantabhadra; the Goddess of Mercy Pavillion
which listed the historical relics of Fayuan Temple;
Jingye Hall which accommodated the bronze statue
of Samantabhadra; and, the Dabei Shrine which is
now used as showroom to exhibit volumes of various
versions of Buddhist scriptures in many languages
from Tang Dynasty onwards. Besides this, there is
Depository of Buddhist Sutras building which now
exhibits a dozen of Buddhist statues built from
Eastern Han Dynasty all the way down to Ming and
Qing Dynasties.
(Xue Keqiao)
(960-976 CE), the temple became a place to receive
honourable guests. For example, in the Kaibao fourth
year of Song Dynasty (971 CE), Manjushri, prince
of central India came with Jiansheng, an eminent
monk who was just on his way home from a journey
to the West for Buddhist scriptures to go to Kaifeng.
After they met the Emperor, they were arranged to
live in Xiangguo Temple and there were many other
Indian monks who once lived in Xiangguo Temple.
Hereafter, the temple suffered many misfortunes and
eventually in the 15th year of the reign of Emperor
Chongzhen, Ming Dynasty (1642), was flooded by
the Yellow River. It was rebuilt and repaired twice
in Qing Dynasty but in 1841 it was flooded again.
After 1949, Xiangguo Temple, after being repaired
for several times, was officially restored and opened
for Buddhism activities in 1992.
(Xue Keqiao)
Dacien Temple
Dacien Temple (Dacien Vihar), is a Chinese temple
rising straight up in the middle of Yanta District,
Xi’an. It is very famous because of its association
with Master Xuanzang who translated and stored the
Buddhist scriptures he received from an extremely
difficult pilgrimage journey to India.
Before Dacien Temple, there was another temple
known as Jingjue Temple built during Northern Wei
Dynasty. Emperor Wen of the Sui Dynasty (581604 CE) once ordered to establish Wulou Temple
in the old site of Jingjue Temple but the temple
was abandoned later. During the 22nd year of the
Zhenguan period of Tang Dynasty (648 CE), Prince
Li Zhi (628-683 CE) was determined to rebuild
the temple. Once restored, he renamed it as the
Ci’en Temple in memory of his mother. Before
the official establishment, it was decided that the
site be designed following the style of Jetavana
Fayuan Temple
Fayuan Temple (Fayuan Vihar) is one of the most
historically respected Buddhist temples located in
Xuanwu district, Beijing.
In Zhenguan 19th year of Tang Dynasty (645 CE),
the emperor issued an order to build a temple in the
memory of the soldiers who sacrificed their lives
in war. The temple was completed in the Wansui
Tongtian first year of the reign of Queen Wu Zetian
(696 CE) and named as Minzhong Temple. In 1057
CE, the temple was destroyed in a huge earthquake.
Fayuan Temple, Beijing, China
In 1070, it was rebuilt and renamed in Zhengtong
second year of Ming Dynasty as Chongfu Temple.
Another restoration of the building and its renaming
was done during the reign period of Emperor
Yongzheng of Qing Dynasty (1723-1735 CE). After
1949, the government frequently granted funds to
repair and maintain the temple. In 1956, Buddhist
Academy of China was established in Fayuan Temple.
Later, Buddhist Books and Culture Relics Museum of
China was officially founded here in 1980.
The major architectures in Fayuan Temple include
the Hall of Heavenly Kings for enshrinement
Dacien Temple (Giant Wild Goose Pagoda),
Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
181
Cultural Contacts
described in some Buddhist scriptures. Accordingly,
13 yards with 1,897 rooms in total were supposed
to be built. After completion of work, another hall
would be added specially for translation of Buddhist
scriptures. At that time, a total of 50 eminent monks
together with 300 common monks were stationed in
the temple. Later Master Xuanzang was requested
to move to Dacien Temple as the abbot with the
responsibility to take up the translation work of
Buddhist scriptures.
During the third year of Yonghui (652 CE) of Tang
Dynasty, in order to better protect the Buddhist
scriptures from India, Master Xuanzang submitted
a written statement to Li Zhi, Emperor Gaozong of
Tang and suggested building of Dacien Pagoda in
front of Dacien Temple in the Indian architecture
style. His suggestion was eventually accepted by
the Emperor. During the course of its construction,
Master Xuanzang fully devoted himself to monitor it
and even participated in the delivery of bricks and
stones. Soon, the pagoda was completed and named
Pagoda of Dacien Temple, present-day Giant Wild
Goose Pagoda.
Dacien Temple and Giant Wild Goose Pagoda have
a close link with Master Xuanzang. It is a symbol of
India-China cultural exchanges. On December 22,
1988, Rajiv Gandhi, Prime Minister of India visited
the temple and was gifted two Buddhist scriptures
translated by Master Xuanzang by the chief abbot of
Dacien Temple.
(Xue Keqiao)
Gate of Xingjiao Temple
signboard for it. Another rebuilding work was done
in 1939. After 1949, the Chinese Government granted
funds twice for the repair and restoration of Xingjiao
Temple, so it forms into the size that we see today. In
Mahavira Hall, there is a bronze Buddha built during
Ming Dynasty and a Maitreya Buddha made out of
white jade given by Burma as a gift. The Depository
of Buddhist Sutras is located on the east yard, a grand
two-floor building, the first floor of which is used to
treasure the portrait of Master Xuanzang and some
calligraphies and paintings by historical celebrities,
together with valuable historical photos of some
politicians like Chou En-Lai and Jawaharlal Nehru
paying tribute to the graveyard of Master Xuanzang.
The second floor treasures thousands of Buddhist
scriptures and relics of palm leaf manuscript in Pali.
The west yard is also known as the Ci’en Ta yard ie
the location of dagobas for Master Xuanzang and his
two disciples Kui Ji and Yuan Ce.
(Xue Keqiao)
Xingjiao Temple
Xingjiao Temple (Xingjiao Vihar) is one of the
most famous Buddhist temples in China which is
located at Changan County in southern suburb of
Xi’an, Shaanxi Province. It was built in Zongzhang
second year of Emperor Gaozong of Tang (669 CE)
to accommodate the relics of Master Xuanzang.
In 664 CE, Buddhist Master Xuanzang passed
away at Yuhua Palace (in Tongchuan City, Shaanxi
Province) and his body was buried on the White
Deer Plain in the east suburb of Chang'an. Several
years later, a pagoda was built to keep his remains
and then Xingjiao Temple was established. The
most important building in the temple is dagobas
built for Master Xuanzang and his disciples Kui Ji
and Yuan Ce.
Xingjiao Temple, notwithstanding experiencing the
rise and fall in later ages, was always respected and
loved by people who continuously burnt incense in
the temple longing for blessing of Buddha. However,
as time rolled into the mid-19th century, Xingjiao
Temple was completely damaged by war and only
the dagobas of Master Xuanzang and his two disciples
survived. In 1922, a large-scaled reconstruction
was carried out and Kang You-wei even inscribed a
Kaiyuan Temple
Kaiyuan Temple (Kaiyuan Vihar), Buddhism temple
in Quanzhou, Fujian Province is located on the West
Street of Quanzhou city. Kaiyuan Temple was first
established in Chuigong second year of Tang (686
CE). It was originally named Lotus Temple but later
renamed Xingjiao Temple and Longxing Temple. In
the 26th year of Tang (738 CE), the emperor send
out an imperial decree to establish a temple in each
region he reigned and named it as his reign title.
Therefore, there are many other temples named as
Kaiyuan in China as of now and Quanzhou Kaiyuan
Temple is just one of them. However, the Quanzhou
temple plays a special role in the history of cultural
exchange between India and China. First, there is
another legend about the establishment of Kaiyuan
182
Cultural Contacts
that time. Mahavira Hall (Great Buddha’s Hall) in
Kaiyuan Temple was also referred 'Baizhu Hall' (100
Pillars Hall in Chinese) and as time rolled by into the
end of Ming Dynasty, the pillars in the Mahavira Hall
were all changed into stone pillars with a variety of
incised patterns including 24 pieces of carved stones
telling the story of Lord Vishnu changing into dark
sky and lion-man. According to textual researches,
these are all the relics of Hindu temples of Tang and
Song Dynasty. Third is Buddhist Tantrism. Since
its development in India, it was rapidly introduced
into China. Since Tang and Song Dynasty, Chinese
Buddhism was greatly influenced by it and in Song
Dynasty there were so many Esoteric Buddhism
monks who once arrived at Quanzhou or lived here
doing missionary work. This is why lots of elements
of Esoteric Buddhism can be found in Quanzhou
Kaiyuan Temple such as Five Dhyani Buddhas.
(Xue Keqiao)
Temple. When Empress Wu Zetian of Tang Dynasty
(684-704 CE) first took the office, a monk named
Kuanghu asked Huang Shougong, a local rich man,
to give him a small piece of land which just could
be covered by a cassock so that he could build a
temple on it. Huang agreed. Monk Kuanghu then
threw his cassock into the sky and the cassock
suddenly changed into a mass of purple cloud
covering the entire mulberry field of Huang. Later,
Kaiyuan Temple stood up in this vast piece of land.
Similar legends can also be found on the origin of
gtsug lag khang
Jokhang Temple (gtsug lag khang) is located in
the centre of Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region.
It is the oldest Buddhist Temple in Tibet and the
holiest site of Tibetan Buddhism in China. It was
first constructed in the middle period of 7th century
CE by Princess Bhrikuti of Nepal, who was bride
of King Songtsän Gampo, the 33rd ruler (King) of
Tibetan Empire. According to a legend, Buddha Hall
was built on the former site of a lake which was
filled and levelled up with soil carried by goats to
house the Shakyamuni Statue (Akshobya Vajra), a
life-size statue of the Buddha brought from Nepal
by Princess Bhrikuti. Therefore, Jokhang Temple is
named “ra sa vphrul snang” in Tibetan (“ra” means
goat and “sa” means earth) and also known as “jo
khang” meaning “House of Shakyamuni”.
The exterior architectural form of Jokhang Temple
features architectural styles and techniques from
India, Nepal and Tibet. According to the Biography
of Kings in Tibet, mandalas are carved and painted
on four gates to satisfy the wish of the Buddhist
Guru, vajry (rock) pestles are carved and painted on
pillars to meet the desire of sngags-mang, swastika
(Srivatsa) are carved and painted on four corners
to meet aspirations of Bonismo believers and
grillworks are painted to satisfy the hopes of people
in Tibet. At that time Jokhang Temple was a threelayer temple facing the west which represented that
the Princess missed her hometown, Nepal, west of
Lhasa city. On both sides of main shrine, there are
side halls and such layout reflects the model of the
universe in Buddhism. Many statues of Buddhas
and Bodhisattvas are enshrined and worshiped
inside the temple including Ekādaśa mukhānām
Avalokiteśvara (likeness of King Songtsem Gampo),
statues of Akshobya Vajra, Maitreya dharma and
Pagodas at the Kaiyuan Temple, Quanzhou, Fujian, China
Relief of a Hindu deity on the corridor pillar
of the Kaiyuan Temple, Quanzhou
other temples in China such as in Yunnan province,
and the source of such a story can be traced back
to a legend about Lord Vishnu, a major Hindu god,
changing into a dwarf. Second, Quanzhou was a very
important port which played an essential role in the
connection of India and China by sea in the history.
During the Tang and Song Dynasty, a large number of
Indian businessmen were living and doing business
here and several Hindu temples were established at
183
Cultural Contacts
the Potala Palace thus also becoming a part of the
world’s cultural heritage.
(Kalsang gyal)
Potala Palace
Potala Palace (po ta la) is one of the world famous
ancient buildings in Tibet, China and a unique
building combined with old palace with religious
temples and a representation of union of politics
and religion.
The palace is located on the summit of Red
Mountain in old city, Lhasa and the foot of mountain
is at an altitude of 3,700 m. The palace facing the
south was built on the mountain winding up to the
summit and is made of soil, wood and stone. Its
walls are built with triple materials with thickness
of 3 m. The whole building consists of White Palace
and Red Palace. The former named after its colour
is the main living quarter and office for generations
of Dalai Lama and is comprised of halls of deyangfu,
deyangnu, cuoqin, ganzhulakang and langjizhacang
all of which constitute the main cluster of buildings
of Potala Palace. The latter named after its crimson
colour is located at the centre of the Potala Palace
and is the stupa for each generation of Dalai Lama
and the place where important Buddhist activities
are held. Red Palace is built in the shape of a Buddhist
flower, Mandala, and made up of Sixipingcuo hall,
Xiaodenglakang Hall and Chongrelakang Hall, all
of which constitute the most brilliant buildings of
Potala. For example, the stupa of the fifth Dalai Lama
which is built in Xiaodenglakang Hall is not only
the earliest and largest one with the most brilliant
decoration among the stupas of all generations of
Dalai Lama but also a world-famous valuable and
glorious pagoda. So it is called as the world’s top
one solemnity of building and the world’s best
decoration of building. It is in the form of Bodhi
pagoda with a square base and round body and
wrapped in a coat of gold. Its total height is 14.85
m consisting of three parts ie base, bottle part and
spike on the crest. The body is engraved with all
kinds of Tibetan patterns and decorated with tens
of thousands of jades, pearls, diamonds and glazes.
The coloured light shines brilliant. The valuable
pearls just used on it are up to 3,812 and the weight
of gold amounts to 119082.37 Liang (Chinese unit
of weight).
The main building of the Potala Palace has 13
floors, 117 m high, 400 m long from east to west
and 350 m wide north-south. The gross floor area is
up to 1,38,052 sq m. The exterior façade is painted
red, white and yellow which represent, respectively,
the solemnity, gentleness and completeness. Its
colour and form is of obvious Tibetan Buddhism.
Seen from the plane the palace is joined by many
rectangle chapels in a complicated structure, while
Buddha hall at Jokhang Temple Monastery, Lhasa, Tibet, China
Arya Tara brought by Princess Bhrikuti from Nepal.
Besides, there are statues made in Tibet by Nepal
craftsmen such as King of Great Freedom, Wrath
Tara, Arya Tara, Sarasvati, Auspicious Horse Head
King, Dragon King, Demon, Yaksha, Krishna and
Pelden Lhamo. On beams, pillars and walls in all
halls, Buddhist scriptures and figures of Buddha are
carved and painted as well as biography of kings
of Tibet, other biographies, cryptology or prophesy
and ritual of Bonismo. The carvings and paintings
fully reflect the concept of cultural coexistence of
foreign Buddhist culture and local Bonismo which
has epoch-making significance in the history of
Tibetan Buddhism.
Jokhang Temple gradually formed a grand
architectural complex after expansion and
renovation several times since 7th century CE. The
most sacred Buddha statue enshrined inside the
temple has changed into a statue of Shakyamuni,
a life-size statue of Buddha at age of 12 which was
brought by Princess Wencheng in Tang Dynasty. In
the 11th century CE, Pa Ba Xi Rao (vphaks-pa-shesrab), a master from Ngari Sanai and Dui Qiong Kuo
Ben expanded Jokhang Temple, building a Buddha
Hall and moulding Buddha statues on the east.
At the same time monk groups were established
and Jokhang Temple formed the rudiment of
monastery. In Yuan Dynasty, several Khri Dpon
(local officials responsible for the administration in
Tibet) undertook maintenance and reconstruction
work and built many Buddha statues. In the Ming
Dynasty, Master Tsongkhapa requested Zha Ba
Jiang Qu, the third Dharmaraja of Phagmodrupa
Dynasty, to renovate Jokhang Temple on a large
scale. In 1409, Master Tsongkhapa decorated the
Statue of Shakyamuni with five-dhyani Buddha
Crown. Since 1642, the fifth Dalai Lama and Sangye
Gyatso expanded and decorated the temple on a
larger scale which made the complex splendid and
magnificent with a completely new outlook.
In 1961, Jokhang Temple was listed as one of the
first batch of important cultural relic sites under
state-level protection by the State Council of China.
In November 2000, Jokhang Temple was included
in UNESCO’s World Heritage List as an extension of
184
Cultural Contacts
government and the government of Nepal have also
sent craftsmen to take part in the construction and
the number of constructors was more than 7,700
people every day. The project totally cost about 2.13
million liang of silver.
Later, Potala Palace has been expanded for
many times to reach the scale of present-day. Its
appearance combines the characteristics of a palace
and Buddhist temple and basically uses the layout
of Buddhist Mandala. In the expansion, the original
St Guanyin Hall, Dharma Cave and other buildings
built in 7th century CE were incorporated in Red
Palace. Only some buildings at both ends of White
Palace were removed and on the basis of original
buildings, White Palace was extended in the direction
of west, south and east. Dalai Lama’s resting places
are located on the top floor of Red Palace. Below
these resting palaces are the Pharmacist Hall, Guru
Hall, Mara Hall, Kalachakra Hall and other halls.
Below that there are West Palace, Gradual Path Hall
in the east, Vidyadhara Hall in the south, fifth Dalai
Lama’s Stupa Hall in the west and Bunsen Biography
Hall in the north. After the expansion, Potala Palace
was more majestic and magnificent and both the
external construction and internal decoration
showcased Tibetan people’s superb skills and rich
artistic creativity.
In 1961, the State Council listed Potala Palace
the first batch of key cultural relic units under
national protection and appropriated funds for its
maintenance every year and especially in 1988,
State Council decided to conduct a comprehensive
repair of Potala Palace, the project started in 1989,
lasted five years, completed in 1994 at a total cost
of RMB 53 million. In the same year, Potala Palace
was listed in the World Heritage List by UNESCO
and became one of the world's famous sacred places
for domestic, foreign tourists and believers to visit
and worship.
Collection of Books and Records According
to preliminary statistics, the Tibetan Buddhist
literatures and classics that Potala Palace collected
in the vertical direction these chapels are at various
levels between different distances. That is clear
what is major and what minor. Within the palace,
clusters of buildings erecting high, chapels standing
towering and brilliance shining, all represent the
uniqueness of Tibetan architectures. The imposing
force and grand spectacular of the entire palace
reflects great wisdom and creativity of the Tibetan
people. In the palace there are numerous paintings,
carvings, thangka, statues, china and scrolls which
make it a treasure store of Tibetan culture and a
pearl in Chinese culture, also an important legacy in
human history.
Historical evolutions Potala The variant of
Sanskrit pronunciation of Potalaka means Chizhou
Mountain, the rite or land for Avalokiteśvara.
Tibetan Buddhists believe that Red Mountain in
Lhasa is the second land of Avalokiteśvara. In
7th century CE, the 33rd king of Tubo Srongtsen
Gampo started the construction of the palace on
Red Mountain and named it the Potala Palace.
The building at that time was of a huge scale with
three layers of walls outside, 999 rooms inside and
a chapel on the top floor with 1,000 rooms. Onto
the crest a spike was penetrated and on it hanged
a flag. Surrounded the palace were four gates
and arch. The peripheral walls cover the whole
Red Mountain, Yaowang Mountain and Pamari
Mountain. The king used to dwell on Red Mountain
while the queen on Yaowang Mountain. There was
a bridge of silver and copper built between the two
mountains for walking.
Potala Palace, due to natural and man-made
disasters, was severely damaged and failed to be
repaired immediately which gradually evolved into
the sacred place of Tibetan Buddhism where the
eminent monks retreated and many palaces were
transformed into temples for Tibetan Buddhism
activities. At the beginning of the 11th century CE,
Kadam sent eminent monks to teach tsema here.
Later, Karma Kagyu despatched eminent monks and
the founder of Dge-lugs-pa - Tsongkhapa as well as
his disciples to preach the view of Buddhism and
engage in religious activities.
In 17th century CE, the fifth Dalai Lama established
Chapter Kagyu Dan’s regime in Drepung Monastery
and began a large-scale renovation of Potala Palace
after he was in charge of Tibet’s political and
religious power. Since 1645, it took three years to
build the White Palace part of the Potala Palace.
In 1682, the fifth Dalai Lama died. In 1690, Desi
Sangye Gyats aroused tens of thousands of artisans
and workers to build the Red Palace part of Potala
Palace and spent four years to finish this project.
And so far Potala Palace’s overall architectural
pattern was basically formed. In order to build the
Red Palace in addition to local craftsmen, the Qing
Potala Palace, Lhasa, Tibet, China
185
Cultural Contacts
are more than 60,000 and are stored in each
Buddha Hall. Literatures and classics collected in
this way mostly serve as one of the three Buddhist
treasures, a magic weapon for people to worship
rather than as general ones of the modern sense for
public reading.
Vkhrungs Rabs Lha Khang namely the Guanyin
Hall is located on the north of West Hall of Red
Palace and in the north and west side of this Hall.
There are some bookshelves with more than 1,000
books and most of these books are rare ones and
related to religion, culture, technology, medicine,
language and other traditional ten subjects. These
books include the woodcut version of Tengyur
which is the first one to be carved in Tibetan
language and Beijing version of Tengyur that the
Emperor Yongzheng of Qing Dynasty in 1725 gave
as a present to the seventh Dalai Lama. These two
sets of Tengyur have high historical literature values
in the history of Tibetan Tripitaka.
The fifth Dalai Lama’s Stupa Hall is located on
the west of the West Hall of Red Palace. It has four
layers and only one hall and is one of the most
famous Buddha-halls of Potala Palace. In this Hall
in addition to gold Stupas of fifth, 10th and 12th
Dalai Lama and silver Sugata stupa seat, there is
also a large bookshelf with 11 interlayers arranged
in the west of this Hall providing more than 1,640
Tibetan literatures and books including Kangyur,
Tengyur, Mahaprajna-paramita-sutra, Paramita Sutra
and other precious Buddhist literature and books.
Rig Vdzin Lha Khang, namely the Vidyadhara
Hall, means Tantric Smriti Hall and is located on
the south side of West Hall of Red Palace and there
are bookshelves in the east, west and north side of
this Hall with a total of more than 2,500 books. This
include the six sets of Kangyur (totally 600 books)
written with gold ink, silver ink, cinnabar and other
precious materials in the period of fifth Dalai Lama.
This edition was the earlier one in the history of
book collection in Potala Palace.
Thub Dbang Lha Khang, namely Sakya Buddhist
Hall, is located in the southeast corner of the
corridor on sixth floor of Red Palace. It was
originally the resting hall of the seventh Dalai Lama
and was changed into a Buddha Hall in the period
of eighth Dalai Lama. In the east of this Hall, there
is a bookshelf on which there is a Tibetan Kangyur
written with gold ink which is really a set of
exquisite precious rare book. According to relevant
information, it was transcribed in the middle of
17th century CE based on Lhasa woodblock, with
a total of 115 books with gold ink writing. The
paper it used was the special black blue thick one
which is generally called indigo paper. Every cover
of the book was embossed with words written in
gold paste.
A mural at the Potala Palace, Lhasa, Tibet
Dus Vkhor Lha Khang, namely Kalacakra Hall,
is located in the east of corridor on sixth floor of
Red Palace. The bookshelf set in this hall was
stocked with mint-marked and transcribed sutras in
the period of fifth Dalai Lama including a Prajna
Paramita Putra (woodcut), Ronnie Set (woodcut),
Mani Bao Xun Set (woodcut), Kalachakra Tantra
(woodcut), Moksha (manuscript with gold ink) and
so on which are very precious.
Stupa Hall of the eighth Dalai Lama Jampal
Gyatso is located in the north side of top floor
of Red Palace and mainly used to enshrine and
worship Stupa of the eighth Dalai Lama. The
bookshelf is set up around the Stupa on which
there is a precious Kangyur manuscript (115
books) written in gold ink.
Stupa Hall of the ninth Dalai Lama Londo Gyatso
is located in the northeast side of top floor of Red
Palace and mainly used to enshrine and worship
the Stupa of the ninth Dalai Lama. Some literature
books, Buddhist relics and other precious cultural
relics are stored here. There is one Kangyur (114
volumes) on the bookshelf around the Stupa which
is the precious hand-copied rare book.
Bla MaLha Khang, namely the Guru Hall, is
located in the west side of top floor of Red Palace
and was originally the Stupa Hall of 10th Dalai
186
Cultural Contacts
and the binding is extremely luxurious. The
bookshelf displayed a book, Tengyur (225 books),
written with a special ink made from eight treasures
ie gold, silver, copper, iron, tophus, cinnabar, lapis
lazuli and sea snail its price is beyond estimation.
It is written not only in old Natang version but
with a special material which is so rare in Tibetan
books so it is called "Eight-treasure Tengyur".
Apart from it, there are respectively the volumes
of fifth Dalai Lama and sixth Panchen Erdeni and
master Tsongkhapa, the version or texture of which
is similar to that of Tengyur and can be regarded
valued edition or rare edition.
Gzum Chung Nyi Vod Shar, namely East Sunshine
Chapel, at the east of top floor of the palace, is
located in the north and faces the south. It used to
be the quarter of living up and dealing with political
and religious matters for 13th Dalai Lama of late
years and 14th Dalai Lama of early years. Lying
in the west of the chapel is the document room
for Dalai Lama to put away documents. There is
an appropriately collection of 200 to 300, most of
which is related to Prajna, Vinaya, Hetuvidya and
Tibetan Medicine.
Lam Rim Lha khang, also Bodhi Chapel, is situated
in the west of Red palace, within which the statue of
master Tsongkhapa is enshrined and a few shelves
are arranged with Bodhi Doctrines and Vajrayana
Doctrines placed as well as Tripitaka Kangyur (partial,
60 books now) written in gold ink. This book is of
smaller dimension and can only be middle-classed
Tibetan edition, while it is rare and special among
ordinary editions.
The collection chapel of Potala was not built to
be a library in history but a few chapels where
temporarily books are stored. Until today, no actual
library for storing and deploying books comes into
being. Books are mainly and successively collected
and stored in Palace when they were confronted
with damage and would be lost at the times of
Democratic Revolution and Cultural Revolution.
The quantity of these books is large and the content
comprehensive. There are four collection chapels
in Palace, one of which holds a collection of 3,000
books of a comprehensive content, classified into
10 kinds by Tibetan Buddhist sects. The second has
a collection of more than 7,000 books, mainly the
complete volumes of generations of eminent monks.
The third has a collection of more than 5,000
books most of which are partly scattered volumes
of generations of eminent monks. The fourth now
holds a collection of 10,000 books totally Tripitaka
Kangyur and Tengyur of different editions, no valued
edition or rare edition, and the remaining are
Gzungs and kinds of Prajnā, among which there are
many repetition editions. Just in Prajnā 8,000 Songs
there are over 400 books. The collection of all these
Lama. Later, Stupa Hall was moved down to the
lower floor and used to enshrine and worship the
statues of Tsongkhapa and of other gurus of Dgelugs-pa and its name was changed into Lama Lacan.
The bookshelf was set up in the west of this Hall and
there is one set of Kangyur (111 books) written with
gold ink in the period of Desi Sangye Gyats on it.
Sa Gsum Rnam Lha Khang, namely the Shusheng
Triloka Hall, is located in the south side of top floor
of Red Palace. The Kangyur written in cinnabar
Manchu is put on bookshelf arranged in the north of
Hall which was gifted to the eighth Dalai Lama by
Emperor Qianlong. This is the only Manchu Kangyur
in Tibetan areas and has very high cultural relic and
literature value.
Blos bssslangs khang, ie Tancheng Hall, situated
at the south of topper stories of Red Palace, is
originally one of the living rooms for seventh
Dalai Lama and was later changed to Tancheng
Hall. There are three big “dkyil-vkhor” displayed.
Besides, a number of documents and records were
collected in the hall which were mainly works of
the seventh Dalai Lama like Astrophytum Ornatum
1,00,000 Songs (handwritten copy by gold ink, total
12), Astrophytum Ornatum 8,000 Songs (handwritten
copy by gold ink, one), Astrophytum ornatum
20,000 Songs (handwritten copy by gold ink, 3) and
Tuoluoni (handwritten copy by gold ink, 1), Doom
A fresco from the western wall of the 2nd floor corridor of the Red
Palace in the Potala Palace, Lhasa, Tibet
(handwritten copy by gold ink, 1) all these were
transcribed at the time of seventh Dalai Lama.
Byams khang, that is Maitreya Hall, situated
in the east of the highest floor in Red Palace, is
originally the bedroom for eighth Dalai Lama and
later is changed to Maitreya Hall named Byams
khang. Within the hall, apart from lots of statues and
figures, there are a great amount of records of total
270 pieces, all of which are wrapped with yellow
silk the clamp-plates of which were made of topclassed wood and decorated with silver ornaments
187
Cultural Contacts
chapels reached to more than 25,000 books, the
quantity of which exceeds one third of the whole
collection of Potala Palace.
The biggest feature of Tibetan Buddhist books
lies in its complete classification and rich content
including the 10 subjects of Tibetan Buddhism from
philosophy, religion, doctrine, ritual, biography
and literature, astronomy, architecture to Tibetan
medicine. What is most worthy of speaking are
various eminent monks’ volumes which cover all
the classics of eminent monks from various Tibetan
Buddhist sects such as Gadang, Gelu, Ningma, Gaju,
Sajia, Juenang, Bulu, Pudong and Xijie. Especially
gsang ba rgya can, yang zab dag snang by the fifth
Dalai Lama and rgyud sde spyi rnam gzhag by
Budun Renqinzhu and rgyud sde bzhivi rnam gzhag
by Pudong Qiaoliunanjie are of great academic
values and practical meanings among the books of
Vajrayana. (Kal Sang Gyal)
Jokhang Temple (gtsug lag khang) Located
in the centre of Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region,
Jokhang Temple is the oldest Buddhist Temple in
Tibet and the holiest site of Tibetan Buddhism in
China. It was first constructed in the middle period
of 7th century CE by Princess Bhrikuti of Nepal
who was the bride of King Songtsän Gampo, 33rd
ruler (King) of Tibetan Empire. According to a
legend, Buddha Hall was built on the former site
of a lake which was filled and levelled up with soil
carried by goats to house the Shakyamuni Statue
(Akshobya Vajra), a life-size statue of the Buddha
at age of eight from Nepal brought by Princess
Bhrikuti. Therefore, Jokhang Temple is named “ra
sa vphrul snang” in Tibetan (“ra” means goat and
“sa” means earth) to commemorate those goats
and also known as “jo khang”, meaning “House of
Shakyamuni”.
The exterior architectural form of Jokhang
Temple features architectural styles and techniques
from India, Nepal and Tibet. According to the
Biography of Kings in Tibet, mandalas are carved
and painted on four gates to satisfy the wish of the
Buddhist Guru, vajry pestles are carved and painted
on pillars to meet the desire of “sngags-mang”,
swastika (Srivatsa) are carved and painted on four
corners to meet aspirations of Bonismo believers
and grill works are painted to satisfy the hope
of people in Tibet. At that time Jokhang Temple
was a three-layer temple facing the west which
represented that the Princess missed her hometown
Nepal, west of Lhasa city. On both sides of the
main shrine, there are side halls and such layout
reflects the model of the universe in Buddhism.
Many statues of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas are
enshrined and worshiped inside the Temple,
including “Ekādaśa mukhānām Avalokiteśvara”
(likeness of King Songtsem Gampo), Statues
An illustration of the fresco at the Potala Palace, Lhasa, Tibet
of Akshobya Vajra, Maitreya dharma and Arya
Tara brought by Princess Bhrikuti from Nepal.
Besides, there are statues made in Tibet by Nepal
craftsmen such as King of Great Freedom, Wrath
Tara, Arya Tara, Sarasvati, Auspicious Horsehead
King, Dragon King, Demon, Yaksha, Krishna and
Pelden Lhamo. On beams, pillars and walls in all
Halls, Buddhist scriptures and figures of Buddha
are carved and painted as well as Biography of
Kings in Tibet, all kinds of biography, cryptology
or prophesy and ritual of Bonismo. The carvings
and paintings fully reflect the concept of cultural
coexistence of foreign Buddhist culture and local
Bonismo, which has epoch-making significance in
the history of Tibetan Buddhism.
Jokhang Temple gradually formed a grand
architectural complex after expansion and
renovation several times since 7th century CE. The
most sacred Buddha statue enshrined inside the
temple has changed into the statue of Shakyamuni,
a life-size statue of the Buddha at age of 12,
which was brought by Princess Wencheng in Tang
Dynasty. In the 11th century CE, Pa Ba Xi Rao
(vphaks-pa-shes-rab), a master from Ngari Sanai
and Dui Qiong Kuo Ben, expanded Jokhang Temple
building a Buddha Hall and moulding Buddha
statues on the east. At the same time, monk groups
were established and Jokhang Temple formed the
rudiment of monastery. In Yuan Dynasty, several
188
Cultural Contacts
and investment of a large number of manpower
and material the construction was completed in 778
CE. Santaraksita and Padmasambhava held a grand
consecration ceremony for the monastery.
Designed by Santaraksita and Padmasambhava,
Samye Monastery is a grand monastery with
complete construction and unique style. There are
three versions about the reference model based on
Ou Danda Pu Li Temple in Magadha built by King
Gopala of ancient Indian Pala Dynasty, consulting
the world prospect described in Abhidharma-kosa
and imitating the Mandala in the Esoteric Buddhism.
In fact, the construction of Samye Monastery
combines different features of the mentioned three.
For example, the main temple in centre is a grand
three-storey building and represents Mt Meru, the
Buddhist universe centre. The four continents (Purva
Videha, Jambudvipa, Apara Godaniya and Vttara
Kuru) in the ocean around Mt Meru are represented
by four temples at the cardinal points, each flanked
by two smaller temples to symbolise eight islands in
the ocean. The Sun and Moon chapels stand in two
flanks of the main temple. In the four corners of the
main temple lie four Pagodas with different colour
representing different meanings. For example, the
White one is Bodhi pagoda, Red for Dharma pagoda,
Black for Dagoba and Green for Heaven pagoda.
All these Pagodas symbol the Buddhism idea of
conquering all demons and curbing all disasters.
The whole complex of Samye Monastery is
surrounded by a circular wall symbolising the
periphery of the world in Buddhism. The gates at
the four cardinal points and the eastern gate leads
to the front entrance of the hall. All of the layers
of the three-storey main temple follow different
architectural styles, the bottom Tibetan, the middle
Han and the top Indian. Statues of Buddhas and
Bodhisattvas in three layers reflect different cultural
features in three regions. For example, statues in the
first layer imitates the image of Tibetan, the second
layer Han people of Tang Dynasty and in the third
layer, Indian. It is actually a grand multi-cultural
Buddhist monastery.
Today, Samye Monastery has developed into a
comprehensive monastery of Tibetan Buddhism
integrating Nyingma, Sakya and Gelug. In 1996,
Samye Monastery was listed as one of the fourth
batch of important cultural relic sites under statelevel protection by the State Council of China. In
2005, Samye Monastery was rated as one of national
4A-level scenic spots in China.
(Kalsang gyal)
khri dpon (local officials responsible for the
administration in Tibet) made maintenance and
reconstruction and built many Buddha statues. In
Ming Dynasty, Master Tsongkhapa requested Zha
Ba Jiang Qu, the third Dharmaraja of Phagmodrupa
Dynasty to renovate Jokhang Temple on large scale.
In 1409, Master Tsongkhapa decorated the Statue of
Sakyamuni with five-dhyani Buddha Crown. Since
1642, fifth Dalai Lama and Sangye Gyatso expanded
and decorated the temple on a larger scale which
made the complex splendid and magnificent with a
completely new outlook.
In 1961, Jokhang Temple was listed as one of the
first batches of important cultural relic sites under
state-level protection by the State Council of China.
In November 2000, Jokhang Temple was included
in UNESCO’s World Heritage List as part of Potala
Palace, thus becoming the world’s cultural heritage.
(Kalsang gyal)
bsam yas dgon
Samye Monastery (bsam yas dgon) was built in
the 8th century CE. It is an old temple of Tibetan
Buddhism in China and the first standard Buddhist
monastery in the history of Tibetan Buddhism. It is
located in the north bank of Yarlung Tsangpo River
within Zhanang County, Shannan Prefecture, Tibet
Autonomous Region.
In 8th century CE, Trisong Detsen (reigned 742798 CE), the 38th ruler (King) of Tibetan Empire
invited eminent Indian Buddhist master Santaraksita
to Tibet for the second time to build standard
Buddhist monastery, conduct the tonsure for monks
and nuns and spread the Dharma and ritual. Without
extensive mass base of Buddhism believers, it was
not easy to build a Buddhist monastery in Tibet
at that time. Under such circumstances, Trisong
Detsen took all kinds of measures and eventually
Buddhism was accepted by Tibetan people. Under
the direction of Santaraksita and Padmasambhava,
the ground-breaking ceremony was held in 774 CE
and the construction of the monastery began. After
five years of concerted efforts of Tibetan people
mtho ldings dgon
Tuolinsi (Tholing Monastery) is a monastery of
Tibetan Buddhism located in in the territory of Zada
County, Ngari Prefecture of the present-day Tibet.
The main entrance of the Samye Monastery, Shannan
Prefecture, Tibet, China
189
Cultural Contacts
From the 10th-11th centuries CE, the great
lotsawa, Rinchen Zangpo (lo chen rin chen bzang
po) (958 ~ 1055 CE), Atisha (Aa ti sha) (982 ~
1054 CE) and other eminent monks and bhadant
monks ever lived in Tholing Monastery where they
have translated and preached sutras, written books
and left a profound influence on us. In 1076, King
Guger, Zander, held a huge Tibetan Dharma-cakra
Assembly in Tholing Monastery and up to 1,00,000
number of eminent monks, bhadants and Buddhist
believers attended this Assembly from everywhere.
The success of this Assembly has been recorded
into the history and is historically called “Bing
Chen Dharma Assembly” or “The Dragon-year
Dharma Assembly”.
(Kalsang gyal)
Miaoying Temple
Miaoying Temple (Miaoying Vihar) is located on the
Fuchengmen Inner Street of Xicheng district, Beijing,
and is also called as Baita Temple (White Pagoda
Temple) as a result of a white pagoda established in
Yuan Dynasty.
There was once a pagoda on the original location
of Miaoying Temple built in Changshou second year
of Liao (1096) which was damaged by war. Kublai
Khan, on the Zhiyuan eighth year of Yuan Dynasty
(1271) issued an order to rebuild a pagoda on the
basis of old one. The work was presided over by
Anika, a Nepalese architect, and went through the
entire period of eight years and eventually in 1279,
a white pagoda in Indian style was constructed.
In the same year, Kublai Khan gave another order
to build a temple centering on the white pagoda
and covering an area of 160,000 sq m and named
it Dasheng Shouwanan Temple. This temple was
finished in the Zhiyuan 25th year of Yuan (1288)
and became a royal temple and also a place where
officials learnt rituals and translated Sanskrit and
Mongolian Buddhist scriptures. A national Dharma
assembly held in the Yuanzhen first year of Yuan
(1295) presided over by the emperor attracted the
attention of more than 70,000 persons. This was the
period when the glory of White Pagoda Temple was
at its peak. However, the temple was completely
ruined by a fire caused by lightning in Yuanzheng
28th year (1368). As a result all of its palaces were
destroyed except the White Pagoda. In the eighth
year of the reign of Emperor Xuande, Ming Dynasty
(1433), he ordered to rebuild the White Pagoda and
in the Tianshun first year of Ming (1457), the temple
was rebuilt and renamed as “Miaoying Temple” with
its area reduced to 13,000 sq m. The temple was
repaired several times during the Ming and Qing
Dynasty and in the era of the People's Republic of
China. In 1900, when the Eight-Power Allied Forces
attacked and occupied Beijing, Miaoying Temple
The fresco “Birth” at Tholing Monastery, A Li region, Tibet, China
In 996 CE, the King Guger of Ngari built Tuoding
Beijilakang (mtho ldings dpal gyi lha khang) in
Ngari Prefecture modelling on Samye Monastery in
Shannan Prefecture of Tibet which later was called
Tholing Monastery and became the first monastery
built for Tibetan Buddhism renaissance. Thanks for
the vigorous support of the imperial court of King
Guger, the monastery has become the centre of
Buddhism in Ngari Prefecture.
The layout of Tholing Monastery looks like a
strip and it has such three parts as the hall, monks’
domicile and tower cluster. The main building is
the Gaza Hall which is divided into inner and outer
parts. The inner part comprises a central hall and
four small halls. The square central hall is used
to consecrate the body Mandala and the statue of
Buddha. The central hall is surrounded by corridors
that links with the four small halls. The outer part
comprises 16 halls and the circumambulation is
in the middle hall. There are four 13 m-high redbrick towers in the four corners of the outer part.
The White Hall is located on the northeast of Rally
Hall and the walls of White Hall are painted many
beautiful paintings. In addition, there are also Arhat
Hall, Maitreya Hall, Dharmapala Hall, Atisha Hall,
Rinchen Zangpo Lotsawa Hall and so on and the
figures and animal on the murals of these halls are
true to life. Tower cluster is divided into two groups,
each group has three long towers. Each long tower
consists of dozens or hundreds of the same connected
small towers which looks very spectacular. The
style of tower cluster’s construction and mural are
obviously influenced by the art of Nepal and India.
19 0
Cultural Contacts
Institute (mtshan nyid grwa tshang) beginning
the systematical spread of five regions in Exoteric
Buddhism. The monastery became a famous one
systematically preaching Exoteric Buddhism in
Amdo area. Later, the preaching was interrupted
due to some reason and did not continue again.
In 1747 (12th year of Emperor Qianlong of Qing
Dynasty), under the encourage of Ganden Tripa,
Sngags rams pa ngag dbang bkra shes, Buddha
master of Esoteric Buddhism in Lhasa began to
prepare for the construction of the Tantra Institute
(sngags pa grwa tshang). The Institute was officially
built and put into operation. In the second year,
it systematically spread Tantric four chapters and
dharma and rites. In 1775 (20th year of Emperor
Qianlong of Qing Dynasty), the Tantra Institute
expanded to a larger scale.
In 1772 (37th year of Emperor Qianlong of
Qing Dynasty), the third ChuzangAwang Tu Dan
WanCho (1725~1796) acted as the 39th abbot of
the monastery. He expanded the Sutra Hall with
huge sum of money (adding 128 columns) and
built Chuzang Buddha Palace. Later on, all Chuzang
Buddha became the head of the monastery. Although
there are stories about the Xiaqiong Monastery as the
affiliated temple of Guo Long temple, these stories
have not been generally accepted. In 1788 (53th year
of Emperor Qianlong of Qing Dynasty), Emperor
Qianlong in person conferred Xiaqiong Monastery
an inscribed board with “Fajing Si” written in Han,
Tibetan, Mongolian and Man Language.
In 1797 (second year of Emperor Jiaqing of Qing
Dynasty), the third living Buddha of Ta’er Lamasery
Zi na tshul khrims dar rgyas (1734~1802) acted as
the 46th abbot of Xiaqiong Monastery. He created
Medicine Institute (sman ba grwa tshang) which
had subjects like astronomy and medicine. In 1802
(seventh year of Emperor Jiaqing of Qing Dynasty),
Rka phug blo bzang don grub acted as the abbot of
the Medicine Institute and he adopted the advice of
Ngag dbang bspn nams, Guru of Esoteric Buddhism
and changed the Medicine Institute to Kalachakra
was looted. During the later Qing Dynasty, monks
rented the side halls and open spaces and from then
on, the temple was gradually turned into a temple
fair. Miaoying Temple was destroyed in 1966 again
and rebuilt and opened to the public in 1998.
The white pagoda at the Miaoying Temple can be
divided into three parts: stylobate, body and spire.
The stylobate is 9 m high, the pagoda measures 50.9
m in height while the base covers an area of 1422 sq
m. The shape and structure can be traced back to the
The white pagoda at the Miaoying Temple,
Beijing, China
stupa of ancient India and the design and process are
both the wise results of Anika, a Nepalese architect. In
1978, in the course of consolidating the White Pagoda,
some precious historical relics such as Tripitaka, the
wooden statue of the goddess of mercy, Five-Buddha
crown, Prajna Paramita Sutra transcribed by Emperor
Qianlong of Qing Dynasty, Usnisa Vijaya Dharani
Sutra and gold-and bronze-made Buddhism statues
stored at the top of the pagoda in the 18th year of the
reign of Emperor Qianlong were discovered.
(Xue Keqiao)
bya khyung dgon
Xiaqiong Monastery (bya khyung dgon) is a famous
monastery of the Gelug sect of Tibetan Buddhism
and its full name is “dpal ldan bya khyung theg chen
yon tan dar rgyas gling”. Located at Chafu Town,
Hualong Hui Nationality Autonomous County,
Qinghai Province, it was first constructed in 1349.
At first it belonged to Kadam and later was converted
into Gelug. Because Master Tsongkhapa became a
monk in Xiaqiong Monastery during his early years,
acknowledging Chos rje don grub rin chen as his
master, Xiaqiong Monastery got a reputation as ‘the
ancestor temple’ of the Gelug sect.
In 1623 (third year of Emperor Tianqi of Ming
Dynasty), the ninth abbot of Xiaqiong Monastery
Chos rje bstan pa rin chen set up the Tantra
Xia Qiong Temple, Hualong county, Qinghai
191
Cultural Contacts
Institute (dus vkhor grwa tshang) in which
Kalachakra method was mainly learned as well as
Panca-vidya (rig gnas lnga) subjects like astronomy,
but contents like medicine was retained.
Until the last phase of Qing Dynasty, Xiaqiong
Monastery had become a monastery with over 1,000
monks owning the Tantra Institute, Kalachakra
Institute and 25 Buddha palaces and 25 affiliated
temples. Abiding by the disciplines of Lhasa Esoteric
Buddhism and the lessons of Chogyi Gyamtsen,
eminent monk of Sera Monastery, the monks mainly
learning Esoteric Buddhism as the principal thing,
and Exoteric Buddhism as a supplementary.
Xiaqiong Monastery is famous for long history,
precise discipline and eminent monks such as
54th Ganden Tripa ngag dbang mchog ldan
(1677~1752), 58th Ganden Tripa ngag dbang
chos grags (1707~1778), 66th Ganden Tripa
ngag dbang snyan grags (1746~1824), all of
them had high reputation. With the same fame
with Guolong Temple (Youning Temple), Saike
Temple (Guanghui Temple) and Chuzang Temple
(Guangjiao Temple), the monastery is one of the
north big four temples in Ando (now Tibetan areas
in Qinghai and Gansu).
(Kalsang gyal)
A Complete Picture of the Gilded Pagoda
of the Dabaoen Temple, preserved at the
Nanjing City Archives
Temple was rebuilt and renamed as Tianxi Temple.
The name remained unchanged until the Zhiyuan
25th year of Yuan Dynasty (1288) when the temple
was renamed again by the emperor as the Yuanxing
Ci’en Jingzhongjiao Temple and the pagoda was
referred to as Ci’en Pagoda. In the early years of
Ming Dynasty, the temple was damaged in a fire
but it was restored during the period of the reign
of Emperor Yongle, Ming Dynasty (1403-1424) and
named as the Dabaoen Temple.
The coloured glaze pagoda of the Dabaoen
Temple was built by Emperor Yongle in memory of
his mother. This was 80 m in height and nearly 100
m in perimeter with nine floors and eight sides. The
cost of the entire work was 2.485 million taels of
silver in 20 years with 1,00,000 workers involved
in it. From the beginning of Ming Dynasty all the
way down to the early Qing Dynasty, the coloured
glaze pagoda of Dabao’en Temple, in westerner’s
minds, was the most unique landmark in Nanjing
and called it the Porcelain Tower of Nanjing.
Unfortunately in 1856, the temple was bombed
out by Taiping Heavenly Kingdom and laid in ruins
until 2004 when the Nanjing government began to
make preparations for the restoration of the temple.
In 2007, the preliminary work of the Dabaoen
Temple Relics Park officially kicked off and around
2008, a long-term archaeological excavation job
was carried out by some departments including the
Nanjing Museum, during which, a stone box made
in Song Dynasty was discovered which had a record
of Dānapāla (an Indian translator of Buddhist
Sutras) handing out Buddha relics, together with an
iron box containing the gilded Asokan pillar made
of seven treasures (precious metals). In 2010, this
Dabaoen Temple
Dabaoen Temple (Dabao’en Vihar) is one of the
most important ancient Buddhist temples in
China. Its predecessor is Jianchu Temple located
outside Zhonghua Gate in Nanjing. During Jin and
Southern Dynasties, it was called Chang’an Temple.
In Duangong first year of the Northern Song
Dynasty (988 CE), monk Kezheng got the parietal
bone sarira (relics) of Master Xuanzang and built
a pagoda in Chang’an Temple to store it. As time
rolled into Tianxi first year (1071), the Chang'an
A picture of the gilded pagoda of the Dabaoen Temple
(also known as the Nanjing porcelain pagoda), Nanjing,
China, painted by Dutchman John Nieuhoff during the
mid-17th century CE
19 2
Cultural Contacts
precious Asokan pillar was opened, thus bringing
the Buddha’s parietal (usnisa) sarira to light again.
(Xue Keqiao)
vbras spungs dgon
vbras spungs dgon, a well-known temple of dge lugs
pa of Tibetan Buddhism, one of three major temples
in Lhasa. The full name “dpal ldan vbras spungs
dgon” is derived from a place name in south India
where a pagoda of dpal ldan vbras spungs stood and
Buddha preached dus vkhor there. It is actually a
Buddhist shrine.
In 1416, vjam dbyangs chos rgyal (1379-1449),
disciple of Tsong kha pa, built a large temple “vbras
sungs dgon” at suburb of Lhasa (present-day western
suburb of Lhasa, Tibet) and served as abbot until he
passed away. At vbras spungs dgon, he preached the
doctrine of the compatibility of Tantric Buddhism
and Exoteric Buddhism advocated by Tsong kha
pa and attached much importance to studying and
practicing the teaching of Exoterric Buddhism.
Vbras sungs dgon founded seven grwa tshangs
(academy) namely blo gsal gling grwa tshang, sgo
mang grwa tshang, bde yangs grwa tshang, sngags
pa grwa tshangm, shag skor grwa tshang, rgyas pa
grwa tshang and vdul ba grwa tshang. Subsequently,
shag skor grwa tshang and rgyas pa grwa tshang
merged with blo gsal gling grwa tshang and vdul
ba grwa tshang integrated into sgo mang grwa
tshang, forming an academy layout of four grwa
tshangs (academy). Except that monks from sngags
pa grwa tshang specialised in practicing Tantra and
performing Tantric ritual, other grwa tshangs were
renowned as the Exoteric Academies for study into
gzhung-po-ti lnga.
The majority of erudite monks of dge lugs pa came
from sgo mang grwa tshang and blo gsal gling grwa
tshang and the teaching and ritual of vbras sungs
dgon spread across mdo khams and thereby many
Drepung Monastery, Tibet, China
well-known branch temples such as sku vbum, dgon
lung, chu bzang, gser khog, bla brang bkra shes
vkhyil and la mo bde chen were built.
In history, vbras sungs dgon was renowned as the
largest and the highest-ranking temple, housing the
most monks (quota: 7,700 monks. actual number:
over 10,000 monks) and top ranked among three
major temples in Lhasa and among temples of dge
lugs pa. After the second Dalai Lama was designated
as the living Buddha of vbras sungs dgon, the
second, third, fourth and fifth Dalai Lamas all came
from vbras sungs dgon. Meanwhile, Tibetan Karma
Phodrang regime was set up at vbras sungs dgon in
the Qing Dynasty and vbras sungs dgon enjoyed a
high status in the history of Tibetan theocracy.
Vbras sungs dgon trained a good number of
Buddhist scholars and translators who are well
versed in Tibetan and Sanskrit and houses an array
of Buddhist sutras and few Sanskrit Pattra sutras,
becoming a cultural centre for India-China cultural
exchange. In modern times, dge lugs pa spread to
India and built many large temples. For instance,
vbras sungs dgon in south India (present-day Mango
region of Karnataka) which houses over 4,500
monks now.
(Kalsang gyal)
se ra theg dgon
Se Ra Theg Dgon is a well-known temple of dge lugs
pa of Tibetan Buddhism, and one of three major
temples in Lhasa.
In 1418, byams chen chos rgyal (1354-1435), a
disciple of Tsong kha pa, built se ra theg chen gling
(se ra theg dgon for short) in the suburb of Lhasa
(present-day northern suburb of Lhasa, Tibetan
Autonomous Region).
Se ra theg dgon founded four grwa tshangs namely
rgya grwa tshang, vbrom steng grwa tshang, tod pa
grwa tshang and smad pa grwa tshang.
In 1466, gnyal ston dpal vbyor lhun grub (14271514), a disciple of eminent monk kun mkhyen blo
Catalogue of the book collection at the Drepung Monastery, Tibet, China
19 3
Cultural Contacts
a disciple of Master Tsongkhapa. And it was fully
constructed by 1459, with numbers of large and
small halls including Vajrayana Temple, Sutra Hall,
Gyeni Chanting Hall and three Dratsang (college)
like Ngang College. There were about 1,600 monks
in the monastery from Tsang, Ngari Sanai, Nepal
and Kashmir. As the abbot of the monastery for
38 years, Dge vdun grub pa promoted the canon
that Buddhist learners must abide by Lam Rim
and emphasised the practice of the Three Precepts.
He demanded the monks to abide by the religious
discipline. Tashilhunpo monastery later became the
central Monastery of the Gelug sect in Tsang region
of Tibet.
In 1601, the Fourth Panchen Lama Blo bzang
chos kyi rgyal mtshan (1567~1662) was invited
to hold the post of the 16th abbot of Tashilhunpo
Monastery. He introduced the Winsa ear preach
Tantric method of Gelug into the monastery from
Winsa chakra in Tsang (dben sa sgrub gnas) or dben
dgon and firstly established Ngang College (sngags
pa grwa tshang) which had complete educational
Sera Monastery, Lhasa, Tibet, China
gros rin chen seng ge from vbras sungs dgon founded
an academy of byes grwa tshang and established
high reputation among monks. Hence, monks from
rgya grwa tshang and vbrom steng grwa tshang
were attracted to study and practice at byes grwa
tshang and promote its development. Till 1705, se
ra theg dgon formed the temple layout consisting of
three academies namely smad pa, yes and stod pa.
In 1712, Langzang Khan (1671~1717) founded
sngags pa grwa tshang (Tantric Academy) at se
theg dgon and imposed religious ritual practices in
accordance with the canons of Gyudmed in Lhasa,
making it a large temple renowned for compatibility
of Tantric Buddhism and Exoteric Buddhism.
In the middle and late Qing Dynasty, the monk
quota of se ra theg dgon was set as 5,500 monks
and the number of monks increased to over 10,000
in the heyday, making se ra theg dgon one of
three major temples in Lhasa and one of six wellknown temples of dge lugs pa. In particular, byes
grwa tshang, smad pa grwa tshang and sngags pa
grwa tshang made a great contribution to train heir
monks and promote Buddhist dharma lineage and
they built many branch temples in remote areas
such as Amdo and mDo Khams.
The debate sutra of se theg dgon is a kind of
debate method for thinking training that applies
Hetuvidya mathematical formulaes devised by
phyogs gling (480-540 CE) and chos grags (630-700
CE). In modern times, dge lugs pa spread to India
and built a large temple named “se ra theg dgon”
in south India.
(Kalsang gyal)
Tashilhunpo Monastery, Shigatse, Tibet, China
system compatible to both Exoteric and Esoteric
Buddhism. The convention of monks going to Lhasa
Esoteric Buddhism Temple (lha sa rgyud stod smad
grwa tshang) for further study was cancelled. All
Panchen Lama acted as the abbot of the monastery
after the Fourth Panchen Lama and the monastery
became the preaching place of Living Buddha of
Panchen Lama. Historically, with the quota of 4,400
monks, the monastery was the largest one in Tsang
Region and took the same important place as the
three major temples in Lhasa. Today, the monastery
is still magnificent and splendid with a number of
palaces. With the largest copper statue of Maitreya
in the world and coffin towers of past Panchen Lama,
the monastery is actually a large-scale monastery
of Tibetan Buddhism in Shigatse region, Tibet and
even the whole Tibetan area.
(Kalsang gyal)
bkra shis lhun po dgon
Tashilhunpo Monastery (bkra shis lhun po dgon),
located at the western suburb of Shigatse city, Tibet
Autonomous Region, is a renowned monastery of
Tibetan Buddhism in China and one of the Big Six
Monasteries of the Gelug sect of Buddhism. It was
first constructed in 1447 in the Shigatse Region by
Dge vdun grub pa (dge vdun grub pa,1391~1474),
194
Cultural Contacts
sku vbum dgon
sku vbum dgon, a well-known temple of dge lugs pa
of Tibetan Buddhism and one of six major temples
of dge lugs pa. sku vbum dgon is located in presentday Huangzhong County, Qinghai Province and was
built during Ming Dynasty and entered a period
of prosperity in Qing Dynasty. At first, believers
built a pagoda in the birthplace of Tsong kha pa to
commemorate the founder of dge lugs pa. In 1560,
a local eminent monk rin chen brston vgrus rgyan
mtshan built a mediation abode. In 1577, he built a
Maitreya Hall, sku vbum dgon taking shape.
In 1612, vod zer rgya mtsho founded mtshan nyi
grwa tshang under the order of the fourth Dalai
Lama and served as an abbot. By embracing the
canon of vbras sungs dgon, he taught gzhung-po-ti
lnga of Extoretic Buddhism and named the temple,
skv vbum byams pa gling with the meaning of
Maitreya Island. Sku vbum dgon is derived from
original temple name.
In 1649, zi na legs pa rgyamtsho founded sngags
pa grwa tshang and emulated the teachings and
ritual practices of Gyudmed in Lhasa. In 1711, chu
bzang blo bzang bstan pavi rgyan mtshan founded
sman pa grwa tshang. In 1718, rgya mkhan po blo
bzang don grub founded vcham pa under the order
of the Seventh Dalai Lama. In 1757, chu bzang ngag
dbang thub bstan dbang phyug extended sman pa
grwa tshang. In 1817, che shos blo bzang bstan
pavi nyi ma (1787-1859) founded dus vkhor grwa
tshang. Till then, sku vbum dgon has developed into
a large temple that consisted of Tantric Buddhism
and Exoretic Buddhism and Panca-vidya.
In 1776, under the auspices of sangs rgyas hlun
grub, head of Lake Village, Xinachuan (present-day
Huangzhong County, Qinghai), tuvu bkwan blo
bzang chos kyi nyi ma and Aa kywa blo bzang vjam
dbyangs rgya mtsho presided over the construction
of bde gshigs mchod rten rnam brgyad as landmark
building of Sku vbum dgon according to the legend
of pad-spungs-mchod-rten. It is worth mentioning
that the butter scripture, barbola (embroidery) and
Eight Pagodas at the Kumbum Monastery, Qinghai, China
paintings (mural) with exquisite craftsmanship are
hailed as three artistic treasures and win great fame
at home and abroad.
In the heyday, sku vbum dgon housed 3,600
monks with 1,000 monks from mtshan nyid grwa
tshang and consisted of five academies namely
mtshan nyid grwa tshang, sngags pa grwa tshang,
dus vkhor grwa tshang, sman pa grwa tshang and
vcham pa. By adopting the courses offered by sgo
mang grwa tshang of vbras sungs dgon and designed
by rje btsun chos kyi rgyal mtshan (1459-1544)
from se ra theg dgon, monks there studied gzhungpo-ti lnga of Exoteric Buddhism and 300 monks
studied at mtshan nyid grwa tshang who practiced
Kriya Tantra, Carya Tantra, Yoga Tantra and Mahaanuttara Yoga Tantra including gsang vdus kyi
bskyed rdzongs and used to go to sgo mang grwa
tshang of vbras sungs dgon to further study the
doctrine of Buddhism.
There were nearly 80 living Buddha mansions in
sku vbum dgon including Aa kywa, gser khri, bla
kho, chu bzang, gser tog, shing bzav, zi na and che
shos who were conferred the title of Hutuketu or
rwa-sgreng. Among them, Aa kywa, gser khri and bla
kho were Hutuketu in Beijing and served as pe-cingyi-tham-ka-bla-ma of Lama Temple in Beijing and
Wutai Mountain in Shanxi and Aa kywa served as
the chief abbot of sku vbum dgon from generations
to generations.
In history, Ming and Qing emperors valued and
supported sku vbum dgon and eminent monks
and living Buddha such as the third, fourth, fifth,
seventh and 13th Dalai Lama and the sixth and
ninth Panchen Lama made pilgrimage, stayed and
taught at sku vbum dgon, building up its reputation,
status, influence and scale and making it one of six
major temples of dge lugs pa in Qing Dynasty. Sku
vbum dgon had a profound religion influence on
Tibet and Mongolia.
Sku vbum dgon played a vital role in India-China
Buddhist cultural exchange history. Bde gshigs
mchod rten rnam brgyad was built to commemorate
eight achievements of Buddha Sakyamuni.
The public square at the Kumbum Monastery, Qinghai, China
19 5
Cultural Contacts
Specifically speaking, Bde gshegs was built to
commemorate the birth of Buddha Sakyamuni in
Lumbini; Byang Chub was built to commemorate
Buddha Sakyamuni attaining enlightenment and
Buddhahood under the Bodhi tree; hos vkhor was
built to commemorate Buddha Sakyamuni turning
the wheel of dharma at Sarnath; Cho Vphrul was
built to commemorate Buddha Sakyamuni using
magic power to subdue tirthika; Lha Babs was built to
commemorate Buddha Sakyamuni ascending to the
heaven to preach Buddhist doctrines and descending
to the earth; Dbyed zlum was built to commemorate
Buddha Sakyamuni appeasing internal strife
between monk groups; Rnam Rgyal was built to
commemorate Buddha Sakyamuni breaking through
the shackle of birth and death; Myang Vdas was built
to commemorate Buddha Sakyamuni moving into
the realm of nirvana in Kushinagar.
Sku vbum dgon performed four Monlams every
year. Specifically speaking, Monlam in January was
performed to commemorate Buddha Sakyamuni;
Monlam in April was performed to commemorate
Buddha Sakyamuni birth, converting to Buddhism and
attaining enlightenment and Buddhahood; Monlam
in June was performed to commemorate Buddha
Sakyamuni turning wheel of dharma and Monlam in
September was performed to commemorate Buddha
Sakyamuni descending to the earth (lha babs).
(Kalsang gyal)
The Main Assembly Hall at the Guolong Temple, Qinghai, China
Buddha including five large nang chen (lcang sky,
thuvu bkwan, sum pa, chu bzang and rgyal sras) and
nine small nang chen and had 49 branch temples
across Qinghai (Huzhu, Datong and Ledou) and
Gansu (Tianzhu, Sunan and Zhangye) as well as some
branch temples in Xinjiang and northeast China.
Many celebrated Buddhist historians came from
dgon lung dgon and gave a historical portrayal
of Brahmanism and Buddhism in India. The third
Songba Buddha sum pa ye shes dpal vbyor (17041788) compiled chos vbyung dpag bsam ljon bsang
which elaborated the evolution of Indian Buddhism.
The third Tuguan Buddha thuvu bkwan blo bzang
chos kyi nyi ma (1737-1802) wrote grub mthav
thams cad kyi vbyung khungs dang vdod tshul ston
pa legs bshad shel gyi me lung, also known as thuvu
bkwangrub mthav, which classified the philosophical
schools of different religions (including Brahmanism
in India) and expound on the evolution and doctrines
of different Buddhist sects in a concise way.
(Kalsang gyal)
dgon lung dgon
dgon lung dgon is a well-known temple of dge lugs pa
of Tibetan Buddhism and one of four major temples
of Huangbei, Qinghai. Dgon lung dgon is located in
present-day Wushi Village, Huzhu County, Qinghai
Province and it is named as dgon lung byams pa gling
in full. Qing Emperor renamed it “Youning Temple”.
In 1604, the fourth Dalai Lama Yoindain Gyaco
despatched rgyal sras don yod chos kyi rgya mtsho
(birth and death unknown) to build dgon lung dgon
in Amdo and serve as an abbot. He taught gzhungpo-ti lnga to monks and preached the teachings and
ritual practices of Vbras spungs dgon across Amdo.
In 1710, the second Akiyoshi Buddha lcang
skya ngag dbang blo bzang chos ldan (1642-1714)
invited the first Vjam-dbyngs-bzhad-pa vjam
dbyang sngag dbang brtson vgrus (1648-1721) to
found sngags pa grwa tshang and impose religious
ritual practices in accordance with the canons of
Gyudmed in Lhasa, making dgon lung dgon a large
temple renowned for the compatibility of Tantric
Buddhism and Exoteric Buddhism.
In the heyday, dgon lung dgon housed 7,700
monks, outnumbering Sku vbum dgon. It founded
tshan nyid grwa tshang, rgyud pa grwa tshang, dus
vkhor grwa tshangand sman pa grwa tshang, built
over 20 mansions for eminent monks and living
chu bzang dgon
chu bzang dgon is a well-known temple of dge
lugs pa of Tibetan Buddhism and one of four major
temples of Huangbei, Qinghai. chu bzang dgon sits in
present-day Huzhu County, Qinghai Province, and it
is named as dgav ldan mi vgyur gling in full and Chu
bzang dgon in short.
In 1469, eminent monk chu bzang rnam rgyal dpal
vbyor (1578-1651) from vbras spungs dgon built dgav
ldan mi vgyur gling in vbum lung bkra shes thang,
where monks studied the courses offered by sgo
mang grwa tshang of vbras spungs dgon and founded
chu bzang dgon Buddhist dharma lineage. Before
long, chu bzang rnam rgyal dpal vbyor passed away
and his heir disciple searched for his reincarnation,
founding the chu bzang Buddha lineage.
In 1724, Chu bzang dgon was burnt down by
Manchu troops. In 1733, Qing Emperor issued an
edict of rebuilding the temple and naming it as
Guangji Temple. In 1765, Qing government bestowed
it with a plaque with the words of “Guangjiao
Temple” and allowed it to build a nine dragon wall in
19 6
Cultural Contacts
as an abbot and founded mtshan nyid grwa tshang,
attaching importance to temple education and monk
precepts.
In 1724, Nian Gengyao troop destroyed gsar khog
dgon into ruin and monks fled everywhere. In 1729,
Qing court bestowed the second Smin Grol Buddha
with a large amount of silver and gold and ordered
him to rebuild gsar khog dgon. Meanwhile, Emperor
Yongzheng awarded the temple a plaque with the
words of “Guanghui Temple”. Gsar khog dgon was
restored to its former glory.
Monks studied the course offered by sgo mang grwa
tshang of vbras spungs dgon and gzhung-po-ti lnga
of Exoteric Buddhism. Besides, they studied rig gnas
bcu and achieved accomplishments in humanism and
science fields. In particular, they specialised in study
of ancient Indian medicine and developed unique
Indian-Tibetan medicine.
(Kalsang gyal)
Quezang Temple, Qinghai, China
it. Subsequently, Qing court awarded a plaque with
words of “Permanent Protection”.
In 1866, Chu bzang dgon was burnt down by troops
again. In 1887, chu bzang blo bzang thub bstan zhabs
sgrub nyi ma (1859-1913) raised funds to rebuild chu
bzang dgon and founded mtshan nyid grwa tshang
and dua vkhor grwa tshang, resuming lineage. In its
heyday, it housed more than 300 monks. Chu bzang
dgon made a great contribution to study into Indian
astronomy and calendar.
(Kalsang gyal)
dpal yul dgon
Dpal Yul Dgon is a well-known temple of rnying ma
pa of Tibetan Buddhism and is located in present
day Baiyu County in Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture, Sichuan Province.
In 1675, chieftain Dege built a Buddhist monastery
to house local monks at his territory of dpal yul rnam
rgyal rtse. This was named as Bai yu nan jie chiang
qu lin shi (dpal yul rnam rtyal byang chub gling)
and was also known as dpal yul byang chub gling
or dpal yul dog in short. After the monastery began
to take shape, a quota of about 500 monks was fixed
for it. Further, rig vzin kun bzang shes rab (16361698 CE) was engaged as the chief abbot to improve
teaching of complete precepts from getsul to gelong,
and impose canon of abstaining from meat and drink.
The Buddhist lineage originated from Kah thog
and converted to mkhav vgro yang tig afterwards.
Meanwhile, it learned from the teaching of
dusgsummkhyen-pa chos-kyi grags-pa and founded
its own teaching and ritual practices and became
renowned as two Buddhist lineage of Kah thog in
Kham and dpal yul dog. Additionally, rig vdzin mi
vgyur rdo rje attained enlightenment as to gnam
chos thugs kyi gter kha of zab mo dag snang gi
brgyud pa lineage during meditation. Founding a
Buddhist dharma lineage inherited and preached by
dpal yul dog, he taught thereafter. Therefore, dpal
yul dog had an influence on numerous temples of
rnying ma pa. In the heyday, it housed 3,000 monks
and had hundreds of branch temples across Kham,
Amdo and dBus.
Dpal yul dog worships pad ma vbyung gnas as
patriarch and yi dam of Tantra in Tantric teachings
and ritual practice field and erected a large pad ma
vbyung gnas statue in each hall. Additionally, monks
are committed to preaching and practising rdzogs pa
gsar khog dgon
gsar khog dgon is a well-known temple of dge lugs pa
of Tibetan Buddhism and one of four major temples
of Huangbei, Qinghai. gsar khog dgon, located in
present-day Datong County, Qinghai, is named as
dgav ldan dam chos gling in full, gsar khog dgon for
short and also known as bstan po dgon, sgo mang
dgon and Guanghui Temple.
In 1650, btsan po don grub rgya mtsho (16131665) resigned from the grwa-tshang-khri-ba of dgon
lung dgon and built dgav ldan dam chos gling in gser
khog under the auspices of se chen hung thvi ji and
Aerti nit vi ching where he served as an abbot and
taught the course offered by sgo mang grwa tshang
of vbras spungs dgon.
After bstan po don grub rgya mtsho passed away,
smin grol vphrin las lhun grub (1622-1699) succeeded
The exterior of the Saike Temple, Qinghai, China
19 7
Cultural Contacts
doctrines and precepts. After they completed study,
they were assigned to administer religious affairs
in Beijing or went to Tibet or Mongolia to attend to
local religious affairs.
Dgav ldan byin chgs gling established quota of 500
monks, ranking topmost among Tibetan Buddhist
temples in the mainland. In old days, in addition
to studying and practicing teaching and ritual
practices, monks were required to take on religious
tasks assigned by court and other palaces as well as
undertake religious activities in need when emperor
did tour of inspection outside Beijing. Qing court
viewed dgav ldan byin chgs gling as imperial ancestral
temple and designated imperial clan members and
princes to administer religious affairs. Additionally, it
set up the Lama office to administer Tibetan Buddhist
temples in capital, Eastern Mausoleum, Western
Masoleum, Rehe and Wutai Mountain.
The rituals followed the canon of major temples of
dge lugs pa of Tibetan Buddhism and dgav ldan byin
chgs gling served a temple for common monks to
convert to Buddhism and practice dharma as well as
an important religious site favored by Qing emperors.
In 1780, the sixth Panchen Lama preached dharma
The exterior of the main hall of the Baiyu Monastery at Ganzi
(Garze/Kandze), Qinghai, China
chen po, showing dpal yul dog forging a close-knit
link with Indian Buddhist culture.
(Kalsang gyal)
Yonghegong Temple
dgav ldan byin chgs gling is a well-known temple of
dge lugs pa of Tibetan Buddhism, the first imperial
temple in Beijing, located in present-day Dongcheng
District, Beijing.
Reputed as the first imperial temple of Tibetan
Buddhism, Dgav Ldan Byin Chgs Gling enjoys a high
religious status and has a profound influence on
politics, economy and culture in Tibet and Mongolia.
In 1744, Qing Emperor Qianlong issued an edict of
rebuilding dgav ldan byin chgs gling into a Buddhism
Temple and named it as dgav ldan byin chgs gling
with the meaning of magnificent island. The tablets
bearing his inscription were put up in west and east
pavilions in front of the Hall of Heavenly Kings, with
the tablet carrying Manchu and Chinese erected in
east pavillion and the tablet carrying Mongolian and
Tibetan stood in the west pavillion.
dgav ldan byin chgs gling founded mtshan nyid
grwa tshang, sngags pa grwa tshang, sman pa grwa
tshang and dus vkhor grwa tshang and eminent
Tibetan monks served as mkhan po. From the entire
layout of the temple, dgav ldan byin chgs gling
placed emphasis on Tantra. Apart from mtshan nyid
grwa tshang, other grwa tshangs all closely linked
to Tantra. Specifically speaking, sngags pa grwa
tshang specialised in studying into Tantric doctrine,
teaching tantric initiation and ritual practices and
enlightening virtuous disciples; sman pa grwa tshang,
Tantric lineage, studied into astronomy and calendar
and preached Kalachakra lineage; dus vkhor grwa
tshang studied into rgyud-bzhi and Somaratsa and
performed Tantric rituals.
Monks were selected from young intelligent people
from 49 Mongolian banners, seven Khalkha clans
and Chinese and Tibetan Regions and edified into
eminent monks who respected for national policies,
behaved in good manner and excelled in Buddhist
Yonghegong Temple, Beijing, China
and precepts for Emperor Qianlong in a hall at dgav
ldan byin chgs gling and posterity named the hall as
“Ordained Platform” which was opened to the public
for admiration and worship.
Dgav ldan byin chgs gling played a vital role in
India-China Buddhist cultural exchange and it is
renowned as a unique temple that integrates Chinese
palace architectural layout with Indian Buddhist
cultural elements.
(Kalsang gyal)
Eight Temples of Chengde
Eight Outer Temples is an imperial temple group
of Qing Dynasty and also the collective name of
eight temples to the northeast of Chengde Mountain
Resort. Because Chengde sits outside Beijing and the
Great Wall, the temples are collectively called Eight
Outer Temples.
19 8
Cultural Contacts
Dashidawa Tribe. It alluded to stabilising afar and
consolidating frontier.
In 1766, Qing Court built Pule Temple to mark the
surrender of Torgut, Kazakh, Bulut and other tribes
with the meaning of intimate unity of all ethnic
groups and universal rejoicment and offer a place to
aristocracy of all ethnic groups in northwest China
(Kazakh, Uygur and Kirgiz) who had audience with
Qing emperors for worshipping Buddha.
In 1767, Qing Court issued an edict of emulating
Potala Palace to build Putuozongcheng Temple,
commonly known as the Mini-Potala Palace. In 1771,
the construction was completed and magnificent
Putuo Zongcheng Temple was ranked at the top in
size in Rehe. In the same year, Emperor Qianlong
met with Ubashi, head of Torghut in the Hall of
Unification of All Dharma, and held grand religious
activities for preaching sutra and celebrating birthday
at Putuozongcheng Temple.
In 1774, Qing Court issued an edict of emulating
Shuxiang Temple on Wutai Mountain to build
another Shuxiang Temple in Rehe (Chengde) as an
imperial temple. Manchu monk served as an abbot
and it established the quota of 50 lamas who were
selected from Manchu monks from Miaoying Temple
in the capital and specialised in study into sutras in
Manchu. As Emperor Qianlong pointed out, sutras
in Sanskrit sourced from India and were translated
into Tangut language, Chinese and then Mongolian
during the reign of Emperor Kangxi and Qianlong.
In the heyday, Qing Court should not have no sutras
in Manchu and thus set up a sutra academy to do
translation. In 1772, Qing Court set up the sutra
academy in the capital and it took nearly 20 years to
complete the compilation and translation of Tripitaka
in Manchu. There were a total of 12 sets of blockprinted Tripitaka in Manchu and one set was stored
in Shuxiang Temple for Manchu monks there to recite
and practice.
In 1780, the sixth Panchen Lama went to Rehe
(Chengde) to celebrate Emperor Qianlong’s 70th
birthday and Emperor Qianlong deemed that it
showed the symbol of the golden era of the Qing
Putuo Zongcheng Temple, Chengde, Hebei, China
In the reign of Emperor Kangxi and Emperor
Qianlong in Qing Dynasty, 12 Tibetan Buddhist
temples namely Furen Temple, Fushan Temple,
Puning Temple, Puyou Temple, Anyuan Temple,
Pule Temple, Putuozongcheng Temple, Guang’an
Temple, Suxiang Temple, The Hall of Arhan, Xumi
Fushou Temple and Guangyuan Temple, were built.
In 1713, Mongolian princes sought permission for
building Furen Temple and Fushan Temple in Rehe
to celebrate the 60th birthday of Emperor Kangxi.
In 1755, Qing Court quelled Dzungar Dawats
separatist force. Following the teachings of a temple
outstripping 1,00,000 soldiers and governing Oirat
by virtue of Tibetan Buddhism taught by forefathers,
Emperor Qianlong issued an edict of emulating
bSam yas gtsug lag khang to build Puning Temple in
Rehe (Chengde) and personally inscribed on Puning
Temple Tablet, Gedeng Mountain Battle Tablet and
Quelling Dzungar Leming Yili Tablet in Chinese,
Manchu, Mongolian and Tibetan to commemorate
quelling Oirat Dzungar Tribe and express the good
wishes of living and working in peace for ever.
Puning Temple served as a political and religious
link between Tibet, Mongolia and Qing central
government and developed into topmost Tibetan
Buddhist Temple in Rehe.
In 1760, the birthday of Emperor Qianlong and
Empress Dowager happened to coincide with the
quelling of Northwest Frontier Rebellion by Manchu
troops and thus Emperor Qianlong issued an edict
of building Puyou Temple beside Puning Temple to
have celebration. Puyou Temple was renowned as
sutra academy for studying Buddhism and cultural
knowledge and it founded mtshan nyid grwa tshang,
sngags pa grwa tshang, dus vkhor grwa tshang, and
sman pa grwa tshang. Monks participated in statutory
Buddhist activities and they studied and practiced
the doctrines of Tantra, Exoteric Buddhism and rig
gnas che chung bcu including Tibetan medicine,
astronomy and calendar.
In 1764, Qing Court emulated Gu’erzha Temple, a
Tibetan Buddhist centre by the Yili River in Xinjiang
Province, to build Anyuan Temple, commonly
known as “Yili Temple” as the place for believers
to worship Buddha to appease surrendered Oirat
Gilded archway of the Putuo Zongcheng Temple, Chengde, Hebei, China
19 9
Cultural Contacts
Dynasty. Therefore, he issued an edict of emulating
Tsang Tashilhunpo Monastery to build Xumi
Fushou Temple as the palace for the sixth Panchen
Lama in Rehe. The luxurious and magnificent
temple built Jixiangfaxi Hall as bedroom and
Miaogaozhuangyan Hall for preaching sutras.
Before the sixth Panchen Lama had audience,
Emperor Qianlong studied Tibetan in advance.
When Emperor Qianlong met him, they greeted
each other warmly in Tibetan and the Emperor
listened to the sixth Panche Lama preaching
Longetivity Sutra in the Miaogaozhuangyan Hall.
The rest of temples such as Guang’an Temple,
The Hall of Arhan and Guangyuan Temple were all
built for Mongolian and Tibetan aristocrats to have
audience with the emperor in Rehe.
Out of 12 Tibetan Buddhist temples, the Hall of
Arhan, Guang’an Temple and Pule Temple were
administered by Imperial Clan Court and other nine
temples (Puyou Temple affiliated to Puning Temple)
set up eight administrative agencies and Qing Court
sent monks. Tulergi golo be dasara jurgan was
responsible for paying salary every month and a
Lama office was set up to administer these monks.
The Eight Outer Temples is a representative Buddhist
temple complex as a fusion of India-China culture
and architectural arts which should be learned from
each other by India and China.
(Kalsang gyal)
CE, archaeologists excavated a stone pot with
osseous remains. On the pot was engraved Brahmi
which was popular for several centuries before
Christ and meaning that Buddhist relics worshipped
by the Sakya clan. Besides, carved stones which
were built when Asoka made an inspection tour
were discovered in Kapilavastu. These discoveries
verified its probable geographical location, where
the Nepal government has continuously carried out
archaeological excavation afterwards.
The father of Sakyamuni was the king of Kapilavastu
with the name of Śuddhodana (śuddhodana), (King
Suddhodana in Chinese translation). The mother of
Sakyamuni was named Maha Maya(Mahàmàyà),
the eldest daughter of Suprabuddh, the castellan
of Devadaha which was just across the river from
Kapilavastu. As was the Shakya tradition when
his mother Queen Maya became pregnant, she left
Kapilvastu for her father's kingdom to give birth.
However, her son was said to have been born on the
way at Lumbini Park which is now the Luo Meide
monastery in a village in south Nepal.
There was no specific record on the year of birth
of Sakyamuni from ancient books and records
in ancient India and the legends of countries and
research of scholars generally tried to prove from
historical records of Buddhism and calculation from
Personalities
Indian Personalities
Sakyamuni
Sakyamuni (Śàkyamuni) is the founder of Buddhism.
Buddha's own name is Siddhartha (Siddhàrtha),
meaning "righteousness achiever". His surname
is Gautama. Since his father was a member of
the Sakya clan, after he got enlightened, he was
respectfully referred to as Sakyamuni, meaning
the sage of the Shakya clan. Siddhartha was also
known as the Buddha (Enlightened) or Bhagawan
(Bhagavàna) and so on.
Early life
By tradition, he is said to be the prince of Kapilavastu,
a descendant of Iksvaku, famous imperial kinsmen of
the Vedic Period in ancient India. And he belonged
to the Kshatriya caste. Annexed to the Kingdom
of Kosala (Koṣala), Kapilavastu was a small town
with settlements of the Sakya clan in the Himalayan
foothills, now the vicinity of Tilauakot in the south of
Nepal, adjacent to India. When Faxian visited India
in 4th century CE, Kapilavastu was declining with
each processing day. At the end of the 19th century
Śākyamuṇī Buddha
the year of death. So there have been as much as 60
different versions. And there is a difference of several
hundreds of years between the earliest version and
the latest one. In Theravada Buddhism countries as
Sri Lanka, India, Burma (Myanmar), Thailand, Laos,
Cambodia and so on, it is generally acknowledged
200
Cultural Contacts
Sakyamuni was born in 624 BCE and died in 544
BCE, the anniversary of nirvana of Sakyamuni.
Unlikely, Western scholars have different theories
on the death year which varies from 489 BCE, 487
BCE, 486 BCE, 484 BCE, 483 BCE, 482 BCE, 478 BCE
to 477 BCE. According to Samantapa translated by
Sanghabhadra, a translator in Chinese Southern Qi
Dynasty (479-502 CE), Upali collected Vinaya rules
at the same year of Parinirvana and marked a point
on the back of the book on July 15 that year and
from that year on, a point was added each year. And
there were 975 points altogether until the seventh
year of Yongming in Southern Qi Dynasty (489 CE).
Scholars of modern China concluded that Sakyamuni
was born in 565 BCE and died in 486 BCE, almost
the same as Confucius, his contemporary in the
spring-autumn and Warring States Period of China
but died seven years earlier. This theory has also
been accepted by Buddhist scholars in Japan, India
and so on.
Buddha's mother, Queen Maya, died seven days
later after his birth. In his childhood, Siddhartha
was brought up by his mother's younger sister,
Maha Pajapati(Mahàprajàpatã). He learned all
knowledge and skills (ie five branches of knowledge)
that should be equipped by imperial kinsmen at
that time. When he reached the age of 16 (other
versions mention 17 or 18), he married his cousin
named Yaśodharā (Yaṣodharā) and had a son named
Rahula (Rāhula).
Ruins of Lumbini, Nepal
not bring him the way of spiritual liberation, so he
finally gave up the throne and left home to practice.
After becoming a monk, he initially went to
Uruvela of Bhaàrgava where he met many other
practitioners who tormented their bodies through
ascetic practices to ensure spiritual liberation.
Unsatisfied by such kinds of behaviours Sakyamuni
left after staying just one night. His father was very
sad on the news of his becoming a monk and since it
was in vain to persuade him to give up, he sent five
people from the same clan to accompany him.
Sakyamuni went to the south and crossed over the
Ganges River to Rajgir, capital of Magadha, where
King Bimbisara (Bimbisàra) met him. Later, he
visited two Samkhya embracers recluse in wooded
mountains near Rajgir and learned meditation from
them. However, from Sakyamuni’s opinion, their
doctrine was still not the truth to real freedom of
life. So he came to the riverside of Nairanjana to
take meditation thinking and asceticism. Six years
later, he did not attain his goals and decided to
abandon apastia and austerity and seated under
a Pippinga where he sat with lotus position, for
tranquil contemplation and meditation until he
finally found the truth at the age of 35.
Ascetic Life
Buddha's noble life was very affluent and
comfortable. Volume 29 in Madh Yamagama-sutra
recorded his memories about royal life. He owned
three palaces for comfortable living in different
seasons, one for cold winter, one for hot summer
and one for humid rainy season. With expensive
clothes and delicious food, he appreciated singing
and dancing in the court and enjoyed the joy of
all. His father, King Suddhodana, also placed great
hopes on him. He hoped his son inherit the throne
and become Chakravartin unifying the entire
country. However, Sakyamuni left home to practice
at the age of 29 (19 in another version). The causes
included both social and personal factors.
On the era of Buddha, countries of Ancient India
sent armed forces to suppress and annex each other,
and there were very sharp class and ethnic tensions.
His Shakya clan was threatened by neighbouring
countries and at a precarious situation. He forecast
the country would end up in destruction, so he
believed the world was “changeable”. In addition, he
witnessed people grew old, sick and dead after one’s
birth, and thought he could not get away from the
same fate. Therefore, he was vexed by hard suffering.
The thoughts and acts of Brahman at the time could
Travels and Teaching
After attaining Enlightenment, Sakyamuni formed
his unique ideas on observation and analysis. He
began to travel and teach for 45 years in order
to make his thoughts understood and accepted.
He travelled to the Deer Park near Benares (now
Varanasi) where he set in motion what Buddhists
call the Wheel of Dharma by delivering his first
sermon including Four Noble Truths, 12 Nidanas,
bodhipakṣa dharma, five accumulations, four
meditations and triple brightness and so on to the
five companions, all of whom become the first batch
of disciples of Buddha called arahants. At the same
time, he persuaded Yasa, son of Banares superior
and his relatives and friends to practice religion as
well as Sariputta and Maudgalyayana. Hereafter,
he persuaded many of his relatives like his younger
male cousin, Devadatta, his son, Rahula and so on
to turn to Buddhism.
201
Cultural Contacts
Formation of the Sangha
The main area of Sakyamuni’s teaching was
Majjhimdesa in the Ganges River basin, covering
approximately Kapilavastu to the north, Rajgir to the
south, Campà to the east and Kosambi to the west.
The influenced areas of his direct disciples included
downstream regions of the Ganges River basin to
the east, the Godavari riverside to the south, the
Arabian Sea coastwise to the west and Takxila to the
northwest (now Takxila is in Pakistan). The places
where the Buddha stayed longest were Sravasti in
Kosala and Rajgir in Magadha. In Sravasti, there
was Jetavana (also named as Jetavana Vihara)
donated by a rich merchant Sudatta and Prince Jeta.
While in Rajgir, there was Kalandaka Venuvana,
an important place for Sakyamuni to deliver his
During his teaching, Buddha established a Buddhist
organisation -- sangha (Samgha). It is generally
believed that Sangha begins from his first sermon
at Deer Park and five arahants turned to Buddhism.
This Samgha expanded gradually in the process
of preaching. At the beginning, the Samgha only
recruited male disciples (Buddhist monk), later
after the recruitment of his mother's younger sister,
Pajapati, female disciples (Buddhist nuns) were
also adopted.
At an early stage, there was no strict system in
Samgha. Everyone, noble or cheap, whatever his
caste was, he could join Samgha as long as with
beliefs in the ideas of Buddha. And they led equal
life inside Samgha. Later on, in order to prevent the
Samgha in disorder and avoid discording with the
legal orders and moral principles of secular society
and promote a better implementation of activities in
Samgha, specific rules were made to restrict slaves,
debtors, murderers, robbers (except penitential
ones), disabled, patients and people under 20 years
old to join the Samgha.
At first, Sangha travelled to beg for food, without
settled dwelling. Later, Buddhist temples began
to be built at places where monks locate to adapt
living and assembly needs in rainy season. During
monks’ group living, detailed rules and regulations
were formulated on dressing, diet, utensils, rites,
residence and medicine, serving as common
commandment abided by all members of Sangha.
At the same time of establishing Sangha, Buddha
granted corresponding status to believers at home.
Any layman abided by the five commandments
including ahimsa could become a disciple of Buddha
and reach the same nirvana through practice. By
tradition, Yasa’s father and mother were the earliest
Buddhism followers - Upasaka and Upasika. Later
on, the number of believers grew constantly, and
became a side-by-side social power advocating
Buddhism with Sangha.
A sculpture depicting the birth of the prince, Lumbini
sermon. It was also said he once stayed in Vrji,
Anga, Malla, Kàṣã and other countries.
Sakyamuni delivered his sermon to all castes
and stratums at that time including Brahman,
Sramana (holy man), kings, ministers, merchants,
handicraftsman, fishermen and even prostitutes and
robbers and so on. Many persons of royal lineage
and rich and powerful people offered strong political
and economic supports.
Sakyamuni delivered his sermon in different ways,
not to stick to one pattern. On different occasions,
he utilised various forms like gatha, prose, tales,
metaphors, statements, questions and answers and
so on... to deliver different contents to different
objects. He taught monks about understanding life
and death to attain supreme enlightenment while
he discussed with layman about morality and doing
good works. He allowed his disciples to deliver
sermon with local dialects instead of normalised
Sanskrit. All these made his thoughts widely spread
in the society.
Nirvana
Sakyamuni resided in Rajgir in his old age. It was
said that he once convened monks there for many
times. He told them about principles of keeping
Sangha unfading, and required them to “act in
accordance with dharma, not anything else”. Then he
left Rajgir for the north, beginning his last travelling
and teaching. He led his disciples travelling across
Nalanda and Patna, crossing the Ganges River and
arriving at Vaishali where he got consecrated by
Amrapali, a local rich prostitute. Later they got to
Venuvana, neighbouring Vaishali. It was the rainy
season and Sakyamuni decided to settle down there,
only with Ananda accompanying him and other
disciples dispersed to live in other places. During
202
Cultural Contacts
and Mulasarvastivada Vinaya miscellaneous and so
on recorded his life in the old age.
Afterwards
With the development of Buddhism in the Indian
subcontinent, the unified Buddhism was divided into
many factions. At the same time, with influences
from idolatry in Hinduism and Jainism and from
Greek cultures, in sectarian Buddhism, there
appeared worships to Sakyamuni, describing the
Buddha to have far-reaching supernatural powers
and formidable forces and own great wisdom with
physical characteristics of the Buddha and 80 kinds
of good virtues such as arms over knees, cheeks
like full moon, sound far-reaching and chests with
swastika etc. As a result, special scriptures went
to earth to record the life of Sakyamun, Buddha’s
life, enlightenment and deeds such as Cāryānidāna
(also named Life of Buddha, Cause and Effect in
Past and Now, Deeds of Buddha) and Lalitavistara
sutra and so on. Their characteristics are to integrate
materials scattered in collections of Sutras and
Vinaya, join together all deeds to form into the
biography of Buddha. However, in content, they
are merely rendering the deification of Buddha,
making him an idealised worship sage. The longest
one simply describes the first few years’ life of the
Buddha after his enlightenment. Later, Ma Ming
wrote Buddhacarita, the first complete biography
based on legends and materials, describing all life
experience of Buddha.
Statue depicting nirvāna of Śākyamuṇī
the rainy season, he got serious disease. After that,
he continued his journey to northwest to deliver his
sermon. In the mango park of whitesmith Cunda
in a village in South Malla, Sakyamuni ate food
consecrated by him and got poisoned and diarrhoea
and in turn, his state of illness became serious. When
he reached the Hain Salavana nearby Kushinagara,
he lied at the right side and got nirvana between
two itsuki sara. Before nirvana, he warned his
disciples to perform diligent practice and delivered
his sermon to Subhaadra, a Brahman who begged
for an audience, making him his last disciple. He
died at the age of 80.
After his death, his remains were cremated. His
osseous remains (Buddhist relics) were divided
up by eight kings including Ajatshatru who built
dagoba to enshrine so. That is the legendary of
“eight kings dividing Buddhist relics”.
Historical Materials
There is no specialised record in Agama and Tripitaka,
both of which are early Buddhist classics about the
deeds in the entire life of Sakyamuni. The collector of
Tripitaka mainly recorded the words of Sakyamuni.
But in the words in collections of Sutras and Vinaya,
every teaching and the reason to formulate the
first commandment were recorded and narrated in
detail. Although these records are fragments, they
contained memories of people directly contacted by
the Buddha on his thoughts and acts (it is impossible
to verify its reliability). In addition, the collections
of Sutras and Vinaya, recorded his experience in
early life through Shakyamuni’s own voice. Among
early collections of Sutras and Vinaya, Dirghagamasutra recorded the family of Sakyamuni and how
he became a monk; Dhammacakkappavattana Sutra
and others in Samyuktagama-sutra, recorded the first
turning of the Wheel of the Dharma; Mahasanghavinaya, dharmagupta-vinava, Rule of fifth and
sutras in Agama recorded some teaching activities;
Travelling Sutra (also named as Sacred Books of the
East, Mahaparinirvana-sutra) in Dirghagama-sutra
A Thangka painting depicting the Jātaka stories from the life of
Śākyamuṇī Buddha
203
Cultural Contacts
Sutra, Maudgalyāyana’s mother went to hell due to
sins and he was very sad and determined to save
his mother. Afterwards with the help of Buddha, his
mother was saved. The Sutra was popular in China
for over 1,500 years and the story was deduced into
various novels and plays scripts and became popular
in the folk with large influence. Maudgalyāyana has
also been regarded as the model of Chinese filial
piety and got respect and praise.
(Xue Keqiao)
Many monks in ancient China wrote biography of
Sakyamuni, like Buddha, composing of five volumes
by Sengyou in Liang Dynastry and Pedigree of
Buddha, composing of one volume by DaoXuan in
Liang Dynastry. In addition, there was Hierarch
Biographic Sketches of Sakyamuni Buddha in
annalistic style in The Chronicle of the Buddha by
Zhipan in Song Dynasty in ancient China.
Historical materials about Buddha's life include
not only classic records in Buddhist scriptures but
also cultural relics. In modern times, archaeologists
and Buddhist masters from India and other
countries have excavated in succession a batch
historical sites and cultural relics at Buddha’s
birthplace and places of Enlightenment, the Wheel
of Dharma, nirvana and so on, according to records
in Travelling Around India by Faxian and Records of
the Western Regions of the Great Tang by Xuanzang
and incomplete historical materials conserved in
India and on this account proved that Buddha was
a real person in history.
(Bian Bu)
Asoka
Asoka (2731-232 BCE), as one of the early empire
builders of pre-Christian ancient India who made
himself well-known simultaneously as a great
conqueror, a builder, an administrator, a statesman
and a patron of Buddhism with unparallel devotion
and dedication. Historical documents reveal that he
was exceedingly violent and cruel in the early phase
of his life while being engaged in power struggle
with his brothers in a bid to occupy the throne. But
later on embraced Buddhism by renouncing violence
and hatred altogether. A careful study of this ancient
emperor, therefore, may be divided into two phases
based on the turning point in his life brought about
by the devastating effect of the Kalinga War that he
waged in the ninth year of his formal coronation.
The empire that he built with Pataliputra as its
capital was wide indeed, being comprised of the vast
areas extending from the Himalayas in the north to
Karnataka in the south and from Bengal and Kalinga
in the east to Afghanistan in the west.
A wealth of information about Asoka’s life and
exploits is available from literary traditions, foreign
accounts as well as his own sayings engraved on rocks
and stone pillars. The Gujarra, Nittur, Udegolam
and the Maski versions of the Minor Rock Edict 1
are the only four inscriptions which refer to him by
the name “Ashok” which implies the meaning of
“painless or without sorrow” in Sanskrit. Elsewhere
in other inscriptions he is generally mentioned as
Devanampriya (beloved of the gods), Priayadarshi
(one who glances graciously upon all2) Raja. Most
probably Asoka adopted such titles only after his
initiation into Buddhism.
Asoka was the third in the line of succession among
the Maurya emperors after his great grandfather
Chandragupta, the founder of the dynasty and his
father, Bindusara. According to tradition, Asoka was
solemnly enthroned at Pataliputra in 273 BCE and
died after a glorious reign of about 36 or 37 years,
in or about 232 BCE.
The Kalinga war marks a watershed in the life of
Asoka; it was the harbinger of the second phase of
his career, by changing him into a Dharma-soka (the
pious Asoka) from the earlier alleged title of ChandaAsoka (the fierce Asoka). What brought about the
Mahamaudgalyayana
Muqianlian
(Maudgalyayana
or
Mahāmaudgalyāyana) was one of the 10 closest
disciples of Gautam Buddha. His full name was
Mahāmaudgalyāyana but in translation is also
referred to as Maudgalyayana. The abbreviation
name of Maudgalyayana is, however, popular among
the Chinese folks. According to “Fobenxingjijing”,
Maudgalyayana was born in a Brahman family in
the suburbs of Rajgir, Magadha (near Nalanda,
Bihar). He led the followers to convert to Buddhism
together with his townsman, Sāriputta. According
to legends, he had obtained supernatural power so
he can ascend to the heaven or descend to earth and
was known as “the one with largest magical power”
among the 10 disciples. According to Ullambana
Mahāmaudgalyāyana
204
Cultural Contacts
The notable features of Asoka’s reign are marked
by three-fold characteristics mentioned below.
First, he represented the theology of peace and
brotherhood after he became a Buddhist, adopted
a policy of tolerance towards all other religious
sects and thus espoused the cause of secularism
as the core value of his overall religious and
spiritual administration. In recognition of his great
contribution towards building a secular state by
the government of modern India, the emblem of
Republic of India, is marked with the Lion Capital of
Asoka. Secondly, he was the first emperor in India
to record his own ideas and activities (the first time
in written language known as Brahmi script) in the
annals of Indian history. Thirdly, Asoka sought to
convert Buddhism into a world religion. To attain
this objective, he despatched many emissaries to
foreign lands for the propagation of the Buddhist
faith. He sent his son, Mahendra and daughter,
Sanghamitra to spread it in Sri Lanka and many
other famous Buddhist monks (Bhikshus) to other
countries like Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand,
Vietnam, Iran, Egypt and Turkey. It is through such
emissaries that Asoka wanted to impress upon the
turbulent tribesmen and hostile neighbours that
the true mission of life lies in the “conquest of men
by morality” rather than the “conquest by force
of arms”. “The reverberation of laws (Dhammaghosha) should be accepted as superior to “the
reverberation of war-drums” (Bheri-ghosha). It
Lion Capital from the Ashokan Pillar at
Sarnath, India
change in him may be enumerated here? The first
cause is that the sight of misery and bloodshed
caused by the war he fought struck the emperor’s
conscience and awakened a sense of sincere feelings
of repentance and sorrow. Secondly, Buddhism that
strongly focussed on non-violence and toleration in
all forms of human thought, conduct and behaviour
served as a spiritual resort for the great emperor to
preach and propagate the values of humanitarianism
to win human hearts and maintain durable peace
and prosperity in the society.
Asoka, having come in contact with the Sangha
(Order of the Buddhist Monks), made a deep study of
the Buddhist scriptures and undertook many “tours
of morality” (Dhamma yatra) instead of the “pleasure
tours” (Vihar yatra) of his ancestors. Thereafter,
Asoka totally abjured coercion and violence
even in matters of the political administration of
his state but he assumed the role of a moral and
ethical administrator of society and people so that a
harmonious society could be built up based on the
virtues of truth, non-violence and toleration to give a
lingering life to his empire. In pursuit of this goal, he
established a department of religious affairs which
was conducted by a class of special officers called
Dhamma Mahamatras who had to set out on tours of
inspection in all the parts of the empire at least once
in five years to supervise the cultural works being
carried out by the local officers. Wherever Asoka
went on Dhamma yatra (tour of Dhamma or Dharma),
he used to enjoin that all his instructions were to be
engraved on rocks and stone pillars so that the pious
messages that he wanted to convey could be read by
all concerned and put into practice in their practical
life in all possible ways and manners. Large numbers
of “Pillars of morality” (Dharma-stambha) were thus
constructed throughout his empire.
Asokan Stone Pillar at Lingshan Shengjing at Wuxi, Jiangsu, China
205
Cultural Contacts
directly refer to the Four Noble Truths, he does use
the word majhan (middle) in the Separate Rock
Edict I. The Samgha or Buddhist monastic order,
is mentioned in Minor Rock Edict I, Bairāt Edict,
Pillar Edict VII and Schism Edict. On the actual
extent of his patronage to Buddhism, the edicts are
silent, but Buddhist traditions both of the Thervāda
and Mahāyāna greatly appreciate his patronage.
Dīpavamsa and the Aśokavādana both assert that
Aśoka after his conversion to Buddhism, built
84,000 Buddhist stūpas. He repaired or enlarged the
stūpa of Buddha Konākamma in the Nepalese Terai
and visited Lumbini, the birthplace of Lord Buddha
(Rummindei Pillar edict). It was during Aśoka’s
reign that Buddhist Samgha underwent further reorganisation with the meeting of the Third Buddhist
Council at Patliputra in 250 CE. This re-organisation
initiated the process of schism in Buddhism and
is reflected in the Schism Edict. In this, Aśoka
expressed his anxiety to maintain the unity of the
Samgha and to secure the expulsion from it of all
such monks and nuns if indulged in schism.
The decision to send missionaries to various parts
of the subcontinent and even further, and to make
Buddhism an actively proselytising religion, appears
to have been taken at the Third Buddhist Council,
leading eventually to the propagation of Buddhism
all over Asia by the turn of the Common Era. Aśoka
mentions various contemporaries in the world to the
west with whom he exchanged diplomatic missions,
such as Antiochus II of Syria (260-246 BCE), Ptolmey
II Philadelphus of Egypt (285-247 BCE) and others
in Major RE XIII. He also informs us about Mauryan
relations with Sri Lanka (Tambapamnī).
The ideology of Buddhism guided Aśoka’s state
policy at home and abroad. His obligation as a king
and statesman, however, insisted that all religions
must be respected. Divergent forces such as multiple
cultural and social systems, rapid urbanisation
and complexities of a vast empire further added
to the situation. All these played a role in Aśoka’s
formulation of his Dhamma, the universal law or
is claimed that Asoka’s policy of Dhamma-vijaya
(Dharma-vijaya) met with phenomenal success in
Western Asia but it was not favourably accepted by
the Greeks. However, it is alleged that his policy
of pacifism later on proved to be disastrous for the
survival and continuity of the Murya empire and
as the historical evidences show, the Greek forces
poured into the Kabul Valley, Punjab and even
the Gangetic region, bringing about the gradual
disintegration and collapse of the great empire of
the Maurya kings.
Asoka became well-known to the enlightened
Chinese society and the people as A-Yu-Wang
(阿育王) in Chinese through the translation of
Buddhist text “Divyavadana” which gives, besides
many religious tales, a graphic account of him as a
great patron of Buddhism, a philanthropist, a saint,
a religious and a social reformer of superb ability
and talent. Asoka’s reputation as the brightest
luminary in the political firmament of India remains
undiminished till this day.
1 The formal coronation of Asoka seems to have
occurred in 269 BCE.
2 The term also means "one who looks after the
welfare of all and one who is handsome".
(Arttatrana Nayak)
Asokan Inscriptions
The edicts of Aśoka, the great Mauryan king (268231 CE), are found as inscriptions in various parts
of his empire and speak of his concerns both
as a king and as a Buddhist and above all, as a
human being. The inscriptions are written in three
different languages — Prakrit, Indo-Aramaic and
Greek and in four scripts viz Brahmi, Kharosthi,
Aramaic and Greek. Ever since the inscriptions
were fully deciphered by James Princep in 1839
CE, they have added significantly to the legends of
Aśoka and introduced many new perspectives in
early Indian history.
Aśoka made a distinction between his personal
belief and support for Buddhism and his obligation
as a king and a statesman. His edicts are, therefore,
of two kinds. The smaller group consists of
declaration of Aśoka addressed to the Buddhist
Samgha as a lay Buddhist. Far more important is the
larger group of inscriptions on rock surfaces known
as the Major and Minor Rock Edicts and the Pillar
Edicts. All these edicts are located in places where
people were likely to gather and accept these as
exhortations. These exhortations primarily relate to
administration, public welfare and the formulation
of Dhamma.
Aśoka, in his edicts, provides enough evidence of
his belief in Buddhism. He repeats the established
Buddhist formula of faith in the Buddha, Dhamma
and Samgha (Bairāt Rock Edict) and if he does not
Stone inscription of Ashoka (replica), preserved at the National
Museum, New Delhi, India
206
Cultural Contacts
righteousness which was based on the principles
of tolerance, non-violence and welfare of people.
By tolerance, Aśoka meant tolerance towards
people and towards their belief and ideas (Major
RE XII). The principle of non-violence included
the renunciation of war and conquest by Dhamma
(Major RE XIII), as well as a restraint on the killing
of animals (Major RE XI). Under the policy of public
welfare, banyan trees were planted on highways,
wells dug, rest-houses built and arrangements made
for medical treatment for human beings and cattle
(PE VII; Major RE II). To implement the policy of
Dhamma and publicise it, Aśoka instituted a special
category of officers — the dhamma-mahāmattas
(Major RE V; PE VII).
The principle of Dhamma thus set a very high
ideal not only for the people but also for the king.
Aśoka’s theory of paternal kingship clearly reflects
this high ideal. It is, therefore, not surprising when
we find that in Buddhist tradition he is depicted as
‘Chakkavatti’ — the universal monarch who ensures
that the turning of the wheel of law is the essence
of his rule.
(R K Sinha & Kamal Sheel)
Kāśyapa Mātaṅga
named Zhaoti Temple but then renamed White Horse
Temple. Kāśyapamātanga died in the 16th Yongping
year (73 CE) and was buried in the temple.
The Sutra of 42 Chapters briefly explained the
basic doctrines of Theravada Buddhism. It was
extracted and compiled with its key points from
Āgama, rather than an independent classic. Whether
it was translated by Kāśyapamātanga has always
been controversial. Someone proved that it was
a pseudo graph by later generations based on the
fact that the Comprehensive Catalogue of Scriptures
by Dao’an, an eminent monk in Eastern Jin (314385 CE) did not record this sutra. And as for the
name of Kāśyapamātanga, it did not appear until as
late as South Qi (479-502 CE) in the Miracles in the
Ghostdom by Wang Yan so the real existence of this
person is in doubt. There are various opinions about
this and the truth still needs to be checked.
(Guo Tong)
Kasyapamatanga
Kāśyapamātanga [Shemoteng] (Chinese: 摄摩腾;
pinyin: Shemoteng, 1st century CE), was also known
as Kasyapa Matanga and in short as Matanga.
According to legends, he was the first Indian
Buddhist monk to translate the Sutra and introduce
Buddhism in China.
According to the Biographies of Eminent Monks,
Kāśyapamātanga originally resided in Majjhimdesa
(central India) and later went to various places for
travel and teaching, explaining the Mahayana and
Theravada classics he was expert in. In Yongping
period of Han Dynasty (58-75 CE), Emperor
Ming had a dream one night that a golden man
flew in front of the palace. An official, Fu Yi,
practiced divination for him and said it should be
the Buddha. Emperor Ming then sent Qin Jing et
al to India to look for the Buddhist doctrine. The
people met Kāśyapamātanga and Dharamarakùa
(or Dharamaratna) at Greater Yuezhi (ie IndoScyths) and invited them to return to the central
mainland, accompanied by white horses carrying
the sutra scrolls. In 10th Yongping year (67 CE),
they returned to Luoyang. Emperor Ming showed
them high respects especially built fine houses for
their residence outside the west gate of Luoyang
(another saying is that they were settled at Honglu
Temple) which made them the earliest of Shramana
on the Han land. Later, the two people took great
endeavours to translate and write and came out
with Sutra of 42 Chapters. The fine house they lived
in was called White Horse Temple or was originally
Dharamaratna
According to a legend, Dharamaratna or
Dharamarakṣa [Zhufalan] (c. 1st century CE) was
one of the first Indian Buddhist monks to translate
the Sutra and introduce Buddhism in China.
According to the Biographies of Eminent Monks,
Dharamarakṣa originally lived in Majjhimdesa
(central India) and he claimed that he could
chant tens of thousands of sutras and tutored over
a thousand apprentices. He travelled and taught
together with Kāśyapamātanga at Greater Yuezhi
and was willing to accept the invitation of Qin Jing
and other envoys of Emperor Ming of Han to go
together with them to the central mainland for the
spread of Buddhism. However, he was hindered by
the local king and his apprentices and had to wait
for a chance to leave stealthily. Soon after he arrived
at Luoyang, he learned Chinese, translated the Sutra
of 42 Chapters together with Kāśyapamātanga. After
Kāśyapamātanga died, he alone translated Sutra
of Terminating Knots in the Ten Holy Terras, Jàtaka,
Buddhacarita and Sutra of Dharmic-Sea Repertory etc.
207
Cultural Contacts
and geography, prophetic remarks and mysterious
divinations as well as a variety of religious methods
and ways. Thus, when he was a teenager, he was
well-known among many countries for his broad
and profound knowledge. The self-reliance on his
rare smartness, however, had made him entrapped
in absurdity. He learned stealth with several bosom
friends and sneaked into the palace to encroach on
the palace maids. Although he nearly died for this,
he came to realise the principle that “desire is the
base of suffering, the root of all evils; the fall of
moral and the misleading of life both result from
it”. Thus, he swore to follow Śramana and became a
monk to learn the doctrines. Later, he went deep into
the mountains and found a temple. He was initiated
into monkhood there and learnt Theravada first. He
finished reciting Tripitaka within 90 days. Then he
went further to the snow mountain in the north and
got the chance to read the Mahayana classics given
by an old monk as a gift. Though he understood the
fundamental principles and felt quite enlightened,
he still felt he could not be thoroughly acquainted
with everything and travelled to many countries to
seek more classics and at the same time, he had
debates with the believers of external religions
and Theravada, and was invincible for a time.
Seeing that the dissidents “were all subdued” and
the Buddhist doctrines he had learned failed to be
perfect, he wanted to expand and carry forward
the doctrines himself to enlighten future studies.
And thus he felt proud in heart and initiated the
idea of establishing a sect. He intended to set up
the admonitions, design monk robes and enlist the
apostles. Myth has it that a Bodhisattva named
Dalong (“big dragon”) was quite regretful for this
and invited him to the palace under the sea, showing
him with more esoteric classics. After reading and
studying for 90 days, his former problems were
generally solved. After leaving Dragon Palace, he
returned to Dakshinapatha. There, he established
the doctrines and preached and waged a struggle
against the Brahmins with strong power. There
were some fairytales that told how he visited all
the imperial courts to persuade the royal to give up
external religions to believe in Buddhism. As for the
end of Nāgārjuna, there are different stories, but
quite a few suggest that he committed suicide. One
legend goes like this: a Theravada master was very
jealous of him. Before Nāgārjuna died, he asked the
master whether he would like him to stay long in the
world. The master admitted, “I really would not.”
Then he withdrew into an idle house, and remained
inside for many days. Later the disciple broke in
to watch, and he left like a cicada sloughing off its
skin. Another legend comes from Xuanzang. It says
that Nāgārjuna was good at making the medicine of
immortality. Emperor Satavahana of South Kosala
Dharmaratna
which were lost in disasters of later generations.
A legend says that during the Emperor Wu of Han
period (156-87 BCE) the Kunming Pool was repaired
and dug to bottom and black ashes were found.
People asked Dongfang Shuo but he answered that
he did not know what it was, and the people from the
Western Regions could be consulted. Dharamarakṣa,
after arriving at the central plains, was asked about
it and answered that when the world approached
the end of each kalpa, it would be burned by kalpa
fire and black ashes were the result of the burning.
There have always been different opinions about
the real existence of Dharamarakṣa and the classics
he translated. (for details also refer to the entry on
Kāśyapamātanga).
(Ge Weijun)
Nagarjuna
Nàgàrjuna (about 2-3 CE) was the founder of
Madhyamaka School of ancient Indian Mahayana
Buddhism. He carried forward Mahayana Buddhism
and delivered a broad range of teaching, his doctrines
were later inherited by a number of sectarians of
Buddhism in China. He was hailed as “Father of
Eight Sectarians”. His name was also translated
as Longmeng or Longsheng or transliterated as
Najiayulashuna.
Life of Nāgārjuna
According to Nāgārjuna Bodhisattva biography,
Nāgārjuna was born into a Brahmin family in
Dakshinapatha. Even in his infancy, he had showed
his extraordinary gift. Legend has it that he could
follow and recite the four Vedic classics that
adults read aloud only by hearing them and could
understand its meaning. He had an outstanding
memory and everything needed to be told to him
only once. Due to his extraordinary talent and
quick comprehension, he could not only understand
Brahminical classics but knew everything of the
world’s knowledge and skills such as astronomy
208
Cultural Contacts
Sutra (Buddhavatausakamahavaipulyasatra). It even
touched upon the thoughts of Hindu Vaishesika. It is
nothing short of the then encyclopaedia of Buddhism
and provides important information for present-day
study on Mahayana Buddhism and ancient Indian
culture. The treatise is long. Considering the fact
that the Chinese language advocated concision,
Kumārajīva cut the length and made it brief and did
not translate all of the originals. But according to a
recent study, the Chinese translation contains most
of the content of the original sutra.
Daśabhūmika-vibhāṣā-śāstra, also known as
Ten Abidings Sutra, 17 volumes, was recited by
Buddhayasas in late Qin Buddha and translated by
Kumārajīva. The sutra was the annotation of The
Ten Grounds of Avatamsaka Sutra (Kumārajīva called
“ten grounds” as “ten abidings’), but did not give
the explanatory note on the whole article, but only
on the first ground (“joy ground”) and half of the
second ground (“immaculate ground”). It’s said that
the rest of text was left out as it was not recited
by Buddhayasas. The structure of the book was
chequered with verse and prose, briefly introducing
the scripture meaning first, and extended and
commented on it later. The content of this sutra is
of some importance in understanding the thoughts
of Nāgārjuna.
Bodhi Sambhara Treatise (Pu Ti Zi Liang Lun,
six volumes) was translated by Dharmagupta in
Sui Dynasty. The book was originally written by
Nāgārjuna in verse with his own notes. But the
notes have been lost and now there are only brief
notes written by monk Ishvara. Sambhara means
qualifications, or in particular, the qualifications
required for believers to achieve Bodhi. Nāgārjuna
took Prajnaparamita as the initial qualification,
followed in order by Sila, Ksanti, Virya, Dhyana,
Upaya, Vow, Bala, Prajna, as well as Metta, Karuna,
Joy and Renunciation etc. The book is very helpful
in studying Bodhicitta and Bodhi Sambhara.
Mūlamadhyamakakārikā, also known as The
Treatise on the Middle Way, 4 volumes and 27
sections, were translated by Kumàrajãva. The
translated version included the Nāgārjuna’s 446
original verses and the brief notes by Aoki. This
is a work on debate, aimed to refute Theravada
Buddhism and other schools and to propose
his own assertion. The thoughts expressed in
Mūlamadhyamakakārikā had great influence on
the later Mahayana Buddhism. It was old that
after the Treatise was published more than 70
people wrote brief notes about it which showed
the heat of the study then. Among these people
the more renowned were Bhavavivek, author of
Praj¤àpradãpa÷àstrakarika, 15 volumes (translated
by Prabhāmitra in Tang Dynasty); Sthiramati, author
of Måla-madhyamaka-sandhi-nirmocana-vyàkhyà, 18
got his miraculous medicine and lived a life for a
few hundred years. The prince could not inherit
the throne, so he was very anxious and resorted
to his mother. His mother said that Nāgārjuna was
compassionate and had nothing that could not be
handed out so he might as well beg him for his head
to cut off the source of his father king’s medicine.
The prince went to the temple where Nāgārjuna
lived and told some Jakata stories about the
Buddha who gave up his life first. And then he said
he needed a head which could not be recruited and
nor be obtained by killing the innocent. Therefore,
he came to beg. Nāgārjuna cut his throat with dry
grass leaves and presented his head. After hearing
the news, the king died as expected. The two
stories both showed that Nāgārjuna died of suicide
and Dakshinapatha at that time was in the era of
very intense religious and political struggles. After
Nāgārjuna died, countries in Dakshinapatha built
temples for him and worshipped him as a Buddha.
Important works and his Chinese
translations
By the active carrying forward of the Svabhāva ūnya
theory of Mahayana Prajna, Nāgārjuna became
a landmark character in the history of thought of
Mahayana Buddhism. He had plentiful work, and was
nicknamed “Lord of Thousand Theories”. About 20
books of these works have been retained in Chinese
translations, and 118 in Tibetan translations. The
most important Chinese translations are as follows:
100 volumes of Great Treatise on the Perfection of
Wisdom (Mahāprajnāpāramitāśāstra), translated by
Kumārajīva, was written for the interpretation of
Mahàpraj¤àparamitàsåtra, the classic with the greatest
length at that time and had a great influence on the
later development of Mahayana Buddhism, so it is
called the “Treatise of the Treatises”. The treatise is
widely involved in doctrines, canons, cases, history,
geography and legends and refers to numerous
classical sutras, such as the classics and treatises of
primitive Buddhism and Sectarian Buddhism, among
which there were Saddharmapuõóarãkasåtra of
early Mahayana Buddhism classics and Avatamsaka
Nāgārjuna
209
Cultural Contacts
and the corresponding refutation by Nāgārjuna.
In the process of disproving the other’s point of
view, Nāgārjuna illustrated the basis on which
the aforementioned theory was established and
effectively promoted and spread the Mahayana
viewpoints. Nyāya was an expert in epistemology
and logic and the analysing and enquiring methods
used by Nāgārjuna here to refute the opponent in
the debate also provided valuable information for
the study of the primitive logic study in India. This
book also has the Tibetan translation.
Ratnāvalī, one volume and five sections, was
translated into Chinese by Paramàrtha in Chen
Dynasty. This book focussed on the sermon for
the rulers which can be seen as a political writing.
The book described the Buddhist world view,
emphasised on the theory of samsāra and karma
and the doctrine of pratītya-samutpāda and listed
good and evil deeds to advice the good and give
commandment to the evil. It pointed out that the
king wanted to create a great career with his own
good deeds and at the same time he built temple
towers and Buddha statues to contribute to society.
The book has a detailed explanation on the king’s
way and the path of dharma practice. Most of
the aforementioned Chinese translations have no
Sanskrit versions any more.
Mādyamika Śāstra
volumes (translated by Wei Jing and Dharmarksa
in Song Dynasty); Asaïga, author of Shun Zhong Lun
(translated by Prajnaruci in North Wei Dynasty),
etc. After the inheritance of several generations of
the Middle Way philosophy, a sectarian of Buddhism
was formed in India - Madhyamika. The theory also
had far-reaching influence in China. Sengzhao, a
disciple of Kumārajīva, wrote Bu Zhen Kong Lun and
other thesis. After that, Ji Zang wrote Zhong Guan
Lun Shu to further extend the theory and on the
basis of the works of Śataśāstra and Dvādashanikāyaśāstra, established the Sanlun school. The theory is
also popular in the Tibetan region. Gen Ben Zhong
Lun Zhu written by Buddhapālita has a Tibetan
translated version. Tsongkhapa also wrote Zhong
Lun Guang Shi and systematically elaborated the
fundamental insights of the Middle Way philosophy.
Dvādashanikāya-śāstra with a total of 26
verses in the book was translated into Chinese
by Kumārajīva. The book provided an outline
for Mūlamadhyamakakārikā, setting up 12 doors
to explain the fundamental truth of it, refuted
Theravada prejudices and expressed the Mahayana
emptiness theory which can be regarded as an
introductory book to Mūlamadhyamakakārikā.
The important comments written by Han monks
for it were Notes for Dvādashanikāya-śāstra, three
volumes (or six volumes), by Ji Zang of Sui Dynasty,
keynotes of and comments on Dvādashanikāyaśāstra, two volumes, by Fa Zang in Tang
Dynasty, etc.
Vigraha-vyàvartanã, one volume and 72 verses
with the author’s notes were translated into Chinese
by Vimokùasena and Praj¤ànaruci in the Late Wei
Dynasty. The book on the debate aimed to criticise
Hindu Nyāya theory. The content comprises two
parts: the questioning by Nyāya of the Mahayana
doctrine of “everything is empty and non-self”
Religious Philosophy and Theory
Nāgārjuna believed that the ultimate reality of
the universe was śūnyatā (“emptiness”), ie “not
being, not non-being, not being and non-being, not
no being or non-being”. Everything in the world,
including the Buddha, was in a kind of a relative,
interdependent relationship ie hetupratyaya. The
seeming existence was but a borrowed concept,
ie praj¤apti. It had no independent entity in
itself, ie anātman (“no-self”). He summed up this
thought in the 18th verse of the 24th section
catvāri āryasatyāni of Mūlamadhyamaka-kārikā: yaþ
pratãtyasamutpàdaþ ÷ånyatàü tàü pracakùmahe,
sà praj¤aptirupàdàya pratipatsaiva madhyamà. For
this verse, Kumārajīva translated it: “For all the
Mahāprajnāpāramitā Śāstra
210
Cultural Contacts
hetupratyaya, I say it is empty (or non-existent);
it is also praj¤apti and it is middle way.” This
is the famous “three is verse”. It suggests that
the key to understand “dependent origination”
(pratityasamutpada), the fundamental principle of
Buddhism, is to know the empty nature and false
existence at the same time in order to get rid of
the “side opinion” (antaparigrahadçùñi)persisting
to the either side. This is the so-called “middle way
philosophy”. To illustrate the theory of śūnyatā
(“emptiness”), he proposed the two-truths doctrine
and believed that there were two levels of truth
or reality in Buddhist teaching for people with
different foundations: to teach the conventional
or common reality (saüvçtisatya) for ignorant
ordinary people, saying “everything (including the
world and the living beings, etc.) exists”; to teach
the ultimate or real reality (paramàrthasatya) for
the saints who could understand the truth, saying
“everything doesn’t exist”. This is a “common
existence” and “ultimate non-existence”. In order
to discuss the non-authenticity of the world, he put
forward the theory of “eight no’s”, ie the no birth
and no vanishing in terms of entity; no continuity
and no interruption in terms of time; no uniformity
and no difference in terms of space; and no coming
and no going in terms of movement. He thought
that by denying the eight categories, he could
prove the relative reality of the objective world
and subjective understanding, which showed
the truth of the absolute reality or emptiness.
As in the meaning of “emptiness”, the wide gap
between the real world and the world on the other
side no longer existed, the world and nirvana
has no difference in between. Thus, as long as
people eliminated ignorance, and denied the just
relatively existing world, people entered nirvana.
This nirvana concept is clearly different from the
nirvana signaled by vanishing and death in early
Buddhism. In terms of inheritance, Nāgārjuna
was the second generation disciple of Aśvaghośa
(Maming), the ancient Indian Mahayana Buddhism
theorist and poet. Among his own disciples, Deva
was the most famous. The writings of Nāgārjuna
and Deva, after being introduced and translated by
Kumārajīva in the 5th century, had a great influence
on Chinese Buddhism and were commonly praised
and worshipped by Sanlun, Tiantai, Huayan, Chan,
and other schools.
(Ge Weijun)
Deva
Life Story
According to the biography of Bodhisattva
Deva, Deva was born in a Brahmin family in
Dakshinapatha. However, Xuanzang’s Great Tang
Records on the Western Regions claimed that Deva
was from Simhala (present-day Sri Lanka). Legend
has it that he was knowledgeable, eloquent and
often regretted that people in the world were not
able to believe and make use of his words. As for
his loss of an eye, the story says that he once took
out the glass eyeball of a Siva statue in a temple
because he thought that the Siva God was flashing
his glass eyes to confuse people. However, one
day when he prepared exquisite dishes and went
to the temple to worship, the statue demanded
him to make his own eye as an offering instead.
Deva immediately plucked out the left eyeball and
as a reward Siva promised to make all his words
came true and that he was to be worshiped by
people. As expected, his wishes were fulfilled. He
met Nāgārjuna, became a monk and then traveled
around various places to publicise the doctrine of
Madhyamaka. According to Xuanzang’s record,
Hinduism was prosperous then in Pātliputra of
Uttarapatha (present-day Patna, Bihar) while
Buddhism was in the decline and the Buddhist
monks would be defeated whenever there was a
debate, resulting in a ruling to their insult that for
12 years Buddhists were not allowed to knock the
ghanțā (the likes of bell, inverted bell) to convene
the followers. After hearing this, Deva voluntarily
went to restore the reputation. Worried about
his lack of scholastic ability, Nāgārjuna himself
acted as a heretic monk and debated with Deva
who exhausted Nāgārjuna’s arguments seven days
later and thus was able to go. He disguised himself
and sneaked into the city, spent the night near
the ghaõñà stage. He slammed the ghaņțā the next
morning and carried on a heated debate with the
heretics in front of the King. He finally won with
his eloquence. Xuanzang saw the stupas set up
for the commemoration of this debate when his
visited the city.
Deva
Deva [Tipo] (c. 3 CE) was a disciple of Nāgārjuna.
Also known as Āryadeva, he was an important
representative of Mahayana Madhyamika. He was
also named Kàõadeva (meaning one-eyed devas) due
to his loss of an eye.
211
Cultural Contacts
regard to the form as well as to the content”. After
the Chinese translation came out, there have been
much exegesis done by Chinese monks and the most
well-known is Notes on Śata-śāstra by Jizang.
Catuþ÷ataka÷àstrakàrikà contained 400 odes,
divided into 16 sections. There is a complete Tibetan
translation of it while Chinese language version
Guang Bai Lun Ben is of 200 odes of the last eight
sections, translated by Xuanzang. The book was also
aimed at denouncing the doctrine of heretics. There
are claims that it was roughly based on Śataśāstra (to
the contrary to that Śataśāstra is the synopsis of the
book).
Originally, the first eight sections were statements
which were the major theory of Mahayana
Madhyamika, asserting the necessity of withdrawing
from the earthly delusion of Nitya-Sukha-AtmaSubha; the other eight sections were the thesis,
aiming at denouncing the heretics theories and
promoting Mahayana Nāgārjuna “emptiness” of all
phenomena and “self-less”. As for the atthakatha of
the book, there is Dharmapāla’s Interpretation of
Guang Bai Lun Shi Lun, which contains 10 volumes
and was translated by Xuanzang. In the early 20th
century, the Sanskrit fragments of the Catuþ÷ataka
were unearthed and various researches and scholars
from different countries have been publishing their
researches since.
Akùara÷ataka was short, containing only one
volume. It was translated by Bodhiruci of Northern
Wei Dynasty. The book consisted of long verses
and gatha, with the latter as the thesis and the
former as the comments. Again, it was to refute the
Hinduist philosophical theories such as Sāmkhya
and Vaiśeśika. It first presented the heretics’ views
and then put forward its own views to refute the
former’s ideas and stated such doctrines as notthe-same and not-the-different, not-being and
not-no-being and emptiness of all phenomena. In
the Chinese translation, “Sengqu” and “Pishe” are
respectively the transliteration of Sāmkhya and
Vaiśeśika. Akṣaraśataka might be a brief book,
yet it touched upon all the important theories of
Mahayana Madhyamika and thus can be used as
an introduction to the theory. The book also has a
Tibetan translation.
(Ge Weijun)
Deva later went to Dakshinapatha to preach,
alleging that Buddha was the holist in all the saints,
Buddhism in all dharmas and Buddhist monk in all
saviours. Deva also established an altar to debate
with heretics from all over. It is said that among
the Brahmans who came to debate with him, those
who were shallow would be defeated by one word
of him and those who were intelligent would also be
defeated in two days at the most. As a result, they
converted to Buddhism one after another and there
were so many of them that the 10 cars of mantle
and alms bowl sent by the royal house were not
enough. However, a heretic disciple was ashamed
of the defeat and vowed to kill Deva. One day
when Deva was taking a walk after his meditation,
the heretic disciple came to him and said, “You have
broken my master with your mouth, now I will break
your belly with a knife!” Deva was fearless while
facing the assassin and even instructed the latter
to escape before his own death. He told the griefstricken followers that what the assailant killed was
not his flesh but his sin.
Important works and their Chinese
translations
Deva inherited Nāgārjuna’s Mahayana view and had
written a lot of books but only very few of them
have been handed down. They are:
Śata÷àstra was of two volumes. There have
been two translations both of which were translated
by Kumarajiva, firstly in 402 CE and prefaced by
Monk Rui. At that time, Kumarajiva had not been in
China for long and did not know Chinese very well,
so the translation was far from fair. Two years later,
he re-retranslated it and Monk Zhao prefaced it.
Originally, the book had 20 sections and each section
contained five gathas but the translator considered
the last 10 sections not practical locally and left
them untranslated. The translated version includes
Vasubandhu’s notes and used sūtra to indicate the
original scripture. The meaning of the very brief
scripture must depend on the notes. Monk Zhao
claimed that “heretics was flourishing and messing
up the right way” at that time of India. Therefore the
purpose of the book was to denounce the then socalled heretics, Hindu philosophy such as the ideas
of Sāņkhya and Vaiśeśika, so as to maintain the
religious status of Buddhism. Deva’s argumentation
was based on Nāgārjuna's theory of “empitiness”
and “self-less”. He first presented the heretics’ views
and then put forward his own views to refute the
former’s ideas. In the preface, Monk Zhao highly
praised the book, claiming that “It makes access
to sacred heart and inspires paramatha” and
it had played an important role in the development
of Buddhism in India. Kumarajiva’s translation was
evaluated as “refined and accurate, paying due
Dharmakala
Dharmakāla [Tankejialuo] (Tanmojialuo in Chinese
or Fashi in free translation) (c. 3rd century) was a
Buddhist monk and translator who came to China
during Three Kingdoms Period.
According to Biographies of Eminent Monks,
Dharmakāla was born in a rich family in Central
India. He was extremely bright since his childhood
and was nimble savvy. He could understand the
212
Cultural Contacts
general meaning of a passage only after reading it
once. He once devoted himself to studying four Vedas,
aiming at obtaining the wisdom of Brahmanism. In
addition, he was proficient in astrology, prophecy
and other Taoist magic arts. He once said he had
filled himself with all the knowledge of the world.
When he was 25, he saw the Abhidharmahçdaya÷àstra written by Dharmottara in a Buddhist
temple by chance, only to find that he could not
understand it at all after browsing. After thinking
repeatedly, he got more confused. With the help of
a Buddhist monk, he got to know that Buddhism is
more profound than he thought so he determined
to abandon the wealth in the world and become
a monk to learn Buddhism. He recited Mahayana
and Hinayana scriptures, as well as all kinds of
vinayapitaka. During the year of Jiaping (249253), he travelled to Luoyang and discovered that
Buddhism was popular there but without strict rules
and pure atmosphere. In the second year of Jiaping
(250), he was invited by other monks to translate
the disciplines. He thought that the dharma and
the Vinaya was very complicated, which cannot be
applied where Buddhism is not mature. Therefore,
he only translated an abstract edition, “Wariness of
Monks”, at White Horse Temple which is extracted
from the general disciplines for general use. What’s
more, he also called in some Indian Buddhists to
tonsure for Chinese Buddhists. Afterwards, the
Buddhist disciplines were brought to China.
(Ge Weijun)
A mural depicting the disciples of the Buddha at the
Kizil Grottoes, Baicheng County, Xianjiang, China
arrival date. The King of Kucha went out the
suburbs to welcome him personally, invited him to
the palace and graciously supported him. However,
Dharmamitra did not have lots of demands for
treatment. A few years later, Dharmamitra thought
of leaving and the king and his monarchs tried to
persuade him to stay but could not change his mind.
Then he travelled through the desert and reached
Dunhuang. There, he established the monastery in
the open area, planted 1,000 of malus spectabilis,
reclaimed 100 acres of garden, the house, attic and
pond which were clean and tidy. Soon, he moved
further to east and arrived in Liang Zhou (presentday the area west of the Yellow River in Gansu, the
local government was located in Guzang, ie presentday Wuwei) where he repaired the old temples and
preached Chan. In the first year of Yuanjia (424
CE) of Song Dynasty, he tumbled and moved into
Sichuan and then got out from the three gorges and
arrived in Jingzhou, lived in Changsha Temple. It
was said that he got the Buddha relic in this temple.
He then continued to travel along the Yangtze River
down to the East and reached the capital city of
Jiankang (present-day Nanjing). At first he lived
in Zhongxing Temple, later moved to Zhi Huan
Temple. Both the Queen and the Prince followed
him and requested for “disciplines” (vinaya).
The monk and the public often greeted with each
other. In the temple, Dharmamitra taught the deep
meditation, many learners came to listen after
travelling long distances. People called him "Great
Chan Master." He translated one volume of each of
Five Temptation Methods, Samantabhadra Bodhisattva
Behavior Sutra, Observing Ākāśagarbha Sutra, etc.
Meng Yi, the prefecture chief of Kuaiji (present-day
Shaoxing, Zhejiang) deeply believed in Dharma and
invited him to travel south to Mao County (belonged
to Kuaiji). Since his arrival the local sorcery reduced
and Buddhist followers increased. Dharmamitra
returned to Jiankang in the 10th year of Yuanjia,
lived in the Zhongshan Dinglin Lower Temple. In
the 12th year, he chose a place in the location of
lofty mountains and built another temple, named
Dinglin Upper Temple. The scholars and common
people near or far generously donated for this
Dharmamitra
Dharmamitra [Tanmomiduo] (356 ~ 442 CE),
paraphrased as Elegant Buddhist Doctrine, was a
Buddhist translator and came to China during the
Northern and Southern Dynasty.
According to Biographies of Eminent Monks and
other records, Dharmamitra was born in Kashmir
and had shown a religious tendency even in his
childhood. Whenever there were ceremonies, he
would be exulted. His parents felt it unusual and
sent him to be a monk when he was seven years
old. In Kashmir, there were many sages and masters.
Under the guidance of Bhadanta, the famous monk,
Dharmamitra extensively read all scriptures but his
mastery was in Chan. After gaining adulthood, he
appeared to be more profound, calm and strictly
kept precepts. Because of his two eyebrows joined
together, he was also called "Jointed eye-brown Chan
master”. He naturally preferred to travel from place
to place and took to spreading Buddha dharma as
his mission. After travelling to several of countries,
he arrived in Kucha (now Kuqa in Xinjiang). There
was a legend saying that the King of Kucha had a
prophetic dream that there would be a blessed
and virtuous man coming, then on Dharmamitra’s
213
Cultural Contacts
classmate Sangha Daduo. The Chinese monk Zhi
Yan was then also in Kasmira, extensively soliciting
those having the ability to preach in the east. The
locals unanimously recommended Buddhabhadra to
him. Buddhabhadra generously accepted Zhi Yan’s
earnest invitation. They first travelled by land and
then continued by sea to finally arrive onshore in
Donglai District of Qingzhou (present-day Laizhou,
Shandong) after a three-year trip. At that time,
Kumārajīva was in Chang'an. They immediately
went off on a journey to pay him a visit. Reaching
there in the 10th year (408 CE) of Hongshi of the
later Qin Dynasty, he lived in Zhugong Temple
(also called Qi Gong Temple). The prince Yao Hong
invited him to give a public speech on dharma in
his palace. He also frequently visited Kumārajīva
to discuss the doctrines of formless, vain etc. If
Kumārajīva had any doubts, he also consulted with
him to resolve them. But their happy meetings did
not not last for very long. Due to their different
study styles and learning from different teachers,
estrangement gradually developed between them.
Buddhabhadra was a person without desire and
enjoyed quiet surroundings. He abhorred pompous
and prosperous show. When he preached the Chan
philosophy in Chang’an, many people came to
listen him after getting the news. But the crowd
of listeners did not behave according to what had
been taught. Buddhabhadra also failed to check
carefully, resulting in damages to his reputation by
sly people who spread rumours about an impending
disaster. The audience then scattered like stars in
the sky. Buddabhadra himself did not mind it but
in the 13th year of Hongshi, there were still monks
like Dao Heng, etc. who following Kumārajīva
argued that Buddhabhadra had made predictions
which broke the rule of precept and drove him
out of Chang'an. Buddhabhadra then claimed that
"body is like the floating duckweed, it is easy to
stay or leave." The only regret was that he did not
finish his preaching. When Buddhabhadra with a
calm mind and quiet demeanor left with his 40 or
so disciples, more than a thousand monks came to
see off. Finding this, Yao Xing, the King of Later
Qin Dynasty, issued an emergency writ and sent
messengers to persuade him to stay. Buddhabhadra
had, however, firmly decided to leave and moved
directly to the Lushan Mountain.
Huiyuan, the eminent monk residing in Lushan
Mountain, had admired Buddhabhadra for a long
time. He entertained Buddhabhadra hospitably
and regarded him as an old friend. He also sent
a letter to Yao Xing and monks in Chang’an
defending
Buddhabhadra and explaining the
misunderstandings. Here, Buddhabhadra translated
two volumes of Dharmatara-dhyàna-såtra which
were the monograph for meditation for Hui Yuan
temple building. After completing the temple there
were flocks of people coming to pay respect. In July
of the 19th year (442 CE) of Yuanjia, Dharmamitra
died at the age of 87 in the monastery. He was
buried in front of Songxi Temple in Zhong Shan.
His entire life was devoted to promoting Buddhism
meditation and had many disciples. The scriptures
he translated also include one volume of each of
Ākāśagarbha-bodhisattva-sūtra, Changing the Female
Body Sutra, Buddha Elephant Auxiliary Sutra, Buddha
Dharma Brave King Sutra, etc. According to statistics,
there were a total of 12 books and 17 volumes.
(Ge Weijun)
Buddhabhadra
Monk Buddhabhadra (359-429 CE) came to
China during the East Jin Dynasty. He was a
famous Buddhist translator. His name was also
transliterated as Fotuobatuoluo and in short was
called Fotuobatuo which could be paraphrased as
Virtue Consciousness or Buddha Consciousness.
According to Biographies of Eminent Monks,
Catalogue of Buddhist Scriptures Published in
Successive Dynasties and other documents,
Buddhabhadra was the descendant of Amçtodana
of øàkya in Kapilavastu (in Nepal) in Uttarapatha.
His grandfather Fatian was engaged in business in
northern India and the whole family moved out
along with him. He lost his father at the age of three
Buddhabhadra
and mother at five. He was then brought up by his
grandmother. Buddhabhadra’s grandfather was
aware of his loneliness and intelligence so he brought
him back and trained him to become a monk. By
the time he was 17-years-old, Buddhabhadra had
become focussed on studies. He could finish it in
one day what his classmates learned in one month.
After receiving commandments, Buddhabhadra
worked harder and soon he had a deep knowledge
of a variety of classics especially in meditation and
precepts. He often travelled to Kashmir with his
214
Cultural Contacts
(some say 15) and 113 volumes in all. He died at
the age of 71 years in the sixth year of Yuanjia of
Song Dynasty.
(Ge Weijun)
which greatly helped his practice. Buddhabhadra
had ambition of travelling to preach without seeking
any kind of protection. After staying in Lushan
Mountains nearly for a year he went to Jiangling. The
local scholars and common people welcomed him
out of the city, and competed to offer him precious
gifts. He however, did not accept anything, but only
walked along the street holding the alms-bowl and
receiving alms from everyone whether wealthy
or poor. Everywhere, he ate the food received by
begging. The supreme government official, Liu Yu,
respected him much. The following year, under the
invitation of Liu Yu, he went to Jingdu (present-day
Nanjing) lived in Daochang Temple and continued
to preach mediation practices. With a simple,
elegant bearing and manner, he won the admiration
from the local people. During the same year, Faxian
also returned with Buddhist Scriptures in Sanskrit
after his pilgrimage in India. He cooperated with
Buddhabhadra in translation work from the 12th
year till 14th year (416-418 CE) of Yixi of Eastern
Jin Dynasty. There, they successively published six
volumes of Mahàparinirvàõa-såtra and 40 volumes
of Mahàsaïgha-vinaya, one volume of Mahàsaïghavinaya Precepts for Monks, one volume of Mahàsaïghavinaya Precepts for Nuns and one volume of Buddha’s
Miscellaneous Sutras and so on. Before that, Śramana
Zhi Faling had also found out in Khotan (present-day
Hotan) the remaining 36,000 verses of Avatamsaka
Sutra in Sanskrit version. In the 14th year of Yixi
(418 CE) on the request of Meng Yi, the history
officer of internal Wu District and Chu Shudu, the
right sub-general, Śramana Buddhabhadra with the
assistance of Fa Ye, Hui Yan and about hundred
people undertook the task of translation of the
Sanskrit version. He opened a translation centre
in the Daochang Temple and spent three years
in completing the translation of this scripture.
That is now the 60 volumes of Buddhàvataüsakamahàvaipulya-såtra inside of which there is a
translation of "Ten Grounds Goodness" and other
translations completely followed the translation of
Da÷a abhåmika-såtra of Kumārajīva. This scripture
played a vital role in the later development of
Buddhism in China. Later generations praised the
translation of this scripture as "Ingeniously Grasping
the Soul Meaning of the Scripture”. The place
where the translation was done was also changed
with a name as "Huayan Temple" to commemorate
it. The other existing translation works done by
Buddhabhadra also include 10 volumes of Buddhadhyāna-samādhisāgara-såtra one volume of Manjusri
Vow Scripture, one volume of Tathàgatagarbhasåtra, and two volumes of Dharmatara-dhyàna-såtra,
one volume of Anantamukhasādhakadhāraṇī(sūtra),
and so on. According to statistics, during his entire
life Buddhabhadra translated 12 Buddhist scriptures
Gunavarman
Guņavarman
[Qiunabamo]
(367-431
CE)
paraphrased as merit armour was a Buddhist
translator who came to China during the Southern
and Northern Dynasty.
According to records in Biographies of Eminent
Monks, Catalogue of Buddhist Scriptures Published
in Successive Dynasties and other documents,
Guņavarman was born in Kashmir in Kshatriya caste
whose previous generations were all kings. But his
grandfather lost the position due to his inflexible
personality and his father lived in seclusion inside
the mountains. When Guņavarman was only
14-years-old, he had already demonstrated the
tendency of admiring virtues and loving all beings.
His behaviour was clever and resourceful, also with
profound insight. He once advised his mother not to
kill. Guņavarman became a monk at the age of 20,
he soon came to have a clear knowledge about nine
Buddhist Scriptures and four âgama and in addition
to being able to chant more than a million words
of scriptures, he also had a profound understanding
of the discipline and deep meditation, people
at that time called him Tripitaka Master. When
Guņavarman was 30, the King of Kasmira died
with nobody to succeed to the throne. The nation
unanimously expressed their expectation for inviting
Guņavarman, the man with virtue and talents to
resume a secular life and be throned. However
despite the ministers urging him again and again,
Guņavarman refused firmly. Instead, he travelled to
wild areas and mountains, lived in the forest, drank
from rivers and withdrew from society. Later, he
went to Siühala present-day Sri Lanka, travelled
and preached Buddhist scriptures. It was said that
all those who had seen Guņavarman respected him
Entrance of the Donglin Temple, Mount Lu, Jiangxi, China
215
Cultural Contacts
frequently came to consult him. Soon, he preached
in the temple of the Saddharmapuõóarãkasåtra
and Da÷abhåmika-såtra. On the first day of the
lecture, monks and the public came from all over.
The temple was over-crowded. Later as invited by
Hui Yi, Guņavarman organised a translation field,
and translated 28 items of Bodhisattva Kusala Sila
Sutra; later his disciples added for him another two
items, with 30 items in total. In the third year of
Yuanjia, the provincial governor Wang Zhongde of
Xuzhou once had asked Sramana Isvara from the
Western Regions to translate Saüyuktàbhidharmahçdaya-s àstra, but the translation was stopped at
the 10th item of "Choice" for some reason. Later,
he invited Guņavarman to translate the remainder
and revise accordingly, and there were 13 volumes
translated. Unfortunately, the book was later lost.
Currently there are 11 volumes existing translated
by Saïghavarman and others in the 12th year of
Yuanjia. In the afternoon of September 28th of the
eighth year of Yuanjia, Guņavarman returned to
his residence before he finished lunch. His disciples
arrived later but found him already dead with a
calm expression on his face. It seemed he fell into
a state of tranquility in meditation. He was 65
when he died. Later, he was cremated in front of
Nanlin monks' altar in accordance with the rules of
Buddhism and was buried in the White Tower built
on the spot. His translated scriptures also include
one volume of each of Longshu pusa wei chan tuo
jia wang shuo fa yao ji (The Bodhisattava Nāgārjuna
Preaches to King Chandaka), Dharmagupta
Bhiksuni Karman, Upali Enquires the Buddhist
Scriptures, The Dignity of a Novice, Buddhas Five
Precepts for Upasaka, Sutra on the Internal Rules
of a Bodhisattava, Sutra on the Dignity of the Five
Rules of a Devotee and so on. There are statistics
that show that there were 10 works and 18 volumes
translated by Guņavarman in all.
(Ge Weijun)
deeply and their faith grew inside their hearts.
Later, he arrived in Java Country (present-day
Java Island of Indonesia), the queen mother of
the country followed him and was ordained with
the Five Precepts, and she requested the king to
be ordained as well. Later, when the neighbouring
country invaded, the king feared injuring creatures
and also feared his country would be destroyed
and then the king came to consult Guņavarman.
Guņavarman suggested if the country was invaded
and humiliated by a violent enemy, it should raise
an army to defend itself, but compassion must
be kept in mind. When the neighbouring enemy
retreated, Guņavarman gained national respect and
admiration, and Buddhism became popular among
the nationals. The neighbouring country also heard
of Guņavarman’s fame and sent messengers many
times to invite him. Bhadanta Hui Guang, Hui
Cong and others in the capital of the Southern
Song Dynasty also heard of his name, in the
first year (424 CE) of Yuanjia of Song Dynasty,
they interviewed Emperor Wen for inviting and
welcoming Guņavarman. Then Emperor Wen
issued an imperial order to the provincial governor
of Jiaozhou (present-day Guangdong, Guangxi and
northern Vietnam) to invite him by ship. Hui Guan
also sent Sramana Fa Zhang and Dao Chong to
beseech him. However, before that, Guņavarman
had left Java and went to a small country along with
a merchant ship. Unexpectedly, the force of winds
changed and they arrived in Guangzhou. Emperor
Wen got to know of this and issued an imperial
order requiring all the states and counties to offer
funds for a smooth trip for Guņavarman to the
capital (Jiankang, now Nanjing). On the way to the
north, Guņavarman stayed in Shixing (present-day
Shaoguan, Guangdong) about one year. There was
Hushi Mountain with a towering and isolated peak.
According to the mountain’s shape, Guņavarman
renamed it Lingjiu Mountain imitating the Indian
Buddhist shrine places’ name. Since then the former
dangers caused by tigers immediately disappeared,
the safety of transportation and travelling was
guaranteed. In the first lunar month of the eighth
year (431 CE) of Yuanjia, Guņavarman reached the
capital, Emperor Wen greeted him with open arms
and consulted him about becoming a vegetarian,
precept against killing and other issues. About
this topic, Guņavarman told the truth that "The
principle is in mind not in something, following
the principle is decided by one’s self not by the
other people”. He also pointed out that if the king
could governance so that the people could live in
peace and work happily, which was also vegetarian
and not killing rather than save a meal or set
free captive creatures. Guņavarman lived in Zhi
Huan Temple and then the dukes and marquises
Dharmaraksa
Dharmarakùa or Dharmakùama [Tanwuchen] (385
~ 433 CE), Buddhist translator, came to China from
India during the Northern Liang period and his name
was also translated to Tanmochan, Tanwuchan,
Tanwuluochen and so on.
According to the record of Biographies of Eminent
Monks, Catalogue of Buddhist Scriptures Published
in Successive Dynasties and other documents,
Dharmaraksa was born in Majjhimdesa and was a
Brahmin by caste. When he was six years old, his
father died. He followed his mother and woven cloth
with her to make a living. His mother saw Śramana
Bodhidharma Yasa was venerated. She then let her
son join him as his disciples. Dharmaraksa was smart
and studious; he could read the scripture by the age of
216
Cultural Contacts
embellishment and gorgeous, strict wording. He
also translated 30 volumes Mahàvaipulyasaünipàtasåtra, 10 volumes of Karuõàpuõóarãka-såtra, four
volumes of Suvarõaprabhàsottama-såtra, seven
volumes of Upàsaka ÷ãla-såtra, 10 volumes of
Bodhisattvabhåmi-såtra and Ocean Dragon King Sutra
(now missing) and so on. As the Mahaparinirvana
Sutra was insufficient, Dharmaraksa went back to
look for remaining scriptures. Unexpectedly, his
mother died during this time so he stayed in his
hometown for one year. Dharmaraksa found the
middle part of the scripture in Khotan (presentday Hotan in Xinjiang) and continued translation
after returning to Guzang. There were 40 volumes
of translated scriptures. Tuobatao, the monarch
of Northern Wei after knowing Dharmaraksa as an
expert of the scriptures, sent messengers to ask for
him. There was some threatening in the message that
if Dharmaraksa would not be sent to him, they would
start a war. Mengxun refused, Tuobaotao again
sent a higher official, named Li Shun, to persuade.
Mengxun expressed Dharmaraksa was an indoor
teacher and could not be forsaken. He would live
or die together with Dharmaraksa. The stalemate
continued till the March of the third year (433 CE)
of Yihe in Northern Liang, Dharmaraksa proposed
to look for Mahaparinirvana Sutra again and wished
to go to west. Mengxun was very dissatisfied, then
sent assassins to kill Dharmaraksa on the way. That
year he was 49 years old. In April same year, Juqu
Mengxun died of illness. After Mahaparinirvana
Sutra was translated there were Dao Lang, Zhi Song
and others in Liangzhou who added intellectual
commentaries and taught. When the scriptures
were passed down to the south there were Hui Yan,
Hui Guan, Xie Lingyun, etc making revisions and
spreading. Nibbāna doctrine thus was spread and
exerted a significant impact on Chinese Buddhism.
The people at that time asked Dharmaraksa to be
cautious before translating and asked him to be
beware of any hidden meaning and also instructed
him to do detailed research of the original
scriptures to keep the soul of the scriptures intact.”
His translated scriptures according to nowadays
statistics include 11 works and 112 volumes.
(Ge Weijun)
Mahāparinirvāna-sūtra
10 and chant 10,000 words daily. At first, he studied
Hīnayāna, at the same time he also read pañcavidyâ.
Dharmaraksa could speak eloquently and almost
no one could win over him until later when he was
confronted with the white hair meditation master
and finally lost. Then from the meditation master
he gained the Nibbāna Sutra which was written on
the bark. He was really scared of enlightenment and
converted to believe in Mahayana. When he was
20, he had been able to recite two million words
of the classics of Māhayāna and Hīnayāna. He was
also specialised in spells, nine out of 10 times it
was efficacious. He once served the king with this
talent and was known as the Curse Master. Later the
treatment from the king was gradually reduced, he
resigned and went to Kashmir and carried a number
of Buddhist scriptures such as 10 volumes (some
said 12 volumes) of first half of Mahàparinirvàõasåtra and Bodhisattva Precepts ie Bodhisattvabhåmisåtra, Bodhisattva-÷ãla-såtra and so on. However in
Kashmir, most people were learning Hīnayāna and
did not believe the Mahàparinirvàõa-såtra, then he
had to go further east and reached Kucha (now Kuqa
in Xinjiang ). Later he travelled to Dunhuang (some
said Guzang, that is present-day Wuwei in Gansu),
where he stayed for several years and translated
one volume of Bodhisattva Precepts. Around the
10th year (421 CE) of Xuanshi in Northern Liang,
Juqu Mengxun, the Hexi King welcomed him into
Guzang and treated him very well, and asked him
to translate Buddhist scriptures. He did not promise
immediately because he was unfamiliar with the
local language and also there was no interpreter.
Three years later when he got familiar with the
language with the assistance of famous monks
of Hui Song and Dao Lang, he started translating
the first part of Mahaparinirvana Sutra. Inside the
translation field, there were hundreds of monks
and common people. Dharmaraksa translated and
taught at the same time. Descendants evaluated
the translation as to be with wealthy decorative
Gunabhadra
Gunabhadra [Qiunabatuoluo] (394-468 CE) was
a monk who came to China in the Southern and
Northern Dynasty from India. He was a famous
sutra translator whose name meant the Worthy One
of Merit and Virtue, and was also called Mahāyāna.
According to the records of Biographies of Eminent
Monks and A Dictionary of Buddhist Technical Terms
and Their Meaning, etc Gunabhadra grew up in
Majjhimdesa (central India) and belonged to the
217
Cultural Contacts
translated two volumes of the Sutra of the Great
Dharma Drum (Mahàbherã-hàraka-parivarta), one
volume of Saüdhinirmocana-såtra and one volume
of Sandhinir Mokchana Sutra in Dong’an Temple.
In the 13th year of Yuanjia, He Shangzhi, officer in
Danyang Prefecture, became his benefactor and he
translated ørãmàlà-såtra, which was interpreted by
Bao Yun and written by Hui Guan. In the 23rd year
of Yuanjia, he was invited to go with King Nanqiao
Liu Yixuan who was the governor of Jingzhou and
he lived in Xin Temple. He translated one volume
of the Sutra of the Epithets of the Eight Buddhas of the
Eastern Quarters (Samghapala was mistaken as the
translator of the present text), four volumes of Sutra
of Past and Present Cause and Effect and four volumes
of Angulimalya Sutra (Aïgulimàlika), etc there. After
Emperor Xiaowu succeeded to the throne, Yixuan
rebelled in the first year of Xiaojian (454 CE), and
Gunabhadra was involved in the rebellion. The rebel
was defeated on Liang Mountain consequently, and
the winning governor Wang Xuanmo observed the
previous instruction of Emperor Xiaowu, respected
Gunabhadra as before, and guarded him to return
to the capital in time. It is proved later that he
was irreverent to the rebellion through his letters
between him and Yixuan, so Emperor Xiaowu gave
more special treatment to him. He was respected till
Emperor Ming of Song (reigned from 466-472 CE).
In the first lunar month of the fourth year of Taishi
of Song (468 CE), he felt discomfort, bid farewell
to Emperor Ming, dukes and ministers, and died at
the age of 75. Gunabhadra made great contributions
to internal and external affairs for four dynasties
since Emperor Wen. He received ordination strictly,
ate vegetables for life, and fed birds with leftover
meal in his palms every day. According to the
statistics of Kaiyuan Catalogue of Buddhist Scriptures,
he had translated 134 volumes of 52 scriptures,
and there exist about 30 scriptures at present. His
translation style was rigorous and his words were
straightforward and hit original points. Collected
Records Concerning the Tripitaka and Preface to
ørãmàlà-såtra, therefore, aptly mentioned that he
liked “to translate rigorously after investigating
tones and meanings in detail” and presented “subtle
and profound truth in simple words and sentences”.
Biographies of Eminent Monks claimed that his
translation “achieved the real meaning through
repeated analysis” and he was highly appreciated
on the whole.
(Ge Weijun)
Brahmin caste. He learned Panchavidya (five sciences
of ancient India ie Buddhism, logic, linguistic,
handicrafts and medicine) and was proficient in
astronomy, calendar, medical science, conjuring
and so on. He admired Saüyuktàbhidharma-hçdaya÷àstra and after reading it he converted to Buddhism.
Because his family believed in Brahminism for
generations and did not keep contact with Śramana,
he had to leave his family and seek his masters and
friends afar. After receiving complete ordination, he
cultivated himself and quickly became proficient
in Tripitaka and became more straightforward
and kinder. Hereafter, he gave up Hinayana and
converted to Mahayana, recited and explained
sutras and was good at eloquence; meanwhile, he
wandered and propagated principles of Buddhism
and came to the Orient by ship after he arrived in
Simhala (present-day Sri Lanka). In the 12th year of
Yuanjia of Song of the Southern Dynasty (435 CE),
he arrived in Guangzhou and Emperor Wen of Song
assigned envoys to meet him after the local governor
Samyuktagama-sutra, translated by Gunabhadra
reported his arrival. When he came to the capital
Jiankang (present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu) Emperor
Wen of Song ordered the eminent monks including
Hui Yan and Hui Guan to meet him in the New
Pavillion. They pleasantly talked with one another
like old friends with the help of translators. After he
lived in Zhihuan Temple, Emperor Wen met him,
and the erudite scholars, dukes and ministers such as
Yan Yanzhi, Liu Yikang and Liu Yixuan etc came to
visit him and respected him as master. Being invited
by monks, he translated 50 volumes of Miscellaneous
Agama (Saņyuktāgama) in Zhihuan Temple and
Punyatara
Puõyatàra
[Foruoduoluo]
(Foruoduoluo
or
Buruoduoluo in Chinese or Gongdehua in free
translation; unknown-404 CE) was an Indian
Buddhist monk and a famous translator of Buddhist
218
Cultural Contacts
scriptures who came to China during the Southern
and Northern Dynasty (420-589 CE).
According to the Biographies of Eminent Monks,
Puõyatàra was a civilian of Kashmira. He became a
monk when he was very young. He was famous for
his abstinence and strictness. He mastered Tripitaka,
especially Da÷a-bhàõavàra-vinaya and was one of
its founding master patriarchs. The people of that
time all thought that he had reached the spiritual
state of an immortal. During Hong Shi period (399415 CE) of later Qin Dynasty, he came to central
Shaanxi and Yao Xing treated him as a distinguished
guest. Kumārajīva admired his strict abidance to
vinaya and respected him very much. Because
vinaya was unpopular in the territory of Han before,
the people had much expectations from Puõyatàra.
In October of the sixth year of Hong Shi, Puõyatàra
accepted the invitation and recited the Sanskrit
Da÷a-bhàõavàra-vinaya in Chang’an Central
Temple in the presence of hundreds of Buddhist
monks from all around and Kumārajīva translated it
into Chinese. However, when translated just about
two-third of the vinaya, Puõyatàra was down with
an illness and died later. Everybody felt sad and
regretful. Later, Dharmaruci, who mastered vinaya,
came to Chang’an with the Sanskrit version in the
seventh year of Hong Shi (405 CE) and finished the
translation with Kumārajīva. However, before the
vinaya was revised and finalised, Kumārajīva died.
In the eighth year of Hong Shi, Vimalàkùa came to
central Shannxi of China. After Kumārajīva died,
he supplemented the translation of Vinaya with a
Foreword in Shijian Temple of Shouchun (presentday Shouxian County, Anhui Province) and attached
it to the former translation which became the
complete Daśa-bhàõavàra-vinaya that we see now.
(Ge Weijun)
Saṇghadeva
(365~384 CE), he came to Chang’an to spread
the Buddhist doctrine. He taught people patiently
and tirelessly. In Jianyuan 15th year (379 CE), the
eminent monk Dao An came to Chang’an and was
much respected by Fujian. He lived in the Wuchong
Temple to disseminate the dharma and gathered
many monks who came to China like Sengjiatipo,
Saïghabåhti, Dharmapriya, Dharmanandi and so on
to translate the Buddhist Scriptures. In Jianyuan
19th year (383 CE), Saïghabåhti and Dharmanandi
translated Abhidharma-mahàvibhàùà-÷àstra and
then Sengjiatipo helped them translate Set Theory
of Shiva Vasumitra Buddha and other Buddhist
Scriptures. But soon after, the rebellion of Murong
Chong erupted and the world was in a mess.
Therefore, the translations are not scrutinised in
detail. Afterwards, when the society was slightly
tranquil, he came to Luoyang with the monk,
Fahe. Over the four or five years, he became more
proficient in Chinese. He lectured and studied the
former classics repeatedly and found that there
were many mistakes and losses in the previous
translations. Following the suggestions of Fahe, he
again corrected the scriptures like Abhidharma and
so on. Then, Yaoxing of Qin Dynasty held the power,
and Buddhism became more and more prosperous. At
that time, the eminent monk Huiyuan was collecting
Buddhist classics in Mount Lu. Accidentally, he met
with Tipo who travelled south and invited him to go
to the mountain. In the platform of highest wisdom,
he “held Sanskrit in his hand, announced in Jin
Chinese, got rid of the splendid materials and saved
the truth and shouldered the righteousness”. In the
16th year of Taiyuan in the Eastern Jin Dynasty
(391 CE), he translated Abhidharmahçdaya-÷àstra,
Tridharmika-ֈstra and other scriptures. In the first
year of Long’an in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (379
CE), Ti Po came to Jiankang, capital of Jin Dynasty
(present-day Nanjing of Jiangsu Province) and all
the nobilities and celebrities in the court came to
listen to his lecture. Wang Xun, Dongting Marquis
firmly believed in the Buddhist doctrines. In his
vihara, he broadly recruits students and lectures
on Abhidharmahçdaya-÷àstra. At that time, all
famous monks came there to listen to his lectures.
He was popular among the monks and the following
Sanghadeva
Sanghadeva [Sengjiatipo] (dates of birth and
death not known) was a famous Indian monk and
translator who came to China in the Eastern Jin
Dynasty. He is also known as Ti He which can be
freely translated into Zhong Tian.
According to the Biographies of Eminent Monks, the
surname of Sengjiatipo was Gautama. He was from
Kashmir, with an open and clear mind and modest
and courteous behaviours. He was intelligent and
clever and could see clearly the human feelings and
affairs of human life. He became a monk in his early
years and went afar to a famous teacher to thoroughly
learn the Buddhist Canon. He had proficiency in and
deeper comprehension of Abhidharmahrdaya-sastra.
He also learnt and recited Tridharmika-ֈstra
frequently, which is considered as a necessary
reading material for understanding Taoism. During
the Fujian Jianyuan years of former Qin Dynasty
219
Cultural Contacts
moment. They had the same goal and determined to
translate øàriputràbhidharma-÷àstra together, just
like old friends. The translation work started from
the ninth year of Hongshi (407 CE) and ended in the
16th year and the version is still existing. Soon he
travelled south to Kangnung, and there he lived in
Xinsi temple and promoted Buddhism. Both officials
and common people, whether they have religious
belief or not, would be pleased to listen to him with
admiration and respect. He not only communicated
with God but was also able to get along well with
people, so it is generally accepted that he got holy
retribution. However, people never heard of him
after he left China for the Western Regions during
the year of Yuanjia in Southern Dynasties (424
~453 CE).
(Ge Weijun)
students because of his skilled decrees and clear
interpretations. At that winter, Wang Xun gathered
40 free school Sramanas, with Hui Chi as its head to
translate 60 volumes of Madhyamàgama again and
correct 51 volumes of Ekottaràgama. According to
the statistics of the descendants, he had translated
six scriptures, altogether 148 volumes and
more than million characters. Chu Fo-Nien also
participated in his translation business. The Zhong,
Zeng I and two agamas translated and revised by him
are the complete versions of Hinayana which was
introduced into China for the first time, playing an
important role in the history of Buddhist scriptures
translation. Sengjiatipo stayed in China for many
years and had a deep understanding of the Chinese
customs. Sengjiatipo was calm, sharp-witted and a
good orator. He was very famous at that time in the
south region of Yangtze River.
(Ge Weijun)
Vimalaksa
Vimalàkùa [Beimoluocha (4th~5th century CE)]
was a Buddhist who came to China in the Southern
and Northern Dynasties (420 – 589 CE). A famous
translator of Buddhist scriptures and a representative
of vinaya translators in early China, he was also
called as Wugouyan in free translation as well as the
“blue eye vinaya master” because of his blue eyes.
According to the Biographies of Eminent Monks and
Record Set of Tripitaka, Vimalàkṣa was a Śramana
from Kashmira. He had a calm personality and
firm mind. He became a monk, cultivated himself
according to religious doctrines and was famous
for strict adherence to moral integrity. He once
widely spread vinaya in Qiuci (present-day Kuqa
of Xinjiang). Scholars, including Kumārajīva, all
Dharmayasas
Dharmayasa [Tanmoyeshe] (4th - 5th century CE)
was a Buddhist monk and translator who came to
China during the period of East Jin Dynasty. His
other names were Faming and Facheng according
to free translation.
According to the Biographies of Eminent Monks,
Dharmayasa was born in Kashmir. He was intelligent
and fond of studying from a young age and became
more earnest when he grew up. At the age of 14,
he formally accepted Puõyatàra as his master. After
gaining adulthood, he became more elegant, with
a superior savvy temperament. Apart from reading
Vinaya-sutra extensively, he always thought deeply
and conducted self-examination by himself and
he was often alone on his way without fearing
danger. However, in spite of his long-term showing
repentance, he failed to reach the spiritual state
of an immortal when he was 30 which made him
extremely distressed. It is said that at this moment,
the guidance of Bocha King made him understand
that he should not be content with some small skills,
but should travel around to gain “knowledge”, and
the Tao shall be attained by benefitting mankind
and being kind to everyone. Afterwards, he travelled
to various countries for knowledge, and reached
Guangzhou at the age of 85, during the period of
Long’an in East Jin Dynasty (397~401 CE). Since
he was good at reciting Vibhàùà, local people called
him as “Great Vibhàùà”. There, he explained the
origin of Buddhism and translated øamàsåtra for
Zhang Puming, a female believer. At the beginning
of the year of Yixi in East Jin Dynasty (405~418
CE), he came to Chang’an. At that time, Yao Xing
of later Qin Dynasty adored Buddhism very much
and showed great respect for him. Indian Buddhist
Tanmojueduo was also in central Shaanxi at that
Sarvastivada-vinaya
around competed to be his students. Later, a riot
occurred in Qiuci, so he escaped to another area.
Kumārajīva was invited to China by Yao Xing in
the third year of Hong Shi (401 CE). He actively
carried forward Buddhism and translated numerous
Buddhist scriptures. Knowing this, Vimalākṣa also
crossed a broad area of quicksand in order to spread
220
Cultural Contacts
wasting any time, he became a diligent reader,
focussing on reciting and contemplating deeply
about religious doctrine. Later, when he travelled
to Schaller (present-day Kashgar), he was asked
by the prince to live in his palace and was offered
good treatment. Soon Kumārajīva passed by with
his mother and learned the Abhidharma Theory
and Da÷a-bhàõavàra-vinaya from him for a year.
Several years later after Kumārajīva returned to
his birthplace in Qiuci (present Kuqa in Xinjiang),
he became famous in the Western Regions and
Fu Jian, the Monarch of former Qin Dynasty also
vinaya in the eastern country, and arrived in central
Shaanxi of China in the eighth year of Hong Shi
(406 CE). Kumārajīva treated him as a master with
respect. After Kumārajīva died, Vimalākṣa moved
to Shijian Temple of Shouchun County (presentday Shou County in Anhui Province) and preached
vinaya. Puņyatārā and Dharmaruci once successively
cooperated with Kumārajīva to translate Da÷abhàõavàra-vinaya. Vimalàkùa brought the scripture
to Shouchun and supplemented the translation of
Vinaya by adding a Foreword. Annexing it to all
the former translations, a complete version of the
Daśa-bhāņavāra-vinaya was completed. Later, he
went to Xinsi Temple in Jiangling and preached
vinaya, so vinaya became popular. The monk Hui
Yuan requested him to summarise the main ideas
of vinaya and compile them, so two volumes of
Miscellaneous Vinaya were completed. The book
was sent to the capital Jiankang (now Nanjing of
Jiangsu Province) and was widely held in esteem.
Monks and nuns competed to make private copies,
which made paper very expensive for a period of
time. Vimalākṣa died in Shijian Temple of Shouchun
County in the ninth year of Yixi (413 CE) during the
Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420 CE). He was 77.
(Ge Weijun)
Buddhayaśas preaching Dharma
had the desire to invite him. In February of the
17th year of Jianyuan of former Qin (381 CE), the
king of Shanshan and Qianbu requested Fu Jian
to conduct a western war. Fu Jian then sent Lu
Guang, General of Valiant Cavalry to fight with
70,000 soldiers in western countries, including
Qiuci and Yanqi in the next September, and invited
Kumārajīva to China before the war. In the 20th
year of Jianyuan (384 CE), Lu Guang controlled
Qiuci and got Kumārajīva. However, it was 20
years after staying outside since Kumārajīva was
welcomed to Chang’an by Yao Xing, the Monarch
of Later Qin. Yao Xing thought highly of him and
treated him like a national hero. He also devoted
himself to the translation of Buddhist scriptures.
When Kumārajīva entered China for the first time,
he also invited Buddhayasas to be in the Central
Plains in Gu Zang (now Wuwei of Gansu Province)
to be together. At that time, Buddhayasas was in
Qiuci. Asked to stay by the local people, he was
able to leave with his disciples in disguise only after
a year, but when he reached Gu Zang, Kumārajīva
had already been to Chang’an. Kumārajīva then
persuaded Yao Xing to invite Buddhayasas. He
said while he could recite Buddhist text without
knowing its meaning, Buddhayasas could ensure
the translation of scriptures without mistakes and
omissions, and only such scriptures could enjoy
the trust of people for thousand years. Then,
Yao Xing sent an ambassador to earnestly invite
Buddhayasas, and when he reached (408 CE),
Buddhayasas
Buddhayasas (also known as Fotuoyeshe or Jueming
in free translation) (4th–5th century CE) was an
Indian Buddhist monk and translator who came
to China during Southern and Northern Dynasties.
He is famous as one of the early representative
translators of Vinayapitaka .
According to books like volume II of Biographies
of Eminent Monks and Volume XIV of Compilation of
Notes on the Translation of Tripitaka, Buddhayasas
was born in Kashmir. He was a Brahmin and his
family followed Brahmanism for generations.
According to a legend, his father suffered from
spasms in his hands and feet when he ordered his
servant to hit a Buddhist śramana, but recovered
soon after whole-heartedly apologising to him.
Thereupon, his father converted to Buddhism,
and had Buddhayasas turned into a monk as his
disciple. Since Buddhayasas was smarter than
others, he could recite Mahayana and Hinayana
scriptures at the age of 19. He was however proud
and insolent with self-approbation, and considered
no one competent enough to match as his master.
No monk therefore showed respect to him and
he remained a trainee or novice monk for many
years. Later, he mastered the Panchvidya which
included Śabda-vidyā, Śilpasthāna-vidyā, Cikitsāvidyā, Hetuvidyā and Ādhyatma-vidyā and other
magic arts following his uncle, and accepted the
Bhiksuni at the age of 27. Afterwards, without
221
Cultural Contacts
monks followed him to receive ordination, and the
way of Buddha became popular. Several hundred
monks and nuns followed him successively. From
the 10th year to 19th year of Yuanjia, he translated
11 volumes of Saüyuktàbhidharma-hçdaya-sàstra,
one volume of ârya-nàgàrjuna-bodhisattva-suhçllekha,
one volume of Sutra of Differentiating Consequences
of Evil and Good and 10 volumes of Sarvastivada
Vinayamatrka and so on. According to the statistics,
he translated 24 volumes of five Buddhist scriptures.
Sanghavarman liked wandering and didn’t want to
dwell in a place so he insisted in returning to his
country after the completion of scripture translation
although his followers urged him to stay. He
returned to his country with merchants from the
Western Regions by ship in the 19th year of Yuanjia.
His later whereabouts are unknown.
(Ge Weijun)
Yao Xing personally extended greetings to him.
An arrangement was made for his stay in the
courtyard specially built in the Leisurely Garden.
Before that time, Kumārajīva was planning to
translate Da÷abhåmika-såtra, but after thinking
carefully, he did not dare start despite having the
original manuscript in hand, because there was still
difficulty in the translation. After Buddhayasas’
participation in the translation work, the translated
texts were written down only after gaining a
perspicuous principle by repeated discussions,
and every monk in the translation workshop
praised their precision and appropriateness.
Buddhayasas could recite Dharmagupta-vinaya,
which he was asked to translate. But Yao Xing was
worried that he could make mistakes, so he asked
Buddhayasas to memorise a medical prescription
text of approximately 50,000 words. Two days
later, his excellent memory was recognised
when he recited the text without any mistake.
During the period from the 12th to 15th year of
Hong Shi of Later Qin Dynasty (410-413 CE), he
translated the Dharmagupta-vinaya, Buddhist Monk
Pratimoksa of Dharmagupta-vinaya and Dãrghàgama
etc which are translated from Chu Fo-nien into
Chinese, embodying the Buddhism in writing.
Soon Buddhayasas returned to his own country
and entrusted merchant-travellers to take a volume
of Akà÷agarbha-bodhisattva-såtra to the Central
Plains after he got it. Buddhayasas was good at
interpreting Vibhàùà, which is why he was called
"the Master of Vibhàùà. Since he was the master of
Kumārajīva, he got another title of “Great Master
of Vibhàùà”.
(Ge Weijun)
Asanga
Asanga [Wuzhu] (c. 4th - 5th century CE) was one
of the founders of Indian Mahayana Yogacara
school. The Chinese transliteration for the name is
A sengqie.
Life Story
According to the Biography of Vasubandhu, Wuzhu
was born into Brahmin caste in Purusapura of
northwest India (present-day Peshawar in Pakistan).
His father, Kausika, who had three sons, was then
the state preceptor. Asanga’s brother Vasubandhu
was also an important Mahayana Buddhist.
Sanghavarman
Sanghavarman [Sengjiabamo] (c. 4th or 5th century
CE) was an Indian monk and translator who came to
China in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. His
name meant massive armour and monastic armour.
According to the records of Collected Records
Concerning the Tripitaka and Biographies of Eminent
Monks etc. Samghavarman was an Indian who
became a monk when he was a teenager. He was
simple and received ordination strictly and was
proficient in Tripitaka. He had a good knowledge of
Saüyuktàbhidharma-hçdaya-sàstra. In the 10th year
of Yuanjia of Song Dynasty (433 CE), he crossed
Liusha and arrived in Jiankang (Nanjing, Jiangsu at
present). Jianye had Pinglu Temple which was built
by Xu Sang, who was the officer of Pinglu and offered
his houses. The Chinese monk Hui Guan thought
that Sanghavarman had pure cultivation and was
broad-minded and invited him to live in the temple.
Sanghavarman recited sutras all day and night and
was honoured as Tripitaka Master. More and more
Asaṅga
Asanga was, at first, a Theravada Buddhism
Sarvāstivādin monk and once almost committed
suicide because he wanted to fathom the meaning of
emptiness but could not. Later, from the east Videha
came an eminent monk Bindusāra who explained
Theravada concept of emptiness to him. He was
enlightened to some extent but was still not satiāfied
for he believed that truth was more than that. So he
222
Cultural Contacts
went to Tuśita with his extra-sensory ability to learn
about the Mahayana concept of emptiness from
Maitreya Bodhisattva there. Later, he returned and
understood the theory finally after he thoroughly
pondered on it. Some scholars thought Maitreya
Bodhisattva was a real person while others thought
he was probably a Yogācārya before Asanga’s times.
It was said that he had been to consult
Maitreya several times and brought back
Yogàcàrabhåmi ÷àstra, Mahāyāna-sūtrālamkārakārikā, Madhyàntavibhàgañãkà, etc. with which he
preached and spread the Mahayana yoga method
widely. Compared to Madhyamaka worshipped by
Nāgārjuna and Tipo, the school founded by him is
named Dharmalaksana.
His brother Vasubandhu, a man of wide learning
and a retentive memory, was also a Theravada
Sarvàstivàdin monk. He knew the doctrines of 18
schools of the Theravada well and was very good at
explaining them. He denounced Mahayana as nonBuddhism and did not believe in it.
Knowing Vasubandhu’s wisdom and that this
brother had thorough understanding of both
Buddhism and heretics, Asanga feared that he might
write books to damage Mahayana so he called his
brother back to Puruśapura from Ayodhya, citing his
own sickness. When Vasubandhu returned, Wuzhu
warned his brother the retribution of slandering the
Mahayana and explained to him the substance of
Mahayana. It resulted in Vasubandhu’s giving up
on Theravada and began to learn about Mahayana
instead. He regretted for his sin so much that he
even intended to cut his own tongue to show his
repentance for which Wuzhu responded that a better
repentance would be to use his tongue to propagate
Mahayana. Vasubandhu listened to his brother and
began to preach on Mahayana.
During his later years, Asanga travelled through
Kauśāmbī in Majjhimdesa (present-day northern
Kosal, Uttar Pradesh) until he died at the age of over
100 (some say 75). After Asanga died, Vasubandhu
actively continued his brother’s teaching, making
his theory widespread.
Mahāyāna-samgraha-śāstra
Tang Dynasty (three volumes called She Da Cheng
Lun Ben). Among the above, the last two versions
are popular. The book was to explain the Indian
Abhidharma Mahayana Sutra (had been lost and did
not spread to China) but Xuanzang believed that it
explained Mahàyàna-saüparigraha-varga of the Sutra.
It focussed on the theory of Yogacara, discussed
in detail the validation of vij¤àptimàtratà, the trisvabhava (parikalpita-svabhàva, paratantra-svabhàva
and pariniùpanna-svabhàva), àlayavij¤àna and other
issues, all of which laid the theoretical foundation of
Mahayana Yogacara school.
Just after the coming into being of the book,
there appeared many notations, such as Mahàyànasaüparigraha-÷àstra-bhàùya of Vasubandhu and
Asvabhāva, developing the original thoughts.
Vasubandhu’s work had been translated by
Paramārtha of Chen Dynasty, Jiduo and Hangju
of Sui Dynasty, and Xuanzang of Tang Dynasty.
Asvabhāva’s work was translated only by Xuanzang.
There were also many notations of the Chinese
version of Essential Theory done by Chinese monks,
such as Paramārtha and Huikai’s Notes on Essential
Theory, Dao Ji’s Exegesis on Essential Theory, Tan
Qian’s Explaining the Essential Theory and Kuei-chi’s
On the Essential Theory to name just a few. The book
was very popular in the Southern and Northern
Dynasties, becoming the fundamental texts of the
She Lun School.
Prakaraõàryavàcà-÷àstra,
also
known
as
Āryavācāprakaraṇa-śāstra was of 20
volumes,
translated by Xuanzang. It was one of the major
scriptures of Yogacara, dedicated to explain and
promote Yogācāra-bhūmi-śāstra. The book employed
the various creeds of Mahayana and Hinayana to
illustrate the basic doctrine of vij¤apti-mātratā and
had always been regarded as an important reference
book of Yogacara. Since Xuanzang combined the
eulogy of this book into one and named it Ode to
Prakaraõàryavàcà-÷àstra, the academic world was
not sure that the two books were of the same author.
One theory was that the Ode was written by Asanga
and the author of Prakaraõàryavàcà-÷àstra was
Vasubandhu. It was said that Kuei-chit, Shen-tai of
Important works and Chinese
translations
Wuzhu’s writings were many and those that were
translated into Chinese and Tibetan are about 30.
Chinese versions are mainly as follows:
Mahàyàna-saüparigraha-÷àstra: It was also known
as Essential Theory because it included the essence
of all the Mahayana Buddhism.
The Sanskrit original has been lost and all
together there had been three Chinese translations
of it, translated respectively by Buddhasanta of
Northern Wei Dynasty (two volumes), Paramàrtha
of Chen Dynasty (three volumes) and Xuanzang of
223
Cultural Contacts
Tang Dynasty and Jingxin of Xin Luo (present-day
in Korea Peninsula) had made commentaries on the
book, but all had been lost.
Shun-chung-lun,
abbreviation
of
Primary
Varga
of
Mahāpraj¤āpāramitā-sūtra
of
Mūlamadhyamakakārikā, two volumes was an early
work of Asanga and was translated into Chinese
by Gautamapraj¤āruci, who was of Majjhimdesa
origin. The purpose of the book was to elaborate
the “eight negations” (namely no cessation, no
arising, no annihilation, no permanence, not the
same, not the different, no coming and no going)
and the idea of prapanca put forward by Nāgārjuna
in Madhyamikaśāstra and to criticise the mistaken
attachment to vainness and the extremities, so as to
persuade people to hold to the “middle way”.
Mahāyānābhidharma-samuccaya, seven volumes,
translated by Xuanzang, was one of the two books
that Asanga had written based on Abhidharma-kośa,
the other was Mahāyāna-samparigraha-śāstra. This
was the only book that was purely of Abhidharma
Mahayana. It contained altogether 1,500 odes and
was divided into five sets. The contents are divided
into two parts, namely Itivrtaka and final translation
part, with four chapters, respectively. The
significance of the book was that one can have an
overview of the Abhidharma-kośa from the content
of it. Although Mahāyānābhidharma-samuccaya was
an important book on which Yogacara was based,
the original and the translation have all been lost.
(Ge Weijun)
Vasubandha
first in Nålandå. To acquire deeper knowledge of
Abhidharma he went to Kaßmira, and under the
supervision of Saghabhadra studied VibhåΣå,
the treatises of 18 schools and six philosophies
(›aa∂darßana) of the other philosophers of India.
Xuanzang records Manoratha as teacher.
According
to
Paramartha,
Canrdagupta
Vikramåditya, a Íå∫khya follower, patronised
Vasubandhu. Influenced by him, Candragupta,
his wife, and son Bålåditya, became his disciples.
Later, when Bålåditya ascended the throne, he
invited Vasubandhu to live in Ayodhyå. Residing
there, Vasubandhu wrote his most famous treatise
Abhidharmakoßa. On the request of VaibhåΣika of
Kaßm¥ra, he subsequently wrote its commentary
entitled, AbhidharmakoßabhåΣya. The commentary
however turned out to be critical of VaibhåΣikas
as against Sautråntikas. Unhappy by criticism,
VaibhåΣika teacher Sa∫ghabhadra wrote treatises
Satyånusåraßåstra
(Nyåyånusåraßåstra)
and
Abhidharma-samaya-prd¥pika ßåstra to refute
the AbhidharmakoßabhåΣya. Sa∫ghabhadra also
challenged Vasubandhu for a debate but the latter
refused to take up the challenge.
According to Xuanzang, the original name of
the treatise refuting AbhidharmakoßabhåΣya was
koßakarakå ßåstra (Hail the Abhidharmakoßa;
disgracing the name of Abhidharma, koßakarikåßåstra
as (Abhidharma)koßakarakåßåstra. After the death
of Sa'ghabhadra, Vasubandhu changed its name to
Satyånusåraßåstra (Nyåyånusåraßåstra).
Paramårtha also informed that, influenced by
his elder brother Asa∫ga, Vasubandhu in his old
age converted to Mahåyåna Buddhism, in spite,
of being a strong critic of that school. But after
his conversion, he felt so guilty that he wanted
to cut his tongue. Asa∫ga advised him to expound
the Mahåyåna instead. Following him, he wrote
many texts and commentaries on the sutras and
texts of Mahåyåna. Lama Taranatha also refers to
this incident.
Vasubandhu’s convincing victory over Vasuråta, an
eminent grammarian, in an ideological debate is also
Vasubandhu
Vasubandhu (Shìqin 世親 5th century CE) was a
prominent Buddhist scholar monk who together with
his brother, Asaga, developed Yogåcåra philosophy
in India. His biography was written by Paramårtha,
the eminent Indian scholar and translator. Available
now only in Chinese, this is entitled Po-sou-pan-dou
fashijuan (biography of dharma master Vasubandhu).
It mentions that he was born at Puruapura (presentday Peshawar in Pakistan) in a Bråhma family
of the Kausika gotra. He was the middle one of
three brothers with Asaga being the elder one and
Virincivatsa being the younger. Tibetan Historian
Bu-tson, however, considers Asaga to be the halfbrother of Vasubandhu.
Vasubandhu was the disciple of Buddhamitra. It
is noted that once during his absence, a Sånkhya
teacher, Vindhyavåsi, defeated his teacher in a
debate. That angered him so much that he himself
wanted to have a debate with Vindhyavåsi. But,
meanwhile, Vindhyavasi died. To refute him, he
finally composed a treatise name ‘Parmårthasaptati’.
According to Tibetan historians Bu-tson and
Lama Taranath, Vasubandhu was the disciple of
Vaibhasika teacher Saghabhadra and was ordained
224
Cultural Contacts
Buddhajiva
recorded. He died at the age of 80 in Ayodhya. He is
known for his progressive thought which is reflected
in his works which ranged from Sarvåstivådin to
Yogåcåra (Mahåyåna) texts. As a Sarvastivadin,
he wrote a masterpieces like Abhidharmakoßa
and its commentary (AbhidharmakoßabhåΣya).
As a Yogåcårin, he produced significant
texts
like
Viµśatikāvijñaptimātratāsiddhi
(20
verses on consciousness only) and Triṃśikāvijñaptimātratāsiddhi (30 verses on consciousness
only). So significant were these texts that after their
translation in Chinese, two separate schools namely
Koßa School and Vijñaptimātra or DharmalakΣaˆa
(or Dharmåkåra) School developed in China. These
texts were also translated into Japanese and Tibetan.
Several of Vasubandhu’s independent texts
and commentaries are also noted by Pramarth.
Buddhajīva [Fotuoshi] (5th century) was an Indian
monk and translator who came to China during
Southern and Northern Dynasties. He was also
known as Fotuoshi and Fodashi which is paraphrased
as life consciousness.
According to Collected Records Concerning the
Tripitaka, and Biographies of Eminent Monks, etc
Buddhajīva was born in Kashmir and became a monk
in Mahīśāsaka when he was young. He specialised in
vinay classics and also had deep studies on Chan. In
July of the first year (423 CE) of Jingping of Song
of Southern Dynasty, he travelled to the east and
arrived in Yangzhou (others believe it was Jiankang)
(present-day Nanjing of Jiangsu Province). Faxian, a
monk of Jin Dynasty had brought back from Simhala
(present-day Sri Lanka) the Mahi ֈsaka discipline
in Sanskrit version, but died before he could
translate. Many Buddhist monks in the capital city,
Jiankang of Song Dynasty learned that Buddhajīva
was an expert in this discipline and hoped he could
translate it. In November, as requested by Wang
Lian of Langya, Dao Sheng and other monks, he
set up a translation centre in Longguang Temple
in Jiankang city. He translated the Sanskrit version
held by him which was interpreted by Khotanese
Śramana Zhisheng and written down by the monk
Dao Sheng of Longguang Temple and Huiyan and
other monks of Dong’an temple. The translation
was completed in April of the next year. There were
34 volumes, known as Vinaya of the Five Categories
(only 30 volumes are available at present, known
as Mahīsasakavinaya). In addition, he had also
translated a volume of Mahiīśāsaka Five Precepts
and so on. These books however disappeared later
without any trace.
(Ge Weijun)
Gunavriddhi
Abhidharmakosa-sastra
Guņavriddhi [Qiunapidi] (unknown-502 CE) was
an Indian monk and translator who came to China
in the Southern and Northern Dynasty. His name
meant virtue progress and peace progress.
According to the records of Biographies of Eminent
Monks and Kaiyuan Catalogue of Buddhist Scriptures,
etc. Guņavriddhi grew up in Majjhimdesa (central
India). He adopted monastic life in his childhood and
his teacher was the Mahayana master Sanghasena.
He was clever, wise, good at memorising, studious
in sutra recitation, and proficient in nearly 2,00,000
words of Mahayana and Hinayana sutras. He also
learned Brahminist scriptures. Moreover, he had a
good knowledge of Yin-yang divination and most
of his divinations would true. In the first year of
Jianyuan of Emperor Gao of Qi in the Southern
Dynasty (479-482 CE) he came to the capital Jiankang
(present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu) and lived in Vaishali
Their original Sanskrit versions are extinct
and only Chinese and Tibetan translations are
available now. Among them, two texts namely,
Pañcaskandhaprakaraˆa and Karmasiddhiprakaraˆa
are famous because they not only act as a
bridge between the AbhidharmakoßabhåΣya,
a Sarvåstivåda text and Vijñaptimātratāsiddhi
(Vimśatikāvijñaptimātratāsiddhi
and
Triṃśikāvijñaptimātratāsiddhi),
a
Vijñånavåda
text
but also demonstrate Vasubandhu’s leanings
towards Mahåyåna. His other writings include
Trisvabhåvanirdeßa, Vyåkhyåyukti (logic text),
Paddhati¤ika (commentary on Abhisamayalankara),
Våda-vidhi (logic text: ‘A Method for Argumentation’),
GåthåsaµgrahabhåΣya,
Saddharmapuˆ∂ar¥kas¨tropadeßa, Madhyåntavibhåga - ßåstrabhåΣya.
(Lalji & Kamal Sheel)
225
Cultural Contacts
According to Volume X of Records of the Western
Regions of the Great Tang, Volume IV of Biography of
Tripitaka Dharma Master from Da Ci'en Temple of Tang
Dynasty and other records, Qingbian was born in the
royal family of Malyara in south India. He had been
to central India to learn and practice Saïgharakùita,
which was also called Sangharakshita and learned
Mahayana sutras and Nāgārjuna’s doctrines. Then
he returned to south India and presided over more
than 50 temples in the south. Qingbian inherited
the publicity of Nāgārjuna’s doctrines as his own
responsibility. He adopted critical attitudes toward
the other factions out of Buddhism and even the
other various factions of Mahayana and Hinayana.
His work of Prajñàpradãpa-måla-madhyamaka-vçtti
(also called Mūla-madhyamakasandhi-nirmocanavyākhyā, 15 volumes, translated into Chinese
by Prabhākara-mitra in Tang Dynasty) for the
Explanation of the Hundred
Parables Sutra
Temple, where many disciples often followed him
when he stopped and wandered. He looked dignified
and mighty and dukes and influential officials
competed for offering him. Guņavriddhi collected
100 significant metaphor stories from sutras into a
book and instructed beginners. The contents were
related to good and evil retribution and other
profound parables, and he introduced life lessons
and Buddhist doctrines from them. Guņavriddhi
knew the purpose of the sutra well, so he translated
these stories in the autumn of the 10th year of
Yongming of Qi (492 CE) and called them as four
volumes of Sutra of 100 Parables (98 parables exist
at present). In the second year of Jianwu of Emperor
Ming of Qi (495 CE), he translated one volume of
Sudatta Sutra (which exists at present) and Sutra of
the 12 Nidanas respectively. After the Daming era
of Song of the Southern Dynasty (457-464 CE), the
sutra translation course had decayed, monks and
Buddhist disciples were, therefore, pleased at the
beginning of new activities for the translation of
sutras. Guņavriddhi was generous and kind. Many
believers came from afar to devote themselves to
him and merchants offered funds actively to operate
Buddhist affairs. He made use of donated funds and
materials to build magnificent Zhengguan Temple
beside Qinhui River and took disciples to propagate
Buddhism constantly and it was very popular. He
died in the temple in the winter of the second year
of Zhongxin of Emperor He of Qi (502 CE) and his
age at the time of death was unknown.
(Ge Weijun)
Bhavaviveka
annotation of Nāgārjuna’s Madhyamikaśāstra had
added annotations to each chapter of the original
sutra and strictly followed the inheritance of
the Madhyamika Mula scholars since Nāgārjuna
and criticised the doctrines of Buddhapàlita, who
was also an important master of madhyamaka.
His criticisms were also very severe towards
the doctrines proposed by Dharmapāla of Three
Natures (parikalpitah-svabhava, paratantra-svabhava,
parinispanna-svabhava), the main idea of Yogacara.
Another of his book Madhyamakahçdayakàrikà
generally argued about Madhyamika Mula thoughts,
advocated Mahayana and criticised Hinayana with
his standpoints. The main purpose was to illuminate
twi-satyas, sunyata, anutpàda and other doctrines
of Madhyamika Mula. This book also introduced
the philosophy of Sàükhya, vai÷eùika, Vedānta,
Mīmā¤sā and other factions, which belonged
to Tirthika, thus it could help in understanding
the Hindu philosophical development. His book
Karatala-ratna (that is Karatalaratna, two volumes,
with a version translated by Xuanzang) mainly
argued about the doctrines of Madhyamika of
Mahayana and proposed the belief that all is vanity
and getting rid of the ideas of heretics, Hinayana
and Yogacara of Mahayana.
(Ge Weijun)
Bhavaviveka
Bhāvaviveka [Qingbian], (490-570 CE) was the
master of Mahayana Madhyamaka in south India
of the 6th century CE. He was one of the actual
founders of Madhyamaka, also known as Bhavya,
Mingbian, Fenbieming and the transliteration
was Bhavaviveka.
226
Cultural Contacts
Narendrayasas
Naliantiliyeshe arrived in the capital city of Yedu
(now in the east of Ye Town of Linzhang county of
Hubei). Emperor Wenxuan welcomed him with a
heartfelt and courteous reception and arranged for
him to live in the Tianping temple. Later, he took
more than 1,000 Buddhist sutras in Sanskrit, from
the Tripitaka palace and entrusted him to translate.
At the same time, Emperor Wenxuan made an
imperial instruction to śramaṇa Fashang, the great
master (commander-in-chief) of Zhaoxuan (the
government office-in-charge of Buddhism affairs),
and others, together more than 20 officers to monitor
and master the translation affairs. He appointed
the eldest son, Dharmajñàna, (paraphrasing as
wisdom of Buddha dharma) of Gautamaprajñàruci,
the commander of Zhaoxuan (little lower in grade)
and Buddhist Wan Tianyi as messengers. Here, he
translated 10 volumes of Samàdhiràja-såtra, five
volumes of Mahà-karuõà-puõóarãka, one volume
of Buddha's Utterance of the Sutras of the Merit and
Virtues for Offering Lights and other works, totalling
five classics and 49 volumes.
Besides
the
preaching
and
translation,
Naliantiliyeshe also used magic to help people
out of various difficult issues. His supplies and
salaries were all used for helping the hungry and
the poor, providing food for animals, digging
wells and adopting diseased persons and for
other philanthropies. Soon he was appointed as
commander of Zhaoxuan, this was followed by
a quick promotion to be commander-in-chief of
Zhaoxuan (the rank was higher). In Jiande sixth
year (577 CE), Northern Zhou Dynasty conquered
Northern Qi Dynasty. Emperor Wu of Northern
Zhou exerted policies of abolishing Buddhism. He
instructed to burn down the images of Buddha and
ordered śramana to resume a secular life. Yeshe
wore common clothes on the outside and cloister
cloth inside and hid himself away from being seen
everywhere. He had been homeless and wandered
from place to place for several years, while at the
same time, he continued to help and support the
diseased and the poor with his limited abilities.
After the establishment of Sui Dynasty (581 CE),
Buddhism revived. In July of Kaihuang second
year (582 CE) under the reign of Emperor Wen in
Sui dynasty, being accompanied by his disciples
of Daomi and others, Yeshe went to the capital
city of Chang’an under the invitation and lived in
Daikouzenji Temple. He translated sutras since the
winter, and Emperor Wen gave imperial instructions
that Śramana Tanyan, the commander-in-chief of
Zhaoxuan and more than 30 other officers should
participate in the translation project. Later, Yeshe
moved to Guangji Temper and continued with the
translation work. At this moment, Yeshe had aged
but yet he worked ardently. One day in August of
Narendrayaśas [Naliantiliyeshe], (490-589 CE), was
an Indian monk and translator who came to China
in the late Northern and Southern Dynasty. He
was also known as Narendrayasas or simply Yeshe
paraphrasing as Respectful Name.
According to volume II of Continuation of the
Biographies of Eminent Monks, Volume IX of Three
Treasures of Previous Dynasties, Volume VI of
Catalogues of Kai Yuan Buddhist Books and other
records, Naliantiliyeshe was the man of Uddiyana
(now in Pakistan Swat Valley) in north India. He was
of the same clan as Buddha, his surname was also
Buddha and belonged to the Kshatriya caste. When
he was 17-years-old, Naliantiliyeshe was already
determined to be a monk. Due to the teaching and
guidance of a famous teacher, he was proficient
in Mahayana, Hinayana and the three doctrines of
śãla, dhyàna and prajñà. When he was 21-years-old,
Naliantiliyeshe took complete precepts and wished
to pay visit and show respect to all the places where
there were holy traces of Buddha. Later, he toured
far and traversed through many countries from
the Snowy Mountains (Himalayas and Hindu Kush
mountains) to the north and Simhaladvipa (presentday Sri Lanka) to the south among other places.
During his tour period, he once lived 10 years in
Venuvan vihāra. An honourable master got to learn
that Naliantiliyeshe preferred far tours and pointed
out to him that travelling all around would not
enable him to make any achievements. It would
be only through quietude that he could accomplish
something. He accepted the master’s advice and
returned to his motherland. Later, the temple where
Naliantiliyeshe lived was on fire and burned down,
he left for the north across Congling (now Pamirs)
and went towards the east to Ruirui States (the
name for Rouran used in the historical records of
Southern Dynasty), after passing through many
places in Tianbao seventh year (556 CE) under the
reign of Emperor Wenxuan in Northern Qi Dynasty.
Dazhuangyan famen jing
227
Cultural Contacts
of remarkable presence, travelled many countries,
visited famous masters, and was proficient in
four vedas of Brahminism and Tripitaka scriptures
of Buddhism and had particularly a profound
knowledge of Mahayana theories. He aimed at
propagating Buddhist principles without fear of
dangers, and came to Funan (south of Cambodia,
Laos and Vietnam at present) by ship. During the
Datong Reign of Liang of the Southern Dynasty
(535 CE~545 CE), Emperor Wu took the chance
that Zhihou (an official post) Zhang Fan escorted
returning Funan envoys and ordered him to visit
famous monks and great masters and seek Mahayana
classics. Although Paramārtha was in his 50s at
that time, he was pleased to come to China. In the
first year of Zhongdatong (546 CE), he carried 240
Sanskrit scriptures and arrived in Nanhai Prefecture
(Guangzhou present-day). He went to the north and
stopped in several places, and arrived in the capital
Jiankang (Nanjing, Jiangsu at present) in August of
the second year of Taiqing of Liang (548 CE). Emperor
Wu bowed him in worship, arranged him to live in
Baoyun Palace and made offerings to him sincerely.
When he translated sutras, the country suffered from
Houjing Riot, he had to go to the east with his tinmade-staff and arrived in Fuchun (Fuyang, Zhejiang
present-day) in the fourth year of Taiqing. The
county magistrate Lu Yuanzhe respected him very
much, cleaned his private house for him, invited
over 20 erudite monks, arranged a translation site
and invited him to handle translation affairs. He
translated the sutras such as Treatise on the Stages of
the Yogachara (Yogācārabhūmiśāstra) and Memorial
Verses on the Middle Teaching (Madhyamikaśāstra),
etc. In the third year of Dabao of Liang (552 CE),
he accepted the invitation of Houjing and returned
to Jiankang and lived in Taicheng. Houjing soldiers
were defeated and escaped and Emperor Yuan
of Liang succeeded the throne and changed the
reign title into Yuan Chengsheng and moved to
Zhengguan Temple and translated Sutra of Golden
Light (Suvarņaprabhāsottama-śāstra) with over 20
former meditation masters. In the third year of
Chengsheng of Emperor Yuan (554 CE), he went
to Yuzhang (present-day Nanchang, Jiangxi)
and lived in Baotian Temple. He lived in Meiye
Temple of Xinwu (Fengxin, Jiangxi present-day),
Jianxing Temple of Shixing (present-day Qujiang,
Guangdong) and Nankang etc, till the third year
of Shaotai of Emperor Jing (557 CE). He came to
Yuzhang and lived in Xiyin Temple till the second
year of Yongding of Emperor Wu of Chen (558 CE).
Then he passed through Linchuan (present-day
Fuzhou, Jiangxi) and Jin’an (present-day Jinjiang,
Fujian). He wandered place to place in this period.
He kept translating and instructing. In the second
year of Tianjia of Emperor Wen of Chen (561
Kaihuang ninth year, he said to his disciples that
he was already old with limited energy and would
soon die. He warned his disciples, "It’s difficult to
take any shortcut to be enlightened by Buddha
dharma, the only way is to diligently practice
and study on it; it’s difficult to gain the lifetime,
be cautious of it and don’t waste it in emptiness”.
After finishing these words, he lay down on the
pillow and passed away. The sutras translated by
Yeshe also included 12 volumes of Candragarbhasåtra, one volume of Buddha's Utterance of the Sutras
of Hundreds of Buddha's Doctrines, two volumes of
Buddha's Utterance of the Sutras of Merit’s Protection
for the Elder, one volume of Buddha's Utterance of The
Sutras of Firm Girl, three volumes of Samādhi Sutra
of Solemn Strength, two volumes of Solemn Grand
Entrance of Buddha Dharma Sutra, six volumes of
Abhidharma Heart sutra and so on. It was said Yeshe’s
translation works were totalling 13 books and more
than 70 volumes while it was also said that there
were 15 books and more than 80 volumes. Among
these translated works, Candragarbha-såtra (today’s
Mahavaipulya-mahasanni-pata-sutra Candragarbha
part) had exerted great influences on the future
generations, Jizang, Xinxing, Daochuo, etc, had
narrated the thoughts about degeneration of dharma
according to Yeshe’s translation work.
(Ge Weijun)
Paramartha
Paramārtha [Zhendi] (499~569) was also named
Guņarata or Guņaratha and was a monk coming to
China in the Southern and Northern Dynasties. He
was also a famous sutra translator.
Paramārtha
According to the records of Catalogue of Buddhist
Scriptures published in successive dynasties
and Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks etc,
Paramārtha was from Ujjayinī (ie Ujayana or Ujjain,
Madhya Pradesh, India) of Aparanta. His original
family name was Bharata and belonged to a Brahmin
family. He was clever and had good memory since
his childhood, was eloquent and elegant, was a man
228
Cultural Contacts
Biographies of Eminent Monks and claimed that there
were 278 volumes of 64 sutras, Catalogue of Buddhist
Scriptures published in successive dynasties recorded
that there were 232 volumes of 48 sutras and Kaiyuan
Catalogue of Buddhist Scriptures confirmed that he
translated 118 volumes of 38 sutras. There exist 32
sutras at present mainly including 22 volumes of
Treasure Chamber of the Abhidharma, one volume of
20 verses on the Mind-Only Doctrine, three volumes
of Compendium of the Mahayana, 15 volumes of
Commentary on Compendium of the Mahayana
(Mahàyàna-saïgraha-bhàùya), two volumes of
Treatise on Discrimination between the Middle and
Extremes (Madhyàntavibhàgañãkà), four volumes
of Chatur Satya Shastra (Catuþsatya-nirde÷a), one
volume of Treatise on the Awakening of Faith in the
Mahayana
(Mahàyàna-÷raddhotpàda-÷àstra),
one volume of Samayabhedo-parachana-chakra and
three volumes of Hiraõyasaptati and so on. Most of
them are important scriptures for Buddhist studies.
Compendium of the Mahayana and Commentary
on Compendium of the Mahayana are the chief
theoretical bases for Mahayana-samparigraha-śāstra
school of the Southern Dynasty and Paramārtha was
honoured as the founder of Mahayana-samparigrahaśāstra school. Hiraņyasaptati was the important
scripture to study Samkhya of Hinduism. Paramārtha
propagated doctrines of Yogachara school of
Asanga and Vasubandhu. His translation differed
from previous one by Bodhiruci as well as later
one of Xuanzang. Many of his translation versions
were often re-translated by Xuanzang. Xuanzang’s
disciples often criticised his translation too harshly,
and even there was competition between new and
old translated works. The differences between the
two translators originated from their doctrines
mainly. In terms of Paramārtha’s translation most
works were real contents of original scriptures,
although his words were obscure or mixed with his
personal interpretation and it was proper in terms
of inheritance. His translation often matched with
explanations. It can be seen that he was an excellent
translator as well as erudite praj¤ā master.
(Ge Weijun)
CE), he arrived in Liang’an Prefecture (presentday Huiyang, Guangdong) from Jin’an by boat
and built a temple to translate and instruct sutras.
After the completion of translation, he wanted to
return to his country by ship. His students and
disciples urged him to stay after knowing the news
that prefecture chief, Wang Fangshe, invited him
sincerely. So he had to stay temporarily. He went
to the West finally by sea in September next year.
Unexpectedly, wind direction changed and the
ship floated back to Guangzhou in December. The
prefectural governor, Ouyang Wei, invited him to be
the Bodhisattva master and live in Zhizhi Temple.
Being invited by Hui Kai, Seng Ren and Ouyang Wei,
he translated and instructed the sutras including
20 verses on the Mind-Only Doctrine (Viü÷atikàvij
¤aptimàtratàsiddh), Compendium of the Mahayana
(Mahàyàna-saüparigraha-÷àstra),
Ahbidharmakasha-Shastra(Abhidharmako÷a-÷àstra),
Treatise
on Revelation from the fourth year of Tianjia (563
CE) to the second year of Guangda (568 CE). During
the reign of Guangda, his chief disciple, Hui Kai,
can replace him to instruct Ahbidharma-kashaShastra to his other disciples. Paramārtha began to
be weary of the world. In June of the second year
of Guangda, he came to North Mountain of South
Sea and wanted to commit suicide. After hearing the
news, Hui Kai ran with monks and laymen to seek
for him and urged him to live and the prefectural
governor, Ouyang Wei, bowed to invite him. He
promised to come back three days later and lived
in Wangyuan Temple. In August the same year, Hui
Kai died of an illness after instructing less than a
half of Ahbidharma-kośa-śāstra. Paramārtha was
very sad because he feared that no one can instruct
Ahbidharma-kośa-śāstra and Compendium of the
Mahayana. He convened 12 disciples including Dao
Ni and Zhi Jiao and encouraged them to propagate
the two sutras without discontinuity. He continued
to instruct Ahbidharma-kośa-śāstra but he was ill
when he instructed Chapter V, so he had to stop
his instruction. In the first lunar month of the first
year of Taijian of Emperor Xuan of Chen (569 CE),
Paramārtha died at the age of 71. His remains
were moved to Chao Pavilion and burnt and a
pagoda was built for him according to the Indian
conventions. Paramārtha propagated Buddhism all
his life and took life seriously and thriftily. Under
his influence, his disciples were simple and worked
hard. After his death, they returned to different
places, propagated what they learned and formed
Mahayana-samparigraha-śāstra school gradually.
Paramārtha had lived in China for 23 years.
He insisted in translating and instructing sutras
in dwelling places although he lived in troubled
times and was busy and his diligence was rare.
He translated a huge number of sutras, Continued
Buddhabhadra
Buddhabhadra [Fotuobatuo] (5th century CE) was
an Indian monk who came to China in Northern
Wei Dynasty to preach Buddha dharma. He was also
known as Bhadra.
According to Volume XVI of Continuation of The
Biographies of Eminent Monks and Pei Cui’s Shaolin
Temple Monument in the Volume CCLXXIX of
Complete Prose Works of Tang Dynasty, Fotuobatuo
was an Indian with great intelligence since
childhood. He worked very hard on learning and
acquired great insights in Buddhism and had an
229
Cultural Contacts
excellent reputation as its practitioner. He always
had the ambition to travel for preaching. Some
friends who practised Buddha dharma together
with Fotuobatuo advised him to preach the dharma
in China and enlighten disciples there. Then after
travelling several countries, Fotuobatuo arrived in
the capital city of Pingcheng (present-day Datong
in the northeast of Shanxi) during the Taihe years
(477-499 CE) of the Northern Wei Dynasty. Emperor
Xiaowen of Wei Dynasty welcomed him with a
warm-hearted courteous reception and specially set
up a Buddhist Temple with carved stone shrine as
a residence for him. Later, a well-off family in the
city constructed a special house for him. In Taihe
17th year (493 CE), Emperor Xiaowen moved the
capital to Luoyang and Fotuobatuo went along. As
he preferred a quiet habitat in the forest and valleys,
he had gone to Songshan Mountain repeatedly
for solitude; Emperor Xiaowen then gave imperial
instructions to set up a temple in Shaoshi Mountain
for him to rest and live peacefully. The temple was
located in the forests of Shaoshi Mountain, therefore,
called as Shaolin. That was how Shaolin Temple
was named. People within the country heard of this
and came for advice in an endless stream. Later in
this temple, he enlightened the two Śramanas, Hui
Guang and Sen Chou, and enabled them to pursue
Buddhist teachings.
(Ge Weijun)
A Brief Explanation of Pramāṇa
samuccaya, Master Fazun
Hinayana and became a believer of Vatsiputriya.
Finally, he became a student of Vasubandhu who
was the founder of Yogàcàra and learnt Mahayana.
He was also once a student of an acharya and
learnt mantras. He also went to Oóra (referring
to present north Odisha region) for dhyāna. Many
Tirthika vadins (followers) were impressed by his
eloquence. He particularly gained fame after his
successful debate with Nyāya, a Tirthika good
at logical reasoning. Activities in Nàlanda where
he once stayed primarily focussed on preaching
Abhidharmakośa-śāstra,
Vij¤aptimàtratà
and
Hetuvidyā. His contributions to Buddhism during
travels in south India mostly relates to the subduing
Tirthika vadin and recovering so far uncultivated
Buddhist Bodhimanda. Dignāga/Chenna deeply
believed in morality and always followed dvàda÷adhåta-guõa such as only wearing tattered clothes,
having a mean obtained from begging per day,
living under the tree or near to abandoned graves
etc. He finally passed away in a forest cave in Oḍra.
Dignāga/Chenna belonged to Vij¤ānavada
(namely Yogacāra) school. He was, however,
different from Nanda (about 450-530 CE) who
advocated the consciousness-only philosophy
without selflessness, and maintained the
consciousness-only philosophy with selflessness.
The former established two concepts representing
significance of different consciousness – division of
seeing and division of characteristics. He believed
that human beings’ consciousness would change
under contemplation and show the division of
seeing of cognitive subjects and the division of
characteristics of the cognitive objects. The socalled cognition referred to learning from the latter
by the former. The “division of seeing” related to
conscious activities and was the real existence
while the “division of characteristics” existed on
the basis of cognition of the image of former. Thus,
it was unreal. Dignāga/Chenna held the “division
of seeing” was the AkAra with the “division of
Dignaga
Dignāga (Chenna or Yulong in Chinese) (about 440520 CE) was an ancient Indian Buddhist logicianscholar. He was one of the founders of Buddhist
Hetuvidya school of philosophy.
Dignāga or Chenna was born in Andhra of
South India or Simhavakta near Kānchi (currently
known as Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu). Belonging
to Brahmin caste, he originally learnt Tirthika
(the doctrine of Brahminism) but later turned to
Dignaga
230
Cultural Contacts
Ratnamati
characteristics”. It was real. He also proposed the
“self-witnessing aspect” to affirm the result due
to interactions between the above two. Thus, his
theory was referred to as the consciousness-only
philosophy with selflessness. This has been one of
important theoretical sources of Chinese Dharma
character school.
The greatest contribution of Dignāga/Chenna
lies in Hetuvidyā. He was the founder of a new
hetuvidya school of philosophy and changed
the original five-part syllogism into the threepart syllogism. The three-part syllogism, also
known as moods of the syllogism, includes
pratij¤à (proposition), hetu (reason or premise)
and udàhaaraõa (example). He classified upanaya
(application) and nigamana (conclusion) of
the five-part syllogism in ancient Hetuvidya
into udàhaaraõa and pratij¤à, respectively thus
transforming the inductive reasoning of the fivepart syllogism into the deductive reasoning of the
three-part syllogism. This characterised a forward
leap in the history of logic in ancient India. The
transformation not only deeply influenced the
way of reasoning in each Buddhist school but
also transcended the earlier limit that was used
for discussion (explain means and principles with
repeated questions) and was further applied to
acknowledge and demonstrate truth. Thus it became
a Buddhist epistemology, namely “Pramana”. His
theory about pramana was dispersively embodied
in his representative books on Hetuvidya Theory,
while the Pramàõasamuccaya was able to reflect
the system more completely. This book, in form of
gāthā text and with the addition of his annotations
was written with scattered theories he collected in
his late years. The original manuscript of the book
is non-existent. In the second year of Jingyun (711
CE), Tang Yijing translated it. However, it was lost
after a short time and there are now two translated
versions in Tibetan.
There are also other existing works of
Dignāga/Chenna translated into Chinese, such
as Deconvolution Theory (the same version
with Hastavàlaprakaraõa translated by Tang
Yijing) translated by Paramàrtha, the Theory
of No Lovesickness (the same version with
âlaübanaparãkùàvçtti translated by Xuanzang), the
Nyàya-dvàra-tarka-÷àstra (the same version with
the title Nyayamukha translated by Tang Yijing)
translated by Xuanzang, Upadayaprajnaptiprakarana
and Samanyapariksa translated by Tang Yijing,
and Prajñāpāramitāpiṇḍārthaḥ translated by Song
Shihu etc.
øaïkara-svàmin and Dharmapàla inherited the
Hetuvidya philosophy and the Consciousness-only
Philosophy of Dignāga/Chenna respectively.
(Ge Weijun)
Ratnamati [Lenamoti] (between 5th and 6th centuries
CE) was an Indian Buddhist monk and translator
who came to China in Northern Wei Dynasty. He
was also known as Baoyi in free translation.
According to volume I of Sequel to Biography of
Eminent Monks, volume VI of The Kai-yuan Record
of Buddhist Books and volume IX of Records of
Three Treasures in the Past Dynasties, we know
that Lenamoti was a native of Central India. He
was knowledgeable, skilled in dhyana, various
theories and dealing with daily routines. It is said
that he could recite 100 million gatha scriptures.
He came to Luoyang in the fifth year of Zhengshi
of Emperor Xuanwu in the Northern Wei Dynasty
(508 CE) and was ordered to translate 12
volumes of Daśabhūmika-sūtra-śāstra together with
Bodhiruci, with Buddhasanta orally repeating the
translation and the emperor dictating it into the
target language personally. He also translated one
volume of Lotus Sutra Upatissa together with Monk
Seng Lang, and four volumes of Ratnagotra-vibhàgo
Mahàyànottaratantra-÷àstra in Zhaoxin residence.
After he translated the Daśabhūmika-sūtra-śāstra
together with Bodhiruci, they became alienated
with each other due to some disagreement. Later,
the disciple of Buddhasanta Huiguang promoted
this theory in southern Xiangzhou (present-day
Yedu, Anyang, Henan), forming southern Xiangzhou
School, while the disciple of Bodhiruci, Daochong
promoted this theory in northern Xiangzhou,
forming northern Xiangzhou school. According
to the record of volume nine of Records of Three
Treasures in the Past Dynasties, Lenamoti’s total
translations are six books totalling 24 volumes.
There is a myth about his death namely when he
was delivering Avatamsaka Sutra, a man like a great
lord arrived, holding a sceptre, saying that he was
ordered by the Emperor of Heaven to invite him to
preach the scriptures. Lenamoti told him that he
would obey the order after finishing the preaching
then he bid farewell to everyone with a smile and
suddenly died, together with his four aides who
were speaker, incense burner, caretaker and Sanskrit
interpreter.
(Ge Weijun)
Bodhiruci
Bodhiruci [Putiliuzhi] (unknown~277) was an
eminent monk and translator from India during the
Tang Dynasty. His name transliterated according to
pronunciation was Jue’ai and paraphrased as Faxi.
His original name was Dhammaruci (Damoliuzhi).
But after he came to China, Empress Wu Zetian of the
Tang Dynasty changed it to Putiliuzhi (Bodhiruci).
According to volume III of Biographies of Eminent
Monks in Song Dynasty, Volume IX of Directory for
231
Cultural Contacts
one volume of Mahayana Dorje Bun Bodhisattva’s
Buddhism Practice and one volume of Mahayana
Gaya Mountain Top Sutra during his stay in East
Temple of Dazhou Period. And then, he translated
one volume of Sutra of Life Protection Mantra, one
volume of Sutra of Six Words Mantra, one volume of
Amoghapà÷akalpa-hçdaya-dhàraõã, three volumes
of Secret Dharani Sutra by Shanzhu in Guangdabao
Mansion etc. in Foshouji Temple. In 706 CE, the
second year of Shenlong Period during the reign of
Emperor Zhongzong of Tang Dynasty, he lived in
Chongfu Temple in Chang’an and was commanded to
translate the Maha Ratnakana Sutra. Later, he moved
to the Northern Pavilion of the White Lotus Pond
to continue his translation. This was an important
sutra which Xuanzang regretted for not being able
to translate owing to the lack of energy. Putiliuzhii
worked on its translation for seven years. In 713, the
second year of Xiantian Period during the reign of
Emperor Ruizong of Tang Dynasty, he finished the
translation which included 120 volumes in total. He
took the advantage of special types of collection in
sutra, and tried his best to add into the old version.
Only when the old version or the meaning lacked,
did he translate by himself. As a result, near half of
the whole sutra was added into the old version and
a considerable part of the new translation was made
according to the old version. In this translation
work, Śramana Sizhong and the First Leader of
east India, Yisheluo, and other people translated
the Sanskrit, Śramana Borequduo from south India
and Bodhidharma from north India reviewed the
Sanskrit meaning, Śramana Lufang, Zongyi, Huijue
wrote translation down, Shengzhuang, Fazang,
Shenliang, Wuzhu, Huaidi and other people
reviewed the translation, Xujian (mayor of Donghai
Prefecture), Sujin (Secretary), Cuiqu (Supervisor),
Guo Yuanzhen (minister), Zhangyue (head of the
secretariat), He Zhizhang (Doctor of Chamberlain
for Ceremonials) and other people embellished the
article and Lu Xiangxian (deputy officials of Central
Secretariat), Wei Zhigu (privy counsellor) and other
people were the supervisors. Almost all the people
Bodhiruci
Buddhism in Kaiyuan Period, the preface of Maha
Ratnakana Satra and others, Putiliuzhi was an
Indian whose last name was Kasyapa. Belonging to a
Brahmin family, he was more brilliant and charming
than others from an early age. He became a monk
and practiced Tirthika when he was 12. Taught by
Parasara, Putiliuzhi developed a good command over
words, rhyme, grammar and samkhya philosophy
very soon. He was also a master of Yin and Yang,
calendar, geography, astronomy, conjuring, medical
prescription etc. When he was 60, he was defeated
by Mahayana Master Xuanzang in an argument.
Putiliuzhi then learned the contradiction of Tirthika
and the complexity of Buddhism. After that he
secluded himself into mountains, walked through
the forests, begged for food and learned all kinds of
scriptures and treatises from Yeshequsha. Five years
later, he had studied almost all Buddhism scriptures
and travelled across India and listened to the
sutra chants of masters. Emperor Gaozong of Tang
Dynasty. He had heard of his good reputation and
sent envoys to invite him to China in 683 CE, the
second year of Yongchun Period. In the second year
of Changshou Period (693 CE) during the reign of
Empress Wu Zetian, Putiliuzhi arrived in Chang’an,
the capital of Tang Dynasty (Xi’an in present
Shaan’xi). Through an Imperial order, Empress Wu
Zetian arranged for him to stay in the Fuxian Temple
in Luoyang, the East Capital of Tang Dynasty. In
the same year, at Foshouji Temple, Putiliuzhi
translated two volumes of Sutra of No Thinking and
No Talking of Buddhism preached by Manjushri, 10
volumes of Sutra of Treasure and Rain Preached by
Buddha, the Sanskrit versions of which were read
by the envoy of the Indian King and Śramana
Damoxuan, translated by Śramana Zhantuo and
other people and reviewed by Huizhi and written
down by Chuyi and others, composed into an essay
by Sixian and others, reviewed by Yuance, Shenying
and others and supervised by the prime minister of
the Sibin Temple, Sunbi. Putiliuzhii also translated
one volume of Vajracchedika Prajnaparamita Sutra,
Daśabhūmi-vyākhyāna
232
Cultural Contacts
translation of Yogacara classic. He is also known as
Gautamaprajñāruci or Zhixi in free translation.
According to volume I of Sequel to Biography of
Eminent Monks and volume VI of The Kai-yuan Record
of Buddhist Books, we know that he was a native of
Banares (present-day Varanasi), India, belonging to
Brahmin caste. During his boyhood, he had begun to
learn Buddhist doctrines, with a deep understanding
of the essence. He also had a great comprehension
of various dialects. He came to Luoyang in the first
year of Xiping reign (516 CE) of Emperor Xiaoming
in the Northern Wei Dynasty and then moved
to Yecheng (now it is in southwest of Linzhang
County, Hebei province) along with resettling of
capital by the Eastern Wei Dynasty. From the first
year of Yüan Hsiang reign (538 CE) to the first year
of Wu-ting reign (543 CE) of Emperor Xiaojing in
the Eastern Wei Dynasty, he finished the translation
of 70 volumes of Sutra of Stability in Contemplation
of the True Law(Saddharma-smçty-upasthànasåtra), one volume of Nagarjuna’s The Ekashloka
Shastra, one volume of Discourse on the Perfection of
Consciousness-only (vijñaptimàtratàsiddhi-śàstra)
and two volumes of Madhyamaka--karika in Chin-hua
Monastery, Ch'ang-ting Monastery and other places,
and translated one volume of Vigrahavyavartani
together with Vimokṣaprajñā-ṛṣi. In addition, he also
translated one volume of Golden King Doctrine, one
volume of Amala Women Doctrine, two volumes of
Vyasa Pariprccha and one volume of Amala Upasika
Paripraccha. The Sanskrit translators are Tan Lin,
Seng Fang, Li Xiyi and others. According to volume
six of The Kai-yuan Record of Buddhist Books, he
had translated 18 books totalling 92 volumes
successively but part of them were lost. Because
there were other contemporary Buddhist scriptures
translators who shared the name “Ruci” such as
Bodhiruci, and when marking the translator, the
abbreviated form 'Ruci' was often used. Therefore,
when Tang Daoxuan wrote the Sequel to Biography of
Eminent Monks, the name was confusing.
(Ge Weijun)
involved into this translation progress were great
masters of morality and all kinds of knowledge,
and they were the best scholars of Buddhism and
Confucianism. Upon finishing the translation of all
of sutra, they completed the article and delivered
it to the imperial ruler, the retired Emperor
Ruizong who had abdicated his throne, written the
preface and the title page of the sutra. Besides this,
Putiliuzhi was also involved in the translation of
Buddhavatamsaka Mahavaipulya Sutra of Shicha’s
at Dabiankong Temple in the imperial palace in
695, the first year of Zhengsheng Period. In this
progress, he read the Sanskrit version with Śramana
Yijing. The translation was completed at Foshouji
Temple in the October of 699 CE, the second year
of Shengli Period. The translation version was in a
total of 80 volumes. After finishing the translation
of Maha Ratnakana Satra, Putiliuzhi quit the
translation work, relaxed himself by practicing
Zen and Alchemy, and read the sutras and took a
walk from dawn to dust. In 724 CE, the 12th year
of Kaiyuan Period, he moved to Luoyang following
the order of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty.
He lived in Changshou Temple. In September of the
15th year of Kaiyuan Period, he said that his life
was close to the end, his body was weaker day by
day and he would be gone eventually so there was
no need of delay. Since then he stopped feeding
and medicine, but he still looked same for the next
50 days. On the third day of November, he bathed
in perfumed water all by himself and changed into
new clothes; on fourth day, he put Sanskrit sutras on
the top of his head, admired them one by one; on
fifth day, he dismissed all his disciples and stayed
in the clean room alone, lay on his right hand side
and stopped his breathing. It’s said that he was 156
years old when he died. The Emperor was grieved
for his death so much that he honoured him by
the grant of title, “Great Man of Honglu” and the
posthumous title of “Know-all Sanzang of Kaiyuan
Period”. The funeral did not follow the custom in
Western Regions but adopted the honour guards,
streamers and canopies. The visitors were so many
that the road was blocked. Everybody was in
the deepest sorrow. A pagoda was built over his
tomb in the North-west of Longmen, Luoyang in
December, and commemorated by inscriptions on
the rocks. According to Directory for Buddhism in
Kaiyuan Period, Putiliuzhii had translated 53 books
and 111 volumes.
(Ge Weijun)
Bodhidharma
Bodhidharma [Putidamo] (unknown-528 or 536
CE) was a monk coming to China from India. He was
traditionally credited as the transmitter of Chinese
Chan and was called as Damo in short which
means dharma.
According to Continued Biographies of Eminent
Monks and Ching-te Records of the Transmission
of the Lamp etc. Bodhidharma was a south Indian
and belonged to Brahmin caste (Persian Hu people
according to History of Buddhist Monasteries
in Luoyang). He was clever and wise since his
childhood and his understanding was deep. He
believed in Mahayana Buddhism and had a profound
Gautamaruci
Gautamaruci [Qutanliuzhi] (between 5th and 6th
centuries CE) was an Indian Buddhist monk and
translator who came to China in the Northern Wei
Dynasty and one of the principal figures in the
233
Cultural Contacts
the Chan monks in the Tang Dynasty. Damo’s way of
Chan adopted the symbol of “a special transmission
outside the scriptures and no dependence upon
words and letters” and targetted at understanding
the mind of Buddha as the ultimate objective of
meditation. General Preface to the Collection of
Discourses on Chan Tradition written by Zong Mi
in the Tang Dynasty wrote: “Damo taught people
to hold peaceful mind by wall-gazing, understating
outside world stopped and internal world was
peaceful, and mind can get the Way like a wall…” It
can be seen that “wall-gazing” was the unique way
of Chan instructed by Damo.
(Ge Weijun)
Jnanagupta
A rubbing of an image of
Bodhidharma
Jñànagupta [Shenajueduo] (523~600 CE or 527
~604 CE) was an Indian monk and translator who
came to China in the late Northern and Southern
Dynasty. His name was paraphrased as Dezhi.
According to the volume II of Continuation of
the Biographies of Eminent Monks, the volume VII
of Catalogues of Kai Yuan Buddhist Books and other
records, Shenajueduo was a man of Gandhara
(present-day Peshawar and Rawalpindi area of
Pakistan) in north India and belonged to Kshatriya
caste. His father was the prime minister of the country
and had brought up five sons, Shenajueduo was the
youngest one. He had interest in Buddhism from
an early age. His parents saw the unusual bearings
on their son and allowed him to become a monk.
Shenajueduo went to Dalin Temple in his country
and followed Jñānayaśas who specially practiced
Dhyana, J¤ānabhadra who was proficient in Vinaya
and other eminent monks as his guiders. At the age
of 27, Shenajueduo was initiated into monkhood.
Later he followed with his teachers in tours for
developing and expanding Buddha Dharma. First
they arrived in Kàpiśã which was located about 62
knowledge of Chan. He came to Guangzhou by sea
from India in the late Song of the Southern Dynasty
(420-479 CE). Then he travelled to the north and
crossed the border of the Northern Wei Dynasty.
He disseminated the way of Chan in places where
he wandered. It is said that he admired resplendent
and magnificent buildings of Yongning Temple in
Luoyang and claimed that he had never seen such
a magnificent temple although he had travelled to
many countries till the age of 150. Within a few days,
he put his palms together and started continuously
chanting “Namo”. He cultivated deep meditation
for nine years in Shaolin Temple on Songshan
Mountain and was called as “wall-gazing Brahmin”.
Local people knew little about the way of Chan,
slandered it inevitably but the two monks including
Dao Yu and Hui Ke worshipped and served him
carefully for four or five years. Damo was touched
by their sincerity, imparted the true way and passed
A Lankāvatara Sūtra to Hui Ke and claimed that it
was suitable for the Chinese and people could go out
of the world if they followed the sutra. The stories
about his old age were different. It is said that he
was poisoned to death and was buried on Xionger
Mountain (present-day Yiyang, He’nan). There was
another saying that Song Yun, the Buddhist envoy
of the Northern Wei Dynasty saw Damo on Cong
Ridge when he returned to the Western Regions.
Damo walked lonely with a shoe in his hand and
the story of Return to the West Carrying One Shoe was
passed down.
The Chan School of Chinese Buddhism worships
Damo as the founder. With the development of Chan
School, Damo has gradually become a legendary
character. His inheritance cannot be investigated.
There was a saying in later generations that his
teacher was Gunabhadra. The initial six generations
of inheritance in China were Damo, Hui Ke, Seng
Can, Dao Xin, Hong Ren and Hui Neng, according to
Mahāyāna Sūtra of Three Gatherings of
Repentance, Jnanagupta
234
Cultural Contacts
km to north of Kabul in present-day Afghanistan,
then climbed over the Snowy Mountains (Hindu
Kush mountains) and arrived in Yandan Country
(established by Hephthalites, presently Faizabad
in northern Afghanistan), Yutian Country (now
Xinjiang Hotan), Tuguhun Country (now in the
area of southern part of Gansu and Qinghai) then
reached Shanzhou (district government was in
Ledu of presents Qinghai). More than half of 10
monks who went together with Shenajueduo died,
only four were left. In Wucheng years (559-560 CE)
under the reign of Emperor Ming in Northern Zhou
dynasty, Shenajueduo arrived in Chang'an and
lived in Caotang Temple. Emperor Ming welcomed
him with special courteous reception and often
invited several monks to the palace backyard for
discussing about Buddha Dharma together. He also
built Shitennoji Temple for the convenient living
of the monks and translating sutras there. Here
Shenajueduo and others translated Avalokiteśvaraekādaśamukha-dhāraņī-sūtra and Golden rishi’s
questions of Buddha Dharma etc. Soon Jiao Emperor
Yu Wenjian went to Sichuan to take charge there,
Shenajueduo went together under invitation. He
lived in Longyuan Temple there and presided over
the temples in Yizhou for three years. During this
period, he completed the translation of Guanyin’s
Ode of Buddha's Words Sutra. In Jiande years(572
~577 CE)under the reign of Emperor Wu of
Northern Zhou Dynasty, the emperor carried out
the policies of abolishing Buddhism and destroyed
the sutras and Buddha statues, forced Śramanas
to resume secular life and also made imperial
instruction to summon Shenajueduo back to
the capital, lured him with important title and
high salaries, forced him to salute according to
Confucian ceremony.
Shenajueduo refused to abide by and dared to face
death for disobeying. Emperor Wu was moved by his
firm faith and let him go. Then Shenajueduo went to
the north, by passing Ganzhou (district government
was in Zhangye of present Gansu) he arrived in
the Turkish territory. His two teachers who went
together with him passed away in succession, in
loneliness, he met the 10 monks like Baoxian,
Daosui and others who had found and gained 260
sutras of Sanskrit version from the Western Regions,
then they studied Dhyana and translated these sutras
together. After the establishment of Sui Dynasty,
Buddhism revived. Baoxian and the other monks
returned to China first and reached the capital city
of Chang'an in winter of Kaihuang first year (581
CE), they lived in Daikouzenji Temple. In Kaihuang
fifth year, Tanyan and others, totally more than 30
Śramanas in Daikouzenji Temple faced difficulties
in translating sutras. They reported to Emperor
Wen of Sui Dynasty and requested to summon
Fragments of fourth roll of Aggañña Sutta, translated by
Jñānagupta, Sui period
Shenajueduo back. When Shenajueduo returned to
Luoyang with envoys he was met by Emperor Wen
and welcomed with courteous reception. After he
arrived in Chang’an he lived in Daikouzenji Temple
and translated sutras there. The royal family
attached great importance to the translation work
and sent two Buddhist brothers, Gao Tiannu and
Gao Heren, to interpret Sanskrit together, appointed
10 Bhadanta Sramanas including Sengxiu, Facan,
Fajing and Huiyuan to select and determine the
principles, monitor and manage the translation
work and arranged śramanas Mingmu, Yanzong
etc. to recheck the Sanskrit version, review the
translation work and organise the literary contents.
At this moment, Shenajueduo was already skilled in
both Sanskirt and Chinese, his work of translating
and writing the sutras down, was relatively easier.
After Narendrayaśas passed away (589 CE),
Shenajueduo became the sole authority. At that time,
Dharmagupta, a Brahman monk, also participated
in the translation work. Dharmagupta was welllearned, modest and gentle. He would suppress
himself and praise others whenever there was
anything. Shenajueduo’s reputation was higher than
Dharmagupta. However, whenever Shenajueduo
was uncertain about the subtle meaning of the sutra,
he would still modestly consult Dharmagupta. In
the end of Renshou period(601~604 CE)reigned
by Emperor Wen of Sui dynasty, Shenajueduo was
busy with worldly affairs and could not stay in the
capital city, he had to go east-bound for Oumin.
There he continued to preach Buddha Dharma with
sincerity and brought much benefits to the local.
Gentries and commoners, believers and ordinary
non-believers all respected and admired him. Later
Shenajueduo died in Oumin at the age of 78. It
was also said that he died in Kaihuang 20th year
(600 CE) of Emperor Wen. The later generations
had very high evaluation on him and praised him
“with pure and profound Buddha spirit, upright
consciousness, boundless love for merits and virtues
and never stopped pursuit for Buddha Dharma. As
Shenajueduo could develop and expand Buddha
235
Cultural Contacts
Theravada scriptures. As a scholar with thorough
understanding of Buddhism and thoughts outside
Buddhism, mastering Mahayana and Theravada,
Prabhàkaramitra’s contribution in teaching Buddha
dharma was held in high esteem by his fellows and
he was also given special treatment by kings and
ministers of various countries. When he heard that
barbarians in the north were foolhardy and had no
etiquette, he and another 10 common people went
northbound to Koka, receiving a warm welcome
from the local Khan and Yabghu. In the ninth year
of Wude of Emperor Tang Gaozu (626 CE), the king
of Gaoping was sent there to meet him, who then
reported about the meeting to the emperor. Later,
Emperor Tang Gaozu gave the order to invite him.
In December the same year, he followed the king
of Gaoping to the capital Chang’an, and lived in Da
Xing-shan Temple. Many talented persons came to
visit him, and sought answers for the non- or miscomprehension of Buddhism. For unclear sentences
and meanings, he traced back their clues, described
their similarities and differences, made a careful
and detailed analysis and gave a clear explanation,
making it very clear for the people. Later, Emperor
Taizong of Tang heard of him and called him to talk
about the theory of law. Prabhàkaramitra answered
correctly and the emperor presented him with more
rewards. In March the third year of Zhenguan period
in Tang Dynasty (629 CE), Emperor Taizong of Tang
issued an imperial edict to ask him to translate
scriptures in the translation workshop in Da Xingshan Temple and ordered relevant governments
to seek 19 knowledgeable and noble people who
mastered three religions. Among them, Huicheng,
Xuanmo, Huize, Huijing, Huiming and Falin held
the position of checking whether Sanskrit Buddhist
scriptures had made mistakes in translating into the
target language and arranging sentence patterns,
respectively. Minister Fang Xuanling and Du
Zhenglun were responsible for checking the content
and Xiao Jing for the over all monitoring. There are
all kinds of scriptures. Prabhàkaramitra translated
10 volumes of Ratnaketu-dharani-sutra, then he
moved to Shengguang Temple and translated 15
volumes of Praj¤àpradãpa÷àstrakarika and 13
volumes of Mahàyàna-såtràlaükàra. After repeated
consultation, copying and reading, he finished
the translation in the winter of the sixth year of
Zhenguan period in Tang Dynasty, and reported
to the imperial court. Emperor Taizong of Tang
ordered to write 10 copies of each new translation
to circulate them at home and abroad. Because of
Prabhàkaramitra’s high reputation, many people
were jealous of him. Although there were sensible
persons such as Śramana Lingjia defending him
successfully yet his translation was still blocked by
rumors. In the seventh year (633 CE) of Zhenguan
Dharma himself as an admired model thus he
was deeply respected by the people. The sutras
translated by Shenajueduo also includes seven
volumes of Saddharmapuõóarãkasåtra (translated
together with Dharmagupta), 60 volumes of
Abhiniùkramaõasåtra, 10 volumes of Agganna Sutta,
20 volumes of Dharmolkadhàraõã-såtra, two volumes
of Buddha’s Precious Enlightenment in Buddha's Merit
Wisdom Incredible Heights Sutra, five volumes of
Mahavaipulya-mahasannipata-sutra Virtue Protection
Division, one volume of Amoghapà÷adhàraõã-såtra,
20 volumes of Mahàbala-dhàraõã-såtra, two volumes
of Realization of Pure Mind Sutra, one volume of
Entrance of dharmadhatu Body and Nature Sutra
and so on. It was said there were a total number
of 37 books and 176 volumes. Some say that his
translation in total were 39 books and 192 volumes..
The later generations praised his translation works
providing “complete comprehension of doctrines
and teachings with fluent text and meaning”.
(Ge Weijun)
Prabhakarmitra
Prabhàkaramitra [Bopo] (565-633 CE) is an Indian
Buddhist and translator who came to China in the
Tang Dynasty. His other names in transliteration
were Boluopojia Luomiduoluo and in free translation
Mingyou, Mingzhishi etc.
Prabhākaramitra
According to volume III of Continuation Biography
of Eminent Monks, Prabhàkaramitra was from central
India, belonging to Kshatriya caste. When he was
10-years-old, he became a Buddhist and learned
Buddhism from teachers. Before long, he would
recite 1,00,000 gatha of Mahayana scriptures. After
receiving full ordination, he learned Vinaya Pitaka
and Viniscita-karman and often took delight in
meditation. Twelve years later, he went to Nalanda
Monastery in Magadha to listen to the preachings
of Yogacārabhūmi-śastra by Śilabhadra who was
the abbot of the monastery. Since the theory
contained Theravada, he recited 1,00,000 gatha of
236
Cultural Contacts
namely existence, emptiness and the middle path
and concluded that the Dharmalaksana of Mahayana
was the true nãtàrtha. This had completely clarified
the Buddhist doctrines. Besides, he also proposed
the “Five Distinctive Nature Theory” which divided
the roots of all living beings into five categories.
When Xuanzang toured the west, Jiexian was
already 106-years-old who was the Maha thera of
Nalanda and was regarded by the people as Treasure of
the Whole Dhamma. Although Jiexian no longer gave
lectures or taught disciples then, he specially lectured
for Xuanzang regardless of his age on Abhidharmanyàyànusàra-÷àstra,
Āryavācāprakaraṇa-śāstra,
Prakaraõàryavàcà-÷àstra, Abhidharma-kosa (that is
Mahàyànàbhidharma-samuccaya-vyàkhya), Pramàõasamuccaya, Madhyamikaàstra, øata÷àstra and other
sutras. Yogācāra-bhūmi-śāstra was taught three
times in all and lasted for nine months. Jiexian was
the successor of Dharmalaksana in Vasubandhu
faction. His inspiration and influence in the
Buddhist ideology toward Xuanzang was extremely
deep. After Xuanzang returned to China in Yonghui
third year (652 CE) under the reign of Emperor
Gaozong, he received a letter from Jñānaprabhā and
Prajñānadeva and got to learn that Jiexian had passed
away. In his reply, Xuanzang expressed his deep
condolences and praised Jiexian’s contributions in
inheritance of Buddhist doctrines, and expressed his
heartfelt gratitude for his teachings and guidance
once given to him.
(Ge Weijun)
period in Tang Dynasty, he fell ill. He knew that he
could not be cured and with his scattered clothes,
he sat up to watch the Buddha. He died at the age
of 69 in April in Shengguang Temple. His body
was sent among the mountains for cremation.
Śramana Xuanmo cleared up his skeleton and
held the funeral in Shengguang Temple. Over
the mountains, crossing the rivers, with many
hardships, Prabhàkaramitra came to China to
promote Buddhism. However, the translation of
all Sanskrit scriptures he brought was not finished,
bringing much regret to later generations.
(Ge Weijun)
Silbhadra
Śilbhadra [Jiexian] (6th and 7th centuries CE) was a
master of Yogacara school of Mahayana. His name
in Chinese transliteration was Śilabhadra.
According to volume VIII of Records of the Western
Regions of the Great Tang, Volume III of Biography of
Tripitaka Dharma Master from Da Ci'en Temple and
other records, Jiexian was from the royal family of
Samataña in eastern India and was a Brahmin by
caste. He was studious since childhood and behaved
and conducted himself excellently. He travelled
around to find and follow a great teacher. Only
when he arrived at Nàlanda and met Dharmapàla,
he came to believe and understand Buddha Dharma.
He accepted his guidance and became a monk.
Under the guidance of Dharmapàla, he deeply
studied doctrines of Yogācāra Vijñānavāda.
At the same time, he also devotedly studied
Hetuvidya, śabdavidya and other doctrines and
gradually became popular. Later, a heretic master
in south India with profound knowledge who could
thoroughly understand and see clearly through deep
and subtle points became jealous of Dharmapàla for
his good reputation. He took great trouble to come
and challenge him for a debate by beating drums.
When Dharmapàla was about to go for the debate,
Jiexian asked to go on his behalf and Dharmapàla
consented. People undervalued him for his young
age. However, Dharmapàla was confident about
him. On the day of the debate, the young and the
old from all places gathered to watch. The heretic
master vigorously illustrated his intelligent views
with all deep and subtle points, while Jiexian
followed his arguments and refuted one by one. As a
result the heretic master could not find any words to
respond and retreated in humiliation. The king then
rewarded the winner with land grants. Jiexian could
not decline and built Sangharama there. Later, he
succeeded Dharmapàla and became the head monk
of Nalanda. Then he developed and expanded
Cittamatra doctrines. According to Saüdhinirmocanasūtra, Yogācāra-bhūmi-śāstra and other sutras, Jiexian
determined that Dharma consisted of three periods
Gunaprabha
Gunaprabha [Gongdeguang], vinaya preacher of
Indian Buddhism, one of two saints of Indian Two
Saints and Six Solemn Men.
He was born in a Brahman family in Mosouluo
in India, and learnt Buddhism doctrine when he
was young. Taking complete precepts, he became
a monk. He learnt Triptaka from Vasubandhu (4th
century CE). He mastered 18 sutras and could recite
the whole of Vinaya scriptures. Holding Vinaya
Hundred Thousand Songs as the reciting lessons, he
diligently practiced Bodhi’s moral order based on
hearing, thinking and cultivating. He could hold
thousands of Dharanis, and won honours for the
excellent achievements in eloquence, theurgy and
Samadhi. He was a top master of law of goodness
and was ordained as a Great Priest Achary and
he was honoured as one of two saints. His great
reputation spread all over the land.
After Gunaprabha returned to his hometown, he
built temples and recruited 5,000 students, kept the
law, protected the doctrine and cleaned the monks.
He had many works such as Vinaya Miscellaneous
(ie Law Basic Scripture of Law or Scripture
of Law), Uposatha Scripture, Law Collections
237
Cultural Contacts
had then the idea of observing Chinese culture
and spreading Buddhism there. Therefore he came
over the snow mountain (Hindu Kush mountain)
and went through places of Schaller (present-day
Xinjiang Shule), Kucha (present-day Xinjiang Kuqa),
Wuqi (ie Yanqi), Gaochang (present-day Turpan
in Xinjiang), Yiwu (present-day Xinjiang Hami
area) and so on. All the way Damojiduo preached,
he sometimes stayed in one place and then started
the journey again. After many years of travelling,
he finally arrived in Guazhou (near present-day
Dunhuang). Some of the monks who accompanied
him returned to where they came from, some died,
only Damojiduo himself arrived in Chinese territory.
Shortly, Damojiduo was invited by Emperor Wen
of Sui Dynasty. He arrived in the capital city
of Chang’an in October (Chinese calendar) of
Kaihuang 10th year (590 CE) and lived in a famous
temple with abundant supplies. Later, he moved
to live in Daikouzenji Temple and participated in
the translation work of Buddha sutras. Most of the
classics he chanted were important ones and his
interpretation of the subtle points about the sutras
often could eliminate the believers’ doubts which
had puzzled them for many years. As Damojiduo
strictly adhered to the precepts and principles,
lived sedately with limited desires, was kind and
charitable and treated everyone with the same
amiable manner no matter noble or of lower grade,
therefore, he was deeply respected and admired by
people. Most of the sutras translated by him could
start from the original meanings of the words, thus
could be deeply studied for gaining their subtle
meaning. And the translated Chinese versions were
usually with proper and accurate philosophical
connotations, keeping in context commonsense and
fluency. In Renshou fourth year of Sui Emperor Wen
(604 CE) Emperor Yang succeeded the throne. The
following year, he moved the capital to Luoyang
and in Daye second year (606 CE), Emperor Yang
gave the imperial instructions to set up a sutra
translation pavillion inside Shanglin Garden on
the south bank of Luoshui. Damojiduo and another
translator, Jñānagupta, were invited to participate
in the translation work in the pavilion. Damojiduo’s
sutra translating career started from the middle of
Kaihuang term of Emperor Wen (581-600 CE) until
the end of Daye (605-617 CE) under the reign of
Emperor Yang, a total of 28 years. He died in Wude
second year of Tang Emperor Gaozu (619 CE). His
translation sutras included 10 volumes of Agganna
Sutta, one volume of Medicine Buddha Sutra, 10
volumes of Mahāyāna-samparigraha-śāstra-bhāṣya
(translated together with Xingju), one volume
of Vajracchedikāprajñapramità-såtra, 10 volumes
of Mahāvaipulya-mahāsamipāta-sūtra Bodhisattva
chanting Samadhi, three volumes of Vajracchedik
of Bhumi, Etiquette of Three Sacraments and
Scripture of Law’s Self-annotation. These works
are translated into Tibetan and are in Tripitaka.
His representative work Basic Scripture of Law
has become the basic sutra for Tibetan Buddhism’s
precepts keeping and devotion.
(Deji zhuoma)
Dharmagupta
Dharmagupta [Damojiduo] (unknown-619 CE)
was an Indian monk and translator who came to
China in Sui Dynasty. His name paraphrased in
Chinese meant “the Secret of Buddha Dharma” and
“Treasure of Buddha Dharma”.
According to volume II of Continuation of the
Biographies of Eminent Monks, volume VI of Catalogue
of Buddhist Works in the Great Tang Dynasty and
Daxingshan Temple, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China. It was one of the three
major translation centres of Buddhist scriptures at Chang’an.
volume VII of Catalogue of Kaiyuan Buddhist
Books, Damojiduo was a man of Luoluo Country in
south India and belonged to Kshatriya caste. His
original surname was Vyàghra, meaning his last
name was tiger. When Damojiduo was young, he
was already away from the worldly life and loved
Buddha dharma. Though prevented by his parents,
he shaved his head and became a monk at the age
of 23 in a temple named Kumuda in Karņakubja
(paraphrasing as Erchu) in central India and was
renamed as Secret of Buddha Dharma. At the age of
25, Damojiduo took complete precepts and followed
guidance of Buddhagupta, Na daduo, Puzhao and
other masters to learn Dhyana and sutras of Mahayana
and Hinayana. He had travelled far and wide to
many places in various countries. He once met some
merchants who dealt with business in north India
and was told there was a big country named China
in the east. At the beginning, Damojiduo did not pay
much attention to it. Later when he toured Kapiśā,
a business and tourist centre (more than 60 km to
north of Kabul in Afghanistan and neighbouring
Hindu Kush mountains in north), the rumours
about China became more common. Damojiduo
238
Cultural Contacts
and got the dharma name, Chandrakirti. He took
complete precepts when he was old enough and
learned doctrine of Sutrayana and Tantrism widely
to win excellent achievement. Chandrakirti was a
lazy and idle man according to others which made
the other monks complain. They forced him to leave
the temple. But only the Great Teacher Lzabagonpo
Archarya realised that he was not an average monk
and would get great achievement so he sent Nyima
Grags Pa to accompany Chandrakirti to graze cows in
the forest near the temple. Once Chandrakirti drew
a cow and milked it on a stone tablet, demonstrated
that he had the power of miracles and performed
a legend of Draw a Cow and Milk. He also subdued
a heathen, Guoma Rixia, and converted him to
Buddhism. He prevailed against an Indian Turkey
army and protected Temple Nalanda etc.
Chandrakirti then was invited by Lzabagonpo
Archarya to serve as the First Lama in Temple
Nalanda, interpreted and preached the scriptures
for the disciples to develop and expand doctrines
of Prasangika madhyamaka. He argued with the
Great Pandita Candragomin about Rangtong and
Shentong Yogacara for seven years and gained great
reputation. He revealed the outcome of esoteric
ideas of Nagarjuna, chose the second round Prajna
methodology, understood the most profound
doctrine, Madhyamapratipad in No phase dharma,
and wrote Annotation about Madhyamapratipad,
Illustrious Theory, Annotation about Guhyasamaja,
Lamp Theory etc. His representative works
Madhyamakavatara
and
Madhyamakavatara
Self-annotation had great influence on the later
generations and became one of the five important
classics of temple education in Tibetan Buddhism.
Madhyamapratipad 400 Interpretations, 60 Orthodox
Interpretations, Madhyamapratipad Five Skandhas
Theories and other eight books were translated into
Tibetan by great Tibetan translators, Patshal and
Gos Gorba Lha Tse and became proverbial among
Tibetan Buddhists. Preacher Chandrakirti had built
temples in southern India and promoted Buddhism.
Finally he died in Mt. Manubhamga.
(Deji zhuoma)
āprajñāpāramitopadeśa, one volume of Nidānassutra and six volumes of Increasing Merits of the
Enlightened Bodhi Practices etc. totalling nine books
and 46 volumes.
(Ge Weijun)
Dharmakirti
Dharmakirti [Facheng] (600-660 CE) was the theory
teacher of Yogacara school of Indian Mahayana
Buddhism and a scholar of Tibetan Buddhist
Hetuvidya.
According to Taranatha’s The History of India
Buddhism (rgya ar chos vbyung), he was born in
Tri Ma La Ya in south India. When he was young,
he learned all kinds of Brahaminical knowledge
as well as instructions in Dharma. He then he
went to Nalanda Monastery (chos skyong) and
became a monk there and studied the Buddhist
“Consciousness-only” theory. Afterwards, he
followed Dignaga’s disciple, Dbang Phyug Sde,
to specially learn Pramanasamuccaya and became
an expert in it.
He made commentaries on
Pramanasamuccaya and wrote tshad ma sde bdun
(The Seven Theories of Hetuvidya), including gtan
tshigs thigs pa (Hetubindu), Vbrel Ba Rtags Pa, Rtyud
Gzhan Grub Pa, rtsod pvi rig pa (Arguing Dialectical
Theory), tshad ma rnam vgrel (Pramanavarttika),
rang vgrel (Self-interpretation), and tshad ma rnam
nges (Pramanaviniscaya). These have further
contributed to the development of Dignaga’s tsema.
Dharmakirti and his works are therefore highly
praised and respected in Tibetan Buddhism.
(Kalsang gyal)
Candrakirti
Chandrakirti [Yuecheng] (600-670 CE) was a master
of Prasangika madhyamaka, Indian Buddhism, main
representative of Mahayana.
With Tibetan name of Lzabagragspa, he was
born in a Brahman family in Samandala, India, and
learned the paganism doctrine when he was young.
He was initiated into a acolyte by Lzabagonpo
Archarya in Temple Nalanda and became a monk
Divakara
Divākara (Dipoheluo, 613-687 CE) was an Indian
Buddhist monk who came to China in the Tang
Dynasty. He was a translator whose name was
paraphrased as Rizhao.
According to the records such as volume II of
Biographies of Eminent Monks in Song Dynasty,
volume IX of Directory for Buddhism in Kaiyuan
Period and volume I of Maha-Vaipulya-BuddhaAvatamsaka-Sutra, Dipoheluo/Divākara was from
central India and belonged to a Brahmin family. He
became a monk during his childhood and lived in
Candrakīrti
239
Cultural Contacts
Sutra, Buddhist Sermon on Bodhisattva Practice for
Four-dhamma Sutra, Mahayana Sutra of Universal
Brightness, Mahayana Sutra of Universal Brightness
Wordless Dharma-mukha, Sutra of Simhanada, Usnisa
Vijaya Dharani Sutra, Usnisa Vijaya Dharani Sutra
on Purifying Karma, Dharani of Buddhist Sermon on
Seven Boundless Buddhas and Three Sorcery Sutra.
(Ge Weijun)
Mahabodhi and Nalanda Temples. He was not only
gentle but also handsome. He observed peaceful
and quiet precepts and was good in studies. He
had an excellent command over eight kinds of
canons inclusive of sutras, rules, discussions and
incantations as well as a wide grasp of the five fields
of knowledge inclusive of declaration, bzo-rig-pa,
medicine, Indian classical logic and dharma. He
was, however, specially good at incantations.
Dipoheluo/ Divākara came to Chang’an during
the reign of Emperor Gaozong of Tang Dynasty
(649-683 CE). He was requested to translate the
scriptures brought by him in the May of the fourth
year of Fengyi Period (679 CE). According to the
routine for Xuanzang, Emperor Gaozong of Tang
Dynasty sent out the imperial decree in which
Dipoheluo/ Divākara was arranged to sit in the
side yard of a grand temple and engaged in the
translation in East Taiyuan Temple (in Loyang,
later known as Dafuxian Temple), West Taiyuan
Temple (located in Chang’an, later known as West
Chongfu Temple) and the Guangfu Temple in Xijing.
Many respectable intellectuals were also invited
to take part in the translation. Scriptures such as
two volumes of Mahayana Sutra, one volume of
Treatise on the Five Aggregates of Mahayana and
one volume of Mahavaipulya Buddhavatamsaka
Sutra in Dharmadhatu were translated until the late
Chuigong Period under the reign of Empress Wu
Zetian in Tang Dynasty (685-688 CE). Śramana
Zhantuo, Prajna Deva translated the original text,
Huizhi reviewed Sanskrit, Daocheng, Bochen,
Jiashang, Yuance, Lingbian, Mingxun and Huaidu
reviewed the meanings and Sixuan and Fuli wrote
down the dictated translation. Empress Wu Zetian
wrote the preface and titled the scriptures initially.
After completion of the work, Dipoheluo/ Divākara
requested to resign in order to return home which
was finally approved. Just before departure, he
declared his death to his disciple and passed away
without any illness on December 27th of the third
year of Chuigong Period (687 CE) at the age of 75.
Empress Wu Zetian mourned his death. According
to imperial order, he was buried in the south side
of Longmen Mountain in Luoyang, near Yishui
River. Shortly after that a temple was established
at the request of Prince Liang and named the
Xiangshan Temple. Besides the above mentioned
translated classical scriptures, there were some
other classical scriptures which were translated by
him. These included 12 volumes of Lalitavistara,
two volumes of Covenant Mahayana Sutra, three
volumes of Ghana-vyūaha-sūtra, two volumes of
Indestructible Hypothesis of Vajracchedikā-prājñāpāramitā Sutra, one volume each of Mahayana 100
Auspicious Marks Sutra, the Buddhist Sermon on
Merits of Building Tower, Mahayana Four-dhamma
Cunda
Cunda [Chuntuo] (about 621-767 CE) was an
Indian monk who was at Nalanda Monastery before
coming to China in about 760 or 761 CE in his
80s. He conducted activities in Chang’an, assisted
in building Jinge Temple on Wutai Mountain and
lived in Zhengguo Temple of Chang’an hereafter.
He “looked as a child”, “talked loudly and behaved
strongly” and was praised by people at that time.
Li Yu, Emperor Daizong (reigned from 762-779
CE), respectfully summoned him and asked him
about longevity and beatifying. He proposed the
preservation of calmness and simplicity for health.
and observed “tranquil mind led to longevity and
desirelessness made body healthy”. He was greatly
honoured by Emperor Daizong, which could be
evidenced in entries in volume 29 of the SongDynasty Collection of Biographies of Eminent Monks
and volume 21 of Records of Morality and Justice.
(Xue Keqiao)
Subhakarasimha
Śubhākarasimha [Shanwuwei] (637-735 CE) was an
Indian Buddhist monk and translator who came to
China in Tang Dynasty. He was one of the founders
of Chinese Esoteric Buddhism. Together with
Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra, he was known as one
of the “Three Major Buddhists of Kaiyuan”. His name
in another Chinese translation was Jingshizi and in
transliteration Shupojieluosenghe or Shubojialuo.
According to volume II of Buddhist Biography in
Song Dynasty, volume nine of The Kai-yuan Record
Subhakarasimha
240
Cultural Contacts
of Buddhist Books and Shanwuwei Biography Recorded
in Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, Shanwuwei was
the descendant of Amitodana who was the uncle
of Sakyamuni, belonging to Kshatriya caste. His
ancestors had moved to India, then to Oóra (now
in the north of Orissa) dur to a natural calamity.
Because of his supernatural temperament, good
virtues and skills, at the age of 10, his father asked
him to command armies. At the age of 13, his
father died and he succeeded the throne under the
posthumous edict. His brothers refused to accept so
fought a battle for getting the throne. After putting
down the riot, he became world-weary so gave way
to the elder brother and determined to become a
monk. He first came to South India to learn Lotus Sutra
Samadhi and then travelled around various countries
by merchant ships, cultivating himself in meditation
and chanting sutras. Because he was very clever, he
soon mastered five yana (Manusya-yana, Deva-yana,
Shravaka-yana, Pratyeka-buddha-yana, Bodhisattvayana) and three studies (sila, samadhi, prajna). He
could make a thorough inquiry into the meditation
and dharani. In addition, he was also good at artistic
creation and well-versed in utensil-making. He
came to Nalanda Monastery to learn from Samadhi
master, Dharmagupta. His master taught him
Dharani Yoga Three Tantra, presided over Abhisheka
for him and gave him the title of Tripitaka Dharma
Master. During the period of living in Nalanda
Monastery, he also travelled around to seek for the
holy relic such as Kukkuñapàdagiri, Gçdhrakåña etc.
Dharmagupta said he had predestined relationship
with China, so he was ordered by his master to go
to China for disseminating dharma. He first passed
Kashmira, Udyana (Swat basin now in northern
Pakistan) to arrive in the territory of Western
Turks. Under the request of khan, he preached
Mahavairocana-abhisambodhi-vikurvita adhisthanavaipulya-sutra. Then he continued to travel to the
east with camels carrying Buddhist sutras, reached
Luxizhou (governance seat is located in Gaochang
now. Gaochang is an ancient city in the southeast
of Turpan) and Yumen, at that time, Tang envoy
awaited the arrival of him. In the fourth year of
Kaiyuan Period in Tang Dynasty (716 CE), he
arrived in Chang’an, received the courtesy and
respect of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang. He was
ordered to live in the south courtyard of Xingfu
Temple and later moved to Ximing Temple. In
the fourth year of Kaiyuan Period, he was ordered
to translate the scriptures in Bodhi courtyard of
Ximing Temple. Shanwuwei invited the monks
to participate in translation. He first translated
Akasagarbha Asking for Promoting Buddhadharma
with Śramana Xida interpreting, Asanga writing
and organising sentences. The emperor spoke
highly of the translation and then ordered to put
Chinese Esoteric Buddhism
Sanskrit scriptures he brought in the imperial
palace. Previously, Śramana Wuxing had come to
India for the scriptures, but unfortunately, he died
in northern India. Palm-leaf scriptures he obtained
were brought back by his fellow travellers and were
stored in Huayan Temple of the capital. Shanwuwei
and Chan master Yixing headed for the temple
and chose many important scriptures without
translation. In the 12th year of Kaiyuan Period, he
followed Emperor Xuanzong of Tang to Luoyang
and was ordered to translate Vairocana Sutra in
Fuxian Temple with Sramana Baoyue interpreting,
Yixing writing, simplifying and sorting. Because the
scriptures had 100,000 gatha, only the important
points were translated, getting seven volumes of
Mahavairocana-abhisambodhi-vikurvita adhisthanavaipulya-sutra. Later generations gave the evaluation
of 'literary grace and essence account for a half,
harmonic and interesting'. Then he translated three
volumes of Suvàhu-paripçcchà and three volumes
of usiddhikara-mahàtantrasàdhanopàyika-pañala. In
addition to the translation of Buddhist scriptures,
he also wrote one volume of Tripitaka Abstract of
Shanwuwei - records of discussing Buddha dhamma
between him and Dadejingxian master from
Huishan Temple in Songshan Mountain which told
about the precepts, repentance and tantra. And he
wrote 20 volumes of Vairocana Abhisambuddha Sutra
Commentaries. It was the records of explanation for
Mahavairocana-abhisambodhi-vikurvita adhisthanavaipulya-sutra made by Shanwuwei under people’s
requests and written by Yixing with a wide range
of content, fluent writing style and complete
explanation of original scriptures. Shanwuwei liked
quietness and contemplation. He would advise and
encourage beginners patiently. His disciples said
that his figure was like a lotus flower and his words
were like dew. In 20th year of Kaiyuan Period (732
CE), he wanted to return home but the Emperor
Xuanzong of Tang gave him awards and urged him
to stay. On October 7 in 23rd year, he died at the age
of 99 with feet together and lying on the right side.
It was said that his body would not decay due to
the nurture of samadhi and prajna. In October of the
241
Cultural Contacts
Natural Law of Virtues so it was incorporated into
Volume X of Sutra of Assembly of Dharani without
other versions.
(Ge Weijun)
28th year of Kaiyuan Period, he was buried inside
Guanghua Temple in Xishan Mountain of Longmen.
In the first year of Qianyuan Period of Emperor
Suzong of Tang (758 CE), the monument was built
for him beside the temple with his disciple, Li Hua,
compiling the Inscription Preface of Shanwuwei,
with Sramana Jiecheng lettering, and Hengxiu
writing the inscription. LI Hua also complied one
volume of Shanwuwei Biography Recorded in
Emperor Xuanzong of Tang.
(Ge Weijun)
Jnanaprabha
Jñānaprabhā [Zhiguang] (c. 7th century CE), was
an eminent monk in central India who once studied
together with Xuanzang in Nalanda. There was also
exchange of letters between the two.
According to the volume VII of Biography of
Tripitaka Dharma Master from Da Ci'en Temple of
Tang Dynasty and other records, Zhiguang was a
man from Magadha in central India. He was very
learned and well-informed and had comprehensive
training and knowledge of Mahayana, Hinayana,
Four Vedas and pañcavidyā. He was deeply
respected and admired by scholars across India.
When Xuanzang toured in India, Zhiguang was in
Nàlanda. They became close friends as classmates.
At that time Zhiguang was the most important
disciple of Śīlabhadra, head monk of the temple.
After Xuanzang returned to China, Zhiguang and
Master Prajñānadeva of the same temple could
not forget their deep old friendship. Later, when
Master Fazhang planned to visit China in Yonghui
third year under the reign of Emperor Gaozong,
they took this opportunity to write a letter together
and entrusted it to Master Fazhang to deliver to
Xuanzang. They also sent two duans (the unit used
in Tang Dynasty, one duan equalled to around 1,800
cm) of fine cloth as gift. In the letter they saluted
Xuanzang as Mokṣācārya (meaning the master of
relief/ liberation) with all admiring and praising
words, expressed deep heartfelt feelings and wished
Xuanzang great health and peace with their best
regards. At the same time, they also promised to
send through monks any original sutras required by
Xuanzang. When master Fazhang took his leave for
returning to India, Xuanzang replied Zhiguang and
Prajñānadeva in separate letters and reported to the
emperor by copying the contents of the letters. In
his letter of reply to Zhiguang, besides expressing
his deep thoughts toward their friends after a
long separation, Xuanzang also expressed deep
condolences on the death of Master Śīlabhadra. He
fully praised Śīlabhadra’s significant contribution for
the inheritance of the profound principles of Buddhadharma and expressed his heartfelt gratitude for his
teaching and guiding. Xuanzang knew Zhiguang
had been the successor of head monk in Nàlanda
so he also raised expectations for his friend and
hoped Zhiguang would continue to carry forward
Śīlabhadra’s Buddhist enterprise. In addition, he
also reported in details about the progress of his
own translation of Buddhist scriptures and praised
the present emperor’s merit was like Dharmaāja
Atigupta
Atigupta [Wujigao] (c. 7th century) was an Indian
Buddhist monk and translator who came to
China in Tang Dynasty. His transliterated name
was Adiquduo.
According to volume VIII of The Kai-yuan Record
of Buddhist Books, volume two of Buddhist Biography
in Song Dynasty, and Dharani Sutra Translation
Prologue, Wujigao was from Central India, with
unknown family background. When he was young,
being super intelligent, he yearned for Buddhism.
He had travelled across India to seek masters and
was willing to take advice from them. In learning,
he made a thorough investigation into Mahayana
and in behaviour, he reached the highest state in
practicing Buddhism. He also knew five classes of
knowledge (science of language, science of logic,
science of medicine, science of fine arts and crafts
and science of spirituality), and best understood
Tripitaka (Sutras, Vinaya and Abhidharma). He
devoted himself to promoting Buddhism and
extricating all living creatures and he travelled
around, without returning to homeland. In January
of the third year of Yonghui of Emperor Gaozong of
Tang (652 CE), he came to Chang’an from Western
India carrying Buddhist scriptures and the emperor
granted to live in Ci'en Temple. In March, 16
Śramana including Dachengcong and 12 government
dignitaries including Duke Li Shiji and Duke Yuchi
Jingde invited him to build Dharani preaching altar
in Buddha courtyard of Huiri Temple. It was said
that there were strange events happening repeatedly
on the day of finishing the building of altar which
surprised everyone. Under the request of Śramana
Xuankai to translate the scriptures, in March of the
fourth year of Yonghui, he began to translate the
important contents in Dorje Bodhimanda Sutra with
Xuankai writing. The translation was finished in
April of the fifth year of Yonghui, with one category
of 12 volumes, named Sutra of the Great Assembly
of Dharani. Because Wujigao was often called into
the palace for conducting dharma events, being
very busy, the translation was not rechecked. At
that time, masters Ananda-mokkha and Kasyapa
from Mahabodhi Temple in Central India translated
242
Cultural Contacts
scriptures were lost in Indus when he returned
home, he attached the name of the scriptures in the
letter and hoped that he could regain them someday
to perfect the translation.
(Ge Weijun)
who supported with prefaces to the newly translated
Buddhist scriptures. The translated scriptures could,
therefore, not only be spread within the country but
also be followed and learned by the neighboring
countries. Xuanzang also added several sutras’
names as suggested by Zhiguang and Prajñànadeva.
These Sanskrit classics had lost when he crossed the
Xindu River (now Indian River) on the way back to
China. He hoped to get these classics one day in the
future so as to perfect his translation enterprise.
(Ge Weijun)
Bhagavaddharma
Bhagavaddharma [Zunfa] (c. 7th century CE) was an
Indian Buddhist monk and translator who came to
China in Tang Dynasty. His name in transliteration
was Qiefandamo.
According to volume II of Buddhist Biography in
Song Dynasty, Zunfa was from west India. His wish
was to preach Buddhism to all living creatures
during his life. So he travelled a long distance to
China and devoted himself to the translation of
Buddhist scriptures. During Yonghui Period of the
Emperor Gaozong of Tang, 650-655, he translated
one volume of Thousand-hand and Thousand-eye
Guan-yin Bodhisattva Maha Karuna Dharani Mantra
and Contemplative Secret Dharani. But the title of
the sutra was only “translated by Indian Śramana
Zunfa in Tang Dynasty” without mentioning any
specific time of production. It is speculated that the
translation might be finished during Yonghui period
and Xianqing period (656-660 CE). Since then, there
was not any record about Zunfa. It is said that by
reciting a mantra could gain 15 kinds of wholesome
birth and avoid suffering 15 kinds of wicked death.
(Ge Weijun)
Prajnanadeva
Prajñànadeva [Huitian] (7th century) was an Indian
Buddhist monk from Central India. He had studied
together with Tang Xuanzang in Nalanda Monastery
and exchanged letters later.
According to the seventh volume of Datang Da
Ci'en Temple Tripitaka Master Biography, Huitian is
Buddhist from Mahabodhi Temple in Central India.
When Xuanzang visited India, he stayed at Nalanda
Monastery and was one of the most important
disciples of monastery abbot, Śilabhadra. Huitian
has a good knowledge of various theories of 18
schools of Theravada Buddhism and was good at
teaching and education which was favoured by
people at that time. Xuanzang often exchanged notes
with him. But because of his failure to carefully read
vaipulya, or Mahayana Scriptures, he was criticised
for his prejudice. In Kanyakubja Buddhist Assembly
called by Śilāditya, he also lost to Xuanzang in
the argument. Feeling ashamed, he showed his
admiration to Xuanzang. After Xuanzang returned
home, he and Jñànaprabhà in the same monastery
could not forget their old friendship. Later, when
Fachang Buddhist visited China in the third year
of Yonghui of Emperor Gaozong of Tang Dynasty
(652), they jointly wrote a letter and entrusted him
to deliver it to Xuanzang, together with fine cloth of
12 Zhang. They praised Xuanzang as Mokshacarya
(meaning Moksha master) and conveyed their full
admiration and compliments. The letter showed
their heartfelt feelings and wishes for the health
of Xuanzang. The letter also said that if Xuanzang
needed any original scriptures, he could tell them the
name and they would copy and send the scriptures
to him. In the fifth year of Yonghui, when Fachang
Buddhist left for home, Xuanzang replied a letter to
them. He also copied the contents of the letter and
presented it to the emperor. In the reply, he gave his
sincere greetings, praised Huitian for his profound
knowledge and strong will showed his admiration
and the feeling of missing them and sincerely
wished them good health. He also advised them for
his preference for Theravada instead of Mahayana
and hoped that he could find the right view so as to
avoid regret on his deathbed. Because some Sanskrit
Nati
Nati Sanzang [Punaudaya](c. 7th century CE) was
an Indian Buddhist and translator who came to
China in Tang Dynasty and whose full name was
Puõyodaya in free translation rendered as Fusheng.
According to volume IV of Continuation Biography
of Eminent Monks, volume IX of The Kai-yuan Record
of Buddhist Books etc. Nati was from central India
(northern India in other records). When he was
young, he received guidance from a famous teacher
and became enlightened and, hence he was engaged
in the promotion of Buddhism with great zeal. He
was curious in nature, had extensive interests and
travelled around many countries to increase his
knowledge. He once went to the Lanka Mountain
in southeast area of Simhaladvipa (present-day
Sri Lanka). Because he had a good knowledge of
phonology, morphology and exegetics, he did not
face a language barrier anywhere. He begged for
alms and promoted the doctrine. Also, he was once
summoned by Bactria (Tukhara in general, now in
northern Afghanistan, local government is located
in Balkh, the west of Mazer-e-Sharif) to serve as
a scribe, working in the imperial library. Later,
he knew that Mahayana scriptures prevailed over
China hence, he carried more than 500 palm-leaf
243
Cultural Contacts
for Buddhism in Kaiyuan Period, and volume XXXIX
of General Record of Buddhas etc, Buddhatrata was
born in Kashmir, Uttarapatha, and came a long
way to China with pattra [palm] leaves scriptures
for his aspiration to spread Buddhism in China.
He lived in Baima Temple and engaged himself
in translation. He once translated one volume
of Mahāvaipulya pūrṇabuddhasūtra prassanārtha
sūtra. No date of translation was mentioned. But,
according to General Record of Buddhas, this sutra
was translated in 655 CE, the sixth year of Yonghui
Period during the reign of Emperor Gaozong of Tang
Dynasty. The later generations commented that the
annotation of time was not necessarily a must, it
was enough to sincerely respect the Buddha, work
to spread Buddhism and indoctrinate people with its
main principles, strictly distinguishing between true
and false and pass the essence of scriptures. No one
has yet any knowledge of other traces and places
of his destinations. The sutra he translated was a
common classic of Chan/ Zen Buddhism with a large
amount of exegesis by later generations such as
the four volumes of Brief Exegesis for Mahāvaipulya
pūrṇabuddhasūtra prassanārtha sūtra complied by
Zongmi, Chan/ Zen master in Caotang Temple
during Dahe Period (827-835 CE) under the reign of
Emperor Wenzong of Tang Dynasty.
(Ge Weijun)
scriptures of Mahayana, Theravada and Tripitaka,
with more than 1,500 works in total and went
east. He arrived in the capital, Chang’an, in the
sixth year of Yonghui of Emperor Gaozong of
Tang (655 CE) and lived in Da Ci'en Temple. At
that time, Xuanzang, who was highly reputed,
was responsible for the translation of Buddhist
scriptures who was highly reputed, so Nati was
only in an auxiliary role and his ability could not
be put to good use. Later, Emperor Gaozong of
Tang fell ill in the first year of Xianqing (656 CE)
and because Nati knew different medicines, he was
ordered to search for them in Kunlun countries
(presnt-day Con Dao Islands in South China Sea).
The kings in South China Sea worshipped him,
built a temple for him and invited him to preach
with an offer for widespread promotion. In the
third year of Longshuo (663 CE), he returned
to Chang'an and wanted to study and translate
the Sanskrit scriptures he brought, but they had
been taken by Xuanzang. Without them, he only
translated one volume of Shizi Zhuang yan Wang
pusa qing wen jing, one volume of Vimalabhūmi
Sumedha Buddhadharma Sutra, and one volume
of Azhanazhi Mantra Sutra, with interpretation by
Śramana Huize from Chanlin Temple, sentence
patterns arrangement and preface writing by
Śramana Daoxuan from Fengde Temple. In the
same year, Chenla (present-day Cambodia) that
had once accepted his enlightenment hoped that
he could come to his country and then sent the
domestic masters to Chang’an. They lied that they
found good medicine in their country and Nati
who was the only one who knew about medicines
had to go there personally. So the imperial court
let him go and he never returned. There were
people coming to China from Balkh with words
what Nati learned was from Nagarjuna School
which was different from Xuanzang’s theory. Nati
mastered the five categories of codes of Theravada
and veda and had written more than 40 volumes of
Mahayana Moral Behaviour Theory, but for lack of
time, they could not be translated, and have now
been lost. The description of Nati’s life and career
recorded in Buddhist biography has always been
controversial. His original name is Puõyodaya but
what is known to us is Nati which is one example.
But the arguments made them more doubtful and
more information are need to correct his profile.
(Ge Weijun)
Vajrabodhi
Vajrabodhi [Jingangzhi] (671–741 CE) was an Indian
Buddhist monk and translator who came to China in
Tang Dynasty. He was one of the founders of Chinese
Esoteric Buddhism together with Subhakarasimha
and Amoghavajra and all were called “Three Major
Buddhists of Kaiyuan”. His name in transliteration
was Bariluoputi and is regarded as Dorje Tripitaka.
According to volume I of Buddhist Biography in Song
Dynasty, volume nine of The Kai-yuan Record of
Buddhist Books, volume XIV of New Buddhism List
in Zhenyuan Period and volume seven of Immortal
Buddhist Biography, Jingangzhi was from Ma-la-ya
in southern India and was Brahmin by caste (in
some other records, he is referred to as the prince
from central India belonging to Kshatriya caste).
His father was proficient in panca-vidya and was
the state Buddhist monk of Kanci (present-day
Kanchipuram in Tamil Nadu). When Jingangzhi
was very young, he could recite 10,000 sentences
every day and he would never forget what he saw
and said. When he was 10, he became a monk of
Nàlanda Monastery (in other record: when he
was 16, he was enlightened with Buddhism and
followed the teacher to Nàlanda Monastery in
central India). He was engaged in the statement
theory of meditation and wisdom study. At the age
of 20, he received full ordination. He had even gone
Buddhatrata
Buddhatrata [Fotuoduoluo] was an Indian monk and
translator who came to China in Tang Dynasty. His
name, Buddhatrata, was paraphrased as “Juejiu”.
According to volume II of Biographies of Eminent
Monks in Song Dynasty and volume IX of Directory
244
Cultural Contacts
troubles or prayed for rain and warded off various
calamities for local people. He built Maha Mandala
Abhisheka Altar in the temple where he lived
and accepted the four-fold assembly conversion.
Buddhists Dazhi, Dahui, Amoghavajra and Śramana
Yixing became his disciples. In the 11th year of
Kaiyuan, he started the translation of scriptures.
In Zisheng Temple, he translated four volumes of
Essentials of Vajrasekhara Yoga Sutra, one volume
of Buddha Speaks the Sutra of Maha Cundi Dharani,
The Heart of the Mother of Seven Koti Buddhas, with
Yisheluo, a Brahmin from East India, interpreting
and Śramana Wengu from Songshan writing. In the
18th year of Kaiyuan, he translated one volume
of Vajrasekhara Sutra Manjushri Bodhisattva FiveSyllable Dharani, and one volume of Avalokitesvara
Nyo-i-rin Bodhisattva Yoga Method at Jianfu Temple,
with Śramana Zhizang interpreting and Yixing
writing. In the 19th year, he translated Vajrasekhara
Yoga Asevana Vairocana Samadhi Sutra, Thousandhand and Thousand-eye Guan-yin Bodhisattva Body
Mantra, Thousand-hand and Thousand-eye Guanyin Bodhisattva Maha Karuna Dharani Mantra and
Contemplator Dharani Secret Sutra, each having one
volume, with Śramana Zhizang (Amoghavajra)
writing. In his later years, Jingangzhi intended
to return home, and in July of the 29th year of
Kaiyuan (741 CE), Emperor Xuanzong of Tang
gave his consent. In August, Jingangzhi arrived at
Guangfu Temple in Luoyang and said that he would
be gone during the full moon. Exactly on the 15th
day of the month, he died at the age of 71. He was
buried to the right of Yichuan of southern Longmen
in November. The emperor conferred on him the
title of “Abhisheka Buddhist” and built a pagoda in
Xigang of Fengxian Temple in Longmen in February
of the second year of Tianbao of Emperor Xuanzong
of Tang (743 CE) in his memory. In the first year
of Yongtai of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (765 CE),
under the submission of Amoghavajra, the emperor
gave Jingangzhi another title of “Kaifu Yitong Sansi
Sanzang”. And in the third year of Dali (768 CE),
Emperor Daizong of Tang personally wrote the
inscription for the pagoda plaque on the request
of Amoghavajra. Most translations of Jingangzhi
were related to Esoteric Buddhist scriptures and
sadhana with existing translations spanning up to
23 categories and 29 volumes in total.
(Ge Weijun)
Vajrabodhi
to west India to learn Dharmakãrti’s Hetuvidya
theory (in other record: Theravada theory, yoga of
body, mouth and heart, Dharani). Later, he returned
to Nalanda Monastery and learned Mahayana,
Theravada law as well as Prajñāpradīpaśāstrakarika,
Śataśāstra,
Dvādaśamukhaśāstra
and
others.
At the age of 28, he went to Kapilavastu
(present-day south border of Nepal) to learn
Yogācārabhūmiśāstra,
Vijñaptimātratāsiddhi-śàstra
and Madhyāntavibhāgañīkā from talented masters.
At the age of 31, he came to southern India again
and learned Dorje Yoga Sutra, Vairocana Dharani
means and Mahayana sutras, Panca-vidya theory,
and accepted abhisheka of five regions. Finally seven
years later, he mastered the knowledge of all kinds
of Esoteric Buddhism. According to one legend,
he followed Guanyin Bodhisattva’s instructions to
lead his eight common disciples to Simhaladvipa
(present-day Sri Lanka). He went to the Fearless
King Temple to make obeisance to Buddha's
tooth. And half-a-year later, he went to the Lankā
Mountain in the southeast of the country to worship
Buddha relics. Soon after returning to Ma-la-ya in
southern India, he planned to promote Buddhism
in China. The king asked him to bring the local
products, treasures and a large number of pattraleaf scriptures of Mahāprajñāpāramitāsūtra. He first
came to Simhaldvipa and stayed there for a month
at the request of King Shilishiluo. He then followed
Persian merchants to sail across the sea and reached
Śrīvijaya (presnt-day Sumatra) within one month.
But due to wind direction, which was unfavourable
for travel, he stayed there for five months. The
subsequent travel was also more dangerous. He
finally reached Guangzhou in about three years. In
the eighth year of Kaiyuan of Emperor Xuanzong of
Tang Dynasty (720 CE), he came to Luoyang, got a
reception from the emperor and was ordered to live
in Da Ci'en Temple in Chang’an. He soon moved to
Zisheng Temple (in other record: Jianfu Temple).
From then on, he often followed the emperor to
Luoyang and Chang’an. Wherever he arrived, he
conducted a Abhisheka to help people remove their
Buddhapala
Buddhapāla [Fotuoboli] (7th century CE) was an
Indian Buddhist monk and translator who came
to China during Tang Dynasty. His name in free
translation was Juehu.
According to volume II of Buddhist Biography in
Song Dynasty, volume II of Guangqingliang-Zhuan,
245
Cultural Contacts
Jinamitra (transliteration is Pishishamiduoluo)
and Jinaputra (transliteration is Chennafoduoluo)
are the three major disciples of Dharmapala
Bodhisattva who is the abbot of Nalanda Monastery.
Dharmapala is the major master of consciousnessonly school. Jnanacandra has high reputation and
is famous for his “elegant manner, transcendental
knowledge, extraordinary wisdom and agile style”.
He has even written comments for Vasubandhu’s
Vijñànamàtrasiddhi-triüati-÷śàstra-kàrikà
which
unfortunately is extinct now.
(Ge Weijun)
volume IX of The Kai-yuan Record of Buddhist Books,
Fotuoboli was from Kashmir in Central India. He
devoted himself to Buddhism and travelled all
over India to seek holy relics. When he heard that
Manjusri Bodhisattva lived in Qingliang Mountain,
(ie Wutai Mountain in Shanxi Province), he
travelled long distance to visit him. He reached
Wutai Mountain in the first year of Yifeng of
Emperor Gaozong of Tang (676 CE). It is said that
he reached the top of Siyang Mountain and looked
at the magnificent scenery and made obeisance to
the mountain. An old man then suddenly turned up
and greeted him in an Indian language. Knowing
that Fotuoboli had come here to learn rituals, the
old man told him that all living creatures here
were grievously sinful, even homeless people
violated the commandments, and they all needed
Shurangama Mantra to help them remove their sins.
Only making a journey to the west for the scriptures
and handing it down to generations could benefit
all living creatures. So Fotuoboli followed the
old man’s direction and returned to India for the
scriptures. He then returned to Chang’an in the first
year of Hongdao (683 CE) and related his intention
to Emperor Gaozong of Tang. So the emperor
ordered the official, Du Xingyi, and Indian monk
Divakara to translate the scriptures. Fotuoboli was
awarded 3,000 rolls of silk after the translation
was finished and the scriptures were stored in the
palace. Fotuoboli expressed that he brought the
scriptures from a long distance to circulate it and
help people. Regardless of treasures and fame, he
made a request to the emperor to circulate the
scriptures among the people. The emperor was
moved by his sincerity and gave the scriptures
back to him. Then he translated the Sanskrit again
with monk Shunzhen (in Ximing Temple) who
was familiar with Sanskrit. The translation was
called Usnisa Vijaya Dharani Sutra. After his wish
came true, he carried the original Sanskrit version
to Wutai Mountain again and was not heard of
after that. The sutra was practised by believers in
Tantrism from morning to night and people could
pass their virtues to the dead by reciting it, which
was efficacious. The scriptures were translated
nine times but the translation of Fotuoboli was the
most popular.
(Ge Weijun)
Simharashmi
Simharaśmi [Shiziguang] (c. 7th century CE), a
scholar monk at Nālandā in central India, once
debated with Xuanzang on Buddhist doctrines.
According to the fourth volume of Continuation
of the Biographies of Eminent Monks, the fourth
volume of Biography of Tripitaka Dharma Master
from Da Ci'en Temple of Tang Dynasty and other
records, after Xuanzang arrived at Nàlanda, he
offered lectures on Mahàyàna-saüparigraha-sàstra
and On Consciousness-only Choice on the orders
of Master Śilabhadra. At that time, eminent
monk, Shiziguang, had already offered lectures
on Mādhyamikaśāstra of Nāgārjuna and Śataśāstra
of Deva and refuted Yogācāra theory with the
viewpoints of Mādhyamika Mula of Nāgārjuna.
Xuanzang was proficient with the two theories of
Madhāyamikaśāstra and Śataśāstra, and knew very
well about Yogācāra theory as well. He believed
that the ancient saints set up doctrines at their own
will. Thus, different theories would not violate and
hinder each other. If the descendents could not
digest the meaning, it was because of the existence
of errors in the process of inheritance, other than
problems with the theories themselves. Believing
Simharaśmi’s viewpoints were biased, Xuanzang
went to discuss and debate with him for several
times. Most of the time, the latter could not answer.
The result was Simharśmi’s disciples gradually left
him and turned to follow Xuanzang. To illustrate
the two theories were originally not violating and
hindering each other; Xuanzang compiled 3,000
odes in the book of On Combination of Doctrines and
offered these books to Silabhadra and the public,
which won good reputation. From then on, this
book became a teaching material for the learners
inside the temple. Simharaśmi felt ashamed and
left for Bodhi Temple as a refuge. To revenge for
the former’s humiliation, he sent a classmate from
eastern India to debate with Xuanzang. However
when the classmate arrived, he was scared and did
not launch any debate. Thus, Xuanzang’s prestige
was further improved.
(Ge Weijun)
Jnanacandra
J¤ānacandra [Zhiyue] (c. 7th century CE) is one
of the 10 masters of consciousness-only school of
ancient India. His name in Chinese transliteration
is Ruonazhandaluo.
According to volume IX of Xuanzang’s Great
Tang Records on the Western Regions, and volume
one of Kuiji’s Records of Cittamatra, J¤ānacandra,
246
Cultural Contacts
Manicinta
shape of a temple in India and named it Tianzhu
Temple where he and his disciples lived together.
In the ninth year of Kaiyuan of the Tang Emperor
Xuanzong (721 CE), he died in this temple, at the
age of more than a 100 years. In addition to three
volumes of the above Sutra of Realising People’s
Wishes with Bodhisattva’s Benevolence, his presently
existing translations include: Buddha Speaks the
Sutra on the Merits of Bathing the Buddha, Buddha
Speaks the Sutra on the Merits of Prayer Beads, The
Sutra of the Great One Syllable Dharani in Dharma
Ending Age, Avalokiteshvara Aniruddha Mani
Dharani Sutra, Avalokiteshvara Aniruddha Mani
Wheel Dharani Chanting Methods, Buddha Speaks
Dharani Incantation of the Protectress Who Grants
Great Freedom, Manjusri’'s Fundamental One-Syllable
Dharani from the Mahāvaipulya-bodhisattvapitaka and
Fighting between Narayana and Asurindaka, with each
having one volume.
(Ge Weijun)
Maņicinta [Baosiwei] (c. 7 -8 century CE) was an
Indian Buddhist and translator who came to China
in Tang Dynasty. His name in Chinese transliteration
was Anizhenna.
According to volume III of Buddhist Biography in
Song Dynasty, volume IX of The Kai-yuan Record
of Buddhist Books, Maņicinta was from Kashmir in
northern India, belonging to Kshatriya caste. He
became a monk when he was a child and became
th
th
Pramiti
Pramiti [Jiliang] (7th-8th century CE), was an Indian
monk and translator of Buddhist sutras who came
to China in Tang Dynasty. His name in Chinese was
transliterated as Banlamidi as it is pronounced.
According to volume II of Biographies of Eminent
Monks in Song Dynasty and volume XIV of New
Directory for Buddhism in Zhenyuan Period, Jiliang
was a native of central India and had good
Manicinta
engaged in meditation and chanting sutras, and
specialised in precepts of Buddhist scriptures
after receiving full ordination. He had remarkable
comprehension ability. He not only learned two
truths doctrine of true meaning and common
meaning but was also good at astrology, mantra etc.
He took up moralising all living creatures as his own
duty, without attachment to his homeland. In the
second year of Changshou of Wuzhou period (693
CE), he came to Luoyang and lived in Tiangong
Temple under the order of Empress Wu Zetian.
At first, he translated the scriptures at Foshouji
Temple, Tiangong Temple and Fuxian Temple and
by the second year of Shenlong of the Emperor
Zhongzong of Tang (706 CE), he successively
finished the translation of seven scriptures including
Sutra of Realizing People’s Wishes with Bodhisattva’s
Benevolence. In April of the first year of Taiji of the
Tang Emperor Ruizong (712 CE), Zhang Qixian, the
attendant of the prince presented the finished copy
of the translation to the imperial court.
In June the same year, the Emperor ordered
Minister of Rituals Duke Jinguo, Xue Ji and Right
Attendant Seigneur Gaoping, Xu Yanbo to make
detailed examination and then incorporate it into
the scriptures list. Since then, Maņicinta was no
longer engaged in translation but devoted himself
to the worship of Buddha and sutras chanting and
did more good deeds by giving all his belongings
to others. Later, he built a temple imitating the
Shurangama Sutra, translated by Pramiti
247
Cultural Contacts
15. [in another record: in the sixth year of Kaiyuan
of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang (718 CE), he became
a Buddhist monk and travelled to Yavadvipa, ie
Java and Sumatra in Indonesia or only the Java
island, learned from Vajrabodhi then followed him
to Luoyang]. Due to his great intelligence, he could
master the Sanskrit Siddham and statement theory
in not more than 10 days. Vajrabodhi was surprised
and made him learn Bodhisattva Precepts. In the 12th
year of Kaiyuan (724 CE) he received full ordination
in Guangfu Temple in Luoyang, learning precepts,
many Sanskrit and Chinese scriptures. Finally,
he attended his teacher and often accompanied
him to the emperor to Chang’an and Luoyang.
Because he could understand all scriptures and was
familiar with foreign languages, Vajrabodhi often
involved him in translation. He requested to learn
five sutras of Esoteric Buddhism (Mahavairocanasutra, Vajrasekhara Sutra, Susiddhikara-mahātantrasādhanopāyika-patala,
Vajraśekhara-vimāna-sarvayogayogi-śāstra and Sutra abridged for Recitation or
Budhi Sutra) and three guhya (kàya-guhya, vàg-guhya
and mano-guhya). Three years later, Vajrabodhi still
did not teach him so he intended to return to India
to study them. Reportedly, Vajrabodhi dreamed
that Buddharupa in Buddhist temple travelled to the
east, so he talked to Bukongjingang, and knew that
he wanted to return to India for Buddhist learning
which was related to what he dreamed. Finally,
Vajrabodhi passed on both five sutras and three guhya
to him. In Vajrabodhi’s later years, he intended to
return home and in July of the 29th year of Kaiyuan
(741 CE) with the consent of Emperor Xuanzong of
Tang, Bukongjingang followed Vajrabodhi to home.
In August, Vajrabodhi died of a disease in Guangfu
Temple of Luoyang. After the burial of his teacher,
he left for Guangzhou. With 37 monks including
his disciples, Hanguang and Huibian, attending
upon, Bukongjingang carried the state credentials to
continue his return trip by sea. In less than a year,
he reached Simhaldvipa where the king greeted
him with courtesy and during the seven days of
Bukongjingang’s living in the palace, the king served
him with fragrant water in golden pot for his bath.
Later, Bukongjingang moved to Asgiri Mahanayake
and learned the 18 Acquisition Vajrasekhara Yoga
Sutra and Vairocana Great Mercy Garbha means
from Samantabhadra and Acharya (mentor), and
made Hanguang and Huibian accept the abhiseca of
five sutras. Since then, Bukongjingang had no fixed
teachers and widely sought for the treasures and
various scriptures and theories, with more than 500
categories. After travelling across India, he returned
to Chang’an in the fifth year of Tianbao of Emperor
Xuanzong of Tang (746 CE). He gave the abhiseca rite
for Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, and lived in Jingying
Temple to be engaged in the translation. Because his
knowledge of Buddhism. His lifelong dream was to
travel and beg for alms, follow destiny and help all
living creatures. Later, he headed to Guangzhou and
lived in Zhizhi Bodhimanda. In May 705 CE, the first
year of Shenlong reign of Tang Emperor Zhongzong,
he recited from the abhiseka classic sutras a volume
named Shurangama Sutra of Samantabhadra Revising
the Behaviours of All Bodhisattva which was translated
into 10 volumes.
Śramana Mijiashuoqu from Udyana (Swat River
basin in the north of present-day Pakistan), was the
interpreter, the disciple of Bodhisattva precepts,
Fangrong was the translator and Śramana Huaidi
from Nanlou Temple in Luofu Mountain (presentday Huizhou) reviewed it. The king of his country
got angry because of his distribution of sutras
without authorisation and sent envoys to catch him.
As a result, Jiliang went back by boat.
(Ge Weijun)
Amoghavajra
Amoghavajra [Bukongjingang] (705-774 CE), was
an Indian Buddhist monk and famous translator
who came to China in Tang Dynasty. He was also
one of the founders of Chinese Esoteric Buddhism.
Amoghavajra
He was called 'Three Major Kaiyuan Buddhists'
together with Subhakarasimha and Vajrabodhi. He
was called Amogha for short with transliteration of
name as Amuqubazheluo.
According to volume I of Buddhist Biography
in Song Dynasty, volume 40 and 41 of Buddhism
Historiography, volume eight of New Buddhism List
in Zhenyuan Period and Biography of Bukongjingang
Sanzang, Bukongjingang was from northern Indian
[in other record: from Simhaldvipa, present-day
Sri Lanka), belonging to Brahmin caste. When he
was young, he yearned to adopt Buddhism. After
his father died, he followed his uncle to Luoyang
and became a disciple of Vajrabodhi at the age of
248
Cultural Contacts
later years, he also sent his disciple, Hanguang, to
build Jinge Temple and Yuhua Temple in Wutai
Mountain and made the request to arrange 21
monks in every temple for five temples including
Jinge Temple. He made them the centre of focus
for development of Esoteric Buddhism in future.
In June of the ninth year of Dali, Bukongjingang
fell ill. He knew he would die soon so he wrote
a statement to the Emperor for departure.
Emperor Daizong of Tang gave the medicine as his
condolence and added the title of Kaifeng Yitong
Sansi named Duke of Suguo. On 15th, he bathed
with fragrant water, sat quietly for meditation and
soon died, at the age of 70 years. On July 6th, he
was cremated and hundreds of Sarira [relics] were
collected. They were put in Da Xing-shan Temple.
According to another legend, his parietal bone
was non-ignitable with sarira in it. The imperial
court conferred him the honour of Sikong, and
posthumous title of Da Bian Zheng Guang Zhi (in
other record: Da Bian Guang Zheng Zhi) Sanzang.
In the second year of Jianzhong (781 CE), Emperor
Dezong of Tang allowed Huilang, the disciple of
Bukongjingang, to set up a monument in Da Xingshan Temple for him.
Bukongjingang’s translations were in wide ranges,
covering both Ordinary and Esoteric Buddhism such
as three volumes of Manjusri Bodhisattva Buddha
Land’s Solemn Merits And Virtues Sutra, one volume
of Maitreya Saying Mahayana pratītya-samutpanna,
one volume of Tathagatagarbha-sutra, one volume of
Buddha Telling Law and Political Comment to Youtian
King and three volumes of Sarva-Tathagata-TattvaSamgraha-Sutra. The total number of his translations
was different in different literatures such as 77
categories and 101 volumes, 77 categories and
120 volumes, 77 categories and 130 volumes, 110
categories and 143 volumes etc. During 17 years
after the return of Tang Emperor Suzongg to the
capital, Bukongjingang received the worship of
all. He widely translated the Buddhist scriptures,
disseminated dharma and conducted moralisation.
According to Zhao Qian’s Biography of Amoghavajra
Sanzang, during more than 40 years of abhisheka,
Bukongjingang made tens of thousands of people
become Buddhist believers and about 2,000 people
were ordained to bhikshu precepts. So he was a
precept master of a generation. In Chinese Esoteric
Buddhism, Bukongjingang is the second progenitor
after the original progenitor, Vajrabodhi, and the
third progenitor was Huilang.
(Ge Weijun)
Kaiyuan Temple, Quanzhou, Fujian, China
praying for the rain and stopping the wind by magic
were efficacious, the emperor conferred him the
title of J¤ānagarbha. In the eighth year of Tianbao,
he returned home again but stopped in Namhae
because of his illness. Before long, Hexi-Khrom Ge
Shuhan submitted statement to the emperor for
asking him to go to Helong (Hexi and Longyou) and
received permission. Bukongjingang was ordered by
the emperor to head for Wuwei. He reached there
in the 13th year of Tianbao and lived in Kaiyuan
Temple for the translation of scriptures. Ge Shuhan
and his subordinates all accepted abhiseca. In the
15th year of Tianbao (756 CE), he was ordered to
return to the capital, living in Da Xing-shan Temple.
He built the altar and conducted the abhiseca. Soon
Anshi's rebellion took place; Bukongjingang was
trapped in Chang’an but still secretly sent people to
greet the new successor, Emperor Suzong of Tang,
in exile to show his allegiance. After recovering
Chang’an and Luoyang, Emperor Suzong of Tang
returned to the capital. During Qianyuan Period
(758-759 CE), Bukongjingang was called into
the palace. He built Bodhimanda and conducted
homa (Agnicayana) and called the emperor as
Cakravartiraja. After Emperor Daizong of Tang
succeeded the throne, Bukongjingang received
better treatment and translated three volumes of
Mahayana Secret Sublime Sutra, one volume of The
Sutra of Praj¤ā-pārmitā for the Benevolent King Spoken
by Dharani with preface written personally by the
Emperor. In November of the first year of Yongtai
of Tang Emperor Zhongzong (765 CE), the emperor
conferred him another title of 'Master of Tripitaka'.
As early as Tianbao Period of the Tang Emperor
Xuanzong (742-756 CE), Bukongjingang requested
the emperor to widely search for Sanskrit scriptures
saved in ancient times to conduct the amendment,
bookbinding and collation and to translate still
untranslated scriptures. Up to the sixth year of Dali
of Tang Emperor Daizong (771 CE), he collected 77
categories and 120 volumes above. By the time of
the Emperor’s birthday in October, he offered them
to the Emperor and received congratulations. The
Emperor ordered to list them all. In Bukongjingang’s
Santiraksita
Śāntirakśita [Jihu](about 725~788 CE)
He was a great Buddhist monk of ancient India and
the founder of discipline transmission and inheritance
249
Cultural Contacts
Madhyamika and secured a place in the history
Indian Buddhism.
Khri srong ldevu btsan (742~797 CE), the king
of Tubo, invited Śāntirakśita to spread dharma
and hold ordination ceremony, establish monk
organisations and promote Mahayana thoughts in
Madhyamika Buddhism in the 8th century CE. At
first, Śāntirakśita preached fundamental doctrines
including 10 virtues, 18 realms and 12 nidanas,
persuaded Tubo people to believe in Buddhism
with the doctrine proving “impermanence” of life
and “non-self” of all dharmas, but he didn’t obtain
expected effects and even was resisted by many Tubo
people strongly. He left Tubo and returned to the
country four months later. When he came to Tubo
the second time, he drew lessons from the failure of
preaching dharma at the first time, he didn’t preach
Buddhist doctrines but established Bsam yas dgon
with Master Padmasambhava, cut off hair of seven
Tubo people and received them as monks who were
called as “the seven enlightened monks” and set up
Tubo monk organisation.
“The seven enlightened monks” were fullyordained monk who received their ordination
according to Sarvastivada doctrines of Indian
Buddhism and monk delegation which was
composed of 20 Sarvastivada monks were invited
from India to present the ordination ceremony
and the specification and process conformed to
requirements of orthodox Buddhist rules.
Śāntirakśita attached importance to translation
works of Buddhist Vinayak such as Mula
-sarvastivada-vinaya, Vinaya-vibhanga, Part One
of Vinaya, Events from the Mula-Sar-vastivadaVinaya, Four Vinayas, Part One of Four Vinayas, the
Fundamentals of Pravrajana, Fundamental Vinaya
of Vinaya Sutra, Four Vinayas, the Fundamentals of
Fast Affairs, Vinayas for Monks and Nuns etc. He
personally convened translators to translate main
Tibetan Buddhist codes in person.
Śāntirakśita paid great attention to translation
of exoteric cults and dogmas of entire Buddhism,
and 10,000 Gathas, Maitreya Sutra, Sada Prarudita
Sutra, Lankavatara Sutra, Treasure Source Sutra,
Flower Adornment Sutra and Parinirvana Sutra were
translated under his leadership.
He organised Sutra Translation Institution of Bsam
yas dgon to translate sutras, instructed pratimoksa
vows in Rnam Dag Khrima Khang Gling and
Bodhisattva vows in Vow Institution of Tushita and
preached his work named Adornment of the Middle
Way (dbu mavi rgyan) and Kamalasila’s Madhyamakaaaloka and established the authority of Madhyamika
thoughts in exotoric Buddhism in Tubo. Hereafter,
Svatantrika Madhyamika in Mahayana Buddhism of
Master and his disciple Abhidhammika Kamalasila,
were promoted mainly in Tubo’s Buddhism.
Śantirakṣita
of Tibetan Buddhism and Mādhyamika thoughts. He
was also named Zhi ba vtsho and Bodhisattva.
Śāntirakśita was born in Bengal region, was the
son of the local famous King Trisong Deutsen,
received excellent education in his childhood,
was largely interested in Buddhism in his youth
and entrusted himself to Master Jnanagarbha
in Nalanda after adopting monastic life. Soon
he became an enlightened Buddhist monk. He
pursued Madhyamika thoughts in Mahayana
Buddhism, became an abhidhammika of Svatantrika
Madhyamika through instruction of great masters
and his hard work and won great reputation in the
Indian Buddhism circle at that time.
He was an abbot of Nalanda, made great
achievements in Madhyamika thoughts, and was
honoured as “three oriental Madhyamika masters”
with Ye shes snying po and Kamalasila. They wrote
books on Madhyamika thoughts, for example, Ye
shes snying po’s Differentiation of the Two Truths,
Śāntirakśita’s Adornment of the Middle Way and
Kamalasila’s Madhyamaka-aaloka. Śāntirakśita’s
Buddhist Thoughts inherited from Bhavaviveka, was
based on Svabhavata thought of the ultimate reality,
adopted some concepts of Yogacara school and
established a school named Yogacara Madhyamika.
Its methodology of Madhyamika and interpretation
on two truths differ from Chandrakirti and it is
similar to the thoughts of Bhavaviveka and is
subject to Svatantrika rather than Prasangika. In
fact, Śāntirakśita was the founder of Yogachara
250
Cultural Contacts
logic, medical science etc. After that, he toured
holy lands like “two groves and eight pagodas” for
about 18 years, before he came to the Wuchuang (or
Wutuwang) Temple in south India to learn yoga from
Dharmakirti and accept the five mantras on top of the
abhisheka altar. Later, on his way to China by sea in
hope of spreading Buddhism, just when Guangzhou
was in sight, his ship was blown back by fierce
wind to the state of Shizi (present-day Sri Lanka).
He had to set out again after arranging for finances
and food and repairing the ship. Upon approaching
China, the ship was, however, caught up in a storm
another time, leading to the loss of materials carried
and Sanskrit sutras. It is said that the lost sutras were
found magically in the bamboo tubes buried under
the white sand after landing in Guangzhou half-amonth later. In 782 CE, the third year of Jianzhong
Period during the reign of Emperor Dezong of
Tang (782 CE), they arrived in Chang’an. In 786
CE, the second year of Zhenyuan Period during the
reign of Emperor Dezong, Ban Ruo completed the
translation of seven volumes of Dacheng li qu liu bo
luo mi duo jing (The Mahāyāna Sutra on the Way to Six
Pāramitās) together with Jingjing, a Persian monk in
Daqin (in Roman Empire) Temple. While Ban Ruo
was not adept in Chinese language and Jingjing
did not have a good understanding of Sanskrit
and principles of Buddhism, there were therefore
many errors in the translated text. The translated
version was finally not circulated. In the fourth year
of Zhenyuan Period, an official, Wang Xiqian, was
requested to retranslate the sutra with expert monks
in Ximing Temple. During the process, Ban Ruo read
Sanskrit text, Śramaņa Liyan of Guangzhai Temple
translated from Sanskrit, Śramaņa Yuanzhao of
Ximing Temple wrote the translated text, Śramaņa
Daoye of Zisheng Temple and Śramaņa Liangxiu
in Ximing Temple embellished the translated text,
and Śramaņa Yingzhen of Cien Temple, Śramaņa
Chaowu of Liquan Temple, Śramaņa Daoan of
Guangzhai Temple and Śramaņa Biankong of Ximing
Temple reviewed the meaning. The translation of 10
volumes was completed in mid-October of the year
and submitted after correction in November. The
emperor repeatedly expressed his appreciation for
their work and rewarded them with 100 rolls of silk
and winter clothes. In February of the fifth year of
Zhenyuan Period, Da hua yan zhang zhe wen fo na
luo yan li jing (Hua-yen Senior Asking Buddha Nryana
on Power Sutra) was translated. In July of the sixth
year, Ban Ruo was awarded by Emperor Dezong
the title of “Tripitaka Ban Ruo” as well as a purple
cassock at the age of 57; later at the request of Great
Master Zhirou of the Qianfu Temple, he translated
one volume of Ban ruo bo luo mi duo xin jing (Prajna
Paramita Heart Sutra). He was sent as an envoy to
Kashmira by an imperial order before a detailed
Śāntirakśita was the founder of discipline
transmission and inheritance of Tibetan Buddhism
and Madhyamika thoughts and was honoured as
“three Buddhas” with King Trisong Deutsen and
Master Padmasambhava in Tubo and secured a
high position in Tibetan Buddhism, especially in
Ningmapa sect.
(Kalsang gyal)
Prajna
Ban Ruo or Prajnā (Bore, 734~?) was an Indian
monk and sutra translator who came to China during
Tang Dynasty. The name, Ban Ruo, can otherwise
be called Ban Le Ruo which is a transliteration of
praj¤ā, meaning wisdom.
According to volume III of Song Gao seng zhuan
(Biographies of Eminent Song Monks), volume I of
Da Tang zhen yuan xu kai yi jiao lu (Continued Book
in Zhenyuan Period of Tang Dynasty for Buddhism
Directory in Kaiyuan Period), volume XVII of Zhen
yuan xin ding yi jiao mu lu (New Directory for Buddhism
in Zhenyuan Period), and the preface of Dacheng li
qu liu pi luo mi duo jing (The Mahāyāna Sutra on the
Way to Six Pāramitās) etc, Ban Ruo (Praj¤ā) was
born in Kapiśa (pressent-day Begram, 60 km north
of Kabul, Afghanistan or in present-day Kashmir)
in Uttarapatha and named Gautama. Clever and
bright since childhood, he became a Buddhist at the
age of seven and an adherent of the Great Virtuous
Master Tiao Fuzun. He was able to soon memorise
four 100,000 Nikaya sutras and 20,000 Abhidhamma
sutras. At the age of 14, he went to Kashmir with
his master to study Ju She Lun (Sarvastivādan) and
A pi da mo da pi po sha lun (Abhidharmakosa Sastra
and Abhidhamma Mahavibhasa) for seven years and
completed study of all the percepts by the age of
20. Then he came to Nalanda Monastery in Central
India at the age of 23. Becoming a disciple of the
three great masters - namely Zhihu, Jinyou and
Zhiyou - he studied Mahayana texts, Cheng wei zhi
lun (Cittamatra), pu jia shi di lun (Discourse on the
Stages of Yogic Practice (Yogācārabhumi Śastra), Bian
Zhong bian lun (Treatise on Discriminating the Middle
and the Extremes (Madhyantavibhaga Bhasya) and
Jin Gang jin (Diamond Sutra) as well as linguistics,
Xi Ming Temple at Mount Wutai, Shanxi, China
251
Cultural Contacts
(now it is in the southwest of Linzhang County,
Hebei province) along with the resettling of the
capital by Eastern Wei Dynasty. In nearly 30 years
from the first year of Yongping (538 CE) to Tianping
Period of Emperor Xiaojing reign (534-537 CE) in
Eastern Wei Dynasty, he translated one volume of
Vajracchedikàpraj¤àpàramità-såtra, 10 volumes of
Bodhisattva-gocaropàya-viùaya-vikurvaõa-nirde÷a,
12 volumes of Study of Buddha’ss Name Preached by
Buddha Sutra, 10 volumes of Laïkàvatàra-såtra, five
volumes of Saüdhinirmocana-såtra, six volumes of
Dharmasaïgiti-såtra, three volumes of Vajracchedikā
praj¤āpāramitopadeśa, 12 volumes of Daśabhūmikā-sūtra-śāstra, four volumes of Mahāratnakūa sūtra,
nine volumes of Maitreya Paripraccha sūtra, one
volume of Akùara÷ataka, one volume of Dvadasaanga-pratitya-samutpada and others. Among them,
Daśabhūmi vyākhyāna was translated together
with Buddhist Ratnamati (known as Baoyi in free
translation) from Central India and interpreted by
Buddhist Buddhaśānta (known as Jueding in free
translation from southern India for four years.
Emperor Xuanwu asked the believer Li Kuo to write
All Buddhist Scriptures List. Li Kuo said there were
tens of thousands of Buddhist scriptures in Sanskrit
version in Putiliuzhi’s room, with translation
papers spreading everywhere. The total translations
under Li Kuo’s statistics are 39 books totalling 127
volumes while the records in the Kai-yuan Record of
Buddhist Books are 30 books totalling 101 volumes.
(Ge Weijun)
review of the translation. In April of the eighth year,
he returned to Chang’an and went on a pilgrimage
to Mount Wutai in the 10th year of Zhenyuan. In
June of the 12th year, he was requested to interpret
Da fang kuang fo hua yan jing (Buddhavatamsaka
Mahavaipulya Sutra) in Chongfu Temple and
completed 40 volumes of translated sutra ie the socalled Forty Avatamsaka Sutra, in February of the
14th year. Later, eight volumes of Da cheng ben sheng
xin di guan jing (Mahayana Sutra of Mind Ground
Contemplation), three volumes of Zhu fo jing jie she
zhen shi jing (Sutra on the Fact of Buddha Realm) and
one volume of Fo shuo zao ta yan ming gong de jing
(Sermon on Life Extension Merits by Building Tower)
as well as 10 volumes of Shou hu guo jie zhu tuo
luo ni jing (Dharani Sutra of Guarding Country Land
Lord) together with Munishili. Ban Ruo died at an
unknown age in Luoyang and was buried in west
Longmen Mountain.
(Ge Weijun)
Bodhiruci
Bodhiruci [Putiliuzhi] (5th and 6th centuries CE) was
an Indian Buddhist monk and translator who came
to China in Northern Wei Dynasty. He was also one
of the earliest translators of Yogacara classic. He
is also known as Daoxi or Juexi in free translation.
According to volume one of sequel to Biography of
Eminent Monks, volume six of The Kai-yuan Record
of Buddhist Books, and volume nine of Records
of Three Treasures in the Past Dynasties, we know
that Putiliuzhi was a native of northern India. He
mastered incantation and Buddhism Tripitaka, and
devoted himself to promoting Buddhism. He came
Kamalasila
Kamalaśila [Lianhuajie] (740~795 CE) was a great
Buddhist monk of ancient India and the founder
in the first propagation of doctrines of Tibetan
Buddhism.
He was the favourite disciple of Master
Śāntirakshita and a very bright student-monk of
Nalanda. He followed the concepts of Yogacara
Madhyamika and made remarks on Compendium of
Reality for Śāntirakshita’s Compendium of Reality,
make Dbu ma snang ba for Adornment of the Middle
Way and remarks on Nyāyabindu for Dharmakirti’s
Nyāyabindu, and notes for Salistamba Sutra and
Heart Sutra. He wrote Practice Order. His works
were passed down in Sanskrit version and Tibetan
translation version.
Tubo King Trisong Deutsen invited Kamalaśila to
propagate Buddhism in Tubo in the 8th century CE, and
he participated in grand debate contest held in Bsam
yas dgon ie controversy of immediate enlightenment
versus gradual enlightenment between Chinese and
Indian monks, which was called as Lhasa Dharma
Dispute. The debate had large-scale and high
specifications. It was presided by King of Tubo in
person and over 100 monks from the two parties
Bodhiruci
to Luoyang over Congling (known Pamirs in modern
times) in the early years of Yongping (508-511) in
Northern Wei Dynasty. Emperor Xuanwu hosted a
courteous reception for him and arranged for him to
live in Yongning Monastery Pagoda, provided him
with food and drink, clothes, bedding and medicine,
and invited him to take charge of the translation
of Buddhist Scriptures. Later, he moved to Yecheng
252
Cultural Contacts
Chang’an under the leadership of Master Sa-po-yuangan in 750 the ninth year of Tianbao Period during
the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty with
an application for diplomatic exchange. Next year,
Zhang Taoguang, the official envoy, was sent by the
government to lead a diplomatic corps of 40 people
to Kashmir. Wukong, who had not become a monk
at that time, was among them. They passed through
Anxi (northwest of present-day Gansu Province) and
states of Western Regions and arrived in Gandhara,
the eastern capital of Kashmira in the 12th year of
Tianbao Period. Wukong, however, fell sick and
had to be detained locally upon accomplishing the
mission. He swore to become a monk in case of
recovery. Later, he kept his promise and became a
disciple of Sarivarma. In 757 CE, the second year of
Zhide Period during the reign of Emperor Suzong of
Tang Dynasty, he took complete percepts and made
years of tour thereafter in India. When he decided
to return to Chinesia, Sarivarma made his consent
after several requests and awarded him in person
the Daśabhumūka-sūtra, Sutra of Buddhist Sermon
on Dedication and Sutra of Buddhist Sermon on Ten
Powers as well as a Buddha’s tooth relic. On his way
back to Chinesia, Wukong passed through Qiuci
(present-day Kuqa of Sinkiang) and lived in Lianhua
Temple. It was when Tripitaka Master Wutitixiyu
(otherwise translated as Wutitichanyu), who was
adept at interpretation was requested by Wukong to
translate one volume of the Sutra of Buddhist Sermon
on 10 Powers; later when Wukong arrived in Beiting
(the reined location being present-day Pochengzi in
north of Jimusar of Sinkiang), he cooperated with
Tripikata Saladharma (name being paraphrased
as Śila-dhamma) in Khotan (present-day Khotan
of Sinkiang) to translate one volume of Sutra of
Buddhist Sermon on Dedication and nine volumes of
Daśabhumūka-sūtra at the invitation of Yang Xigu
(a military governor) and Dazhen (Śramana of
Longxing Temple), during which Saladharma was
the interpreter and Wukong reviewed Sanskrit text
and language. The translated sutras were compiled
into the New Directory for Buddhism in Zhenyuan
Period according to the imperial order in 799 CE,
the 15th year of Zhenyuan Period.
(Ge Weijun)
Kamalasila
participated in it. Mahayana, the Chinese monk of
Great Vehicle, promoted immediate enlightenment
on the debate and believed that Buddhists can
become Buddhas without long-term practice if they
can get rid of all misleading thoughts (false ideas).
Kamalaśila, the representative of Indian monk,
supported gradual enlightenment and thought that
Buddhists can reach the realm of correct wisdom
or non-discriminating wisdom. Kamalaśila won the
debate and he was respected by Tubo King Trisong
Deutsen and Buddhist circle. They supported
Buddhist concepts of Master Śāntirakshita and
Abhidhammika Kamalaśila as the main thoughts of
Tubo Buddhism which had profound influences on
development of Madhyamika thoughts in exoteric
Buddhism in the later period.
(Kalsang gyal)
Sarivarma
Padma
Padma [Lianhua] (c. 8th century CE) was an Indian
Buddhist monk who came to China in Tang Dynasty.
He made a great contribution to the introduction
of Buddhavatamsaka-mahavai pul yasutra into China.
According to volume III of Buddhist Biography in
Song Dynasty, volume 17 of New Buddhism List in
Zhenyuan Period, Lianhua was from central India,
and came to China in the first year of Xingyuan
in Tang Dynasty (784 CE). He called on Emperor
Sarivarma [Sheliyuemo] (c. 8 century CE) was a
member of Indian diplomatic corps in Tang Dynasty,
a monk and the provider of original Sanskrit version
of significant sutras.
According to the volume III of Biographies of
Eminent Monks in Song Dynasty and volume XVII of
New Directory for Buddhism in Zhenyuan Period etc,
Tripitaka Sarivarma was born in Kashmir. He came to
th
253
Cultural Contacts
Dezong of Tang to ask for casting a bell for India.
Emperor Dezong of Tang ordered Governor of
Guangzhou Dushi Khrom Li Fu to cast a metal bell
and then sent it to Jindui Temple in southern India.
Lianhua installed that in a location at Vairocana
Tower. Later, he requested others to send the Sanskrit
original of Buddhàvataüsaka-mahà-vaipulya-såtra
to China by sea, and also enclosed a letter saying
stories such as Sudhana visiting 55 saints which
were contained in the sutra and were handwritten by
King of Udra (now in north Odisha) in the southern
India for presentation to the Chinese emperor.
These scriptures reached China in November of
the 11th year of Zhenyuan Period of Tang Dynasty
(795 CE). In June the next year, Emperor Dezong
of Tang ordered to set up a translation workshop
in Chongfu Temple in Chang’an for the translation
of scriptures, with monk Prajna from Kashmir
reading Sanskrit, Guangji from Tiangong Temple
in Luoyang interpreting, Yuanzhao from Ximing
Temple writing, Zhirou and Zhitong conducting
the sentence patterns arrangement, Daoheng and
Jianxu from Zhengjue Temple in Chengdu refining,
Datong from Qianfu Temple checking the meaning,
Chengguan and Lingsui finalising, officials Huo
Xianming and Dou Wenchang elaborately copying,
finally being presented to the emperor, 40 volumes
in total. After completing the work, the translation
workshop was dissolved in February of the 14th year
of Zhenyuan Period (798 CE). Later generations
gave the evaluation of “creating the ingenious
truth and promoting the essence of the Buddhism”
to the translation.
(Ge Weijun)
Padmasambhava
Deutsen to come to Tubo to propagate Buddhism in
the 8th century CE. He adopted Tantric magic arts to
subdue local Tubo spirits, transformed many Bonpo
gods as Buddhist guardian gods, and eliminated
various kinds of barriers to transmit Buddhism in
Tubo successfully. He helped Master Śāntrashita to
established Bsam yas dgon and set up local Tubo
monk organisation.
Moreover, Padmasambhava developed lay
Buddhists in Tubo and established the first batch
of lay team which was composed of 25 Buddhists,
and were “25 emperors and minister monks”,
including King Trisong Deutsen, nobles, eminent
monks and translators etc. He propagated Tantric
Buddhist doctrines and ritual procedures, instructed
vajrakilaka and andro Nyingtig in great perfection
and Tantric Bodhimandala. His disciples made
great achievements and his Tantric dharmas were
inherited constantly. He was honoured as the
founder of old esoteric sect of Tantric Buddhism.
Ningmapa laymen honoured Padmasambhava as
King Layman or King Enlightenment, endowed him
supreme religious leadership place and called him
as “the second Buddha” respectfully.
In the period of Tubo, Padmasambhava supported
its sutra translation career greatly. He participated
in translation of Tantric classics, including Universal
King Sutra, Eight Sadhana Teachings of Illusion and
Sutra of Condensed Meaning were translated from
Sanskrit into Tibetan.
The main works of Padmasambhava included
Arya-nilambaradharavajrapanisadhana-tika-nama,
Vajravidarana-nama-dharanivyakhyana-vajralokanama,
Sri-khasarpanalokanathasadhana-nama,
Them-yig
gsan-ba
shes-bya-ba,
Samayapanca,
Alimanmathasadhana, Muktakena arapacanasadhana
and Vimanaprakasabhisamayatamoharapradipa, etc.
Padmasambhava played an irreplaceable role in
Padmasambhava
Padmasambhava [Lianhuasheng] (about 8th century
CE) was a great Buddhist monk in ancient India and
the Tantric master as well as the main founder of
Tantrism of Tubo Buddhism.
Padmasambhava was called as Ao rgyang pad
ma vbyung gnas in Tibetan and meant Uddiyana
Padmasambhava which was a special name ie
the lotus-born rather than the womb-born. Later
generations added a lot of legendary colours to
his life and wrote many biographies about him.
Actually, Padmasambhava was born in Uddiyana
Kingdom in northwest of India (presently located in
west Pakistan or in Afghanistan) during the period
of Heavenly Guarding King of Magadha Kingdom.
He was of royal descent, travelled around India,
visited Tantric masters widely, learned various kinds
of Tantric Dharmas, inherited great perfection from
Auspicious Lion and became a disciple of Buddha
Auspicious Wisdom.
On the recommendation of Master Śāntirakshita,
Padmasambhava was invited by King Trisong
254
Cultural Contacts
to the king of Tubo Khri srong ldevu btsan who sent
the Tubo translator including Ska ba dpal brtsegs
and Cog ro kluvi rgyal mtshan to come to India and
invite him to propagate Buddhist doctrines in Tibet.
Vimalamitra had propagated Tantric doctrines
and translated sutras for 13 years in Tubo then came
to Wutai Mountain to go on a pilgrimage and passed
away there. Mode sutras translated by Vimalamitra
were Tantric classics. He translated Vajrasattva
Gyutruldrawa Tantra, Reality Tantra, Vajrakila
Tantra, Yamantaka Tantra, Sems sde, Klong sde, Man
ngag sde with Gnyags chen dznya ku ma ra. He also
cultivated many local Tantric disciples in Tubo.
Sect Inheritance Tantric doctrines propagated
by Vimalamitra in Tubo were inherited by the
Ningmapa sect later, were promoted in Tibet which
became one of the important sects inheriting Tantric
doctrines in Tibetan Buddhism. The Ningmapa sect
propagated three codes ie Sgyu vphrul, Collected
Sutra (including Tantra and Commentary on Tantra)
as well as chapter on Great Perfection Heart and its
braches including Longsal Nyingthig and Khandro
Nyingtik originated from Vimalamitra.
Vimalamitra instructed Sgyu vphrul to Rma rin
chen mchog and Gnyags chen dznya ku ma ra and
Rma rin chen mchog translated Sgyu vphrul into
Tibetan which was named Sgyu vphrul gsang ba
snying po. Many disciples inherited Tantric Dharma
which was spread in the regions such as Mang-kar
in the posterior Tibet, the south and north of Ladoi,
Jinsha River Basin and Bubogang etc.
Master Gnyags dzny na ku ma ra or Gnyags gzhon
nu shes rab who was the famous character inheriting
Tantric doctrines of the Ningmapa sect was the
brilliant disciple of Vimalamitra and was honoured
as the initial founder of the inheritance of Tantric
doctrines of the Ningmapa sect. He instructed Tantric
doctrines of Sgyu vphrul to his disciple Sog po dpal
gyi ye shes who passed them to Gnubs chen sangs
rgyas ye shes. However, Gnubs chen sangs rgyas ye
shes played a transitional role in transmitting and
inheriting Tantric Dharma and became the founder
of the inheritance history of Tantric doctrines in the
middle period. He cultivated many famous disciples,
and they all made achievements, so ye shes dbang
phyug adopted the way of combination to instruct
right views, Blon chen vphags pa used the meaning
explanation form to preach doctrines. Dan gyi yon
tan mchog propagated Buddhist doctrines in the way
of disaster elimination. Legs pvi sgron me talked
about Buddhism from the perspective of poems
and proverbs. Khu lung pa yon tan rgya mtsho
combined correct views, displayed profound truths
and explained wonderful truths and secrets as well
as proved profound esoteric doctrines internally
and even adopted the form of disaster elimination
to expound Buddhism smoothly.
propagating Tantric Buddhism in Tubo which was
accepted by people and so that Buddhism can secure
a place in Tubo. Tibetan Buddhism, especially
the Ningmapa sect respected and worshiped
Padmasambhava more greatly than any foreign
monks in the later period.
(Kalsang gyal)
Vimalamitra
Vimalamitra [Wugouyou] (about 8th century
CE)
was a great Buddhist monk, translator,
Tantric master and one of founder of Tantric
Buddhism in Tubo.
Life: The transliteration of Vimalamitra was Bi
ma la mi tra and the liberal translation was Dri
med bshes gnyen, meaning Vimalamitra, and was
from Kashmira. He went to school at seven and was
recommended to adopt monastic life because of
uncommon intelligence. During studying Buddhist
knowledge, 15 teachers were employed to teach
him because of his too strong enthusiasm for
learning. He was selected in to the team of Pandita
when he was 21, was proficient in knowledge of
different disciplines, could explain various affairs
and truths in four kinds of voices and animal
languages, understand sutras and shastras of Tipitaka
including Mahayana and Hinayana and was familiar
with Prajnaparamita Sutra. In the aspect of Tantra,
he entrusted himself to 160 masters who were good
at instruction and practice inheritance, he learned
all Tantras of Bdud rtsi yon tan rgyud from Guru
Bungngha gu hya and obtained extraordinary
achievements of great hand seal. He was proficient
in Sgyu vphrul and made remarks on Snying po ie
Tantric sutras and shastras including Khong gzung
gsal sgron and Vgrel chung.
In 8th century CE, Nyang ting vdzin bzang pu, the
famous monk of Tubo, recommended Vimalamitra
Vimalamitra
255
Cultural Contacts
earlier founders of Yunnan Acarya. Most of the
works about his activities were recorded in Ming
Dynasty, and there were many different legends.
According to volume 12 of Li Yuanyang’s Annals of
Yunnan, Candragupta came to China in the 16th year
of Baohe of Mengshi (839 CE) from Magadha in the
Western Regions, “and he meditated in a thatched
cottage of Fengding Mountain in the east of Heqing,
and became an enlightened God”, some said that
he established altar to propagate Tantric doctrines
in Changdong Mountain of Tengchong and it could
be seen that he was a tantric monk. Quan Fengyou,
the king of Nanzhao (824-859 CE) honoured him as
the national master and married Princess Yueying
who was his younger sister. Candragupta not only
propagated tantric doctrines and translated the
tantric scripture The Rites of the Great Consecration,
but also launched water conservancy projects. He
returned to his mother country in his later years and
his whereabouts then became unknown. However,
Li Hao’s Sanyi Essays of the Ming Dynasty informs that
Candragupta came to Tubo to propagate doctrines
before the reign of Ge Luofeng, the king of Nanzhao
(748-779 CE), then he came to Nanzhao to preach
doctrines and was honoured as the “protective
national master”. He later returned to his country
for eight years. He again came back to Nanzhao
and built Wuwei Temple and was respected by Yi
Mouxun (779-808 CE) and Xun Gequan (808-809
CE). He was a recluse for meditation when he was
84 and died in a sitting posture when he was 99.
If it is true, Candragupta might have lived from
sometimes between the 8th century to the beginning
of the 9th century.As for the two sayings, the former
appears to be closer to the facts and is evidenced by
the works such as Supplemented Unofficial of Nanzhao
and Brief Introduction to Bogu Annals.
(Xue Keqiao)
Vimalamitra instructed Sgyu vphrul in Tubo and
he instructed Chapter on Great Perfection Heart
to massive Buddhists and even instructed Rdzogs
pa chen po snying thig to the Tubo King Trisong
Deutsen and Nyang ting vdzin bzang pu. Tantric
Dharma was inherited and promoted by Rabjamba,
and Klong chen snying was formed for inheritance.
Chapter on Great Perfection Heart was a complex
and profound Tantric Dharma system, and it had
three branches of Tantric Dharma inheritance ie
Sems sde inheritance, Klong sde inheritance and
Man ngag sde inheritance. Tantric Dharma became
the great Tantric Dharma of the Ningmapa sect of
Tibetan Buddhism.
(Kalsang gyal)
Munisri
Munishri [Mounishili] (?-806 CE) was an Indian
monk and translator who came to China in Tang
Dynasty. He was also named Jimo.
According to volume III of Biographies of Eminent
Monks in Song Dynasty etc Mounishili was born in
Uttarapatha. He was dignified and forthright in
nature and once lived in Nalanda Temple to be
initiated into monkhood and learn dharma. He came
to China in 793 CE, the ninth year of Zhenyuan
Period during the reign of Emperor Dezong of Tang
Dynasty and arrived in Chang’an in 16th year, and
lived in the Xingshan Temple. In 19th year, he moved
to Chongfu Temple and Liquan Temple successively.
Later, he moved to Daci’en Temple and translated
10 volumes of Dharani Sutra of Guarding Country
Land Lord which were selected from the scriptures
of the Indian version brought back by Xuanzang
from India, together with Praj¤ā. He died in Daci’en
Temple in June 806, the first year of Yuanhe Period
during the reign of Emperor Xianzong of Tang
Dynasty. His age is unknown.
(Ge Weijun)
Dharmapala
Candragupta
Dharmapala [Fahu] (963-1058 CE) was a monk and
translator who came to China from Central India.
He arrived in China in 1004 and settled himself
in Sutra Translation Institute. After Devasanti
and Dharmadeva (Fa Tian) died in succession,
great masters were needed to take charge of
translation. He and Wei Jing helped Danapala to
handle activities of Sutra Translation Institute. In
1007, he was granted the title of “Great Master of
Transmitting Sutra”. When in 1024, Chola king
from India presented through his envoys scriptures
written on pattra [palm] leaves and the emperor sent
out an imperial edict to let Dharmapala translate
it. In 1035, Dharmapala and Wei Jing edited seven
volumes of Indian Sources, and the emperor wrote
the preface for it. The emperor also composed
Song of Sutra Translation, and bestowed it upon
Candragupta [Zantuojueduo] (c. 9th century CE)
was an Indian monk. He was also named Magadha
which was his native place and was one of the
Shizhongshan grottoes at Jianchuan, Yunnan
256
Cultural Contacts
translation processes and Danapala participated in
it. They translated one volume of sutras respectively
in July and Devasanti translated Dhvadja-grakeyura
Dharani. Emperor Taizong visited Sutra Translation
Institute to show his concern in person, provided
manpower and material resources and ordered to
take out all sutras in Sanskrit collected in the palace
and translate them. Hereafter, new translated sutras
were offered to the emperor on his birthday, he
granted awards when summoning them so new
sutras were printed and became popular. The
emperor changed Sutra Translation Institute into
Sutra Propagation Institute in 983 CE, and ordered
to build Sutra Printing Institute beside it, so that new
sutras can be printed and spread quickly. At that
time, the monks including Devasanti and Danapala
proposed to select children to learn Sanskrit in order
to develop the course of sutra translation. Emperor
Taizong accepted the proposal and ordered to
assign 10 young Chinese monks to learn Sanskrit,
and their learning effects were significant. In 985
CE, Emperor Taizong praised that “translation styles
of the monks including Devasanti were delicate”,
and summoned these three monks, promoted their
positions and daily offering standards. Hereafter,
the monks including Devasanti and Danapala
proposed to seek many Sanskrit sutras collected
by monks and common people in Shaanxi for
translation. Emperor Taizong agreed with them.
In 986 CE, Emperor Taizong presented preface to
Origin of the Indian script
Dharmapala in 1047. In 1054, he was honoured by
the emperor with another title, Great Enlightened
Master of Transmitting Sutra and he was popularly
known as 'Six-word Master'. Dharmapala translated
sutras with Danapala and Wei Jing jointly in the
early period, but later he did all the translation
work alone. His main works include five volumes of
Hevajra Tantra, 30 volumes of Vajrashekhara Sutra
with Danapala, and 20 volumes of Ratnamegha
Sutra with monks including Wei Jing. His life
and works are recorded in volumes 44 and 45 of
General Record of the Buddhist Patriarchs, volume 1
of Supplemented Biographies of Eminent Monks, and
volume 1 of New Biographies of Eminent Monks and
other similar compilations.
(Xue Keqiao)
Danagupta
Dānagupta [Shihu](?~around 998 CE)was
a monk and translator who came to China from
Udyana of ancient India (present-day Swat Valley,
Pakistan). In February of the fifth year of Taiping
Xingguo (980), he arrived in Bianjing (Kaifeng),
the capital city of Northern Song Dynasty and they
presented Sanskrit sutras and were summoned by
Emperor Taizong of Song Dynasty (977-997 CE).
Several Indian monks including Dharmadeva came
to China to offer Buddhist scriptures previously,
Emperor Taizong intended to develop the course
of sutra translation, and he ordered to build Sutra
Translation Institute in Taiping Xingguo Temple
after the arrival of the two monks. Sutra Translation
Institute was established in June two years later
(982 CE), Devasanti, Dharmadeva and Danapala
resided there and were honoured as “Great Master
Comprehending Sutras”, “Great Master Propagating
Sutras” and “Great Master Promoting Sutras”
respectively. The three monks including Danapala
accepted the order of the emperor and began to
translate sutras immediately. Meanwhile, Sutra
Translation Institute formed a complete set of
Entrance of Taipingxingguo Temple, Xun County,
Henan, China
Monk Tripitaka’s Translations of Buddhist Scriptures
made imperially to the monks including Devasanti
and Danapala and ordered them to add it before
new sutras. Volume 1 of Supplemented Biographies of
Eminent Monks claimed that Danapala died earlier
than Dharmadeva and Devasanti which was a wrong
record. Because around 2008, archaeologists of the
departments including Nanjing Municipal Museum
had conducted archaeological excavation in Grand
Gratitude Temple outside Nanjing Xinhua Gate
for several years and found that its underground
palace was the one in of Jinling Changgan Temple
in Song Dynasty, and unearthed rock inscription
257
Cultural Contacts
intended to develop the course of sutra translation,
and he ordered to build Sutra Translation Institute
in Taiping Xingguo Temple after the arrival of
the two monks. Sutra Translation Institute was
established in June two years later (982), Devasanti,
Dharmadeva and Danapala resided there and
were honoured as “Great Master Comprehending
Sutras”, “Great Master Propagating Sutras” and
“Great Master Promoting Sutras” respectively.
The three monks including Devasanti accepted
the order of the emperor and began to translate
sutras immediately. Meanwhile, Sutra Translation
Institute formed a complete set of translation
processes. They translated one volume of sutras
respectively, and Devasanti translated Perfection
of Wisdom of the Little Mother Syllables. Emperor
Taizong visited Sutra Translation Institute to
show his concern personally, provided manpower
and material resources and ordered to take out
all sutras in Sanskrit collected in the palace and
translate them. Hereafter, new translated sutras
were offered to the emperor on his birthday, he
granted awards when summoning them, so new
sutras were printed and became popular. The
emperor changed Sutra Translation Institute into
Sutra Propagation Institute in 983 CE, and ordered
to build Sutra Printing Institute beside it, so that
new sutras can be printed and spread quickly. At
that time, the monks including Devasanti proposed
to select children to learn Sanskrit in order to
develop the course of sutra translation. Emperor
Taizong accepted the proposal and ordered to
assign 10 young Chinese monks to learn Sanskrit,
and their learning achievements were significant.
In 985, Emperor Taizong praised them saying
that “translation styles of the monks including
Devasanti were delicate” and summoned these
three monks, promoted their positions and daily
offering standards. Hereafter, the monks including
Devasanti proposed to seek many Sanskrit sutras
collected by monks and common people in Shaanxi
for translation. Emperor Taizong agreed with
them. In 986 CE, Emperor Taizong presented
preface to Monk Tripitaka’s Translations of Buddhist
Scriptures made imperially to the monks including
Devasanti and ordered them to add it before new
sutras. Devasanti died in the third year of Xianping
(1000 CE) of Emperor Zhenzong of Song Zhao
Heng (reigned from 998-1022 CE) and the emperor
ordered to worship and bury him according
to Buddhist rites and granted him the title of
“J¤ānaviveka”.
Devasanti lived in China for 20 years, contributed
to Chinese and Indian cultural exchange, and his
main achievements included four points: firstly, he
translated a lot of sutras. He translated 57 volumes
of 18 sutras from July of the seventh year of Taiping
with written records that Danapala gave Buddhist
relics generously. It is proven that Danapala was
still living and an active participant when Sharira
Stupa was built in the fourth year of Dazhong
Xiangfu (1011 CE) of Emperor Zhenzong (998-1021
CE). It can be seen from Record of Dazhong Xiangfu
Dharma Treasures and Record of Jingyou Newlybuilt Dharma Treasures that Danapala was the
executive translator of Sutra Translation Institute
after Devasanti and Dharmadeva died in succession
and led new translators such as Dharmapala and
Wei Jing to translate sutras till his death.
Danapala translated over 200 volumes of
sutras in his life and most of them belonged to
tantric classics mainly including four volumes of
Guhyasasmayagarbha Raja Sutra, seven volumes of
Guhyasamayagarbha Raja Sutra, three volumes of
Mahasahasra Pramardana, three volumes of Complete
Tathagat’s Diamond Guhyagarbharaja Sutra, six
volumes of Advayasamatdvi jayamahakalparaja, and
he translated 30 volumes of Vajrashekhara Sutra
with Dharmapala and Wei Jing. His actvities can be
seen in volume 43 of General Record of the Buddhist
Patriarchs, volume 490 of History of the Song
Dynasty, volume 18 of A Comprehensive Record of the
History of the Buddhas and Patriarchs, volume 1 of
Supplemented Biographies of Eminent Monks, volume
1 of New Biographies of Eminent Monks etc.
(Xue Keqiao)
Devasanti
Devasānti [Tianxizai] (1000 CE) was a monk
coming to China from Kashmir of ancient India
and a sutra translator. He lived in Milin Temple of
Jalandhara before coming to China. In February
of the fifth year of Taiping Xingguo (980 CE), he
came to Bianjing, the capital of Northern Song
Dynasty (Kaifeng at present) with Danapala and
they offered Buddhist sutras and were summoned
by Emperor Taizong of the Song Zhao Jiong
(reigned from 977-997 CE). Several Indian monks
including Dharmadeva came to China to offer
Buddhist scriptures previously, Emperor Taizong
Avalokitesvara-guna-karanda-vyuha Sutra
258
Cultural Contacts
Xingguo (982 CE) to October of the fourth year of
Yongxi (987 CE), mainly including 20 volumes of
Bodhisattva Pitaka Vatamsaka Manjushbimula Garbha
Tantra, two volumes of Good and Evil Retribution Sutra,
four volumes of Karandavyuha Sutra, four volumes
of Entering the Path of Enlightenment etc. Hereafter,
he translated at least, 18 volumes of five sutras,
mainly including 13 volumes of Samadatta Maharaja
Sutra, three volumes of Manjushri Sadvritta Guhya
Tantra Rajasya Vimshatika Krodha Vijayanjana etc.
Secondly, he participated in establishing a complete
set of effective work procedures for Sutra Translation
Institute in early Song Dynasty. Thirdly, he proposed
Chinese teenagers to learn Sanskrit and instructed
them. Fourthly, he proposed to collect Sanskrit sutras
collected by common people in Shaanxi and made
contributions to collection of Sanskrit texts and
literature translation. His events were recorded in
volumes 43 and 44 of General Record of the Buddhist
Patriarchs, volume 26 of A Comprehensive Record of
the History of the Buddhas and Patriarchs, volume one
of Supplemented Biographies of Eminent Monks, volume
one of New Biographies of Eminent Monks etc.
(Xue Keqiao)
Atiśa
Early Life
Atisha’s original name was Zla ba snying po and his
religious name was Dpal mar me mdzad ye shes. He
was born in Za hor in east India to a royal family
of devout Buddhists. Conditioned by the religious
background of the family, he accepted good
education in culture from childhood. He started
to learn Mathematics and languages when he was
three years old. He had good training in many
knowledge areas and could recite Buddhist texts at
the age of six. He went to Nalanda at the age of 11
and learnt Buddha dharma from Byang chub bzang
po. Later, as recommended by Byang chub bzang
po, he went to Rajgir and followed Tantric Master
Avadhu tipa, learned and practised Shastras. He also
simultaneously studied hetuvidya from Brahman,
Buddhists and various other masters of knowledge.
He debated with Brahmin scholars when 15 which
showed his superior talent in hetuvidya. He went to
Vikramaśila vihāra and was apprenticed to Na ro pa
who was named as the North gatekeeper, studied
Esoteric Buddhism dharma-mukha and obtained
abhisheka of Hevajra. When he was 20, his father
hoped him to inherit the throne, selected a beauty
Manjusri
Manjusri [Manshushili] (10th century CE) was a
Buddhist śramana from central India. According to
volume 43 of General Records of Buddhist Patriarchs,
Manjusri was originally a prince from central India
who became a monk. He came to China with Jian
Sheng who was a Chinese monk going to the west to
seek Buddhist scriptures in the fourth year of Kaibao
(971 CE). Zhao Kuangyin, Emperor Taizu of Song
Dynasty, ordered others to settle him in Xiangguo
Temple. He left in the third year of Taiping Xingguo
(978). Because he observed doctrines strictly,
the masses of the capital (Kaifeng) offered many
properties to him but he did not enjoy. According
to volume 490 of History of the Song Dynasty and
volumes 88 and 89 of chapter four of Foreign
Countries of the Song Dynasty Manuscript Compendium,
Chinese monks envied him very much because he
obtained many offerings. These zealous persons
petitioned to the emperor to request him to return
to his country because he didn’t know Chinese. The
emperor allowed the petition and issued imperial
edict to that effect. He had to go to the south several
months later, and said that he would go to the South
Sea with merchants by ship. His final whereabouts
remained unknown.
(Xue Keqiao)
Atisha
Atisha (982~1054 CE) was an eminent monk of
Indian Buddhism as well as the founding master of
Chinese Tibetan Buddhism Kadampa.
Samye Monastery, Tibet, China
259
Cultural Contacts
from the royal family to get him married. Atisha
was unwilling to marry and inherit the throne, so he
decided to go to India for further studies.
Travel to seek dharma
After arriving in India, Atisha learned cultural
knowledge from many masters. This included
extensive studies in internal and external hetuvidya
and other disciplines as well as systematic training
in the dogma of exoteric and esoteric Buddhism,
especially vdul ba lung sde bzhi and mngon pa
kun las btus pa and other important sutra of
Mahayana Buddhism.
In 1013 CE, Atisha led 125 disciples and went
to Suvarnadvipa (present-day Sumatran) by
boat for learning dharma and fetching Buddhist
scriptures. They arrived at the destination after
sailing for 13 months. At Suvarnadvipa, he learned
dharma with Serlingpa (Dharmakirti). Serlingpa
had a large stock of information and was a wellknown master. Atisha respected him very much
and lived together with Serlingpa, learning dharma
up to 12 years; he mainly studied the instruction
of Abhisamayalankara inherited by Maitreya
and Asanga and Bodhicharyavatara inherited by
Manjusri and Shantideva and other sutras and
obtained the perfect Bodhicitta. During this period,
he went to Sri Lanka to study exoteric and esoteric
Buddhism. After finishing the study, he came back
to India, at the age of 44 and has already been a
Buddhist master with excellent and extensive
proficiency in Buddhism and specially its exoteric
and esoteric branches of knowledge. A noble moral
person in both words and deeds, he served as chief
monk (Theravada Moderator) of Vikramasila vihara
and was known as its one of eight sages in line with
Baoshengji, Bodhibhadra, Byang chub, bzang po,
Avadhu tipa and others whose reputation was wellknown both at home and abroad.
Black pagoda of the Samye Monastery, Tibet, China
Atisha arrived in Gurge in 1042 and was welcomed
warmly and received generous hospitality of Gurge
King La Lama·byan-chub-hod. Atisha lived in mtho
lding that was the highest level of Tin Gurge and
discussed with the King La Lama·byan-chub-hod
about how to reorganise unhealthy tendency of
Tibetan Buddhism at present. And as requested by
La Lama·byan-chub-hod, Atisha wrote byang chub
lam gyi sgron ma, illuminated the ways and means
of accurately studying Buddha dharma. At that
time, although the great lotsawa Rinchen Zangpo
of Gurge kingdom was 85-years-old, he still invited
Atisha to his residence, exchanged Buddhism
opinions and resolved Buddhist difficulties. These
two eminent monks met and were deeply influenced
by each other. Atisha felt surprised that there was
a Buddhist scholar who was such knowledgeable
at Gurge area and was also happy for the broad
development prospect of Buddhism at this area.
Through Buddhist communication, Rinchen Zangpo
found he still had many shortcomings, especially
on the practice side of Esoteric Buddhism which
needed to be improved. He asked Atisha to revise
lines of prajna paramita, Prajna sutra of light, Prajna
broad interpretation and other important Buddhist
texts that he had translated earlier. At last, Atisha
advised Rinchen Zangpo to find a quiet place and
retreat and cultivate himself according to a religious
doctrine. Therefore, Rinchen Zangpo always kept on
cultivating himself according to a religious doctrine
at his old age up to next 10 years until he passed
away. He got highly enlightened on practicing
Esoteric Buddhism.
Atisha promoted Buddhism at Gurge area for
three years, relying on his profound Buddhist sutra,
skillful knowledge of religious rituals, advanced
Esoteric Buddhist enlightened realm. He won belief,
admiration and support of local Buddhists, and his
Travel toTibet to
Disseminate Dharma
At that time, Gurge King La Lama·Yi Sivori and
his nephew, La Lama·byan-chub-hod at Ngari area
invited Atisha to come to Tibet and disseminate
dharma at any cost. But Atisha had been serving an
important role as the chief abbot and the temple
did not agree him to leave. Later, finally due to an
accident to Gurge King La Lama·Yi Sivori made Atisha
to decide to go to Tibet and disseminate the dharma.
Gurge King La Lama·byan-chub-hod despatched two
lotsawas, who were Sha·Senge and Nhatso·Mainz
Gyalwa to go to India and invite Atisha. In the first
rab-byung iron dragon year (1040 CE) of Tibetan
calendar, Atisha set out from Vikramasila vihara and
arrived in Nepal the next year (1041 CE), staying
there for one year and worshipping important spots
and historic sites of Buddhism.
260
Cultural Contacts
interpretation and wrote the Vyakhya to explain this
sutra, ie, Madhyamika instruction and explanation.
Then E·byan chub jiong nai served as a benefactor to
invite Atisha to disseminate dharma at Yer pa. Atisha
disseminated Buddha dharma there and helped
Tibetan lotsawa translate Asanga’s Explanation of
Mahayana Uttaratantra Shastra. At the moment,
Atisha was invited by eminent monk, Shakya·Kagwa,
to Pang po and went there to disseminate dharma
and held religious activities. Then Atisha came
back to Snye thang and continued to systematically
lecture on Abhisamayalankara, Prajna light sutra,
Bodhisattvacaryavatara, Bodhipathapradipa and other
important sutras of Buddhism. As busy running about
disseminating dharma at high altitude localities
in long time and advanced in years, the physical
condition of Atisha started getting worse, the lotsawa
Nag tsho tshul khrims rgyal ba found this situation
and accompanied Atisha to Mchims phu where he
recuperated for six months. In the first rab-byung
wooden horse year of Tibetan calendar (1054 CE),
Atisha passed away at the age of 72 at his residence
in Snye thang which was miles away from the
southwest of Lhasa. He was buried in Snye thang.
Within 13 years in Tibet areas, no matter at
the western Ngari area or at the central anterior
Tibet and Tsang areas, Atisha enthusiastically and
effectively taught and explained Buddhist sutra
wherever he arrived and devoted great energy to
holding consecration and foundation ceremonies for
a lot of temples, pagodas and figures of Buddha at
Tibet area. Meanwhile, he widely accepted disciples
and carried out accept apprentice, taught Buddhism
pedagogy to them and trained a large number of
Buddhist talents. The outstanding four disciples
were Nag tsho tshul khrims rgyal ba, Khu ston
brtson vgrus gayung drung, Rngog Legs PviShes
Rab and Vbrom ston pa rgyal bavi vbyung gnas,
especially Vbrom ston pa rgyal bavi vbyung gnas
inherited all Buddhism pedagogy taught by Atisha
and founded the pedagogics system of Kadampa of
Tibetan Buddhism on this basis.
During the period of his stay in Tibet, Atisha
translated and wrote a large number of important
sutras on Buddhism Tantra. According to
statistics, the works which had been included
in Tibetan Buddhist Tripitaka Tengyur reached
more than 100 pieces, the translation works were
represented by Vimuktasena’s 20,000 Praise Prajna
Light Sutra, Vasubandhu’s Perturbation theory of
mahayana Buddhism, Bhavyaviveka’s Explanation
of
Madhyamakahrdayakarika
and
Asanga’s
Interpretation of Mahayana Uttaratantra; his works
were represented by Explanation of Mantra Miracle
World, Dbu mavi man ngag ces bya ba Dbu mavi man
ngag rin chen mdzod and Byang chub lam sgron,
in which there was the work specifically explaining
reputation spread rapidly in the entire Tibetan area.
Buddhists in the central area of Tibet (Anterior
Tibet) invited Aatisha one after another. But having
stayed in Gurge area for three years, he decided
to return to Vikramasila vihara in India. When he
travelled to the border of Nepal, he found the whole
are engulfed in local wars and the roads impassable.
Atisha was held up there.
Finally, moved by repeated requests and religious
beliefs of Vbrom ston pa who rushed from Tibet and
invited him, he gave up the idea of going back to
Vikramasilavihara and embarked on the journey
to disseminate dharma in the central area of Tibet.
Vbrom ston pa told Atisha that there were many
famous temples in Lhasa and Samye area, thousands
of monks were waiting for him for abhisheka,
consecration and lectures on dharma. They went
through dpal thang, skyid grong and other places
of the Tsang and gradually went eastwards; once
arriving at the place where Buddhists were relatively
concentrated, they would stay for a period of time
and hold simple activities to disseminate dharma.
When they arrived at sna po la, they were welcomed
and entrained by local Daiqia dharmaraja who held
music ceremony of blowing horn and other activities
and built dam at the side of Yarlung Zangbo River to
benefit the public. After Atisha arrived at the anterior
Tibet, he went directly to the first formal Buddhist
temple Samye temple which was built at Tubo
period, and was warmly received by local Lha btsun
bodhib raw dza who was also a benefactor. Many
eminent monks came to welcome Atisha’s arrival and
dissemination of dharma.
Atisha saw many Sanskrit Buddhist scriptures at
the library of Samye Temple. They even had versions
that could not be found in India. He was amazed
to witness the prosperity of Buddhism at Tubo
period that even exceeded India, the hometown
of Buddhism. He transcribed Madhyamika Light
Sutra and Avatamsaka Sutra in Sanskrit and sent to
India, helped Tibetan lotsawas to translate Asanga’s
Mahayanasamgraha and Vasubandhu’s Perturbation
Sutra of Mahayana Buddhism and many other sutras.
When Atisha left from Samye Temple to Snye thang,
he was guarded by more than 200 knights. When
he arrived at Snye thang, a lot of believers gathered
here and waited for him to lecture on the Buddha
dharma. Atisha lectured Abhisamayalankara and
Prajna Light Sutra and other sutras.
Atisha specially taught commandments to monks
at Pu Degong Temple when he stayed at Snye thang,
built Retreat House for them, and specially taught
“Three-level pedagogics” to Vbrom ston pa. Later,
Atisha was invited by eminent monk Rngog Legs
PviShes Rab to Lhasa area to disseminate dharma.
Besides disseminating dharma, he also helped Tibetan
lotsawa translate Madhyamika essentials of the mind
261
Cultural Contacts
“observation” (theoretical) such as Ma bden gnyis la
vjug pa, the work specifically explaining “practice”
(practicality) such as Spyod pa bsdus pavi sgron me.
As for the work perfectly explaining “observation”
and “practice”, it is Bodhipathapradipa. These
works profoundly influenced the development of
Tibetan Buddhism at later generations.
(Kalsang gyal)
from the Temple. So, Tilopa began to make a living
with grinding gingili and got the name of Tillipa the person who grinds gingili.
Tilopa travelled all over India and learned plenty
of sutras and secret methods from many masters.
In Oddiyana (Tibetan Orgyan, Shambhala possibly
located in Swat Valley or Odisha), he received
knowledge of many Dakini’s sutra and attained
enlightenment and wisdom in the core theory of
Buddhism. Under the direction of Matangi, he
went to a brothel in Bengal to work for dakini
Dharima, and practised there until he realised the
thought of the Mahamudra. It is said that he and
Dharima squatted high up in the air with their body
circled by red light and singing the gingili song
which convinced people of their enlightenment.
Since then, he spread the Mahamudra method by
singing songs and became famous as Mahasiddha
[Great Achiever] Tilopa, turning into one of the 84
Mahasiddhas of the Vajrayana tradition.
(Deji zhuoma)
Tilopa
Tilopa/ Diluoba (988-1069 CE) was an eminent
Indian monk-scholar of Esoteric Buddhism and
was famous as the Great Master [Mahasiddha] of
Means of Mahamudra of Kargyu sect in Chinese
Tibetan Buddhism.
He was born in a Brahmin family in Chittagong
town in India (now in Bangrode district of
Bangladesh). His father was Pranyasha and mother
was Kashi. The couple had no child for a long
time. They usually prayed for a child in the local
temple, made donations, served monks and read
holy sutras. Later, their desire was fulfilled and they
were blessed with a baby boy. Named Tilopa, he
was raised with much attention. Learning words
from his mother, he received good education.He
studied Brahminical classics and became a Tirthika
Pandita. Travelling
everywhere, he gradually
became interested in Buddhism, got himself
tonsured in Somapuriin (present-day Bangladesh),
received his monk name, Prapadzar and learnt
sutra, discipline and theory. Under the guidance
of Nāgārjunabodhisattva, Matangi and other great
masters, he attained Tantrik Buddhism’s “Si da
cheng jiu [Four Great Achievements] bu gong
chuan cheng fa”. He practised for up to 12 years in
a graveyard near Somapuri. Later, because he had
practised with a yogini who was the daughter of
man grinding gingili [sesame seed], he was expelled
Naropa
Naropa (1016-1100 CE), Indian Buddhist Preacher,
successor of Esoteric Buddhism, the founder of
Mahamudra in Kargyu, Tibetan Buddhism.
Born of a noble family of a brahmin in India in
April 1016, he went to Kashmir and was initiated
into a lay Buddhist by Gate Gagana when he was 11,
and got a dharma name, Gaba Gagana. He learned
for three years and got outstanding academic
results, understood Abhisamaya alamkara, Ornament
of the Mahayana Sutras, Hour Wheel Vajracchedika
Tantra, Kriya Yoga, For Yoga, Annuttarayoga Tantra
etc. He was tonsured as a monk when he was 25
and lived in seclusion for cultivation. He took
bhikshu precepts and preached Buddhist doctrine
in Phullahari when he was 28. He comprehended
Five Subjects and his reputation spread all over
the land, then he became one of the four greatest
custodians of Nalanda Temple. And then he became
pandit and directed the Northern Gate, conquered
heresies and brightened Buddhist doctrine for eight
years. He was predicted by Dakini, left the temple
college, travelled and begged with a bowl and a
crutch, and sought for Tilopa for sound doctrine.
Tilopa guided his heart by 12 circumstances, asked
him to do penance and revealed him the Vairocana
Three Bodhi Tantra and taught all kinds of doctrine
of tantras and abhiseca to him. Finally, Naropa
received the Four Traditions of Mahamudra, won
the Four Excellent Achievements and became a
great achiever.
Then he lived in the cultivation place in
Phullahari, recruited disciples and preached
the doctrine. Naropa disciplined thousands of
students in his life. Xiandiba and Venerable Atisha
Tilopa
262
Cultural Contacts
Hezhong Prefecture (Yongji City, Shanxi) invited
Dharmadeva to translate sutras. This was reported
by local officials to Emperor Taizhong (Zhao Jiong,
977–997 CE) in a petition. The emperor was very
pleased to know this because he wanted to celebrate
sutra translation activity as a grand event. In
February, Devasanti and Danapala came to Kaifeng,
the capital of the Song. Emperor Taizong decided to
establish Sutra Translation Institute in the west of
Taiping Xingguo Temple. The Institute was founded
in 982 CE. Dharmadeva, Devasanti and Danapala
were summoned to live there and titles were
granted to them. Devasanti was honoured as “Great
Master of Comprehending Sutras”, Dharmadeva
was titled as “Great Master of Propagating Sutras”
and Danapala was honoured as “Great Master of
Promoting Sutras”. They respectively were asked to
translate a sutra each. One month later, each of them
completed the translation of one volume of sutra.
Dharmadeva translated Dharani Sutra of Vasundhara
Bodhisattva. Through the participation of multiple
parties, the Sutra Translation Institute formed a
complete set of translation procedures, and there
were sufficient manpower and material resources.
Because of continuous translation of new sutras, the
emperor ordered to change the Sutra Translation
Institute into the Sutra Propagation Institute. A
Sutra Printing Institute was also established. In
the second year of Yongxi (985 CE), the emperor
praised the newly translated sutras greatly,
promoted the three monks and changed the name
of Dharmadeva from Fatian to Faxian. According
to Japanese scholars, Dharmadeva and Faxian
were, however, different persons. Dharmadeva died
in 1101 CE, and the emperor titled him as “Great
Master of Enlightenment”.
Dharmadeva translated 30 or 39 sutras for over
30 years in China, most of which were related to
tantric classics.
(Xue Keqiao)
Naropa
possessed the reputation of great wise man among
them. He also had four uncommon father tantras
disciples, four mother tantras disciples and four
great disciples obtained uncommon achievement
ie 12 great disciples, and 800 achieved disciples,
hundreds of yoga mother achieved disciples. He
wrote Guhyasamaja the Sequel, Abhidharna Yoga
Tantras, Hevajra Tantras etc and the famous Naro's
Six Doctrines and Naro Khechari had great influence
on the later generations. Marpa, the founder of
Kargyu sect, Tibetan Buddhism went to India for
three times and learnt Guhyasamaja, Essentials of
Doctrines, The Supreme Yamantaka Tantra Teachings
and Abhiseca, Mahamudra Abhisambuddha Method
and his Six Doctrines, which were instructed orally,
inherited by Mila Raspa, Sgampoba and became the
foundational doctrines of Kargyu sect.
(Deji zhuoma)
Dharmadeva
pha damba sangje
Dharmadeva [Fatian] (?-1101 CE) was an Indian
monk and translator who visited China. According
to volume 43 of General Record of the Buddhist
Patriarchs, volume one of Supplemented Biographies
of Eminent Monks etc, Dharmadeva was a monk from
central India who came to China before 973 CE, and
translated sutras with Chinese monks in Fuzhou who
knew Sanskrit (present Fuxian, Shaanxi). In 973 CE,
the magistrate of Fuzhou, Wang Guicong submitted
a written petition to the emperor declaring that
Dharmadeva had translated Aparimitayur-sutra and
the Sutra of the Seven Ancient Buddhas in Fuzhou.
Emperor Taizu summoned Dharmadeva to the
capital, showed great respect and granted him
purple clothes. In the first month of the fifth year
of Taiping Xingguo (979 CE), Śramana Fa Jin of
pha damba sangje (Pa Danbasangjie, ?-1117) was an
Indian Buddhist monk, the mahasiddha of Chinese
Tibetan Tantric Buddhism and the founder of
Zhibyed. He had been to Tibet for five times to do
missionary work.
Formerly known as Surya Kirti and also known
as Kamalashrivla, he was born in a Brahmin family
in Tsara Singnga, Bedarra, south India. He was
intelligent and liked learning phonology, astronomy
and calendar, exquisite and other Ming Study when
he was young and formed ties with Buddhism. He
became a monk when he was 10 and got the name
Kamalashrivla. He followed 54 siddhas gurus such
as Leigh Arya dewa, Devathera and Kserlingba and
learnt Five Ming Study and Exoteric and Esoteric
263
Cultural Contacts
Mar Kirg (Ma chos kyisherab), Sojo Gantownbel
(Sochung dge vdun vbar) and Wofgang Yasitenza
(Skam yeshe gyaltshan) and the transmission of
Gcod Yul represented by Marge Sai Bo (Mara serpo)
and Mar Gyula Jung (Macig labdron). For the fifth
time to Tibet, he chose Tingri (present-day Dingri
of Xigaze county in Tibet) that has more entrances
and is more economically developed to spread his
such thoughts as “to perish all the pain” and “try to
get rid of all the troubles of the world” and to treat
a variety of diseases for the majority of people. In
1097, funded by leader Ali, he built the basic dojo
Lang Kuo Temple and created the Xi Jie Sect of
Tibetan Buddhism.
Pa Danbasanje had lived in Lang Kuo Temple for
21 years and taught a large number of disciples
and many of them have become eminent monks
such as the so-called “the Four Yoga Disciples” that
is Qiaqin (Phyar chen) of East Gate, Baza Zhuoda
(Bdzra krodha) of South Gate, Joan (phyar chung) of
West Gate and Jiangqu Sanhua Gongga (byang chub
sems dbav kun dgav) of North Gate, One Hundred
and Six Great Disciples, Twenty-one Magic Variable
Disciples, Twelve deposited disciples, Twenty-four
Female Yoga Disciples and later they became the
inheriting branch of later Xi Jie Sect. He created
the Gar Ri Samtanling Temple that is the first and
most important dojo for female monks during Hou
Hong period of Tibetan Buddhism and became the
law activity centre for female monks learning and
practising in south Tibetan area which had a great
influence at that time. Today, it is still the famous
nunnery of Geluk in Tibet.
Pa Danbasanje lived in Mount Wutai for 12 years
and built Tsi Tsu Sa Ra and several other Buddha
halls in area of Han nationality. He wrote tantric
works and all of them had a profound and wide
influence in Tibet. His Vajrayana works have a deep
influence in Tibetan area such as philosophy of
Peace·Silver Buddha Bead, Philosophy of Peace·Gold
Buddha Bead, Philosophy of Peace·Silver Crystal
Buddha Bead, Eighty Eulogies of Dingri, Heart Sutra
for Relief·Song of Vajra, Preach·Discussion with
Bodhisattva Minya Konka, Words from Heart·Lotus
Cluster, Odes of Cultivation etc.
Pa Danbasanje’s later years were spent in Tibet.
Since he came to Tibet for the fifth time, he had been
living in the County of Dingri of Tsang until he died.
As for his age, due to the lack of details, it is difficult
to verify. He made an important contribution to the
development of Tibetan Buddhism and had a great
influence in Tibet. For example in Dingri, today,
local people still regard Pa Danbasanje as a founder
of Dingri and regard Lang Kuo Temple as the
birthplace of Dingri. The statue of Pa Danbasanje
and various holy things associated with him are
enshrined and worshiped in Lang Kuo Temple. On
Pa Danbasangjie
Buddhism etc. After many years of studying, he
got a lot of achievements. He mastered 36 kinds of
languages, and became Pandita and was praised as
the “Gnam Mkhav Phyogs Med” which means “the
sky has no corner”.
Pa Danbasangjie lives a life of penance during all
his life. He had travelled all over Indian Buddhist holy
sites including places where Nāgārjunabodhisattva,
Seng kerdzong, Doje gdan and other eminent
monks had self-cultivation. He also has been to
each big cemetery and Rajgir hill in east India and
south India where Buddha Shakya Muni taught
the dharmacakra. After ascetic austerities, he
obtained all kinds of special enlightenments and
achievements of Esoteric Buddhism and created 24
Buddha halls including Dan Pujian.
Pa Danbasangjie had five times been to Nagri
(mngav ris), Yalong (yar lung), Peng domain (phan
yul) etc where he widely took Buddhism followers
and spread Buddhadharma. For the first two times
he spread Buddhadharma in a small area and did not
have much influence. For the third time in Ngari
(Tsang), Peng domain (Anterior Tibet) and Samye,
he did Buddhist service and missionary work, so his
reputation and influence gradually expanded. Later,
in order to treat his mother’s difficulties, he has
been the Sangha slave of the King of Peng domain
for three years. The fourth time in Tibet was the
important period for Pa Danbasanje’s missionary
activities in Tibet. He widely took followers and
spread Buddhism in anterior Tibet. He mainly
taught 29 classics such as Twenty Ways to Seeking
Answers, Xi Jie Ming Deng, The Instruction of Void
Gate Opening and The Mental Method of Void Gate
Opening. Later, among his disciples there appears
the early and mid-term transmission of Xi Jie Fa Mai
represented by Naguhaya Nie (Dznyvan gu hya),
264
Cultural Contacts
Omkarasri
June 14 and 15 of Tibetan calendar, the temple held
the Lang Kuo Niang Qu festival to commemorate
and revere Pa Danbasanje.
(Deji zhuoma)
Honghaluo xili [Omkāraśri] (1101-1163 CE) was
an Indian monk who visited China. According to
volume 1 of Supplemented Biographies of Eminent
Monks, he was from Magadha and cultivated tantric
doctrines in Kukkutabadagiri. In the first year of
the Jin Dynasty (about 1127 CE), he went to Wutai
Mountain to worship Manjushri with seven persons
including his uncle and younger brother, Samayaśri,
and then he came to Shandong Lingyan Temple to
worship Avalokitesvara and build temples in places
including Jinan. He died in 1163 at the age of 63.
(Xue Keqiao)
Maitrabhadra
Maitrabhadra (about 11th century CE) was a
monk-translator from central India. According
to Book I (Jixiang Zhuan) of Xin Xu Zhuan, he
translated tantric texts in sutra translation centre of
the capital city of Bianjing (present-day Kaifeng of
Henan Province) among others such as Miao Jixiang
Pingdeng Yujia Guanshen Chengfo Yigui. He was
conferred the title of Tripitaka Master.
(Xue Keqiao)
kha che pan chen
shaky shi
Niguma
kha che pan chen shaky shi (Kaqiebanqin.shijiashili)
(1122-1219 CE) was an eminent Buddhist monk of
Kashmir and the founder missionary of Tibetan
Buddhism in China. He was born in Kashmir and
sincerely believed in Buddha dharma since his
childhood. At the age of 10, he started to learn to
be a novice monk by receiving initiation percepts
(Śramanera Precepts) and gaining wider cultural
knowledge through the study of language. He
officially became a monk before all of the sangha
and vowed not to violate any law at the age of
23. Receiving and practising regulations (gelungpa) in front of many Buddhist monks at 30 and
communicating all the wise learning, he became
a Pandita. He has been to Tibet several times to
preach percepts of Buddhism. In the history of
dissemination of Buddhist precepts in Tibet,
Kaqiebanqin’s method of dissemination holds a
pioneering authoritative position.
(Kalsang gyal)
Niguma, born in about 11th century CE, was a great
achiever of Indian Buddhism and famous Yogini.
She was born in a royal Brahmin family in Kashmir
area and was the younger sister of Naluba. There
is another saying that she was the secret Buddhist
mother of Naluba. Her life stories are rarely known.
When living in Sandalwood Forest in Sosaling,
India, she recruited KhyungpoNaljor (ie Shangpa
Kagyu) from Tibet as her disciple and taught
everything to him which made him the lineage
inheriting disciple. KhyungpoNaljor spread “Ni gu
Six Methods” and other “big hand” dharma to Tibet
so as to found Tibetan Buddhist Shangpa Kagyu.
(Deji zhuoma)
Sukha siddhi
Sukha siddhi [Sukaxidi] (c. 11th century CE) was a
female yoga master and great achiever of Buddhism in
India. Born in Kashmir, India, Sukha siddhi had three
sons and three daughters. She got her achievements
at the age of nearly 60. At that time, there was a
great famine and her family was so poor that they
only could beg for food. One day a travelling ascetic
begged for food. She felt pity for him, and gave him
the only food she had. Her husband was furious after
knowing that he kicked her out. She roamed into a
village of Ougyan country in western India and lived
by selling wine. Two girls at good age usually came
to buy her wine and later Sukha siddhi knew that the
girls were living under the great yoga teacher Birwapa
who practised sutras in the forest nearby. When
the girls came again, she respected Birwapa so she
wouldn’t get their money and served him with wine
and paid him a formal visit. Sukha siddhi became his
disciple and got the four thoughts of Smiling Buddha
Warrior, made great grades and became the inheritor
of Dakini and Birwapa. Her great works: Six Means of
Handy Sutra and The Way to Four Buddha have been
spread until today.
(Deji zhuoma)
Sudhasri
Sudhasri [Sutuo Shili] (about 12th century CE) was
an Indian monk who came to China. According to
volume 1 of Supplemented Biographies of Eminent
Records of the Qingliang Mountain,
written by Master Zhen Cheng,
Ming Period
265
Cultural Contacts
ordination from Vinayabhadra in Nalanda Monastery
when he was eight (1263 CE). He was proficient
in Tripitaka when he was 19, and he went south
under the instruction of his master, learned Chan
and tantric doctrines on Sriparvata Mountain and
then travelled to many places. He arrived in Lanka
(Sri Lanka) when he was 20. He went north when
he was 21, and travelled around India. He entered
China from Kashi, Xinjiang between the 24th year
of Zhiyuan (1287 CE) and the 25th year of Zhiyuan
(1288 CE). After passing through many places in
Xinjiang, he climbed over Altun Mountains and
entered Qinhai. He met Mahapandita propagating
sutras from north India in Tibet and Qinghai and
they came to Yanjing (Beijing) together. He sat in
meditation on Emei Mountain in Sichuan between
1291-1294. When he was 40 in 1295 CE, he crossed
Jinsha River and entered into Yunnan to propagate
sutras. He propagated sutras in places including
Kunming and Dali between 1296 and 1314. He built
a temple on Shishan Mountain in Wuding, Yunnan
between 1315 and 1320. Sunyadisya was 66 in 1321
and left Wuding and came to Guizhou. Then he
entered Hunan from Guizhou. He passed Changde
and Yiyang and arrived in Wuchang, and then passed
Jiujiang, Lushan and Huaixi and arrived in Yangzhou
in 1322. He went north and reached Dadu (presentday Beijing) in 1323. Sunyadisya was 70 in 1335,
and was received and offered by Emperor Taiding of
Yuan Dynasty (reigned from 1324-1328). In 1326,
he was assigned by Yuan Ting and went to Koryo
(North Korea) and burnt incense on Mount Kumgang
and propagated sutras there. In 1329, he was back
in Yanjing. After that, he was resident in Fayuan
Temple in Yanjing, propagated and translated
sutras. He died in 1363 and was 108-years-old. His
experience before 20 years old, especially the section
that he adopted monastic life, followed his master
and received ordination in Nalanda appeared to
be a fabrication although it was recorded on good
grounds. Because Nalanda Monastery was burnt in
the early 13th century, Buddhism disappeared in
India, Magadha was occupied by Muslims and it is
impossible for him to receive ordination and learn
Buddhism in Nalanda Monastery. Moreover, there
were many legends about the life of Sunyadisya and
this appears to be more reliable.
Among the works attributed to Sunyadisya are
seven reviews that include Sitatapatroshisha-dharani,
Avalakitechvara Padma Jalamula Tantbanama
Dharani, Sarvadurgati Parishodhana Uchnisha Vijaya
Dharani, Sanskrit text of Heart Sutra, Avalokitesvara
Offering Food and Manjusri Bodhisattva Immorality
Vinaya. He wrote only one book named Chan Record
of Monk Sunyadisya. Moreover, his quotations and
poems have circulated in famous Chinese and
Korean works.
Monks, Sudhasri was a monk in Nalanda Monastery,
he came to China with seven disciples by sea
when he was 85, three disciples went back, the
other three died and only Buddhasri followed him.
They arrived in Wutai Mountain after six years,
but he died soon. His disciples Buddhasri sent his
bodily relics to India. According to another saying,
Sudhasri was 108 years old during the regime of
Emperor Minzong of Jin Dynasty Wan Yanliang
(reigned from 1150-1161 CE), he stopped rain for
the emperor and “cursed the dragon to fall down”
and received special treatment from the emperor
who granted him with rewards. Imperial concubines
made clothes for him in person. He used donated
properties to tonsure monks or build temples.
(Xue Keqiao)
Buddhasri
Buddhasri [Fotuo Shili] (about 12th century CE) was
an Indian monk who visited China. According to
Sudhasri in volume 1 of Supplemented Biographies
of Eminent Monks, he followed his master Sudhasri
to Wutai Mountain during the regime of Emperor
Minzong of Jin Dynasty Wan Yanliang (1150-1161
CE). He sent body relics of his master to his country
after Sudhasri died and came to China again.
(Xue Keqiao)
Sunyadisya
Sunyadisya [Zhikong] (1225~1363 CE) was an
Indian monk, sutra translator and preacher who
visited China. His original name was Dhyanabhadra,
meaning Chan Virtue literarily. Sunyadisya was his
monastic name.
Sunyadisya was the third son of King of Magadha
in northern India and belonged to Kshatriya caste.
According to the historical materials such as
epitaph and preface of Indian Buddha Dhyanabhadra
written by Li Se in Yuan Dynasty and the appendix
of Chronological Biography of Sunyadisya in a book
recently authored by Duan Yuming, Sunyadisya: The
Last Eminent Indian Monk Visiting China, Sunyadisya
adopted monastic life when he was five (1260 CE)
because his father was seriously ill. He received
Hall of Heavenly Kings at Fayuan Temple, Beijing, China
266
Cultural Contacts
Contributions
Sunyadisya came to China after the extinction of
Indian Buddhism and conveyed last information of
Indian Buddhism to China. He propagated Chan and
tantric doctrines in China and integrated spirits of
Indian Buddhism into Chinese Buddhism. He had
profound influences in late Yuan Dynasty and early
Ming Dynasty in China, Emperor Taizu of Ming
Dynasty Zhu Yuanzhang (1368-1398) even wrote On
Visiting New Temple (volume 14 of Collected Works of
Emperor Taizu of Ming Dynasty), which recorded his
high opinions on Sunyadisya.
(Xue Keqiao)
Sahajasri
Pandita Sahajasri [Jusheng Jixiang] (c. 14th century
CE) was an Indian monk who came to China and
was honoured as Pandita. According to volume 1
of Supplemented Biographies of Eminent Monks and
Yonghua Categorised Book quoted in volume 317
of Categorised Boxes of the Yuanjian Studio, he was
from Kapilavastu in central India and belonged to
Kshatriya caste. He learned Mahayana and Hinayana
classics preliminarily and sat in meditation in snow
mountain for 12 years. It took him four years to
arrive in Gansu. He came to Wutai Mountain in
Jiachen year of Zhizheng of Yuan Dynasty and was
respected greatly by believers in Heng Mountain.
Emperor Taizu of Ming Dynasty Zhu Yuanzhang
(1368-1398) summoned him after hearing about
him and he came to Jinling (present-day Nanjing)
in the seventh year of Hongwu (1374). The emperor
granted him the title of “Good Chan Master” and
he settled in Jiang Mountain (Zhong Mountain)
and governed Buddhist temples under heaven. The
emperor ordered local governments not to forbid
people to receive ordination on Jiang Mountain.
Therefore, many people were devoted to him and
believed that he was the living Buddha. Sahajasri
was a Buddhist of high morality and calm power
and used a lot of funds and materials donated
by believers to conduct welfare undertakings.
Therefore, the emperor wrote Song of Goodness and
praised him as “he talked about the highest wisdom
as growing lotus” (or “he talked about the highest
wisdom in smiles as growing lotus”). He wandered
for three years and returned to Jiang Mountain. The
emperor visited him several times and often wrote
poems for him. Hereafter, he could not walk because
of food disease and died soon.
(Xue Keqiao)
Memorial Pagoda of Devdas at Tanzhe Temple, Mentougou, Beijing, China
Devadasa was from eastern India and was a
disciple of Master Sahajasri. After the death of
Sahajasri, Devadasa wandered north and finally
reached China. During the reign of Xuande (14261435 CE), he built a Buddhist convent beside
Tantuo Temple. He lived in seclusion and did not
ever visit the city. He observed rules excellently
and performed many miracles. He was honoured
as “Great Śramana”.
(Xue Keqiao)
Samghapala
Sanghapala [Sangke Bala] (1376~1446 CE) was
an Indian monk who came to China. According to
Biography of Zhi Guang in volume 1 of Supplemented
Biographies of Eminent Monks, he was from central
India. When Zhi Guang visited India, Sanghapala
made great efforts to serve him and Zhi Guang
brought him to China. The emperor appointed him
as “Senior Teacher of Sutra Translation Institute”
on the recommendation of Zhi Guang. Zhi Guang
and Sanghapala participated in imperial Buddhist
ceremony activities and he did well in holding
ceremonies or helping his teacher to propagate
doctrines. He was upright and arrogant and only
respected his teacher. He died in Shangsheng
Temple in Dingzhou (Dingzhou City, Hebei) in the
11th year of Zhengtong (1446).
(Xue Keqiao)
Devadasa
Devadasa [Diwa Dasi] (middle of 14th centurymiddle of 15th century CE) was an Indian monk.
According to Biography of Sahajasri in volume
1 of Supplemented Biographies of Eminent Monks,
267
Cultural Contacts
Sakyayasas
got nothing after 12 years of practicing Esoteric
Buddhism, so the thought that he may be not the
right person to practice Buddha Warrior came
into him and he abandoned the beads and stopped
practising Esoteric Buddhism, and to practice the
theory of Exoteric Buddhism. However, in the
vajrayana of Watching Realm, Dakini came into real
and gave him four causes. Virupa suddenly realised
the sutra and proved came into the shadow earth
up the Bodhisattva and got four kinds of whispering
causes. After practising for more than 20 years,
he got the best achievement of the 13 places of
Sutras of Daoguo and the achievement of Buddhism
Warrior Holding which helped the spread of the
Sutra of Daoguo.
The discipline was very strict in the public
department of Temple Suomapuli. Bir wa ba was
expelled out of the union of monks because of his guilt
of eating pigeon meat. Since then, he travelled and
practiced as a yoga teacher. At that time, there were
many kings who advocated for foreign heretics. In
Yema Bana, Virupa subdued heretics using magical
power, imparted the kings who believed in heretics
to believe in Buddhism and protect it. In the forest of
Vala Nasi, he practised the Smiling Buddha Warrior
for six months and got much magical power and led
the royals and the civilians of that country to believe
in Buddha Warrior. In Padma Hasa of the southern
India, he was respected as a great master and all of
the people believed in Buddhism. In eastern India,
he recruited Gurisasheri as his disciple, took him to
the city of Daughter from Heaven and taught all the
witches to believe in Buddhism. Then, they paraded
with Gurisasheri to Diwei Kouti and did good to the
people with kindness, pity and benefit. Later, they
came to northern India, founded temple and great
sangha, abolished the bad traditions of offering
Shakyayeshes [ShijiaYeshi or Śākyayaśas] (end of
14th century CE to middle of 15th century CE) was
an Indian monk in China. According to Volume 3
in Records on Qingliang Mountain, he was born in
Kapilavastu in northern India (now on border
between India and Nepal) as a descendant of
Śākyamuni. In the spring of 1414, he arrived at
Mount Wutai and resided in Xian Tong Temple.
In the winter of the same year, Emperor Yongle
(1403-1424) of Ming Dynasty heard the news and
sent eunuch Hou Xian to invite him to the Capital
in Beijing. Emperor Yongle received him and
nominated him as the Buddhist abbot of Nengren
Xiantong Temple, Mount Wutai, Shanxi, China
Temple and granted him rich rewards. In 1415,
the Emperor issued an imperial edict to confer him
titles of Western Buddhist and Grand Teacher of
the State. Before long he took leave for meditation
practice in Mount Wutai where he got up only after
meditating for seven successive days. The Emperor
sent messengers with letters to extend greetings for
many times. Emperor Xuan De (1426-1435) of Ming
Dynasty also extended lofty respect to him. In 1431,
Shakyayeshes left China for the Western Regions
and since then no news about him was ever heard.
(Xue Keqiao)
Virupa (bir wa ba)
Virupa (bir wa ba) was a great achiever of India
Buddhism, a disciple of Exoteric and Esoteric
Buddhism and a master of Taosim Results Sutras of
Sajia School of Chinese Tibetan Buddhism.
Born in a noble family of Chuipura of northern
India, Virupa was a prince of Saguo country.
He got tonsured to be a monk learning sutras at
his younger age. Later, he followed the abbot of
Nalanda and learned sutras of The Closest Buddha
Warrior Continuation Esoteric Buddhism, the Only
One of Kind Buddhism Warrior Continuation Esoteric
Buddhism and other sutras from Dama Maitreya.
He was famous for being proficient in yoga school
and became a Khanpo of Nalanda. Meanwhile, he
Virupa
268
Cultural Contacts
sacrifice of cattle, pig and sheep. Also, he preached
the Sutra of Daoguo to Gurisasheri who became the
famous achiever, Mahasiddha Krishnapapa.
Bir wa ba had recruited many disciples in his
life and there were many great men with great
achievement. In Ougyan, he got Sukha Siddha and
gave her four thoughts of smiling Buddha Warrior
and she got great success and had the name of Dakini
becoming the disciple who got most of his power.
Virupa had written Buddhism Warrior’s Words of
Sutra of Daoguo, No Distractions of the Red Mighty
Buddhism Warrior which are the most important
classics of Sajia School of the Tibetan Buddhism.
He is respected as the Great Masters of the Sajia
School. It is difficult to ascertain his dates of birth
and death. According to the biography in Tibetan,
he lived for more than 700 years.
(Deji zhuoma)
An Shigao
According to Chu san zang ji ji [Compilation of
Notes on the Translation of the Tripitaka], An Shigao
translated a total of 34 books (ie 40 volumes) of
sutras but some of which were later lost and presently
only 22 books (ie 26 volumes) are available. Later
generations appraised his translation as done
“with clear reasoning and appropriate wording,
giving intellectual argument without rhetoric,
embodying good quality without wildness”. It is
easy for readers to understand, and often triggers
their tireless learning enthusiasm. The translation
project was stopped in late Jianning period of
Emperor Ling of Han (168-171 CE) due to chaos
around Guanzhong (present-day west of Lingbao,
He’nan and the Shaanxi Guanzhong Plain area) and
Luoyang. An Shigao then travelled to Jiangnan area
to teach. There are some amazing stories about his
stay in Yuzhang (present-day Nanchang, Jiangxi),
Xunyang, Kuaiji (present-day Shaoxing, Zhejiang),
Guangzhou and other places. According to legend,
he finally passed away when he was accidentally
attacked by fighters on the streets of Kuaiji. His
activities in China spanned about 30 years in total.
His doctrines belonged to the sthaviravāda school of
Sectarian Buddhism and his interpretation primarily
focussed on the two aspects ie samadhi [calmness]
and prajňā [wisdom]. As Gao seng zhuan [Memoirs of
Eminent Monks] does not verify the earlier arrival of
Indian monks, Kāśyapamātanga and Dharamarakùa
(or Dharamaratna), it can be safely presumed that
An Shigao was the earliest translator of Chinese
Buddhist sutras.
(Ge Weijun)
Western Region
Personalities
An Shigao
An Shigao (2nd century CE), also known as An Qing,
was a great translator of Buddhist scriptures. He
moved to China towards the end of Eastern Han
Dynasty. According to Gao seng zhuan [Biographies
of Eminent Monks], An Shigao was originally a
prince from Parthia. Praised for his filial conduct
in childhood, he was a wise and intelligent student
with comprehensive knowledge of foreign books,
astronomy, calendar, medicines and prescriptions,
even sounds of birds and animals. Deeply influenced
by Buddhist concepts of suffering and emptiness, he
detested and rejected materialism and sought relief
in spiritualism. After the death of his father, he
inherited the throne. But soon after the mourning, he
passed the throne to his uncle and became a monk.
Because he was of royal blood, he continued to be
popularly known by his honourific title, An Hou
[Marquis of Parthia]. He had broad and extensive
knowledge of Abhidharma Pitaka and was an expert
in meditation. Travelling and teaching, he set his
footprints in the countries throughout the Western
Regions. In the early Jianhe period of the reign of
Emperor Huan of Han (about 148 CE), he came to
Luoyang and soon learned Chinese and began to
translate and publicise Buddhist sutras, successively
with the translated works of An ban shou yi jing
[Sutra on the Maintenance of Thought by the Practice
of Ānāpanāsati],Yin chi ru jing [Sutra on Skandha,
Dhātu and Āyatana or On Entrance to Truth by Covert
Maintenance], Ren ben yu sheng jing [Sutra on Moha,
Chanda,and Jāti, or the Origin of the Life of Man in
Desires], Dao De jing [Classic on Dao] etc.
Lokaksema
Lokakṣema (around 2nd century CE) was a sutra
translator who came to China towards the end of
Eastern Han Dynasty.
According to Biographies of Eminent Monks,
Lokakṣema was a monk of Yuezhi origin. He was a
pure and kind-hearted person with high morals and
hard-working nature. He read and chanted classics,
and was dedicated to the mission of propagating
doctrines (fa). In the later phase of the reign of
Emperor Huan of Han (around 167 CE), he came to
269
Cultural Contacts
Luoyang and learned Chinese. During the Guanghe
and Zhongping years of the reign of Emperor Ling
(178-189 AD), he translated 13 Buddhist scriptures
from Sanskrit version. When Dao’An, an eminent
monk of Jin Dynasty (314-385 CE) compiled the
Comprehensive Catalog of Scriptures, he personally
went through the three scriptures, the years of
which can be checked from the Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra
(2nd Guanghe year ie 179 CE), Pratyutpanna Sutra
(Pratyutpanna-buddha-sammukhàvasthita-samàdhisåtra, ditto), and øåraïgamasåtra (2nd Zhongping year
ie 185 CE), of which Øåraïgamasåtra was lost. There
were also Ādūshì Wáng Jīng, Mahàratnakåñasåtra,
Manjusri-pariprcha-bodhisattva-sutra, Dousha Sutra
and so on which seemed to have been translated
by Lokakṣema from the original language. Apart
from the translation work by himself, he also
often worked with Zhu-shuo-fo (also known as
Zhufoshuo). For example, the two original classics
Kang Senghui
then crossing Syr Darya and entering Uzbekistan
area). He lived in India and joined his father's
business and migrated to Jiaozhi (centre and north
of present-day Vietnam). His parents were both
dead when he was 10. After the mourning period,
he became a monk and cultivated himself according
to religious doctrines. He was a self-disciplined,
magnanimous person with an outstanding ability
and insight. He was studious and deep thinker,
proficient in Buddhist Tripitaka, extensively studied
astronomy and books of prophecy, ingenious in
debate and good at writing. There is no record
about when he arrived at the territory of Han. When
Sun Quan unified the area on the south of Yangtze
River beyond Wuhu and Nanjing, Buddhism was
unpopular there. Then, Kang Senghui went there
and proceeded to educate. He reached Jianye
(present-day Nanjing of Jiangsu Province) in 10th
year of Chiwu (247 CE), built thatched cottages, set
up Buddha statues and advocated Buddhist views.
With special appearance and strange behaviour, he
was soon called in by Sun Quan. It was said that after
21 days of fast, he had obtained a Buddhist relic and
showed its spirituality and power in the presence of
Sun Quan. Sun Quan admired deeply and set up a
tower and temple so the area around it was called
Buddha Temple. It is the first Buddhist temple built
in the southern regions of Yangtze River and so it
was also called Firstly-built (Jianchu) Temple. Kang
Senghui preached and translated Buddhist scriptures
there so that Buddha dharma flourished. It was said
that after Sun Hao had succeeded the throne, he had
invited Kang Senghui to preach in order to cure his
chronic disease, then endured five disciplines and
converted to Buddhism after recovery. In April of
fourth year of Tianji (280 CE), Sun Hao surrendered
to Jin. In September the same year, Kang Senghui
suffered from a disease and died. His age is unclear.
His honourific title is “Super Preach Chan Master”.
Kang Senghui translated many sets of Buddhist
scriptures in Jianye but now only Collective
Scripture of Six Paramitas (eight volumes) and Old
and Miscellaneous Buddhist Parables (two volumes)
exist. The rest have been lost, such as Purity
Scripture of Bodhisattva, Obedience Scriptures and 250
Buddha Dharma of Bodhisattva. Later generations
evaluated that his translations were “excellent
Lokaksema
of Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra and Pratyutpanna Sutra
were introduced by Zhu-shuo-fo, and they were
interpreted by Lokaksema and put down in writing
by other Han scholars. His translation was straight
with little rhetoric so that the essential meaning
of the Sutra could be easily communicated and
understood. But, in order to retain the basic features
of the classics, he added lots of transliteration. Much
of his translation belonged to Mahayana which can
be regarded as the beginning of the translation of
Mahayana sutra in the land of Han China. He has
trained disciples like Zhi Liang, who has also trained
other disciples like Zhi Qian.
(Ge Weijun)
Kang Senghui
Kang Senghui (unknown-280 CE) was a translator
of Buddhist scriptures who came to China during
the Three Kingdoms period and a Buddhist preacher
who firstly contributed to the spread of Buddhism
to south China.
According to the records in Record Set of Tripitaka
and Biographies of Eminent Monks, Kang Senghui’s
ancestral home was in Kangju (an ancient country
of the Western Regions, located between Balkhash
Lake of Central Asia and Aral Sea in Han Dynasty,
270
Cultural Contacts
him and asked him to coach the prince Sun Liang.
Buddhist scriptures were mostly in Sanskrit and
were not translated completely. From the first year
of Huangwu of Sun Quan (222 CE) to the 2nd year
of Jianxing of Sun Liang (253 CE), he translated 27
Buddhist sutras such as Vimalakirti Sutra, Nirvana
Sutra, The Dhammapada, Daming Sutras, Amitabha
Sutras, Buddhist on Nine-colour Deer (according to
The Records of Tripitaka), and another monk Zhu
Jiangyan from Wuchang also participated. He also
created the three files of Buddhist Chants of Eulogy
on Bodhisattva, and annotated for Life and Death
Sutras, which were all prevailing at that time. After
Sun Liang ascended the throne, Zhi Qian retreated in
Qiong’ai Mountain, stayed away from social affairs
and made friends with Sramana. Later, he died in
the mountains at the age of 60. Emperor Sun Liang
of Wu wrote to the monks and praised that “Zhi Qian
was simple and indifferent from wealth and fame,
and should be spoken highly of from beginning to
end.” The translations by Zhi Qian focus on “the real
prajna is that the nature of all things in the world
is empty and virtual, the words were elegant. He
was a master of Buddhist scripture translation after
An Shigao and Lokaksema and later Kumarajiva retranslated on the basis of this. All the translation
work promoted the spread of Buddhism in China
and Zhi Qian also played an important role in the
understanding of Buddhism by Chinese people.
(Tan Jie)
in scripture essence and righteous in article”. He
wrote Anapanasati Sutta, Buddha Dharma and Linden
Scripture, but only Anapanasati Sutta and Buddha
Dharma foreword are remaining now. Kang Senghui
learned from Han Lin, Pi Ye and Chen Hui, and was a
disciple of An Shigao. But he was also influenced by
Zhi Qian Mahayana's ideas and Chinese traditional
Confucianism and Daoism. So on one hand, he had
sympathy for others, was determined to save the
world and advocated saving society by saving human
souls. On the other, he suggested the then emperor
to implement benevolent policies to improve the
real life of common people. These thoughts are fully
demonstrated in Collective Scripture of Six Paramitas.
The scripture is actually compiled into six chapters
according to the “six paramitas” of Mahayana
namely alms giving, keeping disciplines, enduring
contempt, concentration, keeping still with deep
meditation and wisdom. It contains 91 pieces of
Buddhist scriptures and 82 stories of Buddha itself
and the contents mostly contain advice. He hoped
to simultaneously carry out five disciplines and 10
good deeds of Buddhism and principles of feudal
moral conduct about Chinese traditional ethics
among people to make them generally abide by
monks and laymen. As to people with power, he
advocated “determining laws with Buddha dharma
and managing state affairs with a righteous heart”.
As to common people, he encouraged them to be “a
livestock with moral principles rather than a civilian
without moral principles”. His great contribution
to mastering Buddha dharma and Confucianism
not only formed a unique and kind ethics of
Buddhism, but also effectively promoted sinicisation
of Buddhism.
(Ge Weijun)
Srimitra
ørãmitra [Bo Shilimiduoluo, 3rd~4th century CE]
paraphrased as Good Friend, was also briefly called
Shimili. People of the time called him “Bema”. He
was a monk and translator of Buddhist scriptures
who lived between the 3rd and 4th centuries and
came to China during Jin Dynasty.
According to the record in Biographies of Eminent
Monks, Śrīmitra was born in Western Regions and
was once the prince of a country. Later, he resigned
his sovereign authority in favour of his younger
brother and became a monk. Śrimitra’s look and
gestures were handsome, bright and remarkable.
During Yongjia period (307-313 CE) of Western
Jin Dynasty, he came to the Central Plains in China
for preaching. It was a time of war, he had to go
to the south crossing Yangtze River and arrived in
Jiankang (present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu), and lived
in the Jianchu temple. Prime Minister Wang Dao
admired his grace and immediately accepted him
as a friend with the same inclination. Śrīmitra’s
reputation was thus well-known. After that, all
those who came for metaphysical discussions were
contemporary celebrities. His disposition was,
however, haughty and he did not learn Chinese.
Communication depended on interpreters, but due to
Zhiqian
Zhi Qian (about 3rd century CE) was a Buddhist
scripture translator in the Three Kingdoms. His
other name was Zhi Yue and the courtesy name was
Gongming. Dates of birth and death are unknown
but he was born in Dayuezhi. His grandfather, Fadu,
led hundreds of his countrymen to migrate in China
in Emperor Ling of Han (168~189 CE), and Zhi
Qian also came together. He learnt from Zhi Liang,
a disciple of Lokaksema (also see that article). He
read a lot of Buddhist scriptures very carefully and
learnt many folk skills. He read lots of foreign books
and could speak six languages. They three were
learned, and there was a saying that “no knowledge
in the world was beyond the three Zhi”. In the end
of Eastern Han Dynasty, he ran away from social
upheaval in Wu with tens of fellow villagers. People
called him “brain truster” since he was smarter
than anyone else. Sun Quan, the Emperor of Wu
(222~252 CE) heard of his wisdom and called
271
Cultural Contacts
sister Jīvaka was extremely intelligent who could
recite after hearing once. Although many princes
and dukes proposed marriage to her, she firmly
refused them. After Kumārāyana came, she fell in
love with him at first sight and wished to marry
him. The king also made every effort to facilitate
the marriage. After Jīvaka and Kumārāyana got
married, Kumārajīva was born. Not long after that
Jīvaka joined the nunnery. At that time, Qiuci was
one of the Buddhism in the east of Cong Ridge, and
Mahayana and Theravada believes coexisted, but
with Theravada taking the predominant position.
Kumārajīva followed his mother and became a
monk at the age of seven, and followed a teacher to
learn sutra. He exhibited extraordinary talent in his
study. He could not only recite a 1,000 verses, but
had fast and in-depth understanding and mastering
Srimitra
his excellent comprehension skills, he could always
fully understand all hints, and communication
was never hindered. He was also good at charms
and it was said his charms were extraordinarily
efficacious. Śrīmitra died at the age of 80 plus
during Chengkang period (335-342 CE) in Eastern
Jin Dynasty, and was buried in the east of gravel
hills. Emperor Cheng of Jin Dynasty admired his
charming appearance and behaviour, ordered to set
up a temple beside his grave. Later Śramanas who
came here established another temple called Bema
Temple. When Śrīmitra was alive, there was no
spells for Jiangdong, so the 12 volumes of Buddha
Incantation to Seventy-two Thousand Devaraja for
religious protection, one volume of Incantation for
Mahamayuri Devaraja and one volume of Incantation
for Various Mahamayuri Devarajas etc should be
translated. In addition, he also had loud Buddhist
chants handed down to following generations. He
was also considered as the earliest representative
for spreading Esoteric Buddhism.
(Ge Weijun)
Kumārajīva
of the doctrines. At the age of nine, Jīvaka brought
him south to cross the Indus and reached Kophen
(present day Kashmir), an important town of the
Sarvāstivāda Buddhism, in order to make him
accept the best Buddhist scholastic education.
There he met Bandhudatta, the master with smart
talent and broad knowledge who was one-of-akind at that time. He followed him to study the
Kṣudraka, Dīrgha Āgama and Madhyama Āgama,
all together four million words. The master often
called him exceptionally divine and handsome.
News reached the imperial court of Kophen and the
king invited him to the palace to debate with many
vadins (debaters) of other religions. The vadins of
other religions bullied him since he was young and
spoke arrogantly towards him but were attacked
by him through the loopholes they left and they
quit hastily in shame. After that, the king respected
and treated him as a distinguished foreign guest,
especially dispatching five monks and 10 novices
in the temple for cleaning like the disciples. At the
age of 12, Kumārajīva returned to Qiuci with his
mother. The countries along the road wished to hire
him with large sums of money but he refused except
Kumarajiva
Kumārajīva (343-413 CE) was one of the greatest
Buddhist sutra translators in ancient China. His
name meant “child longevity”.
Life of Kumārajīva - According to volume
2 of Biographies of Eminent Monks and volume
14 of Collected Records Concerning the Tripitaka,
Kumārajīva was an Indian by origin born in
Qiuci (now Kuqa, Xinjiang). His ancestors were
from a Brahmin family and his family took the
minister position for generations. His grandfather
was of uninhibited personality, outstandingly
charming and well-known all around. His father,
Kumārāyana, was honest and clever, not admiring
vanity, and a highly valued reputation and
disguised official’s position. When it came to his
inheritance, he unexpectedly abandoned the family
and travelled far to the east, climbing over Cong
Ridge (now the Pamirs) and reaching Qiuci. King
of Qiuci had long heard of his name, personally
went out of the city-wall to meet him and then
worshipped him as the royal priest. The king’s
272
Cultural Contacts
that he stayed in Kashgar for a year and learned the
Abhidharma Piṭaka and Sarvastivada-vinaya under
the Kashmiri monk, Buddhayaśas, and finally got
profound understanding of the meanings. Under the
suggestion of Śramana Xijian, the King of Kashgar
convened a meeting and asked Kumārajīva to rise on
the high seat and to teach Dhammacakkappavattana
Sutta. The move was not only helpful in motivating
the sanghas in the country to study Buddhism, but
it helped improve the relations between the two
countries by paying tribute to Qiuci. Kumārajīva,
besides teaching, actively searched for Hindu
classics and books of other religions, read the
four vedas, panca-vidya and other doctrines, and
explored the knowledge of astronomy, calendar,
divination, and astrology and later he could even
fulfil all his predictions. In daily life, however,
Kumārajīva was more willful and neglected minor
points of conduct. And although censured by yogis,
he did not mind about it. In Kashgar he fortunately
came across Suryasoma who especially taught
Mahayana Buddhism. He respected and followed
him to study Anavatapta, Mādhyamikaśāstra,
øata÷àstra, Dvàda÷amukha÷àstra etc. And thus,
he gave up Theravada to embrace Mahayana.
Later, he returned to Wen Su, north of Qiuci, and
encountered a heretic. The heretic, eloquent and
renowned across the countries, beat the drum with
his hands and said, “For anyone can win me, I’d be
beheaded for him as an honorarium.”
Kumārajīva accepted the challenge and won
shortly after. So he was “famous across the left side
of Cong Ridge and beyond the river” and the heretic
also bowed to convert. The king of Qiuci went to
Wen Su personally and welcomed him home. After
the return, he, at the invitation of the princess A-Kieye-mo-ti, taught the essence of mahasanni-patasutra and illustrated the doctrines of “everything is
empty” and “pseudonym is not real”, causing many
Theravada believers to convert to Mahayana. At the
age of 20, Kumārajīva was ordained at the King’s
palace. Soon after, his mother went to Tianzhu
and before she went, she told Kumārajīva to go to
the eastern land to expand Mahayana. Kumārajīva
committed that he would do it against all odds and
even sacrifice himself. Two years later, Bandhudatta
knew
that
Kumārajīva
had
extraordinary
enlightenment and came from Kophen to visit him.
Kumārajīva was extremely happy and repeatedly
explained the essentials of Mahayana for more than
a month and finally made him feel convinced and
worshipped Kumārajīva as the teacher. Bandhudatta
said, “I am your teacher in Theravada, and you are
my teacher in Mahayana.” Since then, people from
various countries in the Western Regions were
convinced of his divinity, and sincerely admired
him and even whenever there was a lecture in the
The relic stūpa of Kumārajīva located at the Caotang
monastery, Hu County in Shaanxi Province, China.
ascended seat, there was a king kneeling beside for
a long time for him to step on.
Kumārajīva’s reputation spread to the central
plains. At that time, an eminent monk, Dao An, was
in Chang’an and wanted to meet Kumārajīva and
interpret Buddhism doctrines with him. So every
time he discussed with Fu Jian, the monarch of
Former Qin, he would urge him to send an envoy
to invite him. In February of the 17th Jianyuan year
of Former Qin (381 CE), the kings of Shanshan
and Qianbu came to ask Fu Jian to send troops to
conquer west. In September the following year, Fu
Jian sent Valiant Cavalry General Lu Guang and
others to lead 70,000 soldiers to fight Qiuci, Yanqi
and other countries in the west and instructed him
to promptly send Kumārajīva into the border after
conquering Qiuci. In the 20th Jianyuan year (384 CE),
Lu Guang conquered Qiuci and seized Kumārajīva,
but did not know of his honoured status, and bullied
him and teased him as a mortal since he was young.
He even forced Kumārajīva to marry the princess
of Qiuci. Kumārajīva though firmly refused, was
repeatedly asked and forced to drink and be shut
in a secret chamber with the princess, eventually
suffering the loss of integrity. Kumārajīva bore all
these sorts of indignities calmly. The former Qin
fell apart after the Battle of Feishui (383 CE). Two
years later, Fu Jian was killed by Yao Chang. After
Lu Guang returned with the troops to Liangzhou and
knew about it, he established a regime by himself
with the army and reigned in the corner. He didn’t
follow Buddhism and just treated Kumārajīva as a
necromancer who was good at predicting disasters
and abnormalities and foretelling lucks and
misfortunes. Although Kumārajīva was able to come
273
Cultural Contacts
the common senses to speak for Kumārajīva. Later,
Dao Xuan (596-667 CE) in his Dao Xuan Master
Rapport Records, even said that Kumārajīva’s sutra
translation was “unique and highly unmatched”. He
was not an ordinary monk so he could conveniently
do what he wanted. All the gossip in the streets
about the corrupted commandment were nothing
but average men’s prejudices which were simply
“not worth commenting on”. Kumārajīva was not
unaware of his violation against the commandment.
So every time he taught, he would make confessions
first, and hoped the listeners would see him as the
lotus in the smelly mud as he taught, and just pick
the lotus without the mud.
His Sutra Translation Career Buddhism, since
introduced in China at the time of Emperor Ming
of Han period (58-75 CE), had been more than 200
years. And its classics, through the continuous efforts
of the translation masters of An Shigao, Lokakṣema,
Dharmaraksa, et al, had been translated into Chinese.
However, translated Buddhist scriptures exhibited
not only language differences but cultural barriers
as well. So during early practice, it was extremely
difficult to carry forward. The translated classics
often had a sluggish style of writing which made it
labourious for the believers to read and understand.
Because of this, the priority of Kumārajīva was to
re-translate the important classics. And for those
that had not been introduced yet, he was cautious
to translate and introduce. Kumārajīva read through
the old classics, and did find that there were “many
absurd interpretations that were mistranslated and
not corresponding to the original text.” In the fourth
Hongshi year of Later Qin (402 CE), Kumārajīva
was invited to translate the sutras in Ximing Garden
and Xiaoyao Garden. He either recited complete
classics by virtue of memory or translated based on
the existing Sanskirt versions. Those who listened
and assisted in the translation included Sengrui,
Sengzhao, Daorong, Daosheng, Tanying, Faqin
etc, who were the best selected for the work of
that time. According to the descriptions of several
monk biographies, when Pa¤caviü÷ati-sàhasrikàpraj¤àpàramità was translated, Kumārajīva held
the Sanskrit version by hand and Yao Xing read
the old sutra aloud to match and compare. All the
new translations made by Kumārajīva, which were
different from the old sutra, were fluent in diction,
accommodating in argumentation, which made
the congregation on the translation spot convinced
in admiration.
During his 12-year stay in China, the classics
translated by Kumārajīva, according to Kaiyuan
Shijiao Lu, 74 books, or 384 volumes or according
to conservative estimates, at least 35 books, or
294 volumes (according to the Collected Records
Concerning the Tripitaka). The primary translated
in and out of the imperial court, he served only
as an advisor. Though he was not able to expand
Buddhism, Kumārajīva managed to learn Chinese in
Liangzhou and attentively read the Chinese ancient
classics and history books, paving the way for future
work of translating sutras.
Yao Chang of Later Qin also admired the name
of Kumārajīva and repeatedly invited him modestly.
But Lu Guang and his successors, Lu Zuan and Lu
Long were jealous of his wisdom and capability and
feared that he would be used by Yao Chang and did
not want to let him travel to the east. Later, Yao
Chang died and his son, Yao Xing, succeeded the
throne. In May of the third Hongshi year of Later Qin
(401 CE), Yao Xing sent Duke Longxi Yao Shuode
to conquer Lv Long in the west. Kumārajīva was
not invited at the border until Lu Long surrendered
in September. He reached Chang’an on December
20. Yao Xing treated him with the etiquettes of a
state master and offered preferential respect. At this
point, Kumārajīva was detained outside the border
for nearly 20 years and he himself was already
58-years-old. Yao Xing “worshipped Triratna since
young age” and after the succession to the throne,
he made great efforts to foster Buddhism. After
Kumārajīva came, he talked with him all day
long without pause. Under the urge of Yao Xing,
Kumārajīva did not mind his old age and soon was
devoted to teaching in the central plains. In over a
decade’s time, he was diligent in translating a large
number of classics. As he was kind in nature, modest
and a good teacher, he was very popular among the
believers. His handsome and elegant appearance
and the clear and proud experience won the warm
worship of the Buddhists and laymen. Yao Xing
often said to him, “You, the master, are intelligent
and with genius which is unmatched in the world.
After your life, the Buddhism blood will have no
heir. How could that be?” So he chose 10 prostitutes
and forced him to accept. Kumārajīva had no way
out but to leave the monk room and live in the
official’s house, enjoying rich offerings and high
rank. Breaking the sexual precept twice, Kumārajīva
could not avoid being criticised by the people. The
holy man image of Kumārajīva was also damaged.
Later generations had sympathy for his vicissitude.
Another legend even appeared in the Book of Jin,
saying that at that time, some Buddhist disciples
saw him living with a wife and in another house
and wanted to follow his example. He summoned
them together and put an entire pot of steel needles
in front of them and said, “Those can imitate me
can marry and live in another place.” And then
he swallowed the needles as usual. All the monks
were ashamed and refrained from these delusions.
Such legends tried to persuade people that he had
exceptional gifts which could not be measured with
274
Cultural Contacts
for local dialect. It is like it is still segmented and
not integrated”. As for this, the later generation
noticed that staying long in Liangzhou was helpful
in his getting familiar with Chinese, so he could,
when translating sutras later, “held the source text
in hand and orally read it in the Qin language,
explaining it with two different dialects, and crossclarifying the central meanings”, which showed
his style as a great translator. What is critical,
however, was that Kumārajīva attracted a group of
very talented Chinese monks around him, the most
outstanding of whom were Daosheng, Daorong,
Daorui, Daozhao etc. They had domestic and foreign
learning with profound rhetoric. They understood
deeply Kumārajīva’s recitation and translation of
the sutras and could convey and write it in proper
and elegant Chinese. They were quite supportive in
the translation endeavour. Therefore, it’s difficult
to exactly estimate Kumārajīva’s Chinese level, but
the collective level of his sutra translation group is
beyond doubt.
Kumārajīva had a clear understanding of classic
translation itself. He never thought that translation
could fully convey the original canon, so he said,
“translating Sanskrit into Chinese would lose its
exquisite diction. Though the essential meaning is
conveyed, the language style is different. It is like
to chew food and give it to others; not only the
flavour is lost, but it makes people throw up.” As
for his work, he was very modest and proclaimed,
“I incorrectly serve as the translator with my
equivocal interpretation”. But for transferring the
essence of the classics, he was confident. Before his
death, Kumārajīva once swore before the crowd, “If
my transferring is infallible, my tongue will not be
burned after the burning of my body.” His body was
incinerated the Indian way outside Xiaoyao Garden.
It is said that as was expected “the fire went out and
the body vanished. Only the tongue was not turned
sutras
include
Vajracchedikàprajà¤pàramitàsåtra, Amitàbha-såtra, Saddharmapuõóarãkasåtra,
Vimalakãrti-nirde÷a-såtra, Praj¤àpàramità-hçdayasåtra, øåraïgama-samàdhi-såtra, Da÷abhåmikasåtra,
Dhyàna-niùñhita-samàdhi-dharmaparyàyasåtra, the Sūtra of Maitreya Bodhisattva’s Attainment
of Buddhahood, Madhyamika÷àstra, øata÷àstra,
Dvàda÷amukha÷àstra, Mahàpraj¤àpàramita÷astra
etc. There were also three volumes of Kumārajīva
Master Doctrines, which was a collection of letters
on the questions and answers between him and
Master Huiyuan.
Translation Style and Later Evaluation As a
prominent scholar studying both Mahayana and
Theravada, Kumārajīva went east to Chang’an
and “carried forward the ultimate doctrines, and
publishing excellent classics”, in order to clarify
the ambiguous border of Mahayana and Theravada
in China and actively expand Mahayana Buddhism
he believed as his own duty. His translation was
extremely serious. Sengzhao’s preface to a 100
Treatises called him “brief and concise, dedicated
to keep the essential points”. Sengrui’s preface to
the Treatise on the Perfection of Wisdom called him
“vulgar and dedicated, repeating a sentence three
times, striving to be perfect, dedicated to keep the
essential points”. His arduous work was conceivable
from these descriptions. In his late years when
translating Da÷abhåmika-såtra, as there were some
difficulties unsolved, though he had the original text
in hand, he delayed for more than a month until
his teacher, Buddhayaśas, came to Chang’an from
Kophen. He didn’t start to write until consulting
his teacher. His serious attitude towards translation
could be seen from this example. As for his translation
style, it is generally believed that he tended to
paraphrase, focussing on meaning rather than form.
Collection of Translation Records said that he “was
unique and highly unmatched, so his translation
emphasised comprehension first to convey the
Buddhism meaning”. It’s obvious that his primary
purpose was to deeply transfer the thoughts of the
original canon. Though he prioritised on conveying
the meaning as opposed to precise literal rendering,
as he knew well about Sanskrit and Chinese,
Theravada and Mahayana, he was fully capable of
modifying, adding or deleting his translation for
convenience. In fact, he did realise “adaptation to
local dialect, fun without distorting the original
text” and “although the article is variant, it does not
go against the central meaning”.
As for Chinese language level of Kumārajīva,
there were different valuations. Some said he “can
convert to Chinese with fluent transliteration”,
“expert in the central land and good at local dialect”.
Some said, he “knew the grand structure of the Qin
language (Chinese)... and had special preference
Da Zhilun translated by Kumārajīva
275
Cultural Contacts
20th year (376 CE) of former Qin Dynasty and was
regarded highly by Emperor Fu Jian. It was said
Fu Jian worshipped him as the god of his country,
whenever there was drought usually Fu Jian would
invite She Gong to call the dragon down to the
alms bowl. After that there would be heavy rain.
The gentries and civilians all admired his magic.
She Gong died in Jianyuan 16th year without any
illness. It was said his coffin was opened seven days
later for inspection, but his corpse had disappeared.
(Ge Weijun)
Kalayasas
Kālayaśas [Jiangliangyeshe] (about 390-450 CE)
was an Indian monk and sutra translator who came
to China in the Southern and Northern dynasties.
His name was translated as Shicheng in Chinese.
According to the records of Biographies of
Eminent Monks and Kaiyuan Catalogue of Buddhist
Scriptures etc, Kālayaśas from the Western Regions
was straightforward and had a pure heart and
fewer desires. He adopted a monastic life when he
was a teenager. He was proficient in Abhidharma,
read scriptures and sutras extensively, and had a
good knowledge of Chan School. In the first year
of Yuanjia of Song of the Southern Dynasty (424
CE), he crossed Liusha and arrived in the capital,
Jiankang (present-day Nanjing, Jiangsu). Emperor
Wen of Song respected him very much and arranged
for him to live in Zhongshan Daolin Vihara. Being
invited by Śramana Seng Han, he translated one
volume of Bhaishajyaraja Bhaishajya-samudgata
Sutra and The Sutra on Visualisation of the Buddha of
Infinite Life respectively which were written by Seng
Han in person. Kālayaśas left Jianye shortly and
went to other places to disseminate the way of Chan.
He came to Jiangling first, then arrived in Sichuan
in the 19th year of Yuanjia and then he returned to
Jiangling and died there at the age of 60.
(Ge Weijun)
A horizontal inscribed board at Kumārajīva Memorial Hall at
Caotang monastery
into ashes”. Not long later, a foreign śramana came
to China, and said Kumārajīva’s translation was not
as much as one-tenth of the classics he had a firm
grasp on. It was a matter of regret that could not be
made up for.
Zan Ning in his Biography of the Eminent Monks
in Song Dynasty said Kumārajīva’s translation
“has some fun of language of the natural Western
Regions” which showed his exquisite translation. His
translation works went far beyond his predecessors
and were beneficial for later generations. The
Collected Records Concerning the Tripitaka called
them “grand in expression, clear in sutra essence;
sublime words in Mahayana were so splendid”.
Although those were compliments, it was real
that they had always been highly regarded. Some
translation works, though translated by later great
translators in the pursuit of better meaning, could
not be replaced. The widely circulated are still
Kumārajīva’s translations such as the Diamond
Sutra, Lotus Sutra and so on.
(Ge Weijun)
She Gong
Dharmanandi
She Gong (unknown~380 CE) was the monk who
came to China in Eastern Jin Dynasty. He was
good at conjuration magic and was also known
as Sengshe.
According to the 10th volume of Biographies of
Eminent Monks, 95th volume of Book of Jin and
63rd volume of Fa Yuan Zhu Lin, She Gong was a
person from the Western Regions while his family
name was not known. She Gong had been śramana
since he was young. He was good at the skillful
method of deep breathing and could walk 250
km within one day without eating any grains. She
Gong could predict the events in the future what
he had said would be bound to become true. He
could also beg the magic dragon for rainfall with
mantra. She Gong arrived in Chang’an in Jianyuan
Dharmanandi [Tanmonanti] (c. 4th century CE) was
a monk who came to China in Eastern Jin Dynasty
for dissemination, education and translation of
Buddhist Scriptures. His name paraphrased in
Chinese meant joy with the understanding the
Buddha Dharma.
According to volume I of Biographies of Eminent
Monks, volume IX of Compilation of Notes on
the Translation of the Tripitaka and other data,
Tanmonanti was from the country of Tukhara
(northern Afghanistan). He was away from the
worldly life since childhood, intelligent and mature
in mind at an early age. He had read all classics
of Tripitaka and was specially good at chanting
and interpreting Ekottara Agama. All the fellow
276
Cultural Contacts
Dharmaruci
countrymen praised and admired his erudition.
Tanmonanti’s ambition was to develop and expand
Buddha Dharma so he travelled from the distance
through deserts and arrived in Chang’an in the
middle of Jianyuan’s reign of former Qin Dynasty
(365~384 CE) (in volume VIII of Three Treasures
of Previous Dynasties, it was said in the beginning
of Jianyuan’s reign while in Daoan’s preface of
Ekottaragama it was said in Jianyuan 20th year). He
was heartedly welcomed with courteous reception by
Emperor Fu Jian. On the request of Zhao Zheng, the
prefecture chief of Wuwei and also the great officer
of former Qin Dynasty, Tanmonanti cooperated with
Dao An, Zhu Fonian and other famous monks on the
translation project of 59 volumes of Madhyamāgama
and 41 volumes of Ekottarikāgama, totally 100
volumes, (it was also said 92 volumes). These two
Buddhist sutras were corrected by Samghadeva later
to make it contemporaneous. Besides, according to
volume VIII of Three Treasures of Previous Dynasties,
Tanmonanti had also translated two volumes of Tridharmika-śāstra and two volumes of Samgha-varti.
Later Fu Jian was killed by Yao Chang. Tanmonanti
again translated one volume of Sutta of Asoka’s
Abandoning of Evilness for the minister Yao Min in
Jianchu sixth year (the year of 391 CE, it was also
said in Jianchu second year) of Later Qin Dynasty.
However in volume I of Biographies of Eminent Monks,
it was said when the invader Yao Chang exerted
pressure on the areas inside Shanhaiguan pass,
Tanmonanti had already taken leave for Western
Regions. It was not known where he arrived which
was not the same as the above sayings. It is difficult
to mention how much sutras he had translated in
volume VIII of Three Treasures of Previous Dynasties
it was said five books and 114 volumes, while in
volume I of Biographies of Eminent Monks it was said
106 volumes.
(Ge Weijun)
Dharmaruci [Tanmoliuzhi] (also known as Fale and
Faxi in free translation) (c. 4th – 5th century CE) is
a Buddhist monk and famous translator who came
to China in Southern and Northern dynasties (420
-589 CE).
Dharmaruci
According to Biographies of Eminent Monks,
Dharmaruci was from Western Regions. After he
abandoned his family and became a monk, he was
famous for mastering vinaya. Puõyatàra once recited
Sanskrit Da÷a-bhàõavàra-vinaya in Chang’an Central
Temple and Kumārajīva translated it into Chinese.
However when he translated two-third of the vinaya,
Puņytārā died due to an illness. The eminent monk,
Hui Yuan, living in Mt Lu knew that Dharmaruci
mastered vinaya, so he quickly sent a letter to him
and hoped that he could bring the book to Chang’an
and continue to finish the translation. Dharmaruci
received the letter and earnest invitation of Yao
Xing, the emperor of later Qin Dynasty, and then
he came to China in the autumn of seventh year of
Hong Shi (405 CE) and finished the translation with
Kumārajīva. However before the vinaya was revised
and finalised, Kumārajīva died. So Dharmaruci went
to other places with vinaya. It was said that after
he had travelled to many places, he finally died
in Liangzhou (present-day Wuwei, Guzang with
district government on the west of Yellow River
within Gansu). Da÷a-bhàõavàra-vinaya was finally
supplemented and finished by Vimalàkùa.
(Ge Weijun)
Buddhavarman
Buddhavarman [Futuobamo] (Futuobamo in
paraphrase means conscious armour) was an Indian
monk and translator who came to China in the
Southern and Northern dynasties.
According to Buddhist texts such as Biographies of
Eminent Monks, Buddhavarman was exceptionally
gifted from childhood in ancient India. He disciplined
himself rigorously and learned Tripitaka extensively.
The monk especially understood Abhidharmamahavibhāśā-śāstra thoroughly and took it as the
A horizontal inscribed book at Kumārajīva
Memorial Hall at Caotang monastery
277
Cultural Contacts
He came to Pingcheng (present-day northeast of
Datong, Shanxi), the capital of the northern Wei, and
was respected by the crown prince Tuoba Huang,
whose father Emperor Taiwu took the advice of Situ
Cuihao to observe New Tian Shi Sect advocated by
Daoist Kou Qianzhi, demolished Buddhism in the
seventh year of Taiping Zhenjun (Perfect Ruler of
Great Peace) of the Northern Wei Dynasty (446
CE) burnt temples and towers and forced monks to
resume secular life. Tan Yao believed in Buddhism
firmly and promised to defend it to death. The crown
prince persuaded him repeatedly but he still hid
monk clothes and instruments secretly and lived in
mountains as a hermit. Cuihao was killed four years
later. The crown prince, Huang, died next year.
Emperor Taiwu was killed a year later and Emperor
Wencheng succeeded the throne when he was 12.
Under the influence of his father Tuoba Huang, he
sent out the imperial decree to resume Buddhism
with the support of ministers and assigned the
monk, Shi Xian, to be Buddhist ruler a year later.
Shi Xian died in the first year of Heping of Northern
Wei Dynasty (about 460 CE). Tan Yao replaced
him and the title was changed into Śramana ruler.
He governed Buddhist monks and nuns. Emperor
Wencheng respected him as his teacher and he
became famous gradually. Monks and laymen
respected him greatly. After becoming the Śramana
ruler, Tan Yao was invited by Emperor Wencheng
and he chiseled five rock caves and carved Buddha
images on the northern cliff of Wuzhoushan Valley
in the west of Pingcheng. The images were about 60
or 70 chi (1 chi=1/3 m) high which were carved
grandly, and they ranked No. 1 at that time. He built
a temple named Lingyan Temple. The establishment
of Datong Yungang Grottoes started from this.
Hereafter, Emperor Xianwen and Emperor Xiaowen
visited the grottoes several times. In the third
year of Heping (462 CE), Tan Yao lived in Tongle
Temple of Yungang Grottoes and convened eminent
monks to translate four volumes of Great Luck and
Righteousness Sutra and one volume of Sutra of Pure
Salvation, and he translated six volumes of Handing
Down of Buddha’s Teachings and 10 volumes of Sutra
of Miscellaneous Treasures (Saüyukta-ratna-piñakasåtra) with Kekaya, the Śramana from Western
Regions. In the second year of Huangxing of the
Northern Wei Dynasty (468 CE), Emperor Xianwen
conquered two prefectures Qin and Qi of Song of
Southern Dynasty. He moved hundreds of local
households to Pingcheng which were called Pingqi
households. Tan Yao submitted a written statement
to the Emperor and asked Pingqi households
and those from other places which can provide
60 hu (1 hu=100 kg) of grains to be monastic
households, and their grains were called monastic
grains. Meanwhile, severe criminals and official
core of all sutras. During Yuanjia Period (424-453
CE) of Southern Dynasty, the eminent monk arrived
in Liangzhou (present-day Wuwei where Guzang
served as the capital, west of Yellow River valley
in Gansu). In the very beginning, Śramana Daotai
had obtained the original Abhidharma-mahavibhāśāśāstra containing verses totalling more than
100,000 characters from nearby Congling (presentday Pamirs) and brought it back to Guzang. He
modestly waited for a really qualified translator.
Buddhavarman was invited to translate the sutra as
soon as Daotai learned about his arrival. From the
lunar fourth month of 14th Year (437 CE) of Yuanjia
Abhidharma Vibhāṣa
Period, Buddhavarman started the translation
work at Xianyugong in the city of Liangzhou with
the help of Daotai (who paraphrased the sutra
according to Buddhavarman’s verbal translation)
as well as Huisong, Daolang and over 300 other
erudite monks (who researched into the bilingual
texts). Their 100-volume monumental work had not
been finished until the lunar seventh month of 16th
year of Yuanjia Period. Soon afterwards, Liangzhou
was in chaos as Northern Wei attacked Guzang.
As a result, many valuable objects including the
above translations were tragically burnt down.
Almost nothing was left. Fortunately, 60 volumes
were copied upon the imperial edict from Northern
Liang’s king and then transferred to Southern
Dynasty where they were preserved well. Later,
another monk, Daoting, wrote an introduction to
the great work which still exists. But Buddhavarman
fled westward and vanished without a trace.
(Ge Weijun)
Dharmayasas
Dharmayasas [Tanyao] (birth and death are
unknown) was a monk and translator who came to
China in the period of Northern Wei Dynasty and
contributed to the revival of Buddhism here.
The native place of Tan Yao is unknown. He
was possibly from Western Regions. According to
records of Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks
and Book of Wei: Annuals of Buddhism and Taoism
etc, he became a monk when he was a teenager. He
followed Buddhism firmly, cultivated himself and
learned scriptures in Liangzhou (present-day Wuwei,
Gansu) and was famous for being proficient in Chan.
278
Cultural Contacts
King Temple in Linhuai County, Sizhou Prefecture of
the Great Tang (volume 263 of Complete Prose Works
of the Tang). From Li Bai’s poem, Master Samgha in
volume 96 of Extensive records of the Taiping Era and
volume 18 of Song Dynasty Collection of Biographies
of Eminent Monks, it can be seen that Samgha
propagated Mahayana doctrines and was proficient
in tantric mantras. This reflected propagation
conditions of Mahayana and Tantra in Central Asia
and China. Samgha was very influential and there
were many supernatural legends after his death. He
was honoured as “Wise Master” by Emperor Yizong
of the Tang after 100 years of his death. In the late
Tang Dynasty, temples were built widely where his
images were established and he was known as “the
Great Wise Monk Samgha”. In the period of Emperor
Taizong of the Northern Dynasty, Zhao Jiong (976997 CE) ordered to rebuild his pagoda. He was
known as “Great Saint in Sizhou”. Jiangsu joint
archaeological team found Samgha's bodily relics of
Wukong Temple in Qingyang, Jiangyin in November
2003 in the underground palace. Moreover, volume
27 of Records of the Transmission of the Lamp, volume
15 of Buddhist Records, volume 2 of Su Shi’s Collected
Works of Su Dongpo and volume 9 of Luo Mi’s Grand
History had relevant records of Samgha.
(Xue Keqiao)
slave shall be Buddha households and engage in
cleaning temples, growing crops and transporting
grains. His statement was approved and laid
economic foundation for revival of Buddhism. The
measure had great influences on the development of
future Buddhism.
(Ge Weijun)
Samgha
Samgha [Sengjia] (628~710 CE) was a monk who
came to China from the east of Uzbekistan. He
adopted monastic life when he was a teenager. A
wandering monk, he intended to go south India
previously but changed his mind and went to China.
He went to Xiliang (present-day Wuwei, Gansu)
at first and then towards east to Jianghuai in the
first year of Longshuo of Emperor Gaozong of the
Tang (661 CE) and lived in Longxing Temple in
Shanyang (present-day Huaian). Hereafter, he
built temple on the foundation of ancient Xiangji
Temple in Linhuai (present-day Xuyi). There were
more and more mysterious legends and he won his
reputation largely. Li Xian, Emperor Zhongzong
of the Tang Dynasty (705-710 CE) wrote Universal
Light King Temple for the inscribed board of the
temple and approved him to take three disciples.
All of them made great achievements. In the second
year of Jinglong (708 CE), he was invited to internal
bodhimanda and was honoured as the national
master. He died in a sitting posture two years later
and was buried in Universal Light King Temple.
The eminent monk, Wan Hui, honoured him as 'the
incarnation of Avalokitesvara' at that time. The
great poet, Li Bai, had a good relationship with
him and wrote a Song of Samgha (volume 166 of
Complete Poems of the Tang Dynasty) praised him as
“real monk” and described his morality, appearance
and manner. Li Yong wrote Stele of Universal Light
Siksananda
Siksananda [Shichanatuo] (652-710 CE) was an
Indian Buddhist monk and famous translator who
came to China during Tang Dynasty. His name
is also translated as Shiqichanantuo and in free
translation is Xuexi.
According to volume II of Buddhist Biography in
Song Dynasty, volume IX of The Kai-yuan Record
of Buddhist Books, Siksananda was from Northern
Khotan (present-day Hotan in Sinkiang). He was
intelligent and generous, had remarkable charms
and great learning. He not only mastered Mahayana
and Theravada but was also proficient in other
areas of knowledge. During Wuzhou period, people
advocated Buddha dharma, especially Mahayana. At
that time Buddhavatamsaka-Mahavaipulya-Sutra had
no complete Chinese translation. When Empress Wu
Zetian heard that there was a complete scripture in
Khotan, she despatched an envoy to search for it
and invite translators for it. Therefore, Siksananda
came to China with the BuddhavatamsakaMahavaipulya-Sutra in Sanskrit. He reached Luoyang
in the first year of Zhengsheng (695 CE), lived in
the Dabiankong Temple in the imperial palace and
began the translation of the scriptures in March with
Śramana Bodhiruci from southern India and Śramana
Yijing reading out, Śramana Hongjing, Yuance and
Fazang writing and checking the meaning, and
Śramana Fuli reviewing. Empress Wu Zetian often
Saṃgha
279
Cultural Contacts
he was cremated for commemoration. It was named
Huayan Sanzang Pagoda by local people. In addition
to the above scriptures, Siksananda also translated
two volumes of Dizang Bodhisattva Invocation Sutra,
and one volume each of Sutra Spoken by Great
Samantabhadra, Tathagatas Grahaka-citta-abhava
State Sutra, Tathagatas Wisdom Grahaka-citta-abhava
Sutra, The Discourse on the Ten Wholesome Ways of
Action, Sutra of the Benefit of Walking Around Pagoda
Clockwise, Four Sutra of Mahayana, Avalokiteshvara
Secret Buddhadharma Nyo-i-rin Dharani Mantra
Sutra, Ambrosia Dharani Sutra, Sutra of the Dharani
for Miaobi Seals and Banners and The Dharani Sutra
of 100,000 Seals, with each having one volume.
According to the record in The Kai-yuan Record of
Buddhist Books, his translated works belonged to 19
categories and were in total 107 volumes.
(Ge Weijun)
Fazang pingzhuan
came to the translation workshop in person, wrote
the preface and first named it. The translation was
finished in October of the second year of Shengli
(699 CE) in Foshouji Temple, with 80 volumes in
39 categories. In the first year of Jiushi (700 CE),
Empress Wu Zetian came to Sanyang Palace in
Yingchuan, ordered Siksananda to translate seven
volumes of Lankāvatara-sutra and wrote a preface
for it. Later, Siksananda finished the translation of
Manjuśri Vyākarana Sutra in Qingchan Temple in
Chang’an and Foshouji Temple in Luoyang, with
Śramana Bolun and Xuangui writing, Śramana
Fabao and Hengjing checking the meaning, Śramana
Fuli arranging the sentence patterns and official
Taizi Zhongshe, Jia Yingfu monitoring. In the fourth
year of Chang’an (704 CE), Siksananda made the
request to return with the reason that he wanted
to serve the aged mother and finally received the
approval under repeat requests. Empress Wu Zetian
ordered the censor Huo Siguang to escorted him to
Khotan. After Emperor Zhongzong of Tang regained
the throne, Siksananda was called up to Chang’an in
the second year of Jinglong (708 CE). He was sent
a beautifully decorated elephant to come riding,
Emperor Zhongzong of Tang in person greeted him
outside Kaiyuanmen and all the monks awaited
him holding their own banners. Siksananda lived
in Dajianfu Temple but fell ill before beginning
the translation. On October 12 of the first year of
Jingyun of Emperor Ruizong of Tang (710 CE), he
died at the age of 59, lying on the right side with
feet together. A month later, he was cremated at
Gurandeng Platform outside Kaiyuanmen. It was
said that his tongue remained after firewood burned
up. Ten days later, his bone ash and tongue were
returned to Khotan under the escort of disciple
Beizhi and official Geshu Daoyuan. A tower was
built specially for the storage. In Chang’an, a
pagoda with seven floors was also built at the place
Jnanabhadra
Jnānabhadra [Ruonabatuoluo ] (c.7th century
CE) was a Buddhist monk and translator from
Nanhai Sea in Tang Dynasty with the name in free
translation as Zhixian.
According to volume II of Buddhist Biography in
Song Dynasty, volume IX of The Kai-yuan Record of
Buddhist Books, and volume-I of Biographies of the
Westward Pilgrims in the Tang Dynasty, Jnanabhadra
was from Keling country (Java Island) of Nanhai
Sea. He was well-versed in Tripitaka of Sutras,
Vinaya and Abhidharma and had wide knowledge
of Mahayana and Theravada. During Linde Period
of the Emperor Gaozong of Tang (664-665 CE),
Śramana Huining from Chengdu wanted to
go to India to seek holy relics by sea and met
Jnanabhadra when passing Keling country so he
stayed there for three years and translated two
volumes of Mahaparinirvana-sutra together with
Jñànabhadra. The translation was brought by
monk Yunqi to China, quickly sent to Chang’an
from Jiaofu (present-day Hanoi, Vietnam), and
finally presented to the imperial court. After the
monk returned, Huining continued his journey
to India. Thereafter, there was no message from
him. Other record said that after the translation
was sent to Jiaozhou in the first year of Yifeng
of the Emperor Gaozong of Tang (676-678 CE).
The governor Liang Nandi despatched an envoy
with the monk, Yunqi, to carry it to Chang’an. In
the third year of Yifeng, the scriptures began to
circulate with the advice of Śramana Linghui from
Da Ci’en Temple to the prince. Yunqi was ordered
by his master to promote the scriptures, and did
not follow the master to India. The scriptures
under their joint translation were saved up to now
with the name of Mahaparinirvana-sutra.
(Ge Weijun)
280
Cultural Contacts
Li She
debate, Lishe was awarded the “Great Master of
Shining Religion” as well as money and silk for
building temples. Later, he wrote one volume On
Legislation. In his old age, he was once found fault
and relegated to Handong. After being remitted,
he lived in the Longxing Temple in Nanyang and
was respected by Master Huizhong there. Li She
described Huizhong as being noble in temper
who would be paid attention to by the emperor
with his morality. Later, Huizhong was respected
and honoured by Emperor Xuanzong, Suzong and
Daizong as expected, as “Master Huizhong of the
State”. During Dali Period (766-779 CE) under
the reign of Emperor Daizong of Tang, Śramana
Yuanzhao, a sutra translator in Ximing Temple
collected the speeches and actions of Lishe and
wrote 10 volumes of Biography of Master Lishe in
Anguo Temple of Tang. The time of death and life
span of Li She remains unknown.
(Ge Weijun)
Li She (7 -8 century CE) was a monk, a senior
disciple of Xuanzang and a Buddhism theorist who
came to China in Tang Dynasty.
According to volume XVII of Biographies of
Eminent Monks in Song Dynasty and volume XVI of
Biographies of the Six Monk Scholars etc Li She was
born in the Western Regions and was a Brahmin
by caste. He was ambitious, alert and resourceful
at a young age and travelled eastward to Greater
China with his close friends. He met Master
Xuanzang in Jinsuo Mountain and became a monk
after adjuration. Since then, he read a wide range
of sutras and was enlightened gradually, thus
becoming a senior disciple of Xuanzang. Emperor
Zhongzong of Tang recognised his importance
and nobles and royal officials also liked to make
contact with him. In Kaiyuan Period (713-741
CE) during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of
Tang, he gave a sermon on Avatamsaka Sutra in
Anguo Temple, which was, it is said, crowded with
believers from all directions. However, Wei Ding,
the temporary supervisor secretary in Dali, advised
the emperor that Buddhism and Taoism should
be banned for they would corrupt the political
affairs. Emperor Xuanzong of Tang convened
about 300 people holding beliefs in Confucianism,
Buddhism and Taosim respectively, to debate in
the imperial palace for recognition. Although Wei
Ding defeated Ye Jingneng, a Daoist and Siming
monk, he was defeated by Li She with a poem,
“Maybe the Buddhism doctrine appears as inaction
(Wuwei), why should the current court have
action (Wei)? There have been no Wei (Empress
Wei) for more than three years, so I wonder what
Wei (WEI Ding) is for now?” By the poem, Lishe
mentioned delicately the realities in the former
dynasty, suggesting that Wei Ding might have
family relations with Empress Wei, who murdered
Emperor Zhongzong of Tang in 710 CE (fourth
year of Jinglong Period), reminding Emperor
Xuanzong of the hidden pain, and thus beating the
rival with imperial power. Upon his success in the
th
th
Siladharma
Śiladharma [Shiluodamo] (c. 8th and 9th centuries
CE) was an eminent Indian monk and translator.
The name, Shiluodamo, was paraphrased as
sila-dhamma.
According to volume III of Biographies of
Eminent Monks in Song Dynasty and volume XVII
of New Directory for Buddhism in Zhenyuan Period
etc Shiluodamo was born in Khotan (present-day
Khotan of Sinkiang), had profound attainments in
Buddhism and a good command of both Chinese
and Sanskrit which made him to be a great master
locally. In the first year of Zhenyuan Period
(785~804 CE) during the reign of Emperor Dezong
of Tang Dynasty when eminent monk Wukong
passed through Beiting (present-day Pochengzi in
the north of Jimusar of Xinjiang) on his way back
to Central Plains from Uttarapatha, Shiluodamo
was sincerely requested by Yang Xigu (a military
governor) and Dazhen (Sramana of Longxing
Temple) to translate the scriptures of Sanskrit
version taken with Wukong. Nine volumes of
Da÷abhumika-sutra was firstly translated, during
which Shiluodamo read the Sanskrit text and
interpreted it. Dazhen wrote down the translated
text, Śramana Fachao embellished the text,
Shanxin reviewed the meaning and Wukong
reviewed the Sanskrit text. Later, one volume
of Sutra of Buddhist Sermon on Dedication was
translated. Upon accomplishment and compilation,
Duan Mingxiu, who was the Beiting Pacification
Ambassador, happened to return to Chang’an for
mission reporting. As a result, Wukong set out with
the translated sutra together with him and arrived
in Chang’an in 789 CE, the fifth year of Zhenyuan
Period. After being scribed by Dou Wenchang (an
The frontal palace hall at the Longxi monastery in Nanyang,
Henan Province, China.
281
Cultural Contacts
Purnacandra
Pūrņacandra [Manyue] (9th century CE) was a monk
as well as a sutra translator who came to China in
Tang Dynasty.
According to volume III of Biographies of Eminent
Monks in Song Dynasty etc Manyue was born in
the Western Regions and held in esteem because
of his capability in yoga as well as its magic
effects after he came to Chinesia. In Kaicheng
Period (836-840 CE) during the reign of Emperor
Wenzong of Tang Dynasty, Manyue at submitted
the imperial palace the Sanskrit sutras in hope
of translating and spreading them. However, his
request was deferred due to the social and legal
disorder out of the “Ganlu Incident” which had
just taken place between royal court ministers and
eunuchs. Master Zhixuan, who was honoured as
“Enlightening Master of the State”, was willing to
accept Manyue as a master and requested him on
his behalf to translate the incantations. Manyue
then cooperated with the others to translate four
volumes of Collection of Dharani Sutras and one
volume of Sutra of Buddhist Sermon on Dignity for
Emperor Pixutuo. These were repeatedly reviewed
and checked in order to convey the complete
essence of Buddhism. Regretfully, the latter was
missing and the former was not included into
the collection as there had been 12 volumes of
Collection of Dharani Sutras at that time. Other
traces of Manyue remain unknown.
(Ge Weijun)
Foshuo shidi jing
official who governed monks and nuns), the sutras
were submitted to the imperial palace and compiled
into the New Directory for Buddhism in Zhenyuan
Period according to the imperial order in 799 CE,
the 15th year of Zhenyuan Period. Shiluodamo
returned to Khotan after the translation.
(Ge Weijun)
Wutitichanyu
Wutitichanyu (between 8th and 9th centuries CE) was
an eminent monk who was adept at translation of
Western Regions sutras. The name, Wutitichanyu,
is also translated as Wutitixiyu and paraphrased as
lotus virya.
According to volume III of Biographies of
Eminent Monks in Song Dynasty and volume XVII
of New Directory for Buddhism in Zhenyuan Period
etc Wutitichanyu was born in Qiuci (present-day
Kuqa of Sinkiang), had a good command of both
Chinese and Sanskrit and once lived in Lianhua
Temple which was located outside the western
gate of Qiuzi. In the first year of Zhenyuan Period
(785~804 CE) during the reign of Emperor Dezong
of Tang Dynasty, when eminent monk Wukong
passed through Qiuci on his way back to the
Central Plains from Uttarapatha, Wutitichanyu
was sincerely requested by Wukong to translate the
scriptures of Sanskrit version taken with the latter.
Therefore, Wutitichanyu translated one volume of
Sutra of Buddhist Sermon on Ten Powers for him.
In 789 CE, the fifth year of Zhenyuan Period,
Wukong returned to Chang’an with Duan Mingxiu
who was the Beiting Pacification Ambassador and
returned to Chang’an for mission reporting and
submitted the translated version of the abovementioned sutra and other two scriptures to the
Imperial Palace. Later, the sutra was compiled into
the New Directory for Buddhism in Zhenyuan Period
according to the imperial order in 799 CE, the 15th
year of Zhenyuan Period.
(Ge Weijun)
CHINESE PERSONALITIES
Liu Ying
Liu Ying (about 26-71 CE) was the King of Chu and
a Buddhist believer in Eastern Han Dynasty. He was
the son of Liu Xiu (5 BCE-57 CE), Emperor Guangwu
of Han. His biography was recorded in Scroll 72,
Book of Eastern Han History. In the 15th year of
Jianwu (39 CE), he was conferred the title of Duke
of Chu, awarded as King of Chuin in the 17th year
and acquired his own fief in the 28th year. Since his
mother, Madam Xu, was not favoured in Emperor
Liu Xiu’s eyes, Liu Ying’s fief was the smallest and
weakest. When Emperor Ming of Han Liu Zhuang
was the crown prince, Liu Ying was friendly to him
and relied on him. Liu Zhuang also liked Liu Ying
and he repeatedly granted rewards to Liu Ying after
he became the Emperor. In the 13th year of Yongping
(70 CE), Liu Ying was reported that he associated
with necromancers, intended to conspire against
the Emperor and should be beheaded. But Emperor
Ming remembered his former friendship, took back
Liu Ying’s fief and downgraded him to Jingxian,
Danyang (present-day Jingxian, Anhui), where he
was granted with a small fief of Tangmu Town with
282
Cultural Contacts
in Xuzhou, for shelter. Tao Qian appointed him to
supervise the grain transportation in Guangling
(present-day in Yangzhou, Jiangsu), Xiapi (presentday in Weining, Jiangsu) and Pengcheng (presentday in Xuzhou, Jiangsu), and assigned him the
head of Xiapi. According to Liu Yao Biography in
volume IV of the History of the Three Kingdoms,
after becoming appendage to Tao Qian, Zuo Rong
indulged his subordinates slaughtering and robbed
goods transported in three counties as his own. "Then
he began to build a Buddha temple. The Buddha was
cast with copper for body and decorated with gold,
with bright and beautiful dressing and nine copper
discs. Beneath were pavilions with the capacity
of holding over 3,000 people to learn Buddhist
texts. The temple admired many people who were
interested in Buddhism around the county or other
counties and altogether over 5,000 people came
there. There was food and drink in every ceremony
of washing figures of Buddha. People who came to
visit or eat food were as many as 10,000. The cost
can be calculated as hundreds of millions. This is
the earliest record of building Chinese Buddhist
statues in temple. This suggests that there had been
group chanting of Buddhist believers in Yangze
river and Huai river region. and there were scenes of
ceremony of washing figures of Buddha and giving
food. The reason that Zuo Rong believed Buddhism
was affected by Liu ying, king of Chu, who was a
Buddhism believer, and whose feud was in the
Yangze River and Huai River region. Therefore,
Buddhism had influence in the region. Through
building Buddhist temples and Buddha statues, Zuo
Rong tried to attract believers and gather people to
recite sutras, in order to gain himself fame. And he
also promoted Buddhism in the public by providing
food and drinks and exempting believers’ corvee,
expanding the influence of Buddhism.
(Tan Jie)
500 tenants. Unfortunately, in April of the next year,
Liu Ying committed suicide in Danyang (presentday in Xuanzhou City, Anhui).
Liu Ying had errantry when he was young, made
friends with warriors and knights. He loved learning
about studies of Emperor Huang and Lao Tzu in his
later life, fasted and sacrificed for pagoda. In the
eighth year of Yongping (65 CE), Emperor Ming sent
out an imperial decree that all criminals condemned
to die could be atoned by paying silks. As the King
of Chu, Liu Ying asked his counsellor to pay tributes
Chuwang Ying
of 30 pieces of silks for atone his mistakes. Emperor
Ming of Han declared: “King of Chu reads teachings
of Emperor Huang and Lao Tzu and advocates
kindness of pagoda. He cleaned himself and
abstained from meat and alcohol for three months
and made vows to the Heaven. What sin does he
have and what confession should he make? Return
the tributes back to him and sumptuous dinner of
lay Buddhists and sramanas.” This declaration was
spread to all kingdoms. The academic circle thinks
that the recording about Liu Ying is the earliest
prove about Buddhism being missionised in China.
It is said that Emperor Ming of Han dreamed a
golden man, stood tall and there was light above
his head. The next day, Emperor Ming asked his
chancellors about his dream. Someone said: “There
is an immortal in the west named Buddha who is six
Chinese inches tall and golden.” King of Chu, Liu
Ying, began to believe Buddha’s teaching. Emperor
Huan of Han was fond of divinities and sacrificed to
Buddha and Lao Tzu many times. Firstly, only a few
people believed in Buddha but gradually, Buddhism
flourished. And Buddhism was spread in China.
(Tan Jie)
Zhu Shixing
Zhu Shixing (203-282 CE) was a Buddhist monk
of Wei in the three kingdoms. He was born in
Yingchuan (its seat of local government was in
Yangzhai, present-day Yuzhou, Henan) with the
alternate names of Zhu Zixing and Zhu Shiheng.
There was a biography in Volume 4 of Eminent Monks
by Huijiao in Liang Dynasty. His dharma name was
Eight Commandments which was believed to be the
origin of the name of one of the chief characters in
famous Chinese classical novel Journey to The West.
Zhu Shixing had great dreams and aspirations in his
juvenile and intended to get rid of vulgar world.
After becoming a monk, he focussed on sutras and
scriptures. When he taught Dao Hang Bo Ruo Jing
(ie Astasahashrika Prajnaparamita Sutra) in Luoyang,
he sighed with emotion that the translation did
Zuo Rong
Zuo Rong (195 CE), born in Danyang (present-day
Xuanzhou, Anhui), was a Buddhist in late Eastern
Han Dynasty. He once gathered hundreds of people
to go to his townsman Tao Qian, head of government
283
Cultural Contacts
He was born into Yuezhi family in Dunhuang. At
the age of eight, he became a monk and adopted
the name of his master, an Indian monk named
Zhu Gaozuo. He was said to be clever, with an
extraordinary memory, able to recite 10,000 words
a day, learned and well-read. He was kind, studious
and never minded secular praise or disapproval.
During the reign of Emperor Wudi of Jin (265-290
CE), Chinese Buddhists only cared about constructing
temple statues and overlooked introducing
Mahayana scriptures. Seeing this, he went westward
with his master and dedicated himself to translating
Mahanaya texts found in the Western Regions. It is
said that during the trip he had become proficient
in 36 languages. He came back from the Western
Regions with a great number of Buddhist texts
and worked diligently to translate them along the
way from Dunhuang to Chang’an. From 266-308
CE, for over 40 years, he had been preoccupied
with translation, “taken as his mission to introduce
Buddhism and devoted his life to sutra translation
in a tireless manner”. He also built a temple in
Chang’an and his proselytising was very popular and
attracted thousands of followers. During the reign of
Emperor Huidi of Jin, political instability rose and
people were displaced. Dharmaraksa, already an
old man, went eastward to avoid chaos and came
to Mianchi and died there shortly afterwards at the
age of 78. He translated many sutras and his major
works include the following: Jataka (five books),
Lalitavistara (eight books), Guangzan Jing (10
books), Zheng Fahua Jing (10 books), Foshuo A Wei
Yue Zhi Zhe Jing (three books), Dasabhūmika-sūtra
(five books), Dengmu Pusa Suowen Sanmei Jing (six
books), Du Shi Pin Jing (six books), Wenshu Shili Foshi
Yanjing Jing (two books), Foshuo Ruhuang Sanmei
Jing (two books), Dengji Zhongde Sanmei Jing (three
books), Da Ai Jing (eight books), Baonǚ Suowen Jing
(four books), Foshuo Wuyan Tongzi Jing (two books),
A Cha Mo Pusa Jing (seven books), Xianjie Jing (eight
books), Chixin Fantian Suowen Jing (four books),
Foshuo Xuzhen Tianzi Jing (four books) and Xiuxing
Daodi Jing (seven books).
The Jataka translated by Dharmaraksa Later
generations thought highly of his contribution to
spread Buddhism. Dao An, an eminent monk in
East Jin Dynasty, said, “Dharmaraksa, a bodhisattva,
for his teachings and works, worthy our profound
esteem…… and provides the mass with a ladder to
enlightenment.” Sengyou also said, “It is due to the
efforts of Dharmaraksa that Buddhist sutras become
widely circulated in China.” Unlike his predecessors,
Dharmaraksa, instead of arbitrary deletions,
strove to be faithful to the original text as likely
as possible, and as Dao An said, “his translations
were unpolished and made as they originally were,”
however, “though not elegant, they are still great
not explain all the truth of dharma, so he sworn to
travel to the west for the Perfection of Wisdom Sutra.
He started off from Yongzhou (present-day Xi'an,
Shaanxi) in fifth year of Emperor Ganlu (260 CE)
in Wei of the three kingdoms. He passed Liusha and
arrived at Khotan (present-day Khotan, Xinjiang),
where there was many Indian immigrants and was
popular with Buddhism. In Khotan, he made a copy
of Perfection of Wisdom Sutra in Sanskrit with 90
chapters and over 6,00,000 words. He intended to
send back the Sanskrit version to Luoyang by his
disciples but was thwarted by Hinayana believers
who believed that this sutra was not the formal sutra
of Buddhism and submitted written complaint to
the King of Khotan, requiring that this sutra should
be forbidden to be introduced to China. In order to
prove that the Sanskrit version can be introduced
to China, Zhu Shixing threw the sutra into fire and
the sutra was burnt but undamaged. Everyone was
shocked and believed that it was divine. In the third
year of Emperor Taikang (282 CE) of Western Jin
Zhu Shixing
Dynasty, Zhu Shixing sent back his disciple Furutan
(Fa Rao) back to Luoyang with Perfection of Wisdom
Sutra. The first year of Emperor Yuankang (291 CE)
of Western Jin Dynasty, Khotan’s Sramana Wuruocha
and Henan’s lay Buddhist Zhu Shulan translated it
into Chinese ie Fang Guang Ban Ruo Jing with 20
volumes. Zhu Shixing stayed in Khotan and died of
an illness at the age of 80 in an alien land. During
his lifetime he wrote the Han Record in one volume.
Zhu Shixing initiated three First in the history
of Chinese Buddhism. He was the first monk from
Chinese mainland areas to accept bhiksuni, also the
first to teach sutras (Dao Hang Bo Ruo Jing), and to
travel to the west for further study of Buddhism.
He set a good example to Faxian, Xuanzang and
the others for travelling west for further study
of Buddhism.
(Tan Jie)
Dharmaraksha
Dharmaraksa (about 231-308 or 239-316 CE) was
a monk-translator in Western Jin Dynasty and was
also known as Dunhuang Bodhisattva.
284
Cultural Contacts
around and study. He arrived in Yedu and entered
Zhong Temple. Here he was taught by Fo Tucheng
and was appraised by him. Fo Tucheng lectured on
Buddhism sutra, and Dao An was required to repeat
it once again for the monks, who looked down on
him due to his unattractive appearance. But Dao
An talked with keen words and repeatedly solved
others’ doubts and the people at that time said, “The
monk with dark skin and unattractive appearance,
Dao An, surprised the others”.
Later, he went to Hu Ze (present-day Jin County in
Shanxi) and then to Feilong hill, Taihang Mountains
Heng Mountains and built a tower temple there.
Dao An came back to Ye Du when he was 45-yearsold and lived in Shoudu Temple with hundreds of
disciples. At the time Shi Hu died, Ran Min started
rebelling. Da An moved to Qiankou Hill situated to
the west then led followers to Wangwu and Rulin
hills (present day Shanxi). Within 15 years after
Fo Tucheng passed away (348 CE), Dao An and his
disciples moved between Hebei and Shanxi areas,
they practised dhyana and lectured on Buddhism.
Later, they crossed the river to Luhun (presentday Song County in Henan) to avoid wars, lived in
seclusion and studied further. At this moment, the
disciples who followed Dao An included Fa Tai, Hui
Yuan and more than 500 people.
Shortly after Dao An arrived in Lu Hun, Murong
family invaded Henan. Dao An led the followers
Jātaka Tales translated by Zhu Fahu
and fluent.” He was assisted by Nie Chengyuan and
Nie Daozhen (father and son). Nie Chengyuan was
talented, dedicated and methodical, and in addition
to assigned dictation, he also helped paraphrase
and produce more fluent and elegant translations.
Nie Daozhen was good at writing and Sanskrit and
quite helpful for Dharmaraksa. Zhu Fashou, Chen
Shilun, Sun Bohu, Yu Shiya and the like were also
involved in the work of translation, dictation and
proofreading. But his translations vary with style
and complexity and sometimes language, obviously
because these works were produced over a long
period of time, in different places and with different
participants. His works, though retranslated later
on, still have an important value of reference.
Dharmaraksa was a prolific translator. According to
Chu San Zang Ji Ji compiled by Seng You, altogether,
he translated 154 sutras and 309 books. This figure
was enlarged later on, and in Tang Dynasty, Kaiyuan
Shijiao Lu recorded 175 sutras and 354 books, with
91 sutras and 208 books extant. Lv Cheng, a modern
scholar, considered this number to be 74 sutras and
177 books while the recent estimate by Tong Wei
indicated 97 sutras and 211 books.
(Ge Weijun)
Daoan
Daoan
Daoan (312-385 CE) was a monk of East Jin
Dynasty. His surname before becoming a monk
was Wei. His hometown was Fuliu of Chang Shan
(present-day Ji County in Hebei Province) and
was born in a family of Confucian scholars. His
parents passed away early and was brought up by
his cousin Kong. He became a monk when he was
12 and his master let him do farm work since his
appearance was ugly. Three years later, he was
asked to read Buddhist sutra. He could recite it over
in one night that showed his superb memory. After
receiving full ordination, he was allowed to travel
south and he led Fa Tai to Yang Zhou, Fa He to
Sichuan, and led his disciple, Hui Yuan, and other
400 people to cross the river at night. They arrived in
Xiangyang (present-day Xiang Yang in Hubei) in the
third year of Xingning of Emperor Shuai (365 CE).
The general Heng Huo guarding Jiangling invited
Dao An to move there while Zhu Xu who guarded
Xiang Yang also invited Dao An to come back. Dao
An lived in Xiang Yang for 15 years, he stayed at
white horse temple first. Because the temple was
too narrow to accommodate more people, with the
support of grandees, they set up Tan Xi Temple,
285
Cultural Contacts
monks and nuns in the areas of Han nationality and
has been followed since then.
(Tan Jie)
where a five-floor tower and a copper Buddha
figure of six Zhang (a unit of length, one Zhang is
about 3.33 m) were built. The Emperor of Pre-Qin
Dynasty, Fu Jian, had known his reputation and
despatched messengers with foreign gold Buddha
figures, gold statues, Maitreya figures etc.
During this period, a celebrity named Xi Zaochi
wrote letters to further friendly relations and Gao
Ping and Xi Chao also sent letters of greeting. Dao
An frequently lectured Fang guang po ruo sutra every
year here. In the fourth year of Taiyuan of Emperor
Wu (379 CE), Fu Pi captured Xiang Yang, and Dao
An was sent to Chang’an (present-day Xi’an in
Shaan Xi). It is said that Fu Jian told to his governor
Quan Yi that, “I acquired Xiang Yang by hundreds
of thousands of army, but only got one-and-ahalf persons.” One person meant Dao An, a half
person, referred to Xi Zaochi. Dao An read books
extensively and was good at writing articles and the
junior scholars in Chang’an attached themselves to
his reputation. Fu Jian ordered the scholars who
had doubts to learn from Dao An who translated
Buddhism sutra in Chang’an and wrote The Theory
of Reality which was later lost. There is now only
the catalogue reserved in volume 12 of Tripitaka
Records. He had also composed Catalogue of
Comprehensively Sorting out Buddha Sutras which is
not available now. Tokiwa Daijo in Japan wrote the
recovery catalogue for Catalogue of Comprehensively
Sorting out Buddha Sutras. On February 8, the 10th
year of Taiyuan of Emperor Wu (385 CE), Dao An
passed away without any illness when he was 74.
He was buried in Wu Ji Temple.
Dao An made a great contribution to Chinese
Buddhism which can specifically be seen in the
following areas: firstly, he devoted himself to the
study of Prajna Sutras. The theory of Ben wu faction
that he founded was one of the most influential
factions in Six schools and seven factions of Prajna
study in East Jin Dynasty. It improved the process
of sinicisation of Buddhism. Secondly, he reviewed
the existing translated versions and annotated and
translated the classics. He developed “five-missing,
three-no easy” and other scientific judgment methods
for translation. His Catalogue of Comprehensively
Sorting out Buddha Sutras was the first Buddha Sutra
Catalogue in the history of Buddhism in China.
Thirdly, he managed monk groups and formulated
normative ritual regulations such as methods of
purification, seat arrangement and sutra lecture;
methods of diet and preaching for six periods daily
and methods of Busa assigning repentance. He was
thus the founder of temple regulations in Chinese
Buddhism. He unified the surname Shi, regulating
the surnames of monks and nuns sharing the same
surname - Shi and were the offspring of Shakyamuni
which is the unified regulation for the surname of
Zhidun
Zhidun(314~366 CE)was a monk of Eastern Jin
Dynasty. His courtesy name was Daolin. People later
called him Zhi Gong or Lin Gong to show respect.
He was also known as Zhi Xing. His surname before
becoming a monk was Guan. His hometown was
Chenliu (present-day Kaifeng City in Henan) or Lin
lu at the east of Yellow River (Lin County in Henan).
He was born in a Buddhist family, turned a
refugee and lived in the south of Yangtze River
during his childhood. In the capital of Jiankang,
he kept in touch with celebrities like Wang Meng
from Taiyuan and Yin Rong from Chen Prefecture
and was highly appreciated. He lived in seclusion in
Yuhang hill, researched Asahasrika Prajnaparamita
Sutra and other classics, translated Vaipulya Sutra
and Saddharmapundarika Sutra in the first year
of XianKang (335 CE). He became a monk when
he was 25. Metaphysics prevailed in Wei and Jin
dynasties, Buddhist monks also joined in discussion.
Zhi Xun was proficient in Buddhism and understood
the theories of Lao Tse and Chuang-Tzu well. He
travelled with Xie An, Wang Qia, Liu Hui, Yin Hao,
Xu Xun, Xi Chao, Sun Chao, Heng Yanbiao, Wang
Jingren, He Cidao, Wang Wendu, Xie Changxia
and Yuan Yanbo. He used to discuss Chuang Tse’s
Carefree Journey with Liu Xizhi and others in White
Horse Temple and provided new interpretations,
and all these scholars gasped in admiration. After he
came back to Wu area, he set up Zhishan Temple.
Later, he intended to go to Shan county.
When he went through Kuaiji, he came across
Wang Xizhi. As invited by Wang Xizhi, he presented
the article about Carefree Journey, which expressed
new understandings with gorgeous rhetoric and
literary talent. Wang Xizhi opened his mind and
admired Zhi Dun’s opinions and talent. Wang Xizhi
invited Zhi Dun to live in Lingjia Temple. Later Zhi
Dun preached at Xiao Lingli Temple of Wozhou in
Selected works of Zhi Dun
286
Cultural Contacts
of Sutra” of “Notes of Madhyamaka Shastra” which
said, “The nature of the form is that the form doesn’t
exist separately, its nature is emptiness. ‘Cognition’
is the action from the heart, when the thinking is
finished, cognition’ will distinguish”; or shown in
the introductory remarks Collected Works of Zhi Dun
Chapter of Wonderful View of New Account of the Tales
of the World Literary Papers which reads “the nature
of the form is that the form is not spontaneous,
doesn’t exist separately, the nature of the form is
emptiness although it exists. Therefore, the form is
still the emptiness.” He researched The Ten Bhumi,
stood for arising epiphany at the seventh Bhumi, the
ones above the seventh Bhumi still needed further
studying, he was one of the six scholars of “little
epiphany” at East Jin Dynasty. He emphasised
on spreading dhyana thought, endowed Dhyana
with explanation of sinicisation. And he also set
up precept platform in Shi Cheng and Wo Zhou.
Based on Indian Buddhism, Zhi Dun integrated
local traditional culture to explain Buddhism sutra,
his philosophy was in accordance with Lao Tse
and Chuang, his style and charm were similar with
speakers which made Buddhist principles easy to be
understood and accepted by Chinese believers. Xi
Chao commented Zhi Dun is “the only one that really
interpreted Buddhism sutra clearly since hundreds
of years, made the truth continue to inherit”. The
greatest contribution of Zhi Dun to Buddhism is
that he made great efforts to let Buddhism become
sinicisation and localisation.
(Tan Jie)
Shan County (present-day Sheng County in Zhejiang
province). Hundreds of monks listened and learnt
from him. He moved to Shicheng Hill, set up
Qiguang Temple. He lived and devoted himself in
the Temple. Then he went to Shanyin and lectured
Vimalakirti-nirdesa-sutra, Zhi Dun was Master and
Xu Xun was his assistant. They questioned and
answered and studied Buddhist principles. Zhi
Dun went to the capital after being invited by an
imperial order during the period of Emperor Ai
of Jin Dynasty. He lived in Dong’an Temple and
lectured on Asahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra, both
court people and commoners heartily admired his
lectures. Three years later, he came back to Shan
county and passed away at the age of 53. Xi Chao
wrote biography for him, Yuan Hong composed and
inscribed laudatory words on an inscription, Zhou
Tanbao made the memorial essay for him and Sun
Chao compared Zhi Dun to Xiang Ziqi (ie Xiang Xiu,
philosopher and litterateur at Wei-Jin dynasties) in
his Theory of Moral and Distinguished Men.
Zhi Dun wrote Theory of Ji se you xuan, Explanation
that form itself is emptiness and others, all of which
were lost. His two works were reserved in volume 8
of Tripitaka Records. He was good at cursive clerical
script, fond of raising fine horses, his works and
articles were handed down from ancient times and
the present Guang hongming collected works included
about 20 ancient poems of him. It was recorded
in eight volumes in the anthology, Annals of Sui
Dynasty Sutra Records, with the note of 13 volumes
as recorded in Liang Dynasty; in Annals of Tang
Dynasty Art and Literature Record, it was recorded
as 10 volumes till the Qing Dynasty. Both Record
of Reading and diligent Studying and Bibliography of
Shu Gu Hall recorded as two volumes, from which
it shows that the book had been lacked or missed
for a long time. At present, two volumes of Collected
Works of Zhi Dun in Shaowu Xu’s version from
Guangxu Period of Qing Dynasty is attached with
one volume of supplement.
Zhi Dun was the representative of Chinese
Buddhism at Wei and Jin dynasties. “Faction of
Ji Se” that he founded and “Faction of Entity” of
Dao’an and Daoqian, “Faction of Heat Emptiness”
of Zhi Mindu were the factions that had greatest
impact in “Six Schools and Seven Factions” of Prajna
study in East Jin Dynasty. He had profound research
on Prajna, his representative works Theory of Ji se
you xuan has been lost, a few words and phases are
recorded in Zhao Lun Shu which reads, “I believe that
form itself is emptiness”. It is emptiness not because
the form is distinguished, this is what I mean; the
nature of the form is emptiness although it exists.
Such as, cognition is the action from the heart, when
the thinking is finished, cognition will distinguish.”
or shown in the introduction “The Profound Meaning
Fahe
Fahe (319-397 CE) was an eminent monk and
Buddhist scholar of Eastern Jin Dynasty. He was
born in Jizhou County (Hebei Province) or according
to some in Xingyang County (Henan Province). He
and Daoan (314-385 CE) were taught by the same
teacher when they were young. Fahe was always
peaceful and quiet by nature and was famous for
his modesty and courtesy. He was also good in
presenting his position in a clear and firm manner,
in summarising his theory and in solving puzzling
questions. Around the middle of the 4th century CE,
the Shi Clan Rebellion (which resulted in Shi Le of
the clan establishing the regime known as 'Later
Zhao') broke out in northern China. Fahe, together
with Daoan, fled to the south to avoid the war and
fighting. In 365 CE, they arrived in Xinye (Henan
Province), where Daoan divided his followers into
several groups. Fahe led a part of the followers
to go to Sichuan to develop and expand dharma,
and many people in Eastern Sichuan and Southern
Shaanxi were attracted by him to study Buddhism.
In the fourth year of Taiyuan Period (379 CE), under
the reign of Emperor Xiaowu of Eastern Jin Dynasty
287
Cultural Contacts
(373–396 CE), Fahe heard that Fu Pi, originally a
high-ranking military officer in Emperor Aiping
(384 CE) of Former Qin in the Sixteen Kingdoms
period, conquered Xiangyang (Hubei Province) and
captured Daoan and took him to Chang’an (Shaanxi
Province) where Daoan was received with courtesy
by Fu Jian, the Emperor of Former Qin Regime. Fahe
then entered the central Shaanxi plain and resided
in Yangping Temple of Luoyang. According to the
records of volume 5 of Biographies of Eminent Monks,
during the fifth year to sixth year of Taiyuan Period
(380-381 CE), Fahe participated in the Meeting of
Jinyugu (present-day Liubu Town, Licheng District,
Ji'nan City, Shandong Province) and climbed one
mountain with Daoan. On the mountaintop, he
sighed mournfully, This mountain is so high but
there are still many people who are willing to climb
it and appreciate the beautiful scene from the top.
If I just die here where can my spirit be found in
nirvana? Daoan responded. Your Master, you have
such intelligent attitude towards this life, why should
you be afraid of your future life? If the wisdom and
spirit of people cannot be enlightened that is truly
what makes us sad about. After that Fahe began to
assist Daoan to revise the translated Buddhist Sutras,
“to explain and determine the pronunciation and
writing as well as to attach meaning to the texts
in detail”. Buddhist Sutras which Fahe undertook
for revision include volume 30 or volume 20 of
Abhidharma J¤ànaprasthana-÷àstra translated by
Kashmir’s Samghadeva, volume 16 or volume 13 of
Abhidharmahçdaya-÷àstra, volume 14 of VibhàùàAbhidharma-÷àstra, volume 10, volume 12 or
volume 14 of Vasu-mitra- såtra (aka Vasumitra)
translated by Kophen Samghabhadra, volume 14,
volume 15 or volume 19 of Vibhàùà÷àstra (aka,
Bing Po Sha Abhidharma, Guang Shuo), volume 3 or
volume 5 of Samgharakùasamgraha (aka, Collections
of Samgharakùa) as well as volume 41, volume
33 or volume 50 of Ekottarikàgama and volume
59 of Madhyamàgama translated by the monk,
Dharmanandi of Tukhara. After Daoan died in 385
CE, Fahe went to Luoyang where he and Samghadeva
re-translated parts of the new Buddhist Sutras which
were printed previously and revised the errors.
During the period of Emperor Yao Xing (394-415
CE) of Later Qin, Fahe went to the central Shaanxi
plain again to develop and expand Buddha dharma
there. Kumārajīva once composed some verses in
his praise to give him as a present, one of which
says, “Powerful heart is just like a high mountain
which can cultivate wise and able morality, and
this morality can bring advantages and benefit for
the later generations forever. Although you are just
like a bird standing on a lonely tree, the beautiful
voice can echo to the clouds.” After that, Baron Jin
Yao Xu of Later Qin invited Fahe to reside in Puban
Footprints of the Buddha, the Mahavihāra in Bodhgaya, India
(now Yongji City of Shanxi Province). Once, when
he gathered the monks to explain and publicise
Buddhist dharma, he told his followers that “there
are so many sufferings and miseries in this world
and it is happy to be dead”. He then freshened up his
clothes, made respectful salute around the pagoda
and then returned to his house. He died there at the
age of 80.
There are two main contributions of Fahe to the
spread of Buddhism of China. First, he went to
Sichuan to develop and expand Buddha dharma,
which brought people in Sichuan so far unexposed
to Buddhism to learn about dharma. This pioneering
achievement led to rich and prosperous growth of
Buddhism in Sichuan. Second, he went to Luoyang
and re-translated parts of the newly-printed
Buddhist Sutras together with Samghadeva, “after
that, all of those Buddha Sutras gradually have
correct translated editions.”
(Huang Xianian)
Faxian
Faxian (342~423 CE) was an eminent monk of
Eastern Jin Dynasty, a traveller and sutra translator.
Life history
Faxian, whose common family name was Gong,
was born in Wuyang, Pingyang (southwest of
present-day Linfen, Shanxi Province). Since there are
many versions about his life, native place and place
of birth, we follow the standard version. According
to volume III of Biography of Eminent Monk, volume
XV of Record of Tripitaka and Record of Buddhism
States written by Faxian himself, he once had three
elder brothers, all of whom had died at the age of
seven or eight. In order to preserve his health and
for his long life, his parents made him become an
acolyte when he was only three and sent him to live
in temple years later due to his illness. When he
was 10, his father died and he rejected his uncle’s
request of resuming commoner’s life. He accepted
the complete percepts at the age of 20. Even at
288
Cultural Contacts
his young age, Faxian was tenacious, brave and
intelligent. He once encountered a gang of robbers
during harvesting grains with other tens of acolytes.
While others escaped out of fear, he stayed on to
reason with the robbers. Subsequently, due to his
persuasion, robbers left without the grains. All the
monks in the temple were surprised by his firmness
and admired him.
After accepting the complete percepts, Faxian
studied hard and conscientiously but was often
disappointed due to the lack of complete sutras.
He, therefore, became determined to go to India
to get Sanskrit sutras on percepts. In 399 CE, the
third year of Long’an Period during Emperor An of
Eastern Jin Dynasty, he set out from Chang’an to
India to seek for Buddhist learning with his fellow
students - Huijing, Daozheng, Huiying and Huiwei.
They travelled through Hexi Corridor to Zhangye,
where they met another five monks - Zhiyan,
Huijian, Sengshao, Baoyun and Sengjing and went
forward to Dunhuang together. They then passed
across “Quick-sand” (ie Yardang desert) in two
groups. Despite supplies from Li Hao, the prefecture
The ruins of the monastery of Anuradhapura in Sri Lanka. Faxian stayed
here while transmitting the dharma.
out earlier to the state of Kashgar, (present-day Shule
of Xinjiang) while Faxian and other people stayed
for viewing the “Buddha Procession” organised
by local temples. Later, Sengshao went directly
to Kashmir with a local Śramana and left without
leaving any trace of their whereabouts. Faxian and
other people, however, went to the state of Kashgar
to meet Huijing and others. Climbing over Pamir
and going across rivers, they arrived successively
in the state of Oddiyana in northern India (presentday Swat Valley in Pakistan), the state of Gandhara
(present-day Pakistan), the state of Taksila (presentday Taxila of Pakistan) and the state of Fulousha
(present-day Peshawar of Pakistan). By then,
Huiying died of sickness. Faxian intended to go
to central India for Buddhist sutras on percepts
with Huijing and Daozheng while Huida, Baoyun
and Sengjing returned to homeland. When Faxian
and the people with him climbed southward over
the Small Snow Mountain (present-day Sunaman
Mountain in Afghanistan), Huijing died of illness
during a cold storm, thus leaving only Faxian and
Daozhang to trudge forward to central India.
During his stay in central India, Faxian studied
Sanskrit, collected sutras on percepts and went on
pilgrimages to ancient Buddhist sites. He obtained
Faxian
chief of Dunhuang, the desolation, hot wind and
other dangers made them loose directions. They,
however, moved further without any consideration
for survival by relying on the sun and piles of bones
of the dead as signs of direction. Seventeen days
later, they finally came out of the desert to Shanshan
(present-day Ruoqiang of Xinjiang) and went on
northwestward to the state of Wuyi (present-day
Yanqi of Xinjiang) where the two groups of monks
met, forming a new group of 11 people with the
participation of Huida. However, they did not obtain
sufficient supplies and support in the state of Yanqi,
so Zhiyan, Huijian and Huiwei had to return towards
Gaochang (present-day Turfan) to get their supplies
replenished. Others however continued to move
southwestward and trudged through desolation to
Khotan (present-day Khotan of Xinjiang). The chief
of Khotan accommodated Faxian and other people
in a temple. Then, Huijing, Daozheng and Huida set
Faxian amidst the ruins at Anuradhapura
289
Cultural Contacts
hope of protecting sutras and Buddha statues taken
with him.
After drifting for 13 days, the damaged ship
was drawn alongside an unknown island. People
mended the ship and travelled on for another
90 days to Yavadipa Island (present-day Java of
Indonesia), where Faxian went on another travel on
a merchant’s ship to Guangzhou with Sanskrit sutras.
He unfortunately once again encountered storm and
turbulence. People on the ship were in anxiety and
a Brahman even said that it was this Buddhist monk
who had brought bad luck to them. The monk should,
therefore, be sent off-board on a sea island. Thanks
to the persuasion of Faxian’s sponsor, the people did
not take any such action in the end. Owing to the
cloudy weather, the ship, however, had not arrived in
Guangzhou even 70 days later. Taking chance, people
sailed the ship northeastward alongside the land. Ten
days later, they realised that they had arrived at
Mahasangha Vinaya from Tian Wang Temple located
in south of Asokan Tower in Pataliputra, the state of
Magadha (present-day Patna of Bihar). He lived in
Pataliputra with Daozheng for three years to study.
While Daozheng decided to further stay there, Faxian
was determined to take the collected Sanskrit sutras
back to homeland. He went southward alone on a
ship at the estuary of the Ganges River. After trudging
his way to Simhaladvipa (present-day Sri Lanka),
Faxian stayed there for two years, obtaining Sanskrit
sutras such as Mishasai (Mahāśāsakah) Percepts, Long
Agama, Combined Agama and Combined Collections,
which were not found in China. Even up to present,
there are places named after Faxian like Faxian Cave
and Faxian Stone Village. On his way back eastward
from there on a merchant’s ship, storms damaged the
ship, leading to water leakage and loss of direction.
People on the ship dropped things with them in panic
while Faxian sat and prayed to Avalokitesvara in
Faxian’s Travels
er
Riv a)
us ary
Oxmu D
(A
Kangju
s
untain
e Mo
Whit
Guishancheng
Dayuan
Shule (Kashgar)
Laolanhai
Baihe
Congling
(Pamir)
Yumen
Pass
Jiuquan
Dunhuang
Zihe
Shanshan
Udyana
Yutien (Khotan)
Darada Yumo Kunlun
Moun
Gandhara
tains
Purushpura
North
(Peshawar)
Taksha- India
Rohi
shila
Kasmira
Ledu
Jincheng
Bhida
Fuguo
Mathura
Central
Sankasya
Zangqu
Kapilavastu
Sravasti
South India
Changguang
Laoshan
Jiankang
Jingkou
East
China
Sea
Champa
Tamralipti
Changjiang River
CHINA
Pyu
Eastern Jin
Yizhou
Guangzhou
yi
Lin
Funan
(Combodia)
Ancient
Capital
City
Bohai
Sea
Pengcheng
Chang’an
er
Riv
cang
Lan
INDIA
Rama
Kushinagar
Vaishali
a
ng
Ga
Kanyakubja India
Kausambi
Banaras
Later
Qin
Northern
Wei
Jiangling
iver
Zhou R
In
du
sR
iv
er
Bannu
Tu
yuh
un
Str
ira
jya
Gaya Pataliputra
Rajagriha
Nagara
Gaogouli
You
Zhou
Pingcheng
River
Yellow
Darouzhi
Gaochang
Sinhala
Travels to India
Yav
adv
ipa
Return Journey
(Ja
va)
290
South
China Sea
Cultural Contacts
the Preface of Biographies of Eminent Monks Seeking
Dharma in Tang Dynasty). Faxian’s travels thus
opened up communication with India for seeking
the dharma and is of pioneering importance in the
history of India-China cultural communication.
Thirdly, travelling around various states, Faxian
wrote his famous one volume on travel notes i.e.,
Record of Buddhist States (the full name is Biography
of Master Faxian Travelling Westward from Chang’an
and Record of Travel in India), in which he recorded
what he saw and heard during the travel as well
as noted the geography, transportation, religion,
culture, product, customs and even social and
economic conditions of over 30 countries in Central
Asia, India and Southeast Asia. These materials are
now precious historical sources to study ancient
history, culture, geography and Buddhism in
ancient Central and South Asia. The travel route of
Faxian to India leaves a genuine real record of land
route from Chang’an through the Western Regions
to India as well as of the sea route from India to
his way back to China. This is the earliest detailed
record of such path and of significance in the history
of transportation and marine navigation between
China and South Asia.
(Tan Jie)
The Hindi version of Faxian’s travelogue
Faxian zhuan
Laoshan Mountain in Qingzhou, Shandong Province
(present-day Laoshan Mountain in Qingdao).
After 14 years of travel, Faxian returned to his
homeland finally on July 14, 412, the eighth year
of Yixi Period. He arrived in Jiankang (present-day
Nanjing of Jiangsu), the capital of Jin Dynasty,
in the autumn of the second year (413 CE). He
lived in Daochang Temple where he translated six
volumes of Maha Bonihuan Sutra, two volumes of
Fangdeng Nihuan Sutra (now missing), 40 volumes
of Mahasangha Vinaya, one volume of Percepts of
Buddhist Monk Sengqi (now missing), 13 volumes
of Combined Abhidharma Heart Sutra (now missing)
and one volume of Combined Collections together
with Buddhabhadra, an Indian master, and sorted
out six books of sutras, percepts and sermons, with
63 volumes in total. He died in Xinsi Temple in
Jingzhou at the age of 86.
Contribution
The contributions of Faxian can be divided
into three areas. Firstly, he brought back and
translated the three of the five most important
books on Buddhist percepts (Mahasangha Vinaya,
Sapoduo [Sarvastivāda-vinay] Percepts and Mishasai
[Mahāśāsakāh] Percepts) which played a significant
role in the spread of Buddhism in China. Secondly,
Faxian’s travel to seek dharma encouraged people
of the later generations to undertake such trip for
pilgrimage and study eg Xuanzang and Yijing in
Tang Dynasty, who went to India to seek dharma.
Praising Faxian, Yijing once said that, “in whole of
China throughout since the ancient times, Master
Faxian has been a pioneer in seeking dharma and
Master Xuanzang in creating a formal path” (see
Huirui
Huirui (355~439 CE) was a monk who was
proficient in Buddhist scriptures in Liusong between
East Jin Dynasty and Southern dynasties, once
touring around southern India.
According to volume VII of Biographies of Eminent
Monks, volume II of Local Records of Sakya and
volume XV of Records by Monk You, Huirui was born
in Jizhou (present-day Hebei Province) and became
a monk at a young age. He observed strictly the
precepts and dedicated in touring for sutra study.
Once when touring in the western Sichuan Province,
he was detained by local people and forced to
be a shepherd. Later, when a businessman and
Buddhism believer passed through there, he found
Huirui uncommon in appearance and sounded
him out by query on Buddhist classics. Surprised
at his proficiency, the businessman ransomed him
to continue his cultivation. Thereafter, Huirui had
been devoted himself in Buddhism, studied as he did
before, and toured around. He once arrived in the
southern India through western Sichuan Province.
He was a disciple of the famous monk, Dao An, in
his early time, and later stayed in Mount Lu for rest,
and went to Chang’an with Dao Sheng, Hui Yan
and Hui Guan to seek knowledge from Kumarajiva.
Later, when he went to the Wuyi Temple in Jianye
(present-day Nanjing in Jiangsu Province) to give his
Buddhism preaches where he achieved reputation
out of his mastering principles of Buddhism as
291
Cultural Contacts
and others. They were invited by the celebrities to
work on translating sutras and preaching in Sanskrit
which Baoyun had initiated. Baoyun translated six
volumes of Righteous Sutra, five volumes of Buddhist
Goodness Sutra, two volumes of Reborn Sutra and
two volumes of Purity Samadhi. He thus translated
a total of four parts and 15 volumes. Baoyun also
translated with Zhi Yan six volumes of Lalitavistara
Sutra, one volume of Four Heavenly Kings Sutra, four
volumes of Broad Strictness Sutra, totalling three
parts and 11 volumes. His actions of going west
for sutras and checking and translating sutras were
respected and admired by the followers.
(Tan Jie)
well as incisive explanation. Liu Yikang, prince of
Pengcheng in Southern Dynasties, requested Huirui
again and again to be his master and wanted him
to go to his palace. Huirui refused him for the same
due to the rules of coming for studying instead of
going for teaching, and Liu Yikang was so ashamed
that he went to the temple for his monkhood. Being
familiar with local customs, pronunciation and
meaning, gloss for classics as well as local accents,
Huirui was often consulted with by Xie Lingyun
who was interest in principles of Buddhism and
later wrote The Fourteen Homophone Explanation
through listing respectively in Sanskrit and Chinese,
on pronunciation and meaning of words and
expressions in scriptures. Huirui died at 85, in the
16th year of Yuanjia Period (439 CE) during the
reign of Emperor Wen of Song.
(Ge Weijun)
Zhimeng
Zhimeng (453 CE) was from Jingzhao, Xinfeng
of Yongzhou (northeast of Lintong District, Xi’an,
Shaanxi). He became a monk when young and
learned Buddhism with all heart, consistently
reciting sutras day and night. He heard from foreign
Śramana that there were relics of Sakyamuni and
sutras on equality and other areas in India, so he
made up his decision to go there. In the sixth year
of Emperor Hongshi of Yaoqin (403 CE), he invited
15 Śramanas overall to start from Chang’an. They
passed through Yangguan, escaping from quicksand
and travelled via Shanshan, Qiuci, Kingdom of
Khotan and other countries where he also became
familiar with the folk customs. When they came
to Pamirs, nine of them retreated due to arduous
conditions they encountered and one passed away
during the journey. Only Zhimeng and the other
four climbed over Snow Mountains and got through
Xintou River (Sindhu/ Indus River), and finally
arrived at Kashmir. In Saudi (present-day Taxila),
Zhimeng met with Sutra Salivary Pot and Buddha’s
bowl. In Kapilavastu, Zhimeng saluted to Buddha’s
hair, Buddha’s teeth and other Buddha treasures such
as bones, and visited the relics. Finally, he arrived
at Asoka’s old capital, Hua Country (present-day
Patna) where he paid a visit to Brahman Luo Yue
of supreme wisdom and got one Sanskrit version of
Nirvana and one Law for Monks and other Sanskrit
sutras. In first year of Emperor Yuanjia of Song
Dynasty (424 CE), Zhimeng decided to go back to
China, his three partners had all died, leaving only
him and Yunzhuan to return to Liangzhou (Wuwei
of Gansu). In Liangzhou, Zhimeng translated 20
volumes of nirvana. In the 14th year of Emperor
Yuanjia (437), Zhimeng went to Sichuan and
wrote one volume of his travel journal to the west
(not available now), describing the travelling
experiences and folk customs he saw and heard of.
Towards the end of Yuanjia year, Zhimeng passed
away in Chengdu.
(Tan Jie)
Baoyun
Bao Yun’s (372-449 CE) hometown was unknown
and some said he was from Liangzhou (presentday Wu Wei of Gansu). At a young age, he became
a monk. He was diligent in studying sutra with
an ambition of reading numerous sutras. In early
Long’an year of Eastern Jin Dynasty (397 CE), he
went west to seek dhamma. Despite walking through
quicksand and climbing up Snow Mountains and all
kinds of dangers, he went ahead with his journey
and met Faxian, Zhi Yan and others and finally
arrived in India through the Kingdom of Khotan and
other countries. He visited and saluted all Buddhist
relics and spared no efforts in studying Sanskrit.
He could understand the language and words of
various Indian regions. After he returned, he came
to study Chan Buddhism with Sangye Bhadra (refer
to the note) in Chang’an (Xi’an of Shaaxi Province).
Then soon afterwards, Bhadra was elbowed away
by local monks to Mount Lu on the invitation of
Hui Yuan. Baoyun also separated from his teacher
and went east to Nanjing and settled down in Dojoji
Temple. As he liked to live in seclusion, he moved to
Liuheshan Temple. Remote and stark, the residents
there were mostly robbers and thieves. Baoyun
persuaded the residents to stick to goodness. As
a result, most residents got rid of evil behaviour
and obeyed Buddhism. In Yuanjia of Song Dynasty
(424-453 CE), Śramana Hui Guan of Dojoji Temple
was going to pass away and invited Baoyun to host
the administrative affairs. Baoyun had to return
but only after one year he went back to Liuheshan
Temple again. In the 26th year of Emperor Yuanjia,
Baoyun died in the temple at the age of 78. Baoyun
was proficient in Sanskrit, “Baoyun’s translations
were superior to all in Jiangzuo region”. Many
prominent monks gathered in Liusong such as
Sangye Bhadra, Sangha Rudravarman (Monk Kai)
292
Cultural Contacts
Kang Falang
Huisheng
Kang Falang (4th century CE) was a monk who
travelled to India for Buddhist Sutra. His dates
of birth and death are unknown. He was born in
Zhongshan (present-day Henan Province or Ding
County in Hebei Province). He became a monk
when he was young and was strict in precepts. He
and Zhu Faya taught the disciples by method of
“comparison” ie to explain the Buddhist scriptures
in combination of Chinese scriptures. He also
discussed the scriptures with Dao’an and Fatai and
all could seize the key points. He swore to travel
to India to worship the Buddhist sites and seek the
scriptures. So he invited four people, and they set
off from Zhangye in Gansu Province, and crossed
the quicksand westwards. The place was deserted
after they had walked for three days. And then
they saw an old temple with weeds springing up
inside and there were two old rooms. There was
one person in each room: one was chanting sutras,
and the other one had dysentery. The sick person
soiled the room, making it dirty and smelly.
Though the two people lived next to each other,
they did their own things and did not take care for
each other. Falang felt deep sympathy and said to
his partners, “We are all monks and are linked by
sutras. It was alright if we didn't know but how
could we turn a blind eye if we meet this?” So they
stayed there for a few days and took good care of
the sick person. On the seventh day, there were
fragrant flowers in the room everywhere and they
knew that the immortal was coming. The monk
who was chanting sutras said that Falang and his
partners were very sincere and persuaded them
that they didn't need to travel to all the countries
so far and only needed to continue to perform
morality and not miss the chance and he also
predicted that Falang would become the Exorcist
in Cathay (China). The four partners no longer
travelled to the west and only Falang went alone.
He travelled all around to seek and study the
scriptures. He then went back to Zhongshan and
gave lectures to teach Buddhism and propagate
sutras. There were hundreds of disciples. He was
never heard of since then.
Kang Falang was one of the disseminators of
Chinese “comparison” Buddhism. This method was
prevailing for a period but Dao’an thought that this
method was against the true meaning of Buddhism,
and didn't allow his disciples to follow and this
method then was abandoned afterwards. Kang
Falang travelled to the west for Buddhist Sutra and
taught Faxian when he came back which was earlier
than Yuan Chwang spreading the Consciousnessonly theory of Faxian and promoted the spread and
communication of Faxian in China.
(Tan Jie)
Huisheng (4th and 5th centuries CE) is a Chinese
monk who travelled to India for Buddhist scriptures.
In the winter of November, the first year of
Emperor Shengui (518 CE), the monk in Chongli
Temple named Bhikku Huisheng and Songyun
from Dunhuang were ordered to go to Western
Regions for Buddhist scripture. They started from
the capital of Luoyang, went west and first arrived
in Chiling (present-day Riyue Mountain, which is
situated to the west of Xining in Qinghai Province)
after crossing the quicksand/ desert they arrived at
Tuyuhun Kingdom (near Boukha-ingol on the west
bank of present-day Qinghai). It was a very difficult
journey due to snow storms, flying sand and rolling
pebbles all along the way.
They arrived in Zuomo city (present-day Qiemo
County of Xinjiang) via Shanshan city (present-day
Shanshan of Xinjiang), and saw statues of Buddha
and Bodhisattva. It was said that the statues were
constructed by Lu Guang (337-399 CE) when he
conquered Western Regions. Then they arrived
in Hanme city (located in the east of present-day
Keriya in Hotan, Xinjiang). There was a big temple
in the south of the city with more than 300 monks
in the temple as well as a 16 zhang (a unit of length,
=3.33 m) golden Buddha statue with a beautiful
appearance. They also saw thousands of Buddhist
pagodas hanging millions of streamers, and each
had an era name.
When they arrived in Khotan (near present-day
Hotan, Xinjiang), they saw the king wearing a gold
crown and women having good expertise in riding
horses. The dead were cremated and the remains
were put on the Buddhist temple. However, only
the king was not cremated after death and put in
the coffin, buried in the remote wild and a temple
was built to offer sacrifice to him. There was a stupa
and Pratyekabuddha boots in Khotan. In July, the
second year of Shengui (519 CE), they came to
Zhujubo (present-day Karghalik of Yecheng County
in Xinjiang), the natives lived in the mountains and
they did not kill animals. They fed on wheat flour
Remains of a Buddhist statue from Butkara, Swat Valley, Pakistan.
Archaeologists believe that this is the Tuoluo monastery where the
monks Huisheng and Songyu arrived in around 520 CE.
293
Cultural Contacts
hungry tiger. They used their travel funds and built a
tower on the top of the mountain. They inscribed it
on the stone to engrave their merits.
During that time, Song Yun was sick so they
stayed there for several months. In mid-April of the
first year of Zhengguang (520 CE), they reached
Gandhara. However, this country was fighting
with Kashmir so the king was not disposed towards
making offerings to foreign monks. They crossed
the Xintou river (Indus river), and reached Fofusha
city (Western Regions called it Balusha city). They
worshipped Buddhist temple, the place where
Buddha gave his eyes to the blind people and the
relics of Kasyapa Buddha and some other places.
Then they came to Gandhara to worship at the Queli
temple, the so-called “No. 1 temple” in the Western
Regions. Huisheng offered the 100-ft streamer gifted
by the Dowager Empress and asked a good craftsman
to use copper to copy Queli Temple and four Buddha
towers. Song Yun also offered two slaves to Queli
Temple to clean it forever. They also worshipped the
place where Shi Pi, the king, had saved the dove.
In February, the second year of Zhengguang (521
CE), they returned to the capital city. They obtained
170 Buddhist scriptures during their three years in
northern India. Huisheng described in detail such
things as natural resources, politics, customs, faith
of the countries and regions along the road. This is
recorded in the book written by him with the title
The Book of Huisheng, a Monk in the Northern Wei
Dynasty, Sent to the Western Regions. This is now
included in the 51st volume of Taisho-pitaka. It has
valuable materials for the study of the history of
interaction between ancient China and India.
(Tan Jie)
and only ate those animals that died from sickness
or by accident. The customs and language were the
same as Khotan and their character was the same as
a Brahmin’s (ie India).
In early August, they arrived at the border of
Pantuo (present-day Puli County), climbed up
Pamirs via Bomeng city (according to Series of Han
and Wei) and Dulongchi. Along with dangerous
cliffs, they were blocked with strong winds and
snow for thousands of miles, and finally, arrived at
the peak of the mountain.
In September, they reached Bohe (present-day
Hehan). The mountains were very high and the
valleys were deep, the winds and snow were so
strong that people and animals got together to be
warm. In early October, they entered Hephthalites
(ie Darouzhi, verified by Ding Qian, its capital now
being Polk city). It was a powerful country to which
more than 40 countries paid tribute. The king wore
luxuriant clothes and sat on a golden bed. This
country had good systems and rules, but the people
did not believe in Buddhist doctrine. They killed
animals and ate them.
In early November, they reached Persia (presentday Iran). People here lived in the mountains. The
shining snow made people dizzy. In mid-November
they reached Syamaka. The roads here were very
dangerous and narrow. Only humans and horses
could get through.
On the way from Bolor (near present-day Gilgit
in Kashmir) to Wuchang (present-day Swat valley
in Pakistan), they went by way of the air bridge on
which they could not see the bottom of the valley.
In early December, they reached Wuchang. The
weather was warm, people here were well-off, and
the king ate vegetables only and paid respect to the
Buddha in the morning and evening. After noon, he
would manage state affairs. Bells rang everywhere
and exotic flowers were in blossom. Huisheng
stayed here for two years.
In the north of the city, there was a Tuoluo temple
which had 6,000 Buddha statues and numerous
rooms for monks. The King often held meetings
here. Hui Sheng and Song Yun respected the monks
in the temple who were so austere in practising
Buddhism that they left two slaves in the temple to
help the monks to clean the temple.
There were many relics of Buddha around this city
so they visited and worshipped everywhere. In places
where the Buddha sat and where he dried his clothes,
they would note it on the tower. In the relic where
Buddha tore open his bones, the stone was very fresh.
In the southwest of the city, there was a Shanchi
mountain. On top of the mountain was Buddha’s
stone chamber, his thatched hut and so on. In the
mountain situated in the southeast of the city, there
was the place where Buddha offered his body to the
Fali
Fali (between 4th and 5th centuries CE) was a Chinese
monk who travelled to India for Buddhist scriptures.
There is no information about his hometown, his
birth or death. He had gone to the Western Regions
with Song Yun and Huisheng.
The 120th volume of the Book of Wei, the 97th
volume of the History of North Dynasties and the
196th volume of General Annals, as well as the
338th volume of Wenxian tongkao [Comprehensive
Chinese Encyclopedia], said the same thing about
him, “In the middle of Xiping era, Emperor Suzong
(ie Emperor Xiaoming Yuan Xu, 516-528 CE) sent
Wang Fuzi, Song Yun and Monk Fali to the Western
Regions for Buddhist scripture. At that time, Monk
Huisheng went with them too and they came back
in the middle of Zhengguang years.(about 523 CE).”
From these records, it has been understood that Fali
was one of those who went to the Western Regions
for Buddhist scripture.
(Tan Jie)
294
Cultural Contacts
Sengmeng
from his teacher but also from local monks and
earned good impression for local Chinese monks.
On the recommendation of Buddhasena, Zhi Yan got
acquainted with Sangye Buddhasena (Buddhasena
from Kapilavastu) and impressed by his profound
words invited him to go back together. Buddhasena
was moved because of Zhi Yan’s sincerity and
promised him a trip to China together. Despite
harshest travel conditions due to snow mountains
and deserts, they finally arrived in Chang’an (there
is another saying that they arrived at Weihai,
Shandong by sea route). However, soon afterwards,
Buddhasena was elbowed out by local monks and left
for Mount Lu. Zhi Yan stayed at Shandong Temple
(refer to the lower reaches of the Yellow River
region) where he meditated and studied diligently.
In the 13th year of Yixi of Eastern Jin Dynasty (417
CE), Liu Yu (363-422 CE) crusaded west with his
army to Chang’an and won the battle. He withdrew
his troops back in a route passing by Shandong. The
minister, Wang Hui was also with the army then. He
paid a visit to the mountains and entered the temple
where Zhi Yan stayed and found him and other two
monks sitting with pious countenance and fully
absorbed in Buddhism. Wang Hui had arrived for a
while but the three didn’t realise the guest coming at
all, even when Wang Hui spoke to them, they didn’t
reply him either. With respect, Wang Hui returned
and told Liu Yu of the entire matter. Liu Yu invited
them to go to the capital, but they had no intention.
As Liu Yu asked and asked again, they finally
recommended Zhi Yan there. Zhi Yan was treated
with courteous reception by Wang Hui during the
trip, and then settled in Shixing Temple. Then Wang
Hui established Temple Zhiyuan in consideration of
Zhi Yan’s keenness on silence and inner peace. The
astronomer He Chengtian (370~447 CE) engaged
in compiling new astronomical calendar consulted
Zhi Yan on the calibration matters of solar shadow.
Zhi Yan informed He Chengtian of his findings of
solar shadow and offered help for compiling new
astronomical calendar.
Zhi Yan had brought Sanskrit Buddhist scriptures
from the western regions. In the fourth year of
Yuanjia (427 CE), he co-translated with Śramana Bao
Yun six volumes of Lalitavistara Sutra, one volume
of Four Heavenly Kings Sutra, four volumes of Broad
Strictness Sutra (or interpreted as Broad Strictness
non-faded wheel Sutra) and six volumes of Infinite
Bodhisattvas, five volumes of Life Sutra, two volumes
of Bodhisattva Wreaths Sutra, two volumes of Ancient
Indian Samadhi Sutra, two volumes of Anagami Sutra,
one volume of Inquiry of Good Brahman to Devadatta,
one volume of Sound Showing Saddhamma (also
named Sound Presenting Saddhamma), one volume
of Regulating Species Sutra, one volume of Goodness
Upasaka Sutra, one volume of Saddharmapundarika
Sengmeng (5 century CE) was a monk who
travelled to India for Buddhist Sutra. Dates of birth
and death are unknown. In the first year of Yongchu
of Southern Song Dynasty (420 CE), he travelled
to the west for Buddhist Scriptures with Tan Wujie
(refer to the entry) and Tanlang (refer to the entry)
and 25 other people. They experienced hardship
and dangers, crossed snow mountains, rode cable
bridges and went through cliff. Twelve of them died
by the time they arrived at the flat land. The rest
helped each other and finally arrived at Kashmir.
They travelled all around the countries of India,
and worshipped the site of Indian Buddha and holy
articles of Buddhism. Only Tan Wujie went back to
Yangzhou at last to translate the Buddhist Scriptures
others including Sengmeng stayed in India for
more than 20 years. The specific circumstance of
Sengmeng in India is unknown, but his travel to the
west for Buddhist Sutra has become a much-told tale
in the history of Buddhism of India and China.
(Tan Jie)
th
Tanlang
Tanlang (5th century CE), the dates of birth and
death are unknown. In the first year of Yongchu of
Southern Song Dynasty (420 CE), he travelled to the
west for Buddhist Scriptures with Tan Wujie and
Sengmeng and other 25 people. They experienced
hardship and dangers, crossed snow mountains,
rode cable bridges and went through cliff. Twelve
of them died when they arrived at the flat land.
The rest helped each other and finally arrived at
Kashmira. They travelled all around the countries
of India, and worshipped the site of Indian Buddha
and holy articles of Buddhism. Only Tan Wujie
went back to Yangzhou at last to translate Buddhist
Scriptures, others including Tanlang stayed in India
for more than 20 years and had never been heard of
since then.
(Tan Jie)
Zhiyan
Zhi Yan (c. 5th century CE) was a monk from Liu
Song Country in Northern and Southern dynasties.
He lived in Xiliang State (present-day Wuwei,
Gansu) and became a monk when he was 20.
Wearing in robes, scrupulous as a vegetarian, he
was well-known for his diligence in practice. With
the willingness of doing something meaningful, he
visited famous Buddhists and read many sutras, and
then went to Western Regions for further study on
Buddhism. He once met Faxian during his journey.
After he arrived in Kashmir, he was accommodated
in vihara of Mahendra and learned Chan Buddhism
with Bhikkhu Buddhasena. After three years’ of
studying there, he received high praise not only
295
Cultural Contacts
and exquisite construction structure. He wrote that
the materials in the tower were made of gold or jade
and changed its colour so variously and constantly
that it was hard to find the same ones. “As the sun
rises, the gold plate shines brightly, as breeze blows
gradually, the precious bells ring harmoniously.”
Daorong’s Biography facilitates our comprehension
of relevant figures, geography, custom and stories of
ancient India and Buddhism.
(Tan Jie)
Samadhi Sutra and one volume of Purity Samadhi
Sutra and other Buddhism classical works.
Xiao Sihua lived in Lanling (present-day Linyi
Shandong) and his wife, Liu, was sick. She mentioned
that she could see ghosts occasionally. Her family
invited Zhi Yan for dharma and he healed her. As
a result, her family members stuck to five precepts
and became pious Buddhists. During his stay in
Zhiyuan Temple, Zhi Yan was away from redundant
desires and unnecessary invitations. He usually
gave alms to the poor and begged alms which won
the respect of monks and residents.
Before being a monk, he had already stuck to five
precepts. As he had broken them once, he was always
suspicious and depressed about whether he would
achieve immortality after taking complete precepts.
He, however, couldn’t find answer despite years of
meditation. So he revisited India by sea again and
consulted the Buddhists. By lucky coincidence, he
met arhat Bhikkhu and was assisted to entre deep
meditation. In the meditation, he met Maitreya in
Doushuai Palace and was informed that he had been
successful in sticking to precepts. Delighted at this
message, Zhi Yan walked to Kashmir and passed
away with no sickness at the age of 78. His body
was buried in the Holy Sepulcher. His disciple Zhi
Yu and Zhi Yuan, went back from Western Regions
and told the miraculous story of Zhi Yan to local
people, and they all believed that Zhi Yan had
become immortal then.
(Tan Jie)
Xuanzang
Xuanzang (600~664 CE) was a Chinese monk in
the Tang Dynasty as well as a Mahayana theorist,
sutra translator, tourist and envoy of Chinese and
Indian culture exchange.
Family and Background
The secular family name of Xuanzang was Chen
(陈), his given name was Hui (袆), and came from
Chenhe Village, Goushi Town, Yanshi County,
Henan. His ancestors had been officials for several
generations, his father Chen Hui (陈惠) liked reading
and was the magistrate of Jiangling County. Chen
Hui (陈袆) was born in this Confucian family in 600
CE. There were four sons in the family of Chen and
Chen Hui (陈袆) was the youngest son.
Chen Hui (陈袆) was clever since his childhood and
liked reading. In 612 CE, the emperor (Emperor
Yang of the Sui Dynasty Yang Guang, reigned from
605-618 CE) sent out an imperial edict that 27
monks were allowed to receive monastic ordination
in Luoyang. Several hundred people registered at
that time, Chen Hui (陈袆) was only 13, and wasn’t
qualified for recruitment. However, he attracted
the attention of the chief examiner who made an
exception to recruit Chen Hui (陈袆). Therefore,
Chen Hui (陈袆) became a monk and his Buddhist
name was Xuanzang.
Buddhist Talent
When Xuanzang became a monk, he lived in
Luoyang Pure Land Temple with his second older
brother, Master Chang Jie. There were riots under
the heaven and people lived in misery in the late Sui
Dynasty. Xuanzang and Chang Jie came to Chang’an
together. This was the first year of Wude of Emperor
Gaozu of the Tang Dynasty Li Yuan (618), and
Xuanzang was 19.
The Tang Dynasty was just established at that
time, it didn’t secure its place, wars and riots were
far from end. The court attached importance to
use of military forces and warring, and neglected
Buddhism. The two brothers went south and arrived
in Chengdu. Xuanzang was guided by famous
teachers here and he made great achievements. When
Xuanzang was 21 in the third year of Wude (620
CE), he received complete ordinations in Konghui
Temple of Chengdu. After receiving ordinations, he
Daorong
Daorong (c. 6th century CE) was the monk who went
to India to seek dharma in Northern Wei Dynasty.
There was no record about his specific traces in
historical materials. In Volume 5 of Records of
Luoyang and Sangharam, there is a Biography of
Daorong which describes his travel stories. He
saw Buddha parietal in Nagarahara (a region in
the northeast part of present day Afghanistan)
and notes: “the circumference was about four cun
(a unit of length, equal to 3.33 cm), yellow and
white colour, there was hole at the bottom, can be
inserted with fingers, looked like a beehive”. He
also observed a staff made of tin which was seven
Zhang (a unit of length, equal 3.33 mt) long; the
mystery of the staff was its indefinite weight, when
it was heavy, even a hundred people could not lift
it; when it was light, two people could easily lift
it up. There were also a tooth relic and hair of the
Buddha which were preserved in a precious box,
and taken care of day and night. In Gandhara, there
was Queli Buddha Tower that was known as the first
Buddha Tower in Western Regions. This was built by
Kushan emperor, Kanishka. In biography, Daorong
described the cause to build this tower and its grand
296
Cultural Contacts
gave up in succession but only Xuanzang insisted in
learning Sanskrit and waiting for a chance.
Escaping from Chang’an
The places including Guanzhong and Henan
suffered from frost hazards in the autumn of the first
year of Reign of Zhenguan (627 CE) Xuanzang took
the chance to mix in refugee team and left Chang’an.
He came to Qinzhou (present-day Tianshui), passed
through Lanzhou and arrived in Liangzhou (presentday Wuwei, Gansu).
Liangzhou was located at the key position of Gansu
Corridor, was the important western city in Tang
Dynasty and many merchants from inner land and
Western Regions passed through it. Xuanzang had
stayed in Liangzhou for a month, and was invited
to instruct Nirvana Sutra (Mahaparinirvanasutra) and
Mahaprajnaparamita Sutra. When hearing Xuanzang
wanted to go to India to seek sutras, people praised
him and gave funds in charity. Xuanzang only kept
travelling expenses for going west and donated rest
of the funds to local temples.
The governor of Liangzhou Li Daliang observed
the ban of the court and didn’t allow monks to go
abroad in private. When he knew that Xuanzang
was in Liangzhou, he ordered Xuanzang to go back
to Chang’an immediately. Fortunately, an eminent
monk in Liangzhou assigned two disciples to send
Xuanzang to Guazhou secretly. Therefore, Xuanzang
walked at night and rested in the daytime and didn’t
dare to expose himself. Xuanzang inquired about
route going west, and somebody told him that the
distance between the place to the north was 50 li
and Jade Gate Pass was the only road going west.
There were five beacon towers at the interval of 100
li which were guarded by soldiers strictly, 800 li of
the Gobi Desert was outside beacon towers which
belonged to Yiwu Country. Xuanzang asked a Hu
youth Shi Pantuo as his guide and left Guanzhou
City that very night.
Crossing the Gobi Desert
Xuanzang and Shi Pantuo detoured around Jade
Gate Pass but Shi Pantuo didn’t want to go ahead
so Xuanzang rode a red thin horse and crossed 800
li of the great desert alone. Xuanzang identified
direction according to bones and horse manure and
saw the first beacon tower after walking over 80
li. Wang Xiang, army officer on the beacon tower
was a Buddhist, he prepared drinking water and
solid food for Xuanzang, went over 10 li to see him
off, specified the route and then bid farewell to
him. According to the specification of Wang Xiang,
Xuanzang went straight to the fourth beacon tower.
Under the instruction of the beacon officer Wang
Bolong, he hid the fifth beacon tower and walked
into the great desert directly.
There were no birds, beasts, water and grass in the
great desert. After walking over 100 li, Xuanzang
Xuanzang
began to conduct summer retreat and learn Buddhist
sutras and classics according to Buddhist rules and
became Dharmacharya formally. Xuanzang was
familiar with Mahayana and Hinayana theories as
well as grasped main ideas of northern and southern
Chinese Buddhism within four or five years in
Chengdu. However, Xuanzang wasn’t satisfied with
his knowledge and he wanted to leave Chengdu and
go north to acquire more knowledge.
Despite Chang Jie’s dissuasion, Xuanzang left
Chengdu firmly in 623 CE, went with merchants
by ship, passed through Three Gorges, arrived
in Jingzhou, and lived in Tianhuang Temple. He
soon left Jingzhou went east along rivers, passed
through Suzhou and Yangzhou, went north to the
places including Xiangzhou (present-day Anyang)
and Zhaozhou, arrived in Chang’an finally, lived
in Dajue Temple and learned Abhidharmakosasastra
from Master Daoyue.
Fa Chang and Seng Bian in Chang’an did
deep research on Mahayana and Hinayana and
were proficient in three teachings and they won
reputation in China and were well-known overseas.
Xuanzang took advice from them. These two masters
appreciated Xuanzang’s knowledge, praised him as
a “Buddhist talent” and thought that he would have
a bright future and promote Buddhism certainly.
However, there were still many disputes and
debates in the Buddhist circle at that time. In order
to make these questions clear, Xuanzang decided to
go to the west to seek sutras like Fa Xian in Eastern
Jin Dynasty. From his point of view, the problems
be solved fundamentally if he went to the birthplace
of Buddhism. Just at that time, an Indian master
named Prabhakaramitra lived in Xingshan Temple.
He told Xuanzang that he must learn Treatise on the
Stages of the Yogachara (Yogacarabhumisastra), the
current great Buddhist in India was his teacher,
Master Silabhadra, who was the abbot in Nalanda
Monastery. Through contacting him, Xuanzang
confirmed his resolution to go to India to seek
sutras. Therefore, Xuanzang allied with some monks
and submitted a statement to the emperor and tried
to obtain support from the court. His companions
297
Cultural Contacts
Tour Study in Northern India
Xuanzang can see holy relics such as monks,
Buddhist temples and images in regions of current
Afghanistan. After entering India, Buddhist
influences became more obvious. Xuanzang
visited and worshiped Buddhist relics in the
north of current Pakistan. In Nagarahara, he saw
the pagoda built by King Ashoka and worshipped
Buddhist relics in Usnisa City. He saw Bodhivrksa,
the pagoda built by King Kaniska and surrounding
Buddhist images with reverence and visited relics
of Buddhist temples and relics of earlier Buddhists
in Gandhara. He did so in Taksila.
When Xuanzang arrived in Kashmir, the local
king assigned his mentor come to the border to
meet him and he led his ministers to meet him in
his residence. The king arranged 20 sutra copyists
and five servants to serve Xuanzang and his men,
and all necessities were supplied by the king. An
old local master in his 60s expounded sutras for
Xuanzang at three intervals each day, he instructed
Abhidharmakosasastrain the morning, the Orthodox
of Shastra (Nyayanusarasastra) in the afternoon,
Hetuvidya and Sabdavidya in the evening. Xuanzang
was modest and erudite and had a good memory and
he was highly praised by the old master. After living
and studying in Kashmir for a long time, he led his
people to go east. It was 629 CE and Xuanzang was
30 years old.
They passed through several kingdoms and met a
team of robbers. Fortunately, a Brahmin was tilling
farmland, convened all villagers to drive the robbers
away and saved them. There was a knowledgeable
Brahmin who claimed to be 700-years-old and
Xuanzang visited him and learned relevant classics
and knowledge from him.
Xuanzang studied Mahayana and Hinayana sutras
as well as Brahminist classics when going east and
his knowledge became richer. At that time, he can
read original sutras and understand instructions as
well as expound sutras for local people.
In 630 CE, Xuanzang had gone over 3,000 li
and he arrived in Ganges River Basin and Yamuna
River Basin from Punjab area in current Pakistan
and India. He passed through seven countries,
visited famous teachers and acquired knowledge.
He came to Kanauj in northern India in the autumn
next year and then he crossed Ganges River and
arrived in Ayodhya, the famous historical Indian
city after living and learning for three month and he
worshipped relics of Asanga and visited Vasubandhu
who were the great Yogachara masters of Mahayana.
When he went east along Ganges River by ship, they
met another team of robbers. The robbers demanded
money, and selected Xuanzang to be a sacrifice to
offer to the goddess Durga. Xuanzang was calm,
and sat to chant sutras and pray. Luckily, there
An image of an itinerant monk depicted as a mural
painting on the western courtyard and at the Dukang
rear-end courtyard at Gugetuolin monastery.
did not find water source and he had to go ahead.
With a strong spiritual power, Xuanzang walked
five days and four nights without drinking any
water. He fainted on the desert because he and his
horse were too tired at the fifth night. He continued
to go ahead when he woke up. He found an oasis
and a pool of clear water under the guidance of the
red thin horse. He entered into the border of Yiwu
Coungry after a day of rest and two days of walking.
Gaochang Brotherhood
Qu Wentai, the king of Gaochang Country (presentday Turpan) heard that Xuanzang was in Yiwu and
assigned his men to invite and meet him. The king
of Gaochang received Xuanzang grandly and wanted
him to stay in Gaochang. Xuanzang said that he must
go to India to seek sutras. The King of Gaochang
made every attempt to persuade Xuanzang to stay but
Xuanzang didn’t change his mind. At last, the king of
Gaochang and Xuanzang became sworn brothers and
Xuanzang had propagated sutras among Gaochang
subjects for a month. The king of Gaochang prepared
travelling outfit, expenses, 30 horses and 25 men
needed for 20 years. He wrote 24 letters of credence
to inform rules of 24 countries for Xuanzang.
With the help of the King of Gaochang, Xuanzang’s
later journey was smoother. He led his men and
horses to pass through the places including Yanqi and
Qiuci (present-day Kuqa), began to cross Mountain
Ling in the north of Cong Ridges, and it took them
seven days to walk out of snow mountain. Over 10
servants froze to death and more horses died. Out
of snow mountain, the team of Xuanzang passed
the current places such as Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan,
Tadzhikistan, Afghanistan etc. He entered into the
border of India finally.
298
Cultural Contacts
When settling in Nalanda, Xuanzang went to
Rajagrha to visit holy relics when lessons were not
given. Rajagrha was the capital of Magadha when
Sakyamuni was born. There was a bamboo forest
near Rajagrha where Sakyamuni lived and it was
known as Venuvana. There were rolling hills, and
famous Saptaparnaguha were located there and it
was the place that the eldest disciple Mahakasyapa
led monks to collect sutras. Famous Grdhrakuta
was near to it and Sakyamuni resided there and
propagated doctrines for over a decade.
After visiting the holy relics, Xuanzang returned
to Nalanda Monastery. Master Shilabhadra
instructed Xuanzang in Treatise on the Stages of the
Yogachara and several thousand of monks listened
to it with him. It took 15 months for Shilabhadra
to finish 100 volumes of Treatise on the Stages of
the Yogachara. Xuanzang resided and learned in
Nalanda Monastery for five years. He translated it
after returning to China.
Besides Treatise on the Stages of the
Yogachara, Xuanzang listened to the Orthodox
of
Shastra,
Aryavacaprakaranasastra
and
Mahayanabhidharmasangitisastra once; Hetuvidya,
Sabdavidya, Hetuvidya and Pramanasamuccaya twice;
Madhyamikasastra and Satasastra thrice respectively
in five years. Moreover, Xuanzang learned
Brahminist classics in Nalanda, especially learned
Sanskrit grammar and phonology systematically
which laid solid foundation for sutra translation
when he returned to China.
Tour Study in Southern India:
In the spring of 636 CE, Xuanzang bid farewell
to Master Shilabhadra and began to travel around
India. His journey focussed on southern India
because he had travelled the north of India when he
came to India.
He went east from Nalanda and came to Munger,
state of Bihar at the southern bank of Ganges River.
He had resided and studied for one year there and
learned Abhidharmamahavibhasyasastra and the
Orthodox of Shastra from two eminent monks. In
the spring of next year, Xuanzang went east along
Ganges River, crossed dense forests and entered
into current Bengal. After travelling around Bengal,
he came to the coastal Harbour Tamralipti (near
Bengal International Harbour) and intended to go to
Sri Lanka by ship but he had to go south because of
large wind and waves and furious sea and he arrived
in the border of State of Orissa and west northwest
and entered into Daksana Kosala after visiting holy
relics. There was an enlightened Brahmin, and
Xuanzang had consulted him on Pramanasamuccaya
for over one month. He went south to current
State of Andhra Pradesh and visited two eminent
monks and he had lived there for several months
and learned Mahasanghika classics from them.
were black winds, trees were broken and sand was
blown, waves surged, and ship floated. The robbers
saw the omens, knelt down, apologised for offence
and asked for receiving ordinations. Xuanzang gave
them five precepts.
Hereafter, Xuanzang visited several famous
Buddhist shrines on the both sides of Ganges River
such as Sravasti, Kapilavastu, Lumbini, Kusinagara,
Mrgadava, Vaisali, Patna, Vajrasana, Bodhivrksa
and so on. Xuanzang had stayed in each place for
seven or nine days, visited and worshipped each
place and surrounding holy relics.
When Xuanzang was in Vajrasana, Nalanda
Monastery assigned four great monks to meet
Xuanzang when hearing about his coming. Over
200 monks and 100 benefactors went outside
the monastery to meet him. Surrounded by the
multitude, Xuanzang walked into long-contemplated
Nalanda Monastery in 631 CE.
Residing and Studying in Nalanda
Chinese were accustomed to calling Nalanda as
Nalanda Monastery but it was a university actually,
it was the largest academic centre in the world as
well as the highest institution of Indian Buddhism.
There were many scholars and rich collection of
sutras. Buddhists, Hindus, Indians as well as many
people from other Asian countries learned there.
Multiple subjects were instructed there and over
100 lectures were given every day. According to the
record of Xuanzang, this university was extended
by kings of six generations, its building scale was
huge when Xuanzang arrived there and there were
six yards and several temples. There were several
thousand permanent residents and many shortterm travelling learners, the population reached
about 10,000 in normal times. King attached great
importance to the university, and taxes of over 100
cities were allocated to support them. Teachers and
students didn’t worry about food and clothing, air
of study and learning was very profound so no one
violated rules and laws.
In the company of 20 monks, Xuanzang visited
Master Shilabhadra, the abbot of Nalanda
Monastery, who was over 100 years old and was
honoured as Dharma-grbha. Xuanzang prostrated
himself before the master and said that he wanted
to learn Treatise on the Stages of the Yogachara from
Shilabhadra. Shilabhadra was touched deeply and
promised to instruct Xuanzang in person.
Xuanzang received special treatment in Nalanda
and he had a certain quantity of fruits, betel nuts,
cardamoms and “rice offered to the horned”.
Xuanzang was arranged to live in main room, he
could ride on elephant for entrance and exit and
was exempted from all manual works for common
monks. Only 10 people enjoy this kind of treatment
in Nalanda.
299
Cultural Contacts
Xuanzang had seen that his opinions originated
from basic doctrines of heretical theorists so he
listed and satirised various kinds of foolish actions
of non-Buddhists and outargued their theories. After
several rounds of debates, the Brahmin had nothing
to reply and he stood up and said “I am defeated.
Please dispose me at random according to the
stipulation.” Xuanzang answered: “Our Buddhists
don’t kill living creatures and you will be a servant
in our monastery and follow our instructions.” The
Brahmin accepted his suggestion pleasantly.
Meanwhile, a Hinayana master from Uda in
Southern India (north of state of Orissa) wrote
Seven Hundred Odes to Mahayanasodhana, presented
them to King Siladitya and requested to debate with
Mahayana monks. Therefore, King Siladitya wrote a
letter to Master Shilabhadra and requested Nalanda
Monastery to assign four eminent monks to Uda
to debate with the Hinayana monk. Shilabhadra
selected Hai Hui, Zhi Guang, Simharasmi and
Xuanzang to go to Uda. The other three monks
including Hai Hui were worried but Xuanzang
stepped forward and said: “You great masters take
it easy because I must carry out the duty although
I am unlearned. Even if my debate fails, I am a
Chinese monk and I will not shame the reputation
of Nalanda.” They changed from sorrow to joy after
hearing his words. When they set out, King Siladitya
wrote another letter that they didn’t need to go and
they will wait for his information later.
Xuanzang
got
Seven
Hundred
Odes
to
Mahayanasodhana, he asked the Lokayata Brahmin
whether he knew Mahayanasodhana, and the Brahmin
said that he had heard for five times. Xuanzang asked
him to expound it. After the Brahmin expounded
it, Xuanzang obtained the gist, found shortcomings
and wrote 1,600 odes to Kuvicarapratisedha and
outargued it. He submitted Kuvicarapratisedha to
Master Shilabhadra and other eminent monks and
they praised it. Xuanzang got the Brahmin and freed
him and the Brahmin bid farewell happily and went
to Kamarupa in eastern India (present-day Assam).
Buddhist Ceremony in Kanauj
Xuanzang had propagated doctrines for over
half-a-year, there was no news about debates
convened by King Siladitya and Xuanzang thought
that it is time for him to return to China and began
to sort Buddhist sutras and images collected in
normal times. Eminent monks went to persuade
Xuanzang to stay when hearing that he will return
to China but Xuanzang didn’t change his decision.
They failed to persuade him so they came to Master
Shilabhadra. Xuanzang said to Shilabhadra that
he wanted to return to China to propagate sutras
and show his gratitude to his master. After hearing
his words, Shilabhadra was pleased and let him
prepare packages.
They learned Mahayana theories from Xuanzang
too. Hereafter, Xuanzang travelled south with two
eminent monks and came to current State of Tamil
Nadu. When arriving in Kancipuri near Madras, he
wanted to go south to Sri Lanka by sea with these
two eminent monks, but over 300 Sri Lank monks
arrived by sea and said that the country suffered
from famine because of the death of the king, and
it was a state of chaos. Xuanzang decided not to go
to Sri Lanka.
Xuanzang went west with 70 Sri Lanka monks,
passed through current Karnataka, went north
and arrived in current state of Maharashtra. In the
middle region of Maharashtra, Xuanzang saw caves
which was written in The Great Tang Dynasty Record
of the Western Regions. This is the well-known Ajanta
Caves today which is the Buddhist artistic treasure
in the world.
Xuanzang continued to go north and entered
Northwestern India. After passing through current
Gujarat, he went west and arrived in Sindh regions
of Pakistan, he began to go northeast along Indus
River after visiting Buddhist relics then passed
through Multan of Pakistan and arrived in Punjab.
Xuanzang visited two or three eminent monks and
stopped here to learn from them.
Expounding Doctrines in Nalanda
Xuanzang was 40-years-old in 639 CE. He
traversed northern India, returned to Nalanda
Monastery and reported his journey to Master
Shilabhadra. When hearing that an eminent monk
was proficient in Sabdavidya and Hetuvidya in the
west of Nalanda Monastery, he came there in a
hurry and had learned from him for two months. He
came to Dandavanagiri learned several sutras from
erudite Abhidharamacarya Srenika whose teacher
also was Master Shilabhadra. They were pleased to
see each other. Xuanzang and Abhidharamacarya
Srenika came to Mahabodhi Vihara to visit
Buddhist relics together and worshipped Bodhivrksa
in January next year. Xuanzang returned to
Nalanda again.
Master Shilabhadra ordered Xuanzang to raise
an altar to instruct Mahayanasamparigrahasastra
and
Vijnanamatrasiddhivicayasastra
publicly.
Meanwhile, a Lokayata Brahmin came to Nalanda
to require debate. He wrote 40 opinions and hung
them on the gate and spoke insolently: “I am
willing to be beheaded if one can outargue one of
my opinions.” Several days later, no one responded
to him, Xuanzang went to tear his paper and
trampled it with his feet. The Brahmin was angry
and asked, “Who are you?” Xuanzang answered: “I
am Mahayanadevadas”. This was one of Xuanzang’s
names in India and the Brahmin heard of him.
Xuanzang asked masters including Shilabhadra to
be witnesses and began to debate with the Brahmin.
300
Cultural Contacts
about Kuvicarapratisedha and Xuanzang took it
out and presented it to him. After reading, King
Siladitya praised him greatly and said: “I will hold
Buddhist ceremony for you and invite Buddhist
monks, Brahmins and non-Buddhists all over India
to participate in it.” He ordered his men to make a
public announcement on that very day that people
should come to the capital, Kanauj, to participate in
the debate conference.
Xuanzang, King Siladitya and King Kumara went
against the river together in the early winter and
they arrived in Kanauj in the12th lunar month.
The conference hall had been established, 18
kings, over 3,000 Mahayana and Hinayana monks,
2,000 Brahmanists and Jains and 1,000 Nalanda
monks had arrived. Servants, horses, carriages,
elephants and various kinds of honour guards were
large-scaled.
Two huge thatched palaces were established in
the conference hall which can hold 1,000 people
respectively. A gold Buddha image had been cast by
the dwelling palace of King Siladitya in the west of
the conference hall with the distance of five li and it
was installed on a decorated elephant. On that day,
the elephant carried Buddha image to parade, King
Siladitya acted as Indra with a white vyajana in his
hand and stood at the right side and King Kumara
acted as Brahma with a canopy in his hand and stood
at the left side. People on two other elephants were
responsible for scattering flowers. Xuanzang and
national masters of King Siladitya rode on elephants
and followed them. Kings, ministers and eminent
monks rode on 300 elephants. The team entered
into the conference site slowly from the dwelling
At that time, envoys of King Kumara of Kamarupa
came and sent a letter to Master Shilabhadra,
which invited Xuanzang to propagate doctrines
in Kamarupa. The Lokayata Brahmin praised
Xuanzang in front of King Kumara after he arrived
in Kamarupa so King Kumara assigned the envoys to
invite Xuanzang. Shilabhadra refused the invitation
on the excuses of previous appointment with King
Siladitya and the return of Xuanzang. However, King
Kumara insisted in assigning the envoys to invited
Xuanzang, Shilabhadra didn’t agree. King Kumara
got angry and assigned the envoys at the third time
and threatened: “I am sincere to propagate Buddhist
doctrines if you don’t allow the invitation, I will lead
my elephant army to stamp Nalanda.” Shilabhadra
had no alternative and told the whole story to
Xuanzang. Xuanzang collected returning package
and bid farewell to eminent monks in Nalanda and
came to Kamarupa with the envoys in a hurry.
King Kumara was pleased to see Xuanzang, invited
him to go to the palace and provided needs and
comforts to Xuanzang. Xuanzang had propagated
doctrines there for over a month.
After King Siladitya returned from southern
expedition, he heard that Xuanzang went to
Kamarupa and assigned his envoys to say to
King Kumara: “Send the Chinese master to me
immediately!” King Kumara said that “the Chinese
master will not come at once even you get my head!”
King Siladitya was angry and assigned envoys to
say: “Give your head!” King Kumara knew that he
wasn’t as strong as King Siladitya and regretted his
improper words. He convened 20,000 people and
30,000 ships immediately and escorted Xuanzang to
go against Ganges River.
King Kumara settled Xuanzang in a temporary
dwelling palace on the northern bank of Ganges
River, led ministers to the temporary dwelling
palace of King Siladitya at the southern bank,
and reported the news of the coming of Master
Xuanzang. King Siladitya was pleased, forgave King
Kumara and said that he will go to visit Master
Xuanzang in person. At night, King Siladitya led
his honour guard to meet Xuanzang. King Siladitya
bowed and showed his respect to Xuanzang. Being
seated, King Siladitya asked: “You come from China
and must hear of the dance music named Music of
King Qin’s Fighting. Who was King Qin?” Xuanzang
told him about China’s conditions and virtues of
Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty (627-649 CE)
and gave him a beautiful impression on China. King
Siladitya assigned his envoys to establish friendship
with Tang Dynasty soon.
The next day, Xuanzang came to the temporary
dwelling palace of King Siladitya in the company
of King Kumara and received an enthusiastic
welcome. At that time, King Siladitya inquired
An image of Dharma master Xuanzang
301
Cultural Contacts
prepared letters of credence for Xuanzang and
assigned special persons to escort him. After
Xuanzang had left for three days, King Siladitya and
King Kumara led several hundred light cavalries to
catch up him and bid farewell again.
With profound friendship of Indian, Xuanzang
led a large team of people and horses and returned
according to the coming routes on the whole.
Because he was more familiar with conditions, his
journey was smoother than the coming journey
although it was hard and they met with robbers for
several times. Some sutras were flushed away when
they crossed Indus River, it took them 14 days to
cross the great snow mountain, many people and
horses died, and only seven monks, over 20 porters,
one elephant, 10 donkeys and four horses left.
In the journey returning China, he still stopped
after walking for a long time, and he visited holy
relics, learned as well as propagated doctrines.
Although he had been some places, he visited
them with reverence this time. He went to visit old
friends, exchanged view with them and talked about
old days. Two years flew in this way.
Returning to Chang’an with Reputation
Xuanzang arrived in Khotan in 644 CE. The
king of Khotan knew that Xuanzang will come in
advance, and he assigned his men to meet him and
make settlement preparation beforehand.
People from Gaochang came at that time and
Xuanzang was informed of the death of Qu Wentai,
the king of Gaochang, he felt sad and decided to
return to Chang’an directly rather than going to
Gaochang. He feared that the court will punish him
because he went abroad in private in that very year
so he submitted a statement in advance asked others
to bring it to Chang’an and waited for the response
of the court.
Xuanzang had expounded Treatise on the Stages
of the Yogachara, Abhidharmakosasastra and
Mahayanasamparigrahasastra for seven or eight
months when he waited in Khotan and over 1,000
audience listened to him.
When Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty was
pleased to know that Xuanzang returned to China
with reputation, he ordered his men to go to Khotan
to comfort and meet him, and exhorted them to
bring monks knowing Sanskrit sutras with them. He
wrote a letter to the king of Khotan and asked him
to handle matters of Xuanzang’s return to Chang’an.
He also ordered Dunhuang officials to meet him in
Liusha and Shanshan officials to meet him in Qiemo.
On the 24th day of the first lunar month of the
19th century of Zhenguan (645 CE), 46-year-old
Xuanzang carried 657 sutras, various kinds of
Buddha images, 150 Buddhist relics and returned
to Chang’an with high reputation. Officials of
Chang’an and the suburbs and followers came to
palace, the Buddha image was invited firstly and
people worshipped the Buddha in proper order.
Only 18 kings, over 200 ministers, 1,000 eminent
monks and 500 representatives of Brahmins and
non-Buddhists could enter the conference hall and
other people could only watch outside the hall. After
the grand ceremony, King Siladitya let Xuanzang sit
in the position of the debate master. Opinions of
Xuanzang’s Kuvicarapratisedha were read out. It was
hung outside the conference hall for people to read.
No one dared to debate on that day.
Five days later, several Hinayana Buddhists
didn’t dare to debate but they weren’t reconciled
to Xuanzang and attempted to murder him. King
Siladitya was informed of it and warned them
strictly, so that their plot failed. On the 18th day,
the conference ended, but no one dared to debate.
Xuanzang gave a speech and praised Mahayana
and the Buddha. At last, King Siladitya declared
that Xuanzang won. The conference hall broke
into rapturous applause, and Mahayana Buddhists
honoured Xuanzang as 'Mahayanadeva” and
Hinayana Buddhists honoured him as “Moksadeva”.
Xuanzang rode on the elephant around the hall
and paid tribute to people. Hereafter, Xuanzang’s
reputation became greater in India.
After the completion of the conference, Xuanzang
insisted on the return to China. King Siladitya
persuaded him again, and said that he had held
Moksha-maha-parishad quinquennially at the
intersection of Ganges River and Yamuna River
which lasted 75 days and provided almsgivings
to monks and poor people for 30 years. Mokshamaha-parishad had been held for five times and
it would be held for the sixth time that year, and
he invited Xuanzang to participate in it. Xuanzang
promised him. Two days later, King Siladitya led
Xuanzang to the inter-river site in the company
of 18 kings. There were a lot of people, and about
5,00,000 people crowded at the banks of Ganges
River and Yamuna River. A thatched palace had
been established on the inter-river site. On the first
day, the Buddha image was placed in the thatched
palace and superior treasures, clothes and foods
were offered. On the second day, the Sun God image
was placed and a half of properties were offered.
On the third day, the Ishvaradeva image was placed
and the almsgivings were like those on the second
day. Then monks, Brahmins, non-Buddhists, poor
and lonely people were given alms. King Siladitya
offered all properties accumulated for five years in
75 days, and his merits accumulated hereafter.
Over 10 days later, Xuanzang wanted to take
leave and return to China and declined repeated
persuasions of King Siladitya and King Kumara.
Therefore, kings prepared money, grains and
materials for his return to China. King Siladitya
302
Cultural Contacts
to China’s translatology. Firstly, Sutra Translation
Institute founded by him established a complete
set of systems. For example, when translating
Treatise on the Stages of the Yogachara, Xuanzang
“interpreted Sanskrit into Chinese” then there were
steps such as “translation”, “proving Sanskrit”,
“confirming
words”,
“proving
meanings”,
“composition”, “supervision and reading” etc and
the item of “embellishment” was added, so it can
be seen that labour division was more meticulous
than previous generation. The items such as
translation, proving meanings, composition and
embellishment were undertaken by several people.
Systems of Sutra Translation Institute established
by Xuanzang became the fixed forms for Sutra
Translation Institute in Tang Dynasty, and was
the model of Sutra Translation Institute in early
Song Dynasty. Secondly, he applied diversified
translation skills to sutra translation and these
skills can be borrowed today. Thirdly, he proposed
important translation theories. He advocated that
“translation shall be accurate and popular.” He
also set up the principle of “five non-translations”
ie the principles of transliteration in five cases.
Fourthly, the quantity of classics translated by him
exceeded the total volumes of sutras translated
by three sutra translators including Kumarajiva,
Paramartha and Amoghavajra which took up a
half of volumes of newly-translated sutras. Fifthly,
he was the first Chinese translator who translated
sutras independently without help of Indians or
people from other Western Regions in China’s
sutra translation history. Sutra translation relied
on people from the Western Regions such as India
mostly even Fa Xian wasn’t an exception. Although
Kumarajiva was born in China he wasn’t a Chinese;
Foreigners in translation institute of Sui Dynasty
were translation master.
However, Xuanzang’s translation institute
didn’t have people from Western Regions because
Xuanzang’s knowledge of Sankrit and Shabdavidya
was higher than previous Chinese sutra translators.
Sixthly, he made excellent achievements in the
aspect of translating from Chinese to Sanskrit.
Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks wrote that
“Xuanzang translated 5,000 characters of Lao
Tzu into Sanskrit according to an imperial edict”.
“Treatise on the Awakening of Faith was written
by Ma Ming. Foreign monks wanted to read it.
Xuanzang translated it from Chinese into Sanskrit
and its translated text was declared for five days.”
Seventhly, his dedication spirit inspired later
generations. According to volume 7 of the Biography
of Ci’en, Xuanzang “valued every second to translate
sutras specifically. He scheduled every day, and he
will translate at nights if he was busy in the daytime.
He slept at midnight and got up before dawn, he
meet him. Xuanzang settled in pavilion in Zhuque
Street. Onlookers crowded both sides of roads from
Zhuque Street and Hongfu Temple with the distance
of tens of li, temples were decorated with lanterns
and coloured hangings like celebration of grand
festivals, and the views were magnificent.
Xuanzang hurried Luoyang to meet Emperor
Taizong of Tang Dynasty in the second lunar month.
This was a brief ceremonious meeting. Emperor
Taizong met Xuanzang on Graceful Bird Palace.
They sat and had a long talk. The emperor inquired
about conditions of Western Regions and Xuanzang
replied fluently because they were still fresh in
his memory. The emperor admired Xuanzang
very much and advised him to write a book
about conditions of countries in Western Regions,
Xuanzang agreed. Meanwhile, Emperor Taizong
recommended Xuanzang to resume secular life and
handle government affairs, Xuanzang refused with
thanks and he expressed his wish to translate sutras.
Emperor Taizong let him translate sutras in Hongfu
Temple and all needs were arranged by Prime
Minister Fang Xuanling.
Writing Book and Translating Sutras
According to the decree of the emperor, 12
volumes of The Great Tang Dynasty Record of the
Western Regions were finished and submitted to the
emperor in 645, which was dictated by Xuanzang
and recorded and collected by his disciple, Bian Ji.
In The Great Tang Dynasty Record of the Western
Regions, Xuanzang recorded conditions of 138
“countries” and regions in the aspects of history,
geography, religion, folk customs, language,
characters etc in detail, which provided rich and
precious materials to study history, society and
culture of ancient Central Asia and South Asia.
Records of Xuanzang often showed direction and
provided proofs for modern and contemporary
Buddhist archaeological activities of India, Nepal
and Pakistan as well as places such as Lumbini,
Kapilavastu, Mrgadava, Grdhrakuta, Ajanta, Nalanda,
Taxila, etc. On the contrary, many archaeological
materials proved authenticity of Xuanzang’s records.
When people visit these Buddhist shrines today, they
can feel existence of Xuanzang everywhere.
Both Indian and Western historians praise
Xuanzang’s The Great Tang Dynasty Record of the
Western Regions highly and thought that this book
has a very important role in rebuilding history of
India, even Central Asia in Middle Ages.
Xuanzang established Sutra Translation Institute
under the support of the court which became
a grand event in China’s translation history.
Xuanzang made great efforts to translate 1,335
volumes of 74 Buddhist sutras in his after-life
which enriched treasury of Chinese Buddhist
classics as well as made enormous contributions
303
Cultural Contacts
Life
Born in Qizhou (present-day Ji’nan, Shandon),
Yijing’s original name was Zhang Wenming. He
followed Master Shanyu and Huizhi at Tuku
Temple and became a monk at the age of seven. He
diligently studied Buddhist philosophy, especially
its commandments. It is noted that he “pursued
the classic scriptures for the five years”. In the fifth
year of the reign of Emperor Gaozong (Xian Qing)
(660 CE), he left Tuku Temple. “Stretching his
walking stick to Dongwei he dedicated himself to
Abhidhamma and the Collected Sāstras and headed
for Xijing reading and meditating Kusha and
Vijnanavada”. This explains that Yijing went to the
area around Henan and Chang’an, and continued to
learn various classic Buddhist scriptures.
Yijing had the idea of going to India to seek
sutras very early and he wished “to have Buddhist
companion at 14, and to go to Western Paradise
at 18”. In the first year of the reign of Emperor
Gaozong of Tang (Xian Heng) (670 CE) in Chang’an,
Yijing got to know Monk Chuyi from Bingzhou
(present-day Taiyuan, Shanxi), Monk Hongyi from
Laizhou monk and another couple of monks. They
all had the desire to go to India to pursue learning
and set off together. Yijing went back Jizhou first
to visit his master at Tuku Temple. In the second
year, the second year of Xianheng Period (671 CE),
Yijing went south from Jizhou, passed through
Yangzhou and stayed there for three summer
months, and then followed Lord Feng Xiaoquan at
Gongzhou (now Pingnan, Guangxi) to Guangzhou.
At this time, among the companions that originally
planned to go to India together, some changed his
mind and some did not want to continue due to
illness. After arriving in Guangzhou, he was invited
to Guangzhou (present-day Xinhui, Guangdong)
to accept the sponsorship of Feng Xiaoquan’s
family. After returning Guangzhou, only one monk
named Shanxing from Jinzhou (northwest Shanxi)
was willing to accompany him for the journey. In
November that year, Yijing and Shanxing got on the
cargo ship of a Persian merchant in Guangzhou and
started the trip to India.
It was not an easy task to sail in the South China
Sea in ancient times. Yijing described the situation
of boat sailing in the sea: “The ocean witnesses
the wave high like mountains; the giant gully saw
clouds of monstrous fluctuation.” The difficult and
dangerous state is conceivable. But this voyage went
relatively smoothly. With strong wind pushing the
ship fast, in less than 20 days, they reached the
Srivijaya (now around Palembang area of Sumatra
Island, Indonesian). Srivijaya was one of the most
important transportation and trade centres then in
the South China Sea area. It was a very prosperous
place and Buddhism was also quite popular there.
chanted Sanskrit text, marked in order and planned
contents to be translated next day."
Besides sutra translation, Xuanzang had made
great contributions to Buddhism. In the period
of Nalanda, he wrote 6,000 odes to Treatise on
Combination of Sects in order make up conflicts
between Madhyamika and Yogachara. In order
to maintain dignity of Mahayana and refute
attacks of Hinayana, he created 1,600 odes to
Kuvicarapratisedha.
Xuanzang also recruited disciples widely, inherited
traditions of Yogachara of Indian Mahayana
and founded Faxiang School (Ci’en School), and
became the grand master. Faxiang School had very
great importance in early Tang Dynasty and had a
batch of excellent domestic and foreign disciples.
Although Faxiang School wasn’t passed down but it
had profound influences and spread to North Korea,
South Korea and Japan.
Symbol of Chinese and Indian Cultural
Exchange
At midnight on the fifth day of the second lunar
month of 664 CE, Master Xuanzang who worked
hard in his whole life, died of illness in Tongchuan
Yuhua Temple. Civil and military officials, monks
and common people in Chang’an City were sad at
the news. Emperor Gaozong of Tang Dynasty cried
bitterly and said, “I lost national treasure! I lost
national treasure!” Court affairs were cancelled for
several days because of his death. Millions of people
in the capital and prefectures sent him on his burial
day and over 30,000 people slept at his cemetery
at night. Xuanzang was the first great man in the
history of Chinese culture interaction. Professor Ji
Xianlin assessed his achievements comprehensively
which were summarised in six phrases: “He was a
famous eminent monk in Tang Dynasty, idealistic
theorist of Buddhism, brave traveller, excellent
translation master, model of dedicating himself to
seeking dharma and embodiment of Chinese and
Indian friendship.” Xuanzang’s great contributions
to the cultural interaction between China and India
were assessed properly.
Till today, the name of Xuanzang is known to
every household in India. In history textbooks for
Indian primary school, there is a special section
introducing events of Xuanzang’s visit to India.
Memorial Hall of Xuanzang was jointly built by
Chinese government and Indian government at a
distance of one kilometre in the north of Nalanda
relics in the state of Bihar. Xuanzang shall belong to
China and India as well as the whole world.
(Xue Keqiao)
Yijing
Yijing (635-713 CE) was an eminent Buddhist monk
and translator of Tang Dynasty.
304
Cultural Contacts
Chan Monk Andao from Caozhou paid worship to
the Bodhi statue, which completed the ceremony.
At that time, I prostrated myself on the ground for
full admiration, for the four blessings of Dong Xia,
to publicise dharma doctrine. At the initial meeting
at Longhua, I encountered Maitreya and Zhenzong
and obtained anutpada-jnana. Then I visited all the
shrines, passed an abbot and stayed at Kushinagar.
I had been at Qincheng, entered Mṛgadāva and
crossed Kukkutapāda.”
Nalanda, Gijjhakuta and Mahabodhi Temple
were all in Magadha (present-day territory of Bihar,
India). The “Ten-Foot Square Hut” refers to the
former residence of Vimalakirti in Vaiśālī. The large
stretch of sal trees near Kusinagara was the place
where Sakyamuni’s attained nirvana. Mṛgadāva is
Sārnāth where Sakyamuni had his Dharmachakra
Pravartana. Banāras is present-day Varanasi of Uttar
Pradesh, India. Kukkutapāda was also in Magadha.
Besides, there was a paragraph of annotations in
Mala-sarvastivada-vinaya· sudraka-vastu translated
by Yijing, “I recently visited Western Regions those
places where Tathagata stayed for over 50 years.
There are eight places: the birthplace of Tathagata;
the place where Tathagata became a Buddha; the
place where Tathagata had his Dharmachakra
Pravartana; Vulture Peak; City of Vaishali; the
place where Tathagata stepped down from heaven;
Jetavana Park and the place with a large stretch of
sal trees where Tathagata attained Nirvana.”
The birthplace of Tathagata was in Kapilavastū.
The place where Tathagata became a Buddha was
Bodh Gaya Magadha. The place of Tathagata’s
Dharmachakra Pravartana was Sārnāth of Banāras.
Vulture Peak represents Grdhrakuta. City of Vaishali
refers to Vaiśālī. The place where Tathagata stepped
down from heaven was the place with Three Ladders
between heaven and earth and it was in Kapitha.
Jetavana Park was in Sravasti. The place with a
large stretch of sal trees where Tathagata attained
Nirvana was near Kusinagara. All these places are
most famous Buddhist holy lands of ancient India
and most of them were in the territory of ancient
India. It is unclear what other area Yijing visited
apart from these places. Emperor Zhongzong of
Tang Dynasty noted in the Introduction to the Sacred
Teachings of Monk Tripitaka of Ryonghungsa of the
Great Tang Dynasty that Yijing “went to more than 30
countries in over 20 years”. Yijing also said himself
that he “visited more than 30 foreign countries”.
They probably include some places he passed by in
his trip to India by sea.
Beyond pilgrimage and travel for pleasure, Yijing
spent more time on studying Buddhism in India.
During the 10 years that he stayed in Nalanda, Yijing
tried hard to learn all kinds of classics of Buddhism
and collect various Sanskrit Buddhist scriptures.
Yijing stayed there for six months, learning Sanskrit
to make further preparation for education in India.
Shanxing, who accompanied him here, fell ill and
had to return home. The King of Srivijaya was very
friendly to Yijing and gave him support by sending
him by boat to another state called Melayu (presentday Sumatra Island of Indonesian) countries for
Yijing
two months, and then sent him to a place named
Kedah (present-day Kedah, Malaysia). At the end
of the third year of Xianheng Period (672 CE),
Yijing continued to take the king’s ship ie the ship
provided by the King of Srivijaya, northbound and
passed through Nicobar (present-day Andaman
Islands, India). On February 8 of the fourth year
of Xianheng Period (673 CE), he finally reached
Tamralipti of East India. Yijing stayed in Tamralipti
for a year and continued to learn Sanskrit. In May
of the fifth year of Xianheng Period (674 CE), Yijing
followed a merchant team of several hundred people
to continue to go west to central India.
At this time, India had many separate kingdoms.
The journey was not peaceful. Soon after leaving
Tamralipti, Yijing fell ill and was left behind the
team. His luggage was robbed by bandits on the road
and he nearly lost his life. Fortunately, he escaped
from the dangerous situation, and caught up with
the companions to move on. In June of the fifth year
of Xianheng Period (674 CE), he finally reached his
destination, the Nalanda Monastery of Magadha.
At Nalanda, one of Yijing’s major activities was
to pay homage to the Buddhist pilgrimage sites.
Yijing did not keep a complete record of his travel
to India. It is noted only very briefly in Buddhist
Pilgrim Monks of Tang Dynasty: “Heading north
from here for a few days, I arrived at Nalanda
first and paid homage to the statue of ‘The Great
One, the Buddha’. And later I went to Gijjhakuta
(Griddhkuta) and saw the cloth-folding place. Then
I headed for Mahabodhi Temple, paying respect
to the real-portrait statue. Silk cloth donated by
Shandong monks and laity was made into equal
amount of Tathagata cassock, which I personally
served. Master Xuanlu from Puzhou presented tens
of thousands of silk covers to offer for the tribute.
305
Cultural Contacts
Xuanzang’s teacher Śīlabhadra had passed away at
that moment, but there were many learned monks in
Nalanda. Yijing’s teacher in Nalanda was Bhadanta
Baoshizi. Baoshizi was good at teaching the Treatise
on the Stages of Yoga Practice (Yogacarabhumi-sastra),
which was obviously inherited from Śīlabhadra.
Yijing stayed in Nalanda for quite a long time so
that he had the opportunity to have a close-up view
of the rules, the daily life of the monks and even
some trivial characteristics of the architecture of
Nalanda which provided the most specific materials
for his subsequent compilation of the Account of
Buddhism Sent from the South Seas. Therefore, he
mentioned Nalanda several times in the Account of
Buddhism Sent from the South Seas and took it as the
model for all he Buddhist temples. He also drew a
picture of Nalanda and attached it in his Buddhist
Monks Pilgrimage of Tang Dynasty. But the picture
was lost long ago.
Apart from Yijing, there were other Chinese
monks learning Buddhist doctrines in Nalanda
back then. Yijing met many Chinese monks there,
and he mentioned some of them in his Buddhist
Monks Pilgrimage of Tang Dynasty including
Xuanzhao, Huilun, Daolin, Zhihong and Wuxing.
The information about some other Chinese monks
can be learned from other monks learning Buddhist
doctrines there although Yijing did not meet
them. Yijing wrote a book about their learning of
Buddhist doctrines later Buddhist Monks Pilgrimage
of Tang Dynasty.
During the decade in Nalanda, Yijing not only
studied but also translated Buddhist scriptures. He
translated
Mula-sarvastivada-vinaya·sudraka-vastu
and Sata-pancasatikastotra but that was only his first
draft. Yijing modified the draft after returning to
China when he had already had a preliminary plan
on translating Buddhist scriptures.
In 685 CE (the first year of Chuigong Period),
Yijing decided to return to China after 10 years
of study in India. He carried with him more
than 500,000 odes of Sanskrit Tripitaka and left
Nalanda to the east. He was robbed on the road but
fortunately he arrived safely in Tamralipti. Just like
going to India, he took his return journey by sea. In
the early spring of 686 CE (second year of Chuigong
Period), Yijing arrived in Kedan again and stayed
there until the winter. In early 687 CE (third year
of Chuigong Period), he continued his voyage to the
south and arrived in Melayu Kingdom once again
one month later and then arrived in Srivijaya.
Yijing’s second stop at Srivijaya was longer, more
than six years in total. In July 689 CE (first year
of Yongchang Period), he “sailed out from Srivijaya
to Guangzhou to seek papers, ink and writers”,
and “went back to Srivijaya by a merchant ship”.
Therefore, he accidentally came back to Guangzhou
An article by Yijing of a thousand
Sanskrit characters
and left on November 1 to Srivijaya by ship. It took
five to six months for him to return to Guangzhou
and back to Srivijaya. Besides this trip, he spent all
the rest of the six years in Srivijaya during which
he began to translate Buddhist scriptures and
compile Buddhist Monks Pilgrimage of Tang Dynasty
and Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas.
In May 691 CE (second year Tianshou Period),
he finished the two books and sent someone to
Chang’an carrying these two books and 10 volumes
of Buddhist scriptures as well as his letter to the
imperial court about requesting the imperial court
to approve the establishment of a temple in the
West. In this connection, the words “Sent from the
South Seas” in the name of Account of Buddhism Sent
from the South Seas were given.
In the summer of 693 CE (second year of
Changshou Period) when Yijing was 59, he finally
returned to Guangzhou from Srivijaya. He stayed in
Guangzhou for over a year and then left Guangzhou
to the North in early 695 CE (the first year of
Zhengsheng Period). In the summer of May, Yijing
arrived in Luoyang that was called “Dongdu” back
then. Empress Wu Zetian lived in Dongdu for most
of the time. There is no historical evidence to show
whether Yijing received the imperial edict first
before arriving in Luoyang, just like Xuanzang. But
it seemed that he received the imperial edict first
before the departure when one looked at the grand
welcoming ceremony held in his honour when he
arrived in Luoyang.
On the day he arrived in Luoyang, he received a
high standard welcome that even surpassed that of
Xuanzang. The Volume IX of Record of Sakyamuni's
Teachings Compiled during the Kaiyuan Period
mentioned what happened, “In the summer of the
first year of the Empress Wu Zetian’s Zhengsheng
Period, Yijing returned to Heluo and brought back
nearly 400 books of Sanskrit Tipitaka, 500,000 odes
306
Cultural Contacts
Great Tang Dynasty and went to the west gate of
Luoyang City to “declare the new translations of
Yijing to all governors and dukes and order the
index of the translation”. In October 706 CE (second
year of Shenlong Period), Yijing followed Emperor
Zhongzong of Tang to return to Chang’an. The
emperor ordered the construction of a building for
Yijing to translate Buddhist scriptures inside Jianfu
Temple. Jianfu Temple still exists today and famous
Small Wild Goose Pagoda of Xi’an is situated inside
the temple.
In June 707 CE (third year of Shenlong Period),
Emperor Zhongzong of Tang summoned Yijing to
the imperial palace. The Emperor sited in meditation
with śramana who was translating Buddhist
scriptures for three months. Yijing translated two
volumes of the Sūtra of the Original Vows of the
Medicine Buddha of blue Radiance and the Seven Past
Buddhas in Dafoguang Hall of the imperial place.
When he was translating the scripture, “the emperor
recorded the dictations of Yijing”.
Yijing was more than 70 at that time but he still
worked hard in translations. In 705 (the first year of
Shenlong Period), he translated four four books of
Buddhist scriptures, four six volumes in total. In 710
CE (fourth year of Jinglong Period), he translated
20 books of Buddhist scriptures, 88 volumes in
total. In 711 CE (second year of Jingyun Period),
he translated 12 books of Buddhist scriptures, 21
volumes in total. Plus the Buddhist scriptures he
translated in Chang’an, he translated altogether 56
books of Buddhist scriptures, 230 volumes in total.
But this is only the number listed in the Record of
Sakyamuni's Teachings Compiled during the Kaiyuan
Period. The actual number of Buddhist scriptures
translated by Yijing is much more than this. At least
50 volumes of seven books are not included in the
various laws of Mulasarvastivada. This is probably
because there is less time to make final revisions
although they are already translated. So they are
not formally circulated. Therefore, the Record of
Sakyamuni's Teachings Compiled during the Kaiyuan
Period doesn’t include these translations. It is also
probably because of the negligence when compiling
the Record of Sakyamuni's Teachings Compiled during
the Kaiyuan Period. Most of the above-mentioned 50plus books of Buddhist scriptures were translated by
Yijing during the 12 years between his 66th and 77th
years. These achievements made by him in this age
demonstrate that Yijing worked very hard.
Yijing also organised workshops to teach
translation of Buddhist scriptures just like what
Xuanzang did. He personally led, at least, four
translation workshops that were large in scale. In
the workshops, there were not only Chinese and
foreign monks but also high-ranking officials. For
example, over 40 people participated directly in
in total, one portrait of Vajrasana and 300 Buddhist
relics. Empress Wu Zetian respected Buddhism and
Buddhist monks very much so she went outside the
Shangdong Gate to meet him. The monks of Luoyang
held up banners and arranged a drum corps to guide
the team. The Empress issued an imperial order
of translating and placing these scriptures in the
Foshouji Temple.”
Translating the Buddhist scriptures and
Writing of Books
After returning to China, Yijing immediately
started to translate Buddhist scriptures. He first
participated in the translation workshop chaired by
Siksananda, monk from the Kingdom of Khotan and
then translated Avatamsaka Sutra. He finished the
translation of Avatamsaka Sutra in 699 CE (second
year of Shengli Period). He started to organise his
own translation workshops since 700 CE (third year
of Shengli Period, or the first year of the Empress
Wu Zetian’s Jiushi era). He lived in the Great Fu
Xian Temple. On May 5, his translation work
named Ruding Buding Yinjing was finished. Empress
Wu Zetian wrote the Introduction to the Translated
Sacred Teachings of Monk Tripitaka of the Great Zhou
Dynasty and called Yijing as “leader of Buddhist
monks, and eminent monk of Buddhist temples”.
This demonstrates Yijing’s status at that time.
According to volume IX of Record of Sakyamuni's
Teachings Compiled during the Kaiyuan Period,
Yijing translated altogether 20 books of Buddhist
scriptures, 115 volumes in total, in the Great Fu Xian
Temple and then in Chang’an Ximing Temple during
the four years between 700 CE (first year of Empress
Jiushi Period) and 703 CE (third year of Chang’an
Period). That means he translated 30 volumes of
Buddhist scriptures each year on an average.
Empress Wu Zetian valued Yijing very much.
According to the details of different times recorded
in the directories of Buddhist sutras, we can
conclude that Yijing was in Luoyang when Empress
Wu Zetian was in Luoyang, and Yijing returned
to Chang’an when Empress returned to Chang’an.
Yijing followed the empress most of the time.
Apart from Luoyang and Chang’an, it seemed
that Yijing rarely went to other places. The Shaolin
Temple in Dengfeng city is not far from Luoyang.
In April 704 CE (fourth year of Chang’an Period),
Yijing was invited to visit Shaolin Temple and set
platform of precepts there. This is the only record
about Yijing’s movement from Luoyang or Chang’an.
In 705 CE (first year of Shenlong Period), Emperor
Zhongzong of Tang succeeded to the throne. In
February, Tang became the title of the reigning
dynasty again. Emperor Zhongzong of Tang, like
his mother Empress Wu Zetian also respected Yijing
very much. He wrote the Introduction to the Sacred
Teachings of Monk Tripitaka of Ryonghungsa of the
307
Cultural Contacts
translating Buddhist scriptures. And his students
were all over the Jingluo”, demonstrating the he
had many students at that time.
The greatest accomplishments of Yijing was his
journey to India to fetch the Buddhist scriptures
and his translation of them. According to the record
of nolume XIII of Catalogue of the Zhenyuan Era on
Buddhism, Buddhist scriptures translated by Yijing
include Golden Light Sutra Recitation (10 volumes),
Diamond Perfection of Wisdom Sutra (one volume),
Da Kongque Zhouwang Jing (three volumes), Treatise
on the Establishment of the Doctrine of Consciousness
(five volumes), Mūlasarvāstivāda-vinaya (50
volumes), Mūlasarvāstivāda-bhikunī-vinaya-vibhaga
(20 volumes), Mula-sarvastivada-vinaya·sudrakavastu (40 volumes), The Mūlasarvāstivāda
Vinaya Nidana Muktaka (10 or eight volumes),
Mūlasarvāstivāda-eka atakarman (10 volumes),
Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinaya Samgraha (20 or 14
volumes), Mūlasarvāda vinaya bhasisajya vastu
(20 volumes), Mūlasarvāstivāda Vinayavastu (20
volumes, lack two volumes) and so on.
The number of books of Buddhist scriptures
translated by Yijing was 63, 280 volumes in total. But
this figure is inconsistent with the “107 books, 428
volumes of Buddhist scriptures translated by Yijing”
mentioned in the “tower inscription and sequence
of Tripitaka Yijing of the Longxing Period, Datang
Dynasty” on the pagoda of the cemetery of Yijing.
Apart from Buddhist scriptures, he translated the
two works he wrote: Account of Buddhism Sent from
the South Seas (four volumes) and Buddhist Monks
Pilgrimage of Tang Dynasty (two volumes). Yijing
also compiled three works related to religious
disciplines: Bie Shuo Zui Yao Xing Fa (one volume),
Shou Yong San Shui Yao Fa (one volume), Hu Ming
Fang Sheng Gui Yi (one volume).
He also had a book named A Thousand Sanskrit
Words that failed to be handed down from past
generations in China but was preserved in Japan.
Under the title of the book was “Written by Tripitaka
Dharma Master Yijing”. The book recorded some
frequently-used Sanskrit word with Chinese
translations. The book was compiled by copying
the literary form of Chinese traditional Thousand
Character Classic and is clearly a reference book for
Chinese people to learn Sanskrit.
Although there are no records in the directories of
Buddhist sutras, some books are still believed to be
translated or written by Yijing such as Lue Ming Ban
Nuo Hou Yi Song Zan Shu and Shaolin Jie Tan Ming
Bing Xu that was believed to be written when he was
in the Shaolin Temple for the Platform of Precepts.
The contribution to India-China Cultural
Exchanges
Many Chinese monks went to the West to seek
scriptures of ancient times. Master Faxian, Master
The writings of Yijing
the translation workshop led by him in Chang’an
Jianfu Temple in the fourth year of Emperor
Zhongzong’s Jinglong era, “Tochari’s Buddhist
monk Dharma Momo, Indian Buddhist monk Banu
proofed the Sanskrit meaning; Kashmir’s Buddhist
monk Dharmananda proofed the Sanskrit version;
Lay Buddhist East Indian leader Yisheluo proofed
the Sanskrit version; Buddhist monk Huiji and Lay
Buddhist Lishijia dupoduo et al read the Sanskrit
version; Buddhist monks Wengang, Huizhao, Lizhen,
Shengzhuang, Aitong and Siheng et al proofed the
meaning; Buddhist monks Xuansan and Zhiji scribed
down; Lay Buddhist Gautama Vajra and Prince
Ashun Kasmira et al., proofed the translation. More
than 20 people were responsible for reviewing and
embellishments including Grand Secretary Tejie
Zhaoguogong , Li Qiao, Bingbu Shangshu Wei Sili
(Minister of Defence), Zhongshu Shilang ZHAO
Yanzhao (deputy head of the legislative bureau of
government), Libu Shilang Lu Cangyong (Deputy
Minister of Civil Service Affairs), Bingbu Shilang
Zhang Shuo (Deputy Minister of Defense), Zhongshu
Reren Li You (a mid-level official at the legislative
bureau of government) and Su Ting. Zuopushe
Shuguogong Wei Juyuan, Youpushe Xuguogong Su
Gui et al supervised the translation; the secretary
Dajian Sihao Wang Yong monitored the translation.”
Different people from both China and the rest of
the world gathered in the translation workshop.
The work in the translation workshop was divided
carefully. Of course, such translation workshops
could not be organised without the support of
the emperor. Yijing had a good relationship with
Empress Wu Zetian and Emperor Zhongzong of
Tang, which was the basic incentive for him to
organise the translation workshops.
Yijing alto taught students apart from translating
Buddhist scriptures. The Volume IX of the Record of
Sakyamuni's Teachings Compiled during the Kaiyuan
Period noted that he “taught students besides
308
Cultural Contacts
origin was in Kangju (between present-day Balkhash
Lake and Aral Sea in Central Asia), with his ancestors
being the prime ministers of Kangju for generations.
After his grandfather moved to mainland China, he
was awarded the position of Left Privy Counsellor
by the Imperial Court. The family then started
to settle down in Chang’an and took Kang as the
family name according to the custom. Fazang was
decent, elegant and smart even in his young age.
At the age of 17 when he came to the sermon on
Avatamsaka Sutra given by Zhiyan - the second
generation master of Buddhist Hua-yen School at
Mount Taibai he embraced Buddhism and became
a disciple of Zhiyan with his profound and witty
questions and thoughts. Within few years, he had
mastered the essence of his master’s impartation. In
688 CE, the first year of Zongzhang Period during
the reign of Emperor Gaozong of Tang, Zhiyan died
after appointing Fazang, who had not been a monk
at that time, to succeed and highlight his doctrines.
In 670 CE, the first year of Xianheng Period during
the reign of Emperor Gaozong, Empress Dowager
Wu Zetian proposed to obtain welfare by supporting
Buddhism and gave the imperial residence in charity
for building Taiyuan Temple after the death of
Lady Rongguo, her mother. Fazang became a monk
through recommendation of Daocheng, Bochen, etc.,
disciples of Zhiyan and senior bhadants [eminent
monks] in Chang’an. He settled down in Taiyuan
Temple, at the age of 28. Later, he was requested by
imperial order to give sermons on Avatamsaka Sutra
in Taiyuan and Yunhua Temples and honoured
as Xianshou (which originated from Bodhisattva
Xianshou in Avatamsaka Sutra) by Empress Dowager
Wu Zetian. Besides sermons and compilation work,
he also engaged himself in translation. He was once
requested by the imperial order to engage in the
translation task done by a Central Indian Śramana
Divakara together with Daocheng, Bochen, etc.,
to translate two volumes of Mahayana Sutra on
Realisation, three volumes of Ghana Vyuha Sutra,
one volume of Treatise on the Five Aggregates
of Mahayana, one volume of Buddhavatamsaka
Mahavaipulya Sutra in Dharmadhatu etc. Also, he was
appointed as translated text-recorder and meaningreviewer during the translation of 10 volumes of
Golden Light Sutra Recitation by Yijing, 120 volumes
of Maha Ratnakana Sutra by south Indian Śramana
Bodhiruci and 80 volumes of Buddhavatamsaka
Mahavaipulya Sutra by Siksananda, a monk in north
Khotan (present-day Khotan in Xinjiang). Divakara
was requested by Fazang to translate the above
mentioned Buddhavatamsaka Mahavaipulya Sutra
in Dharmadhatu. This led to the compilation of a
complete version of Buddhavatamsaka Mahavaipulya
Sutra and its transmission through generations
after adding the new translation by Siksananda.
Xuanzang and Master Yijing are the most famous.
The three masters have their own characteristics
and all of them made their respective contributions
to India-China Cultural Exchanges. Yijing’s main
purpose of going to India was to seek religious
disciplines which is quite similar to that of Master
Faxian but different from that of Master Xuanzang.
We can clearly understand from the Account of
Buddhism Sent from the South Seas that Yijing
was very dissatisfied with Chinese Buddhism at
that time, especially the situation of precepts for
Buddhist monks. During the years of his stay in
India, Yijing paid special attention to the rules of
Buddhist commandment and Buddhist Sangha
system. He brought back almost all the most popular
Vinayas of Mulasarvastivada to China and translated
them into Chinese in the hope of correcting many
of the biased errors of Chinese Buddhism back then
by using Indian orthodox model. For that matter, he
wrote the Account of Buddhism Sent from the South
Seas before he returned to China with the purpose
of introducing various rules of the life in Indian
Buddhist temples to Chinese monks in detail. After
returning to China, he translated a large number
of Buddhist Vinayas and taught his students to put
them first. Looking at what happened later, Yijing’s
effort failed to exert great influence but the works
he translated and written have become precious
cultural heritage today. In particular, his Account
of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas and Buddhist
Monks Pilgrimage of Tang Dynasty are important
materials nowadays for understanding and studying
the history of India-China Cultural Exchanges
and the history of Indian, East Asian and Chinese
Buddhism. Yijing and his works have been valued
by the international academic community since
early times. In Europe and Japan, his works have
been translated into local languages and published
and scholars have conducted researches on him.
Today, all Chinese and foreign scholars studying
Indian history and Buddhism know Yijing and will
read the two books mentioned above.
(Wang Bangwei)
Fazang
Fazang (643-712 CE), was a monk in Tang Dynasty
with ancestral origin being in Kangju. He was the
third generation master of Han-yen School of
Buddhism who was honoured otherwise as Master
Xianshou, Master Guoyi, Master Xiangxiang and
Master Kangzang of the state.
According to volume V of Biographies of Eminent
Monks in Song Dynasty, volume XII of General Record
of Generations of Buddha and Biography of Late Major
Sutra Translator Bhadant Fazang in Dajianfu Temple
in Tang Dynasty etc, Fazang had his family name as
Kang before he became a monk and his ancestral
309
Cultural Contacts
Foshi (ie Srivijaya, present-day Sumatra), Shizizhou
(present-day Sri lanka) etc. Later, he toured around
holy sites for a pilgrimage, sought for Sanskrit
sutras and visited masters and friends which lasted
for as long as 13 years. After that, he returned to
Chang’an finally in 719 CE (seventh year of Kaiyuan
Period during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of
Tang), travelling along the northern route through
Daxue Mountain and over 70 countries. Years of
travelling alone made him know human sufferings
well for which he sought ways to get rid of misery.
Consulting many Indian Tripitaka scholars, he
knew that the Pure Land was the best place to go.
It is said that when he passed through Gandhara,
he once saw the presence of Arya Avalokiteshvara
after seven days’ apastia in a northeastern mountain,
who encouraged him to spread Buddha dharma that
was beneficial to him and others, persuade people
to pray to Buddha and chant sutras in order to go
to the Pure Land in the West. After returning to
China, he respectfully presented Buddha statues
and Sanskrit sutras to Emperor Xuanzong of Tang
which led him to courteous reception as well as the
honour as “Tripitaka of Mercy”. He died at 69 in
the Wangji Temple of Luoyang in 748 CE (seventh
year of Tianbao Period). His existing works include
volume I of Brief Introduction to Sutras on Going
for Pure Land by Chanting. The Pure Land dharmamukha he spread was of equal significance with Hui
Yuan and Shan Dao, the Pure Land masters, which
belongs to the Mercy School.
(Ge Weijun)
Fazang
Fazang used to give a sermon on Avatamsaka Sutra
to Empress Dowager Wu Zetian, enlightening
her by simple metaphors and compiled meaning
commentary for Lankavatara Sutra, Ghana Vyuha
Sutra, Brahmajala Sutra and Mahayana on Belief.
During his lifetime, he preached Avatamsaka Sutra
for over 30 times, developing and perfecting the
distinguishing theories created by Zhiyan in detail.
Moreover, as put forward by him, the Hua-yen
philosophy ranked the first among various Buddhist
philosophical schools and categories ie five religions
and 10 schools. Therefore, Fazang was considered
as the actual founder of Hua-yen School despite his
honour as the third generation master. He died in
the November of 712 CE, the first year of Xiantian
Period during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of
Tang, in the Dajianfu Temple of Chang’an at the
age of 70. He was buried in the south of Huayan
Temple the same month. Yan Chaoyin, the library
supervisor, wrote inscription, (ie the existing
Monument of Late Major Sutra Translator Bhadant
Fazang in Dajianfu Temple in Tang Dynasty) for him,
describing his life, work and travels.
(Ge Weijun)
Shenhui
Shenhui (720~794 CE) was a Chan monk in
Jingzhong Temple in Tang Dynasty whose ancestral
origin was in Western Regions.
According to volume IX of Biographies of
Eminent Monks in Song Dynasty, Shenhui had his
family name as Shi before he became a monk
and his ancestral origin was in Western Regions.
His grandfather moved to Chinesia and settled
in Fengxiang (present-day Shaanxi). Although
smart by nature, he was restrained in character
to not reveal his wisdom. He came to the State of
Shu at age of 30 and became a disciple of Master
Wuxiang (684~762 CE) in Jingzhong Temple.
With his comprehension and tacit understanding
with the Master, he was recognised by Wuxiang
to take over the temple later. He did widespread
mendicancy and persuasion during his stay in the
temple, making Zen believers gather towards him
from all directions. Contemporary people described
him as wood and stone when in meditation while
as cloud and storm when in sermon by witticism.
Believers would be inclined to goodness at the sight
of his spiritual outlook, and correct their badness
Huiri
Huiri (680~748 CE) was an eminent monk of the
Pure-Land School in Tang Dynasty. According to
volume XXIX of Biographies of Eminent Monks of Song
Dynasty and volume II of Records of Ksetra Rebirth,
Huiri was born in Donglai, Shandong Province
with his secular family name being Xin. He became
a monk during the reign of Emperor Zhongzong
of Tang. After his accepting complete percepts at
20, he met and admired the eminent monk Yijing
who had returned from the tour to India and was
determined to travel to the Western Regions. In
701 CE (during Dazu period under the reign of
Empress Wu Zetian), he went by sea for three years
to arrive in India passing through Kunlun (presentday Con Son Island in South Vietnamese Sea),
310
Cultural Contacts
and families. Sarivarma agreed after his repeated
request and imparted in person the Sanskrit sutras,
namely Da-abhamika-satra, Sutra of Buddhist Sermon
on Dedication and Sutra of Buddhist Sermon on Ten
Powers, as well as a piece of tooth relic of Buddha.
He once intended to return by sea while changed his
mind as returning by land when considering the risks
of stormy waves. When he arrived in Qiuci (presentday Kuqa of Sinkiang) passing through Tochari
(west of Pamirs and south of Wuhu River), Shule,
Khotan (present-day Khotan of Sinkiang) etc, and
lived in Lianhua Temple, he met Tripitaka Master
Wutitixiyu (otherwise translated as Wutitichanyu),
who was adept at both Sanskrit and Chinese and
thus requested to translated one volume of Sutra
of Buddhist Sermon on Ten Powers. Then when he
arrived in Beiting (reigned location being presentday Pochengzi in north of Jimusar of Sinkiang)
passing through state of Wuqi (present-day Yanqi of
Sinkiang), he cooperated with Tripikata Saladharma
(the name being paraphrased as sila-dhamma)
in Khotan (present-day Khotan of Sinkiang) to
translate one volume of Sutra of Buddhist Sermon
on Dedication and nine volumes of Da-abhamikasatra on the invitation of Yang Xigu (Jiedushi) and
Dazhen (Sramana of Longxing Temple) during which
Saladharma was the Sanskrit reader and interpreter,
Dazhen was the writer of translated text, Sramana
Fachao embellished the text, Shanxin reviewed the
meaning and Fajie reviewed the Sanskrit text and
interpreted the source text. The translated sutras
were later complied into New Directory for Buddhism
in Zhenyuan Period according to imperial order in
799 CE, the 15th year of Zhenyuan Period. It was the
time when Duan Mingxiu, ambassador of Beiting,
went to Beiting, and Fajie followed him eastward
in 789 CE (fifth year of Zhenyuan Period during
the reign of Emperor Dezong of Tang) and returned
to Chang’an, the capital, in the next year (there is
another saying that the year of arrival is 789 CE)
at hearing of his speech. He could treat people
of different aptitudes with different methods to
enlighten them. In the November of 794 CE, the
10th year of Zhenyuan Period during the reign of
Emperor Dezong of Tang Dynasty, he got ill and
died later, sitting cross-legged, at the age of 75.
Wei Gao, the Nankang Prince who was devoted to
Buddhism, got the essence of Shenhui’s sermon so
he wrote article and made monument for Shenhui
in respect and adoration.
(Ge Weijun)
Wukong
Wukong (731~unknown CE) was a monk and sutra
translator in Tang Dynasty and once visited India
subject to imperial order. He is also called Fajie.
According to volume III of Biographies of Eminent
Monks in Song Dynasty, New Translated Versions of
Sutras as Ten Bhumi in Zhenyuan Period of Tang etc.
Wukong was born in Yunyang, Jingzhao (presentday Jingyang of Shaanxi Province) with his secular
name being Che Fengchao and was the descendant of
Tuoba Clan in late Wei Dynasty. Clever and fond of
study as he was young, he was interested in ancient
classics and known for his filial piety and fraternal
duty. After becoming an adult, he devoted himself
in serving for his country. In 750 CE (ninth year
of Tianbao Period of Tang), Kawmira (similar to
present-day Kashmir) sent Sabodagan (chief leader)
and Sarivarma (master) to visit Chang’an. Next year,
the imperial court sent Ambassador Zhang Taoguang
to pay a return visit to the West with credentials and
other over 40 people. Che Fengchao was among the
entourage as left deputy general of Simen Mansion
of Weijing Prefecture. The delegation went through
present-day Sinkiang to Gandhara, eastern capital
of Kawmira, in the 12th year of Tianbao Period and
received courteous reception from the King. Later,
Zhang Taoguang returned with other people, while
Wukong was detained out of disease and swore to
become a monk upon recovery. In 757 CE, the second
year of Zhide Period during the reign of Emperor
Suzong of Tang, he became a disciple of Sarivarma
with the dharma name being as Dharma Tuodu
(means dharmadhatu) and the age of 27. Two years
later, he accepted complete percepts in Kasmira,
taking Wushushiniedi as gegenla, Wubuchanti as
discipline teacher and Tuoliweidi as professor. He
studied percepts on Mulasarvastivada and Sanskrit
as he paid tour pilgrimage to Buddhist temples
during a four-year period. Later, he travelled around
middle India, visiting eight towers at places of
Buddha birth, enlightenment, initial dharmacakra
and nirvana as well as other holy sites, and stayed
in Nalanda Monastery for three years. In 765, the
third year of Guangde Period, he intended to return
to the Central Plains for his longing for motherland
The ruins of Nalanda
311
Cultural Contacts
core theory of Dakini and the Best Subject, the
Topless Esoteric sutra and other sutras and had
got great achievement, especially the Core Theory
of Dakini was a vital sutra that the great master
taught her particularly. It was inherited by her for a
thousand years.
Nine months later, Yeshe Tshogyal was appointed
by the Great Master to recruit a 17-year-old travelled
monk named Ayasali in Nepal. There she used the
means of life regression to reborn a young man who
died in the war which got her a great reputation.
The King of Nepal urged her to stay there to preach
sutra but she refused. She learned the umbilical
lively drop, yin in the essence of the secret and
other critical sutras from the female disciple taught
by Padmasambhava himself. Later, she went back
to Tibet with Ayasali. Learn from the Great Master,
Ayasali got achievement of Four Sets as well.
The Great Master taught Yeshe Tshogyal,
Lhalundpal Gyi Sengge and other three closed
disciples the Great Power of Vajvakilaka and then
Yeshe Tshogyal became the main holder of the
power and became the Mother-Buddha preached the
sutra until today.
Yeshe Tshogyal mastered all kinds of the Esoteric
means and methods through practising hard. Not
only was she the main successor and the disciple
of Padmasambhava also honoured in the world
because of the great achievement. She became the
first female Esoteric Buddhism Master with great
success and Grand Mother-Buddha of Ningma
School in the history of the Tibetan Buddhism.
Yeshe Tshogyal had followed Padmasambhava for
learning the Esoteric means for 11 years during which
together with other disciples of Padmasambhava,
she transcribed in all handwriting styles 10 million
books for any kinds of Thought Polishing Means,
10,000 books of all kinds of Thought Theory,
continued Esoteric Buddhism, Sutras, Esoteric
Buddhism and other deep means the Great Masters
had taught. All of them were recorded in categories,
made into books and filed with different entries.
Finally, they hid them secretly in 25 great snow
and was accommodated in Yuelongmen Embassy
Agency as required in the imperial order. He had
taken the translated Chinese version of sutras
with him and left the original Sanskrit sutras in
Longxing Temple. Duan Mingxiu offered the tooth
relic of Buddha as well as the sutras to the imperial
court as tributes. Later, he was accommodated in
Zhangjing Temple of Chang’an in response to the
imperial order and was given the name “Wukong”.
Thereafter, he returned to Yunyang to mourn for his
parents and the traces afterwards became unknown.
Wukong once dictate one volume of New Translated
Versions of Sutras as Ten Bhumi in Zhenyuan Period
of Tang (also called Records on Wukong’s Travel in
India) which was written down by eminent monk
Yuanzhao from Ximing Temple of Chang’an in the
sixth year of Zhenyuan Period. This book included
his own birth and experiences on seeking Buddha
dharma in India except the detailed description of
the places he passed by.
(Ge Weijun)
Yeshe Tshogyal
Yeshe Tshogyal (732~death unknown CE) was
a disciple of Padmasambhava of India, a female
Esoteric Buddhism Master in early Hong age of
Tibetan Buddhism a patriarch Mother-Buddha of
Ningma School of Tibetan Buddhism of China.
She also was named Mkar chen bzv tshogyal or
Mkvvgro. She became the princess of the King of
Tibetan Emperor Khrisrong Sdebtsun at the age of
12. Since then, Yeshe Tshogyal learned five subjects
from many masters very carefully. As she believed
in Buddhism, she was appointed as the manager
of Tibetan Buddhism. In 8th century CE, the great
master Padmasambhava came to Tibet and founded
mandalas. In 756 CE, Yeshe Tshogyal took abhisek of
Padmasambhava with the King and the great master
had made out that she had the sign of wisdom dakini
so he asked to open the means of Tibetan Esoteric
Buddhism and the King permitted. Therefore, Yeshe
Tshogyal became a disciple of Padmasambhava and
later, she got tonsured and practiced law, sutra,
theory, Padmasambhava gradations and other
Exoteric and Esoteric Sutras with the great master.
However, the ministers of Tibet were against
her so badly because of her practice in sutra with
Padmasambhava so the great master was expelled
and Yeshe Tshogyal was banished to Lhobrag. Before
leaving, the master and Yeshe Tshogyal hid three
Buddhism Sutras at Yamalung, a turn of a cliff that
was like a crow. Then, they went into seclusion
and practiced the sutra in Zholtod Terdrom (within
present-day Mozhu Gongka of Tibet where it was
said it is the Holy land Dakini gathered). Here, she
got every kinds of abhiseka inside and outside of
the treasured vase from Padmasambhava and the
Yixicuojie
312
Cultural Contacts
which derived many means and acts of Exoteric and
Esoteric Buddhism to worship her, especially the
living Buddha system of Vajravarahi and Wisdom
Dakini of Tibetan Buddhism derived from her which
became a great branch of the Tibetan Buddhism.
(Deji Zhuoma)
mountains, famous scenic spots, 18 great section,
108 practising area of Padmasambhava, especially
in Duokang area where the Great Master got his
reputation, five famous spots of five heroes, 12
spots of the fantastic courses, three spots of the
imparting area, 125 great spots in Tibet, 1070
small place and in neighbouring country like
Nepal, there were hundreds of Buddhism Sutras
which contributed to spreading the means of the
great master to Tibet and the neighbouring foreign
countries. Therefore, Ningma School and Kargyu
School consecrated Yeshe Tshogyal as the great
master of the Hiding Sutras.
These treasure books made up the vital classics
like The Great Treasure of The Hiding Sutras and
spreading of the sutras that is spreading of classics
of the Hiding Sutras which had made up the deep
foundation for the formation of Tibet Buddhism
and Ningma School of Ancient Tibet and had
profound significance for the spread of Buddhism
in ancient Tibet.
Yeshe Tshogyal had written many works. At
present, there are 19 writings of Exoteric and
Esoteric Buddhism: One Hundred Knacks of the Book
of Jue Muer, Sutra of the Quiet Place, Nine Examples
of Causes and Results, The Core Theory of Whispering
Dakini Up and Down and some important books
of the Abstracts, Summary, and Article of Yeshe
Tshogyal’s Autobiography, Biography of the Great
Master: Padmasambhava. All these works have given
valuable spiritual heritage. Therefore, people called
her the Female Banzhida in Ancient Tibet, ie the
great female scholar of ancient Tibet. These means
that she imparted had come into two spread means
the whispering means and the hiding sutras means,
which was learned and spread by her most closed
disciple, Dawamu, until now, especially The Most
Esoteric Buddha Warrior Snap, and The Core Theory of
Whispering Dakini Up and Down had wide influence
for the world.
Yeshe Tshogyal had made great contribution
for the spread and development of Buddhism in
ancient Tibet as well as found a way for all of the
Tibetan women to learn words, means, spread and
practice of Buddhism which made great works
for improving entire quality and cultural spirits
for them. In memorial of Yeshe Tshogyal, in her
birthplace of northern Yarlung Zangbo River,
present-day Zhada Town, Zhanang County, people
had founded Cuojie Namucuo Lakang, a temple to
worship her. According to The Record of Zhanang
Culture, Cuojie Namucuo Lakang was constructed
in the middle of 8th century CE. What should be
defined here is that later generations have deified
her and worshipped and consecrated her as the
embodiment of Vajravarahi and Wisdom Dakini.
Also, they consecrated her statue in the temple
Virocana
Virocana (Bee ro tsa na, 8th century CE) was a famous
Tubo monk, one of “the seven enlightened monks”
and among 25 Tantric mahasiddhas and ranked at
the top of 108 great translators.
He was born in Nimu, Tubo. His original name was
Gaja Tangda. Tubo King Trisong Deutsen accepted
the suggestion of Padmasambhava and recruited
Gaja Tangda at the age of eight to be cultivated
in Bsam yas dgon. Tubo royal family provided
generous life treatment to him, hoped that he could
become an eminent local monk in Tubo early and
arranged him to learn culture from Shantarokshita
and Padmasambhava. Three years later, he began
to act as translator between the two masters and
Piruzhamo/Vairocana
Trisong Deutsen and was appreciated by the three
seniors. He could translate for Padmasambhava and
instructed doctrines to Trisong Deutsen who was
pleased at him greatly.
Gaja Tangda became an excellent translator
when he was 15 and received monk ordination
when he became older and became one of “the
seven enlightened monks” with his exoteric name
was Ye shes sde. Meanwhile, he received exoteric
empowerment and became one of 25 Tubo
mahasiddhas and his tantric name was Virocana and
won his reputation in the circle of tantric Buddhism
with his tantric name.
Because Virocana was brilliant and clever as well
as received good education, he was thought as
the Tubo youth with the brightest future. Trisong
Deutsen sent two Tubo young men including
Virocana to learn in India. As for Indian Buddhism at
313
Cultural Contacts
that time, exoteric Buddhism decayed gradually and
esoteric Buddhism thrived increasingly. Virocana
learned from a tantric vajrayana master and studied
many tantric dharmas including Vajrayana in Indian
Mahabodhi Temple. Because he was clever and
diligent, he was proficient in profound Tantric
truths. Indians thought that he was clever, had
language talent and believed in Buddhism devoutly
and gave him a symbolic name: Vajrayana, meaning
“universal guard” or “great light” and the name was
consistent with his tantric name.
After finishing his study in India, Virocana
returned to Tubo, translated sutras and instructed
tantric dharmas in Bsam yas dgon. He was proficient
in exoteric Buddhism and Vinaya-pitaka as well
as tantric Buddhism. He translated many tantric
works mainly including Universal King Sutra, Sutra
of Condensed Meaning and Eight Sadhana Teachings
of Illusion jointly translated by Ma Rinchen Chok
(Precious Victory), Gnyags gzhon nu shes rab
(Youth Intelligence), Nub Sanggye Yeshe (Buddha
Intelligence) etc, and solely translated Brief
Introduction to Sixty Stanzas of Reasoning and Praise
of Endless Bright Buddha Name. Except that a few of
these works were collected into Tripitaka, most of
these works were selected into collected works of
tantric dharmas of the Ningmapa sect.
(Kalsang gyal)
An image of Renqinsangbu
of 13, he adopted monastic life after cutting off his
hair before Khenpo Yeshe Sangpo, went to Kasmira
(present-day Kashmir), and learned exoteric and
esoteric Buddhism from 75 wise men including
Pandita Shrnghk ra lawrm and Ka ma la kupt etc.
In the period of ancient King Ludd of Guge Dynasty,
the Panditas including Sa ra tu ga ra bromo, Ka ra
guptu and Bud ngha shrishnti were invited to Tibet
and they translated sutras in Tuolin Temple with
Lo chen rin chen bzang po and initiated the sutra
translation climax in the post-propagation period of
Tibetan Buddhism.
Lo chen rin chen bzang po translated many
important exoteric and esoteric sutras and shastras
of Buddhism including tantra classics of Buddhism
and opened construction of new tantra of Tibetan
Buddhism. According to incomplete statistics, Lo
chen rin chen bzang po translated 17 sutra-pitakas,
33 shastra-pitakas and 108 tantras, and modified
many Tibetan sutras translated in the Tubo period
according to new Sanskrit versions. Moreover, he
had translated many important Indian medical
classics and these translated medical works had
played enormous roles in developing Tibetan
medical science.
In view of Lo chen rin chen bzang po’s important
contributions made to Buddhism, King Ludd of Ali
Guge Dynasty canonised him as the first sacrifice
object, worshipped him as Vajra Guru and allocated
a piece of land from Bushang Area as his land for
religious activities, built several Buddhist halls as
rewards for his great achievements in Buddhist
career. Meanwhile, with the energetic support and
help of King Ludd of Ali Guge Dynasty, Lo chen rin
chen bzang po built many Buddhist pagodas, halls
and temples in Ali Area with the centre of Guge.
Lo chen rin chen bzang po further made
achievements in Tantric practices in his late years.
When he was 85, Atisa arrived in Ali Guge Area,
Li Chengmei
Li Chengmei (around late 8th century CE to mid-9th
century CE) was a monk from Yunnan Province,
China. He once studied in India and was mistaken
as an Indian in some profiles (Yuan Ding, Yunnan
Introduction Book). During 821-824 CE, he came to
Dali and was honored as the teacher of the state
by King of Nanzhao Kingdom, Quan Fengyou
(824–859 CE). He built Dangshan Temple (presentday Gantong Temple) in Dali and then rebuilt the
Congsheng Temple. He was respected as the second
ancestor of Nanzhao Chan Sect. His stories can
be found in page 51 and 52 of Zhang Shengwen’s
Buddhist Picture of Kingdom of Dali, chapter 13 of
General Book of Yunnan, and Unofficial History of
Kingdom of Nanzhao etc.
(Xue Keqiao)
Lo chen rin chen bzang po
Lo chen rin chen bzang po (958~1055 CE) was
a famous monk and sutra translator in the postpropagation period of Tibetan Buddhism. Lo chen
rin chen bzang po was of noble birth and it is said
that his family was Gayu ri gayu sgra which was
one of six great families in Zanskar, Guge. His
youth name was Lo chen dbang phyug and “Eagle
Face” was his alias because his nose was similar to
a hook and he had an unique feature. At the age
314
Cultural Contacts
from China to India. According to volume 490 of
The History of Song Dynasty, Cihuan was a Buddhist
from Weizhou (present-day Xinxiang and Huixian
of Henan). At the middle of Yongxi Period (about
986 CE), he came back from India with Mitra,
a monk from Hu minority and brought letters
from King of North India, Vajrasana Temple and
Nàlanda, the monk of Hu minority. In 4th year of
Qiande Period at the beginning of Song Dynasty
(966 CE), he was one of the monks who accepted
the Emperor’s order to learn Buddhist doctrine in
India. According to volume 45 of Statistics of the
Buddhist Monks, Emperor Renzong (1023-1063
CE) of Song Dynasty wrote Chinese Etymology of
India and granted it to a translation school where
he could discuss theories in the second year of
Jingyou Period (1035 CE). There were a total of
138 Chinese monks who went on the pilgrimage
for Buddhist scriptures to India and returned. This
included Cihuan and Xibibai. The identity and
whereabouts of another 19 people are unknown.
(Xue Keqiao)
he didn’t worship Atisa at first, and he began
to respect Atisa when Atisa wrote eulogies for
Buddha images in hall, followed his advices, and
focussed on practice of tantric doctrines. He wrote
an oath meditating wholeheartedly on three doors
of Zen Room saw condensed meaning and saintly
appearance with supreme happiness finally,
obtained Tantric Buddhahood and completed the
highest objective of monk. Under the influences of
eminent monks including Lo chen rin chen bzang
po, tracks of Tibetans coming to India for study can
be seen everywhere from Kashmir Mountain Area
and Gangetic Plain.
Lo chen rin chen bzang po made all efforts to
translate sutras in his whole life, and translated a
lot of important sutras from Sanskrit to Tibetan.
Later generations used Lo chen rin chen bzang po as
the boundary, called tantric classics before him as
Old Tantras and tantric classics translated since he
began his translation were New Tantras.
(Kalsang gyal)
Daoyuan
Jiye
Daoyuan (late 10th-11th centuries CE) was a Chinese
monk who went on a pilgrimage to India. According
to Book 16 of Jingyou Fabao Lu in 1017 CE (first
year of Tian Xi Era during the reign of the Emperor
Zhenzong), Zuntai and Daoyuan returned from India
and presented the following to the imperial court 10 sutras, Buddha’s relics, bodhi prayer beads as well
as a copy of Xinyi Sanzang Shengjiao Xu written by
Zhao Tai, Emperor Taizong, and inscribed by a monk
on a stone vajrasana near the place where Buddha
attained enlightenment, and Emperor Taizong gave
them purple coats and silks as a reward.
(Xue Keqiao)
Jiye (mid-10th century to mid-11th century CE) was
a Chinese Buddhist who went from China to India
to fetch the scriptures. According to Wuchuan
Record by Fan Chengda (1126-1193 CE), Jiye has
a surname of Wang from Yaozhou (now Yaoxian,
Shanxi). He was originally a Buddhist of Tianshou
Yard (present-day Kaifeng of Henan). In the second
year of Qiande Period of Emperor Taizu in Song
Dynasty (964 CE, some say it was the fourth year
of Qiande Period), the emperor issued an imperial
edict to dispatch 300 Buddhist monks (some say
it was 157 Buddhist monks) to learn Buddhist
doctrine, and Jiye was among them. Jiye had
been to India for 13 years, and returned to China
in the 9th year of Kaibao (976 CE). At that time,
the old Emperor Taizu had died and the new
Emperor Taizong ascended the throne. Jiye offered
Buddhist scriptures and Buddhist relics obtained
in India as a tribute. The emperor issued an
imperial edict to learn and practice the scriptures
in famous mountains. Then, Jiye came to Sichuan
and mounted Mount Emei for observation. He saw
that Niuxin Mountain was surrounded by other
mountains. With the suitable terrain a hut was built
there and Niuxin temple was completed soon. Jiye
cultivated and preached in Niuxin Temple, died at
the age of 84. About 100 years later, Fan Chengda
travelled around Sichuan and visited Niuxin
Temple and found a found a Mahaparinirvana Sutra
treasured by Jiye, which consisted of 42 volumes,
and recorded Jiye’s journey route in India in each
volume. Although the record is simple and short,
it can correct and supplement the gap of Masashi.
Xingqin
Xingqin (about 10th century CE) was a Buddhist monk
who went from China to India to learn Buddhist
doctrines. His life history is unknown. According
to volume 43 of Statistics of Buddhist Monks and
volume 490 of The History of Song Dynasty, in the 4th
year of Qiande Period of Emperor Taizu (966 CE),
157 Buddhist monks led by Xingqin accepted the
order of the Emperor to learn Buddhist doctrine in
the West (some say they were applied to go west
and the Emperor approved). The returning time is
unknown. According to Biography of Tian Xizai in
volume 1 of New Biography of Eminent Monks, he
joined in the translation school and translated the
Buddhist Scriptures after he came back.
(Xue Keqiao)
Cihuan
Cihuan (about 10th century CE) was a Buddhist
who went on a pilgrimage for Buddhist scriptures
315
Cultural Contacts
Qiande Period (966 CE). According to volume 1 of
Biography of Tian Xizai in New Biography of Eminent
Monks, Guangyuan joined the translation school
and translated Buddhist scriptures.
(Xue Keqiao)
Fayu
Fayu (about 10th century CE) was a Chinese Buddhist
monk who went to India on a pilgrimage to seek
for Buddhist scriptures. According to volume 43 of
Statistics on Buddhist Monks and volume 490 of The
History of Song Dynasty, in fourth year of Qiande
Period (966 CE), Fayu was despatched to India as
one of the members of a large team of 157 monks
to learn the Buddhist doctrine in India. In eighth
year of Taiping Xingguo Period (983 CE), he came
back by sea to present relics of Buddha parietal
and Palm-Leaf Manuscript to the imperial court.
On the way to home, he passed Samboja kingdom
(present-day road hub of Malacca in southeast
Sumatra of Indonesia) and met Mimarasri, an
Indian Monk who wanted to translate the Buddhist
Scriptures and sought Fayu’s help to get permission
from the Emperor. After Fayu’s presentation of a
report to the Emperor, an imperial decree granting
permission was issued. Fayu planned to go to India
again to cover and consecrate Buddha’s Vajrasana
[diamond throne] by raising funds and making
ceremonial canopy and spun gold kashaya [silk
roll]. He also requested the king to write imperial
edicts to Srivijaya Kingdom as well as kings of
countries of southern India. The emperor wrote
the imperial edict. But there is no detailed record
for Fayu’s later travel and its results. It can only
be verified in the inscription on the stone carved
in the first year of Qianxing Period (1022 CE) in
Bodhgaya, India.
(Xue Keqiao)
Wu Chuanlu
According to the record of Jiye, he went west
via Jie State (present-day Wudou area of Gansu),
passed many places of Gansu and Sinkiang, then he
climbed over the snow mountains twice to reach
Gāndhāra via Kashmir. Then, he walked towards
East and passed Jalandhara, Kānyakubja (presentday Kanauj) and arrived in Vàràõasã (present-day
Varanasi of Uttar Pradesh, India). Since then, the
relic of Buddhism is centralised and the record
by Jiye is more detailed which indicated that he
had many activities and lived for a long time in
Uttar Pradesh and Bihar. Due to fewer record after
Tang Dynasty, the record of Jiye is very precious.
His record describes the new and old “Han
Temple”, new and old two Ràjagçhas, hot spring
of Ràjagçha and the situation of Nālanda which is
of great importance to study the history of cultural
communication between China and India.
(Xue Keqiao)
Guangyuan
Guangyuan (about 10th century CE) was a Chinese
Buddhist monk who went on a pilgrimage to seek
Buddhist scriptures from India. According to volume
43 of Statistics of Buddhist Monks and volume 490
of The History of Song Dynasty, Guangyuan was a
monk from Chengdou and came back from India
in seventh year of Taiping Xingguo Period (982
CE) to the capital of the country (present day
Kaifeng) and brought the Letter from King of India
(Mahinan), relics of Buddha, Palm-Leaf Manuscript
and holy leaf from the Bodhi tree to the imperial
court. The emperor ordered the Buddhist Canon
Master from India named Danagupta to translate
the Letter of Credence. In the letter, the Indian king
paid homage to the Emperor of China, was grateful
for the presentation of the cassock for Buddha’s
Vajrasana and wished longevity to the emperor and
salvation to the people from the land of Buddha.
Guangyuan was one of the 157 monks who had
been sent on a pilgrimage for Buddhist scriptures
in India by the emperor’s order in fourth year of
Jiansheng
Jiansheng (about 10th century CE) was a Chinese
Buddhist monk who travelled to India on a
pilgrimage to seek Buddhist scriptures. According
to volume 43 of Statistics on Buddhist Monks, he
returned to China in fourth year of Kaibao Period of
Emperor Taizu (971 CE) with Mañjusri, a Brahmin
monk of Central India and presented Palm-Leaf
Manuscript to the Imperial Court.
(Xue Keqiao)
Jicong
Jicong (about 10th century CE) was a Buddhist monk
who went on a pilgrimage for Buddhist scriptures
from China to India. According to volume 43 of
Statistics on Buddhist Monks, he was a monk from
Kaibao Temple. In second year of Taiping Xingguo
Period of Emperor Taizong of Song Dynasty (977
316
Cultural Contacts
in learning Sanskrit, “He knew its meaning when
reading it and he became a monk after a year.
Favoured by Buddhist doctrine, he was granted
cassock, and known as Buddhist Master.” After Tian
Xizai and Fatian’s death, Dānapāla became the main
translator and assisted in translation of Buddhist
sutras with Dharmapāla, an Indian monk who came
to China in 1004 CE. In the sixth year of Dazhong
Xiangfu Period (1013 CE), Weijing and Yang Yi
(974-1020 CE) compiled 21 volumes of Collection
for Treasured Tricks of Dazhong Xiangfu Period; in
the third year of Tiansheng Period (1025 CE) he
and Xia Song (985-1051 CE) wrote 70 volumes of
Pronunciation and Meaning of Text in New Translation
of Buddhist Scriptures; in the fifth year (1027) he
and Huifang wrote three volumes of Full Collection
for Saint Shakyamuni, in the second year of Jingyou
Period (1035 CE) he and Fahu wrote seven volumes
of Jingyou Etymology of Indian Words. According to
the statistics of some scholars, Weijing had translated
seven books and 121 volumes of Buddhist sutras,
actually more than these. His translation works with
his name are as follows: 40 volumes of Saccadhamma
of the Mahayana Sutras, 17 books and 45 volumes in
cooperation with Shihu and Fahu, eight books and
94 volumes in cooperation with Fahu. Weijing is the
most outstanding translator of Buddhist Scriptures
in the Northern Song Dynasty. After his death, he
was missed by people. In the fifth year of Xining
Period of the Emperor Shenzong, he was conferred
a posthumous title as “Ming Jiao Tripitaka”.
(Xue Keqiao)
CE), he came back from India and offered Brahma
Sutras, Sarira [relics] Stupa, Bodhi-tree Leaf and a
whiff of peacock tail to the emperor. Pleased by his
work, the emperor presented him purple clothes.
Jicong was one of the members of monk team
(consisting of 157 monks) to go on a pilgrimage for
Buddhist scriptures in India by the emperor’s order
in the fourth year of Qiande Period (966).
(Xue Keqiao)
Chongda
Chongda (about 10th century CE) was a Chinese
Buddhist monk who went on a pilgrimage from
China to India to seek Buddhist scriptures. According
to volume 43 of Statistics of Buddhist Monks, he was
a monk from Taiyuan; in the seventh or eighth year
of Taiping Xingguo Period of Emperor Taizong of
Song Dynasty (981 or 982 CE),he went to India for
scriptures and returned in second year of Chunhua
Period (991 CE) to present Buddhist relics and PalmLeaf Manuscript to the imperial court. Then, the
Emperor honoured him by offering purple clothes.
He finally went to live in Guang’ai Temple of Xijing
(present-day Datong of Shanxi Province).
(Xue Keqiao)
Weijing
Weijing (1015 CE) was a Chinese Buddhist and
a translator of Buddhist scriptures. According
to volume 43 of Statistics of Buddhist monks, his
surname is Li and he is from Jinling (present-day
Nanjing, Jiangsu Province), the nephew of Li Yu ,
the Emperor of Southern Tang Dynasty, in the Five
dynasties (937-978 CE). He became a monk at the
age of seven and could recite Saddharmapundarika
Sutra at 11 years of age. In the eighth year of Taiping
Xingguo Period (983 CE), to cultivate the successors
for translation of the Buddhist Scriptures, Tian Xizai,
the Tripitaka master of India, suggested recruiting
children from the aristocracy to learn Sanskrit,
and the Emperor approved that. Weijing and other
nine boys were selected. Weijing was successful
Vbrog mi shakya ye shes
Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye Shes (993-1074 CE) was a
famous sutra translator in the post-propagation
period of Tibetan Buddhism. He had historically
been referred to as “Translator Vbrog mi” and was
one of the founders of New Tantras of Tibetan
Buddhism.
Several sons of Khri bkra shis tse bei po promoted
the career of Buddhism propagation who the
descendant of Trisong Deutsen governing the
Posterior Tibet Area at that time. On the basis of
weal local Buddhism and lack of monk talents, they
decided to invite eminent foreign monks as well as
cultivate local monks. They selected two young men
including Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye Shes and Dara zhonu
brtson vgrus to bring gold to study in India. They
learned Sanskrit from local teachers, laid certain
language foundation and then they went to Nepal
to study Sanskrit and left for India one year later.
Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye Shes had studied hard in
Vikramshila for eight years and laid solid foundation
in exotoric Buddhism. He went to East India,
acknowledged Hui Ming as his teacher and learned
exotoric Buddhism specifically.
Fragments of the Lotus Sūtra. It is now preserved in the museum at
Lüxun in Liaoning, China.
317
Cultural Contacts
Through four year studies, he had profoundly
understood secrets and dharmas of Tantric
Buddhism. The guru instructed a profound Tantric
Dharma to Vbrog mi ie the way and result (lam
vbras). This Tantric Dharma became the core
doctrine of the Sagya sect of Tibetan Buddhism.
Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye Shes had studied in India
for 13 years. When he returned to his hometown,
Ladoi, he received enthusiastic welcome from many
monks and laymen who congratulated him that he
made great achievements in Buddhism. Hereafter,
Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye Shes received disciples and
instruct Buddhism as an eminent monk. He lived in
the temples such as Niegulong and Lahze rtsa and
instructed Buddhist doctrines mainly. He translated
three tantras represented by Chapter Two of Hevajra
tantra as well as Treatise on Complete Purity which
was written by him and his guru and many other
tantric classics.
Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye Shes visited the famous
Indian Abhidhammika Gaya Damre in Gongtang of
the Posterior Tibet, he took the change to invite the
abhidhammika to propagate Buddhism in Niegulong
Temple and gave him 500 liang of gold as rewards,
and the abhidhammika had lived in Niegulong
Temple for five years and instructed complete Great
Treasure sutras, shastras and doctrines. However,
Abhidhammika Gaya Damre completed all
instruction tasks within three years and requested
to return to his country, but Vbrog mi didn’t agree
with him, so the abhidhammika had to continue his
propagation till the expiry. When Abhidhammika
Gaya Damre got all the rewards according to the
agreement, he was too excited and promised that
he will not instruct the Dharma to any others, and
Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye Shes observed its inheritance
or instruction right. Therefore, Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye
Shes became one of the founders of New Tantras in
the post-propagation period of Tibetan Buddhism.
After Vbrog Mi Shakya Ye Shes made great
achievements, he had many disciples studying
Buddhism and celebrities came out in succession.
Konchog Gyalpo who was the founder of the Sagya
sect, Marpa who was the founder of the Kagyu
sect, Translator Gos, the main transmitter of Father
Tantra (Pha rgyud) ie Guhyasamaji, and Sobch
who played a key role in forming the Ningmapa
sect were the aristocratic disciples of Vbrog Mi
Shakya Ye Shes. Konchog Gyalpo inherited Tantric
Dharmas represented by Mother Tantra (Ma rgyud)
ie Supreme Happiness and Lam vbras from Vbrog
Mi Shakya Ye Shes.
(Kalsang gyal)
Patna Museum containing Buddha’s relics
Buddhist scriptures from China to India. According
to volume 45 of Statistics of Buddhist Monks and
volume 18 of Record of Jingyou Magic Weapon,
Huaiwen went to India twice during the reign of
Emperor Zhenzong of Song Dynasty (998-1022 CE)
and built a pagoda for Emperor Zhenzong beside
the Diamond Throne (in Bodhgaya, India). In the
ninth year of Tiansheng Period (1031 CE, some say
it was the first year of Mingdao Period, 1032 CE) of
the Emperor Renzong of Song Dynasty (1023-1063
CE), Huaiwen went to India again to build a pagoda
for Empress Dowager and Emperor Renzong and
invited cassock to consecrate for covering statue
of Sakyamuni. The emperor send out an imperial
decree for agreement and ordered Xia Song (9851051 CE) who was skilled at writing such kind
of articles, to write Record for Śramen Huaiwen’s
Three Visits to the West. However, this record was
lost by later generations and only its title is left.
Fortunately, Huaiwen kept the record by inscribing
the visit on stone on January 19, the second year
of Mingdao Period of Renzong (1033 CE). The
inscription still exists, and can be observed. In
May of the 2nd year of Baoyuan Period (1039),
Huaiwen and his peer Buddhists named Deji,
Yongding and De’an came back from Magadha
to present Buddhist relics, Palm-Leaf Manuscript,
Bodhi Leaves, Aśoka Leaves, Buddhist prayer beads
and 19 books on Buddhist’s Western Paradise. The
emperor honoured Huaiwen and granted him the
title of “Sutrayana Master” as well as conferred on
him, cassock and gold coins.
(Xue Keqiao)
Jiquan
Jiquan (about 10th to 11th century CE) was a Buddhist
monk who went on a pilgrimage for Buddhist
scriptures from China to India. According to volume
44 of Statistics on Buddhist Monks, he returned to
China in the ninth year of Dazhong Xiangfu Period
(1016) with scriptures and Buddhist relics. Then,
Huaiwen
Huaiwen (about 10th-11th century CE) was a
Chinese Buddhist monk to go on a pilgrimage for
318
Cultural Contacts
According to volume 16 of Record of Jingyou
Magic Weapon, in the first year of Tianxi Period
(1017 CE), Zuntai and Daoyuan came back from
India to contribute 10 Sanskrit scriptures, Buddhist
relics and Bodhi prayer beads to the imperial court.
Earlier, Emperor Taizong (976–1022 CE) had
written the preface for the Buddhist scripture, New
Introduction to the Sacred Teachings of Monk Tripitaka
which was translated by Tian Xizai and other
people. A Buddhist once carved this “Introduction”
on the stone tablet at Buddhism Diamond Throne
[vajrāsana]. Zuntai and Daoyuan copied the
monumental stone inscription and offered to the
Emperor as a tribute. They were granted the purple
clothes and other gifts by the Emperor Taizong. This
Daoyuan appears to be another person.
(Xue Keqiao)
he built a temple in Yangzhou to consecrate the
Buddhist relics.
(Xue Keqiao)
Daoyuan
Daoyuan (10th-11th century CE) was a Chinese
monk who went to India to learn Buddhist
Doctrine. According to volume 43 of Statistics on
Buddhist Monks, volume 490 of History of the Song
Dynasty and volume 1 of New Biography of Eminent
Monks, Daoyuan was from Cangzhou (present-day
Cangzhou of Hebei). He had been in and out of
Pracya, Uttarapatha, Aparanta, Dakshinapatha and
Majjhimdesa for 18 years, 12 years on the way and
six years for tour and learning in India. In the third
year of Qiande Period of Emperor Taizu (965 CE),
he came back with a crystal bottle of Buddhist relics
and 40 volumes of Palm-Leaf Scriptures. While
returning to China, he passed through Khotan of
Xinjiang and accompanied an emissary from there
to go to the Song capital, Kaifeng. He presented
Buddhist relics and Palm-Leaf Manuscripts to the
Emperor who granted an interview to him at the
temple and asked about the situation of the Western
Regions. Daoyuan answered all the questions.
The Emperor honoured him by bestowing hime
with purple clothes, household utensils and coins.
Encouraged by the meeting with Daoyuan, Emperor
Taizu learned about the communication networks of
northwest and issued an edict to despatch Chinese
monks on a pilgrimage for Buddhist scriptures in
India. There were 157 monks who accepted the
order including Śramana Xingqin. The Emperor also
issued another imperial edict to officials of various
states in the Western Regions asking them to guide
the monks, offer travelling and other expenses for
the purchase of things necessary for their westward
journey for pilgrimages. This event had become the
only large-scale officially organised activity to seek
Buddhist doctrinal classics from India by the state in
Chinese history.
Vbrom ston pa
rgyal bavi vbyung gnas
Dromtön Gyalwe Jungney (Vbrom ston pa rgyal bavi
vbyung gnas, 1005~1064 CE) was a ese Buddhist
monk of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the founder
of Kadam. He was born in Stod Lung (present-day
Doilungdêqên County, Lhasa City, Tibet) and liked
to practice dharma and learn Sanskrit at an early
age. After hearing the news that master Atisha was
preaching in Ali Guge, he went there and met Atisha
immediately. Since then, he never left Atisha. He
followed Atisha and served him meticulously, until
Atisha passed away in 1054 CE in Snye thang.
Dromtön served his respected teacher with all his
heart while learned Buddhism from him. He was
highly regarded by Atisha who taught him a lot of
profound tantra, which laid a solid foundation for
him to create Kadam. After Atisha passed away,
Dromtön as the most senior one among the disciples,
began leading the juniors and spread Atisha’s
teachings. In the first rabqung year of wooden sheep
in Tibetan Calendar (1055 CE), Dromtön hosted an
anniversary of Parinirvana for Atisha in Snye thang
(snye thang, present-day Qushui County, Lhasa,
Tibet) where Atisha passed away and constructed
a Buddha hall known as Snye thang lha khang.
Because the Buddha statue of Tara worshipped by
Atisha was enshrined in the temple, people called it
Snye thang Dolma Lhakhang (Sgrol ma lha khang),
namely Snye thang Tara Hall with endless stream of
pilgrims until now.
In the first rabqung year of fire monkey in
Tibetan Calendar (1056 CE), Dromtön created the
first monastery for the heritage of Atisha lineage in
Damxung and Reting (present-day Linzhou County,
Lhasa, Tibet) under the vigorous support of local
lords, named Reting Monastery. At the beginning,
the monastery is very small where there are only
more than 60 monks but each of them was very
Iron lion at Cangzhou in Hebei, China
319
Cultural Contacts
khrims rgyal ba led five servants, brought 32 liang
of broken gold and a whole piece of gold as the
gift to go to India to invite Sage Atisa in the first
cycle of Fire Bull Year of Tibetan Calendar (1037).
After arriving in India, he requested Gnas brtan of
Bi kra ma la shiaw la to allow Atisa to propagate
Buddhism in Tibet for three years and guaranteed
that he can return to India on time. Atisa arrived in
Ali Area of Tibet.
Nag tsho tshul khrims rgyal ba had followed Sage
Atisa for many years and he served the sage as well
as was led by him and obtained a lot from him. When
Nag tsho tshul khrims rgyal ba left from Nietang to
Ali, Sage Atisa held the Buddha image of three oaths
to empower him and instructed over 20 Tibetan
Tantric Dharmas including Fundamental Vinaya
Sutra, Guhyasamaji Tantra and Avalokitesvara
Cultivation to him. Nag tsho tshul khrims rgyal ba
followed the instruction of Sage Atisa and obtained
wonderful enlightenment.
Nag tsho tshul khrims rgyal ba translated a lot of
Buddhist classics from Sanskrit and was an excellent
sutra translator and was called as “Translator Nag
tsho” historically. His sutra-pitaka translation works
mainly included Enlightenment of Virtuous Magadha
Woman, Chapter 5 of Enlightenment of Rigs Byed Mavi
Skor of Holy Tara, Chapter 41 of Wide Goodness of
Lucky and Wise Vajra as well as his shastra-pitaka
translation works mainly included Praise of Subduing
Monsters, Praise of Dharma Realm, Praise of nondescriptiveness, Praise of the Spiritual World, Praise
of Heart Vajra, Praise of Superior Truth, Praise of
the Three Bodies and Bless and Joy Vajra Explaining
Misery: Treatise on Precious Garland of Yoga.
(Kalsang gyal)
Image of Jiaweitongnai
observant and morally excellent. The monastery
was dedicated to preaching the doctrine advocated
by Atisha. Dromtön worked as the first abbot of
Reting Monastery for nine years during which he
focussed on preaching Exoteric Buddhism theories,
such as Eight Thousand Songs of Prajnaparamita,
Eight thousand Songs of Prajnaparamita Commentaries
(Guang and Lu) and Twenty Thousand Songs on
Prajnaparamita Light rather than the construction
of the monastery. He established a sound education
system for the monastery and on this basis a new
sect was formed named Kadam. Dromtön has never
undergone gelung-pa in his life and identified
himself as a lay Buddhist. But he always followed
the Buddhist precepts with strict demands on
himself to set an example in the Buddhist Sangha
community. He became a prominent figure in both
ability and integrity and got a high reputation in
Tibetan Buddhism.
Dromtön cultivated many disciples and wrote
a series of works such as Questions and Answers of
Kagyu Masters and Disciples (Biography of Atisha),
Thirty Songs of Praising Buddha, Ethics at Home,
Research on Landscape, History, Biography, Monastery
Rules, Letters and so on.
(Kalsang gyal)
Mar pa chos kyi blo gros
Mar pa chos kyi blo gros (1012~1097 CE was
China’s master of Tibetan Buddhism, the earliest
ancestor of Kadampa, Buddhist texts translator. He
went to India three times for sutra.
He was born in Luozha, Shannan, Tibet (lho brag)
and was a Buddhist monk. After he grew up, he
went to India for study, acknowledged Naropa and
other masters as his teachers to teach him Tantric
Buddhism. Naropa gave him Hevajra abhisheka,
taught him Er Pin Xu, Vajra Continue, Six Dhamn of
Na Re (Na ro chos drug) and others. One year later,
following teachers’ guidance, he learned tantric
teachings such as mahamudra chagya chenpo whose
key point is to emphasis on learning through practice.
Marpa followed Naropa’s instruction, and learned
through practice. Esoteric Buddhism testimony
occurred in heart, especially practice the means
of navel chakra fire and witness the no difference
double-run of happy and bright. Marpa studied
in India for sculptures for 12 years, and reached
Nag tsho tshul
khrims rgyal ba
Nag tsho tshul khrims rgyal ba (1011~1064) was
also named Dge bshes gung thang pa and was a
famous sutra translator in the post-propagation
period of Tibetan Buddhism.
He was born in Galadon Nag tsho Family from
the Ali sect and his dharma name was Tshul khrims
rgyal ba and he was also called as Vinaya-dhara
because he was proficient in Vinaya. He went to
India to learn from Sage Atisa. Under the instruction
of Lama Byang chub 'od of Ali Guge, Nag tsho tshul
320
Cultural Contacts
classic Vajrayana from India, many of which were
translated into Tibetan by himself such as Sadhana
Drubtab, Ear Preach of Vajrayana - Treasure,
Mahayoga in All Shastras in Buddhism, Instructions
on Differences between Yoga Father and Yoga
Mother. Marpa was regarded as one of the seven
translators of Tibet by later generations. Marpa
usually practiced Buddhism in white monk dress
in accordance with India Tantra. The white monk
dress became the iconic kasaya robe of Kagyu from
generation to generation so that the Kagyu was
also known as White Sect. After three generations
of Marpa, Milarepa and Dagpo Lhaje (Dawgs po
lha rje), Tabb Kagyu (Dawgs po bkav brgyud) was
eventually formed. The doctrine of the sect was
passed down orally between teachers and disciples.
(Kalsang gyal)
a high level in Vajrayana to make independent
sermon and study. After returning to Tibet, he
began to live a life in preaching tantric literature. In
Tibet, he took disciples while cultivating Buddhist
Tantric talent and raising funds for the second
time to study in India. Due to the strong support
from the disciples, plans were soon realised. After
arriving in India, Marpa still acknowledged Naropa
and others as his teachers. He obtained some
Tantra that he didn’t study previously from Naropa
such as three abhisekas, Zhong, Guang and Lu in
Hevajra, Two Fundamental Observations Continued,
No Release Continued Vajra Dakini Account and
Common Release Continued Sambhota Comment.
From Maizheba he corrected some deviations in
the Tantra that he previously learned and received
intensive abhisekas, atthakatha and Mahamudra
Tantra etc and got their original sculptures. He
also completed the amendment of Tantric Dharma
with Yixiningbu. Six years later, 42-year-old Marpa
returned to Tibet, married Damai Ma (Bdag med
ma) as his wife, and raised seven children. Besides
taking disciples and preaching tantra, Marpa also
engaged in business and planting, never away from
the secular society so his family was very wealthy.
Marpa found that some of his teachers have
passed away when he arrived in India for the third
time and felt very heavy. During his stay in India
he was very sick and depressed. Later, he braced
up and learned a lot of new Tantra Buddhism. After
three years, he returned to Tibet. Since then, due
to the advanced age, Marpa was never able to go
to India again. Marpa brought back a great deal of
Macig Labdron
Macig Labdron (1043-1142 CE) was a female
Buddhist and Tantric master of Chinese Tibetan
Buddhism and the founder of Jue Yu Sect of Chinese
Tibetan Buddhism. She is also the brilliant disciple
of Pa Danbasanje.
The “Majiu” (macig) in her name “Majiulazhong”
(macig labdron) is Tibetan language which means
“the only mother" or “only respect mother”.
“Lazhong” (labdron) is the abbreviation of
Lajizhongmei which means “the wise bright torch
of Racy”. Majiulazhong was born in Tshomed
(present-day Cuomei County), Labphyi of Tibet.
Under the impact of her family, she had learned
and believed Buddhism since her childhood. When
she grew up, she widely studied dharma and ever
visited the tantric mahasiddhas Lama Giotonba
Sonam (skyo stonpa bsod nmas blama) to request
tabhisheka. As a result, she got her wish and in Yva
Gangbala Kang (dphyibavi gangbar lhakhang) she
got the “four very deep samadhi tabhisheka”, “the
great enchantment tabhisheka” and “the magic
tabhisheka”. Subsequently, Majiulazhong learned
different thoughts from different gurus of various
sects. For example, she learned The Five Theories
of Cishi and tantric thoughts from Thib Shamalba
(shudbu zhvamarba); she learned Dzogchen from
Lama Bioton Ba (blama bastonpa); she also learned
many classics from Lama Ya Tang Ba as well as
Mahamudra Method, Six Methods of Naro, Arya Tara,
Kalacakra, Six Branch Methods, Three Songs and the
fourth continuous book of Esoteric-yana Kriya etc.
from Blama Yartingba. And she became the most
influential spiritual leader of the embodiment of
Dakini as one of Tibetan “four Dakinis”.
At the age of 23, she got married to Indian pandit
Doba Bazana (pandita thodba bhadraya) and
gave birth to two sons and one daughter. Twelve
years later, she went to the Buddhist temple again
Maerba Quejiluozhe
321
Cultural Contacts
Grand Master after founding the Isolation School
of Tibetan Buddhism which takes pity, love and
kindness as the three basic cores to eliminate selfish,
the Samsara of Prajna as origin and the self-clinging.
She was honoured in whole Tibet, Nepal and
India. Three learning travelling monks came
to Zangri Kharmar to discuss the sutra with
Majiulazhong for more than a month during which
four Indian interpreters interpreted for them and
finally, Majiulazhong convinced them but refused
their invitation for her to preach Buddhism Sutra in
India. The Exoteric and Esoteric Buddhism classics
she had wrote are The Great Sutra: the Truth of the
Isolation Way in Deep Prajna Paramita, The Deep
Thought: the Core of the Truth and Knack of Prajna
Paramita, Question & Answer: the Most Top Sutra of
Prajna Paramita, Abstracts: the Isolation Core of Prajna
Paramita, Patanjali’s Sutras of Do or Do not, the Whole
Abstracts, Hold Up, the Secret Sutra, Three Books
of Back Cover, Preaching Basic Sutra, the Important
Preaching and so on. All of these classics have been
introduced into India. Majiulazhong had this famous
quotation: all of the sutras in Tibet are translated
from India, one and the only Tibetan Sutras known
by people is my sutra. The introduction in to India
of the classic sutras of the Isolation School is the
basic classic of foundation of the school. It makes
the basis of the Isolation Sutra including the classics
of Exoteric Buddhism, Esoteric Buddhism and the
Shrauta Sutra. Since then, the Isolation Sutras with
another name the Great Isolation which took Prajna
Paramita as its core theory, combined with the
Isolation Core of Prajna Paramita, had been widely
spread in Tibet, Indus River basin, Nepal districts.
Therefore, it became the only Tibetan Buddhism
school introduced from Tibet into India at that time.
When Majiulazhong was 43, Tuoba Bazhaya left
his sons and daughters to her and went back to India
from Tibet. Except the old son, Gyalba Dongrub,
lived in normal plain folk life, the second son Thpd
Smyon Bsamgrub, got tonsured and became a
monk, the daughter believed in Buddhism, too. All
of them learned and practiced the sutras following
their mother and they were the main successors
and preachers of the Isolation Sutras. Since then,
Majiulazhong contributed herself into the course of
preaching the sutras and helping others. Also, she
wrote many books to record the Isolation Sutras.
She has wrote some books of Sutras and acting
theory: the Transformation of Moving by Nothing,
Worship from Hundreds of Rally, 12 Origin Methods,
Good Inside Passing, Transformation Mirror of Yangti
Sutras, Transformation of Ten Buddha, Apprehending
the Transformation of Moving by Nothing, The Secret
Five Buddha, The Secret Whispering Sutra; she also
wrote some notes: Deep Theory of Prajna Paramita:
Moon Light Eliminates the Dark, Abstracts of Deep
and visited Gussie Zappa and Sonam Lama from
whom she got the “Pam Achievement Five Gods’
Tabhisheka” and the secret name Dorje Wan Xiu
Mar (rdoje dbang phyng ma) that means “King Kong
free women”. The Eight Methods of Tabhisheka given
to Sonam Lama has become the advanced method
of Jue Yu Sect. She gave The Twelve-linked Causal
Formula to Gussie Zappa and her teacher praised her
as “the free successful woman to enlighten exoteric
thoughts, the library of all Buddhist thoughts, the
mother of all Buddhas”. Afterwards, she went to
the County of Dingri to visit Pa Danbasanje again
who set up the dedicated Mandala for her to give
tabhisheka and many very secret tips. Majiulazhong
wrote To Praise the Land of Guru and To Praise Guru
to show her gratitude to Pa Danbasanje. According
to the vyakarana of Pa Danbasanje, she travelled
108 snow mountains and “Nian” land (gnyan, one of
original holy sites for Tibetan nationality) as well as
Luowang (lhomon) etc. After the ascetic cultivation,
she obtained great achievements and was famous in
Tibetan plateau as a female tantric master.
In 1080 CE, she made Zangri Kharmar (within
Sangri county, Shannan, now in Tibet) as the
primary jogo, took in disciples from everywhere,
imparted the Buddhism theory she got by her own
special means and the way to practice Vajrayana
such as the unique Chod. And then, she became a
Majiulazhong
322
Cultural Contacts
exoteric Buddhism theories. It is said that his monk
disciples were more than 23,000 among which over
2,130 disciples could lecture Buddha Dharma, more
than 1,800 disciples could interpret Sutra, more
than 280 disciples could explain sthad ma and 55
disciples could explain sthad ma rgyan. His four
Prajna Paramita: Moon Light, Summary of the
Isolation Sutras: Quotations, Deep Theory of Esoteric
Buddhism: Guardian Warriors with Bright Fire, 21 Deep
Theories of Samadhi, Double Definition of Exoteric
and Esoteric Buddhism: Endless Victory and Light,
Deep Theory of Padmasambhava’ Thoughtless and
Definition of Dreams, Sign of the Reborn, Prediction
of the Future. These sutra classics have come into
different preaching way including the Isolation
School, both Exoteric and Esoteric Buddhism
preach, imparting Sutras and rally worship. And
it has made its own school while preaching in
every school of Tibetan Buddhism and traditional
religion: Bonism. Today, the classics of Isolation
Sutras in different languages have been spread in
Chinese Mainland, Hong Kong, Macao and western
countries which help the School could derive and
thrive everywhere of the world.
In Majiulazhong’s whole life, she had imparted
numerous disciples in Tibet. It is said that there were
5,000 disciples that usually stayed with her. There
is one sentence in her biography: Majiulazhong had
the most disciples.
(Deji Zhuoma)
E. Luodanxirao
Rngog Blo Ldan Shes Rab
famous disciples, Zhang Tshe Spongh·Chos Kyi Bla
Ma, Chuo Luo ba·Luozhi Joan nai, Joan·Rin Chen
Drak and Zhai·Shes pa Rab were main characters to
inherit and promote the Gsang phu Temple teaching
system founded by Rngog legs pavi shes rab and
Rngog Blo Ldan Shes Rab.
(Kalsang gyal)
Rngog Blo Ldan Shes Rab (1059~1109 CE) was a
Hetuvidya scholar of Chinese Tibetan Buddhism,
an eminent monk of Kadampa, temple educationist,
and translator of Buddhist scriptures. He had
studied in Kashmir.
He was born in Yar vbrog in Tibet, followed his
uncle, Rngog legs pavi shes rab, to learn Buddha
Dharma since childhood. His uncle liked him very
much as he was very intelligent and he was sent
to Kashmir for seeking dharma when he was 17.
When he went through Ngari, he was lucky to get
support from prince Dbang phyug lde of Ngari
Gurge which made him concentrate on studying
in Kashmir for 17 years. He was apprenticed to
many famous masters and researched and studied
Buddha dharma systematically. During this period,
as required by Dbang phyug lde, he and Skal ldan
rgyal po cooperated and translated sthad ma rgyan.
After achieving academic excellence, Rngog Blo
Ldan Shes Rab continued to learn Buddha Dharma
from Masters and he had ever gone to Nepal to
acknowledge Aa tu la bdzra and other masters to
specifically learn and practice shastras. After coming
back from Nepal, he began to revise and translate
sutra. Meanwhile, he inherited the religious career
founded by Rngog Legs PviShes Rab to manage the
temple, translate sutra, accept disciples; centred
on Gsang phu Temple, he lectured Sutra and
disseminated dharma in Lhasa, Sanye, and many
other places, mainly taught Hetuvidya knowledge,
Five Theories of Maitreya, Madhyamika and other
Rngog Legs PviShes Rab
Rngog Legs Pvishes Rab, (dates of birth and death
are unknown), Hetuvidya scholar of Chinese Tibetan
Buddhism, eminent monk of Kadampa, temple
educationist, disciple of Venerable Atisha.
He was born in Yar vbrog in Tibet, the descendant
of Chancellor Rngo chen po. His father was a
householder monk of Ningmapa. He was tonsured
and became a monk in the front of Buddhist monk
Chang·Yeshe Wing Dan during his childhood. Later,
he went to eastern Tibet and followed Master Se
Btsun, systematically studied Buddhist Tripitaka.
He went back to the anterior Tibet after achieving
academic excellence, researched and studied with
Atisha in Lhasa, asked Atisha to explain bkav gdams
bu chos and translated rtog ge vbar ba with Nag tsho
lotsawa. During the period when Venerable Atisha
disseminated Buddha Dharma at Snye thang, Rngog
Legs PviShes Rab went to Snye thang to listen Atisha
lecturing the dharma and asked Atisha and Nag tsho
lotsawa to translate Dbu Ma Snying Povi Ti Ka, also
asked Atisha to write Madhyamika Teaching Theory.
Later, Rngog Legs PviShes Rab became one of the
four famous disciples of Atisha in Tibet.
323
Cultural Contacts
Qiaba Quejisenge had mastered the Sangpu
temple for 18 years with high reputation. Based on
Buddhist Sutra, he standardised and generalised
the main point of Pramana, separated and formed
special theory which was named She Lei Xue (bsdus
gra) and first created Tibetan Sura classification or
She Lei. At the same time, he put forward that when
learning Exoteric and Esoteric Buddhism, they shall
first learn debating skills, then Pramana (tsema),
Madhyamaka, Prajna, Kosha and Disciplines. The
debating skills are mainly in question-answer model.
One gives points, the other debates with answer to
the question of counterpart. The voice must be loud
and can emphasise by clap. In this way, they can have
fast improvement, deep understanding and abundant
knowledge. Therefore, this teaching method has had
positive impact on the generation of sects of Tibetan
Buddhism and also played an important role in the
development of Tibetan Buddhism. Until now, the
She Lei Xue of massive temples basically follow the
teaching method created by Qiaba Quejisenge.
Qiaba Quejisenge has written many famous books
mainly including Debate on She Lei (bsdus gra)
Pramanavarttika for Eliminating Innocence (tshad ma
yid kyi mun sel), Interpretation of Hetuvidya Choice
(tshad ma rnam nges vgrel pa), Comments on Ci Shi
Five Theories (byams chos lngavi vgrel pa), Comments
on Twi-satyas of Madhyamak (dbu ma bden gnyis
kyi vgrel ba), Clear Interpretation of Madhyamaka
(dbu ma snang bvi vgrel ba), Interpretation of
Bodhicaryavatara (spyod vjug chen movi vgrel ba)
and others. Most are the classical famous books
which also pointed out many errors of Chandrakirti
book. Debate on She Lei is an authority book in the
aspect of She Lei and one temple studying course in
the study of Pramana.
Qiaba Quejisenge trained many great students,
including famous disciples who have been called
Eight Nyaya Free Lions (rigs pvi dbang phyug seng
chen brgyad) namely Zangnaba Zunzesenge (Gtsang
nag pa brtson vgrus seng ge), Dapa Mawasenge (Dar
bag smra bvi seng ge), Zhixia Suonansenge (Bru sha
bsod mams seng ge), Maqia Zuobaisenge (Rma bya
rtsod pvi seng ge), Zi Wangxiusenge (Brtsegs dbang
phyug seng ge), Niangzhan Quejisenge (Nyang bran
chos kyi seng ge), Danma Guanquesenge (Vdan ma
dkon mchog seng ge) and Niewa Danyunsenge (Gnyal
ba yon tan seng ge). Except Niewa and Xiali, all
others have famous books about Pramana (tsema),
Madhyamika, Prajna.
(Kalsang gyal)
After Rngog Legs PviShes Rab became famous,
he devoted himself to temple education, especially
emphasised on systematical teaching of Tibetan
Tshad-marnam-hgrel. In the first rab-byung buffalo
year of Tibetan Calendar (1073 CE), he set up a
temple at the south of Lhasa and the east of Snye
thang (today the place is in Doilungdêgên County
of Lhasa in Tibet), the name of which was Gsang
Phu Sne Thog Dgon, Gsang phu dgon in short.
Gsang phu dgon was known for promoting Tibetan
Tshad-marnam-hgrel and Buddhist Scriptures
Debating theory in Tibetan Buddhism. He trained
a lot of disciples and made great contributions
to temple education and Tibetan Tshad-marnamhgrel. After Rngog Legs PviShes Rab passed away,
his nephew and famous disciple Rngog BloL dan
Shes Rab (1059~1109 CE) succeeded as the abbot
of Gsang phu dgon.
(Kalsang gyal)
Rgya brtson vgrus
seng ge
Rgya brtson vgrus seng ge (about 11th century CE)
was a famous sutra translator in the post-propagation
of Tibetan Buddhism. He responded to the calling
of the court of Ali Guge Dynasty in Tibet when
he was young. He was engaged in the movement
of Buddhism Revival actively, braved dangers and
difficulties and went to India to seek Buddhism. He
was proficient in Sanskrit and translated a lot of
sutras including Lag na rdo rje gos sngon po can gyi
cho ga dang bcas pavi gzungs, Dpal vkhor lo sdom pavi
bstod pa don thams cad grub pa rnam dag gtsug gi nor
bu, Gzhan don slob ma rjes su bzung bavi cho ga, Dpal
rdo rje rnam vbyor ma, Rdo rje phag movi sgrub pavi
thams, Lha mo sgrol ma nyi shu rtsa gcig la bstod pa
rnam dag gtsug gi nor bu collected in Ganggyur.
(Kalsang gyal)
cha pa chos kyi seng ge
Cha (phya) pa chos kyi seng ge, 1109~1169 CE, the
Hetuvidya scientist of Tibetan Buddhism, eminent
monk of Kadampa and temple educationist.
Tibetan Qiaqia (Phya cha) (born in presentday Dazi County, Lhasa city, Tibet province) is
very clever. When he was young, he can sing
many Buddhistic songs. His parents thought he
was talented in Buddhism so they sent him to a
temple to learn Pramana and Madhyamaka. He
was shaved and made religious vows before the
seat of Xiangcaibang Quji (Zhang Tshe Spong
Chos Kyi Bla Ma), becoming a monk with dharma,
name Quejisenge. After that, he learnt prajina and
the Bodhisattva from Xiangcaibang Quji and his
disciple Niezan Qujiyixi (nyan bran chos kyi ye
shes) at the same time, he studied hard at Pramana
and Madhyamaka of which he is of great attainment.
Kun dgav rgyal mtshan
Kun dgav rgyal mtshan, 1180~1251 CE, was the
founder of Sakya, a sect of Tibetan Buddhism in China
and a scholar as well. He was born in the Khon family
of Sakya and named as Bandandunzhu (Dpal ldan
324
Cultural Contacts
Dynasty, he arrived in Liangzhou to discuss with
Godan Khan about the conditions of making all local
powers in Tibet to submit to Mongolia regime. He
is the first person, as the leader of Tibet religion, to
establish political connections with royal family of
Mongolia and made great contributions to promoting
national union of Yuan Dynasty by writing letters to
leaders of both monks and laymen in Tibet, stating
the significances and advantages and persuading
them to do submission. Furthermore, he also treated
Godan Khan, made sermon and disseminated the
dharma in Liangzhou. At the same time, he has built
a new temple named as Huanhua Temple (Sprul
pavi sde), expanded Tibetan Buddhism’s influence
among Mongolians and adjusted the position of
Buddhism and Shamanism.
Sajiabanzida’s writings are pretty a lot. They are
mainly Three Law Argumentation Theory, Quantity
Theory of Treasure, A Wise Man Introductory Theory,
Instruments Sastra, Rhetoric, Statement Research,
Maxim of Sakya, Ritual Theory, Aspiring Ritual of
Madhyamaka (dbu ma lugs kyi sems bskyed kyi
cho ga), Yoga of Shenshen Master, Vows To All Yoga
practicers in Snowland and so on. Of which, Three
Law Argumentation Theory is an important article in
which he judged right or wrong of various Buddhist
point of view that spread in Buddhist circle and
stated his own opinions and understanding to
Buddhism. Quantity Theory of Treasure is based on
Pramanasamuccaya of Dignaga and Pramanavarttika
of Fa Cheng. It is a brand new article on tsema written
with his own knowledge and logic thinking and has
an important position in the tsema field of Tibetan
Buddhism. For the Maxim of Sakya, it is a popular
gnomology with content of mainly reflecting social
ethic and human behaviours which is spread widely
in Tibetan area and deeply loved by Tibetan people.
(Kalsang gyal)
Sajiabanzhida Gonggajianzan
don grub) originally. In his childhood, he learned
to be as a novice monk by receiving initiation
percepts (Sramanera Precepts) from his uncle,
Zhabajianzan, (Grags pa rgyal mtshan) and changed
his name to Gonggajianzan. Over there, he laid a
perfect foundation for the Buddhism by extensively
learning culture and Buddhist knowledge. At the
age of 25 (year of 1204), Gonggajianzan took
complete precepts (gelung-pa) of monks following
Shijiashili (Shawkya shi), an eminent monk of
Kasmira (present-day Kashmir) who came to Tibet
for preaching Buddhism. He learned Theory of
Hetuvidya Seven written by Facheng (Dharmakirti)
like Pramanavarttika and such scriptures as
Abhisamayalankara, at the same time, he also
learned cultural subjects like technology, astrology,
rhythmic, medicine, rhetoric, poetry, singing and
dancing. With all of that, he became a great scholar
who is erudite in the Ten Indo-Tibet Subjects and
being regarded respectfully as Banzida (Pandita)
whose reputation spread widely around the area.
Six scholars from south India, one of them named
Chaoqigawa (Vphrog byed dgav bo), came around
Tibet, especially to debate with Sajiabanzida at
hearing of his reputation. They kicked off arguments
on Buddhist scriptures for 13 days in a bazaar near
Saint Sambhu Temple of Mangyujizhong (Mang
yul skyid grong) and ended with failure of Indian
scholars. So those scholars acknowledged their
failure and decided to convert to Buddhism as
monks by receiving tonsure and took Sajiabanzida as
their teacher. Since then, Sajiabanzida’s reputation
became more and more impressive and finally, he
got widely known as a Tibetan cultural celebrity.
In the year of 1216 CE, Sajiabanzida succeeded
as the host of Sakya Monastery. In 1246 CE, at the
invitation of the emperor, Godan Khan of Yuan
Yuanyi
Yuanyi (c. 12th-13th century CE) is a Buddhist from
Sichuan to go on a pilgrimage for Buddhist scriptures
in India. According to volume 35 of General Records
of Buddha in Different Generations in the 31st year of
Kublai Khan (1294 CE), he came back from India
to meet the Emperor in Dadu (present-day Beijing).
The Emperor asked him: “Is there any Buddha in the
West?” Yuanyi answered: “Democracy is focussed
on China while Siddhartha is in the West.” Yuanyi
consecrated a figure of Buddha by Indian jade to the
Emperor. The Emperor cherished it very much and
worshiped it on the Wansui Mountain (present-day
Beihai Park). Yuanyi gave the pattra [palm] leaves
from the West to the Emperor and the Emperor put it
into the box inlaid seven treasures for consecration,
viewing that Yuanyi is an “outstanding monk”. He
was deeply trusted by the Emperor and put in an
325
Cultural Contacts
began to study Tibetan language at the age of five
and recited nyi khri and brgyad stong ba when he was
nine. After he studied Nyingma Tantra under the
instruction of his father since childhood and studied
the doctrines of Exoteric Buddhism such as byams
chos sde lnga and tshad ma sde bdun in a systematical
way at gsang phu dgon of kadampa, he became
a Buddhist scholar who was well-versed in the
doctrines of Tantric and Exoteric Buddhism. As dri
med vod zer toured spiritual shrine in Bhutan, made
pilgrimage to Indian Buddhist relics and advocated
building thar pa gling in Bhutan, Nyingmapa spread
from Bhutan to Nepal, India and other countries and
regions afterwards.
Klong chen rab vbyams pa tshul khrims blo gros
was famous for revitalisation of Nyinggmapa and
created masterpieces such as klong chen mdzod bdun
and klong chen chos vbyung.
(Kalsang gyal)
The white pagoda of Qiongdao at Beihai Park in Beijing.
important position, conferred as “Taibao”. After
that, Yuanyi also presented an iron pot of Buddha
from the West and the Emperor was very happy to
ask some servants to keep it in the state treasury as
a treasure of protecting the treasury. Additionally,
in accordance with “Biography of Xiangmai” in
Volume 33 of New Biography of Eminent Monks,
Yuanyi once participated in the great debate of
Buddhism and Taoism in Dadu at the year of
Zhiyuanzhog (about 1278).
(Xue Keqiao)
Red mdav ba gzhon
nu blo gros
Red mdav ba gzhon nu blo gros (1349~1412 CE) was
a Madhyamapratipad scholar of Tibetan Buddhism
and eminent monk of Sakya, Tibetan Buddhism. He
was from Sagya County of Tibet, China, mastered
exoteric and esoteric teachings, structured a
teaching system of Exoteric Buddhism Thirteen
Scriptures in Sakya temple education, developed
and expanded Nagarjuna’s Madhyamapratipad
theory and especially explained and interpreted
the thoughts of Candrakirti’s Madhyamakavatara,
thus playing an important role in the establishment
of Prasangika Madhyamaka’s dominant position
among denominations of Tibetan Buddhism. He was
famous for learning and teaching Buddhist doctrines
from and to Master Tsongkhapa.
(Kalsang gyal)
Klong chen rab vbyams pa
Klong chen rab vbyams pa tshul khrims blo gros
(1308~1364 CE), also known as dri med vod
zer, an eminent monk of Nyingma sect of Tibetan
Buddhism and celebrated Buddhist scholar, born
in Zhanang County, Shannan Prefecture, Tibet.
According to historical record, dri med vod zer
Tsong kha pa
Tsong kha pa (Tsong kha pa, 1357~1419 CE), Tsong
kha pa was an eminent monk of Tibetan Buddhism
and religion reformer in China. He was the founder
of Gelug sect of Tibetan Buddhism in China.
Tsong kha pa is the honorific title and his name is
Blo bzang grags pa and the full name is Tsong kha
pa blo bzang grags pa. He was born in a Buddhist
family in Tsong-kha Ando (Huangshui river basin in
Qinghai Province).
Tsong kha pa received the layman ordination at
the age of three from Choje Dhondup Rinchen. At
the age of seven, he took the novice ordination and
was given the name “Lobsang Drakpa” and began
to receive formal education from the temple. In the
booklist directed by Choje Dhondup Rinchen, the
first book was byams chos sde lnga and followed by
the Buddhist logic works tshad ma rnam vgrel written
Longqinraojianba Cizhenluozhe
326
Cultural Contacts
Ta’er Lamasery and Teka. On Exoteric Buddhism, he
has masterpieces like byang chub lam rim chen mo,
byang chub lam rim bsdus pa, dbu ma vgrel chen, dbu
ma la vjug pavi rnam bshad dgongs pa rab gsal, drang
ba dang nges pavi don rnam par phye bavi bstan bcos
legs bshad snying po, mngon par rtogs pavi rgyan vgrel
ba dang bcas pavi rgya char bshad pa legs bshad gser
phreng, dbu ma rtsa bavi tshig levur byas pa shes rab
ces bya bavi rnam bshad rigs pavi rgya mtsho, byang
chub sems dpavi tshul khrims kyi rnam bshad, vdul ba
mdo rtsa bavi zin bris and so on.
And on Esoteric Buddhism, he has masterpieces
such as sngags rim chen mo, rgyud kyi rgyal po dpal
gsang ba vdus pavi man ngag rim pa lnga rab tu gsal
bavi sgron me, rgyud thams cad kyi rgyal po dpal gsang
ba vdus pavi rtsa bavi rgyud rgya char bshad pavi bsdus
don, dpal gsang ba vdus pavi rtsa bavi rgyud kyi vgrel
ba sgron ma gsal ba.
In 1409 CE (seventh year of Emperor Yongle in
Ming Dynasty), Tsong kha pa got the support and
subsidise from Grags pa rgyal mtshan (1374-1440
CE), local administrator of Tibet, so he initiated
Prayer Festival in Jokhang Temple, Lhasa, Tibet,
by which he won great reputation for himself
among the monks and laymen and thereupon
his religious prestige and social status improved
rapidly. It was in the same year that Tsong kha
pa created Gandan Monastery (dgav ldan dgon
pa). Based on Gandan Monastery, Tsong kha pa
reorganised the order and reformed the drawbacks
of Tibetan Buddhism. He insisted that Buddhist
should abide by Buddhist commandment and lead
pure religious life and they should keep away from
mundane life without getting married and having
children. On education in monastery, he advocated
to establishing complete educational mechanism in
monastery and the Buddhist should abide by the
Buddhist commandment and follow the sequence of
firstly learning Exoteric dharma and then practising
Esoteric Buddhism. Tsong kha pa took doctrine
of Kadam as the basis of sect and Prasangika
Madhyamaka as the theory of sect. Through learning
from different sects and cultivating himself, he
built a new Buddha system and gradually formed a
mainstream Sect among Tibetan Buddhism, that is
the Sect of Gelug (dge lugs pa).
From 1394, Tsong kha pa began to expound the
texts of Buddhism and preach his Buddhist thought
from place to place. He insisted that Buddhist
Saddhamma pioneered by Sakyamuni is made up
of theory and practice, therefore, all the teaching
Saddhamma, is taken in sutra, rule and theory; all
the practice of Saddhamma is taken in the discipline,
composure, and intelligence. So you cannot ignore
any part, and must practice in an all-round way.
That is, for those who determined to learn Buddhist
Saddhamma, his hearing, learning and behaving
Zongkapa Luosangzhaba
by Dharmakirti and the third one was Buddhist
philosophy book dbu ma by Nagarjuna. After
Tsong kha pa had learned the theoretical basis of
Buddhism, he began to practice Exoteric Buddhism
and Esoteric Buddhism. At the same time, Choje
Dhondup Rinchen instructed Tsong kha pa to worship
Vajrapani in order to get rid of all kinds of disasters.
Tsong kha pa often recited five words mantra of
Manjusri to improve his intelligence. Tsong kha pa
learned the rite of Buddha of immeasurable life to
prolong his life span. He cultivated the rite of Indra
to become wealthy. He cultivated the rite of Six arm
Maha Gala (mgon po ma haw ka la) to eliminate
natural and man-made disasters. After 10 years of
diligent study, Tsong kha pa laid a solid foundation
for Exoteric Buddhism and Esoteric Buddhism.
In 1372 CE, Tsong kha pa went to Tibet for further
study. There he made a special study on byams chos
sde lnga which is mainly based on mngon rtogs rgyan.
Two years later, he went to Tsang to acknowledge
eminent monk Sakya rje btsun red ndav ba gzhon
nu blo gros (1349~1412 CE) as his master and
systematically learned mngon pa mdzod and dbu ma
vjug pa. At the age of 25, Tsong kha pa had been
proficient in five masterpieces and 10 enlightened
including byams chos sde lnga, mngon pa mdzod,
tshad ma rnam vgrel and dbu ma vjug pa and Buddhist
Vinaya. He made open reply in famous monasteries
and had a certain influence.
At the age of 30, Tsong kha pa began to write
books. His masterpieces like Golden Garland of
Eloquence, The Great Treatise on the Stages of the
Path to Enlightenment (lam rim chen mo), The Great
Exposition of Secret Mantra (sngags rim chen mo),
Essence of True Eloquence, established his Buddhist
thought of integrating Exoteric Buddhism and
Esoteric Buddhism. Later, Collected works of Tsong
kha pa came out, with 19 chapters and about 140
passages, circulating in different wood engraving
version of Lhasa, Drepung, Tashilhunpo monastery,
327
Cultural Contacts
the honorific title of the second Buddha, enjoying
honourable religious position in Tibetan Buddhism.
And Buddhists of the Gelug set October 25 in
Tibetan Calendar, the day he passed away as the
grandest Buddha festival to commemorate master
Tsong kha pa.
(Kalsang gyal)
shall not violate Buddhist Canon. And you need
to keep you heart and follow threefold training.
At the same time, you should possess a convenient
way to use wisdom and intelligence as well as
the realisation of Sunyata and Maha Karuna. Only
with such religion insight shall everyone strive
to think and learn more about the Sutras. Keep
earnest practice on the third methods of Mahayana
and Hinayana. Keep earnest practice on the
sutras to know the discipline and composure. As
for theory, you should also continue to practice,
to get familiar with the wisdom that laws go
similarly. From the perspective of seeing, learning
and practice in Buddhism, Seeing in Mahayana
is expounded and reflected in the Madhyamika
and tsema, and practice is in Buddhism Wisdom;
while in Hinayana, Seeing and practice both are
reflected in Abhidharmakosa Sastra. The common
commandment is expounded and reflected in the
Commandment. And the learning begins with the
explanation of seeing and practice. So you will
have clear discrimination between Mahayana
and Hinayana by subtle differences and different
ideas in the seeing, learning and practice. Focus
on learning Vinaya-sutra on Commandment,
Ornament of Clear Realization on self-restraint and
Madhyamaka Shastra, tsema and AbhidharmakosaSastra on intelligence. The reason for attaching
great importance to the three-fold training
of Buddhism in Temple education is that the
Commandment is the foundation of Buddhism and
base of learning dharma. Self-restraint is the way
to control yourself and get rid of dissipation and
intelligence is the method to increase wisdom and
free yourself. Therefore, it goes like that “there is
no restraint without commandment and in turn, no
intelligence without self-restraint”.
Tsong kha pa’s disciples were too numerous
to count and many talents came out of them in
succession. Among them, the disciples proficient
in both Exoteric Buddhism and Esoteric Buddhism
include Rgyal tshab rje dar ma rin chen (1364
~1431 CE), Mkhas grub rje dge legs dpal bzang
(1385~1438 CE), and Rtogs ldan vjam dpal rgya
mtsho (1356~1428 CE). The disciples proficient
in Exoteric Buddhism include Mkhas grub rje dge
legs dpal bzang (1385~1438 CE), Byams chen chos
rgyal shawakya ye shes (1354~1435 CE) and Dge
vdun grub pa (1391~1474 CE). And the disciples
proficient in Esoteric Buddhism include Rje btsun
shes rab seng ge (1382~1445 CE). They built
Exoteric and Esoteric monasteries on large scale
and ancestor temple group in Tibetan areas, and
played an important role in promoting the flourish
development of Gelug.
As a master of a sect, Tsong kha pa was labelled
by descendants as the incarnation of Manjusri and
Zhiguang
Zhiguang(birth unknown-1435)was a Chinese
monk who went to India on a pilgrimage for Buddhist
scriptures twice. His style name was Wuyin and he
was from Qingyun (present-day north of Qingyun,
Shandong Province), and his surname is unknown.
According to volume 2 of New Biography of Eminent
Monks when he became a monk at the beginning,
he lived in Fayun Temple of Yanu (present-day
Beijing). He worked hard and studied diligently,
learning the domestic and overseas classics. In
the year of Yuanzhi Zhengzhong (about 1354
CE), Paõóãña of Indian class of excellent monks
(it means auspiciousness in his life, Sahaja÷ri)
came to Yandu and lived in Fayun Temple. He
learnt Sanskrit by close association and became
the student of monk. When the Ming Dynasty was
established, Jinling (present-day Nanjing of Jiangsu
Province) was established as the capital; the master
and apprentice met the Emperor in Jinling. After
understanding his hard work, Zhu Yuanzhang, the
Ming Emperor, went to the temple and consulted
him. The Emperor found that Zhiguang knew
Sanskrit and ordered him to translate Buddhist
texts. Then, Zhiguang lived in a hut at Zhongshan
Mountain with favourable treatment. He translated
“Bodhisattva Vow” commonly used by Catu Parisa
which is simple in word and easy to understand
and he was thus admired by people. In the spring
of 1384 CE, Zhiguagn and his students went to
the Western Regions by order to propagandise
the achievement and cultivation of Ming Dynasty.
The people there were all moved and admired
them. When they arrived at Mahabodhi Temple,
a supernatural phenomenon appeared, which
made the local people awestruck and pay tribute
to Jinling with Tibetans. After coming back, he
passed through Gobi Desert to go to India and
brought them for consecration in the imperial
court, getting praise and consolation. In 1405, he
was promoted as “an important Zen teacher”. In
1425, the Emperor endowed a title to him and gave
him a golden seal, precious clothes, peacock golden
cover streamer, gold and silver wares, carriages and
horses, expanding Nengren Temple for him to live
in. In 1426, Zhiguang was given a title of “Buddhist
in the West” by Zhu Zhanji, the Emperor of Xuande
Period (was on the throne from 1426-1435). The
esoteric and classic Heart Sutra, Bazhiliaoyi Real
328
Cultural Contacts
Buddhism and made huge achievements. And he
served as the 10th abbot of Drepung Monastery at
43 (1517 CE) and held Lhasa Prayer Festival at 44
(1518 CE), restoring the priviledge of Gelug eminent
lamas. In the same year, ngag dbang bkra shes grags
pa rgyal mtshan (1480-1569 CE), chief of Palmer
Zhu, gave his mansion (rdo khang sngon mo) in the
Drepung Monastery to the mid-aged Dalai Lama
which determined his status as the Grand Living
Buddha of the monastery and concurrently worked
as the abbot of Sera Monastery at 52 (1526 CE).
From then on, he was no doubt the first living
Buddha in Gelug sect, with increasing Buddhist
status and social prestige.
As the incarnation of Dge-`dun-grub-pa
(Tsongkhapa’s disciple), the second Dalai Lama
Gendun Gyaco, greatly expanded the potential
of Gelug Sect by establishing the monastery and
teaching Buddhism. At the same time, he worked
hard to write and train disciples unsurprisingly. In
this way, he finally reached superb accomplishments
in Tibet Buddhism as an eminent lama of his sect.
His works including mnog rtogs rgyan Interpretation,
dbgu ma rtsa ba'i shes rab Interpretation, theg pa chen
po rgyud blama'i bstan bcos Interpretation, Differences
between nges don and drang don and Interpretation of
Manjusri Names Sutra. Again, he left interpretations
of Buddhist logics and the Ritsugaku Sect as well
as other various writings such as Honzon Dharma
Cultivation Practice and rnying mavi gu ru zhi drag.
(Kalsang gyal)
Ming Sutra, Humane King Sutra, Humane King Sutra
and The White Canopy Buddha Mantra translated by
Zhiguang are popular even today.
(Xue Keqiao)
Dge vdun rgya mtsho
The second Dalai Lama Gendun Gyaco (dge vdun
rgya mtsho, 1476-1542 CE) was a high lama and
living Buddha of Gelug Sect. As a native of Danag,
Ulterior Tibet (present-day Xaitongmoin County,
Xigazê Prefecture, Tibet), he was considered the
child reincarnated from Dge-`dun-grub-pa since
childhood and later, extensively accepted by
various eminent lamas of Tashilunpo Monastery. He
became a monk and learned Buddhism at the age
of 10 (1485). He accepted upasampanna at Drepung
Monastery when aged 21 (1495 CE); went to lha
mo bla mtsho, a sacred lake and established chos
vkhor rgyal (located in present-day Gyaca County,
Lhoka Prefecture, Tibet) at 34 (1509 CE). Upon its
completion, he went there every summer (sixth and
seventh months) to teach sutras for over 300 lamas
and didn’t get back to Lhasa until the 10th month. By
the age of 36 (1510 CE), he had been the fifth abbot
of Tashilunpo Monastery for six years. His teachings
mainly included sutras and tantras such as tshad ma
rnam vgrel, mdzod, phar phyin and gsang vdus rgyud
vgrel. In a word, he had a profound knowledge of
Bson nams rgya mtsho
The third Dalai Lama Sonam Gyatso, namely bson
nams rgya mtsho, (1543-1588 CE), was a famous
living Buddha and an eminent monk of Gelug
Sect. The Third Dalai Lama, born in anterior Tibet
(present-day Doilungdêqên County, Lhasa, Tibet),
was taken to Drepung Monastery upon recognition
as the incarnation of Gendun Gyaco when aged four
(1546) and received high-level monastery education
with strict requirements over there, accepted
samanera (novice) at seven (1549 CE), succeeded to
the abbot of Drepung Monastery at 10 (1552 CE);
held Lhasa Prayer Festival by 11 (1553), acted as
the abbot of Sera Monastery when aged 16 (1558
CE), accepted upasampanna at 22 (1564 CE). Later
on, he travelled to many holy places across Anterior
Tibet and Ulterior Tibet but also lecture sutras
and dharmas at Tashilunpo Monastery, Narthang
Monastery, Sakya Monastery and other grand
temples, gaining increasing prestige. After return to
Drepung Monastery, he renovated his own mansion
and renamed it “dgav ldan pho brang”.
In Iron Dragon year (1580) of the 10th calendrical
cycle, the Third Dalai Lama went to li thang, vbav
thang, mar khams and other places to spread
His Excellency, the Second Venerable Dalai Lama, Gendunjiacuo
329
Cultural Contacts
dharma. The lama built Litang Monastery, also
called Evergreen Cole Temple, which was located
in present-day Litang County, Garzê Prefecture,
Sichuan. In that year, he received invitation from
a chieftain surnamed Mu in Lijiang, Yunnan, but
didn’t go there for some reason. In the next year,
he went to Champa Ling Monastery in Qamdo
Prefecture to instruct Buddhist sutras. When it came
to Water Sheep year (1583) of 10th calendrical cycle,
he travelled to Xining to build Maitreya Palace and
Sutra-Teaching Academy in Kumbum Monastery. He
went to Mongolia and spread Buddhism benefiting
all beings when the Wood Rooster year (1585)
of the 10th calendrical cycle arrived. Again, he
continued teaching of sutras and dharmas in various
The Fourth Venerable Dalai Lama, Banchan, Luosangquejijianzan
Tashilunpo Monastery (bkra shis lhun po dgon). In
this way, he introduced Ensapa methods of Gelug
Sect from dben sa sgrub gnas or dben dgon and even
built sngags pa grwa tshang, establishing a complete
education system composed of esoteric and exoteric
practices and cancelling the former practice that
the monastery’s lamas had to further study at lha
sa rgyud stod smad grwa tshang. From the Water
Ox year (1613) of the 10th calendrical cycle, the
Fourth Panchen Lama held Lhasa Prayer Festival
for consecutive six years. During that period, he
initiated the system of conferring the degree, “lha
rams pa”.
With high prestige in the world of Tibetan
Buddhism, he left later generations famous works
such as dpal dus kyi vkhor lovi rtsa bavi rgyud kyi
rgyas vgrel, rdo rje phreng bavi dkyil vkhor chen povi
sgrub thabs, mgon po klu sgrub kyis mdzad pavi rim
pa lngavi rnam par bshad pa and bla ma mchod pavi
cho ga. From this Panchen Lama, the living Buddhas
of this lineage have been all abbots of Tashilunpo
Monastery. The monastery is also the residence of
all Bainqen Erdenis through ages.
(Kalsang gyal)
The Third Venerable Dalai Lama, Suonanjiacuo
Mongolian banners in the Fire Pig year (1587) of
the same calendrical cycle so that various chieftains
took a lead in conversion to Gelug Sect. And the
next year, the Third Dalai Lama passed away at
a meadow of Kharachin Banner (Ge’er’aotumo),
Mongolia. His remains after cremation were placed
in stupas in Mongolian and Tibetan regions for
commemoration. Drepung Monastery held by him
erected a silver stupa to enshrine his sarira.
(Kalsang gyal)
Ta ra na tha
Duoluonata [Taranatha (Ta ra na tha)] (1575 1634 CE), a Chinese Buddhist master, historian of
Indian Buddhism and an eminent monk of Jonang,
Tibetan Buddhism.
He was born in Zhang (vbrang) of anterior Tibet
and originally named as Sijueduojie (Sri gcod rdo
rje) also named as Gongganingbu (Kun dgav snying
po) and was regarded respectfully as Taranatha (Ta
ra na tha). At the age of four, he was invited into
Pan chen blo bzang chos
kyi rgyal mtshan
The Fourth Panchen Lama Lobsang Chökyi Gyaltsen
(pan chen blo bzang chos kyi rgyal mtshan, 15671662 CE) was an eminent Gelug lama and living
Buddha. In Gold Ox year (1601) of 10th calendrical
cycle, the Panchen Lama held the 16th abbot of
330
Cultural Contacts
addition to expanding Jonang Temple including the
construction of Buddhist statues and pagodas and the
compilation and engraving of Buddhist scriptures,
in 1615, he proposed, planned and presided over
the construction of the beautiful Rtag Brtag Dam
Chos Gling and got the support of the local governor
- Phun tshogs rnam rgyal (1586~1621) who
mobilised a large number of human and material
assistance and thus the Temple was successfully
completed. The Temple had a grand scale and was
exquisite beyond comparison. In addition to the
resplendent and magnificent external buildings, it
also had rich and colourful Buddhist cultural and
artistical artifacts. At that time 180 scholars were
recruited to transcribe Tengyur with gold ink which
has more than 200 books. About 20 sculpture
and painting artisans were invited from Nepal to
construct Buddhist statues to enshrine and worship
magic things. The murals and sculptures of this
Temple had the Buddhist artistic styles of both
Nepal and India. In addition, Taranatha invited
from India Krishna and Ba La Bha Dra to Rtag Brtag
Dam Chos Gling and consulted them about Ghosa
voice -understanding theory and the knowledge of
other disciplines, and they studied the poems and
mass cultures. Because Taranatha was proficient
in Sanskrit, he translated many Sanskrit books.
In 1608, he wrote The History of India Buddhism
(Rgya gar chos vbyung) according to India scholars’
dictation and their information. After this book was
published, one local leader from south India sent a
letter of praise about his learning and said he was
the only anonymous mahasiddha in Tibet.
Taranatha was proficient in various sects’
doctrines, learned widely from others' strong points
and wrote many books relating to the sectarian
history, temple records, biographies, classic
discussion, views about sects, poetry, language,
letters, Tantric practice etc. The historical records
include The History of India Buddhism, Yamantaka
Teaching History, Tsang Chronicles, Holy Land
Guide (including Widely Speaking about the Famous
Historical Sites of Jonang Temple, Widely Speaking
about the Ashram - Jeep Dedan Temple and Widely
Speaking about the Famous Historical Sites of Ganden
Pengcuo Forest); the biographies include The
Autobiography of Taranatha, The Biography of Shakya
Muni’s Achievements, The Biography of Shakya Muni’s
One Hundred Kinds of Achievements, The Biographies
of Seven Generations of Tibetan Buddhist Masters,
The Biographies of Eighty-four Successful Buddhist
Monks, The Biography of Buddhagupta Natha and so
on. The famous religious doctrines and dharmas
include The Broader Interpretation of King Kong
Yoga Extremely Significant in Double Way (zab lam
rdo rjevi rnal vbyor gyi rnam par bshad pa rgyas
pavi bstan pa zung vjug rab tu gsal ba), The Wide
Jomonang Temple (jo mo nang dgon), cared and
respected by many eminent monks and believers
over there, for he called himself as reincarnation of
Jonang Gonggazhuoqiao. When he was six, he began
reading books and learning the Buddhist Scriptures.
At the age of eight, he went to Jonangquelong
Temple (Chos lung dgon) to be initiated into
monkhood by following Dalongba. Gonggazhaxizan
(Stag lung pa kun dgav bkra shes rgyal mtshan) as an
officially monk. He successively took such eminent
monks with great virtues like Canbulongrijiacuo
(mkhan po lung rigs rgya mtsho), Duorenba.
Jiangyanggonggajianzan (rdo ring pa vjam dbyangs
kun dgav rgyal mtshan), Qiangbalunzhu (byams
pa lhun grub), Jonangjizhong (jo nang rje drung)
as his teachers to study systematically Exoteric and
Esoteric Buddhism. At 17, he received regulations
(gelung-pa) of monks (Biqiu) and travelled around
Tibetan area to learn widely laws of many religious
sects like Sakya, Taklung Kagyu, Karma Kagyu, Geluk
and so on. At the same time, he also consulted with
Nirbanashili (nirbav na shriav) of India on tough
issues of Esoteric Buddhism and invited Gang ba kun
dgav to make explanation for the famous literary
works like Mokeboluoduo (bha ra ta), Luomoyanna
(raw ma na) and so on. At 30, he succeeded as the
chief throne of Jonang and began to do sermon. He
advocated Buddha Nature and Prajna that without
sectarian ideas and opposed sectarianism that
merely respect one’s own religious section.
Taranatha was knowledgeable about the
Buddhism and did well in preaching and his
Buddhist career was far more than flourishing. In
Taranath
331
Cultural Contacts
the Fourth Dalai Lama to entre Tibet. In the next
year, he held Enthronement Ceremony at Reting
Monastery and then became the abbot of Drepung
Monastery to systematically learn dharmas from
Fourth Panchen Lama Lobsang Chökyi Gyaltsen
(1570-1662) upon establishment of their disciplemaster relationship. Then, in Wood Dragon year
(1604) of the 10th calendrical cycle, the Dalai
Lama held Lhasa Prayer Festival. And 10 years
later, namely the Wood Tiger year (1614) of 10th
calendrical cycle, he accepted upasampanna and
held the abbot of both Drepung Monastery and Sera
Monastery, continuously developing thoughts and
precepts of Gelug Sect. Upon arrival of Fire Dragon
year (1616) of the 10th calendrical cycle, the Fourth
Dalai Lama died an early death at dgav ldan pho
brang, Drepung Monastery. His cremated remains
were enshrined at Khalkha, Tümed and other
Mongolian areas. In addition, Drepung Monastery
erected a silver stupa for him.
(Kalsang gyal)
Commentary of Kalacakra Mandala Sadhana Drubtab,
The Broader Interpretation of King Kong Yoga, The
Wide Commentary of Jimi Wucidi, Sheng Le Mandala
Practice, On The Bright Rangjung, Sheng Le Widely
Praised Ben Le Tetra Sea (bde mchog bstod chen
dngos grub vbyung gnas), The Buddha Bhagavan Yan
Maud Mandala Practice, Chun Ming’s Commentary on
the Secret Haiizang Theoty, Yidam’s Dahai Practice the Source of Taiho (yi dam rgya mtsho sgrub thabs
rin chen vbyung gnas), Cidi’s Auspicious Kalacakra
Practice Informed to Forever (dpal dus kyi vkhor lovi
sgrub thabs bskyed pavi rim pa rnam par bshad pa
dngos grub nyer vtsho), The Origin of Kalacakra, The
Explanation to Kalacakra and so on. The declarations
include The Interpretation of Ghosa Declaration (brda
sprod pa dbyangs can gyi mdo vgrel mchog tu gsal
ba), Sanskrit Reader and so on.
(Kalsang gyal)
Yon ldan rgya mtsho
The Fourth Dalai Lama Yonten Gyatso (yon ldan
rgya mtsho, 1589-1616) was known as a famous
living Buddha and eminent monk of Gelug Sect.
He, who was born in a khan family of Mongolia,
was actually the great grandson of Altan Khan, the
only non-Tibetan of all Dalai Lamas through ages.
In Water Dragon year (1592) of the 10th calendrical
cycle, Three Monasteries of Lhasa and local official
representatives went to Mongolia to recognise
the incarnated child. As Water Tiger year (1602)
of the 10th calendrical cycle came along, Three
Monasteries again sent eminent lamas to request
Grags pa vod zer
The First Akiyoshi Buddha (Bla ma grags pa vod
zer, birth unknown~1641) Living Buddha and
eminent monk of dge lugs pa of Tibetan Buddhism,
who was born in Zhangjia Village, Huzhu Tu
Autonomous County, Haidong Prefecture, Qinghai
Province and converted to Buddhism at dgon lung
(Youning Temple). In 1630, he was promoted to the
sixth abbotship of dgon lung and then he resigned
the position as abbot and went to the holy land of
religion, dan tig dgon, in present day Jinyuan Village,
Hualong County, Qinghai Province to practice.
Before long, he was invited to serve as lotsawa at
thang ring dgon dgav ldan bshad sgrub gling, where
he developed disciple and taught Buddhism, gaining
widespread fame. Subsequently, he returned to dgon
lung and passed away there. His heir disciple looked
for his reincarnation, founded Akiyoshi Buddha
lineage and conferred a posthumous title of the first
Akiyoshi Buddha. In Chinese literature, he is hailed
as “Zhang Buddha” at first and renamed Akiyoshi
Buddha in the reign of Qing Emperor Kang Xi. The
later generations of Akiyoshi Buddha were well
versed in Sanskrit, achieved great accomplishments
in studying Buddhism and composed an array of
Buddhism works, revered by Qing emperors.
(Kalsang gyal)
Ngag dbang rgya mtsho
The Fifth Dalai Lama Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso
(ngag dbang rgya mtsho, 1617-1682) was a famous
living Buddha and eminent monk of Gelug Sect.
As a native of Qonggyai (present-day Qonggyai
County, Lhokha Prefecture), anterior Tibet, was
ordained before the Fourth Panchen Lama Lobsang
The Fifth Venerable Dalai Lama, Awangluosangjiacuo
332
Cultural Contacts
monasteries focussing on five major shastras and
sutras and precepts. On the other hand, the second
two continued four tantras (Kriya Tantra, Carya
Tantra, yoga Tantra Maha-anuttara Yoga Tantra) and
practice of Esoteric Sect.
The Fifth Dalai Lama Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso
obtained great attainments in dharma of Gelug
Sect which is reflected in his more than 30 books
including snyan ngag me lung dkav vgrel, rgyal rabs
dpyid kyi rgyal movi glu dbyangs, dbu ma la vjug pa
gsal bar byed pa, Annals of Lhasa-based Jokhang
Monastery (1645). Those representative works have
been in widespread circulation.
(Kalsang gyal)
Blo bzang bstan pvi
rgyal mtshan
The First Jebtsundamba Lobsang Tenpe Gyeltshen,
also known as blo bzang bstan pvi rgyal mtshan,
(1635-1723), was a famous eminent monk of Tibetan
Buddhism in Mongolia during Qing Dynasty.
He was born a Mongolian prince of Tüsiyetü Khan,
Khalkha, Outer Mongolia. In the sixth year (1649)
of Shunzhi Period, Jebtsundamba went to Tibet and
learned Buddhism from Fifth Dalai Lama and Fourth
Panchen Lama, accepting samanera and continuing
the lineage. In the eighth year (1651) of Shunzhi
Period, he returned to his hometown, Khalkha, and
lived in Kulun, Outer Mongolia. Just from that time,
he began spreading dharma and rites of Gelug Sect,
so that all followers throughout four Khalkha aimags
(leagues), ecclesiastic and secular, were all sincerely
convinced. In the 27th year (1688) of Kangxi Period,
Jebtsundamba leading Khalkha group submitted to
Qing Empire. In the 32nd (1698) of Kangxi Period,
Qing government officially awarded him the title
“Great Lama of Khalkha Group”. In the first year
(1723) of Yongzheng Period, Jebtsundamba passed
away in the Capital and then all Jebtsundamba
Hutuktus through ages were awarded by Qing
Empire, thus they became the major religious
leaders governing Outer Mongolia.
(Kalsang gyal)
Wushi Dalailama Awangluosangjiacuo
Chökyi Gyaltsen, accepted samanera at six (1622)
and upasampanna at 22 (1638). After that, he
succeeded as the abbot of the Drepung Monastery
and Sera Monastery, teaching Buddhist sutras and
speaking dharma. Also, he extensively studied
dharma. And in this way he was adept in both new
and old esoteric Buddhism.
In Water Dragon year (1652) of the 11th calendrical
cycle, the Fifth Dalai Lama led a team of lamas,
officials and Mongolian guard troops (over 3,000)
to pay homage to Shunzhi Emperor at Beijing upon
invitation from the emperor. In the 10th year (1653)
of Shunzhi Period, the eminent lama got back. In
the fourth month, Shunzhi Emperor ordered Gioro
Langqiu (Director of the Board of Rites) and Xi Dali
(Vice Minister of Ethnic Minority Affairs Court) to
award him the golden volumes and golden seal.
After that, the eminent lama would use the seal for
any important official documents.
In brief, the Fifth Dalai Lama promoted rapid
development of Gelug Sect across entire Tibet. In
dbus gtsang (within present-day Tibet Autonomous
Region), he successively built 13 monasteries
including 10 Gelug monasteries: gays ru shangs
dgav ldan chos vkhor in 1645, dgav ldan chos vkhor
yang rtse in 1648, dgav ldan gsung rab gling also in
1648, dgav ldan vog min gling in 1649, dgav ldan
don gnyis gling in 1649, dgav ldan bshad sgrub
gling in 1654, dgav ldan thos bsam dar rgyas gling
in 1651, dgav ldan chos vkhor gling in 1669, dgav
ldan gsang sngags yang rtse in 1647, dgav ldan vphel
rgyas gling in 1651. The first eight were all Exotoric
lcang skya ngag dbang
blo bzang chos ldan
The second Chang-chia Living Buddha Ngawang
Lobsang Chöden (lcang skya ngag dbang blo bzang
chos ldan, 1642-1714) was a high monk of Gelug
Sect during Qing Dynasty.
Born in Aa mdo tsong kha (located in present-day
reaches of Huang River, Qinghai), he was recognised
as incarnate child of Dragpa Öser upon approval by
the Fourth Panchen Lama Lobsang Chökyi Gyaltsen
(1570-1662) through reporting by Cüchim Gyaco
(tshul khrims rgya mtsho) - the abbot of Longhe
Monastery. Then, he became a novice (bhikhu) and
333
Cultural Contacts
of “Songzhu Temple” to name it. And in the 52nd
year (1713) of Kangxi Period, the living Buddha
accompanied the emperor who came to Huizong
Temple to offer incenses. Having seen its grandeur
and all monks from various Mongolia banners
buried in learning Buddhism and reciting scriptures,
the emperor was overjoyed, and said, “All affairs of
Gelug Sect (Yellow Hat) across the region on the
east of Tibet will be under your administration.”
The living Buddha was not only complimented
by Kangxi Emperor but was also venerated by
Prince Yong (later Yongzheng Emperor). Imperial
Quotations, compiled upon Yongzheng’s succession
to the throne, records “Chang-chia Hutuktu the
Universally Kind and Extensively Merciful Preceptor
awarded by the Emperor Shengzu (Kangxi) is a real
incarnation and even a great Kalyāṇa-mittatā. In my
spare time, I benefit a lot from leisurely chatting
with the master. So, I know this exactly.” Changchia was not only a good friend of the prince but
also a guru who teaches him Buddhism. Yongzheng
Emperor once said, “Chang-chia is indeed my teacher
and other monks just visited my house.” In the 54th
year (1715) of Kangxi Period, the eminent lama
died at Huizong Temple, Dolon Nor. His remains
were carried to Guolong Monastery, Qinghai for
worshiping in a stupa.
(Kalsang gyal)
learned Buddhism in Longhe Monastery and later
Guolong Monastery, pursued further study in Lhasa,
anterior Tibet for more than two decades in the 18th
year (1661) of Shunzhi Period of Qing Dynasty,
being adept in exoteric and esoteric methods, went
to Outer Mongolia with his master Ngawang Lodro
Gyatso to succeed in easing the dispute between
Jasakt Khan and Tüsiyetü Khan in the 25th year
(1686) of Kangxi Period.
And the next year, the master and his disciple
went to Beijing and got high praise by Kangxi
Emperor. During their stay in the capital, Kangxi
Emperor fairly appreciated the Second Chang-chia
Living Buddha’s abilities of dealing with worldly
things and profundity in Buddhism. In the 27th year
(1688) of Kangxi Period, the living Buddha returned
home and held the 20th abbot of Guolong Monastery
and established a patron-priest-relationship with
Lobjang Danjin, Mongolian Huxut chief. Moreover,
he personally went to the side of Qinghai Lake
to teach herders Buddhism and scriptures so that
Buddhism showed a larger influence. When it came
to the 32nd year (1693) of Kangxi Period, he was
invited to the imperial capital by Kangxi Emperor,
holding the abbot of Fayuan Temple and receiving
the award “Zhasakeda Lama” (highest lama in the
capital) for he was a “profound and pure Buddhist
master having omnipresent wisdom venerated by
numberless lamas and secular followers in both
Mongolia and Tibet”.
He took charge of affairs concerning Tibetan
Buddhism ordered by Ethnic Minority Affairs Court.
In the 36th year (1697) of Kangxi Period, he was
appointed to visit Tibet and sent golden volumes
and golden seal to the Sixth Dalai Lama, and
attended the enthronement ceremony. In the 40th
year (1701) of Kangxi Period, the large monastery
built under the imperial edict of Kangxi Emperor
was completed in Dolon Nor (located in presentday Duolun County, Inner Mongolia) and named
“Huizong Temple”. Again, various banners across
Inner and Outer Mongolia were called on to send
their individual monks to the temple as a sign for
their obeisance to the Qing’s central regime. At
the same time, the living Buddha was appointed as
Zhasakeda Lama who took charge of lama affairs in
Duolun Lamasery. That determined his authority of
governing Tibetan Buddhism in Monan-Mongolia.
Afterwards, he spent time advocating Buddhism
and teaching Buddhist scriptures in Dolon Nor
at Huizong Temple in full summer each year.
However, he returned to the imperial capital to
handle affairs concerning Tibetan Buddhism in
winter. In the 50th year (1711) of Kangxi Period, the
Qing regime specially erected a monastery for the
Second Chang-chia Living Buddha. In the next year,
Kangxi Emperor himself wrote down the inscription
Si tu chos kyi vbyung gnas
The eighth Si tu chos kyi vbyung gnas (1699-1774)
was an eminent lama of Karma.
As the living Buddha of Palpung Monastery,
eminent lama of Karma bkaH rgyud Pa and even
of Tibetan Buddhism, he spent all his lifetime
studying Tibetology had made great achievements
in Sanskrit, Sabdavidyā, Tibetan grammar, Tibet
medicine, Tibetan painting etc so that he even
gained high praise of eminent lamas of Gelug sect.
Indeed, he was a grandmaster of his time in terms of
Buddhism and culture. He wrote many famous works
including Introduction to Sabdavidyā, Interpretation
of Sabdavidyā, Survey of Sanskrit-Tibetan Glossary,
Sanskrit Grammar Guidebook to Beginners, Astronomy
and Calendar phreng ba, Table of Contents of Derge
Edition Tibetan Tripitaka (Ganggyur), mngon pa mdzod
kyi rnam bshad, Interpretation of Ngedon Mahāmudrā
Prayer, Guru Yoga and Gohonzon Chanting Practice,
History of Continuing Karma Kamtsang Branch and
Tai Situ’s Autobiography.
In the ninth year (1744) of Qianlong Period of
Qing Dynasty, Si-tu chos-kyi byung-gnas finished si
tu vgrel chen which was praised as a definitive work
in grammar of Tibetan and circulated in a fairly
extensive way. In the 26th year of Qianlong Period, he
founded a medical academy in Palpung Monastery,
which became a Tibetan medicine teaching and
334
Cultural Contacts
at Zhenhai Temple to commemorate the third
Akiyoshi Buddha.
The Third Akyoshi Budda mastered several
languages such as Sanskrit, Tibetan, Mongolian,
Manchu and Chinese. Besides presided over the
translation of Tripitaka into Mongolian and Manchu,
lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje edited many large tool
books such as sog bod shan sbyar dag yig mkhas pavi
vbyung gnas published by Nationalities Publishing
House and printed in Beijing in 1988 for the first
time and Han-i Araha Sunja Haqin-i Hergen Kamqiha
Manju Gisun-i Buleku Bithe published by Nationalities
Publishing House and printed in Beijing in October
1957 for the first time by virtue of his abundant
experience and practice of sutra translation which
not only played an instruction and reference role
at that time, but also make a great contribution to
India-China Buddhist cultural exchange.
(Kalsang gyal)
research base in Khams. His monumental medicinal
work vbrum bcos based on clinical experience was
respected in Tibetan medical world. Besides, he
invented Palpung Monastery’s dkar ris school
of painting. Both his mural and thangka were
representative throughout Khams.
(Kalsang gyal)
lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje
The third Akiyoshi Buddha (lcang skya rol pvi rdo
rje, 1717~1786), an eminent monk of dge lugs pa
of Tibet Buddhism and one of the four great living
Buddhas in the Qing Dynasty who was born in a
common herdsman family of Tu Nationality lived
near Lotus Temple in west Liangzhou, Gansu
(present-day Wuwei, Gansu). In 1720, lcang skya
rol pvi rdo rje was identified as the reincarnation
of the second Akiyoshi Buddha and was enthroned
as the third Akiyoshi Buddha at dgon lung
(Youning Temple).
In 1734, Qing Emperor Yongzheng conferred the
title of great preceptor on kang skya rol pvi rdo
rje and bestowed gold edict and gold seal. In the
same year, the third Akiyoshi Buddha was ordered
to go to garthar chode to pay a visit to the seventh
Dalai Lama together with Prince Guo and escort the
seventh Dalai Lama to go back to Lhasa together
with vice capital commandant Fu Shou for the
sake of stabilising the political situation of Tibet,
completing a major political and religious mission
in Qing Dynasty. Meanwhile, he went to bkrashislhun-po to become a disciple of the 5th Panchen
Lobsang Yexei and receive Bhikshu precepts and
made friends with high-ranking monks in Tibet.
In 1736, lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje returned to
the capital in a rash to have an audience with Qing
Emperor Qianlong who newly succeeded to throne
and reported him on the political and religious
affairs in Tibet. Emperor Qianlong ordered him to
govern temples and monks in capital and bestowed
him a seal engraved with “JasagTerigün Lama” and
lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje became pe-cin-gyi-thamka-bla-ma. In 1743, lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje was
bestowed with imperial golden dragon canopy. In
1751, he was awarded the seal engraved with “Great
Preceptor for a Brilliant Feat in Revitalising Yellowhat Sect”. In the ranking list of Lama in capital in
1786, lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje emerged at the top
among left-wing lamas.
Before he passed away on Wutai Montain, the
third Akiyoshi Buddha asked to cremate instead
of burying his remains and build copper stupa at
Zhenhai Temple to store his ashes. Hearing the
news, Emperor Qinglong felt great grief over the
death of lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje and ordered to
use 7,000 tales of gold to build a gold stupa for
keeping his remains as well as erect a stone pagoda
Vju mi pham vjam dbyangs
rhamgyal rgya mtsho
Vju mi pham vjam dbyangs rhamgyal rgya mtsho
(1846~1912) eminent monk of Nyingma sect
of Tibetan Buddhism and celebrated Buddhist
scholar and born in Shiqu County, Ganzi Tibetan
Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province. At the
age of six, Vju mi pham vjam dbyangs rham rgyal
rgya mtsho begin to study cultural knowledge. At
the age of 10, he excelled in reading and writing
and wrote essays. At the age of 12, he was converted
to Buddhism and became a monk at gsang sngags
chos gling. At the age of 18, he toured religious sites
in Lhasa. After returning hometown, he became
a disciple of vjam dbyangs mkhyen brtse dbang
po (1820-1892) and studied rig gnas che chung
bcu, renowned as an erudite master who excelled
in Indian medicine, calendar science, bzo-rig-pa
(silpakarmasthana-vidya) and adhyātmavidyā,
Jumipang Jiangyangnanjiejiacuo
335
Cultural Contacts
“Bstan vgyur”, collection of Tibetan Buddhist
sacred literature on the commentaries and treaties
of “bkav vgyur” by Indian and Tibetan Buddhist
masters, monks and lotsawa has 18 serials such as
“bStod Tshogs”, “rgyud sde bshi”, “Shes Phyin”, “d
Bu Ma”, “mDo vGrel”, “Sems Tsm”, “Prajn apti”,
“vDul Ba”, “Skyes Rabs”, “Spreng Yig”, “Tshad Ma”,
“Sgra mDo”, “gSo Rig Pa”, “bZo Rig Pa”, “Thun Mong
Ba Lugs Kyi”, “bStan bCos”, “Sna Tshogs”, “Jo Bovi
Chos Chung” and “Dkar Chag” and totals 225 parts
(cases). It is hailed as the Encyclopedia of Tibetan
studies encompassing philosophy, literature, arts,
language, logic, astronomy, calendar, medicine,
technology and architecture.
There is minor variation in “bstan vgyur” of
different versions. For instance, “bStan vGyur” has a
total of 232 parts (cases), including “rig gnas bcu”.
The catalogue is as follows:
Serials 1, bStod Tshogs;Serials 2, Rgyud;Serials
3, Shes Phyin;Serials 4, dBu Ma;Serials 5, mDo
vGrel;Serials 6, Sems Tsm;Serials 7, mNgon
Pa;Serials 8, vDul Ba;Serials 9, Skyes Rabs;Serials
10, Spreng Yig;Serials 11, Tshad Ma;Serials 12,
Sgra mDo;Serials 13, gSo Rig Pa;Serials 14, bZo
Rig Pa;Serials 15, Thun Mong Ba Lugs Kyi bStan
bCos;Serials 16, Sna Tshogs;Serials 17, Jo Bovi
Chos Chung;Serials 18, DKar Chag.
As early as 8th century CE, “Bod yig gyi bkav
bstan vgyur” was translated and compiled to take
shape. In modern times, it was constantly revised
and printed to produce different versions. During
the Tubo period (8th-9th centuries CE), “idan dkar
ma”, “mchims phu ma” and “vphang thang ma” and
“Dkar Chag” were complied in succession, which
were embryo of “Bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur” and
spread by means of handwritten copy or copybook.
In 14th century CE, “bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur”
was recompiled at Na Tong Temple as the first rare
edition at bstan pa phyi dar, also known as the Na
Tong ancient edition. In 1410, “bkav vgyur” was
printed as Yongle editon of “bod yig gyi bkav bstan
vgyur” on the basis of Na Tong Ancient Edition in
Nanjing. Since most of sutras were printed with
cinnabar, Yongle edition of “bod yig gyi bkav bstan
vgyur” was also called the red character edition.
In 1605, “bstan vgyur” was printed as the Wanli
edition of “bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur”. The
Yongle edition and the Wanli edition of “bod yig
giy bkav bstan vgyur” were two milestones in the
development history of “bod yig giy bkav bstan
vgyur”. From then on, the “bod yig giy bkav bstan
vgyur” spread by means of wood-block printing
instead of handwritten copy.
The “bod yig giy bkav bstan vgyur” of Li Tang
edition was printed in late Ming Dynasty and early
Qing Dynasty (1628-1644). Under the sponsorship
of Yunnan Lijiang Naxi Nationality chieftain Mu
achieved great accomplishments in study into
Tibetan Buddhism and composed an array of works
including masterpiece entitled” vju mi pham gsung
vbu which totaled 32 parts (cases) and encompassed
Indian Buddhism, Buddhist logic, medicine,
calendar, arts and literature, offering detailed data
for study into India-China cultural exchange.
(Kalsang gyal)
SCRIPTURES
Tripitaka
Like Tripitaka in Chinese or Pali version, “bod
yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur” of Sutra Pitika, Vinaya
Pitika and Abhidharma Pitika (Three Treasures)
is renowned as a complete collection of Buddhist
sutra. In Tripitaka, Sutra Pitika refers to the sermons
attributed to Shakyamuni Buddha, Vinaya Pitika
refers to the discipline in practice to act according
to the rules and regulations and Abhidharma Pitika
refers to the philosophical works such as discourses,
discussions or treatises on the dogma and doctrines
of Buddhism. Meanwhile, “Bod yig gyi bkav
bstan vgyur” is the common name of all Tibetan
Buddhism scriptures and falls into two parts: “bkav
vgyur” (original) and “bstan vgyur” (counterpart).
The former refers to Sutra Pitika and Vinaya Pitika
and the latter refers to Abhidharma Pitika. The
“bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur” includes over 4,570
sutras in early, middle and late Buddhist Period and
encompasses sutra, vinaya and abhidharma (Three
Treasures), Kriya Tantra, Carya Tantra, Yoga Tantra
and Maha-anuttara Yoga Tantra plus grammer,
poetry, arts, logic, astronomy, calendar, medicine
and technology etc. Tripitaka in Chinese or Pali
version contains no major part of sutras in Tantric
Buddhist hetu-vidya and Pramānavāda, suggesting
the importance of “bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur” in
study into Buddhism.
“Bkav vgyur”, also named as Dharma or original
scripture, the collection of verbal directions of
Sakyamuni Budda, was compiled by his disciples
for six times after collection, memory and reciting,
includes Sutra Pitika, Vinaya Pitika and Abhidharma
Pitika (Three Treasures) and has seven serilas,
namely, “vDul Ba”, “Shes Phyin”, “Phal Chen”,
“dKon bRtsegs”, “mDo Sde”, “rgyud sde bshi” and
“DKar Chag”, totalling 108 parts (cases). There
is minor variation in different “bkav vgyur” of
different version. For instance, “bStan vGyur” has
108 parts (cases) and nine serials.
Serials 1 Vdul Ba; Serials 2, Shes Phyin; Serials
3, Phal Chen; Serials 4, Dkon bRtsegs; Serials 5,
mDo Sde; Serials 6, Rgyud vBum; Serials 7, Rnying
Rgyud; Serials 8, Dus Vkhor vgrel bShad; and,
Serials 9, gZungs vDus.
336
Cultural Contacts
participated in the translation of “bod yig giy kbav
bstan vgyur” from the middle 8th century CE to the
early 14th century CE sticking to the translation
principle of inviting India eminent monks to assist
in translating sutras to ensure excellent translation
quality and consequently the vast majority of sutras
were translated from Sanskrit to Tibetan.
(Tong Wei)
Zeng, the sixth Karmapa Red-hat Sect Living Buddha
Chos-kyi-dbang-phyug presided over the printing of
“bkav vgyur” which was the first printed “bod yig
giy bkav bstan vgyur” in Tibet. Without printing
“bstan vgyur”, the edition was called the Li Tang
edition of “bod yig giy bkav bstan vgyur” because it
was stored at Li Tang temple.
The Beijing edition of “bod yig giy bkav bstan
vgyur” was also known as the Songzhou Temple
edition. In 1683, the hand-written Shalu edition
of “bod yig giy bkav bstan vgyur” was printed at
Shongzhu Temple in Beijing. “Bkav vgyur” was
printed in the reign of Qing Emperor Kangxi and
“bstan vgyur” was printed in the second year of the
reign of Qing Emperor Yongzheng. In the second
year of the reign of Qing Emperor Qianlong (1737),
“bkav vgyur” and “bstan vgyur” were recompiled
and published as Qianlong revised edition in history.
For it was printed in Beiing, it was called the Beijing
edition of “bod yig giy bkav bstan vgyur”.
The Zhuoni edition of “bod yig giy kbav bstan
vgyur” was printed at Anduozhuoni Temple in
present-day Lintan County, Gansu Province and it
was named after Anduozhuoni Temple. At first, it
took 10 years to print “bkav vgyur”, totalling 108
parts (cases) from 1721 to 1731, and then, it took
19 years to print “bstan vgyur”, totalling 209 parts
(cases) from 1753 to 1772.
Since “BStan vGyur” was printed at Dege SutraPrinting House in Gan Zi Dege County, Sichuan
Province from 1730 to 1737, it was named after Dege
Sutra-printing House. “Bkav vgyur” was reprinted
from Li Tang edition and “bstan vgyur” was printed
on the basis of the handwritten Shalu edition of
“bod yig giy kbav bstan vgyur” plus sutras in “DKar
Chag” by Bu-ston. The complete set of wood-block
edition was stored at Dege Sutra Printing House.
The seventh Dalai Lama Kelsang Gyatso (17081757) and Tibet Prince Polhanas presided over the
printing of new Na Tong edition of “bod yig giy
kbav bstan vgyur” based on Na Tong ancient edition
and “bkav vgyur and bstan vgyur” compiled and
stored by bu-ston chos-vbyung at Shalu Temple. The
new edition of “bkav vgyur” was completed in 1730
and totalled 102 parts (cases) and over 50,000 sutra
blocks and the new edition of “bstan vgyur” was
completed in 1742 and totalled 225 parts (cases)
and over 70,000 sutra blocks. The complete set of
new wood-block Na Tong edition was originally
stored at Na Tong Temple and lost at last. It was
hailed as the best edition boasting exquisite carving
craftsmanship and excellent collation.
“Bod yig giy kbav bstan vgyur” was a great
masterpiece co-translated by China’s Tibetan
eminent monks and Indian monks. According to
preliminary statistics by bus ton-rin chen grub
(1290-1364), 192 Indian paditas and lo tsa bas
Buddhist Canon in Chinese
Chinese Tripitaka contains collections of Mahayana
and Hinayana scriptures. During 1,000 years since
Buddhism was introduced into China, Chinese
Tripitaka collected more than 50 kinds of scriptures,
but only about 20 kinds of scriptures of the unequal
size are preserved till now. Buddhist scriptures in
different times have different forms and contents.
Before Song Dynasty, except Fangshan Stone Sutras,
all these scriptures were almost written in scroll
and bonded together. During Kai Bao Years of Song
Dynasty (968~975), the first Tripitaka in wood
carving came out. After that a total of 20 kinds
(some says 21 kinds) of Tripitaka in wood carving
form and printing form were issued from the Ming
and Qing Dynasty to the Republic of China. After
Buddhism was introduced eastward into Korea
and Japan, Buddhist scriptures was transcribed or
carved or printed in the two countries according
to Chinese Tripitaka. The first carving version of
Kai Bao Zang was introduced into Japan in the
first year of Yong Xi of Northern Song Dynasty
(984) and then introduced into Korea during Duan
Gong years (988~989). The Tianxi revised version
and the Xining revised version were respectively
introduced into Qidan and Korea in the first year
of Qian Xing (1022) and the sixth year of Yuan
Feng (1083). In the ninth year of Qing Ning of Liao
Dynasty (1063), the Kitans also sent the new carved
Qi Dan Zang to Korea. In the middle of 6th century,
some Chinese translated Buddhist scriptures were
introduced into Japan via Paekche country, south
Korea. In early 7th century, Buddhism had a great
development in Japan because the copies of various
Chinese translation Buddhist scriptures and the
official or private carved Tripitaka were introduced
into the Japanese temples. During over 700 years
from the end of 13th century to 1920s, according
to various Chinese translation Buddhist scriptures,
the Japanese Buddhism once compiled, carved or
printed seven Chinese Tri-pitakas, such as Hong An
Zang, Tian Hai Zang, Huang Bo Zang, Hong Jiao
Zang, Wan Zheng Zang Jing, Wan Xu Zang Jing, Da
Zheng Xin Xiu Da Zang Jing. In early 20th century,
the Japanese Buddhists also translated Hinayana
Sthaviravada Tripitaka into Japanese Nan Chuan Da
Zang Jing (65 volumes) and meanwhile compiled
and issued Guo Yi Da Zang Jing, Guo Yi Yi Qie Jing
337
Cultural Contacts
and Japanese Tri-pitaka which not only collected the
Chinese translations, but also collected numerous
Japanese chapters and mixed writings.
(Tong Wei)
Bod yig gyi bkav
bstan vgyur
Like Tripitaka in Chinese or Pali version, Bod
yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur of Sutra Pitika, Vinaya
Pitika and Abhidharma Pitika (Three Treasures)
is renowned as a complete collection of Buddhist
sutra. In Tripitaka, Sutra Pitika refers to the sermons
attributed to the Shakyamuni Buddha, Vinaya Pitika
refers to the discipline in practice to act according
to rules and regulations and Abhidharma Pitika
refers to philosophical works such as discourses,
discussions or treatises on the dogma and doctrines
of Buddhism. Meanwhile, Bod yig gyi bkav bstan
vgyur is the common name of all Tibetan Buddhism
scriptures and falls into two parts, bkav vgyur
(original) and bstan vgyur (counterpart). The
former refers to Sutra Pitika and Vinaya Pitika, and
the latter refers to Abhidharma Pitika. The Bod yig
gyi bkav bstan vgyur includes over 4,570 sutras
in early, middle and late Buddhist Period and
encompasses sutra, vinaya and abhidharma (Three
Treasures), Kriya Tantra, Carya Tantra, Yoga Tantra
and Maha-anuttara Yoga Tantra plus grammer,
poetry, arts, logic, astronomy, calendar, medicine
and technology etc. Tripitaka in Chinese or Pali
version contains no major part of sutras in Tantric
Buddhist hetu-vidya and Pramānavāda, suggesting
the importance of Bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur in
study into Buddhism.
Bkav vgyur, also named as dharma or original
scripture, the collection of verbal directions of
Sakyamuni Budda, was compiled by his disciples
for six times after collection, memory and reciting,
includes Sutra Pitika, Vinaya Pitika and Abhidharma
Pitika (Three Treasures) and has seven serials,
namely, vDul Ba, Shes Phyin, Phal Chen, dKon
bRtsegs, mDo Sde, rgyud sde bshi and DKar Chag,
totaling 108 parts (cases). There is minor variation
in different Bkav vgyur of different version. For
instance, bStan vGyur has 108 parts (cases) and
nine serials. Serials 1, Vdul Ba; Serials 2, Shes
The Buddhist Canon (Tripiṭaka) in Tibetan
Phyin; Serials 3, Phal Chen; Serials 4, Dkon bRtsegs;
Serials 5, mDo Sde; Serials 6, Rgyud vBum; Serials
7, Rnying Rgyud; Serials 8, Dus Vkhor vgrel bShad;
Serials 9, gZungs vDus.
Bstan vgyur, collection of Tibetan Buddhist sacred
literature on the “commentaries and treaties of Bkav
vgyur by Indian and Tibetan Buddhist masters, monks
and lotsawa, has 18 serials such as bStod Tshogs,
rgyud sde bshi, Shes Phyin, d Bu Ma, mDo vGrel,
Sems Tsm, Prajn apti, vDul Ba, Skyes Rabs, Spreng
Yig, Tshad Ma, Sgra mDo, gSo Rig Pa, bZo Rig Pa,
Thun Mong Ba Lugs Kyi, bStan bCos, Sna Tshogs, Jo
Bovi Chos Chung and Dkar Chag and totals 225 parts
(cases). It is hailed as the Encyclopedia of Tibetan
studies encompassing philosophy, literature, arts,
language, logic, astronomy, calendar, medicine,
technology and architecture.
There is minor variation in bstan vgyur of
different versions. For instance, bStan vGyur has a
total of 232 parts (cases) including rig gnas bcu. The
catalogue is as follows:
Serials 1, bStod Tshogs;Serials 2, Rgyud;Serials
3, Shes Phyin;Serials 4, dBu Ma;Serials 5, mDo
vGrel;Serials 6, Sems Ts m;Serials 7, mNgon
Pa;Serials 8, vDul Ba;Serials 9, Skyes Rabs;Serials
10, Spreng Yig;Serials 11, Tshad Ma;Serials 12,
Sgra mDo;Serials 13, gSo Rig Pa;Serials 14, bZo
Rig Pa;Serials 15, Thun Mong Ba Lugs Kyi bStan
bCos;Serials 16, Sna Tshogs;Serials 17, Jo Bovi
Chos Chung;Serials 18, DKar Chag.
As early as 8th century CE, Bod yig gyi bkav bstan
vgyur was translated and compiled to take shape. In
modern times, it was constantly revised and printed
to produce differenet versions. During the Tubo
period (8th -9th century CE), idan dkar ma, mchims
phu ma and vphang thang ma and Dkar Chag were
complied in succession, which were embryo of Bod
yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur and spread by means of
handwritten copy or copybook.
In 14th century, bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur
was recompiled at Na Tong Temple as the first rare
edition at bstan pa phyi dar also known as Na Tong
ancient edition. In 1410, bkav vgyur was printed
A sequel of the Chinese edition of ‘Zhonghua da zang’ (Chinese
Tripiṭaka). A group photo of the working group meeting held on July 5,
2008 at the Beijing National Library.
338
Cultural Contacts
and bkav vgyur and bstan vgyur compiled and
stored by bu-ston chos-vbyung at Shalu Temple.
The new edition of bkav vgyur was completed in
1730 and totalled 102 parts (cases) and over 50,000
sutra blocks and the new edition of bstan vgyur was
completed in 1742 and totaled 225 parts (cases)
and over 70,000 sutra blocks. The complete set of
new wood-block Na Tong edition was originally
stored at Na Tong Temple and lost at last. It was
hailed as the best edition boasting exquisite carving
craftsmanship and excellent collation.
Bod yig giy kbav bstan vgyur was a great
masterpiece co-translated by China’s eminent
Tibetan monks and Indian monks. According to
preliminary statistics by bus ton-rin chen grub
(1290-1364), 192 Indian paditas and lo tsa bas
participated in the translation of bod yig giy kbav
bstan vgyur from the middle 8th century to the early
14th century sticking to the translation principle of
inviting India eminent monks to assist in translating
sutras to ensure excellent translation quality and
consequently the vast majority of sutras were
translated from Sanskrit to Tibetan.
(Kalsang gyal)
as the Yongle editon of bod yig gyi bkav bstan
vgyur on the basis of the Na Tong Ancient Edition
in Nanjing. Since most sutras were printed with
cinnabar, Yongle edition of bod yig gyi bkav bstan
vgyur was also called the red character edition. In
1605, bstan vgyur was printed as Wanli edition of
bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur. Yongle edition and
Wanli edition of bod yig giy bkav bstan vgyur were
two milestones in the development history of bod
yig giy bkav bstan vgyur. From then on, the bod
yig giy bkav bstan vgyur spread by means of woodblock printing instead of handwritten copy.
The bod yig giy bkav bstan vgyur of Li Tang edition
was printed in late Ming Dynasty and the early Qing
Dynasty (1628-1644). Under the sponsorship of
Yunnan Lijiang Naxi Nationality chieftain Mu Zeng,
the sixth Karmapa Red-hat Sect Living Buddha
Chos-kyi-dbang-phyug presided over the printing of
bkav vgyur which was the first printed bod yig giy
bkav bstan vgyur in Tibet. Without printing bstan
vgyur, the edition was called the Li Tang edition of
bod yig giy bkav bstan vgyur because it was stored
at Li Tang temple.
The Beijing edition of bod yig giy bkav bstan
vgyur was also known as Songzhou Temple edition.
In 1683, the handwritten Shalu edition of bod yig
giy bkav bstan vgyur was printed at Shongzhu
Temple in Beijing. Bkav vgyur was printed during
the reign of Qing Emperor Kangxi and bstan vgyur
was printed in the second year of the reign of Qing
Emperor Yongzheng. In the second year of the reign
of Qing Emperor Qianlong (1737), bkav vgyur and
bstan vgyur were recompiled and published as
the Qianlong revised edition in history. For it was
printed in Beiing, it was called the Beijing edition of
bod yig giy bkav bstan vgyur.
The Zhuoni edition of bod yig giy kbav bstan vgyur
was printed at Anduozhuoni Temple in present-day
Lintan County, Gansu Province and it was named
after Anduozhuoni Temple. At first, it took 10 years
to print bkav vgyur, totalling 108 parts (cases) from
1721 to 1731, and then, it took 19 years to print
bstan vgyur, totalling 209 parts (cases) from 1753
to 1772.
Since BStan vGyur was printed at Dege SutraPrinting House in Gan Zi Dege County, Sichuan
Province from 1730 to 1737, it was named after Dege
Sutra-printing House. Bkav vgyur was repinted from
the Li Tang edition and bstan vgyur was printed on
the basis of the handwritten Shalu edition of bod
yig giy kbav bstan vgyur plus sutras in DKar Chag
by Bu-ston. The complete set of wood-block edition
was stored at Dege Sutra Printing House.
The seventh Dalai Lama Kelsang Gyatso (17081757) and Tibet Prince Polhanas presided over the
printing of the new Na Tong edition of bod yig giy
kbav bstan vgyur based on Na Tong ancient edition
Buddhist Canon in
Mongolian
Tripitaka of Mongolian version refers to Tripitaka
which was published in Mongolian was translated,
compiled, collated, carved in blocks and printed in
the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. During Yuan
The Mongolian edition/version of the Buddhist Tripiṭaka, composed
during the Qianlong emperor
Dade reign (1297-1307), under the order of Yuan
Emperor Chengzong, Sakya Lama and Imperial
Master grags pa vod zer (1246-1303) presided over
the translation of Bod yig giy kbav bstan vgyur into
Mongolian participated by Tibetan, Mongolian,
Uighur and Chinese eminent monks. No related
literature record on the number of sutras translated
then has been founded.
In Wanli Reign of Ming Dynasty (1573-1620),
Mongolian was keen on accepting Buddhism and
Tomoto Altan Qan and his posterity advocated
339
Cultural Contacts
category emulated the Beijing edition of bod yig giy
kbav bstan vgyur [bkav bgyur totalling 108 parts
(cases) and bstan vgyur totalling 225 parts (cases)].
In addition, the catalogue, classification and category
were the same as bod yig giy kbav bstan vgyur. The
existing bkav vgyur in Mongolian falls into 10 parts
including rgyud sde bshi, mahaprajna – paramita,
second mahaprajna –paramita, the third mahaprajna –
paramita prajnaparamita, maharatnakuta, avatamsaka,
Mahayana and Vinaya-pitaka.
The publication of Tripitaka in Mongolian ushered
in a new era of preaching sutra and spreading
Buddhism in Mongolian temples and it reflected
the dissemination of Indian Buddhist culture
in Mongolia.
(Kalsang gyal)
The Buddhist Canon in Manchu language
translating Tripitaka into Mongolian, ushering a new
era of translating Buddhist sutra into Mongolian.
Meanwhile, Chahar Ligdar Khan attached importance
to the translation of Tripitaka into Mongolian and
valued bkav vgyur as one of Three Treasures so he
gathered 33 eminent monks including Kunga Ao
Tyne to translate parts of bkav vgyur which have not
been translated yet into Mongolian. In 1629, monks
completed the translation of bkav vgyur. Tripitaka
was written with gold power and thus, it is, called
“Golden Mongolian Tripitaka” in history.
Most of existent Tripitaka in Mongolian was
compiled and printed in Qing Dynasty. In 1683,
under the order of Qing Emperor Kangxi, Prince Yu
presided over the revision of bkav vgyur and lama
and scholars including Urad Gushi Bili Kun and Aba
Gamochu Ke from Jingzhu Temple in Beijing and
Imperial Guard La Chi proofread and compiled the
bkav vgyur into 108 parts (cases) and block-printed
in 1720.
Another bstan vgyur was translated into Mongolian
in the reign of Qing Emperor Qianlong (1741-1749).
Under the order of Emperor Qianlong, the third
Akiyoshi Buddha lcang skya rol pvi rdo rje an d and
Khutukutu Lobsang Nyima Tempeh presided over
the translation of bstan vgyur into Mongolian, over
200 lamas and scholars from Mongolia including
age wang dan pi le, Tangute Academy Governor
guan bu zha bu, Jasag Lama que yin pi le duo erji
from the Xihuang Temple, Jasag Lama dan sen que
del from the Longfu Temple and Dalai Lama bi li
kun participated in the translation. It took seven
years to translate 225 parts (cases) of bstan vgyur
into Mongolian. A complete set of Tripitaka of bkav
vgyur was translated into Mongolian in the early
reign of Qing Empeor Yongzheng, and bstan vgyur
was translated into Mongolian in the reign of Qing
Emperor Qianlong, were published in the Jingzhu
Temple in Beijing.
The final compilation, translation, collation,
review and printing of Tripitaka of bkav vgyur and
bstan vgyur in Mongolian version were completed in
reference to the Beijing edition of bod yig giy kbav
bstan vgyur and its classification, case number and
Buddhist Canon in
Manchu Language
As the cultural products derived from the prosperity
the reign of Qing Emperor Kangxi and Emperor
Qianlong, Tripitaka in Manchu version, also known as
Tripitaka in native language, was translated, carved
in blocks and printed with bod yig gyi bkav bstan
vgyur as master copy and in reference to Tripitaka
in Chinese version and in Mongolian version and it
represented the highest woodblock print and binding
layout level in China.
Considering that there was no Tripitaka in Manchu
though bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur and Tripitaka
in Tibetan, Chinese and Mongolian were published
before, Emperor Qianlong issued the edict of building
a sutra academy to translate Tripitaka into Manchu
to fill the cultural gap in 1773.
On the suggestions of Great Preceptor kang
skya rol pvi rdo rje, Tripitaka of Manchu version
was translated in reference to bkav vgyur totalling
108 cases of bod yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur, also
known as Sutra Pitika and Vinaya Pitika of Three
Treasures, expounding on the sermons attributed
to Shakyamuni Buddha. In Tripitaka of Manchu
version, bstan vgyur was not translated because it
constituted part of Abhidharma Pitika, referring to
discourses, discussions or treatises on the dogma
and doctrines of Buddhism. The translation work
adhered to the principle of translating sutras
such as mahaprajna-paramita, maharatnakuta,
avatamsaka, mahaparinirvana, Madh Yamagama and
Mahayana in total and sutras of sect branches in a
simplified way. Additionally, Mongolian writings
and Chinese characters in bod yig gyi bkav bstan
vgyur were carefully reviewed and collated as well
as translated into Manchu in the light of languages
mastered by translators.
To ensure smooth translation progress, Emperor
Qianlong issued an edict of compiling and translating
all mantras in Mahapitaka at first. As we all know,
340
Cultural Contacts
plays a vital role in promoting sutra translation and
bequeaths our prosperity with valuable India-China
cultural legacy.
(Kalsang gyal)
Emperor Qianlong and the third Akiyoshi Buddha
devoted themselves to the translation of Tripitaka
in Manchu. Usually, the third Akiyoshi Buddha
determined and reviewed contents and layout as
well as worked as a polisher and then submitted to
Emperor Qianlong for review and approval.
From 1773 to 1790, it took 18 years to complete
the translation of Tripitaka in Manchu. Among it,
some sutras were printed and bound into volumes to
present to Emperor Qianlong as a birthday gift and
Emperor Qianlong rejoiced at the gift, composing the
preface to Imperial Tripitaka in Manchu or preface
to Tripitaka in Manchu.
Tripitaka in Manchu has a total of 108 parts (cases)
and collects 699 sutras running to 2,535 volumes,
falling into five categories: 1) It collects Shes-phyin,
22 cases, 610 volumes; dkon brtsegs, 1 sutra, 6 cases,
120 volumes, 1 Mahasannipat, 1 sutra, 1 case , 30
volumes; Phal-chen, 1 sutra, 8 cases , 80 volumes;
Nirvana, 2 sutras, 2 parts , 42 volumes; 2) Sutras
in one translated version: 17 cases, 206 parts, 444
volumes; 3) Tantric darma dharani, 16 cases, 322
parts, 404 volumes; 4) Theravada and discourses, 20
cases, 155 parts , 460 volumes; 5) Hinayana vinaya,
16, cases, 11 parts, 345 volumes. Mahayana Vinaya,
Mahayana sastra and Hinayana sastra are were not
included in Tripitaka in Manchu.
The layout of Tripitaka in Manchu refers to bod
yig gyi bkav bstan vgyur, richly bound in leaves and
two-sided printed, 73 cm × 24.5 cm in size and
inserted vivid and lively illustration and portrait of
Buddha. According to statistics, there are a total of
more than 700 Buddha on pattra leaves and Tripitaka
in Manchu version is reputed to be Qing Tibetan
Buddha Portrait Arts treasure.
After Tripitaka in Manchu was block-printed,
the cut blocks for printing were stored in the Sutra
Academy. In 1799, the cut blocks for printing were
transferred to be stored at Meridian Gate of the
Forbidden City. In those days, 12 sets of Tripitaka
in Manchu were printed and worshipped at Potala
Palace, Tashilunpo Monastery, Grand Zongjing
Monastery, Baodi Temple on Fragrance Hill,
Yinghua Palace in Forbidden City, the Lama Temple,
Shuxiang Temple in Chengde, Putuo Zongcheng
Temple, Xumifushou Temple, Falun Temple in
Mukden, Huizong Temple in Duolunnuoer and
Zhenhai Temple on Wutai Mountain.
Tripitaka in Manchu collects an array of exquisite
Indian Buddha statues and ancient Indian primitive
spells (mantra) and provides important data for study
into India-China Cultural Exchange and Academic
Research. In particular, the compilation, translation
and publication of all mantras in Mahapitaka in
Sanskrit, Tibetan, Mongolian and Chinese running
to eight volumes represents great academic
achievements in India-China translation history,
Buddhist Canon in
Tangut Language
Tangut script - Tripitaka was originally translated
from Chinese Tripitaka. In the first year of Jing
You of Northern Song Dynasty (1034), Kai Bao
Zang was introduced into the Western Xia Regime
(maybe Tianxi revised version of Kai Bao Zang).
The founding emperor of Western Xia Regime, Zhao
Yuanhao, established Kodaiji Temple in Xingqingfu
to collect Kai Bao Zang and meanwhile invited
Uighur monks to translate it into new Tangut script.
It took 53 years to translate Kai Bao Zang, with a
A remnant of the movable type printed edition of the Buddhist
Canon in Tangut Language
total of 362 Zhi, 812 books and 3,579 volumes. In
the seventh year of Zhi Yuan of the Emperor Shizu of
Yuan (1270), the Emperor's teacher, Huashenyixing,
played the role of the national eminent monk to
organise amendment and translation of the entire
scriptures and print the new Tripitaka. In 30th year
of Zhi Yuan, The Emperor Shizu of Yuan ordered to
send the old Tangut script scriptures to Hangzhou
for carving, which was completed in the sixth year
of Da De (1302) and included a total of about 140
kinds. But most were damaged over the time, with
only about 10 kinds of remaining chapters existing
till now in various places.
(Tong Wei)
Buddhist Canon
in Dai Language
The Dai Language Tripitaka stemmed from Pali
Tripitaka. This one of the most ancient Tripitaka
recorded as books and pursued by Southern
Buddhism Sthaviravada. Spread to Dai regions
in Yunan, China, Dai Language Writing Tripitaka
has four different local translations and recently,
three more versions are added therein: Devanagari
Sanskrit, Latin and Japanese translation.
(Tong Wei)
341
Cultural Contacts
Process of writing the book
In the spring of 646 CE, with the support from
Emperor Taizong of Tang (627-649 CE), Xuanzang
prepared to build a yard in order to translate the
scriptures in Hongfu Temple, Chang’an. In summer,
according to the arrangement of the court, one
of the writing masters, Hui Li, came to Hongfu
Temple. Since then, he remained there for many
years and participated in Xuanzang’s translation
work. Because he often accompanied Xuanzang
and admired his knowledge and morality so after
the death of Xuanzang in 664 CE, Hui Li wrote five
volumes of Biography of San Zang Master from Da
Ci’en Temple in order to spread his life story. After
finishing it, he felt it was not comprehensive, and
decided to store it in the crypt. Hui Li, before his
death, asked his disciple to take it out. After Hui
Li’s death, the book soon scattered around different
places. The complete book was put together after
many years of collection and purchase of its
fragments. On the request of concerned authorities,
Xuanzang’s disciple Yan Cong took on the mission of
revising and supplementing it. Finally, 10 volumes
were published in 688 CE as a complete book, which
still survives up to now.
Main content
The Biography of San Zang Master from Da Ci’en
Temple has 10 volumes. Volume 1 tells about the
life of Xuanzang as a Buddhist and his travelling
experiences and also narrates the process of his
going westward to Gaochang (present-day Turpan,
Xinjiang). Volume 2 describes the experience of
Xuanzang starting from Gaochang, via Agni (now
Yanqi, Xinjiang) and Qiuci (present-day Kuqa,
Xinjiang), climbing snow mountains to enter
Kyrgyzstan and passing through Central Asia to
Buddhist Canon in Dai language
Ullambana Sutra
Ullambana Sutra is the name of a Buddhist sutra.
The full name is "The Buddha Ullambana Sutra".
There is only one volume and the translator has not
been known. The time of translation into Chinese
should be no later than 5th century CE. According
to the sutra, after Maudgalyayana obtained six
kinds of supernatural power, he intended to convert
his mother to Buddhism, in order to pay a debt of
gratitude of breastfeeding. With the powers he saw
his mother suffering in hell without anything to
eat so he was very sad. He fed his mother meals,
but the food became charcoal fire near mouth.
Maudgalyayana wept loudly from sorrow and told
Buddha. Buddha told him to prepare Ullambana on
July 15 with delicious food, to provide for monks
with great virtue in 10 directions and by this his
merits and virtues would liberate the secular
parents and relieve kinsfolks. Maudgalyayana
complied with Buddha’s words and his mother was
immediately relieved.
Because the content of the Sutra is in accordance
with filial piety of Chinese traditional morality,
it was specially popular with ruling class and the
public. Soon after its translation and distribution,
there appeared Obon Festival in China. This Sutra
is short and easy to recite. It has been popular for
1,500 years without fading and after Tang Dynasty,
it was constant recomposed and deduced to a variety
of novels and play scripts popular in the folk.
(Xue Keqiao)
A Biography of
Tripitaka Master
A Biography of San Zang Master from Da Ci’en Temple
is the biography of Master Xuanzang who went
westward to India to seek Buddhist sutra in Tang
Dynasty. This biography is also known by other
names such as Biography of Sang Zang Master of Ci’en
Temple, and Ci’en Biography for short. Its authors are
Hui Li and Yan Cong.
A Biography of the Tripiṭaka master
(Daci’ensi Sanzang fashi Zhuan)
342
Cultural Contacts
Biographies of Eminent
Monks of the Great Tang
Seeking Scriptures in the
Western Regions
Northern India, finally reaching Sankisa (presentday Kannauj in north India). Volume three
describes Xuanzang’s travels southward across the
Ganges River and various activities held in Uttar
Pradesh and Bihar in India such as the worship
of Buddhist holy land and learning from local
monks. It specially records the history of Nalanda
and its scale at that time and the experience of
Xuanzang learning from Śilabhadra. Volume
four writes about Xuanzang’s Indian travel,
learning and experiences along the way and the
situation after returning to Nalanda. Volume five
details Xuanzang’s efforts to spread Buddhism
in Kamarupa (present-day Assam) in northeast
India and the experience of returning home after
participating in Buddhist Assembly of Śiladitya
and Kumbh Mela. Volume six tells the story of
Xuanzang from 646-648 CE, namely Xuanzang’s
return to Chang’an, meeting with the Emperor
Taizong of Tang, construction of translation hall
and translation of Buddhist scriptures. Volume
seven tells the story of Xuanzang from 648-654
CE which records that in the summer of 652 CE,
Dharmavardhana from Mahabodhi Temple in
India visited China and brought the letter and
gifts from Praj¤āprabha and Praj¤ādeva from
the same temple to Xuanzang. Two years later,
Dharmavardhana returned to India, and Xuanzang
asked him to take back two letters to Praj¤āprabha
and Praj¤ādeva respectively. Volume seven kept
the entire content of these three letters and it
became the important historical materials of
India-China friendship. Volume eight to 10 record
the achievements of Xuanzang’s last 10 years as
well as mourning and commemoration of the
court and monks after his passing away.
Academic value
For India-China Cultural Exchanges, the academic
value of Biography of San Zang Master from Da
Ci’en Temple includes four points: First, it has the
most detailed information of Xuanzang’s life story
which is valuable for knowing the life of Xuanzang
and his experience of going to India for seeking
scriptures. Second, the westward route of Xuanzang
and Biography of San Zang Master from Da Ci’en
Temple complement each other which provides
useful information for studying ancient IndiaChina communications. Third records about Indian
historical events and religious activities which were
helpful in building Indian history at that time and
also provided evidence for modern archaeological
excavations. Fourth, the friendly exchanges
between Xuanzang and Indian friends (including the
king, Buddhist monks and people) in the book are
historical testimony of India-China friendship and
cultural exchanges.
(Xue Keqiao)
Biography of the Great Monk Who Who Journeyed
to the West to Seek the Doctrine during the Great
Tang (Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan) was an
autobiography written by eminent Tang Buddhist
monk Yi-Jing during his travel to India during the
latter half of 7th century CE.
Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan is one of the
most important masterpieces of Yi-Jing. With two
volumes, the book was completed in the second
year of Tianshou (691 CE) in the period of Empress
Wu Zetian of Tang Dynasty. At that time, when YiJing came back from India, he stayed in Srivijaya
(present-day Sumatra, Indonesia) in South China
Sea for a time. During his stay, he wrote Great
Monk’s Biography Who Seek the Doctrine from Tang
to India and The South Sea Posted Internal Statutes,
and translated a number of Buddhist scriptures from
Sanskrit into Chinese. Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng
Zhuan records and narrates stories of 57 monks
travelling to the South China Sea and India to pursue
further studies on Buddhism. This included Yi-Jing
and other Chinese as well as Korean, Vietnamese,
Afghan, Uzbek and other regions during about 40
years from the 15th year (641 CE) of Zhenguan to
the second year of Tianshou of Tang Dynasty. Later,
it was attached by Account of Returning to the South
Seas which records stories of four Chinese monks
accompanying Yi-Jing to Srivijaya for a second
time in the first year (689 CE) of Yongchang. After
completing the books, Yi-Jing sent Chinese monk
Dajin back to Chang'an, China with a memorial to
the Empress on building temples in the west and his
newly written books entitled Great Monk’s Biography
Biographies of the Eminent Monks of the great Tang
Dynasty Seeking Scriptures in the Western Regions
(Da Tang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan)
343
Cultural Contacts
Seas to India and roads, which were newly built
in Tang Dynasty and went by Tibet and Nepal and
arrived in India. All these information reflects new
trends and new situations of India-China exchanges
in Early Tang Dynasty and later.
The changes approximately occurred after the
Linde Period of Emperor Gaozong of Tang Dynasty.
At that time, even though monks travelling west by
land and even China’s diplomatic envoy to India
seldom went to India by the traditional way of
Gansu, Xinjiang and Central Asia but instead they
selected the newly developed and more convenient
and fast way to India by Tibet and Nepal. However,
this road did not keep open for a long time only
because of political reasons.
The contacts by sea between China and ancient
South Sea regions in ancient times as well as
India had begun since Western Han Dynasty. New
development occurred in the era of Yi-Jing and
most of monks travelled to India for further study
on Buddhism by sea. According to records in Datang
Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan, more than half of
over 50 monks in the book went to and left India
by sea. But the communication routes of South
Sea recorded in the book were not one way but
many routes. These monks might go on board in
Guangzhou or Jiaozhi (now in Hanoi, Vietnam) or
in Zhanbo (Champa, in Vietnam) or by Srivijaya or
Heling (present-day in Indonesia's Java area), or by
Langjiashu (South of Burma) or by Nārikira (presentday Andaman Islands) to arrive at Tammralipti
(present-day West Bengal, India) in east India, or go
southwest from Jietu (present-day Kedah, Malaysia)
to Nagappattinam in south India and then travelling
to Simhaladvipa (present-day Sri Lanka) or going
north to east Indian states by sea or travelling to
west India from Simhaladvipa. There were too many
routes and travellers were not limited to certain
fixed routes.
From the era of Yi-Jing, more and more sea
routes were taken rather than land routes. Chinese
monks mostly chose to travel and come back by
sea. Besides, Indian monks also came to China
by sea. For example, Nati came to Chang’an by
sea in the sixth year of Yonghui (655 CE) and
Vajrabodh and Amoghavajra came to Guangzhou
by sea in the seventh year of Kaiyuan (719 CE).
Nati went back to India, bypassing the South Sea.
Amoghavajra also went back to India by sea in the
29th year of Kaiyuan (741 CE) and later he came
back to China again by sea. Sea route became very
important during this period. This was, on the
one hand, due to changes in military and political
situations in Central Asia which obstructed the
land route. On the other, economic development in
the south gradually surpassed the north and there
were new improvement and development of ship-
Who Seek the Doctrine from Tang to India and Account
of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas as well as 10
volumes of newly translated sutras.
Before Yi-Jing, Faxian, an eminent monk of the
Eastern Jin Dynasty and Xuanzang, an eminent monk
of Tang Dynasty had travelled to India for further
study on Buddhism, and respectively produced two
important works, Biographies of Faxian and Journey
to the West During the Great Tang. The travel of
Yi-Jing happened in the second year of Xianheng
of Tang Dynasty, over 40 years later than that of
Xuanzang. He spent more than 10 years in India and
stayed about 10 years successively in the South Seas
area. He took the round trips by sea. Since Yi-Jing
stayed in India and the South Seas area for quite
a long time, his writings have abundant contents
and serve as important materials for research on
India-China relation in early Tang Dynasty and the
history, culture, geography and religion of India
and the South Seas area.
Characteristics of the Book
Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan is a monk’s
autobiography which also records experiences of
more than 50 Chinese monks who travelled to India
for further study on Buddhism at that time one by
one as well as situations of India and the South
Seas in all aspects. Some of information recorded in
Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan is not contained
in Tang Western Regions. For example, many
geographic names not recorded in Tang Western
Regions appear in Great Monk’s Biography Who Seek
the Doctrine from Tang to India. Another example, the
description of Nalanda Monastery, the most famous
temple in India at that time, is not specific in Tang
Western Regions while Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng
Zhuan India has a rather specific record not only on
the origin of its name but also on its architectural
structure, materials used and construction methods,
as well as the management system in the Monastery
and all other matters. The book covers sole records
on many aspects of the Monastery which has
particular meanings for understanding the history
of Nalanda Monastery.
From the perspective of historical development of
India-China exchanges, there are many highlights
in Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan. For example,
the route from Chang’an in Tang Dynasty to India,
going by Gansu, Xinjiang, Central Asia and other
regions now, is the uppermost land route between
India and China since the Han Dynasty ie the Silk
Road. Tang Western Regions and Stories of Master
Xuanzang in Da Ci'en Temple, a book recording
personal experience of Xuanzang, has rather specific
records on this route; but Great Monk’s Biography
Who Seek the Doctrine from Tang to India has not
much record on it. However, the latter covers fairly
specific records on communication from the South
344
Cultural Contacts
but this mainly centralises around the difference
of its full name and shortened name. But after
Song Dynasty, the name of Datang Xiyu Qiufa
Gaoseng Zhuan prevailed. On its volumes, only
volume 205 of Art and Literature in History of
Song Dynasty compiled by Tuotuo in Yuan Dynasty
recorded “three volumes” of the book. This is
obviously wrong.
Its Influence in the World
During the late 19th century CE, as the basic
material for research on exchanges between India
and China as well as on religion, history and
geography of India and the South Sea, scholars
attached importance to Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng
Zhuan and published successively some translation
versions of this book in Western languages and some
of the books also included research achievement of
scholars. There were mainly the following kinds of
translation versions.
In 1894, French scholar Ed. Chavannes translated
Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan into French and
published in Paris. The name of the book is Mémoire
compose à l’époque de 1a grande dynastie T’ang
sur les religieux éminents qui allèrent chercher
1a loi dans les pays d’Occident. Its translation
version by Ed. Chavannes was supplemented with
his comments.
In 1911, when British scholar S. Beal translated
Stories of Master Xuanzang in Da Ci'en Temple, he
also translated some chapters in Datang Xiyu Qiufa
Gaoseng Zhuan into English and published together
with the English version with the name of The
Life Of Hiuen Tsiang by Shaman Hwui Li, with an
introduction containing an account of the works of
I-Tsing. The book was published in London.
Ed. Chavannes’ version is better in these two
versions of Western languages. Although S. Beal’s
version is only selected translation, there are
many mistakes. There are some mistakes in Ed.
Chavannes’ version but he made large efforts
and carried out meticulous study on annotations
so his book was of higher level. One of the most
obvious mistakes in Ed. Chavannes’ book is that he
misunderstood the notes in Yi-Jing’s book as being
made by descendants and he believed they were
added by scholars in Later Zhou Dynasty (955-960
CE). He did not realise that all “Zhou” in Yi-Jing’s
book refers to the times under Empress Wu Zetian’s
reign instead of that in Later Zhou Dynasty. Because
the translation and annotated time was early, Ed.
Chavannes could not utilise some later research
results including materials found in archaeological
excavations. This limitation was caused by times. In
addition, Ed. Chavannes’ version was based on the
version in Chinese he could find at that time, not a
checked copy so there were often some problems
on words.
building technology and seamanship promoting
the sea route. In addition, advancement of trade
and business made metropolises in the South
important domestic trade centres and to some to
even commercial ports for international trade.
Guangzhou was one of the largest foreign trade
cities at that time.
The route by the way of Tibet and Nepal was
somewhat related with the rise of Tibetan regime in
ancient China and its friendly relationship with Tang
Dynasty. Situations of Chinese monks travelling to
India through this road recorded in Yi-Jing’s books
also reflect this historical fact.
A route from present-day Yunnan Province to India
was also mentioned in Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng
Zhuan. As this route was tough and difficult, only
few people selected it and only few records on it
were preserved. But this route had been in existence
before Emperor Wu of Han Dynasty and was never
interrupted as a matter of fact.
Routes chosen by monks for travel for further
studies on Buddhism were actually routes for trade
and business. Such is the case with the “Silk Road”,
both on land and in sea. According to Datang Xiyu
Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan, "We could find that monks
mostly took business ships and went along with
businessmen. Of course, since traffic conditions were
extremely inconvenient in ancient times, in addition
to diplomats who served as envoy abroad, only
businessmen and monks would be willing to leave
their homes and risk their lives, travelling between
China and foreign countries." All information in
Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan showed that
Chinese monks who travelled to India for further
study on Buddhism had once made enormous
contributions on cultural interaction between India
and China in ancient times.
After Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan, the
earliest record on it was The Kaiyuan Record.
Thereafter, it was recorded in catalogue of all
Buddhist scriptures in successive dynasties. It was
also recorded in volume 46 of Buddhist scriptures
in Old Book of Tang and volume 59 of Art and
Literature in New Book of Tang. But it was named as
Buddhist Pilgrim Monks in Old Book of Tang without
the two words “Tang Dynasty”. It was also named
as Buddhist Monks or Buddhist Pilgrims in many
Buddhist scriptures catalogue. It was recorded
in volume 67 in General Annals and volume 226
in Book of General. In County Vegetarian Reading
Records written by Chao Gongwu in Southern
Song Dynasty, it was recorded as Buddhist Monks.
In Account on Triratna Buddha by Feizhuo in the
Song Dynasty it was named as Buddhist Pilgrim.
Some even named it as Buddhist Pilgrim Monks of
Zhou Dynasty. Probably the primitive name of the
book was slightly confused before Song Dynasty,
345
Cultural Contacts
A Record of the Buddhist
Religion as Practised
in India and the Malay
Archipelago
But until today, when western scholars need
to quote the book of Yi-Jing. If they do not
understand Chinese, they still use Ed. Chavannes’ or
S. Beal’s version.
In 1942, Japanese scholar Adachi Kiroku
published a Japanese translation and annotation
of the book in Tokyo and supplemented with the
original Chinese version at the same time. The
title was still Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan.
In the preface, he said that the master copy he
adopted was the carving copy in Kaiyuan Temple
in 18th year (1148 CE) of Shaoxing in Southern
Song Dynasty that is the so-called Piluzang in
later ages, which was hidden in the library of
Ministry of Imperial Household. It seemed that
Adachi Kiroku had made comparisons between
this version and Gaolizang, Huangbozang and
other versions. However, there were quite a few
mistakes in the edition of Kiroku due to separated
sentences and phrases, and for the lack of check
in record. Many notes in the book were not
entirely right.
In 1961, there was another Japanese version
of Datang Xiyu Qiufa Gaoseng Zhuan in series of
books All Scriptures Translated in Japanese published
in Tokyo. The translator was Takata Osamu. But
according to the introduction in the book, the
translation time of original version by Takata
Osamu was in 1940.
In 1986, Indian scholar Latika Lahiri published
a new English version in Delhi with the name of
Chinese monks in India. Unfortunately, there were
many mistakes too. Lahiri used the Dazheng Buddhist
Scriptures version for the English translation which
had many errors on words and also caused more
mistakes in her translation.
In 1988, Zhonghua Book Company in Beijing
published Collation and Annotation of Great Monk’s
Biography Who Seek the Doctrine from Tang to
India, collated and annotated by Wang Bangwei.
The new collation and annotation version consists
of the original version, record check and notes.
Seven carving versions after Song Dynasty and
four versions in modern times were used during
its collation so it can be called as the refined and
thoroughly-checked copy. Besides the collation on
full text of Yi-Jing’s original version, the collation
and annotation version also made specific notes on
names, geographical names, historical geography,
religion words and so on and attached reductive
Sanskrit original when necessary. There were also
appendices and indices attached to the book. This
version should be the most specific, complete,
and useful one for research on Datang Xiyu Qiufa
Gaoseng Zhuan (Great Monk’s Biography Who Seek
the Doctrine from Tang to India).
(Wang Bangwei)
Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas was
written by Monk Yi Jing in Tang Dynasty. It is a
book about religious disciplines written by Yi Jing
when he stayed in Sumatra and it emphasises
religious discipline about diet and daily life, worship
and admiration of the Buddha, dietary hygiene and
other aspects of Indian monks.
Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas is
one of important works of Yi Jing and is codified
in the second year of Tianshou (691 CE) of Empress
Wu Zetian. When Yi Jing came back from India, he
stayed in Srivijaya Empire in South Sea (present-day
Sumatra, Indonesia) on the way. During his stay, he
wrote Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas
and Great Monk’s Biography Who Seek the Doctrine
from Tang to India. After the books were written
down, Yi Jing asked Dajin, a Chinese monk to take
a petition to the Emperor for building temple in the
West, a copy each of Account of Buddhism Sent from
the South Seas and Great Monk’s Biography Who Seek
the Doctrine from Tang to India as well as 10 other
new translated scriptures for submission at the
Imperial Court in Chang’an.
Purpose of Writing
The purpose for Yi Jing going to India was to
study Buddhism. He spent a long time living in
India’s Nalanda Monastery and also visited some
temples in India and South Sea area. At every place
he visited, he paid special attention to observe the
religious lives and regulations of monks and monk
groups ie actual theory and practice of Buddhism
and compared them with that of in China at that
time. Yi Jing thought, the disciplines practiced and
the regulations implemented in Indian temples were
models for Chinese Buddhists to follow. Account of
Buddhism Sent from the South Seas written by Yi Jing,
based on what he saw and heard, “complies with the
holy teaching and practice the significant doctrine.”
He wanted to introduce Buddhist disciplines
practiced in India to China through this book. At
his eyes, only by this, can Chinese Buddhism be
developed correctly.
Main Contents
Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas was
composed in four scrolls, further divided into 40
chapters which included following contents.
It has a pretty long preface which introduces the
world view of Buddhism, common situations of
Indian religion, origin of Buddhism and its sects,
current status of Buddhist sects and situations about
Mahayana and Hinayana. The main purpose of Yi
Jing was to explain the origin and relationship
between each sect of Buddhism. He mentioned the
346
Cultural Contacts
talked of popularity of Buddhist sects and disciplines
at that time, “The distribution levels of the four sects
are not quite the same in different kingdoms. In
kingdom of Magadha, people learn all the four sects
but Root Sect is the most popular. There are three
sects in Luotu and Xindu with the Positive Power
Sect being the most popular and largest. In the
northern kingdoms, there are four sects and Holy
Mass is the largest. In southern kingdoms, people
revere Honour Seat Sect but other sects also exist.
In eastern kingdoms, four sects exist in mixed form.
In Lion Island, people revere Honor Seat Sect but
repel Holy Mass Sect. In kingdoms in South Sea, the
revered one is Root Sect, sometimes Positive Power
Sect and now other two sects are aslo included.”
“South to Zhanbo is Linyi. In this kingdom, there are
more Positive Sect and few Root Sect.” “But in the
east part, people practice dharmaraksa. In the centre
part, it is all-inclusive. In the very south, Root Sect
is very flourishing. But those who recite Ten Songs
and Four Division take the scripture as titles.” These
are very important materials for studying Buddhism
in India, Southeast Asia and China at present.
Based on contents in 40 chapters, main ones are
the following: I) Diet and Hygiene: Food and water
are divided into clean and dirty and people need
to eat clean food and drink clean water; rinse the
mouth and wash hands after meals; brush teeth
in the morning; toilets should be kept clean; take
bathe frequently etc. II) Daily Life: This discusses
stringent regulations related to kinds of seat sleeping mat and pillow used, methods to wear
robes, acceptance of donation from benefactor,
reception of monks from outside, burial of monks,
disposal of property or goods after the death
of monks and life in summer. III) Fitness and
Medicine. This informs that walking is beneficial
to health; why do people get sick and methods for
medication and warnings on making medicines
from urine. Extensive knowledge about ancient
Indian medicine is presented providing important
information for studying Indian medicine and the
history of medical exchanges between India and
China. IV) Worship Buddha and Praise Buddha: This
describes methods of consecrating Buddha, making
Buddha statues, building pagodas, chanting merit
and praise of Buddha and respecting teachers and
Buddha. V) Astronomy. The 30th chapter addresses
how to observe and measure time in one day, how
to measure seasons in one year as well as how to
talk about the ancient Indian method of calculation
of time for monsoon rains. A comprehension of
astronomical information described here provides
good material to study the history of astronomy
and in some cases, the details provided here are the
only material source. VI) Ancient Indian Education.
Yi Jing describes details of education in ancient
Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas
(Nanhai Jigui Neifa Zhuan)
main facts of Indian Buddhism at that time that
“sects and groups were developed from different
origins, and they have similar inheritance but four
main outlines”. There were four main sects. The first
was A li ye mo he seng zhi ni jia ye, Zhouyun Holy
Mass Sect. It was divided into seven branches. Each
pitaka of their Tripitaka had more than 1,00,000
odes making it a total of 3,00,000 odes for the whole
Triptika. These could be translated and edited into
1,000 scrolls. The second was A li ye shi ta bi luo
ni jia ye, Zhouyun Holy Honor Seat Sect. With three
branches, it had the same cannon as that of the first
one. The third was the A li ye mu luo sa po xi di
po to zhi ni jia ye, Zhouyun Holy Root Sect. With
four branches, it also had the same cannon as that
of the first one. The fourth was A li ye san mi li
di ni jia ye, Zhouyun Holy Positive Power Sect. It
had four branches, 2,00,000 songs in three cannons
and 30,000 songs in regulation. There were many
similar as well as different doctrines among the
four sects whose practices developed according to
current situations. We used to divide them into five
sects that were not heard by western countries”.
“There are also many other branches and sects with
different names, which are same as I already talked,
so no more unnecessary words. All in all, in India and
states in South Sea, there are four nikayas.” Accounts
of Yi Jing, based on his own observation, are very
important for understanding Indian Buddhism in
the seventh century. By Yi Jing’s records we can
see that Buddhist disciplines’ sustenance and spread
closely relates to sects. Yi Jing wrote: “Then there
were people who manifest disciplines and gather
differently. There were men who uphold disciplines
and are divided differently. As I saw and heard,
different cannons teach differently.”
There was another purpose for Yi Jing’s preface.
He wanted to explain the Indian Buddhist disciplines
that he introduced in Account of Buddhism Sent from
the South Seas basically belonged to a sectarian
system to endure and spread. “All talked herein are
basically based on the study of (Buddhist) sects and
things of other sects are not mixed in.” Yi Jing also
347
Cultural Contacts
Tang to India and Account of Buddhism Sent from
the South Seas drew the attention of Western and
Japanese scholars at an early time. At the end of
19th century CE, Japanese scholars Kenjiu Kasawara
and Ryauon Fujishima translated some important
portions of Account of Buddhism Sent from the South
Seas into French. Russian scholar V. P. Wasil’ev
translated some portions into Russian. The complete
English version was translated by another Japanese
scholar Junjiro Takakusu and the book was
published in 1896 by the Oxford University Press,
with its name being Account of Buddhism Sent from
the South Seas by I-Tsing.
After Junjiro Takakusu’s English version was
published, Account of Buddhism Sent from the South
Seas became known by Western and Indian scholars.
Because of translation’s completeness and higher
study level, Junjiro’s English version is still the best
version abroad so far and it is still being reprinted
in India now. Besides, Junjiro’s English version
was translated based on Qing Dynasty’s carving
copies but not the precise one so the translation’s
quality was affected. This book is being translated
for over 100 years and some aspects are obviously
require modification and supplement from
contemporary perspective.
In 2000, Account of Buddhism Sent from the South
Seas’s another English version was published in the
United States entitled Buddhist Monastic Traditions of
Southern Asia which was translated by the Chinese
Buddhist scholar Li Rongxi, and published by the
Japanese Buddhist Mission Association in Berkeley,
California, USA (Berkeley: Bukkyo Dendo Kyokai).
In 1959, there was a Japanese version adopted
into Volume 84 of Japan-China Writing and Account
Compilation in All National l Scriptures published in
Japan. The version was translated by Ono Genmyo
(Xiaoyexuanmiao) as early as in 1936.
In 1995, Zhonghua Book Company published
Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas with
Annotations, annotated by Prof. Wang Bangwei.
The new version included the original text, check
notes and annotations. On the aspect of checking,
the version used two kinds of transcripts from Tang
Dynasty, one was from Dunhuang Library Cave and
the other one was the Nara period transcript stored
in Japan, and six kinds of carving copies from Song
to Ming dynasties, included Korean version as well
as Taisho-pitaka printed in Japan. It collected most
versions, so it could be called as the precise version.
While checking and annotating Yi Jing’s original
book, this version annotated people’s names, place
names, history, geography and religious vocabularies
in detail as well as adding the original text in Sanskrit
when necessary. And many appendixes and indexes
were attached in the book. It should be deemed as
the most detailed, most complete and most useful
Indian, especially in the case of Sanskrit education.
He also mentions a series of classics related to
Sanskrit grammar including Learn to Talk and
Scripture of Sudanluo (Paṇinisutra). In addition to
Paṇinisutra, he also referred to the ancient Indian
Sanskrit grammarian Patanjali and Bhartṛhari and
“explanations” or “interpretations” they wrote. He
also recorded the procedures for learning these
cannons. Yi Jing’s recording is very critical and
some of the details cannot be easily understood.
This requires further research and study.
Significance of the Book
After Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas
was sent to China, it became quite popular in the
Buddhist community. There are three extant ancient
transcripts: one was found in the Dunhuang Library
Cave and the other two are kept in Japan. It is
identified that the transcripts were copied during
the 8th century CE which is less than a century from
the formation of the transcripts. Therefore, we can
realise the popular situation at that time. Same as
Great Monk’s Biography Who Seek the Doctrine from
Tang to India and other books, when Yi Jing died
or at the latest after his death, Account of Buddhism
Sent from the South Seas “was incorporated into the
imperial project”. After copying by generations,
most contents are still in the Tripitaka.
Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas
contributes great values to contemporary studies on
the history of Indian Buddhism, Chinese Buddhism,
Sino-foreign relationship history in Tang Dynasty
and even general history, geography, culture, and
social life in ancient India and South Sea area,
specially with regard to the situation of Indian
Buddhist Sangha’s internal religious life in the 7th
century CE, the book provides almost most upto date
and detailed information. Here take the problems
of comprehension of Mahayana and Hinayana
as an example. Indian Buddhism was divided
into Mahayana and Hinayana and 18 sects were
Hinayana, almost without a doubt. Yi Jing listed
Indian Buddhist’s four major sects’ (ie four nikayas)
names, inheritance and the number of cannons. This
text is referenced in many studies to illustrate the
distinction between sects but the sentence: “there
was no certain distinguish among four sects” as a
supplement after the text is often overlooked. In
fact, according to Yi Jing, it mainly understood
sects by the distinction of disciplines but as for the
four sects are concerned, each maintained their
own traditional discipline, with monks in each sect
having faith both in Mahayana and in Hinayana,
without distinct limitation. In other words, the four
sects Yi Jing said were not all Hinayana.
Influence to the World
Like Biographies of Faxian, Tang Western Regions,
Great Monk’s Biography Who Seek the Doctrine from
348
Cultural Contacts
exotoric mahayana is the cause, also known as
Prajna; Tantrayana is the result, also known as Ati
Yoga. While implementing the two mahayana of
cause and result, must regard being with Bodhicitta
as the important basis. The sequence of the
learning should be simultaneously with the exotoric
Mahayana and Tantrayana, starting from mikaeri
and learning the tisrah siksah.
Mikaeri is the entrance of liberation; it is the
basis for being with Bodhicitta. According to the
teachings of Samantabhadra Practice Chapter, in the
whole process of climbing Bodhi tower, regarding
buddha-dharma-sangha and treasure supply, we
must be with an un-returnable heart and supported
with seven practices, determine to achieve the
conversion of life to buddha-dharma-sangha at three
levels. Based on this Mahayana conversion, initiate
version for studying Account of Buddhism Sent from
the South Seas. In 2009, Zhonghua Book Company
published this book again, and the author modified
some details for the 1995 edition before reprinting,
and more appendixes were added.
In 2004, Japanese scholars Miyabayashi Akihiko
(Pinyin: Gonglin Zhaoyan) and Kato Eiji (Pinyin:
Jiateng Rongsi), published a renewed Japanese
version entitled Modern Language Translation of A
Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas. There
were detailed annotations included in this book
either. This is the latest fruit for Japanese scholars
studying Account of Buddhism Sent from the South
Seas and many contents quoted Wang Bangwei’s
Account of Buddhism Sent from the South Seas
with Annotations.
(Wang Bangwei)
Bodhimargadipasastra
Byang chublam sgron is a representative work of
Indian eminent monk Atisha (982~1054) and also
a foundation work of religious doctrines of Kadampa
faction. At the same time, it laid theoretical basis for
Tsongkhapa’s two masterpieces of byang chub lam
rim chen mo and sngags rim chen mo, having a broad
impact on religious doctrines of Tibetan Buddhism.
Byang chublam sgron is a classic treatise written
by sage Atisha in Ngari district of Tibet in the year
of 1043 as per requested by lha bla ma byang chub
vod. The entire book consists of 69-and-a-half
Odes. This theory divides human beings into three
levels of upper, middle and lower, according to the
temperaments of all living creatures in the world,
thus put forward the theory of "skyes-bu gsum”. All
those who seek through all means in reincarnation
for their own benefits only and not consider the
others are called lower man. All those who reject
reincarnation and wish to get out from karma
influence, however are still restricted as seeking
for their own benefit only, not able to help liberate
others are called middle man. All those who cut off
all their own bitterness, and pledge to cut bitterness
of all living creatures, are called upper man.
The theory emphasises that the lower man
should practice the death impermanence doctrine,
if without a world-weary mind toward this life,
he cannot entre the door of dharma. If thinks five
Khandas as ego, it is impossible to get liberation; if
not bring forth great Bodhicitta, it is impossible to
entre Mahayana. Also in Mahayana, if not combine
with skillful wisdom and only practice sunyata, it
is not impossible to become a Buddha; if not fully
comprehend the true righteousness of doctrine, it
cannot be a true second initiation (secret initiations)
and third initiation (intelligence initiations).
Mahayana is further divided into exotoric
Mahayana and Tantrayana, the cause and result:
Bodhimargadipasastra (Puti Daoju Lun)
great compassion for all sentient beings, observe
the cause of suffering and suffering consequences in
the world reincarnation for the sake of liberating all
creatures, initiate an unreturnable great Bodhicitta.
As for the body nature, righteousness and methods
of initiating this Bodhicitta, there were many
different viewpoints from ancient Indian scholars.
One should base on the doctrines proposed by the
two factions of Nāgārjuna and Asanga, with the
same Bodhicitta throughout the whole process or
divide into three hearts of cause, result and method,
or divide into vow made to Buhda and man’s heart,
all dedicated for a continuous and broad learning to
increase and enrich this Bodhicitta.
Śikṣā is also the three sikkhā: adhisīla-sikkhā,
adhicitta-sikkhā and adhipaññā-sikkhā. adhisīla-sikkhā
is through Buddhist discipline to gain the Samādhi,
through Samādhi are to gain the wisdom, and
practice accordingly. Herein adhisīla-sikkhā parallels
the seven categories of followers of śrāvaka precept
of Hinayana with Buddha discipline and rituals of
Mahayana, only those consistently with pratimoka
349
Cultural Contacts
original meaning of Asanga’s Bodhisattva-bhūmi;
the adhicitta-sikkhā was taken from Chapter of
Meditation and Sambhara written by buddhabhadra;
adhipaññā-sikkhā was originated and inherited from
Suvarnadvipa. Arisha himself was from the academic
faction of buddhabhadra and Suvarnadvipa,
while buddhabhadra was inducted from Manjusri
and Cantideva/zhi ba lha, and Cantideva was
inducted from Nāgārjuna, Aryadeva/phags palha,
Bhavyaviveka and Candrakīrti; Suvarnadvipa’s
doctrine was inducted from Maitreya and Asanga.
Therefore, Atisha’s doctrine has the advantages of
the two factions of mādhyamaka and Vijñāptimātratā.
While the principle of adhipaññā reflects more
concepts of Nāgārjuna, for the points lacking of
details in the mādhyamaka academic faction, briefly
take the doctrines from Vijñāptimātratā academic
faction to enrich it.
(Kalsang gyal)
could gain and follow Bodhisattva Precepts. Among
the seven categories of followers, according to
Buddhist teachings, those who practised the bhiksu
Buddhist and thus gained Bodhisattva precepts
were especially in big quantity. While accepting the
precepts, the rituals should be carried out according
to the illustration in Asanga’s Buddhist Worldly
Precepts Chapter. Regarding the precepts to follow,
practice learning and discipline issue, if not detailed,
illustrated in Asanga’s Buddhist Worldly Precepts
Chapter, which may take reference of Śântideva’s
Mahayana Collection of Bodhisattva theory.
Adhicitta-sikkhā, Buddhist discipline produces
Samādhi. According to Buddhabhadra's Chapter of
Meditation and Sambhara, to practice meditation,
one have to meet with all the “nine requirements”,
that is, to meet nine conditions which include:
one, should be away from evil karma; two, under
guidance of what have been heard; three, dispel
prapanca; four, not greedy for extensive preaching;
five, manasi-karoti of each other; six, recite the
given merits and virtues; seven, practice diligently
and govern accordingly; eight, calm Samatha and
vipassana and nine, residence, food and others
should be convenient. With all these nine conditions,
follow one nidāna and live with its meaning, the rest
skillful and convenient things can be taught by other
teachers, which could not be explained with words.
Adhipaññā-sikkhā "Samādhi" means "stopping", it
is not enough to try to get rid of karma confusion
and other barriers with “stopping” only, to remove
barriers "vipaśyanā" is necessary, it is also known
as "Nirvana Yoga". But conversely, with wisdom
only is not enough to achieve the perfect status of
a Buddhist, there should be also with convenience.
Both wisdom and convenience are necessary, none
of them could be missing, if the two separate from
each other, they will become trap for each other
and increase the barrier for perfect experience
of supreme Bodhi. But what is wisdom? What is
convenience? According to buddhabhadra, among
the six concepts of donation, discipline, tolerance,
Samādhi, diligence, prajnā, the first five concepts
belong to the conveniences, the last one prajnā, is
supreme wisdom, with conveniences as sikkhā of
this doctrine thus to cultivate wisdom, in this way,
one could quickly attain the experience of supreme
Bodhi. So, what is the entity of wisdom? It is the
inner enlightened wisdom of understanding the
self nature of noumeon of Dharma Practices like
skandha, realms, Ayatana “born out of nothing” and
“emptiness”. The principle of "Dharma Practices are
born out of nothing” can be understood from the
two aspects: one is authoritative teaching evidence,
the other is logical or dialectic rational inference.
The sage, Atisha’s adhisīla-sikkhā and illustration
of bringing forth Mahayana Bodhicitta adopted the
Moksalankarasastra
Gradual Path of Mahayana: Supreme Liberation (Dam
chos yid bzhin nor bu thar pa rin po chevi rgyan
ces bya ba theg pa chen povi lam rim bzhugs so).
It was the representative work and masterpiece of
Dakpo Kagyu who was an eminent monk of Tibetan
Buddhism as well as the theorist of Dakpo Kagyu
School of Tibetan Buddhism and the foundation
work of practice system. It played an important
transitional role in the development history
of gradual path for practice school of Tibetan
Buddhism.
Contents
Gradual Path of Mahayana: Supreme Liberation is
composed of two parts. Part one is instruction (lus
kyi rnam bzhag tsam bstan pa) and it is divided
into chapters because it has only one page. Part
two is explanation (Yan lag rgyas par vchad pa) and
it takes up four-fifth of the entire book. It is the
keynote of the sutra and is divided into 21 chapters.
The rareness or innovation of Gradual Path
of Mahayana: Supreme Liberation lies in the fact
that it simply combines Gradual Path with Great
Hand Seal, mixes exoteric doctrines with esoteric
practice, uses cultivation and practice to verify and
experience doctrines and thoughts and understand
Buddhism profoundly, especially life inspiration
and awakening, and seeks a way of release. Dakpo
Kagyu wrote this personal way of release into
the book and pointed a way of release to sentient
beings. The sutra thought that a way of release
shall be sought to leave far away pain and arrive at
land of milk and honey. The premise included six
items, cultivation cause, reliance and promotion
as well as cultivation method, achievements and
implementation career. The sutra focusses on
instruction and proving, uses Bodhicitta method as
350
Cultural Contacts
Path of Mahayana: Supreme Liberation expounds
the way of release of Tibetan Buddhism, especially
explains how to obtain cultivation conditions and
gradual process for the fruition state or realm
of Bodhi. As an important term and concept of
Buddhism, Bodhi (enlightenment) implies profound
connotations and great ideal, symbolises the spirit
of Mahayana Buddhism as well as reflects pursuits
of great and eminent monks, such as compassion,
wisdom, Bodhicitta and bodhisattvacarya. Therefore,
immediate voidness view and Bodhicitta appear in the
concepts of wisdom and Upaya in Tibetan literature.
Speaking in modern language, the so-called wisdom
means theory, and Upaya means method, way or
practice; immediate voidness is a correct view and
is beyond the world; while bodhisattva-carya is to
join in secular life and obtain profits for others ie to
save all beings.
(Kalsang gyal)
Moksalankarasastra (Dachengdaocidi
Jietuozhuangyanlun)
bu ston chos vbyung
the guideline and obtains essences of three scopes
of spiritual practice.
Main Subjects
Gradual Path of Mahayana: Supreme Liberation
proposes many systematic and rigorous subjects but
the three subject had the most academic challenges
including release cause - Tathagata-garbha, release
reliance - human shape treasure and release
promoter - good knowledge.
Release cause - Tathagata-garbha Everyone
has Tathagata-garbha originally which lays the most
superior congenital foundation for sentient beings
to walk towards the way of release. Therefore,
everyone can obtain supreme and perfect Bodhi
(enlightenment) and attainment of supreme and
perfect Bodhi is equal to getting rid of the suffering
of Samsara.
Release reliance - Human shape treasure
Human shape treasure is of importance in the way
of release. The sutra thinks that it’s hard and rare
to obtain human form treasure. Buddhism fully
expounds the truth that human shape is hard to
obtain and it is precious from the perspective of
the six way of rebirth, and proves that only human
beings have subjective and objective conditions to
practice Buddhism and get rid of worries and pains.
Release promoter - Good knowledge Release
promoter is good knowledge and it is difficult to seek
complete good knowledge. The sutra thinks that the
key is to obtain human shape treasure which is the
basic foundation and any achievements could not
be made without instruction and guidance of good
knowledge. It emphasises here that good knowledge
is release promoter and is an indispensable important
condition of way of release. With vivid cases,
distinctive standpoint and didactic ways, Gradual
As a masterpiece of Tibetan Buddhism in China,
the book has the full name of “bde bar gshegs pavi
bstan pavi gsal byed chos kyi vbyung gnas gsung
rab rin po chevi mdzod” and is written by eminent
monk of Tibetan Buddhism Bu ston rin chen grub
(1290-1364) in 1322. The book consists of four
chapters. There are three parts in the first chapter:
in the first part, the author explains hearing and
tells merits and virtues of Saddhamma; the second
part expounds how to verify Saddhamma hearing
and spread; the third part explains how to hear,
spread, learn and practice the Saddhamma. In the
second part of the book, the author describes the
history of the Saddhamma. And in the third part, the
author tells the history of the spread of Buddhism in
Tibet involving the former period and later period
and the preacher including Sakya Pandita of India
and other areas, and directory of translators. The
Budun Fojiao Shi
351
Cultural Contacts
dissemination and sects in the period from King
Ajatasattu to King Kaniska (third generation king
in the Darouzhi Kushan dynasty reigned in the 2nd
century CE). Part two includes chapters 13 and 27,
and narrates dissemination conditions of Mahayana
Buddhism represented by Madhyarnaka and
Yogachara as well as Hinayana Buddhism remaining
in the period from the death of King Kaniska to King
Govicandra (the king reigned around the 7th century
CE in a Kingdom of India). Part three includes
chapters 28 to 37, and narrates dissemination of
Mahayana Buddhism presented by Tantrism at later
stage and conditions of the elimination of Indian
Buddhism from King Gopala (first generation king
of Pala Dynasty reigned in the early 8th century CE)
to King Lakshmanasena (last king of Sena Dynasty
reigned in late 12th century CE). Part four includes
chapters 38 to 44, and records other historical
facts of Buddhism. Character information related
to Mahayana (represented by Tantrism) can fill the
blank of historical literature of Buddhism.
In view of time, History of Indian Buddhism was
from the early 5th century BCE to 12th century CE.
It has provided much rare and precious information
related to history of Indian Buddhism to common
people while other information is short of conditions
of characters, doctrines, groups, temples, almsgivers
and especially enemies in the later period of Indian
Buddhism. Therefore, Tibetan History of Indian
Buddhism was translated into several foreign
languages in 19th century CE popularly and there
have been Russian, German, Japanese and English
versions successively.
(Kalsang gyal)
fourth part compiles the catalogue for Buddhist
texts and Abhidharma, including Exoteric Buddhism
and Esoteric Buddhism Sutras.
Integrating history, theory and catalogue,
this book makes exquisite and brief description,
explanation and demonstration on Buddhism,
the origin of Tibetan Buddhism and teaching
methods and texts. It is rare and precious among
historical works of Tibetan Buddhism because
of its exquisite narration, thorough discussion,
careful correction and unobstructed words. More
importantly, it also provides valuable information
about the important figures, mainstream sects,
main theory and key books of the Indian Buddhism
and Tibetan Buddhism. Until today, it still has a
profound academic influence on Tibetology. It was
published in 1988 by China Tibetology Publishing
Company in Beijing and its Chinese version has
been handed down.
(Kalsang gyal)
Rgya gar chos vbyung
History of Indian Buddhism (Rgya gar chos vbyung):
It is a historical work of Buddhism history written
by Taranatha who was the eminent monk of the
Jonang sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It is a Tibetan
literature and history book which uses Indian kings
in successive dynasties as the preface, focusses
on kings protecting Buddhism and activities of
Buddhist masters propagating Buddhism, introduces
transmission, inheritance, dissemination, change,
prosperity and decline of Indian Buddhism after the
nirvana of Buddha Shakyamuni.
The entire book is composed of preface, body
and postscript, has 44 chapters and can be divided
into four parts roughly. Part one includes chapters
1 and 12, narrates transmission, inheritance,
Chos vbyung dpag
bsam ljon bsang
Chosvbyungdpagbsamljonbsang (Ruyibaoshushi) is
a masterpiece of Tibetan Buddhism which was
written by sum pa ye shesdpalvbyor (1704-1788)
of Gelug, Tibet and published in the 13th year of
Emperor Qianlong (1748) of Qing Dynasty. With
the systematic description of the long standing
historical development and evolution of Buddhism,
including its spread in the four regions of India:
Han region, Tibetan areas and Mongolia, the book
primarily introduces the causes and conditions for
expansion and flourishing of Buddhism in Tibetan
and Mongolian areas. The book’s content is rich,
which not only collects a large number of historical
data but also corrects the errors on time occurred in
predecessors’ books. The book provides important
literary sources for researches on the history of
Indian, Tibetan, Chinese, Mongolian Buddhism as
well as politico-religious and other situation there.
The book is reputed as masterwork both at home
and abroad, and has been translated into many
languages, and has also been treated with great
Yindu Fojiao shi
352
Cultural Contacts
religions and philosophy sects in India, especially
in sects of Buddhism. The second chapter explores
on before-propagation period and post-propagation
period of Tibetan Buddhism and history of sects
including Nyingma, Kadam, Kargyu, Zhi-byed,
Sakya, Jonang, Gelug and Bonpo and so on. This
makes deep expositions especially on dogmata,
sadhanadrubtab and theory of different sects.
The third chapter briefly describes the origin and
ideology of different religions and philosophy sects
of Buddhism and Daoism in China. The fourth
chapter states the situation of the propagation of
Buddhism in the Western Regions and Mongolia
and so on. The fifth chapter, as the conclusion of
the book, narrates the subjective and objective
conditions and purposes of compiling the book. It
was published and distributed by Gansu Minorities
Press in Lanzhou, China in 1984, and the Chinese
version was published by Beijing Minorities Press
in 2000.
(Kalsang gyal)
Ruyi baoshu shi
importance by the academic world. The book was
published and distributed by Gansu Minorities Press
in Lanzhou, China in 1992 and the Chinese version
was published by the Press in 1994.
(Kalsang gyal)
Gu Bkrvi Chos Vbyung
Thuvu bkwan grub mthav (Tuguanzongpailiuyuan)
is a masterpiece of Tibetan Buddhism with the full
name of "grub mthavthams cad kyivbyungkhungs
dang vdodtshulston pa legs bshadshelgyi me lung".
It was compiled by Thuvubkwanblobzangchoskyinyi
ma (1737~1802) of Gelug in Tibetan Buddhism,
and published in sixth year of Emperor Jia Qing
(1801) of Qing Dynasty. There are five chapters in
the book. The first chapter briefly introduces the
history evolution of thought and doctrine of various
GuBkrviChosVbyung (Guozhafojiaoshi) is about
the history of Tibetan Buddhist sects written
by senior Tibetan Buddhist monk gurubkrashes
(unknown birth and death). It has a total of eight
chapters introducing the narratives on the birth and
dissemination of knowledge of Buddha, the spread
of Buddhism in India and Tibet, the production
of new and old Esoteric Buddhism, exploration of
terms and the introduction of terms’ life etc in detail.
This book provides specific descriptions about
original teaching methods, lineage inheritance,
main temples and religious rituals of Nyingma
sect of Tibetan Buddhist. It also briefly introduces
meanings and developments of the general and
Tuguan Zangpaiyuan Liu
Dunli fojiao shi
Thuvu bkwan grub mthav
353
Cultural Contacts
From 1747, 1carn skya III rol pavi rdo rje
(1717~1786) started writing Lcang Skya Grub
Mthav. The publication of this book aroused great
repercussion in Tibetan Buddhist academia, and
had a positive impact, especially for promoting
the development of Grub Mthav doctrine. It was
later hailed as the highest academic achievement
in the research field of Tibetan Buddhist Grub
Mthav doctrine. The structure of the content is:
Firstly, it illustrated the mistakes of ancient Indian
Samkhya, Brahma, Nārāyaṇa, Vicara, Maheśvara,
Vaisheshika, Nyaya and other heretic factions
from a critical perspective; secondly, standing
on Buddhist viewpoints, separately stated all
the thoughts and viewpoints of Sarvāsti-vāda,
Sautrāntika, Vijñāptimātratā and Madhyamika;
taking the logic relationship between causes,
principles and results as a theoretical starting point,
widely cited the teachings of Nagarjuna, Asanga,
Vasubandhu, Aryadeva, Dignāga, Dharmakirti
and Tsongkhapa, demonstrated the coherence and
differences between the principles of four Buddhist
sects, focussed on expounding Buddhist thought of
svātantrika and Prasaṅgika.
In 1773, jam dbyangs bzhad pa II dkon mchog vjig
med dbang po (1728~1791) finished the writing of
Grub Mthav Rin Chen Vphring Ba on the basis of
Extensive Discussion of Grub Mthav by jam dbyangs
bzhad pa I dbal shul ngag dbang brtson grus. The
book is concise and to the point, so is called Brief
Discussion of Grub Mthav or Introduction of Four
Buddhist Factions, and it has an outline feature of
Grub Mthav. Firstly it expounded the viewpoints of
other factions (lam) and doctrines of inner faction
(Buddhism) from a comparative perspective and
defined the essential difference between the two.
Those who converted to the Tirana of Buddhadharma-sangha were called inner faction; those who
specific Pancavidya. It is thus an important Tibetan
book for studying Buddhist history, especially
teaching history of Nyingma sect. In 1990, it was
published by China Tibetology Publishing House.
(Kalsang gyal)
DOCTRINES
Grub Mthav Smra Ba
Grub Mthav Smra Ba was one of academic subjects
of Tibetan Buddhism in China which expounds
on doctrines of Indian Buddhism. With the
emergence of Tibetan Buddhism, grub mthav smra
ba took shape and developed gradually. It is a
system combining explanation of the doctrines of
Buddhism characterised by four Indian Buddhist
sects (Sarvastivada, Sautrantika, Vijnanavada and
Madhyamika) which were made from the entire by
the eminent monks of Tibetan Buddhism generation
by generation.
In Qing Dynasty, grub mthav smra ba raised its
status in academic fields of Tibetan Buddhism. In
particular, eminent monks of dge lugs pa composed
an array of works to work on study into grub mthav
smra ba and made contributions to making grub
mathav smra ba a famous school. Grub Mthav
Chen Mo by vjam dbyangs ngag dbang brtson
vgrus, Lcang Skya Grub Mthav by lcang skya rol
pvi rdo rje and Grub Mthav Rin Chen Vphring
Ba by dkon mchog vjig med dbang po are the
representative works.
In 1689, vjam dbyangs ngag dbang brtson vgrus
(1648-1721) composed Grub Mthav Chen Mo to
come up with innovation and deepen grub mthav
smra ba. The work contained extensive contents
which criticised the reviews of different schools
including ancient Indian Samkhya and expounded
on the doctrines of Mahayana and Theravada such as
Sarvastivada, Sautrāntika, Sautrāntika, madhyamika
and Vajrayana Buddhism. The book is divided into
13 chapters: chapter one, introduction of Siddhanta;
chapter two, refutation of uccheda-drishti; chapter
three, refutation of nityadrishti of Samkhya and other
factions; chapter four, refutation of nityadrishti of
Brahma and other factions; chapter five, refutation
of nityadrishti of nārāyaṇa and other factions;
chapter six, refutation of nityadrishti of Maheśvara
and other factions; chapter seven, refutation of
nityadrishti of Digambaras faction; chapter eight,
establish Sarvāsti-vāda’s viewpoints; chapter nine,
establish Sautrāntika’s viewpoints; chapter 10,
establish Vijñāptimātratā’s viewpoints; chapter
11, establish viewpoints of Sauātantrika faction;
chapter 12, establish viewpoints of Prasaṅgika
faction; chapter 13, answer difficult questions about
Vajrayana practice and achievements.
Tibetan version of Zongyixue
354
Cultural Contacts
were converted to worldly divinity were called the
outer faction. Secondly it focussed on discussion of
the religious thoughts of four Buddhist factions, not
only made summaries of the Buddhist viewpoints
of all Sarvāstivāda, Sautrāntika, Vijñāptimātratā and
Madhyamika, but also separately expounded the
philosophical ideology of Sauatantrika madhyamaka
and Prasangika madhyamaka.
(Kalsang gyal)
Gzhung bkav pod lnga
Gzhung bkav pod lnga (Wubu Dalun): The five
important classics of Tibetan Buddhism which refer
to Hetuvidya, Prajna, Madhyamika, AbhidharmakosaSastra and disciplines.
Hetuvidya: One of the five important classics
of Tibetan Buddhism, refers to Buddhist Logic.
Buddhist
Hetuvidya
has
many
functional
properties: it is a kind of instrumental and
functional knowledge, a discipline that can be
correctly reasoned and intellectually exercised, the
methodology and epistemology for the seeking of
the truth and is known as the golden key to open
the treasure house of knowledge. Therefore, in all
sects’ education of Tibetan Buddhism, Hetuvidya is
relatively consistently learned first and is thought
the eye for the study of Prajna. People study
Madhyamika later because they think Madhyamika
is result of the study of Prajna. Historically, Tibetan
Buddhist monks applied and developed Dignaga’s
Pramanasamuccaya and Dharmakirti’s Seven
Commentaries of Hetuvidya and so on, all that got rid
of the four Indian heretics’ thought and established
the four Neidao’s thought, and ultimately established
the Buddhist Prasangika Madhyamika. Hetuvidya
not only plays the role of “breaking the evil theory
and establishing the right thought” in the process
of “breaking” and “establishing” Buddhism, but also
becomes the arguing skill basis in texts for religious
titles of Tibetan Buddhism.
Prajna: One of the five important classics of
Tibetan Buddhism and the early important Buddhist
ideology and theory of Mahayana. Its fundamental
classic is Prajnaparamita and also known as the
mother of Buddha (Yum chen mo) because the reason
for all Buddhas to become a Buddha is mainly that
they depend on Buddhist scriptures of which the
essence and realisation process (originating from sex
empty theory and how to study Buddhist scriptures
and to become a Buddha) are originated from
Prajnaparamita. Therefore, Prajnaparamita is called
the mother of Buddhist scriptures or the mother of
all Buddhas. In addition, Prajnaparamita is thought
the transcendent enlightenment intelligence namely
Prajna is wisdom, based on which the truth -- true
suchness, true essence, and false and sex empty
theory are explored. Therefore Prajna is said to be
Research books on five sects of Tibetan Buddhism
the abstract theory of “the meditations of sunya”.
Prajnaparamita has created the Mahayana Buddhism
also known as Bodhisattvayana. Bodhisattva has the
spirit of self-consciousness, being aware of others,
self-interest and interesting others. Bodhisattva’s
initial approach to become a Buddhist believer is six
perfections including almsgiving, commandments
observing, ksanti, virya, meditation practice and
prajna. Having a Bodhicitta and studying six
Paramita are the main characteristics of Mahayana
Buddha and the motive power to contribute to the
rise of Mahayana Buddhism. So Prajna thought refers
to six Paramita. While Maitreya’s Abhisamayalankara
is the argument, teaching or knack of Prajna Paramita
Sutra and an outline comment on Mahavagga
Prajnaparamita that gives the first place to the
thoughts of Madhyamika, namely “all dharmas have
no self-nature” and the second place to the thoughts
of yoga and order. Therefore, Tibetan Buddhism
takes Abhisamayalankara as the outline of the study
of Prajna and incorporates it into one of the five
important classics of Tibetan Buddhism, and which
has become the most important content to know
Buddhist Prajna empty wisdom and achieve the
wisdom of Buddha.
Madhyamika: one of the five important classics
of Tibetan Buddhism and one of the four Buddhist
sectarian doctrines. It occupies an important
position in the entire history of Buddhist thought.
It absorbed the thoughts of Agama and Prajna; then
it created Madhyamika of Tibetan Buddhism that
is greatly valued and vigorously carried forward.
So Madhyamika flourished and was developed in
Buddhism, and even the thoughts of Madhyamika
became the main theoretical basis of Tibetan
Buddhism, based on which their own views of
Buddhism are established, for example, “the five
important classics” took Madhyamika and Hetuvidya
355
Cultural Contacts
(dge tshul ma), the female monk who is two years
earlier to become the bhikshuni and follows six
commandments; upasaka (dge bsnyen) or recluse, the
male believers following “the three commandments
and the five precepts”; Upasika (dge bsnyen ma)
or recluse, the female followers at home following
“the three commandments and five precepts”. The
differentiation of these seven groups of people is on
the basis of the discipline they comply respectively.
Before nirvana, Shakyamuni has completed the
formulation of doctrines for the seven kinds of sangha.
Each of the seven kinds of sangha, such as bhikkhu or
bhikkuni can form the sangha when the monks and
believers gather to reach a certain number. Among
the five kinds of monks, the acolyte belongs to the
bhikkhu, the sikkhamana and the samaneri belong
to the bhikkuni. The Sangha aims at serving all
beings and making all beings conscious. In order to
manage Sangha and make them to be engaged in the
regular collective religious life, rules and regulations
were formulated, especially for different believers,
various discipline were formulated to follow. Since
then the doctrines have been established. Just as
Bkav-thang-sde-lngamonks said: Monks are the
faithful practitioners or defenders of the doctrine, so
it is said that monks are the foundation of Buddhism,
and consequently a number of Sangha organisations
are established.
(Kalsang gyal)
as two important theories to establish the Buddhist
views of point. Hetuvidya is thought the eye for the
study of Prajna so it is learned first. People study
Madhyamika later because they think Madhyamika
is result of the study of Prajna. That shows that the
purpose of studying Madhyamika is darsana-marga
and to get the kosher thoughts of Madhyamika.
Tibetan Buddhism placed Madhyamika on an
important position in the entire Buddhist system.
Especially during the period of Houhong of
Tibetan Buddhism, Chandrakirti’s main works
about Madhyamika were translated into Tibetan
Language, and thus all thoughts of Madhyamika
have been preserved in Tibetan Tripitaka and
the authoritative status of Chandrakirti has been
established in Tibetan Buddhism.
Abhidharmakosa: One of the five important
classics of Tibetan Buddhism and its full name is
Abhidharma Abhidharmakosa, of which Abhidharma
(mngon pa) refers to the abhisamaya doctrines
and arguments, and the word Abhidharmakosa has
the meaning of hiding Tibetan and treasure-house.
Whether Han Buddhism, Tibetan Buddhism or
Southern Buddhism, they all have such tripitakas as
sutra-pitaka, vinaya-pitaka and Abhidhamma pitaka,
and all that have formed a complete theoretical
system and practical method of all sects of Buddhism.
And Abhidharmakosa Sastra belongs to Abhidhamma
pitaka and is classified into the Tengyur in the
Tibetan Tripitaka, which is the India monk Taetok’s
commentary on sutra-pitaka and vinaya-pitaka taught
by the Buddha and the further explanation of “Four
Noble Truths” in the first part of Dharma-chakra. As
Theravada’s view in Abhidharmakosa Sastra says, it
is a kind of Buddhist theory with its content mainly
about Theravada Buddhism and an indispensable
and important part of Buddhist Tripitaka. As one
of the five important classics of Tibetan Buddhism,
Abhidharmakosa Sastra has become an important
study content of Tibetan Buddhism.
Discipline: One of the five important classics of
Tibetan Buddhism, and it is the basis of Buddhism and
Buddhist study, so it occupies a dominant position
in the Tibetan Buddhist study system. The reason
why Buddhism was able to flourish relies mainly
on organisation of the sangha and the guarantee
of discipline system. The Sangha compromises the
monk and believers at home. In the strict sense,
the monks and believers at home have some
differences: bhikkhu (dge slong), the male monk
over the age of 20 following 250 commandment;
bhikshuni (dge slong ma), the female monk over
the age of 20 following 300 to 500 commandments;
acolyte (dge tshul), male monk under the age of
20 following 10 commandments; Samaneri (dge
tshul ma), the female monks under the age of 20
following about 10 commandments; Sikkhamana
Gzhan stong gi lta ba
gzhan stong gi lta ba (The View of Other Emptiness):
It is the basic doctrine of Jonang sect of Tibetan
Buddhism. It separates from many schools of
Tibetan Buddhism and other school observes the
view of self-emptiness of Madhyamika.
“Self-emptiness” differs from “other emptiness”
in terms of cognition mainly ie dissimilarities
and similarities between common statement and
ultimate truth. Secular things come from conditions,
while conditional causation will not have self body,
which is called as secular phenomena which don’t
exist ie all things are void. The Jonang sect thinks
that substances existing are described as “voidness”
by wrong realisation or analysis of people to deny
absolute substances existing; the supreme dharma
nature is the unchanging truth permanently and
the environment for intelligence enlightenment ie
supreme existence. That is to say, the ultimate truth
is formless, cannot be described with words, and is
far from all meaningless statements so the ultimate
truth is the supreme reality.
Jonang sect thinks that nirvana is the permanent
dharma, and it exists permanently. It is far from
worries and those who ignore worries cannot
reach nirvana. Intelligence must be meditated to
cultivate Bodhisattva heart and those who observe
356
Cultural Contacts
by heart. There are no any persons meditating, and
something that can be meditated can’t exist because
meditator and the meditated are just a lighting
characteristic of thought.
(Kalsang gyal)
Rgyud
Rgyud is tantric theory of Tibetan Buddhism. As one
of the important schools of Buddhism, it inherited
its origin and development from Tang Tantrism,
Eastern Tantrism and Tibetan Tantrism, and has
been transmitted into different regions. In terms
of three language families of Buddhism, Tantrism
is widely transmitted in Tibetan and Chinese
Buddhism ie Northern Mahayana Buddhism.
Concept of Tantrism: There are many alternative
names in Tibetan and Chinese language systems.
For example, the names such as Tantra, Tantric
vehicle, secret vehicle, esoteric incantation vehicle
and Mantra vehicle etc and the famous scholar Xu
Fandeng explained it specifically: “the school is
characterised by chanting mantras ie the so-called
‘true words’.” Great attention is paid to Tantrism in
Tibetan Buddhism, especially profound doctrines are
endowed to it so it becomes the essence of Buddhism
is honoured as diamond vehicle (Vajrayana) or
resultant vehicle which secures it a supreme place.”
Great monks of Tibetan Buddhism answered why
Tantrism (gsang sngags) has so many alternative
names or venerable titles. The Fourth Panchen Blo
bzang chos kyi rgyal mtshan (1567-1662). As a
Tantric matters of the Gelug sect of the generation,
he explained the word of Vajrayana (rdo rje thegs
pa): there were profound reasons for Tantrism
which is called as “Vajrayana”. Firstly, Mahayana
doctrines are fully concluded in the six paramitas;
secondly, the six paramitas are condensed in skills
and intelligence and lastly, skills and intelligence
combines into oneness ie Bodhicitta. However,
Bodhicitta is the profound meditation of diamond
being (Vajrasattva) ie diamond (Vajra), so Tantrism
is called as diamond vehicle.
Explanation on the concept of resultant vehicle
(vbras buvi thegs pa) is more theoretical or logical.
The eminent monk of the Kagyu sect Bu ston rin
chen grub (1290~1364) once expounded that sde
snod can be divided into Hinayana Tripitaka and
Mahayana Tripitaka. Therefore, Mahayana Tripitaka
also contains sutras and shastras of causal vehicle
(Yogachara School) and resultant vehicle (Tantrism).
That is to say, Exotoric Buddhism doctrines are
classified into causal vehicle (rgyu yi thegs pa) is
used as the theoretical basis of Tantric cultivation
and only the entry into the practical stage of
resultant vehicle is the highest dharma of “attaining
enlightenment in this life”. The establishment of
causal vehicle and resultant vehicle rationalises the
The ideology of Takongjian
doctrines can get rid of unenlightened worries and
see nirvana.
Ocean of Definitive Meaning: Final Unique
Quintessential
Instructions
fully
expounds
Buddhist thought of the view of other emptiness.
For example, the ultimate truth of other emptiness
is unchanged permanently, the world of feeling
has the same meaning as Tathagata-garbha which
is the foundation of all things and cannot be empty
absolutely. Jonang sect admits that immaterial
nature which is conditional, it is the law of mutual
causation of all actions, is delusive and unreal
and belongs to secular truth, just as the fact that
the non-existence is self-empty. while the selfexistence of the ultimate truth isn’t empty, so it is
other emptiness.
Jonang sect thinks that emptiness is existence of
heart itself, light is language, and the unity of the
two is “enlightenment” (heart). This kind of division
method is same as the division of three bodies: real
existence of heart is the body with infinite spiritual
potential (Dammar body); light is the reward body,
and its representation form is the embodiment. Once
sublime intelligence (intelligence god) appears,
illusive phenomena will stop. If there are illusive
phenomena on the contrary, intelligence will
suspend. The world of things is unreal and things
are just some phenomena, which are only caused
357
Cultural Contacts
were three birthplaces for Tantras: the first was the
place of the Buddha’s spiritual body. The founder,
Samantabhadra Dharmakaya Buddha declared great
perfection self-nature to retinues or disciples in
Wisdom Ocean without time concepts and words.
The second was the place of the Buddha’s reward
body. The founder Sambhogakaya Mahavairochana
presented superior doctrines of Mahayana Buddhism
to five Buddhas, five consorts including Mother
Voidness and Freedom, Bodhisattvas including
Kshitigarbha and female Bodhisattvas including
Grace and Charm as well as retinues or disciples in
self-appearance altar filled with voidness with six
syllables or indescribable words and it was in the
age of self-appearance of intelligence. The third was
the place of the Buddha’s embodiment. The founder
Vajra Dhara, appeared an illusory intelligence body
of Vajrasattva instructed inscrutable exoteric and
esoteric doctrines to numerous retinues or disciples
including obtainers of good karma, Bodhisattvas,
achievers, intelligent cultivators of voidness,
worldly gods, dragons, human beings, asuras and
dri za in the Tushita heaven (one of the six heavens
of desire), and it was in the age between infinite life
and life of 100 years. The old school emphasised
the place of the original founder Bodhisattva of
Universal Benevolence largely when narrating
Tantric heritance and source of entire Buddhism. The
unshakable holy place of Dharmakaya Buddha was
highlighted by the fact that Bodhisattva of Universal
Benevolence declared great perfection to reduce
the places of other Buddhas and the combination
of the three bodies makes the reward Buddha and
the embodiment Buddha are in the secondary or
subordinate place.
Four Tantras and Six Tantras: Tantric literature
in sutras and shastras is called as Tantra (rgyud) while
rgyud in Tibetan has the meaning of continuity or
succession which conforms to the implication of the
Chinese character of “续”. Its history can be traced
back to the 8th century CE. The concept of Tantra of
Secret Mantra (sngags kyi rgyud la) had appeared
in Vphang Thang Catalogue (dkar chag vphang thang
ma), the catalogue of Tripitaka compiled in the
Tubo period. Moreover, the part of Tantra of Secret
Mantra was listed in Denkar Catalogue (ldan dkar
gyi dkar chag) in the same period, which was same
as Vphang Thang Catalogue basically, and they can
be proved mutually. However, the pre-propagation
period of Tibetan Buddhism hadn’t established
Tantric cultivation system such as Four Tantras or
Six Tantras in a strict sense in the Tubo period.
Bu ston rin chen grub recompiled the catalogue of
Tibetan Tripitaka on the basis of Denkar Catalogue,
Mchims phuvi dkar chag, Vphang Thang Catalogue
and Snar thang gi bstan vgyur dkar chag and
literature catalogue compiled by translators in the
Document on Mixuxue
relations between exoteric Buddhism and esoteric
Buddhism as well as constructs the cultivation
system of Tibetan Buddhism. Enlightenment or
attainment of Buddha fruits can be obtained after
learning doctrines of causal vehicle (exoteric
Buddhism) and then practicing cultivation of
resultant vehicle (esoteric Buddhism).
New and Old Tantric Doctrines: Old and new
Tantric doctrines are inherited in Tibetan Buddhism.
In the aspect of exoteric Buddhism, there is no
difference between the new and the old as well as the
saying between the new school and old school and
it is divided according to conditions of propagation
of Tantrism purely. As for the division between
the new and old, there are many sayings and the
most common saying is that tantras translated by
Pandita smri ti before he came to Tibet are called
as Tantras of the old school, and tantras translated
after Rin chen bzang po are called as Tantras of the
new school; tantric classics translated by Pandita
smri ti before he arrived in Tibet (late 10th century
CE) are subject to the old tantras and tantric classics
translated since the great translator Rin chen bzang
po (958~1055) are subject to the new tantras.
In terms of sects, only Ningmapa sect inherited
the old tantric traditions, and other schools
belonged to the new tantric system. The Ningmapa
sect promoted or practiced Tantric heritance,
which originated from the old tantric traditions in
the 8th century CE while the doctrines which were
promoted and practiced by the schools such as the
Gelug Sect, Kagyu Sect, Sagya Sect and Jonang Sect
originated from the new tantric system in late 10th
century CE.
In terms of tracing back to historical sources
of Tantrism for the new tantras and old tantras,
there are many common views as well as subtle
differences. Tantrism is propagated from the
oneness of the three bodies of the Buddha. It is
declared with the spiritual body to support the
original meaning, instruct with the reward body to
purify self-nature, and preach with the embodiment
to embellish words and realise phenomena. There
358
Cultural Contacts
three common Abhishekas including Buddha, Lotus
and Vajra, Ratna, and each part has Abhisheka,
instruction and enlightenment of over 50 kinds of
Dharmas including Buddhas, group leaders, consorts,
Shikhin, Wrath Gods, Wrath Goddesses, envoys and
Wealth God; Performance Tantra has instruction
and enlightenment of “Five Manjusri Bodhisattvas”
who are the leaders of Tathagata group; Yoga Tantra
has instruction and enlightenment of multiple kinds
of Dharmas including Purifying Twelve Altars with
Evil Incarnations, Universal Brightness, Vajrapani
Destroying the Lord of Death; Anuttarayoga Tantra
including three types, including Father Tantra,
Mother Tantra and Nondual Tantra. Father Tantra
orients at Abhisheka and heritance of Guhyasamaji,
Manjusri Vajra and Avalokitesvara etc.; Mother
Tantra orients at Supreme Happiness, Vajravarahi,
Five Deities of Kurukulle, Amitayus Buddha, Great
Pity and Independent Existence, and Twenty One
Taras, etc.; Nondual Tantra orients at perfect
Abhisheka and heritance of body speech of Hevajra,
Kalachakra Vajra, Fifteen Deities of Nairatmya,
Panjaranatha Mahakala, Vajrapani Subduing
Monsters, and White Intelligence Tara etc.
As the representative of the old school, the
Ningmapa Sect proposes different views from the
new school and divides Tantric classics into six types
(Tantras): Three External Tantras (Action Tantra,
Performance Tantra and Yoga Tantra) and Three
Internal Tantras (Maha Yoga, Anusara Yoga and
Great Perfection Ati Yoga). Three External Tantras
attach importance to external physical practice and
Three Internal Tantras pay attention to cultivation
of heart and air. Therefore, individual views and
practice are form on Anuttarayoga Tantra, and the
core of its doctrine promotes great perfection.
From the perspective of gradual path to cultivation,
great perfection is divided into preface and main
body. The main body is divided into gradual paths
to cause of act and perfection while gradual paths
to perfection are divided into gradual paths to
happy voidness, complete voidness and intelligence
perfection; gradual paths to intelligence perfection
is divided into Sems sde, Klong sde, Man ngag sde.
14th century CE. The compilation deleted and added
the previous catalogues of Tripitaka. Sutras and
shastras of Tipitaka of Buddhism can be divided into
two types mainly, exoteric Buddhism and esoteric
Buddhism, literature is named after sutra (mdo) and
Tantra, respectively, exoteric classics are called as
sutras, and esoteric classics are called as shastras.
Great monks of Tibetan Buddhism proposed
the concept of Four Tantras (rgyud bzhi) in 10th
century CE. On the premise of sutras and shastras
defined strictly, Tantras were classified into Action
Tantra, Performance Tantra, Yoga Tantra and
Great Yoga Tantra, and the system of four tantras
was established; hereafter, Great Yoga Tantra was
classified into three Tantras, Upaya Tantra (also
called Father Tantra), Intelligence Tantra (also
called Mother Tantra) and Nondual Tantra, and the
theory of Four Tantras or Six Tantras of Tibetan
Tantric Buddhism was created.
The new school represented by Gelug sect divided
Tantric classics into four types: Action Tantra,
Performance Tantra, Yoga Tantra and Anuttarayoga
Tantra. In Sngags rim chen mo, Tsong Kha Pa
expounded cultivation ways, rites and methods,
use of ritual implements, Satyadevata types,
transmission and heritance of Tantric doctrines and
codes of different schools. The later generations
including monks in the Qing Dynasty observed
the classification method of four Tantras of Tsong
Kha Pa basically. Action Tantra and Performance
Tantra mainly instruct external rites including
Abhisheka, rules and ceremonies, heritance affairs
and Four-member chants etc. Yoga Tantra explains
four-classes of Siddhi cultivation methods including
Buddha, Vajra, Ratna and Lotus; Anuttarayoga
Tantra expounds attainment methods including
four Abhisheka methods, various kinds of profound
rules and rites, and gradual paths to cause of act and
perfection. Gradual path to perfection is divided into
Father Tantra, Mother Tantra and Nondual Tantra,
in which Father Tantra includes Guhyasamaji
and Great Authority, etc., Mother Tantra includes
Supreme Happiness and Hevajra etc., and Nondual
Tantra includes Kalachakra Vajra. Three Tantric
Dharmas including Father Tantra (pha rgyud),
Mother Tantra (ma rgyud) and Nondual Tantra (ngo
bo gnyis med kyi rgyud) are formed in Anuttarayoga
Tantra and are inherited.
The Sagya sect divides Tantric cultivation
methods into common Dharma and Distinctive
Dharma. Common Dharma includes Vajra Mala, One
Hundred Attainment Methods, Attainment Dharma
Sea and One Hundred Dharmas of Natang etc and
Abhisheka, enlightenment and cultivation can be
opened externally and internally. Distinctive Dharma
includes Action Tantra, Performance Tantra, Yoga
Tantra and Anuttarayoga Tantra. Action Tantra has
Vajrayana diagram painted in Drepung monastery
359
Cultural Contacts
The realm of Bodhisattva of Universal Benevolence
can be obtained if the whole gradual cultivation
process to construct great perfection is completed.
(Kalsang gyal)
Way of Great Perfection
It is the core doctrine of the Ningmapa Sect of
Tibetan Buddhism. It originated from Tantrism
of Indian Buddhism and was formed in “the prepropagation period” of Tibetan Buddhism and
developed in “the post-propagation period”. In
terms of overall content, it inherited tantric thoughts
of Indian monks including Padmasambhava and
Vimalamitra as well as collected Buddhist thoughts
and tantric heritance of the eminent Tubo monks
including Virocana was promoted by great monks of
the Ningmapa sect, and formed “great perfection”
with independent system of profound doctrines and
practice verification gradually.
“Thuvu bkwan blo bzang chos kyi nyi ma”
explained great perfection: “it means birth, death
and nirvana of all things in the current world reach
perfection and completion in the light voidness, so it
is named perfection. There is no superior way to be
free from birth and death so it is named greatness.”
It can be seen that “great perfection” is bright and
clean intelligence of human beings for open way
and abandonment of impurity of passions and is
the inborn pure disposition of all beings. That is to
say material movement and change processes of all
things in the world as well as birth and death are
generated or eliminated in the state of bright and
clear voidness of spirits (thoughts) of human beings
so that their spirits can be proved clean and pure in
this way, people can cultivate according to dharma,
so that their spirits will not be polluted and they can
reach an ideal realm of voidness and cleanness. If
people can treat with this clear intelligence or clean
spirit and realise it by special ways, they can obtain
nirvana and realise “attainment of Buddhahood in
this life”.
As an independent systematic doctrine, the
connotations of “great perfection” are mainly
composed of “sems sde, klong sde and man ngag
sde”. “Sems sde” means that heart can be realised in
three aspects: Essence, shape and field. For example,
pure heart essence, bright heart nature (shape) and
broad heart field (function). This is a complete and
true heart. True heart is Buddha heart so it can be
seen that everyone has Buddha heart. Therefore,
“Thuvu bkwan blo bzang chos kyi nyi ma” pointed
that “sems sde” shows state, only self heart and
heart nature can present natural wisdom, and there
is no other way except natural wisdom. The skill to
attain this way is similar to the great hand seal sect,
which can show environment, while “sems sde” is to
seek the ultimate reality of cleanness and purity for
The documents on Dayuan manfa
published by the zhongguo Sichuan
minzu chubanshe.
intuitive conditioning power and heart essence. ” It
can be seen that any external environment comes
from self heart while heart shape shows natural
wisdom and no better dharma can be sought without
it. Although there similarities between “sems sde”
and great hand seal of the new sect in the process of
cultivation, but specific methods or measures differ
greatly, for example, great hand seal uses heart to
show environment while “sems sde” is intuitive
essence voidness.
In view of “region”, “klong sde” means broadness
and all-embracing, and it is a kind of dhamata realm.
“Man ngag sde” proposes that all things including
samsara and nirvana shall be attributed to dhamata
of voidness or persistence with intelligence of
being free from acceptance or rejection and nondifferentiation of dual combination, and bright
and clear intelligence free from influences of
conditions and feelings of samsara and nirvana, so
that the superior concept of body of self-enlightened
Vajra-sphota is attained. Meanwhile, it proposes
three concepts including purity of substance
characteristics, enlightenment of self nature and
broadness of great pity, and thinks that the essence
of substance is immortal and immaterial, and
substance is pure; the voidness and wonderful phase
don’t hinder explicit knowledge, and self-nature is
enlightened; the voidness and wonderful virtues can
show impure and pure phenomena, which is broad
great pity.
From the perspective of schools of Tibetan
Buddhism, only the Ningmapa sect inherited the
old Tantric traditions, and other schools belonged
to the new tantric system. Ningmapa sect promoted
or practice Tantric heritance, which originated
from the old Tantric traditions in the 8th century
CE, while the doctrines which were promoted and
360
Cultural Contacts
Therefore, birth and death is for not knowing self
heart while nirvana is for knowing self/ heart.
Because heart is often disturbed by confusion,
people cannot understand properties of natural
intelligence of heat usually and they will know that
birth and death don’t differ from nirvana naturally
practised by the schools such as Gelug sect, Kagyu
sect, Sagya sect and Jonang sect originated from the
new Tantric system in late 10th century CE.
As the school inheriting the old Tantric doctrines,
the Ningmapa sect took the lead in differentiating
doctrines of Sakyamuni. The whole Dharma is
divided into nine vehicles: “nyan thos, rang rgyal,
byang sems, kri ya, Au pa, yo ga, bskyed pa ma
ha yo ga, lung Aa nu yo ga and rdzogs pa chen po
Aa ti yo ga” etc and the first vehicle “nyan thos”
is graded to the ninth vehicle “rdzogs pa chen po
Aa ti yo ga” to gradually reach the supreme realm
of great perfection. As one of the main founders of
old tantric heritance, Vimalamitra had profound
influences on the Ningmapa sect which was the
pyramidal Buddhist or cultivation system, especially
played an important role in forming the thought of
great perfection.
(Kalsang gyal)
The documents on Mixuxue published by the
Beijing Minzu Chubanshe.
and obtain Buddha’s fruit once they understand
characteristics of the innate intelligence so
the cultivation concept that “all things are
misrepresentations of the mind, all things and the
mind are misrepresentations of illusion and all
illusions are void”. This cultivation concept explains
that the existence of environment is denied by
heart, the existence of heart is denied by illusion,
and the existence of illusion is denied by arising
from conditional causation, which conforms to the
concept of “non-differentiation among birth, death
and nirvana” and verifies the truth that they don’t
run against one other and words cannot express the
enlightenment of the realm, and it can be verified
in cultivation practice truly.
(Kalsang gyal)
lam vbras
The Way and Result (lam vbras) is the Core doctrine
of the Sagya sect of Tibetan Buddhism.
Sagya Sect is a school with different thoughts. The
masters including Saban Gongaji, Tshig don and
their followers promoted Svatantrika Madhyamika
concepts while the masters including Rendawa
Zhonu Lodro held Prasangika Madhyamaka
concepts even later monks held Mind-Only concepts
as well as advocated the thought of “the wrong view
concerning unrealness of the attributes”, and many
eminent monks cultivated “great perfection” of
Ningmapa Sect. The core doctrine ie the distinctive
view of the school is “the way of result”. There are
exoteric and esoteric contents.
In the aspect of exoteric Buddhism, it contains
Nagarjuna’s Madhyamaka thoughts and is related to
Maitreya Buddhist thoughts. Madhyamaka thoughts
are highlighted by “the first is to break non-blessing,
the second is to break egocentrism, and the last is to
break all views”.
In the aspect of esoteric Buddhism, characteristics
such as the union of knowledge and emptiness as well
as the absolute birth, death and nirvana of human
heart shall be proved and enlightened through
systematic cultivation; absolute reality of the innate
intelligence shall be realised to reach the realm of the
unity between the Buddha and self. The cultivation
processes are to find general properties of human
heart firstly, and seek the way from “clear heart” to
“empty heart” secondly, realised the secret of “the
union of knowledge and emptiness”, thirdly as well as
prove and understand the characteristics of original
nature including absences of position, colour, shape
and substance etc. Sagya sect holds the opinion that
heart has two characteristics: firstly, it is twined by
a mess; secondly, its nature is the innate intelligence.
Phyag Rgya Chen Po
It is the core doctrine of the Kagyu Sect of
Tibetan Buddhism. Kagyu sect is consistent with
other schools, promotes Madhyamika thoughts,
especially observes Karmapa’s Prasangika
Madhyamaka. Because Kagyu Sect attaches
importance to practice and cultivation of guru
heritance and tantric doctrines, great hand seal
becomes its unique core doctrines and rites.
The so-called “great hand seal” does not mean
hand seal in cultivation and practice of Tantric
doctrines but is a symbol to obtain achievement,
enlightenment and intelligence for cultivation
and practice of Tantric doctrines, such as selfnature, ultimate reality, Bodhi, true body and
true character.
The Great Hand Seal is related to exoteric and
esoteric cultivation. Exoteric Great Hand Seal
means that concentration and cultivation of nondifferentiation can attain enlightenment while
Esoteric Great Hand Seal means putting air into
361
Cultural Contacts
great and happy brightness from mid rids, which
is the essence of Anuttarayoga Tantra. Esoteric
great hand seal has complex doctrine system and
multiple branches.
There are four yoga ways mainly in the aspect of
cultivation: one-pointedness yoga, simplicity yoga,
one taste yoga, and non-meditation yoga.
Besides great hand seal, Kagyu sect promotes
specific cultivation of “six doctrines of Naropa”
which originated from Tantric doctrines inherited
from Indian Master Naropa. Great hand seal and
doctrines of Naropa are inseparably interconnected.
Six doctrines of Naropa are composed of six
cultivation doctrines advanced gradually in the
due order from the shallower to the deeper. Firstly,
dharma attainment is to obtain the goal of Vajra
Dharani by developing the natural intelligence of
bliss and emptiness of a cultivator; secondly, vision
body attainment is to obtain reward of perfect
Buddha’s body by developing natural intelligence
of immediate voidness and non-differentiation of
a cultivator; thirdly, dream attainment is to prove
and realise the true reality of empty self-nature
by developing natural intelligence of awareness
of voidness; fourthly, bright attainment is to
obtain the two goals of utmost enlightenment and
absolute reality by developing natural intelligence
of complete voidness of a cultivator; fifthly,
intermediate attainment is to obtain ultimate
release by developing natural intelligence of
the three periods of a cultivator; sixthly, phowa
attainment is to obtain achievement of Buddha’s
body by developing natural intelligence of nondifferentiation of a cultivator.
(Kalsang gyal)
A mural painting in the ancient monastery of Juenangpai.
combine body with heart and enter into a state of
stabilised bliss and emptiness.
(Kalsang gyal))
Naro Chosdrug
Naro Chosdrug is one of important practice methods
of Kargyu sect of Tibetan Buddhist. It is made up of
six progressive tantric methods: 1) The Yoga of Inner
Heat (Kundalini) method to light the mental state
of believers to reach the spiritual state as that of
Vajradhāra; 2) Huanshen Chengjiu (Yoga of Illusory
Body) method to help believers to acquire complete
magical powers as that of Sambhogakaya Buddha;
sbor drug
Six-Branch Yoga (sbor drug) is practiced by the
Jonang School of Tibetan Buddhism. Typically,
a Jonang monk will have a three-year meditation
retreat. Six-branch Yoga can be divided into
six phases including Withdrawal, Meditative
Concentration, Harnessing One’s Life-Force,
Retention, Recollection and Samadhi. Withdrawal
is to enable the mind of a practitioner to withdraw
from the secular world and completely enter into
empty forms. Meditative Concentration is to
make the mind abide in joyfulness and calmness.
Harnessing One’s Life-Force is to draw in and
sustain vital winds within the central channel and
not flow to the right or the left channel and to
obtain natural joy in a calm sitting. Retention is to
enable a practitioner to harmonise the nerve system
and control the lifeforce. Recollection is to make a
practitioner concentrate the mind on a point and
connect it with the universe and obtain incessant
force while Samadhi is to enable a practitioner to
The Indian version of Naruoliufajing.
3) Mengjing chengjiu (dream) method to lighten the
mental state of believers to realise that emptiness is
the nature of trueness; 4) The Yoga of Clear Light
(Guangming) method to lighten the nature of mind
of believers to get complete realisation of spiritual
state of enlightenment and emptiness; 5) The Yoga of
intermediate state/existence (Zhong yin) method to
lighten the mental state of believers in three worlds
and to get complete release and 6) The Qian shi
chengjiu (Phowa) method to inspire nirvikalpa-j¤āna
of believers to acquire Buddhist body.
(Kalsang gyal)
Smon lam chen
mo in Tibetan
Prayer Festival (smon lam chen mo in Tibetan) is
the largest and grandest event for Gelug Sect. In the
first month of Earth Ox year (1409) of the seventh
362
Cultural Contacts
calendrical cycle, Tsongkhapa founded Prayer
Festival in Jokhang Monastery to commemorate
Sakyamuni for his miraculous feats of defeating
“Six Heretics” and advocating Buddhism. Later on,
Gelug Sect monasteries continued the ceremony,
added new things to it during development and
prolonged the duration to a larger and larger scale.
In this way, it evolved into a comprehensive prayer
festival for Gelug Sect and even all other sects of
Tibetan Buddhism.
Lhasa Prayer Festival (lha sa smon lam chen mo)
is held at Jokhang Monastery, Lhasa between the
third and 25th day of the first month every year and
thus called Prayer Meeting Festival. Participants,
mainly lamas from the above Three Monasteries
of Lhasa, amount to 20,000-30,000. If secular
people are included, that is a very huge number.
Aristocrats and merchants from Shannan Prefecture
(U region or anterior Tibet), Shigatse Prefecture
(Tsang region or ulterior Tibet) and Amdo-Kham
donate substantial givings to express their wishes of
believing in Buddhism, thanking lamas and eternal
bloom of Buddhism. The main agenda includes
opening ceremony on fourth day of the first month:
lamas begin chanting scriptures and making prayers
and perform other thematic Buddhist rites; hold a
debate for awarding candidate lamas the highest
degree “lha rams pa” on the 12th, 13th and 14th
days of the month; have butter-oil lamp exhibition
overnight on 15th day, which is pleasantly noisy;
take the ceremony “gtor rgyag” on 24th day which
means sending off hungry ghosts by giving them
food (lamas of rnam rgyal graw tshang and sngags pa
graw tshang, Potala Palace and Drepung Monastery
specially prepare the event, and 500 lamas even
disguise themselves as ancient Mongolian soldiers to
parade, burn hay stacks and shot guns so as to dispel
all disasters or misfortunes in this year); on the 25th
day, perform the ceremony of “inviting Maitreya”
then come to an end so that all lamas return to their
respective monasteries.
Kumbum Monastery Prayer Festival (sku vbum
smon lam chen mo), was first held in the Water Sheep
year (1583) of the 10th calendrical cycle upon edict
of Third Dalai Lama Sonam Gyatso (1543-1588). It
lasts from 6th-17th day of the first month annually
and mainly includes scripture chanting, Buddhism
teaching and various rites. On 14th and 15th days,
Buddhist dances and butter-oil flower exhibitions
A large prayer being held at the Potala Palace
favoured by ordinary people are performed. Butteroil flower exhibition (one of Three Consummate
Arts of Kumbum Monastery) is famous for exquisite
workmanship and design novelty. The flowers are
made of butter, only last one day, much like a flash
in the pan. Pilgrims flood the monastery to watch
that on the day. That is indeed a spectacular scene.
Labrang Monastery Prayer Festival (bla brang
smon lam chen mo) which originated in reigns of 2nd
Jamyang Zhepa or called Jamyang Könchog Jigme
Wangpo (1728-1792) is held between the third to
17th day of the first month every year. With various
colourful activities, it includes lamas’ scripture
chanting and eminent lamas’ Buddhism teachings
throughout the whole period. During the festival,
hold massive debates for conferring degrees such
as “rdo rams pa” and “rams vbyams pa” on those
qualified candidates. In the meantime, hold various
rites and ceremonies: the 8th day, “setting livestock
free”, which means not hurting them; the 13th day,
“Buddha painting show” where believers worship
thangka paintings in a solemn and grand manner;
the 14th day, “Buddhist dance” with vivid scenes
attracting all followers; the 15th day, “butter-oil
flower exhibition” where people play about till deep
night; the 16th day, lamas “hold Maitreya” statue in
parade to chant scriptures” around the monastery so
as to pray for peace and bliss of the future world”
with accompanying Buddhist music.
(Kalsang gyal)
363
Cultural Contacts
Cultural Contacts
V
Philosophy
365
Cultural Contacts
366
Cultural Contacts
Philosophy
367
Cultural Contacts
Philosophy
OVerView
on a scale and frequency rare in the cultural
history of the world. Besides Buddhist philosophy,
the philosophy of Astika that includes Samkhya,
Vaisesika, Yoga, Nyaya, Puarra Mimansa and Vedanta
and nastika that includes Jainism and Lokayatika
were introduced to China and had a profound
influence on ancient Chinese thought and culture.
Meanwhile, Chinese philosophy such as Lao Zi’s Dao
De Jing, Daoism and Confucianism also spread to
India and is believed to have had some influence on
Indian religious and cultural development.
India-China philosophical interaction traces its
history back to 1st century CE. With the spread of
Buddhism from India to China, the two countries
have carried out exchanges in religion, philosophy
and culture for 2,000 years. Dating from Han
Dynasty, India-China philosophical exchange was
carried out intesively in Wei Jin Southern and
Northern Dynasties reaching a climax in Sui and
Tang Dynasties and was taken further in Song
and Yuan Dynasties. In Ming and Qing Dynasties,
Spread of philosophy of Buddhism to
China
In the 1st century CE, Buddhism spread to China in
the transitional period between the Eastern Han and
Western Han Dynasty. With the spread of Buddhism
in China, a large number of Buddhist scriptures were
successively translated from Sanskrit into Chinese
and accepted by Chinese Buddhists, resulting in the
rise of Buddhist philosophy in China. During the
early stages of translation of Buddhist scriptures,
monks from India and Western Regions played a
major role. In the late Eastern Han Dynasty, Master
An Shigao from Parthia went to China to teach the
doctrines and philosophy of Theravada Buddhism
and translated Theravada sutras such as Anapanasati
Sutta, Jataka Sutra and Dvadashamukha Shastra.
Additionally, the Tokharian monk Lokakṣema taught
Mahayana Buddhism and translated Mahayana
sutras such as Asahasrika Prajnaparamita Sutra,
Shurangama Sutra, Paramita Samdhi, Vimalakirti
‘A Source Book in Ancient India Philosophy’,
translated by Yao Weiqun, front cover
India-China philosophical exchange was at a low
ebb due to the obstructions caused by the Western
colonialism. In modern times, it has achieved a
leapfrog development and entered a period of
growth due to increasingly powerful status of India
and China as well as the development of friendly
relations between the two countries. In ancient
China, there were numerous Buddhist monks and
scholars who endured much hardship to study in
India and seek wisdom. Similarly, a large batch of
Indian Buddhist monks and scholars went to China
to preach and translate sutras as well as carry out
academic exchange at the same time. In Sui and
Tang Dynasties (6th to 9th centuries CE) Indian and
Chinese scholars carried out philosophical exchange
‘Lotus Sutra (Fahua jing)’, Song Dynasty edition
368
Cultural Contacts
disciple Kui Ji was influenced by Indian Buddhist
philosophy as well as typified by Sajdhinirmocana
Sutra, Yogacarabhumi Sastra and Vijnaptimatra Siddhi
Sastra translated by Xuanzang and his disciple Kui Ji.
By embracing the philosophy formulated by Asanga
and Vasubandhu, leading members of the Dharmaimage Sect of Mahayana Buddhism, it preached the
doctrine of Consciousness-Only (vijnapti-matrataPerception is reality). The Tian Tai Sect that
emerged in the Sui Dynasty inherited Nagarjuna’s
philosophy, the representative of Madhyamaka and
considered Nagarjuna as the founder of the Sect.
By embracing the emptiness of nature established
by its founder Nagarjuna and further development
combined with their own practices. The Tian Tai
Sect developed the doctrine of Three Meditations of
One Mind or threefold contemplation in one mind.
By interpreting void, unreal and mean existence in
tri-satyas advocated by Nagarjuna as three dogmas
(truths), to their eyes, all existence in the universe
was subject to conditions (unreal truth), all unreal
‘Madhyamakakarika (Zhong Lun)’
Nirdesa Sutra and Aparimitayus Sutra with a group
of his disciples. In Eastern Jin Dynasty, eminent
Indian monk Kumarajiva who was well-versed in
Mahayana Madhyamika philosophy translated a
large number of Mahayana sutras including the
famous Mahaprajna Paramita Sutra, Lotus Sutra,
Amitabha Sutra, Vajracchedika Prajnaparamita Sutra,
Madhyamakakarika, Sata Sastra, Dvadashamukha
Shastra, Mahaprajna Paramita Sastra and Satyasiddhi
Sastra which expounded on the Madhyamika
philosophy formulated by Nagarjuna. With the
increasing popularity of Buddhism in China,
many Chinese Buddhist scholars participated in
translation of Buddhist sutras. Among them, Master
Xuanzang studied sutras in India for 17 years and
brought over 600 Buddhist sutras to China. After
returning to China, he devoted himself to translation
of Buddhist scriptures for 20 years and translated
75 Mahayana and Theravada sutras running to over
1300 volumes including Mahaprajna Paramita Sutra,
Ksitigarbha Pranidhana Sutra, Sajdhinirmocana Sutra,
Yogacarabhumi Sastra, Abhidharma Mahavibhasa
Sastra, Mahayana Samuparigraha Sastra and
Prakaranasyavaca Sastra. With the spread of
Buddhist sutras, Buddhist philosophy and doctrines
prevailed in China, including Skandha, four
noble truth and Nidana in Theravada Buddhism
and Prajna, Madhyamika and Vijnanavada of
Mahayana Buddhism.
In Sui and Tang Dynasties, Buddhism was in its
heyday in China and eight Buddhist sects such as
Tian Tai Sect, Three-Sutra Sect, Pure Land Sect,
Huayan Sect, Dharma-image Sect, Meditation
(Chan) Sect, Vinaya Sect and Esoteric Sect emerged
in China, most of which were influenced by Indian
Buddhist philosophy. Among them the ThreeSutra Sect which was rooted in Madhyamaka in
Indian Mahayana Buddhism and was typified by
Madhyamakakarika, Dvadashamukha Shastra and
Sata Sastra by Nagarjuna and Aryadeva, emerged
in Sui Dynasty and it espoused Madhyamaka
philosophy formulated by Nagarjuna and Aryadeva
and preached the emptiness of nature, the twofold truths and eight-negation Middle Way. The
Dharma-image Sect founded by Xuanzang and his
Vajra Prajna Paramita (Diamond) Sutra,
Kangxi edition of Qing Dynasty
existence was void (void truth) and unreal truth
and void truth were inseparable (mean truth). If
one could meditate on this concept with the whole
mind, it was called Three Meditations of One Mind
or Inconceivable Profound Meditation. The Chan
Sect emerged in Tang Dynasty and prevailed in Song
Dynasty, becoming the most influential Buddhist
sect in China. Under the influence of Lankavatara
Sutra, Vajracchedika Prajna Paramita and Mahayana
Sraddhotpada Sastra, it espoused Buddhist
philosophy and advocated the doctrine adapting
to the actual situation of China. In ontology, Chan
Sect regarded original consciousness and divinity
as an immortal spiritual world and all things in the
real world reflected the nature of divinity. In other
words, it advocated pure and non-contaminated
immortal original consciousness, divinity and
human nature. It developed the doctrine of knowing
one's own mind and discovering one's own nature
and thus attaining enlightenment and achieving
369
Cultural Contacts
as reincarnation, karma, virtue having its reward
and evil having its retribution, abstaining from
killing animals and freeing captive animals, had an
influence on Chinese people’s thoughts.
The Philosophy of Hinduism and
Jainism and its transmission to China
Samkhya is a sect of Sad-darsana (Astika) which
spread to China early and had a considerable
influence on China. As one of the earliest
philosophical systems of India, its history can be
traced to 5th century BCE and it developed its total
system as a philosophy in 5th century CE typified by
Samkhya-Karika of Isvarakrsna in the 4th century CE.
After Samkhya spread to China, it was translated into
Samkhya, Samgha Philosophy and Kapila Philosophy
in Chinese Buddhist sutras. Nevertheless, the majority
of scholars deemed that it should be translated
into Samkhya for Samgha which was meant to do
calculation (counting) and took on a deep meaning of
meditation and study. According to Annotation of the
Doctrine of Mere Consciousness authored by Kui Ji, a
Chinese monk of Tang Dynasty, Samgha Philosophy
carried the literal meaning of doing counting and
calculation, and numeration was considered the
origins of all dharmas. Therefore, it was named
Samkhya. As elaborated by Sata shastra by the
Chinese monk Ji Zang of Sui Dynasty, all dharmas
revealed 25 truths and Samgha Philosophy was
Left: Commentary on the Śata-śāstra, Kangxi period (1680); Right:
Commentary on the Śata-śāstra, Yanbao period, Japan (1680)
complete Buddhahood which gained in popularity
among Buddhist believers in China.
In 7th century CE, Buddhism spread from
Mainland China, India and Nepal to Tibet. The
Buddhism that emerged in Tibet was called Tibetan
Buddhism. The philosophy of Tibetan Buddhism
advocated the doctrine of Dependent Origination
and the Emptiness of Nature of Madhyamaka of
Mahayana Buddhism under the influence of Indian
Buddhism. It was split into different sects such as
Nyingma Sect, Kadam Sect, Kagyu Sect, Sakya Sect
and Gelug Sect due to different doctrines, practices
and regions. Among them, the Gelug Sect was the
most influential and widespread sect. It embraced
the philosophy of Dependent Origination and the
Emptiness of Nature of Madhyamaka advocated by
Nagarjuna and expounded on the doctrine of all
existence in the universe being subject to conditions
and all the things in conditional existence lacking
intrinsic nature/existence (immortality), negating
the truth of objective things and shedding light on
the philosophy of desisting from ego and entrenched
belief, dispelling ignorance and illusion and
achieving immortality by embracing the doctrine
of Dependent Origination and the Emptiness of Nature.
After its spread to China, Buddhist philosophy
had an influence on Chinese philosophy and folk
thought. In Southern and Northern Dynasties and
Sui and Tang Dynasties, Buddhist philosophy was
absorbed into the mainstream of Chinese philosophy
and outweighed Confucianism in the Eastern and
Western Han Dynasties and Metaphysics of the Wei
and Jin Dynasties. Additionally, Neo-Confucianism
that emerged after the Tang Dynasty reflected the
ideas and influence of Buddhist philosophy. For
instance, Zhu Xi, an exponent of Neo-Confucianism
of Song Dynasty, advanced the theory of feudal
ethics and asceticism by embracing the philosophy
of the nature of mind of Chinese Buddhism
that prevailed in the Sui and Tang Dynasties.
Additionally, the philosophy of life and the moral
philosophy advocated by Indian Buddhism such
Satyasiddhi Shastra (Completion of
Truth/ Chengshi lun)
named Samkhya. The spread of Samkhya to China
dated from late 4th century CE to early 5th century
CE (the Eastern Jin Dynasty), when Indian Buddhist
monk Kumarajiva translated a large number of
Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Chinese.
His translation works Maha-prajnaparamita–shastra
(Great Treatise on the Perfection of Wisdom by
Nagarjuna) and Mahayana-sutra-lankara (The Sutra
of Glorifying the Enlightened Mind by Asvaghosha)
introduced Samkhya. In 6th century CE (Northern
370
Cultural Contacts
created by Vaisesika. In 5th century CE, Vaisesika
spread to China and this is attributed to eminent
Indian monk Kumarajiva whose translation work
entitled Satyasiddhi Shastra (Completion of Truth)
mentioned Vaisesika many times. In 6th century
CE, eminent Chinese monk Ji Zang elaborated on
Padartha in Vaisesika in his work entitled Sata shastra
in Sui Dynasty. In 7th century CE, Xuanzang studied
in India and brought Daśapadārthaśāstra (Treatise
on the Ten Padarthas) in Sanskrit by Maticandra to
China. In 648 CE, he translated it into Chinese in
Chang’an in the 22nd year of the Zhenguan Reign.
Subsequently, Vaisesika prevailed in China. In
modern times, the Daśapadārthaśāstra (Treatise on
the Ten Padarthas) in Sanskrit was lost in India and
only its Chinese version translated by Xuanzang was
well-preserved in China. Therefore, it was of great
academic value to study the philosophy of Vaisesika
and the thought of ancient India. After the spread of
Vaisesika to China, its Visesa-Padartha and Anu had
an enormous influence on Chinese philosophers. For
instance, Tang Materialist philosopher Lu Cai (600
~655 CE) quoted the Anu of Vaisesika many times
and defined atoms and transmittable gas within the
scope of substances which formed the basis for the
world when he was expounding on his Atheism and
Materialism. Additionally, he made a comparison
between the doctrine of atoms constituting substance
in Vaisesika and the doctrine of qi producing all
things in Book of Changes and drew a conclusion that
Vaisesika and Book of Changes advocated the same
doctrine in different forms.
Nyaya in Hinduism, also know as Hetu-vidya,
was included in Najarjuna-pancavidya-sastra as a
philosophical school in Hinduism specialising in the
study of logic. After Buddhism emerged, it further
developed Hetu-vidya based on Nyaya in Hinduism.
As early as 5th century CE (Northern and Southern
Dynasties in China), Indian Hetu-vidya works
(including both Buddhist and Hindu works) were
introduced to China and translated into Chinese. In
Tang Dynasty, Xuanzang translated Nyayamukha by
Indian Hetu-Vidya Master Dignaga and Nyayapravesa by Sankarasvamin, disciple of Dignaga, into
Chinese, which influenced the development of
Chinese logic. Additionally, Indian Hetu-vidya
prevailed in Tibet more than the in the Central Plain.
Statue of a Yoga practitioner
and Southern Dynasties), the Chinese Buddhist
monk Chen Zhendi (about 548-596 CE) translated
Samkhya-karika in Sanskrit into a Chinese version
entitled Hiranyasaptati (Suvarnasaptatisastra) and
annotated and elaborated on the relations between
spiritual self, self-nature and the three virtues or
powers, the relations between spiritual self and selfnature and the evolution of self-nature (primordial
substances). This facilitated Chinese understanding
of the philosophy of Samkhya. Hiranyasaptati had
been valued and well preserved in Chinese Buddhist
circles. In modern times, since Samkhya-karika has
not been passed on from generation to generation
in India. Hiranyasaptati had great value in academic
study. Indian scholars hailed Hiranyasaptati which
was translated and annotated by Chen Zhendi as
the best annotated work of Samkhya. To preserve
Samkhya sutras, they translated Hiranyasaptati in
Chinese into Sanskrit and published it in India,
showing that Chinese Buddhist monks made a
contribution to preserving Indian cultural heritage
and promoting India-China philosophical exchange.
The Vaisesika philosophy of Hinduism spread to
China in earlier times and its Padartha and Anu
had an enormous influence on Chinese philosophy.
Vaisesika emerged in 2nd century BCE, much later
than Samkhya, and its sutras included Vaisesikasutra by the sage Kanada and Daśapadārthaśāstra
(Treatise on the Ten Padarthas) by Maticandra.
Vaisesika was transliterated into “fei-shi-shi-jia”
(吠世师迦) and “pi-shi-jia” (毗世师) and literally
translated into “sheng-lun” (胜论) or “sheng-zong”
(胜宗) in Chinese sutras. Because Chinese scholars
regarded Vaisesika as a philosophy that studied
difference among the world’s phenomena, and
some deemed that it focussed on special categories
(Visesa-padartha), it outshone other sects. According
to Annotation of the Doctrine of Mere Consciousness by
Kui Ji, it was named Vaisesika because it established
Padartha and other unrivalled doctrines or it was
Ekottaragama -sutra (Anguttara-Nikaya)
371
Cultural Contacts
Vehicle Zen by Dhyana, Six Dharmas by the Tian
Tai Sect and Samadhi of Buddha Recitation by the
Pure Land Sect. In ancient China, many traditional
Chinese body-building exercises learned from
Indian Yoga and Sutras of Tendon Changing
prevailing in Northern and Southern Dynasties,
Tianzhu Massage prevailing in Tang Dynasty and
Brahmanic Techniques prevailing in Song Dynasty,
were all introduced from India. Bodhidharma,
founder of Shaolin Temple, was a monk from India
and once taught the Sutras of Tendon Changing at
Shaolin Temple. The practice of Sutras of Tendon
Changing, such as inner strength, outer strength,
moving exercise, static exercise, somatic exercise,
breathing exercise and mental exercise, showed a
striking resemblance to Astanga Yoga including
inner practice, outer practice, sitting posture
(somatic exercise), regulating breathing (breathing
exercise) and meditation (metal exercise). The
Brahmanic Techniques which prevailed in Song
Dynasty and were mentioned in Yun Ji Qi Qian
by Zhang Junfang included 12 techniques such
as Snake-gong, Tortoise-gong, Peacock-gong,
Crane-gong, Lotus-gong and Immortal-gong which
‘The Monasteries of Luoyang (Luoyang jialanji)’
In 8th and 9th century CE, a large number of Indian
Hetu-vidya works were translated into Tibetan
script. After the 11th century CE, Tibetan Buddhist
scholars composed their own Hetu-vidya works
after absorbing and digesting Indian Hetu-vidya.
It is worth mentioning that the Annotated Edition
of Pramanavishchaya or Brief Annotated Edition of
Pramanavishchaya by Gedain Sect Scholar Qiaba
Queji Sengge and Interpretation of Pramanavishchava
by Chapa Chkyi Sengge (1109-1169), disciple
of Qiaba Queji Sengge, Nyaya-dvaratarka-astra
by Sakya Sect Scholar Sapan, Pramānavārttika
Nyayakosa by Uyugpa Rigpabisinge and Note for
Pramana Samuccaya by Gu Caojie (1364~1432 CE),
disciple of Tsongkhapa, had a profound influence
on Tibetan Hetu-vidya.
Indian Yoga had a profound influence on
China. Originally, Hindus practiced Yoga to
achieve spiritual liberation and Yoga took shape
in the Upanishadic era. In 2nd century BCE, Yoga
developed into a theoretical philosophy by means
of generalisation and theorisation. After the
emergence of Buddhism, it established its own
system of practice by absorbing Yoga sutras of
Hinduism. With the spread of Buddhism to China,
Indian Yoga sutras and methods of practice were
introduced to China and had a profound influence
on Chinese Buddhism, Daoism, Confucianism,
medicine, martial arts, Qigong and Chinese
Buddhist sect practice methods such as Utmost
Graduation ceremony photo of the Arts and Philosophy Class of Peking
University, June 1918. (Front row, from left): President of the Peking
University Cai Yuanpei (5th), Chen Duxiu (6th), Liang Shuming (7th).
fostered the development of Chinese martial arts
and Qigong.
Besides Hindu philosophy, Indian Jainism
and Lokayatika philosophy was also transmitted
to China quite early. The Sutra on the Descent of
Maitreya by monk Dharmaraksa in the western
Jin Dynasty introduced Nirgrantha Jnanaputra
and his thought. Chinese Buddhist scriptures
including Ekottaragama-sutra, Samyuktagama-sutra,
Mahaprajnaparamita-shaskra (Great Treatise on
the Perfection of Wisdom) and Satyasiddhi Shastra
expounded on the doctrine and philosophy of
Jainism. It is worth mentioning that Commentary
on the Ten Stages Sutra and Satyasiddhi Shastra
translated by Eastern Jin Master Kumarajiva
Graduation ceremony photo of the first study class of Yu Jia Shi Di Lun
(Yogacarabhumi- sastra), Famen Monastery Buddhist College
372
Cultural Contacts
Exchange of philosophical ideas in the
Modern and Contemporary period
From 1840 to 1919, since both India and China
lost some of their status and were dominated
by Western powers, philosophical and cultural
exchange between India and China declined.
In modern times, with the revival of India and
China, and the improvement of their relations,
India-China philosophical exchange ushered in
a new era of growth. Two events contributed to
this. First, in 1924, the celebrated Indian poet and
philosopher Rabindranath Tagore visited China
and his philosophical wisdom aroused Chinese
people’s interest in Indian philosophy across China.
Second, in the early 20th century, the movement
of the revival of Chinese Buddhism emerged.
Due to this movement, China set up Buddhist
academies in different regions such as Shanghai
Huayan University, Hangzhou Huayan University,
Chinese Inner Studies Institute in Nanjing, Buddhist
Institute in Wuchang, Yushan Buddhist Institution
in Zhenjiang, South Sea Buddhist Institute in Putuo
Mountain and Minnan Buddhist College, to impart
Buddhist knowledge, train Buddhist talent and
study the philosophy of different religions of India.
Additionally, Chinese Buddhist institutes offered
courses on Indian Buddhist philosophy, the Vedas,
Upanishads and the philosophy of six Hindu sects.
In early 20th century, China launched a campaign
to study and research into Indian philosophy and
many universities offered a course on Indian
philosophy. In 1916, the Philosophy Department
of Peking University ran the course on Indian
philosophy and Xu Jishang taught it. From 1917 to
1924, Liang Shuming taught Indian philosophy at
Peking University. In 1922, Tang Yongtong returned
from the United States and taught history of
Indian philosophy and Chinese Buddhist history at
Southeast University in Nanjing, Nankai University
in Tianjin and Peking University. In 1946, Wuhan
University offered a course on Indian philosophical
history, and Jin Kemu and Shi Junxian taught the
course in succession. In 1948, Jin Kemu taught
Indian philosophical history at Peking University.
When Tang Yongtong served as vice president of
Peking University, he continued to offer the course
on Indian philosophy to postgraduate students.
The above universities ran the courses on Indian
philosophy which encompassed Indian Buddhist
philosophy and the philosophy of six Hindu sects,
Jainism and Lokayata of Atheism.
As they carried out the study of Indian religious
philosophy in depth, Chinese scholars published
a multitude of academic works. In 1919, Liang
Shuming published Introduction to Indian Philosophy.
In 1925, Liang Qichao published A Brief History of
Indian Buddhism. In 1936, Huang Chanhua published
‘A Brief History of Indian
Philosophy’, Shang Yongtong,
1946, (front cover)
introduced Lokayata Philosophy to the Chinese
people. As a popular ancient Indian folk philosophy
of atheistic and materialism, Lokayatiaka was
regarded as a kind of false doctrine by Buddhists.
According to Satyasiddhi Shastra, it advocated
the doctrine of no donations, no temple, no
incineration, no kindness, no evildoers, no good/
evil karma, no current life, no afterlife, no parents,
no myriads, no karma, no transmigration, no arhat
Sambo practice and intelligence and no body.
Spread of Confucian and Daoist
Philosophy to India
Chinese Confucian and Daoist philosophy spread
to India and had some influence on Indian religion
and philosophy. As more and more merchants,
officials and monks travelled from China to
India, Chinese Confucianism and Daoism were
introduced to India as well. According to The
Monasteries of Luoyang by Yang Xuanzhi, in the 6th
century CE, Chinese Buddhist monk Song Yun and
Huisheng were granted an audience by the King
of Wuchang State on their pilgrimage to India and
they introduced and elaborated on Confucius' and
Mencius' philosophy as well as Lao Zi's and Zuana
Zi's philosophy to him. In the 7th century CE, Tang
officials Li Yibiao and Wang Xuance returned to
China after they served as envoys to the Western
Region and reported that the King of East Tianzhu
State showed interest in Lao Zi. Therefore, Emperor
Tang Taizong issued an edict ordering eminent
monk Xuanzang to translate Dao De Jing from
Chinese to Sanskrit. After Tang Xuanzang translated
it from Chinese to Sanskrit, Daoism spread to India
and had influence on Indian ideology to some
extent. Daoist practices affected the Saktam in
Hinduism. For instance, Daoism advocated that the
balance between yin and yang produced the world
and that one should practice inner Alchemy and
outer Alchemy. Similarly, Saktam proclaimed that
copulation produced all things in the world and it
attached importance to mental and body practice.
373
Cultural Contacts
pioneered in producing the first academic journal
for studying South Asia issues entitled South
Asia Studies. Subsequently, Sichuan University
produced the quarterly periodical entitled South
Asia Studies and the Yunnan Academy of Social
Sciences produced Southeast Asia and South Asia
Studies. The establishment of these related academic
institutions and the production of academic journals
strengthened the study of Indian philosophy and
culture by Chinese scholars and trained a large
batch of postgraduates and new scholars.
As they carried out study of Indian philosophy
in depth, Chinese scholars had great achievements
in this field. First of all, they reaped the fruits
of translation of Indian philosophical sutras by
translating almost all the great ancient Indian
philosophical classics from Sanskrit to Chinese.
After the 1980s Indian classics were published in
succession. These included the Ramayana translated
by Ji Xianlin in 1980, Mahabharata, the Preface
translated by Jin Kemu in 1993, Mahabharata
translated by Huang Baosheng in 2005. Sanskrit
Aesthetics Anthology translated by Wu Baihui in
1997 (excerpt from Wisdom of Moon State), Fifty
Upanishads translated by Xu Fancheng in 1984,
Upanishads translated by Huang Baosheng in 2010,
Manava Dharma Sastra translated by Jiang Zhongxin
in 1986, Bhagavad Gita translated by Zhang
Baosheng in 1989, Bhagavad Gita translated by
Huang Baosheng in 2010, Agama Sustra translated
by Jiang Zhongxin in 1986, Agama Sastra (Frog
Upanishad) translated by Wu Baihui in 1999 and A
Source Book in Ancient India Philosophy translated by
Yao Weiqun in 2003.
Meanwhile, Chinese scholars translated a good
number of Indian philosophical works and some
modern works from English to Chinese including
Indian Philosophy authored by D Chattopadhyaya and
translated by Huang Baosheng and Guo Liangyun in
1980, Lokayata: A study in Ancient Indian Materialism
authored by D Chattopadhyaya and translated by
Wang Shi’an in 1992, Contemporary Indian Philosophy
authored by Basant Kumar Lal and translated by Zhu
Mingzhong in 1991, The Life of the Divine authored
by Aurobindo Ghosh and translated by Xu Fancheng
in 1984, Sadhana authored by Rabindranath Tagore
and translated by Gong Jing in 1992, The Yoga
and Its Objects authored by Aurobindo Ghosh and
translated by Xu Fancheng in 1998 and The Synthesis
of Yoga authored by Aurobindo Ghosh and translated
by Xu Fancheng in 2005.
Besides translation works, Chinese scholars
published academic works on Indian philosophy
including Huang Xinchuan’s works such as Study of
the Indian Modern Philosopher Swami Vivekananda
(1979), History of Indian Philosophy (1989) and
Modern and Contemporary Indian Philosophy (1989),
History of Indian Philosophy, and in 1943, Yin Shun
published Buddhism in India. In 1945, Tang Yongtong
published A Brief History of Indian Philosophy.
Additionally, they published many papers on Indian
philosophy in magazines to introduce ancient and
modern Indian philosophy to Chinese people.
After founding of the People’s Republic of China
in 1949, India and China cemented relations
and consequently a new era in India-China
philosophical exchanges was ushered in. In 1950s
and 1960s, the Department of Oriental Languages
and Culture of Peking University began to admit
students who studied Hindi language, Sanskrit
and Pali and Beijing Broadcasting Institute
(predecessor of today's Communication University
of China) ran courses on Tamil language and
Bengali language to train expertise on India-China
philosophical exchanges. After the start of reforms
in 1978, Chinese scholars carried out the study of
Indian philosophy in depth and China launched
South Asian Studies (front cover)
a campaign which called for setting up academic
institutions, training professionals and reaping the
fruits of research.
In 1978, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
worked with Peking University to set up the
South Asia Institute with Ji Xianlin as its director
and Huang Xinchuan as deputy director. It had
Indian Philosophy Research Office specialising
in research into the philosophy of Hinduism,
Buddhism, Jainism and Sikhism. Subsequently, the
Department of Philosophy of Peking University set
up an Oriental Philosophy Research Office. The
Department of Philosophy of Renmin University of
China set up a Religious Research Office and the
Institute of Philosophy of the Chinese Academy
of Social Sciences set up an Oriental Philosophy
Research Office. In 1979, the South Asia Institute
of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
374
Cultural Contacts
who visited China from the 2nd century onwards,
mention that they learnt five secular sciences or
Pańcavidyā as a basic training course. These sciences
were also taught at the Nalanda University along
with other religious training.
One of the earliest references to Pańcavidyā in
the Chinese language is found in a Buddhist work
Wu Ming Lun 五明論 that has been part of the
Chinese Buddhist canon. This work is attributed
to Nagarjuna which is often written as Long Shu
龍樹 in Chinese, so the title Long Shu Wu Ming
Lun 龍樹五明論or Nagarjuna’s Pańcavidyā. There
are references to medicine including gynaecology
and obstetrics in this work. Incidentally, Nagarjuna
had studied and taught at Nalanda too according
to the accounts of Xuanzang 玄 奘 (602-664 CE)
and Yijing 義 淨 (635-713 CE) the famous Chinese
Buddhist travellers of Tang Dynasty. An Indian
Buddhist monk Jnanabhadra, visiting China in 6th
century CE, translated this work in collaboration
with three other monks.
Each area of the Pańcavidyā or the corpus of
knowledge that a Buddhist monk was supposed to
master, made its mark in the new place where it
was transmitted to. It is well manifest in canonical,
historical and popular literature, in cave engravings
and paintings, in manuscripts stored there, and also
in popular legends like those of ‘Bhaişajyaguru’,
Yaowang or Yaoshi (藥王 or 藥士). The names
of authors like Long Shu 龍樹for Nagarjuna and
Qutan Xida 瞿曇悉達for Gautama Siddhartha were
used for works on ophthalmology and astronomy,
respectively, and even names of medicinal formulae
and alloys point at these exchanges. Many loan
words entered Chinese language from Sanskrit too,
e.g., Chan 禪for Dhyāna, Jiu zhi 九執 for Navagraha,
Ka mo lo迦 摩羅for Kāmalā or jaundice in Sun
Simiao’s literature and San guo 三 果for Triphalā.
Ancient Indian medicine left its profound mark
on Chinese medicine in the fields of ophthalmology,
gynecology, pediatrics, pharmaceutics, physical
fitness, and psychological treatment like ‘dhyāna’.
Many anecdotes of Buddha and Bodhisattva relate
to their delivering medical instruction, medicines
and medical texts to the needy.
Amoghavajra (CE 705-774), a prominent Buddhist
monk from South Asia, introduced esoteric Buddhism
in the form of Tantra and alchemy into China.
He translated a large number of Buddhist works
into Chinese. As the Buddhists were committed
to lessening of human sufferings and hunger, the
Buddhists pursued alchemy, both physiological
to achieve immortality and metallurgical to make
silver- and gold-like alloys. Worshipping Buddha
involved making idols and vessels made of metals
like copper and alloys, like brass and bronze. This
process opened more areas of interest where ideas
Wu Baihui’s Indian Philosophy Exploration of
Veda and Interpretation of Upanishads (2000), Yao
Weiqun’s Indian Philosophy (1992) and Introduction
The Synthesis of Yoga (front cover)
to Indian Religious Philosophy (2006), Li Jianxin’s
Study of Indian Classical Yoga Philosophy (2000),
Sun Jing’s Indian Advaita Vedanta Philosophy
(2002), Gong Jing’s Rabindranath Tagore (1992) and
Radhakrishnan (1996), Zhu Mingzhong’s Aurobindo
Ghosh (1994), Jiang Yili’s Sankara (1997) and A
History of Indian Vedānta Philosophy co-authored
by Sun Jing and Zhu Mingzhong (2013). Among
them, Huang Xinchuan’s History of Indian Philosophy
quoted ancient Chinese data to expound on the
philosophy of the Upanishads, Six Hindu sects,
Buddhism, Jainism and Lokayata and other religions
in a comprehensive and systematic way, reaching
the highest level of study of Indian philosophy by
contemporary Chinese scholars.
THEORY
Pancavidya
Ancient Indian knowledge system called Pańcavidyā
(five disciplines of knowledge) played a significant
role in expanding transmission of a whole range of
new ideas from India to China. It was customarily
comprised of Śabdavidyā (science of language),
Hetuvidyā (science of logic), Cikitsāvidyā (science
of medicine), Śilpakarmasthānavidyā (science of
fine arts and crafts), and Adhyātmavidyā (science of
spirituality). Known in Chinese as Wu-ming-lun, it is
also referred to as Sabdavidya (science of language),
Hetuvidya (science of logic), Chikitsavidya (science of
medicine), Śilpakarmasthanavidya (arts and crafts)
and Adhyatmavidya (science of spirituality).
Indian Buddhist monks were learned people;
many of them were Hindu Brahmins by birth. They
customarily studied the prominent sciences of time
in their childhood. Biographies of Indian monks,
375
Cultural Contacts
certain basis and studying principal components
of the argumentation. Overall, Hetuvidya is a kind
of logic, though it includes considerable contents
of argumentation and general epistemology. Since
Buddhism has quite consummate discussions
on Hetuvidya, many people would like to refer
Hetuvidya as Buddhist logic.
Though not the earliest founder, Buddhism has the
highest achievements in respect of ancient Indian
Hetuvidya. It was originally derived from thoughts
or schools of some Indian philosophies or religions
rather than from Buddhism.
could be exchanged viz alchemy and metallurgy.
New processes and materials became known and
new words entered Chinese scientific terminology.
They were first found in technical books and later,
listed in ancient dictionaries and compendia. Xinxiu
Bencao 新修本草 of the 7th century CE and Bencao
Gangmu 本草纲目 of the 16th century CE include
‘Nao sha’ for ammonium chloride or Sal ammoniac,
Ti hu 醍醐 for ‘Ghŗta’ or clarified butter and Niu
Huang 牛黃 for ‘Gorochona’ ie dried gallstone of
domestic cattle. Transliterated terms like Totamu
土多牟 for zinc, which is ‘Tutthanāga’ in Sanskrit,
became common in Chinese literature.
As a first step, the Buddhists had to learn each
other’s languages. They wrote elaborate articles on
systematic learning of Sanskrit or Fan wen 梵 文 as
it is called even today. They compiled specialised
dictionaries to translate Sanskrit and Pali works into
Chinese and Tibetan. For that, Chinese phonetic
parallels for Sanskrit words were selected. The very
first such attempt is seen in Faxian’s writings. He
left China in the late 4th century CE to reach India
in the early 5th century CE. As translation activity
gained momentum dictionaries were composed.
‘Mahāvyutpatti’ ie Fanyi mingyi da ji 翻 譯名
義大集 (collection of translated names), is a 9th
century Sanskrit-Tibetan dictionary; during Song
Dynasty in the 12th century Fa yun 法雲 compiled
a Sanskrit-Chinese dictionary. Fanyi mingyi ji 翻 譯
名義集. There is also a work by Li yan 禮言 viz
Fan yu za ming 梵語雜名 (miscellaneous nuances
of Sanskrit). These dictionaries are part of the
canonical literature.
These are a few among numerous examples of
alchemy, medicine, lipi or script and Tantra making
their mark on Chinese cultural and scientific life.
(Vijaya J Deshpande & Kamal Sheel)
Hetuvidya: New Explorations; papers on
Hetuvidya by Chinese scholars (front cover)
Its earliest form is associated with ancient Brahmin
argumentation about sacrifice. Brahmanism has a
very ancient origin in India, and at its early stage in
particular, believed that “sacrifice is omnipotent”.
Its sacrifice had various forms and very complicated
procedures. In ancient India, religious doctrines
and sacrificial procedures were passed on mainly
through oral means and with time going, followers
might remember and say differently and debate thus
would occur. Objectively, this might make people
strive to find out a fixed form of inference and
corresponding logic rules. Ancient Hetuvidya is the
earliest of such reference and logic rules.
Its earliest form is also related to clashes among
different thoughts or schools of thought that arose
before or at the same time with Buddhism. These
thoughts are numerous and quite complicated,
and clashes between them gave rise to wide
argumentation, creating a cultural and mental
environment suitable for the formation of Indian
Hetuvidya.
The Nyaya School, as one of the six schools of
Brahmin philosophy, was the first to satisfy such a
demand and to make an important contribution to
the establishment of Indian logic or Hetuvidya. The
Hetuvidya
Hetuvidya is a logic-centered theory of knowledge
in ancient Indian philosophies of religion.
Originally, it was formed out of some Indian
philosophies of religions other than Buddhism,
and later on, it was assimilated and transformed
by Buddhism and became an important component
of Buddhist thinking. Buddhist Hetuvidya, at a
height of development, is a main representative of
Indian logics and occupies an important position
in the history of the development of ancient
oriental philosophy.
Birth of Hetuvidya
The term “Hetuvidya” can be divided into “hetu”,
which means knowledge or wisdom and combined,
"vidya" refers to knowledge or wisdom acquired
through inferred cause or basis. Therefore,
Hetuvidya is a kind of logical reasoning that
obtains knowledge by proving an argument on
376
Cultural Contacts
The Nyaya thinks that a right form of inference
or argument consists of five parts: proposition
(pratijna), cause (hetu), illustration (udaharana),
application (upanaya) and conclusion (nigamana).
This is usually called as “Five-Part Syllogism”.
According to the Nyāya Sutra Bhāshya by Vatsyayana
(about 4th century CE), an application of this fivepart syllogism can be as follows:
Proposition: Sound is non-eternal.
Cause: Because it is created.
Illustration (positive): Whatever is created is noneternal, as is a plate or dish.
Application: So is sound, it is created.
Conclusion: Therefore sound is non-eternal.
Above is an example of positive illustration
(sadharma) and below is an example of negative
illustration (vidharma):
Proposition: Sound is non-eternal.
Cause: Because it is created.
Illustration (negative): Whatever is not created is
eternal, as is Atman.
Application: Sound is not so and it is created.
Conclusion: Therefore sound is non-eternal.
In addition to five-part syllogism, the Nyaya also
offers a detailed analysis of the causation of inference
errors and argument failures, and expounds five
logical errors, three quibbles, 24 futilities and 22
occasions for rebuke.
There are five kinds of fallacy that may lead to
failed inference, including the inconclusive, the
contradictory, the controversial, the counterquestioned and the mistimed (for details please
refer to Nyaya Sutra 1, 2, 4-9).
Quibble is the opposition offered to a proposition
by the assumption of an alternative meaning,
including quibble in respect of a term, quibble
in respect of a genus and quibble in respect of a
metaphor (for details please refer to Nyaya Sutra 1,
2, 10-17).
Futility consists in offering objections founded
on mere similarity or dissimilarity. There are
24 kinds of futility as follows: (1) balancing the
homogeneity, (2) balancing the heterogeneity, (3)
balancing an addition, (4) balancing a subtraction,
(5) balancing the questionable, (6) balancing the
unquestionable, (7) balancing the alternative, (8)
balancing the reciprocity, (9) balancing the copresence, (10) balancing the mutual absence, (11)
balancing the infinite regression, (12) balancing
the counter-example, (13) balancing the nonproduced, (14) balancing the doubt, (15) balancing
the controversy, (16) balancing the non-reason,
(17) balancing the presumption, (18) balancing the
non-difference, (19) balancing the demonstration,
(20) balancing the perception, (21) balancing the
non-perception, (22) balancing the non-eternality,
(23) balancing the eternality, and (24) balancing
Nyaya Sutra, the earliest classic text for this school,
was composed around 1st century CE by Gautama (or
Gotama), and existing text, with later interpolations,
was formed in about 3rd to 4th centuries CE.
Lectures on Hetuvidya
(Nyāya praveśatāka śāstra
Lectures), Japan
Before or when the Nyaya Sutra was composed
in India there were already certain scattered logic
theories or concepts. For example, Bhadrabahu
(about 433 to 375 BCE), a Jaina philosopher
put forth some concepts or categories about the
process of inference, involving the proposition,
cause, example, conclusion and the like, but these
concepts or categories all have a lesser influence
than the Nyaya Sutra and a considerable part
of them are only mentioned in some ancient
documents, and their specific contents are not
very clear. In contrast, the Nyaya Sutra is the first
book in ancient India that proposed systematic
logic theories and played an important role in the
formation of Indian Hetuvidya.
From the Nyaya Sutra and its commentaries,
it can be seen that the logic proposed by ancient
Nyaya mainly lies with “pramana”, which refers to
means of right knowledge and usually was discussed
by an ancient Indian philosophy. According to
Nyaya Sutras, there are four means of attaining
right knowledge: perception, inference, comparison
and verbal testimony. The Nyaya’s logic is mainly
related to inference and its relevant theories can be
divided into two parts. One is inferential theories
about obtaining right knowledge and the other is
analyses for the causation of fallacies or failure in
the course of inference.
Abhidharmasamuccaya, translated by Xuanzang
377
Cultural Contacts
have many innovations. Hetuvidya in the works
written by famous Buddhist commentators such as
Hagarjuna, Maitreya, Asanga and Vasubandhu, is
basically “old Hetuvidya”.
A considerable number of Buddhist texts include
contents of old Hetuvidya, including among others,
Upaya-Kausalya-hṛdaya śastra, Yogacarabhumi-sastra
(volume XV), Prakaranaryavaca-sastra (volume XI),
Mahayanabhidhar-ma-samuccaya-vyakhya (volume
XVI), and Tarka sastra.
The Upaya-Kausalya-hṛdaya śastra discussed
a number of Hetuvidya questions, for example,
discussion about “four means of knowledge”
(perception, comparison, example, sutra), and
discussion about improper “cause” or “example” that
might lead to contradictory or failed inference, and
many of such contents were similar to the Nyaya.
The Yogacarabhumi-sastra also mentioned
Hetuvidya, with most such discussions in the
the effect (for details please refer to the Nyaya
Sutra 5, 1, 1-43).
The following are 22 occasions for rebuke, for
which an argument or inference fails due to breaking
rules: (1) hurting the proposition, (2) shifting
the proposition, (3) opposing the proposition,
(4) renouncing the proposition, (5) shifting the
reason, (6) shifting the topic, (7) the meaningless,
Mahayanabhidharma-samuccaya-vyakhya,
Fangshan Stone Classics
(8) the unintelligible, (9) the incoherent, (10) the
inopportune, (11) saying too little, (12) saying too
much, (13) repetition, (14) silence, (15) ignorance,
(16) non-ingenuity, (17) evasion, (18) admission of
an opinion, (19) overlooking the censurable, (20)
censuring the non-censurable, (21) deviating from
a tenet, and (22) the semblance of a reason (for
details please refer to the Nyaya Sutra 5, 2, 1-25).
The Nyaya laid a basis for the establishment of
Indian Hetuvidya and put forth the basic form,
theoretical framework or discussion. Later on,
most issues discussed by quite developed Indian
Hetuvidya that focussed on Buddhist logic were
from the Nyaya Sutra. The difference is that
Buddhism significantly pushed forward Indian
logic and Buddhist Hetuvidya has more in-depth
and scientific study in respect of inference and
categorization of logic errors.
‘Index to the Yogacharabhumi- sastra:
Chinese- Sanskrit- Tibetan’, (front cover)
volume XV, suggesting that “valid knowledge can
be obtained through the following eight means: (1)
proposition, (2) cause, (3) example, (4) similarity,
(5) dissimilarity, (6) perception, (7) inference, and
(8) valid cognition. Here, the first five correspond
to Hetuvidya, and the latter three are main
categories of “pramana”. Volume XV explains each
of them in details.
“Proposition” corresponds to that of Hetuvidya’s
five-part syllogism and is mainly intended to
establish a proposition or a basic idea. According
to the Yogacarabhumi-sastra, “a proposition is either
for asserting one’s own idea or refuting, defeating or
agreeing with an idea of others”.
According to Yogacarabhumi-sastra, “cause”, similar
with that of the Nyaya, “is to explain the proposition
on the basis of similarity, dissimilarity, perception
and inference and to obtain valid knowledge”.
"Example" equivalent to the "illustration" of
Hetuvidya, as explained in the Yogacarabhumi-
Old Hetuvidya in Buddhism
Logic theory proposed by Nyaya is quite systematic
and had an important influence on the history of
Indian philosophy and attracted many ancient
Indian philosophers to pay attention to the problem
of logic. Some were prominent Buddhist thinkers. In
the course of the evolution of Buddhist Hetuvidya,
Theravada and early Mahayana had less discussion
on logic, while Yogacara (a school of Mahayana) paid
more attention to this respect. Buddhist Hetuvidya
texts were mostly composed by Yogacara thinkers,
and of them, Dignaga (about 5th to 6th centuries
CE) had prominent achievements in respect of
Hetuvidya, and is often used to divide the history
of Hetuvidya development and before him is “old
Hetuvidya” and after him is “new Hetuvidya” and
Dignaga is a leading character for new Hetuvidya.
Basically, old Buddist Hetuvidya absorbed the
logic from Nyaya and other schools and did not
378
Cultural Contacts
“Valid cognition” is to obtain knowledge through
teachings or theories of the wise or holy man,
and according to the Yogacarabhumi-sastra, “valid
cognition refers to teachings of the omniscient
or what he hears or follows, and it also has three
categories, the one is no violation of holy scriptures,
the second is no defilement, and the third is no
breaking of recognised law.” The Nyaya Sutra also
mentions “valid cognition”, but with a description
not identical with that of Yogacarabhumi-sastra.
The Prakaranaryavaca-sastra, in the Volume 11,
basically has the same discussion with the Volume
15 of Yogacarabhumi-sastra.
The Mahayanabhidhar-ma-samuccaya-vyakhy has a
detailed discussion of Hetuvidya in the Volume 16,
suggesting “there are eight types, that is, proposition,
cause,
illustration,
application,
conclusion,
perception, inference, and valid cognition”, but
these eight are different from those mentioned in
the Yogacarabhumi-sastra, since “application” and
“conclusion” replace “similarity” and “dissimilarity”
in the Yogacarabhumi-sastra.
As for “application”, the Mahayanabhidhar-masamuccaya-vyakhy explains it “as extending the
proposed maxim to remaining cases and making
the proposition applicable and correct under other
circumstances”.
The Mahayanabhidhar-ma-samuccaya-vyakhy
explains “conclusion” as “consummate, complete and
having a final result in respect of the proposition”.
As for the other six types, the Mahayanabhidharma-samuccaya-vyakhya basically is not different
from the Yogacarabhumi-sastra, and some names are
different, but contents are the same.
In the Mahayanabhidhar-ma-samuccaya-vyakhy,
the first five types are a kind of syllogism, and below
is an illustration:
Proposition: Things are without self
Cause: Because an aggregate can be supposed.
Example: As apply the present to the past.
Application: If reputed, the proposition is nonpermanent.
Conclusion: So five aggregates are non-eternal
and without self.
Closer to the contents of the Nyaya Sutra is Tarka
Sastra, another text of old Buddhist Hetuvidya,
which discusses Hetuvidya under “three classes”,
and its occasions for rebukes are extremely similar
to those in the Nyaya Sutra and its discussion about
syllogism and dispute errors basically are the same
with relevant discussions in the Nyaya Sutra.
The Tarka sastra introduces a “five-part” syllogism
in respect of occasions for rebuke ie “proposition,
cause, example, application, and conclusion”, and
uses the following example to illustration this:
Proposition: Sound is non-eternal.
Cause: Because it is created.
sastra, “is also to explain the proposition, by using
examples to make for easy understanding”.
“Similarity” refers to similar points between
things. According to the Yogacarabhumi-sastra, “It is
to use similar means to prove the proposition. There
are five kinds of similarity ie similar in state, similar
in bhava-svabhava, similar in application, similar
in means and similar in cause and effect”. This is
relevant to “positive illustration” (sadharma) of the
Nyaya’s five-part syllogism.
“Dissimilarity” means no similar point between
things. According to Yogacarabhumi-sastra, “It is
‘Great Commentary on the Nyayapravesa’
to use dissimilar means to prove the proposition.
The same with above categories, there are
five kinds of dissimilarity”. This is relevant to
“negative illustration” (vidharma) of the Nyaya’s
five-part syllogism.
“Perception” is knowledge obtained through
senses, and Indian philosophies all recognise this
“pramana”. According to the Yogacarabhumi-sastra,
“perception has three kinds, the one is not invisible,
the second is not having thought or being obliged
to think, and the third is not deranged”, and the
Nyaya Sutra also mentions “perception”, but with
a description somewhat different from that of the
Yogacarabhumi-sastra.
“Inference” actually is a major component of
Hetuvidya, and the Yogacarabhumi-sastra divides
it into a number of categories, “inference means
thinking and identifying all possibilities that have
been thought or should be thought, and has five
types: inference from appearance, inference from
the corporeal, inference from action, inference
from recognised law, and inference from cause and
effect.” The Nyaya Sutra also mentions “inference”,
but with a description very different from that of the
Yogacarabhumi-sastra.
379
Cultural Contacts
Chinese and Tibetan translations eg Nyaya-mukha,
Upadayaprajnaptiprakarana, Praj~naapaaramitaapi.n.daartha-sa.mgraha,
Pramāṇa-samuccaya,
Alambana-parīkşa and Hastavalaprakarana. And
among them, Nyaya-mukha and Pramāṇa-samuccaya
are the most important.
Samkarasvami, a disciple of Dignaga, mainly
composed the commentary on Dignaga’s Nyayamukha ie the Nyāyapravea.
Dharmakirti is a quite accomplished thinker of
new Hetuvidya and has many writings, including
the so called “Seven works on Hetuvidya” ie
Pramanavarttika, Pramanaviniscaya, Nyayabindu,
Example: Whatever is created is non-eternal, as
earthenware is.
Application: So is sound.
Conclusion: Thus sound is non-eternal.
The five-part syllogism in the Tarka sastra, though
different in name, is completely the same with that
in the Nyaya Sutra and both have used the virtually
same examples.
As for erroneous dispute, the Tarka sastra says under
“Occasions for Rebuke”, “there are 22 occasions for
rebuke”, which are consistent with those in the Nyaya
Sutra, also including: (1) hurting the proposition, (2)
shifting the proposition, (3) opposing the proposition,
(4) renouncing the proposition, (5) shifting the
reason, (6) shifting the topic, (7) the meaningless,
(8) the unintelligible, (9) the incoherent, (10) the
inopportune, (11) saying too little, (12) saying too
much, (13) repetition, (14) silence, (15) ignorance,
(16) non-ingenuity, (17) evasion, (18) admission of
an opinion, (19) overlooking the censurable, (20)
censuring the non-censurable, (21) deviating from a
tenet, and (22) the semblance of a reason.
Overall, old Buddhist Hetuvidya, with logic
reasoning assimilated from the Nyaya, is different
from the Nyaya but not much and enough to
separate both in a strict sense,
Old Buddhist Hetuvidya and Nyaya all have
some aspects that are not complete or rigorous.
For instance, “five-part” syllogism obviously has
repetitions and after removing the first two or
the latter two, the remaining three parts still can
accomplish the inference. Old Hetuvidya in the
main is a kind of analogous or inductive inference
and a conclusion from such inference sometimes
is not necessarily correct. Moreover, in spite of
considerable studies on “hetu”, old Hetuvidya still
lacks adequate exploration as to how to decide a
“hetu” is right or not and so, its theories of logics
are not rigorous. Besides, its “occasions for rebuke”
include contradictory or fallacious contents as well
as contents that violate specific rules of dispute and
some of contents are not within the strict scope
of logic reasoning. These defects arose mainly
because old Hetuvidya or the Nyaya proposed their
theories in the process of debate and these theories
are for the need of argumentation rather than for
pure logic reasoning.
Nyayamukha: A Study (Yin Ming
Zheng Li Men Lun Yanjiu); front cover
Hetubindu, Sambandha parikṣa, Santanantara-siddhi
and Vada-nyay, all extant in Tibetan and some in
Sanskrit as well as some modern Chinese translations.
Of them, Nyayabindu and Pramanavarttika have the
greater influence.
As for Dharmapala, Silabhadra and Jayasena, their
thoughts about Hetuvidya are scattered in Yogacara
works, including their won.
New Hetuvidya is an improvement of the old
Hetuvidya, since its syllogism is improved, and it
is more accurate when deciding whether a “hetu” is
right or not.
In old Hetuvidya, Buddhism usually adopted a fivepart syllogism and some Buddhist texts, when talking
about Hetuvidya, mentioned “three-part syllogism”,
for
instance,
the
Mula-madhyamaka-karika
mentioned “proposition-cause-comparison”, but its
examples also contained “application”, and it is not
a sure form of three-part syllogism. “Yogacarabhumisastra” refers to “ Founding Communion”, “Debating
on the Causal” and “Allusion”. To sum up, threepart syllogism in old Hetuvidya is neither a regular
nor a perfect reference. On the basis of these
shortcomings, new Hetuvidya explicitly removed
“application” and “conclusion”, made “three parts”
a quite regular form of syllogism and further
New Hetuvidya in Buddhism
The important reform made by Dignaga signalled
the formation of the new Buddhist Hetuvidya, with
major figures including Dignaga, Samkarasvamin,
Dharmapala, Silabhadra, Jayasena and Dharmakirti
and Dignaga, Samkarasvamin and Dharmakirti had
the greatest influence.
Dignaga had written many works, but many of them
were no longer available, and extant texts are mainly
380
Cultural Contacts
example, as a dissimilar case (vidharma), “emptiness”
should not have the cause’s attribute.
Hetucakra is the most prominent innovation made
by neo-Hetuvidya thinkers, and it was based on and
was a further improvement of “trairupya”.
Hetucakra was used by neo-Hetuvidya thinkers to
decide whether a cause is right or not. A “cause”
that satisfies pakṣa has nine possibilities with
sapakṣa and vipakṣa: (1) + sapakṣa, + vipakṣa, (2)
+ sapakṣa, – vipakṣa, (3) + sapakṣa, ± vipakṣa, (4)
– sapakṣa, + vipakṣa, (5) – sapakṣa, – vipakṣa, (6) –
sapakṣa, ± vipakṣa, (7) ± sapakṣa, + vipakṣa, (8)
± sapakṣa, – vipakṣa, and (9) ± sapakṣa, ± vipakṣa
(Note: + = all, ± = some, – = none)
improved and made some contents more reasonable
or scientific. Dignaga and Samkarasvamin all gave
three-part examples in their works.
An example in Nyaya-mukha by Dignaga is
as below:
Proposition: Sound is non-eternal.
Cause: Because it is made.
Positive example (Sadharma): Whatever is made
is non-eternal, as a bottle.
Negative example (Vidharma): Whatever is
eternal is not made, such as void.
While, an example in Samkarasvamin’s
Nyāyapravea can be summarised as follows:
Proposition: Sound is non-eternal.
Cause: Because it is created.
Positive example (Sadharma): Whatever is created
is non-eternal, such as a bottle.
Negative example (Vidharma)” Whatever is
eternal is not created, such as emptiness.
In Nyāyapravea, when talking about the three
constituents of valid source of knowledge,
Samkarasvamin suggested “using proposition-causecomparison to make people understand”, “….can be
proved when explaining to others..., and only with
these three, can a proposition be proved”.
The most important difference between new
and old Hetuvidya lies with their analysis of
“hetu”, since whether a “hetu” is correct or not
directly relates to the success of the inference. Old
Hetuvidya made much exploration in respect of
“hetu”, for instance, it proposed “fallacious cause”,
but, it failed to show what hetu is correct and to
discuss it in a clear and detailed manner. In this
respect, new Hetuvidya made much improvement
or reformation, and many of its theories of “hetu”
were contained in “trairupya”. The term “trairupya”
had been mentioned in old Hetuvidya, for example,
volume I of Mula-madhyamaka-karika but without
a clear explanation. It is neo-Hetuvidya thinkers
that discussed “trairupya” in a complete and
clear manner.
“Trairupya” refers to “three conditions” that
have to be met to be a valid source of knowledge.
And these three conditions are: pakṣa, sapakṣa
and vipakṣa.
Pakṣa means that it should be present in the case
or object under consideration, the ‘subject-locus’.
Take an example from the Nyāyapravea, the cause’s
attribute must be present in “sound” (as the object).
Such an attribute can be present in many things, but
“sound” must have it.
Sapakṣa means that it should be present in a
‘similar case’ (sadharma) or a homologue. For
example, the attribute should be present in a similar
case (sadharma), that is, “bottle”.
Vipakṣa means that it should not be present in
any ‘dissimilar case’ (vidharma) or heterologue. For
A compilation of Hetuvidya in Nyaya Theory
Dignaga and others were of the opinion, above
(2) and (8) all satisfy the latter two conditions of
“trairupya”, and therefore, are valid cause, and the
remaining seven are fallacious cause, since they do
not satisfy the latter two conditions.
Under new Hetuvidya, errors (faults or occasions
for rebuke) were organized, replenished and closely
connected with “trairupya”, and were divided
into paksābhāsa, hetvābhasa and drstantābhāsa.
Samkarasvamin, in Nyāyapravea, gave a most
systematic list of 33 errors, including nine paksābhāsa
ie pratyaksa-viruddh, anumana-viruddha, svasastraviruddha, loka-viruddha, svavaccana-viruddha,
aprasiddha-visesan, aprasiddha–visesya, aprasiddhobhaya, and prasiddha – sambandha, 14
“hetvābhasa” that include ubhayasiddha, anyatarsiddha,
samdigdhadsiddha,
asrayadsidddha,
sadharana-anaikantik,
asadhāraṇa-anaikantika,
sapaksa-eka-desa-vrtti-vipaksa-vyapin-anaikantika,
vipaksaikadesa-vrtti-sapaksa-vyapaka—anaikantik,
apaksa-vipaksalkadesa-vrtti, viruddhavyabhicarin,
dharma-svarupa-viruddha,
dharma-visesaviruddha, dharmi-svarupa-viruddha and dharmivisesa-viruddha.
Ten
drstantabhasa
include
sadhana-dharmasiddha,
adhya-dharma-asiddha,
381
Cultural Contacts
and he had a different opinion on Asadharaṇaanaikantika and Viruddhavyabhicarin, the two
hetvābhasa proposed by some Hetuvidya thinkers
(Dignaga and others).
Asadharaṇa-anaikantika means that a cause is
not present in similar and dissimilar cases and thus
cannot establish whether the proposition is right.
For instance, suppose the proposition is “sound is
non-eternal”, the cause is “can be heard”, a similar
case is “bottle”, and a dissimilar case is “emptiness”.
“Bottle” and “emptiness” all cannot be heard and
so, the cause cannot prove that the proposition is
right. This actually is the fifth circumstance under
the Hetucakra.
Viruddhavyabhicarin means that in the course
of an argument, both sides put forth their own
propositions, and “causes” all satisfy “three
conditions”, but conclusions (or propositions) are
totally opposite (or contrary), and so, which side is
right cannot be established. For instance, one side
proposes: sound is non-eternal, because it is created,
as a bottle, and another proposes: sound is eternal,
because it can be heard, as an attribute of sound. For
each side, their proposition seems to be right but it
cannot prove the other’s fallacy.
For Dharmakirti, above two hetvābhasa in
fact were not possible to arise, and so, should be
removed.
With above thoughts of Dharmakirti, new
Hetuvidya became more sound and rational. After
him, there were also a number of Hetuvidya scholars,
who usually inherited new Hetuvidya thoughts
from Dignaga, Dharmakirti and others and pushed
Buddhist Hetuvidya to a height of ancient Indian
logic, and greatly enriched the pool of ancient
Indian philosophy.
ubhyaya–asiddhah,
ananvaya,
viparitanvaya,
sadhya-avyavrtta, sadhanavyavrtta, ubhayavyavrtta,
avyavrtta and viparita-vyatireka
In addition to logic reasoning new Hetuvidya, the
same with Hetuvidya, also has epistemology-related
discussion. In Nyāyapravea, Samkarasvamin put
forth the so-called “eight approaches to two kinds of
benefit” (or eight propositions in two kinds of making
aware). These eight approaches are: sadhana, dūaa,
sadhanabhasa, dusanabhasa, pratyaka, anumana,
pratyaksabhasa and anumanabhasa. “Two benefits”
refer to enlightening self and others and in fact
indicate the comprehensive role to be played by
the new Hetuvidya. Clearly, these theories are more
systematic and improved than those in old Hetuvidya.
After Dignaga and Samkarasvamin, Dharmakirti
further pushed forward new Hetuvidya. According
to texts such as the Nyayabindu, Dharmakirti had
ideas on the form of inference, the judgment of
valid cause and inferential errors that were different
from or not even mentioned by Dignaga and others.
As for the form of inference, Dharmakirti had a
unique understanding of “three-part” syllogism,
and thought that “example” could be combined
into “cause”, since the meaning or role of an
example could be included into “cause”. Therefore,
“example” actually does not necessarily become
a separate part. However, Dharmakirti thought
that it was not necessary to remove “example” or
“three-part” syllogism and instead, the sequence
of the “three parts” could be rearranged with
“example” in the first and “proposition” in third. It
would be “example-cause-proposition” and such a
form of inference, in fact, is similar to “three-part”
syllogism, and is something of deductive reasoning
and is more rational or scientific.
As for “valid cause”, Dharmakirti advanced
on the basis of “trairupya”. He suggested, there
could be three kinds of valid cause that satisfied
“three conditions” ie unattainable, of self-nature
and causal. “Unattainable cause” means, when
inferring the non-presence of an object, the cause
can be not finding this object under relevant
conditions, for instance, the signs (sound, body,
etc.) of the presence of someone are not found in
a certain place, and this being a cause, it can be
inferred that this person is not present; “cause of
self nature” means inferring the genus of an object
from its attributes, for instance, an object can
move and make a sound by itself (with attributes
of animal or belonging to a kind of animal), it
could be inferred as animal; “causal cause” means
inferring the cause from the effect for an causeand-effect object. For instance, from the rising of
water, it can be inferred that it rains in the upper
reaches of the river. As for “inferential errors”,
Dharmakirti also put forth some novel ideas
Dissemination and Influence in China
Indian Hetuvidya was brought into China together
with other Buddhist thoughts, and had an important
influence on ancient Chinese thoughts. In particular,
when Yogacara School arose in the Tang Dynasty,
since Hetuvidya had been much discussed in Yogacara
texts, some Yogacara thinkers, while disseminating
Yogacara, also worked vigorously to spread Hetuvidya
theories. Moreover, Tibetans have translated and
kept many valuable Hetuvidya texts, some of which
are no longer available in India and both Chinese and
Tibetans have played an important role in facilitating
the study and development of Hetuvidya.
In modern China, scholars have attached
significant importance to Hetuvidya, since it is a
major representative of Indian logic and an important
branch of Buddhism. Some Hetuvidya scholars have
published many articles and works on Hetuvidya and
universities also offer courses on Hetuvidya.
(Yao Weiqun)
382
Cultural Contacts
Hetuvidya of Tibetan
Buddhism
included the eminent monk khu lung pa yon tan
rgya mtsho (1813~1890) and his work tshad ma
rig pa, the great monk Thubten Gelek Gyatso (1844
~1904) and his work bsdus grvi spyi don rin chen
sgron me and the eminent monk Mipham Namgyel
Gyatsho (1846~1912) of the Ningmapa sect and his
work tshad ma rnam vgrel gyi gzhung gsal bor bshad pa
legs bshad snang bavi gter, etc.
(Yao Weiqun)
Hetuvidya of Tibetan Buddhism (Tshad Ma Rig
Pa) is the main subject and debate way of Tibetan
Buddhism interpreting its semantics, and it is also
called as Pramana. Its connotations are related to
logistics, cognition and epistemology of Buddhism.
Hetuvidya of Tibetan Buddhism comes from Indian
Buddhism, has been developed in Tibet creatively,
is listed one of the five great theories of Buddhism
as well as becomes main component of 10 Tibetan
metaphysics and plays an important role in studying
and cultivating Tibetan Buddhism.
Tibetan Buddhists used and developed logic
thoughts and interference ways of Hetuvidya
including Dignaga’s Pramana-samuccaya (theme)
and Dharmakirti’s Pramanavarttika (explanation),
broke through four Indian heretical theories,
established concepts of four Buddhist sects and
set up the tenets of the thoughts of Prasangika
Madhyamaka. Therefore, Hetuvidya was honoured
as the golden key to open up the knowledge treasure
gate of Tibetan Buddhism. A large number of monks
attached importance to it as a methodology and
cognition to seek truth and they wrote book and
expounded theories to develop Hetuvidya.
The previous (11th ~13th century CE) achievements
which were made by Tibetan Buddhists in the
field of Hetuvidya included mainly three types:
commentaries, original treatises and comprehensive
treatises.
Commentaries
treatises
remarked
Hetuvidya classics of Dignaga and Dharmakirti, which
were represented by tshad ma rnam par nges pavi
dkav bvi gnas rnam par bshad pa of rngog blo ldan
shes rab (1059~1109); original treatises were
collected topics created by Tibetan monks uniquely,
which were represented by tshad mavi bsdus pa yid
kyi mun sel of cha pa chos kyi seng ge (1109~1169);
comprehensive treatises were further studies on
Hetuvidya on the basis of previous achievements,
which were represented by tshad ma rigs gter of sa
pan kun dgav rgyal mtshan (1182~1251).
Hetuvidya of Tibetan Buddhism in the Qing
Dynasty was developed on the previous basis
constantly and temples of Tibetan Buddhism
represented by the Gelug sect became the base to
develop and promote it. Through temple education
and five great treatises on systematic cultivation,
studies on Hetuvidya were developed and deepened,
many theoretical schools were formed in the field
of collected topics, and the main schools including
btsan po bsdus-grva, gsal bsdus-grva and khen chen
bsdus-grva, etc.
Except the Gelug sect in Qing Dynasty, eminent
monks in other schools had conduct profound studies
on Hetuvidya, and there were many great scholars
and numerous famous works. The representatives
Collected Topics of
Tibetan Buddhism
Collected Topics of Tibetan Buddhism (bob brgyud
nang bstan chos lugs bsdus graw) is a special
discipline that conducts classification, conduction
and summarisation for essentials of Hetuvidya,
and a compulsory course of Dharma Character for
beginners. It plays a role in “establishing correct
intelligence to defeat heretical theories” in the
criticising circle of Buddhism and all other heresies
and becomes the requisite defense skill and thinking
formula in obtaining religious academic rank.
Theoretic system of collected topics is composed
of three parts: small principle, middle principle
and large principle from which develop from the
easy to the difficult. Small principle starts from
identifying red and white colours and realising the
term and concept of Hetuvidya gradually and its
deduction is short and poignant; middle principle
is a process to realise things, analyse the conflicts
such as contradiction and compliance and expand
its Pramana knowledge; great principle is entry into
debate stage of prasangika debate mode which aims
at displaying mistakes in thought and cognitions
through debate and has profound ways and
complicate interference.
Three procedures includes disputing with other
schools, establishing self-concept and defeating
wrong thoughts for the principles of collected topics,
ie raising questions, expounding opinions and
drawing conclusions. Disputing with other schools
is based on Pramana theory, adopts the form of
prasangika debate, refutes wrong opinions of others,
dispels doubts of others, and obtains argumentation
of truth. Establishing self-concept is to demonstrate
opinions of the arguer and observe and quote the
opinions of classical works of Pramana such as
Dignaga’s Pramana-samuccaya and Dharmakirti’s
Pramanavarttika. Defeating wrong thoughts is
established to dispel doubts and wrong opinions of
others. Theoretical opinions are expressed in the
arguer’s stand to refute various theories proposed
by the other party.
Connotation structure of collected topics is
composed of blo rig and rtags rig. The former is to
expound connotations and psychological cognition
(psychology) of Hetuvidya from the perspective of
383
Cultural Contacts
sastras. As for different roles of the five sciences,
volume V (Chapter of Appeals) of Sutra Lamkara
written by Asanga and translated by IndianTripitaka
Prabhakara Mitra pointed out that “Adhyàtma-vidyà
is a science of self-knowledge. Hetuvidya shastra is
a science of conquering heretics. Shabdavidya is
a science of persuading others. Chikitsavidya is a
science of medicines. Shilpasthanavidya is a science
of enlightening all living beings.” Adhyàtma-vidyà
was related to different doctrines of different ancient
Indian schools, contents were complicated and there
were mutual differences, and these schools thought
that their theories were authentic adhyàtmavidyà. Religion and philosophy knowledge of
Indian schools had massive sutras translated into
cognition; rtags rig is to expound the two concepts
including pratyaksa-pramana and anumanapramana from the perspective of logics (logics).
The ultimate objective of Tibetan Buddhism
Hetuvidya is to infer and prove the theoretic
concepts of Buddhism such as “performing good
deeds to eliminate evils, karma and retribution,
eliminating worries and nirvana”. Meanwhile, it
focusses on Dharmakirti’s Hetuvidya, proposes
reality in external environment, admits objective
existence, attaches importance to roles of Buddhist
pramana in the process of knowing things and forms
a kind of system of Hetuvidya theory with unique
characteristics.
(Yao Weiqun)
Adhyàtma-vidyà
Adhyàtma-vidyà was an ancient Indian knowledge
related to religion and philosophy, and was one
of the five sciences. Indian Buddhists claimed that
Buddhist theories such as teachings of Tripitaka and
12 divisions preached by Buddha and his disciples
were “inner-teaching” or “inner-learning”, and
called all non-Buddhist theories as “heretics”, and
there was the statement of “18 heretical scriptures”
or “ninety six heretics”. Adhyàtma-vidyà was
also called as “inner treatise” or “inner doctrine”.
volume III in Bodhisattva Charya Nirdesha translated
by Indian Tripitaka Dharmakema in the middle
Northern Liang Dynasty thought that “Buddha’s
teachings were named adhyàtma-vidyà. There were
two functions briefly: the first was to show cause
and effect positively; the second was to show that
cause led to effect and the corresponding result
shall not be obtained without kama cause.” (Bodhi
Power Chapter) in volume III of Bodhisattva Charya
Nirdesha translated by Kophen Tripitaka Guavarman
in the Liusong Dynasty pointed out that “inner
treatises meant 12 sutras. Bodhisattva-mahasattva
sought 12 sutras for two affairs. The first was to
know the cause and effect. The second was to show
that cause leads to effect and corresponding result
shall not be obtained without kama cause.” Volume
II of Travelling Notes of the Western Regions in the
Great Tang Dynasty explained that the connotation
of Adhyàtma-vidyà was “to think about five vehicles
and understand cause and effect as well as truth”.
Volume XIII of Yogacharya-bhumi-shastra preached
by Maitreya Buddha and translated by Xuanzang
pointed out that Adhyàtma-vidyà had four forms
ie form of establishment of sutras, vinaya and
shastras, form of establishment of specific Buddhist
names and appearances, form of explaining
Buddhist doctrines and form of knowing doctrines
of Buddhism, in which the form of establishment
of sutras, vnayas and shastras meant to explain all
Buddhist doctrines with Buddhist sutras, vinaya and
Li Baiyao’s Mahayanasutralamkara
(Da Cheng Zhuang Yan Jing Lun), Ming
Dynasty edition
Chinese and Chinese scholars know about ancient
Indian Adhyàtma-vidyà and recognise pluralism
and complexity of Indian religion and philosophy
through the Samkhya classic Hiranyasaptati and the
Vaisesika classic Vaisesika-dasa-padartha-prakarana
(written by Maticandra) which were regarded
as “heretics of six teachers” by Buddhists and
were respectively translated by Indian Tripitaka
Paramārtha in the Chen Dynasty and Xuanzang in
Tang Dynasty.
(Chen Ming)
Metaphysics of Wei and
Jin Dynasties
During the late Eastern Han Dynasty, three kingdoms
period and Eastern and Western Jin Dynasties, “idle
talk” (qing-tan or pure conversation) was popular.
The fans and followers of “idle talk” (pure talk) lived
a dissipated life, boasted of showing off an attitude
of the Daoist natural inaction. Their thoughts and
statements were referred to as “Metaphysics of
the Wei and Jin Dynasties” by the people of later
generations. The system of “metaphysics” of Wei
384
Cultural Contacts
stressed on following the nature with no constraint”,
and believed that “people should be in pursuit of
the nature and break away from the limits of
moralisation”. The root cause of this viewpoint
was that the rulers surnamed Sima of that time
concealed all the lawlessness and unfairness of
regime under disguise of moralisation. Ji Kang and
Ruan Ji felt shameful to wallow in the mire with
such rulers as Sima. “Theory of Four Fundamentals”
authored by Zhong Hui, was based on the theory
of Character and Talent with nothing new ideas. In
contrast, theorists of moralisation sprang up like
and Jin Dynasties contain theory of moralisation
and theory of character and talent. The theory of
moralisation included debate over existence and nonexistence of the fundamental and incidental, debate
on statements (sayings) and their connotations and
debate on moralisation and the nature and so on
which is represented by Wang Bi, He Yan, Xiang Xiu
and Guo Xiang. The theory on character and talent
focused on appreciation of talent, which originated
in “Records on Figures (personnel)” authored by Liu
Shao and was subsequently, introduced in another
work titled “Theory of Four Fundamentals” authored
by Zhong Hui. All the ideas of metaphysics of this
period, with spirit of Taoism as its main theme, was
combined with Confucian theories and a new system
of thought thus emerged based on the convergence
of different ideas.
Originating Evolution - Confucianism and
Daoism began to integrate in Han Dynasty. Kong
Rong while replying to Li Ying said: “Previously
respectable Confucius and Daoist saint Lao Zi
maintain the relations between the teacher and
student. So I also maintain friendly relations with
you”. This became a story passed on at that time with
admiration. Obviously, in the late Han Dynasty, the
scholars admitted that Confucianism and Daoism
got blended. In the Wei and Jin Dynasties, Confucius
and Lao Zi were deemed homologous. During
Zhengshi Period (about 240-249 CE), Wang Bi, He
Yan and other scholars studied Lao Zi and Zhuang
Zi’s sayings, but they preferred to debate over the
Confucian classics. For example, He Yan annotated
“The Analects of Confucius”(lun-yu) and Wang Bi
authored one book “Answers to Questions on Analects
of Confucius” and annotated the “Book of Change”.
Wang Bi and He Yan were born in famous big
families, followed the traditions of “idle talk” since
the late Han Dynasty; they had discussion between
them with many questions raised for each other and
analysed any issues with serious arguments over and
over again; they raised the status and quality of the
“idle talk” to the extent that people desired to imitate
their contents and style. They further discussed
about the relations between the fundamental and
the incidental between “moralisation” (Confucian
ethical code) and the “nature” and between sages’
emotionless feature and emotional feature. Liu Shao,
Fu Gu and other contemporaries played the leading
role in the discussion on the “theory of character
and talent”. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, evaluation
for human personalities and investigation of nature
was an important issue which was closely related
to talent selection and recruitment system of that
time. During the period of “Seven Intellectuals in
Bamboo Forest” (zhu-lin qi-xian 255-262 CE), Ji
Kang and Ruan Ji adored the nature to put forward
a viewpoint of “going beyond moralisation and
‘Records of Personnel (Renwu zhi)’, Liu Shao
mushrooms from generation to generation with such
representative masters like Xiang Xiu and Guo Xiang,
whose ideas combined together came to be known
as “Yuan Kang Metaphysics”. According to Xiang
Xiu and Guo Xiang, the “nature” and “moralisation”
actually never contradicted, and man’s doings were
always in divine order of the nature. For example,
the “Chapter of Qiu Shui” in Zhuang Zi, annotated
by Guo Xiang, pointed out that “Can people never
control horse and cattle for use in their lifetime?
Can people never halter cattle or horse? Cattle or
horse should be haltered which is their manifested
destiny. This seems to be “mandate of heaven”,
but this is the natural rule followed by man”. In
debate over existence (being) and non-existence
(non-being) of fundamental and incidental, Xiang
Xiu and Guo Xiang put forward such opinions as
“self-conversion” and “independent conversion
in calmness” and believed that “Existence is selfexistence rather than stemming from non-existence.
In other words, all things are made by themselves”.
Pei Wei authored the book Theory of Existence in
which he argued that “everything is self-engendered
and non-existence has no way for existence”,
and also believed that “all sentient things of the
world are self-engendered and inevitable rather
385
Cultural Contacts
and changes due to the ontology of non-existence.
The so-called things in the universe are based on
inaction. He Yan clearly put forward that existence is
based on non-existence and relies on non-existence.
Non-existence is home to all things”. Wang Bi on
the other hand flexibly discussed about the interdependence of existence and non-existence. He
stated that “the heaven and earth are based on
fundamental”. Non-existence is such fundamental,
and thought that “existence is tangible, finite
and limited, while non-existence is absolute and
unlimited with the ultimate significance”. Starting
from the concept of “basing on non-existence”,
he put forward political theory of “stressing on
fundamental and depression for the incidental”
and “stressing the fundamental and upgrading
for the incidental” and thought it necessary to
administer with “doctrine”, achieve laissez-faire and
fundamentally focus on guiding principle without
entanglement in detail from the key perspective.
School of thought stressing existence believed that
“existence is self-engendered”. Pei Wei authored
the Theory of Existence and argued that “Everything
is self-engendered, and non-existence has no way
for existence”, and also believed that “all sentient
things of the world are self-engendered rather than
absolute beings”. Guo Xiang also stated that “nonexistence cannot give birth to existence because
non-existence is nothing. Existence and all things of
the universe result from conversion from voidness”.
“Conversion from voidness” means that all things
were engendered in the profound and everlasting
realm beyond the knowledge of humans. All things
never hinder each other, but all the things together
give birth to the universe and the nature.
Debate over moralisation and the nature was
intended to identify the relationship between the
Confucian ethical code and the nature. The nature
is the true look of the universe with no artificial
features whereas rite, music and moralisation were
created by human beings. Institutions, systems, rite,
Zhouyi, Laozi, Zhuangzi
than stemming from non-existence”. Since then,
moralisation theory shifted from “stress on nonexistence” to “stress on existence”. By the time of
eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420 CE), it has already
been 300 years that Indian Buddhism had been
introduced in China. Lots of important classics on
Buddhism had too been translated and other local
writings made debut with profound influence of the
Buddhist theory on native culture; the development
of metaphysics also accordingly presented different
trend during this period compared with previous
period. The “Lie Zi”, annotated by Zhang Zhan,
originally stated that “existence serve the purpose
of vanity, while all things are proved by extinction”.
However, the argument of “no existence and no
non-existence” replaced the argument of existence
and non-existence of the fundamental and the
incidental, which became a new style and fashion
of discussing metaphysics. Since then, the rich
contents of metaphysics provided the much needed
theoretical grounds to comment on sutras of
Buddhism. Following this, the unique characteristic
features of the ideas of “metaphysics” gradually
faded away. The term “metaphysics” (xuan-xue)
was first found in Book of Jin: Biography of Lu Yun
which says: “there is essentially no metaphysics
in the beginning”. However, at that time, the
understanding of metaphysics was not the same
as that of later periods, during which academic
analysis with focus on “idle talk”, facial looks and
even family status was attributed to “metaphysics”.
In Northern and Southern Dynasties, Book of
Change, Lao Zi and Zhuang Zi were crowned as
“Three Classics of Metaphysics”. With all this a new
school of thought with its own classical form was
then taking shape.
Philosophical Thoughts - Theory of moralisation
took different views for existence and nonexistence of the fundamental and the incidental
in two directions ie school of thought stressing on
non-existence and the school of thought stressing
existence). The school of thought stressing nonexistence advocated “non-existence as the basis
of everything” and “the doctrine of non-existence
governs all things of the universe; everything exists
Annotations and Commentary on the Analects of Confucius, He Yan
(Wei), Xing Bing (Song)
386
Cultural Contacts
that “I can neither engender creatures, nor creatures
engender me. So I am the nature. moralisation was
inborn existence which was the same as the nature
and should not be destroyed. According to Chuang
Tzu, “Haltering horse head or piercing cattle nose
is human behavior”. Guo Xiang believed that “It is
inevitable to halter horse head or pierce cattle nose
in the lifetime. As a result, moralisation is created
by humans, but the reason is natural”.
Debate over sayings and connotations was longstanding. According to Book of Change · Xi Ci,
“Books are unable to cover all sayings and sayings
are unable to cover all connotations”. In the Wei
and Jin Dynasties, Confucianism and Daoism got
blended and the Book of Change was held in high
esteem and explanation on “theory of change”
gained its popularity. In interpreting the “theory of
change”, scholars often faced up to the relationship
among saying, exterior and connotation. With such
questions demanding solutions, the philosophical
foundation of metaphysics was laid. The “Sayings”
refer to the language form, such as sound and
other symbols. Connotation refers to meaning of
the language and contained truth. Exterior refers
to image and imago described by the language.
According to theory of moralisation, there were
three issues for debate over sayings and connotations
viz sayings beyond connotations, sayings on a
par with connotations and connotations beyond
sayings. Xun Can put forward a theory of sayings
beyond connotations ie “Sayings are overshadowed
by connotations”, especially the sage’s connotations
are unable to be revealed by exterior. Of course, the
language is unable reach its deep connotation. In
addition, the fundamental reason for the general
things is unable to be explained exactly. This theory
revealed the limitations of language, but believed
that sage could break through the limitations.
Ouyang Jian put forward a theory of sayings on
a par with connotations ie “Exploring the law of
things has to rely on the corresponding concepts
and appellations. Different things have different
definitions, while different emotions have different
appellations. Appellations change with things.
Appellations and things echo with each other.
Wang Bi held the theory of connotations beyond
sayings, and believed that “in the concrete world,
the appellation in the language cannot accurately
express the speakers’ inner meaning but the imago
can convey the meanings beyond language. He put
forward three concepts of “sayings” eg “exterior”
(expression) and “connotation” and believed the
relationship among saying, exterior and connotation
as follows: “Imago described by language can fully
convey speaker’s meaning, while the language can
objectively describe the image. This is because the
appellation in the language is derived from static
music and moralisation cultivated and restraint the
people’s behaviors and emotions. According to He
Yan and Wang Bi, “moralisation (purpose) stems
from the nature (means)”; moralisation is incidental
and tangible, and the natural is fundamentally
intangible. But Wang Bi took faith in Taoism and
referred to Taoism and Confucian thoughts, who
believed that “ceremony is nothing but a kind of
tangible constraints, which is falseness with limits.
It is necessary to start from the ontology of nothing,
remove the ceremonial constraints, achieve the real
morality that rite, music and moralisation target at,
and make all things in place”. According to Wang Bi,
Book of Changes (Zhouyi), an extant
block-printed copy of the Ming Dynasty
Daoism and Confucianism demonstrated homology
so that “Existence was reflected because Confucius
advocated non-existence, while Lao Zi advocated
existence and disadvantages were revealed”. RuanJi
and Ji Kang put forward a viewpoint of “going beyond
moralisation and keep unconstrained in the nature”
due to dissatisfaction with the rulers surnamed
Sima. After the rulers surnamed Sima usurped the
regime of Wei Kingdom, they advocated ruling the
country with filial piety, but they avoided to mention
loyalty closely related to filial piety for purpose
of downplaying the illegality of regime through
the replacement of connotation of “moralisation”.
Moralisation, referred by Ji Kang, was different from
that referred by Wang Bi and He Yan, which was
manipulated by rulers and descended into opposite
side of human nature. Ji Kang regarded ceremony
and moralisation as chains, and believed ceremony
and moralisation were the shackles of human nature
and went contrary to the nature. Only going beyond
moralisation and removing ceremony was the way
out to recover the nature and comply with the truth.
Guo Xiang’s viewpoint was different from Ji Kang’s,
who stated that “moralisation is the nature”. As
Taoism was not respected and Seven Intellectuals
in Bamboo Forest (Ji Kang and others intellectuals)
got adrift and never followed decorum despite great
reputation, Guo Xiang put forward a proposition
387
Cultural Contacts
and see that what they do, their activities do not
overstep the boundary line. Thus, even though
they can respond to objects (external environment)
but never be bothered by objects”.
The theory on character and talent was a special
theory which evolved in the course of bringing
about certain change in the imperial examination
system in late Han and early Wei Dynasty. Due to
chaos caused by wars of devastation, the scholarly
class migrated from their native places to other
places of safety and security; the townshiplevel imperial exam so far being held according
to tradition remained discontinued. During the
regime of the Emperor Ming of the Wei Dynasty
(who reigned during 226-239 CE), Liu Shao devised
the rules and regulations to conduct the tests and
examinations for the examinee. In order to ensure
the effectiveness of test method, it was necessary
to evaluate characters and recommend potential
officers according to their talent and character. The
“Records of Personnel”, authored by Liu Shao, took
the ideas of Confucianism, Daoism, moralisation
and legalism together. It was a monograph talking of
the ways on how to make assessment of the people,
which met the need of that time. But the “Records
on Personnel” discussed the ideas of Yin-Yang,
image and Spirit, that match with the heavenly
ideas of he saints”. According to History Book of
the Three Kingdoms Period · Book of the Wei Dynasty
· Biography of Fu Gu, Fu Gu often discussed about
similarity and difference of talent and character
and Zhong Hui gathered all those opinions of Fu
Gu. The Theory of the Four Fundamentals, authored
by Zhong Hui, collected popular opinions of that
time on talent and character, accompanied by his
own comments. A chapter titled A New Account of
Tales of the World · Literature to be found in the
Book of the Wei Dynasty: says that the theory of
“four fundamentals discusses the similarities
between talent and character (represented by
prime minister Fu Gu); dissimilarities between
talent and character (represented by chief
secretary Li Feng), integration between talent
and character (represented by assistant minister
Zhong Hui) and separation between talent and
Book of Changes (Zhouyi), annotated by Zhu Xi (Song),
Zengyantang edition, Qing Dynasty
image, and static image is derived from final versions
of changing things and changes in the human
minds. Wang Bi made argument for relationship
among “sayings”, “exterior” and “connotation”,
and further put forward the method of cognition
in “understanding the exterior despite lack of the
sayings and understanding connotation despite the
lack of the exterior” which greatly promoted the
development of metaphysics.
In the “theory of moralisation”, debate over
sages’ emotionless feature and emotional feature
was launched between He Yan and Wang Bi. From
the perspective of pleasure, anger, sorrow and
joy, He Yan divided people into three categories:
ordinary people, virtuous people (man of virtue
and talent) and saints and thought that “Ordinary
people are unable to control the temper and cannot
maintain balance of mind. With ordinary emotions
like the joys and sorrows, the virtuous are able
to make the emotions limited. Ordinary people
keep unconstrained emotions. But Yan Hui keeps
his anger in control”. The saints achieve the aloof
status at will while fully maintaining a balance of
their minds. Therefore, saints’ emotionless feature
doesn’t mean that saints have no emotions such
as joys and sorrows. But they don't express their
emotions like ordinary people. From the perspective
of the objects generated by pleasure, anger, sorrow
and joy. Wang Bi thought that “Saints would not
let objects influence their state of emotions. But a
saint is also emotional”. He said: “Saints are equal
to gods. They have also emotions like ordinary
people. However, with an enlightened mind and
some divine qualities, saints make their existence
possible without worldly desires. With the same
emotions, saints respond to objects in a different
way and fashion”. Wang Bi cited an example and
said that “Confucius cried for Yan Zi’s death and
felt sad for the illness of Bo Niu which proved that
saints too are emotional. Saints have reached the
status and position of controlling their emotions
Book of Changes (Zhouyi), an old manuscript
388
Cultural Contacts
Buddhism in the Six Dynasties, scholars gradually
refrained from discussing about metaphysics.
(Jiang Julang)
character (represented by cavalry officer Wang
Guang)”. Actually Fu Gu and Zhong Hui’s theories
on talent and character were simply developed to
evaluate characters for practical purpose, so its
philosophical value was less than that of “Records
on Personnel” authored by Liu Shao.
After southward migration of the scholars
during the period of Eastern Jin Dynasty, the
then prevailing ideas on metaphysics also crossed
the Yangtze River. With the spread of Buddhism
in China, topics of scholars’ discussion were also
influenced so that the argument of “no existence
and no non-existence” replaced the argument of
existence and non-existence of the fundamental and
the incidental. Buddhist scholars also introduced
Neo Confucianism of the
Song and Ming Dynasties
The philosophic thinking of Confucianism in
Song and Ming dynasties was called “Lixue”,
“Xinglixue” or “Daoxue”, each of those means NeoConfucianism. The word “Neo-Confucianism” first
appeared in Lou Guanfu’s memorial to the emperor
that he used to asked a posthumous title for Zhou
Dunyi. According to his statement, Lixue had
already been reflected into people’s daily life, and
later it begun to form a system by Confucius and
then popularised by Zisi, and Mencius. During 1000
years from Han Dynasty to Tang Dynasties, different
Confucians had different theories. However, the
Confucianism restored its original appearance until
Song and Ming Dynasties. Broadly speaking, “Lixue”
includes “Xinxue”, which means the Neo-Confucian
School of Mind and it is not contrary to “Lixue”.
When the Confucians in Song Dynasty explained
and interpreted Confucianism classics, they were
against the ancient chapters kept exegetical study
style from Han Dynasty to Tang Dynasty. On
the contrary, they adhered to the principles of
pursuing the Confucian classics argumentation,
exploring the famous theories and even life, and
their theories were called “Yilizhixue”, “Lixue”
in short. Zhang Zai said “Yilizhixue needs to be
further studied; otherwise, you won’t understand it
completely by a superficial reading”; this statement
has disclosed the complexity of Neo-Confucianism.
“Lixue” takes the Confucianism as the core and
‘Records of the Three Kingdoms- Book of the Wei
Dynasty (San Guo Zhi: Weishu)’, compiled by Chen
Shou, (Western Jin Dynasty), Qing Dynasty edition
metaphysics into the annotations and interpretations
of the Buddhist sutras. “Sutras are cited and referred
to while explaining the contents of other books”. For
example, when Hui Yuan mentioned “real look”, he
drew an analogy from Xhuang Zi theory. When Zhi
Daolin discussed about existence and non-existence,
he took Wang Bi and Guo Xiang’s thoughts as the
clue. Metaphysics also profoundly influenced the
Buddhist theory itself at that time. For example,
when Dao An sought to explain the meaning of
emptiness, we very often find the influence of Wang
Bi’s “theory on sayings and connotations” in them.
He also paid the equal attention to “removal of
disorderly intention and appearance of the origin”.
Influenced by Guo Xiang’s thoughts and methods,
Zhi Daolin said: “Reason for material existence of
things is not self-engendered. The so-called material
existence is also empty”. And the relationship
was similar to the relationship between existence
and obscurity. However, with the development of
Zheng Meng, block- printed edition,
Qing Dynasty
absorbs Buddhism and Taoism thinking patterns or
their partial theories to act as its own supplement
and development, so “Lixue” scholars were called
“Neo- Confucians” by the missionaries. Compared
with ancient Chinese local philosophy, the contents
389
Cultural Contacts
human beings, and the new development direction
of Neo-Confucianism. Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi, two
brothers in Henan, were students of Zhou Dunyi,
and they insisted to regard the “Li (Principle)” as
the foundation of study. Later, they preached in the
capital of their country, and had many followers.
At the same time, Zhang Zai and Shao Yong also
pursued the doctrine and strived to practice
personally; they preached and taught apprentices,
and “Lixue” was prevalent for a long period. Zhang
Zai wrote Zhengmeng, Tongshu, Ximing, Dongming
those books, paid more attention to the learning
of sages, and obeyed the principle of practicing
personally strictly, while Shao Yong was famous for
his Huang Ji Jing Shi Book, Guan Wu WaiPian Book
and Yin ChuanJi Rang Ji Book. Though his knowledge
was the same with the spirit of humaneness and
righteousness, courtesy and music, his opinions
about the change of the Universe were unique. Shao
paid more attention to the research of divination; he
once precast that Wang Anshi would be the Prime
Minister (in feudal China) of Song Dynasty and many
other things as well. In Southern Song Dynasty,
Chu Hsi learned the philosophy of Cheng Hao and
Cheng Yi mainly, as well as other Confucians and
then he appointed Neo-Confucianism as the main
philosophy in the society and finally became an
agglomeration of different thoughts; he preached
Confucian classics argumentation and wrote books.
After that, Daoism became prevalent. People in
The Three Religions Painting (San Jiao
Tu), Ding Yunpeng, Qing Period
of “Lixue” was more profound, the theory was
more complete and the thinking pattern was more
complicated because it integrated Confucianism,
Buddhism and Daoism together.
In the middle and later periods of Tang Dynasty,
Han Yu, Li Ao and other scholars tried to change
the study style since Han and Tang Dynasty. Han
Yu wrote the book Yuandao, Li Ao wrote Fuxingshu
(Complexity of Human Nature, Xing refers to Human
Nature); they started to begin the transformation
of Confucianism. Earlier, during the Song Dynasty,
the famous Confucians such as Sun Fu, Hu Yuan
and Shi Jie advocated “Taking humaneness and
righteousness and music as learning contents”
and took Confucian Orthodoxy as their own
responsibility. They started the Neo-Confucianism
in Song Dynasty and they were called “Three elites
in the earlier of Song Dynasty” by later generations.
Though “Yilizhixue” started by the three elites
was not perfect. They gave priority to practicing
personally, so they established the foundation of
Neo-Confucianism. What’s more, the study style
advocated by them got rid of the ancient chapters
kept exegetical study style, so they were called the
forerunners of “Lixue”. But the actual inaugurator
of Neo-Confucianism was Zhou Dunyi. He wrote the
book - Interpretation of Tai-chi Diagram in which he
pointed out many elementary statements, such as
the generation and development of the Universe,
the prevalence of the Principle of Heaven and life of
‘Question and Answers about the Catalogue of Books (Shu mu
da wen)’, Saoye Shanfang Stone Printed Edition, 1925
later generations regarded the schools represented
by Zhou Dunyi, Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi, Zhang
Zai, Shao Yong, and Chu Hsi as Lian, Luo, Guan and
Min School. Together with Chu Hsi, Lu Jiuyuan, Lv
Zuqian, Chen Liang, Ye Shi and other scholars were
also famous across the country. Lu Jiuyuan started
“Xinxue”, took “enlightening the mind” as the
principle; he thought that “Mind is Principle”, put
forward “the Universe is my mind and my mind is
the Universe’, which was excellent and outstanding
and had a trend to surpass the philosophies of Cheng
Hao, Cheng Yi and Chu Hsi. Lv Zuqian combined
390
Cultural Contacts
From left: Meng Zi, Han Yu, Zhou Dunyi, Li Ao and Zhang Zai
thought that “Everything only has one Principle of
Heaven”, “the Principle comes out first and then
there comes Xiang, after that, the Shu comes out”;
though Zhang Zai put forward “Nothingness is the
root of the world” and thought that everything was
“Qi”, he also put forward “though the principle is
one thing. It can be reflected differently in different
forms” which meant the Principle existed in Qi.
Chu Hsi said “before the generation of the planet,
there only existing the Principle”, “the Principle is
the root of everything; Qi is the image or form of
everything”. They all regarded the principle as the
root of the Universe and the reason why everything
came into being.
As for what is the principle, Cheng Hao, Cheng
Yi, Chu Hsi, Lu Jiuyuan and Wang Yangming all
had different opinions. Cheng Yi pointed out that
“Human Nature is the Principle”. He said “Human
Nature is the Principle and the Principle is Human
Nature as well’. He also said that “the Principle
belongs to the Heaven, if it is gifted to human, it shall
be called human nature; if it is spoken by human
beings then it shall be called human mind”. Yang
Shi explicated “Xing is 'Human Nature'; action along
the human nature is principle. Human nature, life
and principle belong to one part but with different
name, originally there is no difference. Speaking of
life is the heaven; speaking of the human nature is
the world; speaking of the principle is the action.”
He thought the principle and human nature are the
same and the only difference between them was
that the objects that they adhered to were different.
Chu Hsi spoke highly of Cheng Yi’s opinion — the
Principle is Human Nature, he said “since Confucius,
this statement of Cheng Yi is the most accurate”,
“everything in the world has their nature and
human beings are born with the temperament of
humanness, righteousness and benevolence”, which
combined the Principle and Qi together to the object
of a man. At the same time, he also pointed out that
“Human Nature” is different when it adheres to
different objects and there exists differences between
Nature of the Heaven and Nature of Temperament.
This difference also originated from Cheng Yi. He
said “a man’s nature comes from the heaven and his
the theories of different scholars and was famous
for his various learning; while the theories of Chen
Liang and Ye Shi reflected their minds of obtaining
justice and benefit, which was thought to be the
utilitarianism. Between Jin and Yuan Dynasties,
the trend of study was weakened and there was
no distinguished scholar; until the middle of Ming
Dynasty, Yu Yao and Wang Yangming who were
not successful of being officials started researching
Xinxun, the Neo-Confucian School of Mind. They
followed Lu Jiuyuan’s philosophy, and put forward
the thoughts “Nothing outside the Mind” and “No
principle outside the Mind”, regarded “Conscience”
as the root and emphasised “The Unity of Knowing
and Doing”. Chen Xianzhang, at the same time
with Wang Yangming, came up with “to know the
truth with peaceful and clarified mind”. It also
inherited the trend of Lu Jiuyuan. The Confucians
in Qing Dynasty just inherited the theories of
former Confucians and didn’t put forward any
other excellent theories, and they even criticised
that Xinxue in Song and Ming Dynasty was empty,
and then restored the chapters kept exegetical
study style in Han and Tang Dynasty. However,
the Neo-Confucianism didn’t vanish, it only existed
weakly. Listed in Zhang Zhidong’s book, Questions
and Answers about the Catalogue of Books, there
still were 22 Confucians. During the period of
Republican of China, there were many scholars who
were famous for their Neo-Confucianism theories,
such as Ma Yifu, in Kuaiji, etc. The main schools of
Neo-Confucianism in Song and Ming Dynasty can be
summarised with eight words, and they are “Lian,
Luo, Guan, Min and Cheng, Chu, Lu, Wang Schools”.
Zhou Dunyi pointed out the theories of Tai Chi,
Yin and Yang, and the run of five phases in his book
Interpretation of Tai Chi Diagram. He used the concept
of “Tai Chi” first in this book, and established the
elementary theme of Neo-Confucianism. Shao
Yong once said “the nature of Tai Chi is unchanged
permanently, however, everything in the world
changes all the time”, which also regarded Daoism
as Tai Chi, and regarded “mind” as Tai Chi. But
Cheng Hao and Cheng Yi didn’t talk about Tai Chi,
they put forward “the Principle of Heaven”, they
391
Cultural Contacts
by greedy, it is just the human mind”. He thought
“Path-Consciousness comes from the Principle and
Human Mind comes from the human body, so even
the sages cannot get rid of human mind”. However,
Lu Jiuyuanput forward totally reversed opinion, he
said “everyone has one mind, can anyone possesses
two minds?” Wang Yangming also thought
“Everyone only has one mind, and if his mind is not
affected by bad things, then it can be called PathConsciousness. However, if it is affected badly, it
is only called popular feeling. If a man could keep
his faith firmly, than he has the Path-Consciousness,
but if he lost his Path-Consciousness, then he just
possessed dominant feeling. This means that no one
has two minds”.
The prevalence of Buddhism has promoted the
new development of Confucianism. On the one
hand, the Confucians in Song and Ming Dynasty
tried to establish their own philosophy to compete
with Buddhism, and they formed their own
theories; on the other hand, some Confucians were
deeply inspired by Buddhism, and they deepened
Confucianism theory. Zhang Zai pointed out “Taixu
is mind” to repel Buddhism, because Buddhism had
the saying of “Everything in the world is illusory”.
Chu Hsi used sentences in Buddhism to interpret the
features of mind and good quality, such as “People
who are indifferent to fame or wealth can sense
everything”, “Human’s nature is rational, so they
can handle everything”, etc. This kind of action
was mocked by Buddhists in Ming Dynasty, they
mocked that Chu Hsi learned from Buddhism and
looked down upon it at the same time. Chu Hsi used
the metaphor “The Moon Reflected in All Rivers” of
Buddhism to interpret “Li Yi Fen Shu”, which means
that everything was included in Tai Chi completely.
He said, “Tai Chi is only one single object, however,
everything has its own nature and they are all reflected
in Tai Chi. It is similar to the moon, which is the only
one existed in the sky, however it can be reflected
in all rivers and seen everywhere, but we cannot
say that the moon is divided into different pieces”.
Confucians in Song and Ming Dynasty advocated
the “Idea of Respect”. Cheng Yi said, “improving
self-control needs the idea of respect”, the so-called
respect means that you need to concentrate on the
talents come from his temperament. If he has good
temperament, then he possesses good talents, vice
versa”, thought that human beings were different
from each other because of their temperament,
though they received the same principle of heaven,
there still existed many differences, or in other
way, Human Nature presented by different people
was different from the principle of heaven itself.
Cheng Hao once said “Mind is Li and Li is Mind”;
Xie Shangcai also said, “Mind is the principle of
heaven”. Lu Jiuyuan and Wang Yangming further
claimed “Mind is Li”, Lu Jiuyuan advocated that
“Xinxue” was powerful and should be respected
by people, he said “Mind is the only one. Principle
is the only one as well. Both, Mind and Principle,
are unique and the two of them won’t exist”.
“Everyone has a Mind and Mind is Li. So mind is
Li”. He thought that mind of human beings was the
principle of heaven and due to the impediment of
bad habits, the principle of heaven could not be
spread, and the mind was stifled. Wang Yangming
also said “mind is Li, and is there anything or any
principle that exists beyond the mind?” he thought
that principle existed within the mind, so he
advocated the learning of “To Conscience”. Cheng
Hao and Cheng Yi and Chu Hsi thought that Human
Nature was principle, logically thought that human
nature was not kind, but the principle of heaven
was; Lu Jiuyuan and Wang Yangming thought that
mind is principle, which meant human nature was
kind, but it needed to return to the conscience to
remove bad habits and obtain the original nature.
As for the question of human mind and Taoist mind,
Chu Hsiand Lu Jiuyuan had different opinions; their
divergences reflected in the difference and uniform
of “nature is principle” and “mind is principle”.
“There are many uncertainties in the mind of
human being, and human nature is delicate, so if
you want to understand human nature, you need
to constantly strive for perfection, concentrate on
what you are doing, and adhere to the Doctrine of
the Mean strictly”, this is a sentence in the book of
Shangshu, and it is the thought of the Confucians of
Song and Ming Dynasty and it is very important.
Chu Hsi said “if the Mind can sense the Principle,
then it is Path-Consciousness; but if it is controlled
From left: Cheng Hao, Cheng Yi, Zhu Xi, Lv Zuqian and Lu Jiuyuan
392
Cultural Contacts
thing that you are doing, and don’t be tempted by
outside things, and advocated meditation, and used
meditation to practice Confucianism theory and
improve self-cultivation. The idea of respect is similar
to the Meditation Kung fu of Buddhism. Meditation
was rare used by the Confucians in Pre-Qin Period
and Han and Tang Dynasty, but the Confucians in
Song Dynasty regarded it as a way to improve selfcultivation. As the forerunner of Neo-Confucianism,
Cheng Hao obtained his learning from researching
the Six Classics, “research the Buddhism for decades
with no achievements, however, obtain a lot after
researching the Six Classics”. Thus, Buddhism
has profound influence on the establishment of
Neo-Confucianism.
(Jiang Julang)
Jainism
Tirthankara Mahavira
As one of the three major unorthodox schools
of thought in ancient India, Jainism can trace
its theoretical roots back into time immemorial.
However, Jainism as an independent and fullfledged religion did not emerge until around 6th
century CE. Being popular throughout the entire
Indian history, Jainism remains an influential
religion in the country to this day. It spread to China
along with Buddhism, where it attracted a huge
amount of attention in the philosophical sphere of
ancient China.
History and Representative Literature
Certain Jain theories can be traced back to
Upanishadic era or even earlier. Most Jainists tend
to hold that Jainism has multiple founding masters
or siddhas, who laid down the most basic seminal
theories of the religion. According to relevant
records, there were 24 “Tirthaṅkaras” in Jainism,
including Rsabhadeva (1st Jain Tirthaṅkara),
Ajitanātha (2nd Jain Tirthaṅkara), Pārśvanāth (23rd
Jain Tirthaṅkara) and Nirgrantha-jñātaputra (24th
Jain Tirthaṅkara). In fact, most “Tirthaṅkaras” are
just fictional characters, with only the 23rd and 24th
ones being actual historical figures.
The actual founder of Jainism is Vardhamāna
(around 6th century BCE) ie 24th Jain Tirthaṅkara,
Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. Vardhamāna is the birth
name of Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. According to
some scholars, the sect led by Pārśvanāth (23rd
Jain Tirthaṅkara) was also known as “Nirgrantha
sect”. Vardhamāna enforced a series of active
reforms in Jainism, nurturing it into one of the
most influential religious sects in ancient India. In
recognition of his significant contributions to the
establishment and development of Jainism, he was
widely hailed by his followers as Mahāvīra (“Great
Hero”). Opinions differ regarding the exact date of
Vardhamāna’s birth and death. Some believed him
to be a contemporary of Shakyamuni. Born into a
Kshatriya family, he became a monk at the age of
30 and for the next 12 years he practiced intense
meditation and severe penance and after achieving
Kevala Jnana or enlightenment, travelled around to
preach Jainism and died at the age of 72.
Around 6th century BCE, a massive anti-Brahmin
movement emerged in ancient India spawning a
large number of thinkers who proposed all kinds
of brave new ideas. According to relevant records,
there were over hundreds of significant thinkers
active at the time, with the most influential ones
being the renowned “Six Masters”, including
Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. Thanks to his painstaking
efforts and other early members of Jainism, the
sect gradually grew into an influential religion in
ancient India with a huge following cementing its
position on the Indian philosophical and religious
scene as one of the three major non-orthodox
schools of thought in the country (other two being
Buddhism and the Lakayata school).
Jainism was divided into two sects of Digambar
and Śvētāmbara in about 1st century CE. The monks
of Digambaras practiced naked or “sky-clad”, while
Jain Temple, Gwalior Fort, Madhya Pradesh, India
393
Cultural Contacts
A lot of historic records concerning Jainism
survive, both in India and China. Among the earliest
Jain texts are 14 Purvas and 12 Anga. Purva means
before, referring to the foundational texts that
emerged earlier; while Anga means a limb ie a part
of the canon. However, 14 Purvas and one Anga have
been lost, so the current Jain canon only consists of
11 Anga. The Śvētāmbara sect considered 11 Anga
canonical, about which Digambar disagreed.
In addition to 11 Anga, Jainism also has large
bodies of literature, with the most important
ones including Pancastikaya-sara and Pravachanasia by Kundakunda (around 1st century CE);
Tattvarthadhigamasutra by Umasvati (around 5th- 6th
century CE) which was regarded by both Śvētāmbara
and Digambar as canonical; and Nyqyqvatqra by
Siddhasana Divakara (around 8th century CE).
Additionally, such Jain monks as Haribhadra Suri
(around 8th century CE) and Hemacandra (around
11th - 12th century CE) also wrote many Jain texts.
Chinese Buddhist scriptures including Dirghagamasutra,
Madhyama-agama,
Samyuktagama-sutra,
Ekottaragama-sutra,
Abhidharmamahavibhasa-sa
Sutra,
Mahaprajnaparamita-shaskra,
Yogacarablumi Shastra and Prakaranaryavaka, also contain
information on Jain activities and theories.
Main Theories - Śvētāmbara and Digambar sects
both left large collections of Jain literature but
there are also many Jain texts that are not jointly
recognised by the two sects. According to the book
“Tattvarthadhigamasutra”, where the major Jain
theories were intensively presented and elaborated,
the Jain theoretical system mainly concerns the
following few issues: seven tattvas; Jiva and Ajiva;
five kinds of Jnana (Mati, Sruta, Avadhi, Manah
paryaya and Kevala); Seven naya (Sapta Bhanga, or
seven-fold judgment); reincarnation and release; and
social ethics.
Indian ascetics
those of Svetambara were always white-clad. Some
Buddhist literature referred to Digambar as “a
school of naked practitioners”. It put an inordinate
emphasis on ascetic practices and required its
practitioners to strictly abide by its “no private
wealth” rule, going so far as to count one’s clothes
as “wealth” and demand their removal too. The
earliest representative figure of the Digambar sect
is Bhadrabahu.
Śvētāmbara sect also endorsed ascetic practices,
though more moderately than the Digambar sect,
at least, in terms of clothing - they insisted their
practitioners wear white clothes. The earliest
representative figure of the sect is Sambhutavijaya.
The Digambar and Śvētāmbara sects mainly differ
in their interpretations on rules and disciplines and
don’t otherwise contradict each other too severely.
The two sects further broke down into quite many
sub-sects in the ensuing centuries.
Before 13th century CE, Jainism was spread
throughout of India, even counting quite a few
kings among its followers and supporters. Though
by no means a dominant religion in ancient India,
it developed a massive following among Indian
civilians.
Popular throughout the Indian history, Jainism
was once a huge influence not just among the
ruling elite, but also among the downtrodden and
exploited lower-class people. Thwarted just like
other indigenous religions in ancient India by the
Islamic penetration of the South Asian subcontinent,
Jainism’s influence gradually dwindled in the
years that followed. However, as an independent
religious sect, it managed to survive throughout
the ages in India. Its doctrines continued to exert
influence well into contemporary times in the
country. Many prominent politicians and thinkers
in contemporary India, including Mahatma Gandhi,
had been profoundly exposed to the influence
of Jain doctrines. Jainists also hold considerable
economic and political sway in modern India.
Seven Tattvas
Jain metaphysics is based on seven truths or
fundamental principles, also known as tattva or
navatattva, which are an attempt to explain the
Dirghagama Sutra (Chang Ahan Jing)
394
Cultural Contacts
Samvara refers to the stoppage of Asrava.
Nirjara refers to preventing karmic particles from
seeping into Jiva through ascetic practices.
Moksa means liberation, salvation or emancipation
of soul, completely free from the karmic bondage,
the attainment of true and pristine nature of infinite
bliss, infinite knowledge and infinite perception.
The various philosophical theories of Jainism
are mainly derived from, or build upon, the
interpretations on “Seven Tattvas”.
Jiva and Ajiva
Jain views on worldly things or phenomena are
mainly contained in the notions of Jiva and Ajiva,
two of the Jain “Seven Tattvas”. Their contents
actually constitute the basic theories of Jainism on
the natural philosophy front.
The so-called Jiva in Jainism is roughly equivalent
to something that exists eternally in living bodies,
and is also different from the “self” (soul) in other
religious sects. According to such Jain texts as
Tattvarthadhigamasutra, Jiva does not just exist in
living bodies, but also resides in non-living entities.
Jainism divides Jiva into two types: one is stuck
in reincarnation cycle; the other is liberated. The
“reincarnated” jiva is further divided into Trasa
jiva (mobile jiva) and Sthavara jiva (immobile jiva).
Sthavara jiva exists in earth, water and plants,
while Trasa jiva exists in animals that possess more
than one sense-organ. Thus, the “reincarnated”
jiva exists in virtually everything, including living
things and non-living things, like earth and water.
Therefore, it can be said that Jainism had actually
proposed a belief that “everything is alive”, which
is a notion highly representative of the religion.
The liberated jiva apparently refers to the souls
that have broken free from material bondage.
It is a fundamental goal of Jainism to free Jiva
from bondage.
The so-called Ajiva is mainly comprised of four
parts: Dharma; Adharma; Akasha and Pudgala, all of
which are important Jain concepts concerning the
state or forms of existence of things.
In
regard
to
dharma
and
adharma,
Tattvarthadhigamasutra 5.17 explains, “the role of
dharma and adharma, is to help motion and rest,
respectively”. According to Jainism, things can
move and rest due to the presence of dharma and
adharma. The two concepts were also mentioned
by other Indian schools of thought; for instance,
the Vaisesika dharma and adharma are equivalent
to karma, and are related to one’s actions. Jainism
does not espouse such an interpretation and only
considers them the condition or cause for motion
and rest of things.
Concerning “Akasha”, Tattvarthadhigamasutra
5.18 states, “akasha provides shelter for all other
Jain lady holding a fly-whisk; Indian miniature painting
nature and solution to the human predicament. The
knowledge of these truths is essential for the liberation
of the soul. Accordingly, Tattvarthadhigamasutra first
proposed the Seven Tattvas which includes Jiva,
Ajiva, Asrava, Bandha, Samvara, Nirjara and Moksa.
Jiva mainly refers to the main actors to be
reincarnated and released in life phenomena.
Jainism divides Jiva into two categories: nonliberated jiva; and liberated jiva. The former only
exists in regular objects, while the latter dwells in
human bodies or bodies of other living things, who
can achieve liberation and release through practices
and making efforts to learn truths.
Ajīva are the five non-living substances that
make up the universe along with the jīva, reflecting
Jainism’s basic views on worldly phenomena.
Asrava refers to the influx of karmic particles into
Jiva. Jainism held that karmic particles stem from
one’s actions;
Bandha refers to the binding of karmic particles
to Jiva.
Jain treatise on astronomy in Devanagari
395
Cultural Contacts
Atman/Brahman are essentially one and the same.
In contrast, in interpreting “Jiva”, Jainism never
made the claim that only Jiva is real and all things
are unreal.
From the Jain interpretations of Jiva and Ajiva,
we can see the basic theoretical paradigm Jainism
developed on the issue of universe or worldly
phenomena. The religion held that jiva is a spiritual
substance that will never perish. It exists in both
human bodies and other animals and plants, even
in such non-living things like earth, water, fire and
wind. Ajiva contains the basic material elements
(atoms) that constitute all type of things in the world,
and also contains dharma and adharma, which,
respectively, are responsible for making things
move and making things rest. The concept also
contains space and time, which provide necessary
conditions for things to exist. This kind of Jain
theory had actually done a fairly good job analysing
in a systematic manner the basic composition and
forms of existence of natural things.
Kalpa Sūtra, Jainism
things.”Jainism used the concept of Akasha in
explaining “space”.
Concerning “Pudgala”, Tattvarthadhigamasutra
5.19-25 explains, “the function of Pudgala is to
form the basis of the body and the organs of speech
and mind and respiration, and also to contribute
to sensuous pleasure, suffering, life and death of
living beings”. As we can see, “Pudgala” in Jainism
actually means “matter” as the fundamental
elements of worldly things and is of the form of an
atom and of the form of an aggregate. Atom was
actually considered by most ancient Indians as the
smallest unit for each type of matter, a theory that
was later adopted by many schools of thought.
Jainism also tackles the issue of “time”.
Tattvarthadhigamasutra 5.22 says, “The function of
time is to assist substances in their continuity of being
(through gradual changes), in their modifications,
in their actions and in their proximity and nonproximity in time”, which represent an important
Jain theory on the forms of existence of things.
Jainism regards Dharma, Adharma, Akasha,
Pudgala and Jiva as the five eternal substances
(draya’s), pointing that the fundamental elements
of universe are the five substances plus time.
Tattvarthadhigamasutra 5.1-4 states, “Dharma,
adharma, akasha and pudgala constitute the Ajiva.
They are called drayas or substances. Jivas are
also substances. The five substances are eternal in
nature and they, along with time, form the whole
universe.”
The Jain theory of “jiva” and “ajiva” represents
the religion’s view on categorisation of worldly
things. The theory is a kind of Anamabhavada
theory, contending that things form resulting from
the combination of numerous kinds of elements,
including both material and non-material elements.
The Jain concept of “Jiva” contains undertones
of reincarnation or release; however, the Jain
“Jiva” is distinct from the concept of “Atman” or
“Brahman” in the mainstream Brahmin philosophy.
The Jain jiva exists in all kinds of things, or
achieve release and break away from bondage;
while the Brahmin “Atman” or “Brahman” refers
to the things themselves, assuming that things and
Five Kinds of Jnana
The Jain epistemology contains certain religious
elements, emphasising sense-perception and
considering it a sure path leading toward
enlightenment. Accordingly, Tattvarthadhigamasutra
proposed five kinds of Jnana ie Mati, Sruta, Avadhi,
Manah paryaya and Kevala.
Mati-Jnana refers to knowledge acquired through
the senses. The Jain “senses” mainly mean such
external organs as eyes, ears, nose, tongue and
body. “Mind” is an internal organ, which normally
plays the role of directing external organs to convey
externally acquired information to the “knower”.
Sruta-Jnana refers to scriptural (articulate)
knowledge derived through language, symbols,
Basic Division of Universe according to Jainism, a 15th century painting
396
Cultural Contacts
which Avadhi knowledge is directly acquired is not
high enough.
In framing its “five Jnana” theory, Jainism was
actually trying to emphasise that: the capacity of
human organs to understand things is limited, and
might very likely give rise to misconceptions or
incorrect perceptions. To attain perfect knowledge
one must eliminate reliance on sense organs and try
to directly perceive or intuit.
Seven naya (Sapta Bhanga, or
seven-fold judgment)
Epistemologically, Jainism proposed a sevenfold judgment theory, positing that things could
be judged as falling under either of the following
seven categories: existent; non-existent; existentcum-nonexistent; indescribable; existent and
indescribable; non-existent and indescribable; and,
existent-cum-non-existent and indescribable. It also
held that things are subject to constant change, and
due to the fact that things are diverse in terms of
location, time and attribute, word Syät (“probable”,
“perhaps”, “maybe”) shall be prefixed to each of these
seven predications to prevent the proposition from
being absolute. A fairly representative Jain work on
this theory is Syadavadamanjari by Malisena (around
13th century CE).
The Jain seven-fold judgment is obviously of
regular worldly knowledge and. therefore. cannot
be relied on to attain absolute truth. According to
Jainism, any judgment or mode of understanding
regular, worldly knowledge is limited, hence the
prefix Syat. Theoretically, this theory has elements
Jainism: History, Society, Philosophy and
Practice (front cover)
signs, etc. Without using such external organs as
eyes and ears to directly sense external objects,
knowledge can nonetheless be gained by examining
and comprehending words contained in scriptures
or said by gurus, teachers or prophets. Sruta shall
be based on Mati.
Avadhi-Jnana refers to direct perception of self,
time and space. It is a natural born and direct
perception of things and shall be distinguished
from the faculty of perception assumed by regular
living bodies. The object of Avadhi can be ordinary
material-based things.
Manah paryaya-Jnana refers to mind-reading ie
direct perception of what people thought about in
the past and what people will ponder in the future.
Jainism believes that the object of Manah paryaya is
minuscule and subtle.
Kevala, or Ominiscience, refers to knowledge of
all substances in all their modes: past, present and
future, unlimited as to space, time and object. It is a
state of highest perfection in Jainism, in which one
has boundless vision. This kind of state can actually
be construed as a state of liberation. Kevala can only
be attained by eliminating karma.
In analysing the five Jnana, Jainism posited that
the first two Jnana are indirect, while the last three
ones are direct. Mati, Sruta and Avadhi are prone
to errors, while Manah paryaya and Kevala are
error-proof.
According to Jainism, knowledge acquired through
organs and speech normally has to pass through a
medium and therefore is prone to distortions and
mistakes. In contrast, direct acquisition of knowledge
without the aid of such medium as organs or speech
is more impervious to error. The reason why Avadhi
is also considered error-prone is that the degree to
Wheel of Life, Tibetan thangka
397
Cultural Contacts
Karma which is an invisible force or a small
particle that will exert influence on one’s afterlife
and lead to painful reincarnation. To exit the cycle
of reincarnation one must try and suppress his or
her actions. Tattvarthadhigamasutra 1.1 states that
“Samyag Darshan (Right Belief or Perception),
Samyag Jnan (Right Knowledge) and Samyag Charitra
(Right Conduct) together constitute the path to
liberation.” The so-called Samyag Darshn means to
understand and uphold such basic Jain theories as
Seven Tattvas; the so-called Samyag Jnan means to
acquire wisdom or right knowledge by means of the
last two of the Jain Five Jnana; and the so-called
Samyag Charita means to observe and abide by such
Jain code of discipline as the Five Vows, including
its rules of acetic practices. Taken altogether, this
theory is similar to the liberation theory advocated
by other Indian religious sects and can be described
as a “wisdom-based liberation” theory.
Social Ethics
An ascetic in Rajasthan, India
The Jain social ethics theory is mainly reflected
in their vows. Tattvarthadhigamasutra 7.1 specifies
that “desisting from killing, falsehood, stealing,
unchastity and attachment is the five-fold vow.”
The Jain “Five Vows” are not unlike the codes of
conduct of other religious sects in ancient India. It
is worth noting that Jainism put extra emphasis on
the “no killing” vow, which it enforced most strictly.
Besides, the scope of the vow is also much wider
than that of other sects. For instance, Jainists are
not allowed to kill not just people and animals, but
certain plants as well, which might be attributable to
the Jain theory that plants also contain “jiva”. Quite
some historic records contain passages describing
Jainists as being extremely careful walking out for
fear of hurting small plants.
Jainism is also known for its ascetic practices.
Many religious sects in ancient India endorsed
ascetic practices, but Jainism attached greater
importance to them. Certain Buddhist works contain
extensive references to Jain asceticism.
The “no killing” precept and asceticism of Jainism
were once very well-known in ancient India, and
their influence continues to this day. The “nonviolent” philosophy and ascetic lifestyles popular in
contemporary and modern India can be traced back
to these ancient Jain traditions.
Spread and Influence in China - Jain theories
and ideas spread to ancient China along with
Buddhism. Most people in ancient China gained their
first glimpses into the religion through Buddhism.
As a sister religion of Buddhism, Jainism
maintained extensive contacts with Buddhism,
hence the extensive references to Jainism in many
Buddhist texts including both seminal works of earlyday Buddhism and Mahayana Buddhist texts that
of eclecticism or agnosticism. However, it is worth
pointing out that Jainism did not propose this theory
without an ax to grind as an unorthodox system, like
Buddhism, Jainism represents the values, beliefs
and opinions of the middle-to-upper class people
of non-Brahmin origins in ancient India who had
long held a grudge against the Brahmin superiority
and hence tended to reject the Brahmin claim that
canons are absolutely sacred and are not to be
questioned, leading to the Jain tendency to regard
with suspicion all of the judgments that had by then
been widely upheld as “truth” - a tendency that
helps explain why Jainism espoused this particular
seven-fold predication theory.
Reincarnation and Release
Jainism also has its own “reincarnation and release”
theory. Concerning the issue of reincarnation and
cause thereof, Tattvarthadhigamasutra believes that
the action of the body, the speech organ and the
mind is called activity.
Karmic particles generated by one’s activities flow
into jiva and impose bondage thereupon, giving rise
to reincarnation. Karma can be divided into good
karma and bad karma. The former will allow one
to enjoy pleasure and live longer, get born into a
good family; while the latter will subject one to
awful forms of existence. Jainism held that to get
released is to break free from the bondage of all the
karmic particles. And when jiva gets liberated, one
will attain a blissful state of consummation.
This particular Jain theory is actually aligned
with the traditional Indian religious theories that
had emerged since the advent of the Upanishads, all
of them emphasising that human actions produce
398
Cultural Contacts
Six Orthodox Schools
Six orthodox (astika) schools (Liupaizhexue) refer
to six main schools in the Brahmanic philosophy of
ancient India, eg Samkhya, saamkhya-yoga, Vaisesika,
Nyaya, Mimamsa and Vedanta. They respected
the authority of Veda which is regarded as a holy
document by Brahmanism and Hinduism. The origin
of thought has a long history in ancient time. They
have been developed from some thoughts in Vedas
and Upanishads. They have many believers in later
generations, and usually take the main position in
the thought circle. Therefore, they are regarded as
the orthodox schools of ancient India philosophy.
Some thoughts of six orthodox (astika) schools
(Liupaizhexue) already appeared in 1000-600 BCE.
But the formation of their independent schools was
in 300 BCE to the beginning of the Christian era.
Samkhya formed the independent school in about
400 BCE. According to legend, the founder of this
school was Kapila, at that time. At present, the existing
earliest document of this school is the Samkhyakarika, which is a systematic document made by
Isvarakrsna in about 400 CE. The time for karika
is not that early compared with other basic classics
of other orthodox philosophy schools. However,
almost all systematic classics of Samkhya before
they were lost were regarded as the representative
document of ancient Samkhya. Its position is the
same as that of basic classics in general orthodox
philosophy schools. After Samkhya-karika, the main
works of this school are an explanation to Samkhyakarika. The basic theoretical frame of Samkhya is the
so called “two realities and twenty five concepts”
Queen Trishala conceiving Mahavira, Kalpa Sūtra, Jainism
emerged still later on. Large bodies of such Buddhist
works were introduced to China and translated into
Chinese. Some Chinese monks mentioned Jainism
frequently when repudiating or introducing relevant
theories of other schools of thought.
When introducing the “Six Masters” active during
the Buddhist era, the Chinese versions of various
Agama sutras all mention the main founder of
Jainism, Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. Samyuktagamasutra (volume XXXII) and Samyuktagama-sutra
(alternative translation) (volume VII), both contain
an overview of the “no killing” percept advocated by
Nirgrantha-jñātaputra. Ekottaragama-sutra (volume
L) states Buddha’s opinion of Nirgrantha-jñātaputra
— “Nirgrantha-jñātaputra is of a dim, confused and
agitated mind”.
In his book Chenweishilun, Master Xuanzang also
repudiated relevant Jain theories. For instance,
the “saivites” mentioned in the book actually
refers to some early-day Jain thinkers. In its
first volume, the book dedicates some portions
addressing the “saivites” theory, rejecting it as
unreasonable and implausible. In addition, the
book also mentioned some other Jain concepts
when repudiating “ātma-grāha”.
There are also many other Chinese Buddhist works
containing Jain references, which greatly facilitated
Chinese people’s efforts to get to know Jainism and
its theories.
In contemporary and modern China, Jain
theories have also stirred up a lot of renewed
interest. Jainism still has a large following in India,
as is known to those Chinese who have visited the
country. Some Chinese scholars also paid special
visits to Jain temples and interacted with modern
Jainists. Some Indian visitors to China also made
active efforts to introduce the religion to Chinese
people, with relevant Jain literature also brought
to China.
Some Chinese scholars focus their research on
Jainism. Many research papers on Jainism have
also been published in relevant Chinese scholarly
journals. There are also chapters dedicated to
Jainism in books published in China about Indian
philosophy or religions. In Indian philosophy or
culture, courses offered in Chinese universities, Jain
theories are also extensively mentioned.
(Yao Weiqun)
Hetuvidya Nyaya Dvara Sastra, Reign of
Guangxu, 1881 edition
(namely 25 basic concepts in theories of this school Purusha, Prakrti, Buddhi, self control, eye, ear, nose,
tongue, skin, vocal organ, hand, foot, excretory
organ, reproductive organ, heart, fragrant, flavour,
colour, feel, sound, earth, water, fire, wind and air).
Its various philosophical thoughts are included in
this frame. Samkhya holds a parinama-vada theory,
which believed that things in the world and life
were formed by the mutual interaction of material
Prakrti and psychogenic Purusha (two realities).
According to this school, transformed things (other
399
Cultural Contacts
feature of this school is to distinguish the main
category of natural phenomenon by the “padārtha”
(reality corresponding to concept). Ten padārthas
mentioned by this school are: dravya-padārtha
(object), guna-padārtha (static property of object),
karma-padārtha (dynamic state of object), sāmānyapadārtha (common relations among objects), viśesapadārtha (difference relation among objects),
samavāya-padārtha
(indivisible causal relation
between the object itself and its property), śaktipadārtha (make object be able to generate specific
result jointly or independently), aśakti-padārtha
(make object be unable to generate specific result
jointly or independently), sādrśya-padārtha (relative
similarity and difference relations among objects)
and abhāva-padārtha (nonexistence state of object).
In the system of padārtha theory, Vaisesika discussed
paramānu theory, pramāna, view of time and space,
view on similarity and difference, etc. Vaisesika also
pursues liberation. It holds that the understanding of
the highest intelligence of padārtha theory can get
rid of the samsara and reach the supreme good state.
Nyaya formed the independent school in about
100 CE. According to legend, its founder was
Gautama at that time. He wrote the basic classic
Nyaya-sutra for this school. The existing Nyayasutra contained contents added by people in later
generations. It was finally formed in about 300-400
CE. After Nyaya-sutra, books of Nyaya were mainly
explanation and note on Nyaya-sutra. Nyaya takes
the “Sixteen categories (padārtha)” as its basic
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali
(front cover)
23 concepts) form the samsara (world). This world
is full of suffering. If one wanted to be relieved, he/
she had to depend on the highest intelligence of
the “two realities and 25 concepts” of Samkhya to
distinguish Purusha and Prakrti to get rid of samsara
and get relieved.
Saamkhya-yoga formed the independent school
in about 200 BCE. According to legend, its founder
was Patanjali at that time. The basic classic of this
school was the Yoga Sutra of Patanjali. The existing
Yoga Sutra included contents which were added in
later generations and it was finally formed in 300500 BCE. After Yoga Sutra, books of saamkhya-yoga
were mainly an explanation and note on Yoga Sutra.
The appearance of saamkhya-yoga has a theoretical
systematisation on the ancient yoga practice in the
Indus Civilisation period. It also had important
influences on the formation of cultivation theories
of philosophy schools of religion in India. SaamkhyaYoga devotes to restrain the role of the heart to
reach the samadhi state. Its specific cultivation
method is the so called “eight steps of Raja yoga”, eg
Yom, niyam, asan, pranayama, pratyahar, dharana,
dhyan, samadhi. The later three steps of the eight
steps are called “general restrain”. Through it,
people can gain various magical powers, distinguish
Prakrti and Purusha and finally reach the “Dharma
Megha samadhi”. In this samadhi, various samsara
seeds can be destroyed to achieve final release.
Vaisesika formed the independent school in
about 200 BCE. According to legend, its founder
was Kanada in that time. He wrote the basic classic
Vaisesika Sutra for this school. The existing Vaisesika
Sutra included contents which were added in later
generations. It was finally formed in 200 CE. In
about 600 CE, another two important books of
Vaisesika appeared, eg Padarthadharmasamgraha
of Prasastapada and Vaiśesika-daśa-padārthaprakarana of Maticandra. Main philosophical
thoughts of Vaisesika were reflected in the contents
of these three books. The important theoretical
The Purva Mimamsa Sutras of
Jaimini (front cover)
system. The so-called padārtha refers to reality. In
discussing and debating issues, Nyaya put forward
16 basic concepts or categories, eg means of valid
knowledge, objects of valid knowledge, doubt,
purpose, example, conclusion, the constituents of
a syllogism, argumentation, ascertainment, debate,
disputations, destructive criticism, fallacy, quibble,
refutations, and points of the opponent’s defeat.
This 16 padārthas form the basic theoretical frame
400
Cultural Contacts
its founder was Badarayana at that time. He wrote
the basic classic Brahma-sutra for this school.
This school generated many branches later. Each
branch was mainly formed according to different
opinions on the Brahman atman relationship theory
mentioned in documents, such as Upanishad, etc.
These branches mainly are: bhedabheda-vada of
Badarayana, advaita of Sankara (788-820 CE),
Viwistadvaita Vedanta of Rāmānuja (about 11-12th
centuries CE) and Dualism of Madhava (about
13th centuries CE). Bhedabheda-vada holds that:
as the creator or fundamental reason of the world,
Brahman is not the same with Atman. But in the
aspects that any Atman has Brahman property and
anything cannot exist without Brahman, Brahman
and Atman are the same. Advaita holds that:
Brahman or the greater self is the foundation for all
things, and all things are the illusion of Brahman or
greater self. Nothing is independent from Brahman
or greater self. Atman (phenomenal world) is neither
a part of Brahman nor the variation of Brahman. As
a phenomenon of life, numerous Atman and greater
selves are the same thing in nature. They are reflected
differently for body restriction. They are the same
in fact. Viwistadvaita Vedanta holds that: Atman
(small self or the phenomenal world) is the property
or constituent part of Brahman (entity or whole).
Although property or a constituent part belongs to
the entity or whole, the property or constituent part
cannot be regarded as unreal. In the meantime, it
shall be realised that, the phenomenal world (small
self) is not void, but is only limited to the property
or constituent part of the highest entity. The highest
entity of objects is the Brahman which cannot be
divided. Dualism holds that: although Brahman is
the foundation, it is not the same with atman and
these two concepts are different. Both of them are
entity in a dualism relationship.
Thoughts of six orthodox (astika) schools
(Liupaizhexue) took the leading position in the
philosophy history in India. They also have great
influence in the thought circle of modern and
contemporary India. Particularly, theories of
Vedanta are still the leading traditional philosophy
in the thought circle of modern India.
In ancient times, thoughts of six orthodox (astika)
schools (Liupaizhexue) were also spread to China
with Buddhism. In Chinese Buddhist sutra, there are
many contents on reporting or criticising thoughts
of these schools. The academic world in modern
and contemporary China also pays much attention
to these schools. There are many research papers
on these six schools in Chinese learned periodicals.
Fundamental classics or document of these schools
have been translated into Chinese in China. There
are also many Chinese research monographs on
these schools. In college curriculum, there are many
of this school. In explaining these padārthas, Nyaya
put forward theories such as categories of four
pramāṇas, basic syllogism for five step method,
reflection and reasons for reasoning and debating
failure, etc. Nyaya regards the intelligence of 16
categories (padārtha) as the basic way for liberation.
Mimamsa formed the independent school in
about 200 BCE. According to legend, its founder
was Jaimini at that time. He wrote the basic
classic Mimamsa-sutra for this school. The existing
Mimamsa-sutra contains contents which were added
by people in the later generations. It was finally
formed in about 100 CE. Earlier explanations on
Mimamsa-sutra were made by Sabara in the 5th
century CE. Main Mimamsa thinkers after Sabara
were Kumārila and Prabhakara in 7th and 8th
century CE. These two people played an important
role for the later development of Mimamsa.
Mimamsa takes the Vedic sacrifice as its main object
of study. They believe the correctness of Veda canon
‘A Brief History of Indian Philosophy’,
Shang Yongtong, 2008, (front cover)
and efficiency of sacrifice. Corresponding to this
standing, the basic thought for this school is the
“sound permanent residence theory”. The so called
sound refers to language, concept or knowledge,
specially refers to language or knowledge of Vedas.
Mimamsa held that this concept and knowledge
was born in nature rather than man-made. It is
permanent and absolute. Common language and
concept is the displaying of the natural sound and
shall on the basis of this natural sound. Mimamsa
emphasises on “sound permanent residence theory”
to prove the immutability and supremacy of Veda
and its thoughts. Mimamsa once largely broke the
theism of ancient India, absorbed and developed the
padārtha theory of Vaisesika.
Main thoughts of Vedanta were put forward in
the Upanishad. But it did not form an independent
school until in about 100 CE. According to legend,
401
Cultural Contacts
on ancient Indian medicine, also mentioned early
Samkhya thoughts in its various chapters.
Many of the surviving records mentioning the
main founders of the school are of a mythical
proportion. For instance, Samkhya karika recorded
in its first half, that “once upon a time, there was
contents on these schools. There are many paper
titles on these schools.
(Yao Weiqun)
Samkhya
Samkhya or sāṃkhya is one of the major philosophical
schools of Brahminism in ancient India. With a long
history in India, the earliest theories or thoughts
of the school were mentioned in some of the most
ancient Indian literature. It became an independent
school of philosophy around 4th century BCE. A
pervasive and strong influence throughout India’s
intellectual history, the theories postulated by the
school had long been a subject of wide interest in
the country’s philosophical community. It spread to
China along with Buddhism.
Theoretical Evolution and Major Texts
The word, Samkhya, is based on the Sanskrit word
sāṃkhya, which arguably has multiple meanings.
Some claimed that it had something to do with
“number” or “enumeration” as the school specifies
the number and nature of the ultimate constituents
of the universe, around which it built its basic
theoretical system. Still others contended that the
word meant “search” or “reflection”. In Chinese
Buddhist scriptures, in addition to being referred
to as Samkhya, the school was also variously called
“Jiapiluo Lun”, “Yuzhong Waidao”, or “Seng Qu”.
According to relevant Sanskrit records and
Buddhist scriptures, the school was founded by
Sage Kapila, a legendary figure whose existence was
widely debated. Some scholars who believe in his
existence speculate that he lived around 4th century
BCE. However, the school was determined to
originate earlier than that. Some Samkhya theories
were believed to have come from the Shvetashvatara
Upanishad, which contains explicit references to the
theories of early-day Samkhya school. Some Samkhya
ideas can be traced back to the Vedic period. The
Sanskrit epic, the “Mahabharata” (especially the
“Bhagavad Gītā”), contains rich details of the school.
In addition, “The Caraka Saṃhitā”, a huge treatise
Swami Vivekananda
a divine figure called Kapila, who descended into
the world from the sky”. And in its second half,
it went on to go through the school’s genealogy
with Kapila unequivocally credited as the very
first founding sage of Samkhya, and then it was
passed to Asuri, Pañcaśikha Garga, Uluuka and
Isvarakrsna. And among the various “founding
fathers” of the school, the one who played the
most important role in spreading Samkhya was
Isvarakrsna (4th century CE).
The earliest foundational texts of the Samkhya
school never survived including one particularly
important - Samkhya work, Sastitantra. The earliest
extant work that offers a systematic exposition of
the school is the Samkhya-karika by Isvarakrsna.
Although created hardly any earlier than the
foundational texts of other orthodox schools of
philosophy in ancient India, due to the fact that
most of the major Samkhya texts had been lost
before the book, it had been widely considered the
foundational text of the Samkhya school. Following
Samkhya-karika, the most significant Samkhya works
primarily comprised commentaries on the book,
with the five existing ones being: Suvarṇasaptati,
or Treatise on the Golden Seventy (translated into
Chinese by Paramārth in 6th century CE); YuktiDipika by unknown author (around 6th century
CE); Gaudapada-bhasya (around 7th to 8th centruries
CE); “Mathara-vrtti” (slightly later than Gaudapadabhasya); and Tattvakaumudi by Vacaspati Misra (9th
century CE). The major text of the later Samkhya
school is Samkhya-sutra, rumoured to be authored
Bhagavad Gita, Chinese edition (front cover)
402
Cultural Contacts
roles of the three gunas and the interrelationship
among them. Samkhya theories had long been
widely regarded as a distinctive part of Indian
orthodox philosophy.
Main Theories - According to the Samkhya-karika
and commentaries thereon, the basic philosophical
system of the Samkhya school can be characterised
by dualism and 25 tattvas. “Dualism” refers to
the two ultimate realities, Prakriti, matter and
Purusha, self (spirit), advocated by the Samkhya
school, while 25 tattvas are the 25 basic concepts
(including Dualism) of the philosophical system of
the Samkhya school. The school considered its basic
concepts as “reality” and “truth”, hence the name
tattvas (Sanskrit word for “reality”, “realness” and
“truth”). Into this philosophical system built around
dualism and 25 tattvas, the Samkhya school had
also incorporated a series of important sub-theories,
including Pre-existence of effect in cause theory, Three
gunas theory, the Three Pramāṇas theory (Pratyakşa,
Anumāna, and Śabda), and the reincarnation theory.
Transformation Theory (Dualism and 25 tattvas)
- The Samkhya upheld a “transformation” theory,
claiming that all things, creatures or phenomena in
the world are transformed from a certain kind of
fundamental cause. The process of transformation
concerns two “ultimate realities” and 25 basic
concepts (aka Dualism and 25 tattvas), with
“dualism” referring to “Prakriti” and “Purusha” and
“25 tattvas” meaning Purusha (Transcendental Self),
the uncreated (unmanifest) Prakriti (primordial
nature), Mahat/Buddhi (intellect), Ahamkara
(ego, consciousness of self), Manas (mind), the
five sense-organs, the five motor-organs, the five
subtle elements and the five gross elements. These
Tattvas are involved throughout the process of
transformation of objects.
Prakriti is a material entity, while Purusha is a
spiritual one. The interplay of the two gives rise
to all the phenomena in the world. When affected
by Purusha, Prakriti will lose its inner balance,
leading to the occurrence of all kinds of worldly
phenomena. Prakriti gives birth to buddhi (rational
part or judgmental part of the mind), which further
cites ahankara (self-awareness or I-am-ness). This
on the one hand, engenders ekadasa — indriya
(11 indriya) ie sight, hearing, smelling, tasting,
touching, speech, hand, foot, anus, genitals and
mind and on the other hand, begets five panca —
tanmatras ie sound, touch, colour, taste, and odour
or smell which further generates five Bhutas, ie
space, air, fire, water and earth.
A typical philosophical system built around the
theoretical core of “transformation”, “dualism and
25 Tattvas” theory constitute a unique philosophical
perspective on the occurrence of life phenomena
and the creation of the world in ancient India.
The Six Paths of Metempsychosis, Dazu Rock
Carvings, Chongqing
by Kapila, but actually penned by some unknown
author between 14th and 15th century CE. Significant
commentaries on the sutra include, Samkhya-sutravrtti by Aniruddha (15th century CE) and Samkhyapravacana-bhasya by Vijnana-bhiksu (16th century
CE). Important works of later Samkhya school also
include Samkhya-sara by Vijnāna-bhik su. In addition,
there is also a Samkhya text by an unknown author,
called Tattvasamasa, which is widely considered a
key text of the later-day Samkhya school.
The later-day Samkhya school was heavily
influenced by the Vedānta school, and also absorbed
quite some elements from Yoga Sutra. The Samkhya
school during this period differed from the early
Samkhya school mainly in that the concept of
“Isvara” was introduced, reflecting the school’s
efforts to seek middle ground between monism
and dualism.
An important philosophical influence in ancient
India, the theories of this school received a
heavy dose of scrutiny from other schools of
thought. For instance, many Buddhist and Vedanta
thinkers once actively analysed and criticised the
Samkhya theories.
The philosophical theories of the Samkhya school
also exerted some influence on the intellectual
scene of contemporary India. In modern India,
during religious and social reform movements,
certain thinkers or philosophers, when engaging in
social activities or building philosophical systems,
had heavily absorbed or borrowed from Samkhya
ideas. For example, such famous philosophers in
contemporary India as Vivekananda and Aurobindo
Ghosh all conducted serious analyses of Samkhya
theories. Vivekananda held that dualism was the
most prevalent philosophical viewpoint in India,
in actuality considering the dualistic theory of the
classic Samkhya school as natural. Additionally, he
also extensively borrowed from Samkhya theories in
expounding his epistemology. When studying the
yoga school, Ghosh also scrutinised a key concept of
the Samkhya shool ── three gunas (tamas, sattva,
and rajas), and talked about the significance and
403
Cultural Contacts
person can they progress together. Likewise, only by
combining Prakriti and Purusha can the 23 tattvas of
Samkhya be created, thereby giving rise to all things
in the world.”
In the Samkhya school’s “transformation” theory,
three gunas are a key concept that plays a significant
role, which concern Prakriti, its transformations, as
well as the root cause therefor.
The Samkhya school held that all things in the
world are composed of three gunas (qualities),
ie sattva, rajas and tamas. Sattva is illumination,
enlightening knowledge, and lightness; rajas is
energy, passion and expansiveness; and, tamas is a
binding force and darkness. The No. 12 of Samkhyakarika described sattva as something that can
illuminate and enlighten; rajas as something that
can build momentum; and tamas as something that
can inhibit and curb.
The school maintained that the three gunas were
subject to mutual inhibition, interdependence,
mutual generation and interaction, and in different
things there might be different compositions of gunas
at work, with a particular guna playing a dominant
role. Prakriti also contains three gunas: when the
three gunas are balanced, Prakriti will remain latent,
but once such a balance is upset, Prakriti will give
rise to all kinds of worldly phenomena. The upsetting
of balance among the three gunas is directly related
to the impact of Purusha on Prakriti.
The “three gunas” theory adopted by the Samkhya
school, which uses conflict and interaction between
different constituents of an object to explain the
creation and development of object, serve a uniquely
distinctive philosophical approach in ancient India.
A large number of philosophical sub-theories fall
within the theoretical framework of “dualism and
25 tattvas”, with the most representative ones being
the “pre-existence of effect in cause” (Satkaryavada)
theory, the pramāṇa (means of valid knowledge)
theory and the reincarnation theory.
“Pre-existence of Effect in Cause” Theory
(Satkaryavada) - The Samkhya school upheld
a “transformation” theory with regard to the
creation of the world, claiming that all things and
phenomena in the world can be attributed to a
fundamental cause. And accordingly, in terms of
causation, it espoused a “pre-existence of effect in
cause” theory (Satkaryavada), which posits that all
things in the world bear the quality of “effect”, with
all “effects” being merely the transformations of
“causes”. The effect has already existed in the cause,
with cause and effect being the explicit and implicit
states of the same substance. To illustrate this with
a revealing analogy: as fruit comes from seed, seed
shall be the “cause” and fruit the “effect”. According
to the Samkhya school, however, they are actually
the same thing, with seed being only the latent
A Commentary on Hetuvidya, Qing, Guangxu, Jinling
Scriptural Press, 1896
According to the Samkhya school, the
transformation of worldly objects or life phenomena
is related to both Prakriti and Purusha, though to
varying degrees. Only negative Prakriti can directly
engender objects, with the positive Purusha playing
a collaborative role. The Samkhya school offered
several arguments to prove the existence of Prakriti
and Purusha.
Concerning the existence of Prakriti, the No. 15
of Samkhya-karika explained that “everything in
the world has a limit, for which there must be a
fundamental cause. Things are different, but they
share a commonality that stems from the same
cause. Everything that can be generated must be
attributable to a relevant cause. Cause is different
from effect. All the different objects in the world
are the "effect", from which can be deduced a
different "cause". All things must be attributable to
a fundamental cause, which ultimately makes them
the same thing. Thus, for all these reasons, it can
be established with certainty that there exists the
fundamental Prakriti”.
Concerning the existence of Purusha, the No. 17
of Samkhya-karika explained that “all things gather
up for the sake of a user that differ markedly from
them — Purusha”. The Samkhya school held that
all things in the world were composed of three
gunas: sattva, rajas and tamas, which need one
“commander” that can impart consciousness into
them, and it is Purusha. The body needs something
to rely on, and it is Purusha; and things in the world
are like food waiting to be eaten, and the eater is
Purusha. The school claimed that the world was full
of pain and suffering, and when “liberated” and
delivered, one would feel something separating
from him and it is “Purusha”.
The Samkhya school maintained that for objects to
be created and life phenomena to occur, “Prakriti”
and “Purusha” must be combined. To illustrate
this point, No. 21 of Samkhya-karika analogously
explained that “‘Prakriti’ is like a lame person who
can see but cannot walk, while ‘Purusha’ is like a
blind person who can walk but cannot see. Only by
letting the lame person ride on the back of the blind
404
Cultural Contacts
infer rain. śeṣvat anumāna (antecedent inference) –
when you see muddy water flowing down a river,
you infer a torrential rain upstream. Sāmānyato
dṛṣta (analogous inference) – when you see a tree
blooming in one place, you infer another such tree
is flowering in another place.
Śabda means opinions from reliable people,
luminary and scriptures. In Samkhya school, Śabda
means precept or opinions from the founder of
the school and philosophers of previous generation
in fact.
The Samkhya Pramāṇas Theory and the Pramāṇas
Theory espoused by Buddhism, Nyāya and Jainism
have both noticeable similarities and distinct
differences. For instance, the Samkhya school’s
analysis of Anumāna is not as nearly as complicated
as that by Buddhism and Nyāya, while in categorising
Pramāṇa, Samkhya’s theory is rather similar to that
of Jainism.
Reincarnation and Liberation - Like the majority
of Indian philosophical schools, the Samkhya
school also espoused the theory of “reincarnation
and liberation”. According to samkhya philosophy,
the universe is full of pain and misery. It divided
the state of reincarnation into three realms: demigod realm, animal realm, and human realm. The
school believed that things stuck in reincarnation
cannot rid themselves of pain and misery, and life
has three kinds of pain: Adhatmika; Adibhoutika;
and Adhidaivika.
Adhatmika:
pain
due
to
intra-organic
psychophysical which includes all mental and
physical suffering. For example, bodily suffering
due to wind-heat discomfort and mental suffering
due to love and hate.
Adibhoutika: extra-organic natural causes like
human suffering due to hurt from beasts or landslide.
Adhidaivika:
supernatural
causes
like
human suffering due to cold, hot, windy, rainy and
stormy weather.
According to Samkhya school, liberation means
complete cessation of all suffering. Supposedly there
are numerous ways to achieve liberation, but some
are far from effective or even downright ineffective.
Samkhya states that true liberation can be achieved
only through the correct discriminative knowledge
of reality. Samkhyans believe the key to mokṣa is
differentiating from Puruṣha and Prakṛiti using vivek
(discrimination) by gaining a thorough insight into
the theory of “dualism and 25 tattvas”, which in
turn would lead to renunciation and indifference
to material creation, thus ending the cycle of
reincarnation and obliterating the possibilities
for pain and thereby, achieving true liberation.
Therefore, it can be said that the Samkhyan
literation theory is wisdom-based, as in Samkhya,
the highest wisdom is “dualism and 25 tattvas”, and
condition of fruit and fruit the patent condition
of seed. Seed, before it geminates and grows and
develops into fruit, already contains fruit (preexistence of effect in cause). By extension, it may
be postulated that all things in the world are some
kind of “effect” as transformed from a fundamental
“cause”, in which all phenomena have already
existed long before they actually occur.
The Samkhya school also made persuasive
arguments for the “pre-existence of effect in cause”
theory (Satkaryavada). For instance, the No. nine of
Samkhya-karika lists five basic arguments for this
premise: the first argument, asadakaranat, states
that the effect exists in its material cause before its
production because no one can produce an effect
from a material cause in which that effect does not
exist. For example, no one can press oil without
sesame. The second argument is upadanagrahanat,
which states that because there is an invariable
relationship between cause and effect, material
cause can produce only that effect with which it
is causally related. Only milk can produce yogurt
because milk alone is materially related to yogurt.
The third argument, sarvasambhavabhavat, which
states that there is a fixed rule for the production
or manifestation of things. A certain thing can be
produced only by a certain other thing; it cannot
be produced from just anything or anywhere. For
example, it is impossible to produce gold and silver
from grass. The fourth argument, saktasya-sakyakaranat, states that an effect exists in its cause in
an unmanifested form before it is produced. For
example, potters can manufacture a bottle from
clay. The fifth argument, karanabhavat, states
that if the effect does not exist in the cause, then
that which was non-existent would be coming
into existence out of nothing. For example, malt is
generated from seed.
With a heavy emphasis on the inner relationships
of object during its development process, this
particular causation theory as espoused by the
Samkhya school neglects to address the differences
between cause and effect, thus making it a frequent
target of criticism by other schools of philosophy in
ancient India, including Buddhism, which had made
a continuous effort to repudiate Satkaryavada.
"Three Pramāṇas Theory" - The Samkhya school
attached great importance to means of obtaining
knowledge, which was called Pramāṇa in ancient
Indian philosophy. According to the school,
there are three Pramāṇas, ie Pratyakşa, Anumāna,
and Śabda.
Pratyakşa means direct sense perception; Anumāna
means logical inference and can be further divided
into three kinds. Purvavat anumāna (subsequent
inference) – is that which has an antecedent, a
cause, just as, on account of the dark clouds, you
405
Cultural Contacts
was born in the rainy season, with the followers
called “rain congregation.” Tianzhu Sanskrit
is “Monk Qu She Sa Tan Luo”, called “Shulun”
in Chinese (meaning: number theory), namely
“wisdom number theory” also known as “wisdom
number”; as “numbers” create everything in the
world, with “theory” developed from and creating
the “numbers”, it is also known as “number theory.”
Buddhist Master Puguang also offered a brief
overview of the Samkhya theories in volume 11 of
his “Commentary on Abhidharma-kosa”, with focus
placed on the school’s 25 tattvas. “The Samkhya
clan developed a “25 tattvas”. The first tattva, I (ie
Sanskrit), also known as “normal me” with thinking
as the body, instinct is just a bear rather than
initiator. The other 24 tattvas talk about those bears
or used by me (ie Sanskrit).
The “Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi” translated by Hsüantsang also contains parts repudiating the theories
of the Samkhya school, in which Yogacara thinkers
declared Samkhya theories invalid. For instance,
chapter one of the book states that “if 23 tattvas
are composed of three gunas, then they shall
have no “prakriti” whatsoever, just like woods, as
composed of many trees, or armies, as composed
of many soldiers, have no prakriti”. In addition,
the book also reasoned that “if the 23 tattvas are
substantial, they shall be independent of each other,
just like the three gunas; and if the three gunas are
23 tattvas, they shall be composed of three gunas
too. According to this logic, both the 23 tattvas
and the three gunas are made of multiple elements,
and according to commonly held philosophical
views, things composed of multiple elements have
no prakriti”. The book also challenged Samkhya’s
“three gunas” theory as unreasonable or invalid,
with volume one arguing that “if things are all
made of three gunas according to Samkhyans, then
there shall not be differences between objects,
there shall not be differences between karma,
cognitive object, cognitive way, material elements
and various organs, with one single cognitive organ
sufficient enough to understand everything, and
there shall be no differences between sattva and
tamas, cleanness and dirtiness, and Pratyakşa and
Anumāna”. According to “Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi”,
the viewpoint from Samkhya is absurd, the socalled substance is a product of false ponder and it
should be refuted.
These dedicated parts in Chinese Buddhist
scriptures, either recounting or repudiating
Samkhya theories, along with the Suvarṇasaptati
translated by Master Zhen Di, have allowed
Chinese people some important insights into the
Indian Samkhya school.
The Samkhya theories also received a lot of
scholarly attention in modern China, with the
Vijnapti-matrata-siddhi-sastra
only by acquiring this kind of wisdom can liberation
be finally attained.
There is an intimate relationship between the
Samkhya school and Yoga school. Many Samkhya
practices are heavily yogic, while the Yoga school
draws upon the Samkhya theory of “dualism and
25 tattvas” in establishing its own philosophical
system. The main differences between the two
schools lie in that Samkhya put an emphasis on
the transformation theory, while the Yoga school
attached importance to a religious way of practice.
In addition, the Yoga school also enshrines Shiva as
the Supreme Lord, while the early Samkhya school
didn’t have a creator-god concept at all.
Spread and Influence in China - The theories
of the Samkhya school were spread to China along
with Buddhism and exerted some influence on
the intellectual scene of ancient China. It’s worth
noting that the spread of the school in China was
mostly related to Buddhism. The school had been
violently criticised by Buddhism in its native India,
with Samkhya thoughts widely cited in Indian
Buddhist scriptures. These Indian Buddhist records
were later translated into Chinese and introduced to
China. Some of the major Samkhya texts were also
brought to China by Buddhist monks and translated
into Chinese, including the Samkhya-karika and the
Suvarṇasaptati (translated by Master Zhen Di), the
latter of which had also been incorporated into the
Chinese Buddhist Canon, a phenomenon rarely seen
among Indian philosophical literature, allowing
Chinese people to gain a systematic understanding
of the theoretical framework and characteristics of
the Samkhya school.
Chinese Buddhist scriptures also contain extensive
references to the founders of the Samkhya school
and their theories. For instance, in his “Great
Commentary on the Nyayapravesa”, Kuiji gave a
genealogical account of the Samkhya school, with
its “founding fathers” listed one by one, starting
with Kapila, who, according to the book, “is a divine
figure with yellow-reddish skin”.
“His disciple, a leader in the 18 groups of disciples,
is named Varsya, which means”rain” because he
406
Cultural Contacts
Samkhya-karika translated entirely into Chinese
and the Samkhya-sutra partially translated into
Chinese. Many modern Chinese scholars focus
on the study of the Samkhya school, with some
dealing specifically with the philosophical system
of the school, others concentrating on a particular
theory of the school and still others studying
the relationship between Samkhya theories and
Buddhist theories. Relevant papers have been
frequently published in Chinese scholarly journals
or included in professional proceedings. There are
also chapters dedicated to the Samkhya school in
Chinese books about oriental philosophy.
In Indian philosophy courses offered in Chinese
universities or research institutions, the theories of
the Samkhya school are also extensively mentioned.
Some courses specially deal with Samkhya classics,
while others focus on particular Samkhya subjects.
In addition, some masters’ theses focussed on the
samkhya philosophy, and in some professional
conferences or symposiums held in China, and the
theories of the school or papers published on the
school were also discussed with great interest.
(Yao Weiqun)
Patanjali
contained references or information about the yoga
school. Its ways of practice have long been adopted
by many other Indian schools of philosophy.
However, religious practices of yoga were concluded
and summarised, then became an independent
religious and philosophical school with systematic
theories of its own at a much later date.
It is generally acknowledged that Patanjali was the
creator of Yoga and the school’s earliest foundation
text is the Yoga-sūtra by Patanjali. Containing
additional parts incorporated later, the extant
version of the sutra was compiled between 300 CE
and 500 CE. There was an Indian grammarian active
around 150 BCE who was also named Patanjali. If
this grammarian and the author of the Yoga-sūtra
were the same person, then we can establish with
certainty that the early version of the sutra first
appeared around 2nd century BCE.
After the Yoga-sūtra, classic texts of the yoga school
were mainly comprised of commentaries on the sutra
including the Yoga-sūtra-bhasya by Vyasa (around 6th
century CE), the Tattva-vaisarabi (commentaries on
“Yoga-sūtra-bhasya”) by Vacaspati misra (around
9th century CE), the Rajamartanda by Bhoja (11th
century CE) and Yoga-varttika (commentaries on
Yoga-sūtra-bhasya) and Yoga-sara-samgraha (direct
exposition on the theory of this school) by Vijnanabhiksu (16th century CE).
Following the appearance of Yoga-sūtra and
commentaries thereon, the Yoga School saw
its influence steadily growing. Some new Yoga
classics such as the new upanishads also emerged,
which mainly dwell upon the relationship between
deity, soul and body. In addition, the theories and
ways of practice of yoga were also assimilated and
improved by many other Indian schools of thought.
Except for the Lokayata School, all major schools
of philosophy popular in ancient India have Yoga
elements of their own.
Yoga
As one of the major philosophical schools of
Brahmanism, Yoga has a long history in India, and
can trace its roots back to the early civilisations in
the Indian subcontinent. Some of the most ancient
Indian literatures contain information on the
practice of Yoga. It came into its own and became
an independent school of philosophy around the
mid-2nd century BCE. The theories and ways of
practice of Yoga have long been a subject of wide
interest among all Indian schools of thought. As a
highly influential school of philosophy in India, it
spread to China along with the Buddhism.
Historical Evolution and Foundational Text The word “Yoga” comes from Sanskrit and originally
means “union” or “conjunction”, and by extension,
“conformity with the mento-emotional energy”.
As a religious practice, the Yoga school took its
rudimentary form as early as the period of the Indus
Valley civilisations. At two representative Indus
ruins sites, Mohenjo-daro (Mound of the Dead)
and Harappa, thousands of small seals have been
unearthed, which were mainly used at the time as
clan emblems, lucky charms, or identity indicators.
A few of them even reflect the religious beliefs
practiced then. Some show deities seated in a posture
consistent with the popular Yoga posture we become
familiar with today. Therefore, it can be established
that the practice of Yoga originated from the period
of the Indus Valley civilisations ie 2500 BCE.
Such ancient Indian classics as the Upanishads,
Arthasastra and Sanskrit epic Mahabharata all
407
Cultural Contacts
Ghose also incorporated some new connotations
into its traditional concept by propounding such
concepts as “The Life Divine” and “Integral Yoga”,
all of which were never mentioned or discussed in
ancient yoga literature such as Yoga-sūtra. So it is
fair to say that the Yoga theories had undergone
significant new developments in later years.
The ancient Yoga school also exerted important
influence on Neo-Platonism in the west and religions
in Iran, China, and Japan, which further extended to
still other parts of the world in contemporary times.
For instance, there are now many yoga research
centers in Europe and the United States, with yoga’s
positive role in the field of general healthcare and
fitness also gaining increasing attention.
The Yoga elements inherent in the various Indian
schools of thought partly derive from the ancient
Indian Yoga traditions, and partly from the Yoga
school. Each school was generally influenced by both
aspects. The Yoga school organised and improved
the traditional Yoga practices and theories which
helped promote the formation of religious practice
theories of many Indian religious and philosophical
schools that arose still later.
The theories and ways of practice of Yoga exerted
an influence on both Brahmanism (orthodox school)
and Buddhism (non-orthodox school).
The Vedānta School of the Brahmanism absorbed
a lot of Yoga elements. Many Vedānta thinkers
borrowed extensively from Yoga practices, and
considered the “imported” Yoga elements highly
instrumental in helping them grasp the Brahman.
The Yoga philosophical system is closely allied
with the Samkhya school. There was no concept of
creator-deity in the early-day Samkhya school, but
over time, due to the influence of the Yoga school,
the later-day Samkhya school started to accept the
concept of creator-deity in its philosophical system.
The literature of the Vaiśesika school and Nyāya
school also contains elements of Yoga practices.
Although said two schools never addressed these
Yoga elements as their main subject of interest, they
mentioned them frequently in discussing their own
epistemological concepts or principles.
An important practice of Buddhism, meditation
owes its origin to the ancient Yoga practices. After
the Yoga school emerged, Mahayana Buddhism was
also heavily influenced by the school.
In addition to influencing other schools of
thought, the yoga school was also influenced by
other philosophical schools and absorbed some of
their ideas and theories. Buddhism, for instance,
has been a huge source of influence. The fourth
chapter of the Yoga-sūtra was widely deemed to be
added later, in which a lot of Buddhist elements
were adopted. Therefore, it can be claimed that the
Yoga school and Buddhism have exerted mutual
influence upon each other throughout the course of
their development.
The influence of the theories and practices of the
yoga school still lingered strongly in contemporary
Indian society. Many contemporary Indian thinkers
or philosophers advocated, to varying extents, the
practice of Yoga, including Dayananda Saraswati
(1824~1883), Svāmi Vivekananda (1863~1902),
and Aurobindo Ghose (1872~1950).
It must be pointed out that the concept of "yoga"
in contemporary India had differed greatly from its
ancient concept. For instance, the “yoga” mentioned
by Svāmi Vivekānanda actually refers to all major
aspects of his teachings, including religious beliefs,
ethics, and philosophical doctrines. Aurobindo
Theory and Practice of Yoga
According to Yoga-sūtra and most commentaries
thereon, the theoretical system of the yoga school
is primarily comprised of the following concepts:
mind activities; Samadhi; seer and the seen; eight
limbs; and siddhis.
Aurobindo Ghose
Mind Activities (vrttayah)
Yoga-sūtra defines Yoga as “the mastery of the
activities of the mind-field”, positing that there are
five mind activities: correct perception, incorrect
perception, imagination, sleep and memory.
Correct perception means accurate, truthful general
information in daily life, and may be acquired by
partyaksa, anumana and agama directly.
Incorrect perception is based on false information
and on perception of what is not the true form.
Imagination is verbal information which can
distinguish or divide things and is followed by
concepts which are devoid of reality.
Sleep is the mind-consciousness mode which is
supported by the absence of objective awareness.
Memory is the retained impression of experienced
objects.
According to the definition of yoga contained
in the Yoga-sūtra, it is concerned with attaining a
state of tranquil abiding (Samadhi) free of external
influences, because the five mind activities
are actually the product of external influences
408
Cultural Contacts
of external things, namely to get rid of worldly
pleasures and special, transcendental pleasures
(such as heavenly pleasures). Through “practice”
and “abandonment of desires” one can finally attain
the blessed state of “Samadhi”.
Samadhi - The “samadhi” concept adopted by the
Yoga school means the collectedness of the mind on
a single object through calming and/or increasing
mental activities, also sometimes referred to as
“Samāpatti” in the Yoga-sūtra.
The Yoga-sūtra divides “samadhi” into two types:
“Savikalpa Samadhi” and “Nirvikalpa Samadhi”.
Savikalpa Samadhi: A state of consciousness in
which one knows one’s own consciousness but
remains in a subject-object relationship with the
world.
Nirvikalpa Samadhi: The highest, transcendent
state of consciousness in which there is selflessness,
no-mind, non-duality and the subject-object
relationship momentarily disappears. It is the
highest samadhi-state of non-dual union with one’s
own consciousness.
The Yoga-sūtra also discusses the means to
attaining “Nirvikalpa Samadhi”. The author held that
one must rely on confidence, stamina, introspective
memory, concentration force and profound insight
to reach this blessed state. In addition, “Nirvikalpa
Samadhi” can also be achieved by the method of
profound religious meditation upon the Supreme
Lord. The Supreme Lord is that special person who
is not affected by troubles, actions, developments or
by subconscious motivations. “Of Him, the sacred
syllable āum (om) is the designation. That sound
is repeated, murmured constantly for realising
its meaning. As a result there is inwardness of
the sense consciousness and the disappearance of
obstacles to progress.” These obstacles are disease,
idleness, doubt, inattentiveness, lack of energy and
prone to sensuality, mistaken views, not being able
to maintain the progress attained, unsteadiness in
progression, scattered mental and emotional energy.
Distress, depression, nervousness and laboured
breathing are the symptoms of a distracted state
of mind. For the removal of the obstacles, there
should be the practice of a standard method used
in the pursuit of the reality (tattva). The abstract
meditation resulting from the serenity of the mentoemotional energy comes about by friendliness,
compassion, cheerfulness and non-responsiveness to
happiness, distress, virtue and vice or by regulating
the exhalation and inhalation or by fixing the
mento-emotional energy on someone who is without
craving; or by conduct Dhyana (meditation) on any
random object.
When called “samāpatti”, “samadhi” can be
divided into four categories: savitarkā-samāpatti,
nirvitarka-samāpatti, savicāra-samāpatti and nirvicāra-
A Yoga practitioner, rock carving
(“Xiang”). Both correct perception and incorrect
perception are reflection of external objects and
manifestation of people’s consciousness with
regards to their interaction with the external
world. The “correct perception” mentioned here
refers to a mind activity that correctly reflects the
worldly characteristics of external objects, while
the “incorrect perception” is a mind activity that
incorrectly reflects the worldly characteristics
of external objects; “imagination” is a mind
activity that arises out of differentiating external
objects; “sleep” is a mind activity that is actually
spawned from sleepers’ interaction with external
objects when he or she is awake; and “memory”
is also a mind activity that stems from external
objects, since it is mainly a product of recollection
of external objects. All in all, these five mind
activities cannot exist apart from external objects,
and what external objects manifest is mainly of
an insubstantial, illusive nature, which can only
harass and disturb. In the opinion of yogis, only
by isolating oneself from the influences of illusive,
unreal external objects can one truly attain a state
of physical and mental tranquility.
Although among the five activities there are both
correct ones and incorrect ones, the Yoga school held
that they all posed hindrances to the attainment of
the highest state of wisdom, and therefore should be
suppressed, or put specifically, “eliminated” through
long periods of “practice” and “abandonment of
desires”. “Practice” means to make continuous
efforts to achieve mental tranquility, which requires
the deepest absorption and great exertions to fend
off the external influences; and “abandonment of
desires” refers to the efforts to abandon the pursuit
409
Cultural Contacts
reincarnation is a process of change with a lot of
differential things, therefore, all differential things
belong to affliction. In the opinion of Yoga school,
the generation of reincarnation is related to the two
entities. The Yoga-sūtra states that, “The cause of
what is to be warded off, is the absorption of the
Seer in the Seen.” And the “seer” and “the seen”
here refer to the “prakriti” and “purusha” directly
relating to the reincarnation, respectively.
It is widely acknowledged that the yoga school
borrowed extensively from the Samkhya school,
which held that reincarnation results from the
combination of “prakriti” and “purusha”. In the
philosophical system of the yoga school, the
two entities are called “the seer” and “the seen”,
respectively. Both schools believed that “purusha”
is a spiritual or positive entity, while “prakriti”
is a material or negative entity. When “purusha”
affects “prakriti”, the two will combine, generating
all things or all kinds of life phenomena and giving
rise to reincarnation. During this process, “purusha”
can be called “the seer”, while “prakriti” may be
referred to as “the seen”.
The Yoga school believed that the “Seer” is pure
vision; and “the seen” have manifestation, action,
inertia as their property. They are formed by the
elements and the sense-powers. They make for
experience and for liberation. The very essence of
things seen is that they exist for the Seer.
The school held that the cause for association
of the Seer with things seen is the darkness of
unwisdom. If the darkness of unwisdom were
eliminated, the combination could not exist. In order
to eliminate the darkness of unwisdom and make
the Seer get rid of the Seen, we must obtain the help
of discrimination (viveka-khyati). One significant
commentary on the Yoga-sūtra by Vyasa states
that “viveka-khyati is a perception of the different
nature of ‘prakriti’ and ‘purusha’”. As soon as the
differences between the seer and the seen can be
perceived, the combination of the two will come to
an end, terminating reincarnation, thereby allowing
people to escape sorrow and pain. Therefore, it is
of vital importance to acquire “viveka-khyati”,
samāpatti which in their respective order, represent
a progressive process.
Savitarkā-samāpatti is when the unity, word,
purpose, knowledge and imagination completely
mixed.
Nirvitarka-samāpatti is when the memory is
completely purified and the essential inquiring
nature disappears.
Savicāra-samāpatti
and
nirvicāra-samāpatti
depends on the yogi’s interest in particular subtle
phenomena, approaching to reality of an object.
Though by progressing through the four samāpattis
mentioned above the yogi can achieve a fairly
high level of dhyana, the Yoga school maintained
that these four samāpattis are “seeded Samadhi”,
meaning that although the yogi has gradually
expunged those distractions or impressions, he or
she has not yet completely eliminated the lingering
latent force (seed) resulting from his or her past
karmas. If he or she can go one step further and
eliminate or at least effectively suppress the latent
force inherent in the “seeded samadhi”, the blessed
state of “seedless samadhi” may finally be achieved.
The Yoga School held that the dynamic kriyā yoga
practices which make for union with the Soul are:
austerity, spiritual reading, and complete obedience
to the Master. “Austerity” is an act to purify one’s
mind; “spiritual reading” refers to the reciting of
pure words (such as Om) again and again; and
“complete obedience to the Master” means to
dedicate everything to the Supreme Lord.
The Yoga-sūtra specifies five hindrances: the
darkness of unwisdom, self-assertion, lust, hate,
attachment. The darkness of ignorance is the field of
the others. It is exhibited when what is temporary,
impure, distressful and mundane, is identified as
being eternal, pure, joyful and spiritual, respectively.
Self-assertion comes from thinking of the Seer and
the instrument of vision as forming one self. Lust
is the results from the sense of enjoyment. Hate is
the results from the sense of pain. Attachment is the
desire toward life, even in the wise, carried forward
by its own energy.
The Yoga school maintained that asaya (latent
force) produced by one’s behaviour was rooted in
klesa. From this root there grow and ripen the fruits
of birth, of the life-span, of all that is tasted in life.
As long as people remain in this state, they cannot
escape from sorrow and pain.
Seer and the Seen - The Yoga School held that
sorrow is an integral part of reincarnation, and
therefore, to discuss the reason for reincarnation is
to discuss the reason for the generation of sorrow,
which concerns the basic philosophical theories
held by the Yoga school. The school maintained that
fruits of rejoicing or affliction are sprung from holy
or unholy works done in the past during the process
of human survival. Changes belong to affliction and
Yoga asana
410
Cultural Contacts
Pratyahara refers to the withdrawal of the five
senses from external objects, so as to prevent the
mind from getting distracted by the external world.
Dharana is the fixing of the mind in a single spot
(any chosen object).
Dhyana is a progression of dharana, ie sustained
concentration on the meditated object.
Samadhi is the highest state of wisdom for yogi
practitioners, wherein only the “object” shines
forth in the mind, with the consciousness and the
object become fused together; even self-awareness
disappears in the state of samadhi.
The Yoga school called the first five levels “external
aids to yoga” (bahiranga sadhana), and the last three
“internal aids to Yoga (antaranga sadhana). The
external aids to Yoga, aka bahiranga sadhana, focus
on moral, ethical and physical disciplines; and the
internal aids to Yoga, aka antaranga sadhana (Raja
Yoga), focus on spiritual practices.
The Yoga school attached great importance to the
internal aids to Yoga (antaranga sadhana), believing
them to be “more interior” than the other five. The
three levels of the antaranga sadhana are also called
samyama, by acquiring which one can finally reach
an enlightened state.
Siddhis - Yoga school held that certain types of
miraculous force can be obtained through samyama.
This kind of miraculous force is in essence a
Indian miniature painting of a Hindu ascetic
according to the philosophies of the Samkhya school
and the Yoga school, the latter of which claimed
that to acquire the “viveka-khyati” one will need
to rely on a particular set of yoga practices, ie The
Eight Limbs of Yoga.
The Eight Limbs of Yoga form the structural
framework for yoga practice. They are: the
commandments, rules, right poise, right control of
the life-force, withdrawal, attention, meditation and
contemplation.
There are five commandments that must be
obeyed by the yogi: non-injury, truthfulness,
abstaining from stealing, from impurity and from
covetousness.
The “rules” or “fixed observances” include:
cleanliness, contentment, austerity, study and
persevering devotion to God. From purity follows
a withdrawal from enchantment over one’s own
body as well as a cessation of desire for physical
contact with others. Supreme happiness is gained
via contentment. Impurities can be removed
and special powers can be received in the body
through austerity. By studying and reading, we
can communicate with the Lord. “Samadhi” can be
realised by the persevering devotion to God.
Right poise must be firm and without strain. Right
poise is to be gained by steady and temperate effort
and by setting the heart upon the everlasting. The
fruit of right poise is the strength to resist the shocks
of infatuation or sorrow.
There follows the right guidance of the lifecurrents, the control of the incoming and outgoing
breath. It is regulated according to place, time and
number. Energy-control which goes beyond the
sphere of external and internal is also vital.
Samadhi of Completion: Secret Tibetan Yoga Illuminations from
the Qing Court
supernormal power, aka siddhis. The force differs
depending on the specific objects of samyama. The
Yoga-sūtra mentioned many types of siddhis, which
refer primarily to certain knowledge or abilities
normal people could rarely acquire. For instance,
through samyama on one’s body, one can become
invisible; via samyama on differences between
411
Cultural Contacts
asaya (latent force or momentum) but only a karma
that is “neither white nor black,” which is similar
to “avipāka-karma” in Buddhism. According to
the Yoga-sūtra and other relevant literature, if the
yogi can perceive the difference between the seer
and the seen and acquire the “viveka-khyati”,
and rid themselves of fixation, karma, sorrow and
dirtiness, he may finally achieve the samadhi of
the “dharma-meghah-s” type, in which the “seeds”
will be destroyed, enabling one to break out of
reincarnation cycles, escape pain and get delivered.
Influence in China - The Yoga school made
some improvements and also some systematisation
efforts on the ancient Indian yoga practices which
had exerted a noticeable influence on many popular
schools of religious philosophy in ancient India. For
instance, Buddhism absorbed a lot of elements from
the school. Therefore, when Buddhism spread to
China, the theories and ways of practice of the Yoga
school were also brought to China and went on to
make a noteworthy impact in the country.
The Yoga school emphasised the suppression
of the modifications of the mind which bears
considerable similarity to the Buddhist meditation.
Chinese Zen emphasised that meditation shall be
separated from appearance externally and mind
shall not be influenced internally. In fact, this is the
modifications of the mind required by the yoga school
and generated from the suppression on influence
by external unreal things. Besides, such concepts
as the eight limbs, samadhi and siddhis advocated
by the yoga school also exist in Indian and Chinese
Buddhism in varying forms. The Buddhist essential
Threefold Training in discipline, meditation and
wisdom also overlaps to a large extent with relevant
practices of the Yoga school. The first two of the
eight limbs of Yoga school prescribe rules similar
An illustration from Samadhi of Completion: Secret
Tibetan Yoga Illuminations from the Qing Court
speeches and objects, one can understand animals’
sounds; through samyama on perception, one can
read minds; through samyama on behaviour and
consequences thereof, one can gain valuable insights
into death; via samyama on the latent force, one can
acquire knowledge about his or her former life; and,
through samyama on animals, the sun, the moon,
the stars, body organs and functions thereof, etc
one can accordingly obtain a wealth of supernatural
knowledge and miraculous ability. In addition, one
may also acquire the viveka-khyati to distinguish
between sattva (prakriti) and purusa (purusha).
Once the yogis achieve this particular “vivekakhyati”, he can gain a mastery over all existences
and infinite knowledge. If yogi went further and got
rid of “viveka-khyati”, he could destroy the seeds of
evil and entre into an absolute independent state.
In this state, sattva (prakriti) and purusa (purusha)
have the same nature of cleanness. Both of them
exist independently without combination. Thus
there is no basic condition for reincarnation, which
makes suffering elimination possible. This is a state
pursued by the Samkhya school and the Yoga school.
The Yoga-sūtra also discussed the means to
achieving “siddhis”, claiming that there are five
sources where it derives: firstly, people are born
with it; those who are born with siddhis must have
practiced Yoga in their past lives; secondly, people
acquired it with the help of medicine or herbs;
thirdly, people can achieve it through spells or
incantations; fourthly, people can acquire it through
austerities; and fifthly, people can acquire it via the
samadhi, ie threefold power of attention, meditation
and contemplation.
Among the five sources mentioned above, the
Yoga school put the greatest emphasis on the
fifth one. It maintained that by achieving siddhis
through samadhi, the yogi never left behind any
An illustration from Samadhi of Completion: Secret Tibetan
Yoga Illuminations from the Qing Court
412
Cultural Contacts
originally proposed by the sage Kaṇāda (or Kanabhuk, literally, atom-eater) around 2nd century
BCE, who was also extensively referred to as
“Youloujia” in Chinese Buddhist records. Most of
the information about him contained in existing
records is of a legendary, even mythical, proportion.
For instance, Bailun Shu (“Commentary on the Shata
Shastra”) describes the legendary figure as “Uluka,
to those contained in Buddhist precepts. The state
of “samadhi” pursued by the yoga school is also
close to the Buddhist Dhyāna. The highest wisdom
or truth sought by the school is also highly similar to
the Buddhist “wisdom”. Many such yoga elements
were mixed with relevant Buddhist concepts and
enjoyed wide popularity in ancient China.
The classic texts and theories of the Yoga school
have also received widespread scholarly attention in
modern China. The Yoga-sūtra has been translated
into Chinese, with the theories of the school being
extensively studied by Chinese scholars. A large
number of research papers are being published
every year on the Yoga-sūtra or yoga theories. There
are also many Chinese books that specifically deal
with the yoga school. Some Chinese universities
also offer Indian philosophy or religion courses
that contain information on the yoga school. Some
Masters or PhD candidates in relevant Chinese
universities or research institutions also chose yoga
theories as their thesis or dissertation topic. Besides,
in some professional conferences or symposiums
held in China, the theories of the school or papers
published on the school were also discussed with
great interest.
Among Chinese people, Yoga elements are adopted
primarily with the purpose of boosting physical
wellness, with the practice of Yoga becoming
increasingly popular in the country. Throughout
China, Yoga training programmes or classes are
offered to dedicated and enthusiastic fans.
(Yao Weiqun)
A Commentary on Śata-śāstra
aka immortal of barred owlet, having been born 800
years earlier than Śākyamuni” and “fond of lecturing
during the day and travelling at night. If you want
to keep one, you must feed it in the night and it will
eat with its family dependents”.
Historical Evolution and Foundational Text
- Widely considered the foundational text of the
Vaiśeṣik (Vaisheshika) school of philosophy, the
original version of the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra was created
around 2nd century BCE by Kaṇāda. Containing
additional parts incorporated still later, the extant
version of Vaiśeṣika-sūtra was created around
2nd century CE. Having established some of the
fundamental theories of Vaiśeṣik, the sutra laid the
theoretical groundwork for the school.
Around 6th century CE, there emerged a
significant commentary on the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra,
the Padartha-dharma-samgraha (commentary on
Kanada’s Vaisesika sutra) by Prasastapada, which is
the only extant Vaisheshika literature in India that
offers a systematic exposition of the Vaisheshika
school. Appearing much later than the sutra, it
offers a clearer and richer picture of the theories
of the Vaisheshika school and also proposes a
more complete theoretical framework, having been
widely recognised as the most representative extant
Vaisheshika literature except the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra.
During roughly the same period, another
important Vaisheshika work also appeared, which
is the Daśapadārthaśāstra by Maticandra. The
original text of the book has been lost, with the
extant version being one Chinese translated by
Hsuan Tsang. Created close to the Padartha-dharmasamgraha in time, this book contains descriptive
information about the Vaisheshika system that
differs substantially with that recorded in extant
Vaisheshika
As one of the major philosophical schools of
Brahmanism, Vaiśeṣika, or the Vaisheshika school,
was formed around 2nd century BCE. With a
significant philosophical influence in India, it spread
to China along with Buddhism, where it attracted
great attention from some of the major thinkers in
ancient China.
Theoretical Sources and Relevant Legends The word “Vaiśeṣika”, which is the Sanskrit name
for Vaisheshika, is derived from “Vishesa,” which
means “distinction,” or “distinguishing feature,” or
“particularity.” This school was also transliterated
into “feishishijia” and “pishishi” in ancient China.
In Chinese Buddhist scriptures, it is often referred to
as “Sheng Zong” or “Shenglun Waidao”.
Some of the basic theories of the Vaisheshika
school were covered by certain key philosophical
treatises in ancient India such as the “Brāhmaṇa” and
the “Upanishad”. However, what had contributed
directly to the formation of this particular
philosophical school were the thoughts and ideas of
some Shramana thinkers active in ancient India.
It is generally acknowledged that this school was
413
Cultural Contacts
such directions as east, south, west, north, up and
down. Atman (self) refers to the inner self or soul,
whose existence can be confirmed by inference from
the perception of feelings, breathing and desire.
Manas (mind) is the real sense organ behind the five
senses. When the five senses come in contact with
the external world, perception can (or cannot) be
achieved sometimes, This is the reason why manas
exists.
Guṇa (quality): The Vaiśeṣika-sūtra mentions 17
guṇas (qualities), to which Praśastapāda added
another seven. The original 17 guṇas (qualities)
are, rūpa (colour), rasa (taste), gandha (smell),
sparśa (touch), saṁkhyā (number), parimāṇa (size/
dimension/quantity), pṛthaktva (individuality),
saṁyoga (conjunction/accompaniments), vibhāga
(disjunction),
paratva
(priority),
aparatva
(posteriority), buddhi (knowledge), sukha (pleasure),
duḥkha (pain), icchā (desire), dveṣa (aversion) and
prayatna (effort). To these, Praśastapāda added
gurutva (heaviness), dravatva (fluidity), sneha
(viscosity), dharma (merit), adharma (demerit),
śabda (sound) and saṁkāsra (faculty). While a
substance is capable of existing independently by
itself, a guṇa (quality) cannot exist so.
Karman (action or motion): Motion is of five
types – upward and downward motion, contraction
and expansion and locomotion.
Samanya (universal) is generality. It refers to
nature for the existence of substances.
Visesa (ultimate particularity) is the extreme
opposite of the universal (samanya). It refers to the
ultimate differences of substances.
Samavaya (inherence) is a relation by which
types are held together while maintaining their
own identities, often defined as the relation
between cause and effect. Each padartha shall be
distinguished from concept. However, they should
be unified in substance (reality). It is Samavaya that
can produce this inseparable relationship between
one’s own identity and property.
Ten Padartha Theory - According to the
“Daśapadārthaśāstra”, there are 10 padarthas:
dravya (substance), guṇa (quality), karma (activity),
sāmānya (generality), viśeṣa (particularity),
samavāya (inherence), “śakti”, “aśakti”, “sadrsya”,
and “abhāva”. The first six padarthas are similar to
those proposed by the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra and Padarthadharma-samgraha, and the newly added four
padarthas are defined as follows:
“Śakti” refers to a padartha wherein the innate
interrelationship among dravya, guṇa and karma
enables them to collectively or individually give rise
to particular results. “Aśakti” refers to a padartha
wherein the innate interrelationship among dravya,
guṇa and karma enables them not to collectively or
individually give rise to particular results.
Sanskrit literature of the school, and has long
been a subject of great interest among researchers
and scholars.
After the 10th century CE, the Vaisheshika school
began to merge with the Nyāya school, with a
large body of significant new works emerging,
including: Kiranavali by Udayana (10th century
CE), Nyayakandali by Sridhara (10th century CE),
Saptapadarthi by Sivaditya (around 10th- 11th century
CE), Upaskara by Sankara Misra (15th century CE),
Tarka-Kaumudi by Laugaksi Bhaskara (17th century
CE) and Bhasapariccheda and Siddhanta-muktavali
by Visvanatha (17th century CE).
Since its inception, the Vaisheshika school
has been an important influence in the Indian
philosophical scene, and figured largely in both
Buddhism and the dominant philosophical schools
of Brahmanism. Many Vedānta and Buddhist texts
discuss or refute the theories of the Vaisheshika
school, and therefore constitute valuable sources
of information instrumental in helping people
understand Vaiśeṣika and its philosophical system.
Major Philosophical Theories - The basic
philosophical system of the Vaisheshika school
is built around the concept of “Padartha”, which
means “worldly matter corresponding to concepts”,
with “Pada” meaning “words, speech or concepts”,
and “artha” meaning “things or objects”. Vaisesika
is a system of pluralistic realism, which emphasises
that reality consists in difference. It classifies all
objects of experience or phenomena into several
padartha, or categories. Different Vaisheshika works
tend to adopt different padartha systems, with the
two most widely known ones being the Six Padartha
theory and the Ten Padartha theory. Most of the
specific philosophical ideas of the school fall under
the theoretical framework of “padartha”.
Six Padartha Theory - Major Vaisheshika works
such as the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra and the Padartha-dharmasamgraha (commentary on Kanada’s Vaisesika sutra)
proposed that there are six padarthas (categories):
dravya (substance), guṇa (quality), karma (activity),
sāmānya (generality), viśeṣa (particularity) and
samavāya (inherence).
Dravya means substance or entity, and the
substances are conceived as nine in number. They
are, pṛthvī (earth), ap (water), tejas (fire), vāyu
(air), ākaśa (ether), kāla (time), dik (space), ātman
(self) and manas (mind). earth, water, fire and air
constitute material elements and are composed of
atoms. Ether often means space (sometimes, elements
too) according to Upanishads, but in Vaisheshika it
primarily refers to a particular element on which
sound relies. Time is a real entity according to the
Vaisheshika school and all activities, changes or
modifications can be achieved only through time.
Space is a real entity through which one perceives
414
Cultural Contacts
The Atomic Theory - Atom (Anu) is the smallest
unit of matter postulated by some philosophers in
ancient India. This concept exists in the theories of
many Indian schools of thought, with the atomic
theory espoused by the Vaisheshika school being the
most representative. The Vaiśeṣikas attached great
importance to “fundamental cause” for the creation
of objects, but instead of the prevalent theory of
“single cause”, upheld a “multiple causes” theory,
positing that all objects in the world (the effect)
don’t stem from any single cause, but multiple ones.
It claimed that objects are all composed of small
indivisible “atoms”. In dravya, four bhūtas, ie pṛthvī
(earth), ap (water), tejas (fire) and vāyu (air) are
made of indivisible atoms. The four bhūtas further
fall under two categories: atoms as the smallest unit;
and combination of atoms. All objects in the world
are made of the four bhūtas in infinite combinations.
The Vaisheshika school believed that atoms exist
and there is no smaller “cause” than the atoms;
they cannot be destroyed for they are ever-present,
permanent and eternal. All tangible objects that
have forms are the “effect” composed of “atoms”.
The existence of the “effect” is a mark indicating the
existence of atoms as the “cause”. Effect exists only
because of the existence of cause. Non-eternal is a
special “opposite” of eternal.
The school also held that atoms are essentially
of four kinds: Earth, Water, Fire and Air, the
combination of which can form all kinds of objects
in the world. Atoms are not created, but everpresent and eternal. There is nothing smaller
than the atom. Indivisible and indestructible, it
constitutes the “ultimate cause” for the creation
of objects. It is spherical in shape and reflects the
ultimate difference between objects. By contrast,
objects formed through a combination of atoms
can be created; they are non-eternal, degradable,
destructible, and not spherical in shape, with no
ultimate differences exhibited.
In addition, the Vaisheshika school also postulated
an “invisible force (Adrsta)” theory in analysing the
momentum in the material world and the occurrence
of many natural phenomena. For instance, the
literatures of Vaiśeṣika points out such phenomena
as fire burning up, wind blowing sideways, sap
circulating in trees and earthquakes striking can
all be attributed to “invisible force”. Actually the
Vaisheshika school tended to attribute all inexplicable
natural phenomena at the time to “invisible force”.
Invisible force (Adrsta) can be seen as a result of
one’s own actions, evil or good, and in this sense
is not unlike the Buddhist concept of Karma. The
Vaisheshika school posited that it is always the
invisible force that starts the atoms in motion.
The atomic theory of the Vaisheshika school
served as an important approach in ancient India
‘Daśapadārthaśāstra (Sheng zong shiju yilun)’
“Sadrsya” specifically addresses objects’ relative
universality and particularity. Sāmānya is limited to
existence and viśeṣa is limited to ultimate differences,
while other generalities and particularities shall
constitute an independent padartha. The Vaiśeṣikasūtra and “Padartha-dharma-samgraha” both believe
that “universality” and “particularity” are only
relative concepts and tend to change depending on
the specific perspective people take. Some concepts
may be deemed as “universal” under certain
circumstances but might be considered “particular”
under other circumstances. For example, for the
concept of padartha, substance is considered as
“particular” because it is a kind of padartha, but for
earth, water, fire and air, it shall be considered as
“universal” because the four elements are substances.
This kind of relativity was never properly addressed
in either the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra or “Padartha-dharmasamgraha”. By contrast, “Daśapadārthaśāstra”
restricts viśeṣa (particularity) only to the ultimate
differences between objects (“Bian Yi’), and sāmānya
(generality) only to the existence of objects (“You”).
In other words, the book singles out the relativity
of viśeṣa (particularity) and sāmānya (generality)
and makes it into a separate, independent padartha
(ie “sadrsya”).
“Abhāva” refers to an objects’ state of nonexistence,
and there are five types of “nonexistence”:
antecedent non-existence (non-existence of objects
that are yet to be created); subsequent non-existence
(non-existence of objects that have been destroyed);
reciprocal non-existence (non-existence of objects
that, if in existence, will contradict existing ones);
absolute non-existence (non-existence of objects
that will never appear); and natural non-existence
(non-existence of nature of one object in another).
Important theories proposed by the Vaisheshika
school include: the atomic theory; “non-preexistence
of effect in cause” theory; and the pramāṇa (means
of valid knowledge) theory.
415
Cultural Contacts
any effect coming out of a single cause, only the
combining of multiple causes can produce effect.
The “cause” mentioned by the Vaisheshika school
actually refers to the constituent parts that make up
the whole, while the “effect” refers to the whole or
the combined. Thus, the school held that the process
of “generation” or “creation” means the combining
of multiple elements (cause), and to consider cause
and effect to be the same simply could not explain
the creation of things. In their opinion, the process
of “generation” must produce an effect distinct from
the cause. In the theoretical system of Vaisheshika,
all things are made of multiple elements, ie the
formation of everything in the world is a process
of forming one new thing through combining
independent elements, and the created things
(effect) never pre-exist in those elements (cause),
hence the “no effect in cause” theory.
to understanding the occurrence and dynamics of
natural phenomena, and as such, was once a highly
influential theory that held considerable sway over
other schools of thought, leading the latter to also
form a habit of discussing this issue extensively.
For instance, some works of the Vedānta school
analysed the atomic theory and eventually “proved”
it invalid. Many other Indian philosophical schools
also expressed their views on the “atom” concept.
“Non-preexistence of Effect in Cause” Theory
- Like many schools of philosophy in ancient India,
the Vaisheshika school also put a special emphasis
on the theory of causationism, with the Vaiśeṣikasūtra discussing it extensively. Vaisheshika school
opposed the general view that cause and result are
inseparable from each other. For instance, the sutra
states, “there won’t be an effect without a cause, but
there might be a cause without an effect”, setting out
to emphasise that effect cannot exist without cause,
but cause can exist without effect.” For instance, a
table (the effect) cannot exist apart from wood (the
cause), but we cannot say the wood does not exist if
there is no table.
The Vaisheshika school once proved, “Nonpreexistence of Effect in Cause” Theory, and they
believed that there is a fundamental difference
between cause and effect. According to literatures
from other schools, the Vaisheshika school espoused
the idea that “there is no effect in cause, and cause
is different from effect” for the following seven
reasons: firstly, cause and effect are easily perceived
to be starkly distinct from each other: nobody would
take the thread (the cause) to be the cloth (the
effect), just as nobody would mistake the clay pot
(the effect) for the clay (the cause). Secondly, cause
and effect are named differently: nobody would call
thread cloth, or call cloth thread. Thirdly, the same
cause may give rise to different effects: thread can
be used to make not just clothes, but other things
too, like rope; fourthly, cause comes before effect
at all times. Fifthly, cause and effect differ in form:
clay (the cause) has a form of block while the clay
pot (the effect) has a form of ampulla with a wide
base. Sixthly, cause and effect differ in quantity:
a single piece of cloth (the effect) is composed of
many threads (the cause); and seventhly, if cause
and effect are the same thing, then there shall be
only one cause, ie there shall not be a lot of causes
such as material constituting effect and maker
manufacturing effect.
Vaisheshika espoused the idea of “no effect
in cause”, which may be attributed to its basic
philosophical system. In explaining the creation of
things in the world, this school upheld a “multiple
causes” theory (anamabhavada), positing that all
objects in the world (the effect) don’t stem from
any single cause, but multiple ones. There won’t be
A Commentary on Vijnapti-matrata-siddhi-sastra
Bold and audacious, this theory made waves in
the philosophical scene in ancient India, causing a
lot of Vedānta and Buddhist thinkers to violently
react to it.
Pratyaksha and Anumana - Thoughts of
Vaisheshika school in epistemology are included in the
theory of pratyaksha and anumana to a large extent.
Pratyaksha means sense perception. The Vaiśeṣikasūtra further classified pratyaksha into two kinds:
regular partyaksha; and Yogi-pratyaksha. They were
also named as earthly pratyaksha and non-earthly
pratyaksha by later generations. The former only
covers the ordinary things in the world, while the
latter covers such diverse metaphysical dimensions
such as ego, emptiness, space, mind, etc. The
“Daśapadārthaśāstra” doesn’t distinguish between
regular partyaksha and Yogi-pratyaksha, but analyses
the major factors contributing to the generation
of perception, postulating that the generation of
perception normally relies on four factors: “Jing”,
literally “environment”, referring to the surrounding
objects that can be perceived by five senses; “Gen”,
416
Cultural Contacts
ancient China, exerting a pervasive influence on the
country’s philosophical scene.
One particular Vaiśeṣika work was translated
into Chinese in its entirety in ancient China, ie
the “Daśapadārthaśāstra” as translated by Hsuantsang. Different from the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra, the
Padartha-dharma-samgraha
(commentary
on
Kanada’s Vaisesika sutra) in a substantial way, the
book proposes 10 Padarthas. Some of the Buddhist
monks or scholars in ancient China noticed and
discussed these differences. As a “heretical” work,
the “Daśapadārthaśāstra” was incorporated in
its entirety into the Chinese Dazangjing (“Great
Treasury of Sūtras”), which was extremely rare
throughout the long history of Buddhist literature
compilation, indicating the high level of attention
the Vaiśeṣika work had received in ancient China.
In relevant Buddhist scriptures, the theories of the
Vaisheshika school were extensively criticised and
decisively repudiated. And in refuting the Vaiśeṣika
theories, Buddhist records also gave a brief account
of Vaiśeṣika and quoted its representative thoughts,
some of which were translated into Chinese when
Buddhism spread to China. Some Buddhist monks in
ancient China once expounded or analysed relevant
thoughts or theories of the Vaisheshika school, as
evidenced by relevant expositions widely present in
Buddhist literature compiled in ancient China.
The “Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi” translated and
compiled by Hsuan-tsang contains parts specifically
dedicated to repudiating the Vaiśeṣika theories,
arguing that the Padarthas considered “eternal and
permanent” by Vaiśeṣika cannot be eternal and
permanent if they can generate effect. For instance,
if the atoms of earth, water, fire, and air in the
Dravya-padārtha can be combined to create “effect”,
they must be non-eternal and impermanent, because
they have functions and therefore are subject to
changes. As for those “eternal” Padarthas that don’t
generate “effect”, such as kāla (time), dik (space),
sāmānya (generality) and samavāya (inherence),
they are like such non-existent things as rabbit horns,
having no “prakriti” apart from consciousness.
And those Padarthas considered “non-eternal
and impermanent”, if blocked, will be like such
things as armies and woods, having no “prakriti”
whatsoever; and if unblocked, they will be like
consciousness or manifestations thereof, having no
concrete “vehicle” and thus, no “prakriti” apart from
consciousness. In addition, the book also challenged
the rationality of categorising pṛthvī (earth), ap
(water) and tejas (fire) into Dravya (substance) and
rūpa (colour) into Guṇa (quality), arguing that they
are all subject to the control of body organs, and
therefore should be put under the same category.
The “Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi” also argued that there
is no need for the sāmānya-padārtha as proposed
A Commentary on Vijnapti-matrata-siddhi-sastra
literally “root”, referring to one’s five senses; “Yi”,
literally “mind”, referring to the link between five
senses and “self”; and “Wo”, literally “self”, referring
to the one who perceives. And according to the book
and other Vaisheshika works, the normal process
of generation of perception can be described as
follows: firstly, one’s “Gen” (five senses) come in
contact with “Jing” (external environment), giving
rising to impressions, which will soon be picked up
by “Yi”, which is not an element of consciousness
but a material one. It is extremely small in size, and
can move very fast within the body. And when the
information gathered by five senses is transmitted
to “self”, perception occurs. However, according to
the Vaisheshika school, for perception to occur, it is
not necessary to have all four factors at once. Two,
“Wo” and “Yi”, or three, “Wo”, “Gen”, “Yi”, of the
four may be sufficient to generate perception.
Anumana mainly refers to inference. The Vaiśeṣikasūtra specifies five circumstances of anumana: firstly
to infer cause from effect, (e.g., fire can be deducted
from seeing smoke); secondly to deduce effect from
cause, (e.g., sound can be deducted by a deaf from
special relation for drumsticks drumming). Thirdly,
to infer one from the known other, provided that the
two are in conjunction with each other (e.g., touch
organ can be deducted from seeing an animal).
Fourthly to infer one from the know other, provided
that the two are in conflict with each other (e.g.,
food for snakes can be deducted behind the tree
from restless performance of a snake); and to infer
one from the known other, provided that one is
inherent in the other (e.g., water can be deducted
having been boiled from hot water).
Although Vaiśeṣika, traditionally recognised as
a Brahman school, adopts the social class system
of Brahmanism and believes too in reincarnation
and deliverance, it is less adherent than the other
“orthodox” schools of philosophy in ancient India.
With its theoretical focus on natural philosophy,
it deviates materially from the other mainstream
Brahman schools dominant then.
Spread and Influence in China - The theories
of the Vaisheshika school were also spread to
417
Cultural Contacts
scholars studying oriental culture in contemporary
China, the Vaiśeṣika theories remain a familiar
topic. Besides, in some professional conferences
or symposiums held in China, the theories of the
school or papers published on the school were also
discussed with great interest.
(Yao Weiqun)
by Vaiśeṣika, because according to the school’s
own theory, the Dravya-padārtha shall exist of its
own accord, without having to depending on the
sāmānya-padārtha to verify its existence. For these
reasons, the “Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi” concludes that
the padārtha theory of the Vaisheshika school is
self-contradictory, and therefore is not valid.
Kuiji also mentioned the Vaisheshika school in
his “Commentary on Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi”, which
contains descriptions like “Vaiśeṣika proposed
the brilliant Six Padartha Theory, which is an
unparalleled feat among its philosophical peers.
Still later, a Vaiśeṣika disciple named Huiyue put
forth a Ten Padartha Theory.”
Puguang also stated in volume 5 of his “Jushe
Lunji” that “the Vaiśeṣika masters proposed six
Padarthas, ie dravya (substance), guṇa (quality),
karma (activity), sāmānya (generality), viśeṣa
(particularity) and samavāya (inherence); later,
a master named Huiyue proposed a Ten Padartha
Theory”.
There are actually many such descriptions
contained in Chinese Buddhist records (especially
Mādhyamika commentaries), either recounting or
repudiating the Vaiśeṣika thoughts.
In ancient China, many non-Buddhist thinkers also
paid a fair amount of attention to the Vaisheshika
school. For instance, Lv Cai, a thinker in China’s
Tang Dynasty, was once attacked by his adversary
for adopting in his philosophical thinking a certain
theory rather similar to the atomic theory espoused
by the Vaisheshika school.
In refuting his adversaries, Zhang Taiyan, a
famous thinker in contemporary China, also cited
the theory for earth, water, fire, air and the atomic
theory of the Vaisheshika school.
The Vaiśeṣika theories also received a lot of
scholarly attention in modern China, with the
Vaiśeṣika-sūtra translated entirely into Chinese and
the Padartha-dharma-samgraha partially translated
into Chinese. In books published in contemporary
China about Indian religious philosophy, there
are dedicated chapters describing the evolution
of the Vaisheshika school and its major theories.
Quite many research papers on the Vaisheshika
school have also been published in some Chinese
scholarly journals.
On higher-education front in China, quite some
masters’ theses focussed on the “Daśapadārthaśāstra”,
while many PhD dissertations mentioned the
Vaiśeṣika theories.
Vaiśeṣika is also mentioned in the oriental
philosophy courses offered in modern Chinese
universities, with some courses focussing on the
study of classic texts of the Vaisheshika school and
others aiming to give an account of the evolution
of the school and its basic theories. Among the
Nyaya
Nyaya (Nyāya) is one of the main factions of
Brahmanism philosophy in ancient Indian and also
the earliest ideological faction who systematically
discussed about logic and debate rules. It emerged
roughly around the 1st century CE. After it was
introduced to China, it had an important influence
on the development and prevalence of hetuvidya of
Chinese Han and Tibetan.
Historical development and primary literature
- The ideological origins of Nyaya faction could be
traced back to the debate and reasoning specified
for early Brahmanism sacrifice in ancient India. In
some of the ancient codes and records of the early
times of Mimamsa, Buddhism, Jainism and the epic
Mahabharata, there were contents discussing the
debate methods, inference rules and other aspects
related with Nyaya ideology.
The Sanskrit word for “Nyaya” is “Nyāya”. Its
original meaning was “a conclusion could be
conducted with the aid of its ideology”, and later
became a faction name specialised in research on
reasoning and debate in Indian philosophy.
According to legend, the founder of this faction
was Gautama or Gotama, around the 1st century
CE. Regarding the life experience of Gotama,
considerable components of the available materials
people now can see have legend features, so
generally it is not very clear. There are many
viewpoints about his era. The academic world often
compares the contents of his writings with contents
of writings of other factions in order to speculate the
approximate period of Gotama.
The first fundamental classic of Nyaya was
Gotama’s Nyaya Sutra (Nyāya-sūtra). Today’s Nyaya
Sutra people can see contains the added ingredients
by descendants; it was completed in its form around
3rd and 4th century CE. After Nyaya Sutra, the
major ancient codes and records of Nyaya faction
were the annotation and re-annotation on Nyaya
Sutra and so on. Among which, they mainly include:
Vatsyqyana’s (around 4th-5th century) “Nyayasutra-bhasya”, Uddyotakara’s (in 6th century CE)
“Nyaya-varthika”, Vacaspati misra’s (in 9th century
CE) “N.-v.-tatparya-tika”, Udayana’s (in 10th
century CE) “N.-v.-tatparay-parisuddhi” and “N.kusumanjali” and so on.
Around the 12th century CE, the new Nyaya was
formed. Meanwhile, Nyaya also gradually mixed
418
Cultural Contacts
Drstanta is the case towards which the common
people and authority share the same understanding,
that is, the fact or truth recognised by everyone.
This plays a very important role in reasoning.
Siddhanta refers to the proposals established
according to the authority, assumptions, etc of one
faction, which is the main idea or arguments of the
side that put forward the proposals.
Avayava refers to the syllogism of pañca-avayavavākya, which consists of pratijñā (proposition),
hetu (cause), udāharana (illustration), upanaya
(application) and nigamana (conclusion). It is the
rightful inferential mode praised by Nyaya faction.
Tarka refers to when the true nature of matter is
not known, the consideration of knowing the truth by
assuming. This is a thinking process during reasoning.
Nirnaya refers to considering the arguments of
both sides and make a decision on an issue.
Vada refers to adopting correct ways of
understanding or pañca-avayava-vākya during
debate, and requiring it not contradictory with
siddhanta.
Jalpa means though in the debate, setting up
the above syllogistic, however winning by using of
sophistry and other improper means.
Vitanda refers to the debate action that only
destroying the opponent’s arguments, not establish
argument on own side.
Hetvabhasa refers to the specious basis or reasons
used in reasoning process.
Chala refers to the improper selection of the
meaning not meant by the opposite side from the
words said.
Jati refers to raising objections against the
opposite side solely according to similarities and
differences of matters ie false criticism.
Nigrahasthana refers to the various realities
of debates failure of misunderstanding or not
understanding, etc.
In Nyaya faction’s theoretical system of “Sodasatattva”, it dealt with many problems, which mainly
include: classification of four kinds of quantity, basic
syllogism of pañca-avayava-vākya, performance and
reasons of reasoning failure and debate failure, etc.
Four kinds of quantity
Similar to many ancient Indian philosophical
factions, Nyaya faction had great concern of how to
obtain correct understanding. This faction believed
that the so-called “quantity” (the way or method to
get a correct understanding), mainly included four
kinds, namely pratyaksa, anumana, upamana and
zabda.
Pratyaksa refers to the consciousness arising
from the contact of sensory organs with the
objects. While defining pratyaksa, Nyaya Sutra
said: “pratyaksa is the cognition generated while
the root and condition are consistent, which are
The Nyaya Sutra of Gotama (front cover)
with Vaisheshika. The main representative of New
Nyaya was Gangesa (12th century CE), he wrote
the book of Tattvacintamani. After Nyaya was mixed
with Vaisheshika, the important figures and their
works include: Varadaraja’s (12th century CE)
Tarkikaraksa, Kesava misra’s (13th century CE)
Tarkabhasa and Annam Bhatta’s (16th century CE)
Tarkasamgraha and so on.
Ideological system and logical debate doctrine
- The basic ideology of Nyaya faction is the
theoretical framework of its “Sodasa-tattva”. In this
framework, Nyaya faction discussed in details their
doctrines about logical theories, debates rules and
other aspects.
Sodasa-tattva
According to Nyaya Sutra and its ancient
annotation, Nyaya regarded “Sodasa-tattva” as the
basic system of its doctrine. The so-called “tattva”
refers to reality. Nyaya proposed 16 basic concepts
or categories while exploring logic, debate and other
issues, these concepts or categories and related
explanation appear to be real and correct for this
faction, therefore called “tattva”.
Sodasa-tattva includes: pramana, prameya,
samsaya, prayojana, drstanta, siddhanta, avayava,
tarka, nirnaya, vada, jalpa, vitanda, hetvabhasa,
chala, jati and nigrahasthana.
Pramana refers to the way or method of obtaining
a correct understanding. “Nyaya Sutra” divided it
into four categories: pratyaksa, anumana, upamana
and Zabda.
Prameya refers to the object to be comprehended.
It is divided specifically into 12 kinds: I, body, root,
condition, feeling, mind, karma, negligence, rebirth,
retribution, bitterness and liberation.
Samsaya is a judgment conflicting with the
exact nature of matter, that is, a confused state of
mind. Only with confusion, people would seek for
reasoning or start debates.
Prayojana refers to the purpose of taking an
action, that is, the purpose of reasoning or debate.
419
Cultural Contacts
Pratijñā: sound is impermanent.
Hetu: because it is produced.
Sādharmya: all those produced matters are
impermanent, like plate, tray and so on,
Upanaya: sound is in this way, and is produced.
Nigamana: so the sound is impermanent.
Examples of pañca-avayava-vākya containing
vaidharmya:
Pratijñā: sound is impermanent.
Hetu: because it is produced.
Vaidharmya: all those not produced are
permanent, like ātman, etc.
Upanaya: sound is not in this way, not belong to
be not-produced matter.
Nigamana: so the sound is impermanent.
There are substantial similarities between Nyaya
faction’s pañca-avayava-vākya and general formal
logic syllogism. Although there are five parts in
this syllogism, among which only three components
play the major roles in the practical reasoning,
namely minor terms, middle terms and major
terms. In the above example of pañca-avayavavākya containing sādharmya, the “sound” is a
minor term, “impermanent” is a major term, and
”produced” is a middle term. Reasoning process is
through the middle term to connect the minor term
with the major term. As “all those produced matters
are impermanent” is a universally acknowledged
fact, therefore just say “the sound is produced”
and the conclusion could be launched “sound is
impermanent”.
If seen simply from the point of view to reach the
reasoning target, there’re obvious repeated elements
in pañca-avayava-vākya. But pañca-avayava-vākya
was founded by Nyaya faction from the debate
across the country in ancient India. The purpose for
Nyaya faction’s using this syllogism was not only
for general reasoning, it also needed to demonstrate
the correctness of their own viewpoints to the
people during the debate, to most effectively win
the debate and win over followers. Though the five
main components in the syllogism were repetitive,
however repetition was an important technique to
emphasise the correctness of their own viewpoints.
This was the important reason for Nyaya to put
forward this pañca-avayava-vākya.
Performance and reasons of reasoning failure and
debate failure
When Nyaya faction discussed about the issues
of reasoning and debate, it analysed in detailed of
the various performances and causes of faults and
debate failure. These analyses generally could be
summarised into: five hetvabhasas, three chalas, 24
jatis and 22 nigrahasthanas.
Five hetvabhasa refer to indefinite reason,
contradictory reason, proposition alike reason, unproved reason and outdated reason.
ineffable, correct and definite.” This definition
indicates Nyaya faction’s viewpoints about several
basic characteristics of Pratyaksa: first, pratyaksa
comes from the contact between sensory organs and
external objects; second, it should be ineffable, that
is the consciousness produced by is not mixed with
concept and analysis; third, pratyaksa should be
correct, that is, it is generated really after contact
with objects; finally, pratyaksa must be definite,
without any doubt or hallucinations.
Anumana refers to reasoning; Nyaya faction
divided it into three kinds: “Pūrv-avat”, “Cesavat”
and “Samanyatsdrstam”. Pūrv-avat means to infer
results from causes, like when seeing dark clouds
we infer it would rain; “Cesavat” means to infer
causes from results, like when seeing the river is
full of turbidity, we infer there’s rain in the river’s
upstream; Samanyatsdrstam refers to analogy,
like when a kind of tree blossoms in one country,
we infer the same tree in another country would
blossom as well.
Upamana refers to understanding the unknown
things according to the similarity between the
unknown and the known. While discussing upamana,
Nyaya Sutra said: “upamana is to get knowledge of
the unknown based on the similarity between the
unknown and matters previously known.”
Zabda, also known as Sabha, āgama or Śabda,
refers to the teachings of trustworthy persons. While
discussing zabda, “Nyaya Sutra” said: “zabda is the
teachings of trustworthy person, it has two kinds:
zabda made according to the visible matter and
zabda made according to invisible matter.” Here,
the so-called “visible matter” refers to common
things that could be felt; the so-called “invisible
matter” refers to sacrifices, going to heaven and
other things.
Among the four quantities discussed by Nyaya
faction, most discussions or the richest part of
content were for its anumana theory, because the
syllogistic part and analysis part of reasoning failure
and debate failure in the theoretical system of
Nyaya faction were all further in-depth discussion
of anumana. The logic theory of this faction is
mainly reflected in its viewpoints about anumana.
Pañca-avayava-vākya
The characteristic feature of Nyaya faction
in logical deduction is its syllogistic method of
“pañca-avayava-vākya”. This faction believes
that the correct syllogism should be composed of
five parts, namely: pratijñā (proposition), hetu
(cause), udāharana (case or illustration, divided in
two kinds: sādharmya and vaidharmya), upanaya
(application) and nigamana (conclusion). Specific
application cases were recorded in “Nyaya Sutra”
and its annotations. Examples of pañca-avayavavākya containing sādharmya:
420
Cultural Contacts
“Misinterpretation of category” refers to
extending the specific meaning of something to
be the meaning of a category in debate, by doing
this judge the possible thing to be impossible. For
example one person says: “This Brahmins is learned
and virtuous,” while the one who misinterprets
would say: “how could this person be inferred to be
learned and virtuous because he is Brahman? Some
boys are Brahmins, but not knowledgeable nor
virtuous.” Here, the misinterpreting person extends
a special meaning of Brahmins to the entire meaning
of Brahmin (category).
“Misinterpretation of metaphor” means in the
debate when the opposite side uses metaphor
words, the one who misinterprets would deny the
correctness of the opponent’s words according to
the words’ literal meaning. For example one person
says: “The platform is calling,” but the one who
misinterprets would say: “Platform could not call
because it is not biological.” Here, the former socalled “platform” actually means “people on the
platform,” but the latter misinterprets this rhetoric
(metaphor).
All these three misinterpretation used in debate
were improper practices, and according to Nyaya
faction’s view, need to be denied.
Twenty-four jatis include same method similarity,
different method similarity, increase similarity,
decrease similarity, primary evidence similarity,
non-primary
evidence
similarity,
difference
similarity, proposition similarity, arrival similarity,
non-arrival similarity, infinite similarity, antimetaphor similarity, no-life similarity, doubt
similarity, question similarity, no-cause similarity,
arthapatti similarity, no difference similarity,
possibility similarity, attainable similarity, nonattainable similarity, impermanent similarity,
permanent similarity, conclusion similarity. Though
there’s a multitude of names of these jatis, the basic
contents are the various situations or instances in
the debate of opponent’s wrong approval of the part
who establishes the proposition.
For example, among them the “same method
similarity” refers to when opposing the opponent’s
proposition (pratijñā), use the case in opponent’s
“different metaphor”, but the “cause” proposed
could not prove his own proposition. For example,
the party who set up the proposition says: “Sound
is impermanent, because it is produced; all those
produced are impermanent, like pot.” The opponent
said: “The sound is permanent, because it is
invisible. All invisible things are permanent, like the
sky.” Here, the “cause” and “metaphor” mentioned
by the opponent could not prove the proposition
(pratijñā). Because intangible things can be both
permanent and impermanent, this could not lead to
an inevitable conclusion.
“Indefinite reason” refers to the given reason may
lead to more than one conclusion. For example: “the
sound is permanent, as it is could not be touched.”
Here, matters could not be touched might be
permanent, might be impermanent. Therefore, this
“reason” could not lead to conclusion doubtlessly,
therefore the reasoning fails.
“Contradictory reason” refers to the reason
contradictory with the proposition. For example say:
“The pottery pot is produced, because it is eternal.”
Here, the mentioned reason is in contradiction with
the proposition, because eternal things could not
be produced. Thus this reason could not prove the
correctness of the pratijñā.
“Proposition alike reason” refers to the given
reason is similar to the proposition, which is the
case of tautology, and not adding new content to
specifically prove the proposition. For example say:
“Sound is non-eternal, because it does not have
eternal nature.” Such reasons cannot achieve the
purpose of reasoning.
“Un-proved reason” refers to the proposed reason
itself needs to be proved like the proposition. For
example say: “The shadow is an entity, because it
has movement.” Here, whether there is movement
of shadow needs to be proved itself, thus could
not be used as reason to justify the pratijñā. The
inference could not be established.
“Outdated reason” also known as wrong time
reason, means the given reasons is not applicable in
terms of time, thus could not prove the proposition.
For example say: “Sound is persistent, because like
the colour it could be displayed through combining.”
Here, the reason proposed is not applicable in time,
because the colour of an object exists no matter
before or after it contacts with light source (such
as a lamp). Therefore colour is persistent. But the
sound is showing up after the object striking (like
wood hammer beat drums), that is, the mentioned
reason is wrong in time and could not prove the
pratijñā. Therefore the inference fails.
These five hetvabhasa are the typical cases of
reasoning failure due to wrong reasons.
Three chalas refer to the three cases of
distorting opponent’s meaning in debate, that is,
misinterpretation of words, misinterpretation of
category and misinterpretation of metaphor.
“Misinterpretation of words” refers to when
the word used by the opponent have two or more
different meanings, interpret the word differently
from what the opponent means. Such as Sanskrit
“nava” has the two meanings of “new” and “nine”.
When the opposite side said: “This boy has a new
blanket”, in the debate the one who misinterpreted
would say: “This boy does not have nine blankets,
he has only one.” In this way, the meaning of “new”
was misinterpreted to be “nine”.
421
Cultural Contacts
the outside world environment, and also all status
of life phenomena of human. Although Nyaya made
analysis of natural phenomena, it did not make
detailed distinction like Vaisheshika faction, who
in detail analysed with sentence meaning theory.
This faction focuses on logic, debate and other
aspects. This is the important difference of it from
Vaisheshika faction.
In religious ideas, same as most philosophical
factions of Brahmanism, Nyaya faction also adopts
the content of reincarnation and liberation, and also
believes there is a subject “me” in life phenomenon.
In reincarnation, man is full of pain. The reason why
man enters into the reincarnation cycle is because
he could not understand the essence of matters.
If man wants to get out of reincarnation cycle
and get rid of the pain, he must gain the highest
Again, among them the “infinite similarity”
refers to while opposing the opponent, take the
opponent’s “metaphor” (cited thing) not proved
by a series of “cause” as basis. For example the
party who set up the proposition says: “Sound is
impermanent, because it is produced, like pot.” The
opponent would say: “If the impermanent of sound
is demonstrated by the impermanent of pot, then
what would prove the impermanent of the pot? If
the impermanent of the pot is proved by the other
thing, then the impermanent of this thing needs to
be proved by another impermanent thing, it would
be an endless process.” This situation is one of error
disapprovals in reasoning debate.
The specific contents of these jatis are extremely
in big volume, they are essentially all incorrect
reasoning performances. Nyaya believed that if
these jatis appeared, we could know the relative
reasoning was wrong, it should be considered the
relevant argument or debate as unsuccessful.
The 22 nigrahasthanas refer to various failure
situations in debate, specifically including
destroying proposition, different from proposition,
contradictory with proposition, abandoning
proposition, different cause, different meaning, no
meaning, non-understandable meaning, missing
of meaning, not arriving time, decrease, increase,
repetition, could not be cited, not knowing, not
skillful, avoiding and escaping, admit the opponent’s
jati, neglecting the points to blame, disapproval
of the non-claimable, away from the proposition
meaning and hetvabhasa. Though there are a lot of
nigrahasthana names, they are all description of the
unsuccessful or failure situation in debate.
For example, among which the “abandoning
proposition” means when the proposition of one
party is denied, the party would withdraw the
viewpoints narrated before. Among which the
“different meaning” refers to during the reasoning,
introduce the meaning which has nothing to do
with the original meaning of the proposition. The
“non-understandable meaning” refers to if being
said three times, it is still could not be understood
by the audience and debate opponents. The
“avoiding and escaping” means in the process of
debating, one party terminates the argumentation
with an excuse of being engaged in other things.
When these cases appear, according to Nyaya
faction, the relative party could be directly judged
as failing in the debate.
View of nature and religious ideas
Nyaya views of natural phenomena are consistent
with Vaisheshika faction. They believed the variety
of tangible objects in the world is constituted by
paramanu, which is the smallest unit of matter.
The contents of twelve items in prameya of Nyaya
faction not only include body and mind, but also
The Tripitaka Holy Doctrine of the
Great Tang, Zhao Cheng Jin edition
wisdom. That is, to hold the idea of achieving
liberation through wisdom. And for Nyaya faction,
the so-called wisdom, mainly refers to this faction’s
“Sodasa-tattva” In Nyaya Sutra, it said: “Perfection
comes from the knowledge of 16 truths of pramana,
prameya, samsaya, prayojana, drstanta, siddhanta,
avayava, tarka, nirnaya, vada, jalpa, vitanda,
hetvabhasa, chala, jati and nigrahasthana. When the
understanding of bitterness, life, behaviour, fault
and mistake were eliminated one by one, liberation
would be obtained due to the continuing eradication
of these ideas. Vatsyayana, the commentator of
Nyaya Sutra said: “When the true knowledge is
gained, the wrong understanding would disappear,
when the wrong understanding disappears, the
fault would disappear, when the fault disappears,
the behaviour would disappear, when there is no
behaviour, life would not exist. When there is no
life, the bitterness would end. With the bitterness
disappearing, the final liberation would be attained,
this is the perfection.” In addition, although Nyaya
faction explains the formation of matters in the world
with paramanu, however there’s concept of divinity
in its system, using divinity to explain the origin of
422
Cultural Contacts
śāstra are similar with “jatis” in Nyaya Sutra. There
are also many contents about “nigrahasthana” in
Upāya-Kauśalya-hṛdaya śāstra, though not identical
with the 22 nigrahasthanas in “Nyaya Sutra”,
the basic contents are the same, they are all the
expressions of the failure condition in debate.
In Āryavācāprakaraṇa-śāstra, there are many
contents about Hetuvidya, similar with the ideology
of Nyaya Sutra. Such as in Āryavācāprakaraṇaśāstra, it mentioned eight kinds of “success
method” - establishment of pratijñā, differentiation
of reasons, allusions, same category, different
category, pratyaksa, anumana, Zabda. Among
which establishing pratijñā, differentiating reasons,
allusions, same category, different category
correspond with the main components of pañcaavayava-vākya in Nyaya faction. Pratyaksa,
anumana and Zabda are also the main contents of
Nyaya faction’s pramana.
Reality Theory is most close to Nyaya Sutra in
reasoning and debate ideology. The discussions
about syllogism and errors in debate are basically
the same as the related discussion in Nyaya Sutra.
Reality Theory proposed “five divisions” syllogism.
Among the five divisions, the establishment of
proposition word, reason word, metaphor word,
conforming metaphor word, conclusion word
is basically the “Five divisions” of Nyaya Sutra.
The sixteen kinds of error disapproval proposed
in “Reality Theory” are similar to the “jati” in
Nyaya Sutra. The 22 “nigrahasthanas” proposed in
“Reality Theory” are basically the same as the 22
nigrahasthanas” in “Nyaya Sutra”.
After these works were translated into Chinese,
the logic and debate ideas proposed in Nyaya Sutra
witnessed an important dissemination in Chinese
ideological realms.
In addition to the writings in Chinese language,
the writings of Indian Buddhist Hetuvidya were also
translated into Tibetan in large volumes. The ideas
of Nyaya faction contained in these writings were
also circulated in Chinese Tibet.
In modern China, the academia also attaches great
importance to the study of Nyaya ideology. The
complete Nyaya Sutra in Sanskrit version has been
translated into Chinese language. Special discussions
on ideology of Nyaya Sutra have been actively
carried out in Chinese academic circles. The related
research papers are published in Chinese academic
journals. In Chinese colleges and universities, there
are post graduate student’s papers set Nyaya Sutra
as the subject. In the courses on Eastern philosophy
opened by China’s teaching and research institutions,
there are contents of Nyaya Sutra or Nyaya faction.
In some Chinese Symposium there’s also academic
exchange about Nyaya ideology.
(Yao Weiqun)
matters. But this kind of religious component takes
small proportion in “Nyaya Sutra”. The core idea of
Nyaya faction is in epistemology.
Nyaya theory occupies an important position in
the development history of Indian philosophy. It’s
a relatively complete doctrine system of logic and
debate, originally formed in ancient India. Nyaya
faction’s logic and debate theory raised the concerns
from other Indian factions on issues of this aspect.
Among which the most prominent was Buddhism.
Buddhism was inspired by Nyaya faction’s doctrine,
made further theoretical innovation and established
its grand ideological system of Hetuvidya.
Nyaya doctrine is still having an important influence
in modern India. Some modern Indian thinkers once
compared and analysed Nyaya faction’s reasoning
and debate ideology with Western logistics. The
ideology of this faction, as a typical representative of
ideas with Indian characteristics, has gained people’s
attention in the world.
Dissemination and influence in China
Nyaya theory was also introduced to China in
ancient times. This dissemination was realised with
the development of Buddhist Hetuvidyā in China.
When Buddhism emerged, it did not have significant
concerns about logic and debate issues. But along
with the stronger and stronger ideological fighting
between different ideological factions in ancient
India, logical reasoning and argumentation skills
gradually become an important means for various
factions to win over followers and expand their
influences. Nyaya’s theoretical specialty in this area
gained Buddhist concern. Thus Buddhism began to
attach importance to studying logic and debating
skills. Buddhist Hetuvidya was set up under this
background. Buddhism had developed its own
logical and debated skills theory by taking reference
of Nyaya’s relevant ideas.
Buddhism Hetuvidya is divided into ancient and
new Hetuvidya. The theory of ancient Hetuvidya is
set up based on the absorption and transformation
of the logical reasoning and debate rules of Nyaya
faction’s theory. The dissemination of Nyaya theory
in China was originally attached to the Buddhism
ancient Hetuvidya theories.
Among Buddhist writings of ancient Hetuvidya,
the
typical
literature
absorbing
Nyaya’s
ideologies are “Upāya-Kauśalya-hṛdaya śāstra”,
“Āryavācāprakaraṇa-śāstra” and “Reality Theory”
and other works.
“Four knowledge and visions” discussed in
Upāya-Kauśalya-hṛdaya śāstra are actually the four
quantities mentioned in Nyaya Sutra. There are
many contents in “hetvabhasa” discussed in UpāyaKauśalya-hṛdaya śāstra identical with “hetvabhasa”
mentioned in Nyaya Sutra. Many contents of the
twenty “jatis” discussed in Upāya-Kauśalya-hṛdaya
423
Cultural Contacts
Mimamsa
One of the six schools of Brahmanistic philosophy
in ancient India is Mimamsa. The Chinese term弥曼
差for it is a transliteration from Sanskrit Mīmāṃsā,
a word meaning “investigation”. It became an
independent philosophical school in ca 2nd century
BCE. It was introduced into China along with
Buddhism and had exerted a certain influence upon
ancient Chinese thinking circles.
Origin and Development
The school of Mimamsa mainly focused upon
the studies of sacrifices and the related rules of
the rituals of Brahmanism. Ancient Indians prized
Vedic literature such as Brahmana and specialised
in various practices in sacrifice. Such researchers
gradually formed a school known as Pūrva Mīmāṃsā
(“prior” inquiry), or Karma-Mīmāṃsā. It was later
called Mimamsa for short.
Jaimini flourishing in ca 2nd century BCE is
believed to be the founder of the Mimamsa school.
His Mimamsa Sutra summed up the general rules in
use. The extant Mimamsa Sutra was finalised in ca
1st century CE and later mimamsakas made some
notable contributions.
Sabara-bhasya, a major commentary on Mimamsa
Sutra, was composed by Sabara in ca the 5th century
CE. The school reached its height with thinkers
Kumarila Bhaṭṭa and Prabhakara flourishing in ca
7th-8th century CE. Both of them had written extensive
commentaries on Sabara’s Mīmāṃsāsūtrabhāṣyam.
Kumārila Bhaṭṭa wrote Slokavarttika, Tantra-varttika
and Tuptika, and Prabhakara wrote Brhati and Laghri
on the Bhasya of Sabara. They formed two factions
of the Mimamsa school. Their commentaries added
some new concepts to the theory contained in
Mimamsa Sutra. Both of them and their followers
exerted substantial influence in the history of Indian
thought and became two representative doctrines of
Uttara Mīmāṃsā. Madhava expounded the thinking
of the Mimamsa school in the 14th century CE.
Appaya Diksita and Apadeva were two important
figures of Uttara Mimamsa school in the 16th-17th
century CE.
The influence of the Mimamsa school was not
very apparent in modern India. The sacrificial
practices it had advocated was absorbed into some
rituals of Hinduism.
Major Doctrines
The main theory of the Mimamsa school includes
sabda-nityata-vadin and pramanas in Mimamsa
Sutra and its commentaries. After the 7th century CE,
some new doctrines were added, mainly epitomised
by Kumarila Bhaṭṭa and Prabhakara’s padartha and
their refutation of theism. Sabda means language,
conception or knowledge, the Vedic language or
knowledge in particular. According to the Mimamsa
school, concepts and knowledge were innate, not
Mimamsa Sutras of Jaimini (front cover)
man-made, everlasting and absolutely right. Words
and concepts in general are manifestation of and
rooted in sabda. It asserts that words denote classes
and not individuals; individuals may perish, but
words can be eternal. If words were not eternal,
but were destroyed as soon as they were uttered,
human beings would be unable to speak to one
another normally, and listeners would be unable to
understand the meaning of speakers. Sabda-nityatavadin is a kernel concept used by the Mimamsa
school to prove that the Vedic revelations are
eternal and absolutely right, thus asserting that the
Mimamsa school holds a significant status among
various schools of Indian philosophy.
Pramana is the right way or approach to obtain
correct cognitions. Most ancient Indian schools have
their own pramanas, centering on how to obtain
correct cognition or prajna regarding objects in
concern.
Vrttikara, a commentator of Mimamsa Sutra,
mentions six pramanas: perception, inference,
comparison, verbal testimony, implication, and
non-apprehension. His ideas are learned from the
Sabara-bhasya, and are recognised and developed
by later Mimamsa scholars. Perception proceeds
directly from sense-contact with an external object
in the world and therefore is direct apprehension.
Inference is knowledge gained through the
knowledge of invariable concomitance of two
entities. The relation was based upon inference
that must be unfailing, true and permanent, such
as that which subsists between the cause and its
effect, whole and part, substance and quality, class
and individuals. Inferential argument consists
of three parts: statement of the case; statement
of the cause; and the major premise, which gives
the general rule with the corroborative instance.
Comparison is knowledge gained through similarity
between two objects. Verbal testimony, also named
Vedic testimony, is knowledge gained from reliable
424
Cultural Contacts
Vedic sacrifice, and prevent from any negation of the
effectiveness of Vedic sacrifice because of admitting
God’s creative function. While criticising theism, the
Mimamsa school also denied the doctrine that the
world was maya or unreal, holding that maya-vada
or sunya-vada was groundless.
Dissemination and Influence in China
The thinking of the Mimamsa school was
introduced into China along with Buddhism. The
ideas of this school, called jnana-vada or vidyavada, are often intermingled with Vedic or Vedantic
thought in Chinese Buddhist scriptures, for both the
Mimamsa and Vedantic schools were of orthodox
Brahmanism or philosophic system in addition to
the fact that all those doctrines were rooted in Vedic
literature. When discussing the mode of inference,
Buddhist Hetuvidya often took the sabda-nityatavadin or sabda-anityata-vadin of the Mimamsa
school for cases, and thereby actually disseminated
Mimamsa ideas to the Chinese.
In modern China, the academic circles have
also attached importance to the Mimamsa school.
Some related works such as Mimamsa Sutra and
Slokavarttika have been translated into Chinese
in abridged versions. In works regarding Indian
philosophy by Chinese scholars, the Mimamsa school
is generally discussed. A couple of universities in
China have courses discussing the Mimamsa school.
(Yao Weiqun)
and authoritative personalities. For the Mimamsa
school, the paramana of the Vedas is the only source
of knowledge of dharma, and only Vedic sentences
should be considered as pramana. But others think
that even in conventional usage we have knowledge
from words. The Vedas and Upanisads are called
Shruti because they are eternal and without any
human author. They were directly revealed to the
Rishis who were seers of the truth. Verbal cognition
is defined as the cognition of something not
present to the senses, produced by the knowledge
of words. Implication is knowledge gained through
incompatibility of two facts without adding a
third one. The facts observed remain inconsistent
or doubtful until the assumption of another
thing is made. Non-apprehension is admitted by
Kumarila, after Vrttikara, as an independent source
of knowledge. It is a means of knowledge with
reference to the object negated.
Padartha
The doctrines of the Mimamsa school were
enriched to a certain extent after the 7th century CE,
for it has absorbed some theories of other schools.
The influence mainly came from padartha. The Pūrva
Mīmāṃsā school did not put forth considerable
perspectives upon types or forms of things in the
world. Starting from Kumarila and Prabhakara,
the Mimamsa school began to show interest in
the formation of things, accepted and transformed
the padartha of the Vaisesika school. According
to Kumarila, the phenomena of the world can be
divided into five padarthas: dravya, guna, karma,
samanya, abhava. Prabhakara believed that the
phenomena of the world can be divided into eight
padarthas. The division of padarthas by the Uttara
Mimamsa school was not substantially different from
that of the Vaisesika school. The padartha theory
focuses upon phenomena in nature and formation
of things in the world, and is of importance in the
history of ancient Indian philosophy.
Criticism of Theism
Theoretically, the Uttara Mimamsa school
manifested obvious tendency of atheism. This was
related with its apurva doctrine. The Mimamsa
school believed in the effect of sacrifice, trusting
that sacrifice could bring about beneficial power to
human beings. The power was named apurva which
had not been there before sacrifice. If one claimed
there was God, he had to admit God’s supernatural
power and that it was not apurva but God who
played a role between sacrifice and effect, thus
denied the effectiveness of sacrifice. Consequently,
the Mimamsa school was clearly opposed to the
concept that God was the maker of the world.
Kumarila’s Slokavarttika is a typical work criticising
theism. The starting-point of the Mimamsa school’s
criticism of theism was to maintain the authority of
Vedanta
Vedanta is one of the main schools of Brahmanism
philosophy in Ancient India. Its theory is the base of
ideological system of Hinduism, which is the school
with the greatest impact on the later generations of
Indian philosophy of religion. The absorption and
development has been carried out in the Brahmanism
mainstream ideology since Veda Upanishad, which
is the main representative of Indian orthodox school
philosophy. After its foundation, Vedanta theory
generally had the leading role in Indian history,
which has still played an important role in the
thought circle of India currently.
Thought origin and major development branch
The Sanskrit of “Vedanta” is “ Vedānta “. Its literal
meaning is “the ending of Vedas”, which mainly
refers to the last part of the Veda in a broad sense,
namely the Upanishad. Because many theories
of this school are derived from Upanishad, it has
received the name.
Although many theories of Vedanta are created
on the basis of Upanishad, the time for occurrence
is later than other schools as an independent
philosophical school. It is generally acknowledged
that such a school has been founded by Badarayana
in about 1st century CE. Some main thoughts of Veda
Upanishad have been concluded by Badarayana in
425
Cultural Contacts
with the completely opposite explanation. When
Vedanta was rising, the philosopher was carrying
on the theory of “the unity of god and man” in
Upanishad. The problem that also occurred was how to deal with the relationship between Brahman
and Atman, which are absolutely the same without
any difference, or they are basically the same, with
a little difference; perhaps the identity is true and
the difference is visional. Consequently, numerous
branches have been taken shape by different answers
to the problem of relationship between Brahman
and Atman (phenomenal world).
The main types of the theory in the relationship
between Brahman and Atman are as follows:
“Bhedabheda”,
“Advaita”,
“Visista-advaita”,
“Dvaita-Vada”, “Dvaita-advaita”, “Suddha-advaita”,
“Sakti-visista-advaita” and “Acintya-bhedabheda”.
Among these theories, the theories with
more influence are as below: “Bhedabheda” by
Badarayana, “Advaita” by Shankara, “Visistaadvaita” by Ramanuja and “Dvaita-vada”
by Madhva.
Agama-sastra, Gaudapada Acarya (front cover)
Badarayana and “Brahma-sutra”
theory to create the earliest fundamental and classic
“Brahma Sutra”, which has established the basic
ideas of Vedanta.
There are many famous ideologists in the
developments of Vedanta, such as Gaudapada
(about 7th century CE), Shankara (788-820),
Vacaspati Misra (about 9th century CE), Bhaskara
(about 9th-10th century CE), Ramanuja (about 11th12th century CE), Sriharsa (about 12th century CE),
Madhva (about 13th century CE), Vallabha (about
13th century CE), Sripati (about 15th century CE)
and Baladeva (about 18th century CE).
There are many similarities and differences in
the theory of these ideologists, which have formed
many branches. The foundation of each branch in
such school is related to the understanding in the
interrelated thesis of Upanishad by the thinkers.
When narrating the previous theory of Upanishad in
Brahma Sutra, there is also the ambiguity. Therefore,
there are some differences in the understanding of
the previous traditional theory by the later Vedanta
ideologists; different branches have taken shape.
The core issue of Upanishad is the relationship
between “Brahman” and “Atman”. Many
philosophers have proposed “The unity of god
and man”. However, the obvious problem exists
when discussing this theory, ie on one hand,
Brahman and Atman are the same thing; on the
other hand, distinction has been made between
them, such as Brahman is unique, while Atman is
motley. Brahman is free and pure, but Atman is
constrained and unpurified. In this way, there are
various understandings in Brahman and Atman to
the same degree and the differential degree, or even
The production of “Brahma-sutra” by Badarayana is
the outstanding feature when Vedanta was viewed as
an independent school. The life of Badarayana wasn’t
quite clear, but his “Brahma-sutra” has become the
fundamental sutra of Vedanta, which has occupied
an important position in the intellectual history of
India. At present, the “Brahma-sutra” we have read
is a supplementary, which had been finished about
the beginning of the 5th century CE.
“Brahma-sutra” consists of 555 simple sentences,
with four sections, and each section is divided
into four chapters. Section 1 is mainly to discuss
the outline of the whole book, emphasising
that Brahman is the basis of things in the world.
Section 2 is to criticise the doctrines of other
schools, such as Samkhya, Vaisesika, Buddhism and
Jainism, expounding the generation of the world.
The 3rd section explains the relationship between
Brahman and small self (individual) and the state of
reincarnation, while section four focusses on man’s
meditation, behaviour retribution and liberation.
There are many issues involved in “Brahmasutra” and the understandings of Brahman, but
the written language is very simple. The meaning
of many sentences in “Brahma-sutra” is understood
by the related annotation. Generally speaking, the
relationship between Brahman and Atman is carried
forward from Upanishad; while discussing Brahman
or the supreme self as the base of all things on earth,
it is viewed as god.
When expounding the relationship between
Brahman and Atman in “Brahma-sutra”, several
main viewpoints have been mentioned by the
426
Cultural Contacts
Frog” and “Ode to Gaudapada”. Based on the related
idea of absorbing and reforming Upanishad and
“Brahma-sutra”, he first put forward the thinking
of “Advaita” between Brahman and Atman in
this school.
Gaudapada considered that Brahman or the greater
self is the foundation. All things are the eidolon of
Brahman or the greater self in essence, which are
false. There is no existence that is independent of
Brahman or the spiritual self. The small self is not a
part of Brahman, nor its variation. Their relationship
is like the small emptiness of bottle and the large
emptiness outside the bottle, ie the small emptiness
of the bottle and the big emptiness outside the bottle
are the same thing, and they are distinct due to the
limitation of the bottle. Similar to this situation,
the countless small self and the spiritual self are
the same thing as the phenomenon of life. They are
different because of the physical limitation, in fact,
they are identical.
In the age of Gaudapada, Mahayana has already been
developed for a long time, which has the significant
influence in an ideological circle. Gaudapada learnt
a lot of Buddhist ideas to organise the Advaita
doctrine of Vedanta. He especially focussed on the
concept of “Emptiness” of Mahayana to incorporate
the theory of Vedanta that there is no real thing
independent of Brahman. In “Agamasastra”, the
theory of Mahamaya (māyā, which is the unclear
magic power) is related and analysed through the
length of an article by Gaudapada. It believes that
universal is shown by people’s ignorance, just like
the way we dream in bed, which is to support the
idea of “Unity of dream and awakening”. This sense
was very popular in ancient India, yet its initiator,
in addition to Mahayana, Gaudapada has also made
a brilliant achievement in this aspect.
Although Gaudapada wasn’t the first ideologist
who proposed Advaita, he was the person who
demonstrated this theory earliest. His theory had
a great impact on the foundation of systematised
thinking of Advaita philosophy by Shankara and
other thinkers. In Vedanta, it had the vital function
in the process of being mainstream faction in
intellectual history of India.
Shankara’s Ideological System - Shankara was
the philosopher with the greatest impact in Vedanta,
which was the ideologist with a higher position in
the whole Indian history. His theory has still played
an important role in the Indian idea in modern
times, which is the thought core of Hinduism.
Shankara was born in Southern India, with the
family name of Brahman. In his early years, he had
once learnt from Govinda, the ideologist of Vedanta.
He had an accomplishment in philosophic theory of
Brahmanism since Upanishad to create the most
representative doctrinal system of Vedanta. He had
Adi Shankaracharya preaching to disciples
previous ideologists of Brahmanism. According to
the annotation from 1, 4, 19-22 of “Brahma-sutra”
by Shankara, the standpoints to the relationship
between Brahman and Atman by three ideologists
are stated in “Brahma-sutra” as below: Asmarathya
believed that Brahman and Atman was the
relationship of “Bhedabheda”; Audulomi thought
that Brahman and Atman was the relationship of
Satya-bheda; Kasakrtsna considered that Brahman
and Atman was the relationship of Advaita with no
difference. It was quite simple to Brahma-sutra. Some
discussions aren’t inconsistent from the beginning
to end. So the viewpoint on the relationship between
Brahman and Atman was not clear sometimes by
Badarayana. Generally recognising, Badarayana
is inclined to “Bhedabheda” in the relationship
between Brahman and Atman. This theory thinks
that Brahman is different from its part, property
or creature - Atman (phenomenal realm) as the
creator or the cause in the world. However, Atman
(phenomenal realm) has Brahman, and everything
cannot exist without Brahman. Brahman and Atman
are the same. The relationship between them is
compared to the sun and its shadow reflected in
the water.
“Brahma-sutra” also discusses reincarnation and
liberation, and represents the reincarnation process
of the individual and how to acquire Brahman
through meditation. The sacrifice to Brahmanism is
helpful to know Brahman correctly. It has stressed
if the individual is integrated with Brahman, we
cannot be reborn in the world again.
There are many glossographers of “Brahma-sutra”
in later ages. There are different sayings to the
implication of some scriptures frequently, which is
also a reason to facilitate Vedanta to form different
branches.
Gaudapada’s Theory
Gaudapada is an ideologist of Vedanta with more
influence, with an unknown life. His main work is
“Agamasastra” (Āgama-śāstra, referred to as “Ode to
427
Cultural Contacts
importance to them. Additionally, such distinction
has not been made to Brahman by all Upanishads.
Yet, the concepts of Para and Apara have been
served as the key concepts by Shankara. The real
noumenon is stated clearly with Para by Shankara;
the false delusion appeared due to the incorrect
understanding of reality of thing as illustrated
by Apara.
Shankara viewed that the idea of epistemology
and theory of reality was closely related to each
other. When discussing the reality of thing, he
presented “Para” and “Apara”. Correspondingly,
“Aparavidya” and “Paravidya” have been put
forward in his epistemology. Shankara considered
that the inconsistent Brahman is viewed as Apara,
which is uneducated, called “Aparavidya”. Brahman
is thought as the sole and true Para, ie genuine
knowledge or “Paravidya”. In his opinion, supreme
and true cognition was acquired only by a variety
of false appearances, and was universal to know the
truth of Brahman (only the Para).
There are the origin relations with the
“Aparavidya” and “Paravidya” and the idea of some
Upanishads by Shankara. Such distinction has been
once made in 1, 1 and 4-5 of “Mundaka Up.” To think
that “Paravidya” is the knowledge of “Immortal”
while “Aparavidya” is related to the knowledge of
“Four Vedas”. When expounding “Aparavidya” and
“Paravidya”, Shankara expanded its deep meaning
instead of just explaining the original sense of
Upanishad. There is something similar between
“Paravidya” and the primary meaning in “Mundaka
Up.” The immortal of “Mundaka Up” means
Brahman, but “Mundaka Up” doesn’t clearly say that
the immortal is Para. There are more meanings in
“Aparavidya” as stated by Shankara than those in
“Mundaka Up”. “Aparavidya” was discussed from
Avidya or “Mahamaya” (Māyā, fantasy) to a large
extent. “Quantity” of various factions in Indian
philosophy was also involved when Shankara was
discussing the theory. Three kinds of quantity have
been referred to by Shankara, such as partyaksa,
anumana and agama. His later followers mentioned
more about the related information of quantity.
However, the quantity mentioned by Shankara
was familiar with the general things in society
instead of knowing the supreme reality “Brahman”
(Para). Therefore, the cognition obtained from
these quantities was concluded into the range of
Aparavidya. According to Advaita of Shankara,
the only reality was Brahman (Para), while other
things were imaginary. Due to man’s ignorance,
the imaginary things were viewed as real. Such
kind of ignorance was so-called “Mahamaya” by
Gaudapada. The imaginary things could be regarded
as reality by Mahamaya, so it was a power (fantasy).
When discussing Mahamaya that lead to the false
taken activities in many parts of India to take great
efforts in propagating theories of Brahmanism or
Hinduism, and died in north India finally.
There were many works related to philosophy
of religion by Shankara, such as “Brahma-sutrabhāsya”, “Upadeśasāhasri”, “Panci-karana prakriyā”,
“Ātmabodha” and the annotations to “Bhagavad
Gīta” and “Brihadaranyaka Upanishad”.
The relationship between Brahman and Atman
of Shankara was directly influenced by “Advaita”
doctrine of Gaudapada. Further transformation
and development have been made to Upanishad
and “Brahma-sutra” to build the most systematic
“Advaita” doctrine in Vedanta, which has become
the orthodoxy of Brahmanism or Hinduism
philosophy.
Shankara viewed that Brahman is the only
thing that was existing in the world among many
things. Brahman is the base of everything, and the
phenomenal world is a kind of illusion. Because the
universal is rooted in Brahman, Brahman is also
viewed as a power like the supreme god who is
omnipotent.
Shankara also thought that, like other Upanishads
say, Brahman cannot be known by the common
means like general things adopted. Brahman can be
really realised only by a ceaseless negation. Shankara
has the same opinion with that of Upanishad, using
“Neti, Neti” to describe Brahman. On one hand,
what he did was to indicate Brahman’s supremacy,
which is incomparable; on the other hand, he
wanted to deny other things except Brahman. It was
very popular in Ancient India to know or realise the
foundation or reality of things by apoha.
When Shankara lays stress on Brahman as the only
and real entity, the independent truth of all kinds of
things in the world has been denied, with detailed
argumentation. He considered that the essence of
Brahman is unique. There are two kinds of Brahman
due to the understanding of it, and one is Apara,
also called “Saguna-Brahman” with limitation and
property; another one is Para, also called “NirgunaBrahman”, which is to get rid of all condition factors
with no difference and no property. Shankara
demonstrated that the difference between Para and
Apara is only the product of human’s subjective
cognisance. In fact, there is only one Brahman.
There is the origin relation between the concept
of Para and Apara, and the discussion of Upanishad.
In 5 and 2 of “Praśna Up”, this pair of concepts has
been mentioned. In addition, “Tangible Brahman”
and “Intangible Brahman” are also mentioned in
6 and 3 of “Maitri Up”, which are close or similar
concepts. However, it is very clear that although
the thinkers of Upanishad have referred to the
concepts of Para and Apara, they haven’t elaborated
them intensively and deeply, nor without attaching
428
Cultural Contacts
“Brahma-sutra” instead of the theory of Buddhism.
Moreover, some doctrines, which were usually
viewed as independent theories of Buddhism, were
absorbed by Buddhism from references of ancient
Brahmanism in fact, such as Veda Upanishad; or
founded on the base of Brahmanism. Viewed from
this aspect, Advaita of Shankara mainly resulted
from the transformation and improvement on the
development of Brahmanism. Its theoretic source is
still the canon of ancient Brahmanism.
In Vedanta, there are many works that proposed
Advaita. It had much to do with the core theory of
Vedanta. This theory was mostly close to the core
theory of “Unity of god and man” in Brahmanism
of Upanishad.
Ramanuja’s Theory
Ramanuja was a famous philosopher of Vedanta
since Shankara, the ideological forerunner of pietist
in India. He was born in a Brahman family. In
his early year, influenced by Shankara, he earned
the Advaita from Shankara and his followers. But
later, the new opinions between god and man were
produced to create “Viśista-advaita”, the important
theoretic branch of Vedanta.
There are many works by Ramanuja, such as Sribhasya, the annotation of Brahma-sutra, Gita-bhasya
and Vedartha-samgraha.
The theory of the relationship between god and
man was proposed on the basis of the absorbing and
changing of the canon of Brahmanism in early stage
by Ramanuja. The base of his view was Brahman
Monism of Upanishad and “Brahma-sutra”. Some
concepts of Advaita in Shankara’s theory have been
accepted by Ramanuja, but the vital revolution
was carried out in the Advaita of Shankara. He was
opposed to Mahamaya theory by Gaudapada and
Shankara, denying that the phenomenal world was
illusory or with avidya product.
Ramanuja considered that although Brahman
was the supreme entity, it had a few properties
and differences. As for the opinions by Shankara
and other famous thinkers that there was not any
property or difference in the supreme substance, he
said in 1, 1, 1 of “Brahmsatra-bhashya” as follows:
“The people who proposed that there is no difference
has no right to assert this or that a kind of entity
proven because all the correct ways of knowing
have the differential things as the objects.”
In Ramanuja’s view, the relationship between
individual (phenomenal world) and supreme self
(Brahman) was like the relationship between
attribute and entity or the part and entirety. It was
like light was a part of fire or the sun, or white
was the nature of the thing with colour. Although
the small self was close to the supreme self, they
were also different. Small self is the attribute or
part of the supreme self. Although property or part
cognition of things, the interpretation of Shankara
was similar to that of Gaudapada. Shankara
explained in 1, 4 and 22 of “Brahma-sutra-bhāsya”,
“The distinction between individual and supreme
self is caused the restrictive factors, such as the
body. Their (bodies) are consisted of the name and
form. Thus, the difference is not real.” This was
similar to that people’s view of small emptiness and
big emptiness as two types of emptiness because
of the bottle, the description of restricting factors.
It should be mentioned that Shankara assimilated
knowledge from Gaudapada in this aspect.
The philosophy theory and Shankara’s liberation
theory are linked together. In ontology and
epistemology, “Para” and “Apara”, “Aparavidya”
and “Paravidya” were put forward. Similarly in
liberation theory, liberation was divided into two
kinds. One is “Gradual liberation” and the other
is “Total liberation”. He deemed that gradual
liberation was produced in the faith of Apara, which
has been obtained by “Aparavidya”. This liberation
believed that individual would go to the Brahman
world and lead a life of pleasure after man’s death,
but it is not true or not total liberation. Complete
liberation is generated from the faith of Para to
acquire from “Paravidya”. This liberation has no
body because it has got rid of metempsychosis
without any body. Nevertheless, when analysing
this liberation, Shankara also maintained that it
was beneficial to achieve liberation by complying
with all provisions of Brahmanism and Hinduism,
and performing the duty of caste. However, to
fulfill liberation, one should depend on supreme
intelligence of Vedanta and insist in the viewpoint
of “Unity of god and man” and “Advaita”. Only in
this way could a person reach the uppermost realm
and be liberated completely.
During the process of creating the theory by
Shankara, some ideas of Buddhism have been
absorbed. A long time ago, Mahayana was very
popular in India. When discussing Advaita, Shankara
more or less absorbed some theories of Buddhism,
such as “Emptiness”, “True meaning” and “Samvrtisatya”, the method to control the reality of things
by Buddhism. Shankara has also been called
“Pracchanna Buddha” in India’s history because he
absorbed some Buddhism components in his theory.
But it is obvious that the attitude to Buddhism by
Shankara is different from that of Gaudapada. In the
degree of absorbing Buddhism theory, Gaudapada
had more achievements than Shankara. Furthermore,
when assimilating Buddhism theory, some ideas
of Buddhism was also criticised by Shankara.
This is different from Gaudapada. In addition, the
foundation for Advaita formation of Shankara and
Gaudapada was the doctrine of Ancient India canon
in Brahmanism, especially the idea of Upanishad and
429
Cultural Contacts
belongs to entity or entirety, we cannot think that
property and part are different. Similarly, although
the phenomenal world that serves as the property or
part belongs to the Brahman as the entity or entirety,
we cannot think that the phenomenal world is false.
The phenomenon in the world is not visional.
Although the diversity and distinctiveness of the
phenomenal world proposed by Ramanuja are true,
as the thinker of Vedanta, he also acknowledged
that only the supreme self or Brahman exists as the
reality of thing. Although the phenomenal world
(small self) is not meaningless, it is only the property
or part to limit the highest reality; the highest
reality of thing being “Consistent”. This relationship
between Brahman and Atman by Ramanuja was
called “Viśista-advaita”.
In epistemology, the theory of knowledge was
evolved by Ramanuja. He mentioned three types of
quantities: partyaksa, anumana and agama. These
quantities were viewed as the effective tool to obtain
correct understanding. These three quantities have
a higher position than those of Shankara’s theory.
Because Shankara asserted “Aparavidya”, the said
three quantities and the knowledge acquired belong
to the range of “Aparavidya”. Therefore, the three
quantities stated by both of them were different in
impact or position.
Ramanuja, like other Vedanta thinkers, pursued
liberation. In this aspect, he specially laid stress
on belief and respect to god. In Ramanuja’s eye,
Brahman was god, especially to Vishnu who had
supreme position. Ramanuja emphasised to view
god directly by remembrance and meditation, to
gain liberation.
The religion theory of Ramanuja included
ideology of equality, during the process of getting
rid of metempsychosis, even the lower caste like
Sudra could reach his goal. According to him, if we
can really respect god, we can achieve liberation
through sacrificing ourselves and returning
to Vishnu.
Madhva’s Theory
Since Shankara, Madhva was another famous
thinker of this school. He was born in southern
India and accepted the education of traditional
ideology of Brahmanism. In his early years, the
relationship between Brahman and Atman by
Shankara influenced him, but later there were some
new opinions in this aspect, and Madhva proposed
his theory. There are many works written by
Madhva, and he had the notes and commentaries to
the ancient canons of Brahmanism. The annotations
of “Brahma-sutra” were deeply influenced. He also
concentrated on the ideas of some other schools of
philosophy, absorbing the theories from Samkhya,
Vaisesika, Nyāya and Jainism. Like great majority
of ideologists of Vedanta, Madhva inherited and
Statue of Adi Shankaracharya
developed some basic concepts in Upanishad and
“Brahma-sutra”. He admitted that Brahman is
the original cause of all things. He thought that
Brahman was Vishnu who is powerful, omniscient
and omnipotent. God or Brahman owns the essence
of unadulterated spirit, which exists in all different
things. Madhva, like other ideologists of Vedanta,
considered that Brahman, as the highest entity or
supreme god, has the indescribability. Brahman
exceeds the range that speech and ratiocination can
reach. However, he opposed to the visible description
of “Saguna-Brahman” (Apara) and the invisible and
indescribable views of “Nirguna-Brahman” (Para)
by some Vedanta thinkers of Advaita.
In the relationship between “Brahman” and
“Atman”, Madhva was opposed to the related ideas
of Shankara and “Mahamaya”. In his eye, things in
the world were not the products of avidya, without
approving “Advaita”, but supporting “Dvaita-vada”.
He thought that Brahman was the foundation, but
Brahman and Atman were not alike, but detached.
In fact, he emphasised more on the substantiality of
the small self and the differences between the small
self and Brahman. In his “Brahmsatra-bhashya”,
Madhva explicitly declared as follows: small self
and Brahman were separated from each other,
which were different. Because Madhva extremely
emphasised the double reality between god
(Brahman) and small self (phenomenal world), and
his theory was known as “Dvaita-vada”. This theory
tends to confirm the factuality of things in the
world, which are obviously different from Advaita,
the mainstream ideology of Vedanta.
When demonstrating the relationship between
“Brahman” and “Atman” in his “Dvaita-vada”,
Madhva put forward five theories of basic
difference. He considered that there were eternal
430
Cultural Contacts
was basically the same, which was usually translated
as “Doctrine of knowledge” and “Clear knowledge”.
Brahman is frequently described as god or
Mahesvara by Vedanta. The school viewed that
the fundamental cause of the world is Brahman
or Mahesvara. Mahesvara is the supreme reality
or god in all things, and all things on earth are
created by him. Everything lies as the basis of
him in essence. The basic cause is identified as
real existence and ubiquity, which can produce
many methods. In some literatures, such concept
of Vedanta was argued by Buddhism. This kind of
literature has also been translated into Chinese. The
first chapter of “Vijnaptimatratasiddhi-sastra” is as
follows, “Somebody thinks that there is Mahesvara,
“Entity” exists in the world and can derive various
kinds of “dharma”. The viewpoint kept by him
was unreasonable. Why do we say so? If “dharma”
can be created, it must not be unchangeable.
However, the mortal is capriccioso, certainly with
no universality. Yet, the thing without generality
cannot exist in the world really. Since “Entity” is in
the universality of the world with many functions,
all “dharmas” can be derived in all places. If
“dharma” can be produced due to “Inspiration” or
“Reason”, theory of one cause is violated. Perhaps
“Inspiration” or “Reason” immediately appears
due to methodicalness of all things on earth. In
my opinion, Brahman, time, square, bhuta-koti,
void and self exist in the real world with various
functions, which produce all dharmas. All is such a
principle.” Some concepts of Vedanta orientated in
dominant ideas of Upanishad are included in this
citation. “Mahesvara”, “Brahman” and “Self” are
proposed by Vedanta. Such contents can be found
in the Chinese scripture as well. As a result, the
idea of Vedanta was mainly related by Buddhism
literature to become known by Chinese in
ancient times.
In modern and contemporary times of China,
Vedanta has been attached great importance.
There is much contact between Indian and Chinese,
which made the Chinese aware about Hinduism to
a certain degree. As the prevailing philosophy of
Indian culture, the idea of Hinduism has got a lot of
attention from Chinese. There is a close relationship
between the core ideology of philosophy in
Hinduism and Vedanta, and when the Chinese got
in touch with Hinduism, they could also familiarise
themselves with Vedanta.
In the study of Indian philosophy of modern
China, Vedanta is very important. When writing
thesis in the study of Indian philosophy, there
are many Chinese scholars who have written on
Vedanta philosophy as the subject. In modern China,
there are many treatises of Vedanta that have been
published. In Chinese universities or the scientific
differences between god (Brahman) and small
self, god and material, one kind of substance and
another kind of substance, small self and small self,
small self and matter.
The epistemology idea of Madhva was close to
that of Ramanuja. He recognised the effectiveness of
partyaksa, anumana and agama and the significance
of gaining correct cognition of ancient canons
in Brahmanism like Upanishad. Additionally, he
also attached great importance to the sacrifice of
Brahmanism, viewing that sacrifice was important
to acquire the right cognition.
Gaining the knowledge of this school and
liberation was directly connected to each other by
Madhva. Anyone who wanted to reach liberation, he
should rely on the intelligence of Vedanta. Madhva
put a high value on worship to god. He considered
it vital to obtain liberation by dedication to Vishnu.
In addition to the theories for the relationship
of Brahman and Atman from the thinkers who
had the brilliant achievements of Vedanta as
said above, there are also numerous bifurcation
theories. Although there are varying degrees
among these theories, the core of the discussion
by these branches focus on traditional problems
like whether Brahman and small self (phenomenal
world) is same or differentm and if the small self is
substantial or visional.
Since the foundation of Vedanta, it has had an
extensive and powerful influence on the history
of India. Many ideologists and social activists in
modern times in India have taken the theories of
Vedanta as the base of the ideological system, and
then absorbed or changed the doctrine of Vedanta
to a varying extent.
In modern and contemporary times, the theory of
Vedanta not only kept the crucial influence on the
development of social thought in India, but it also
propagated many countries and territories. It has
been researched by the international community
as the most representative theory of the traditional
culture of India, which has been attached importance
to various countries, playing an important role in
the development of Orientalism in the world.
Transmission and Impact in China
The idea of Vedanta was introduced to China
with Buddhism in ancient times. This school was
indirectly recommended to the Chinese people
during the process of relating or criticising outercourse idea by Buddhist ideologists. The contents
about the idea of Vedanta in Buddhist Scripture with
Chinese translation have certain influence on the
thought circle in ancient China. The initial source
of Vedanta originated from Upanishad, the ancient
canon in India. Many concepts are the same as those
of Veda Upanishad. As a result, when discussing
Vedanta in the theory of Chinese Buddhism, Veda
431
Cultural Contacts
research institutions, the courses of Vedanta are
established. In the related academic conferences,
there are seminars related to Vedanta.
(Yao Weiqun)
Six Stramana Masters
Liushi (Six Teachers) Six persons representing
non-Brahmin or anti-Brahmin thoughts formed
around the sixth century, contemporary with the
Buddhist founder Shakyamuni, who were referred
to as “Six non-Buddhist teachers” in Buddhist
texts, including Purana Kassapa, Makkhali Gosala,
Ajita Kesakambala, Pakudha Kaccayana, Sanjaya
Belatthiputra and Nigantha Nataputta. Activities
and thoughts of these six persons had a significant
influence on non-orthodox schools in ancient Indian
history, and constitute some characteristic theories
in Indian philosophy.
Purana Kassapa, as tradition has it, was the son
of a slave, disputed with Buddha, and drowned
himself at Sravasti 16 years after the Buddha’s
Enlightenment. His teachings are recorded in
the Buddhist texts, including the one in Pali
Samannaphala Sutta, the one in Chinese Dirghagamasutra and Samyuktagama sutra.
There is not much information on his life and
activities. The Samyuktagama sutra records in Book
3, “Purana Kassapa is a preacher of heterodox
doctrines and surrounded by 500 non-orthodox
followers, talking loudly about secular matters”,
and in Book 5, “Purana Kassapa is a popular teacher
and followed by five hundred disciples, including
the wise and the foolish. When he dies, no one can
tell where he is.”
Purana Kassapa denies the theory on punishment
and reward. He holds, from good (bad) deeds
does not come reward (punishment). As the
Dirghagama-sutra states in Book 17, “killing, theft,
sexual indulgence, nonsense, burglary, arson and
blockade are not bad. Neither mass killing on the
south of the Ganges is punished, nor mass alms
giving on the north of the Ganges is rewarded”.
Pali Samaññaphala Sutta reports similar in Book 17,
Purana Kassapa is said to believe, “If with a razoredged disk one were to turn all the living beings on
this earth to a single heap of flesh, a single pile of
flesh, there would be no evil from that cause, no
coming of evil… through generosity, self-control,
restraint, and truthful speech there is no merit from
that cause, no coming of merit.” Purana Kassapa’s
theory negates that the rewards and punishments
can be caused by people’s actions, which directly
results a concept of the meaningless of morals.
Purana Kassapa denies any reward or punishment
for either good or bad deeds, as he denied any
cause-effect relationship. He holds the existence of
all living beings or feelings as natural and has no
Six Tirthika Teachers, Dazu Rock Carvings, Chongqing, China
particular reason or fate, as the Samyuktagama sutra
represents in Book 3, “No cause and no fate, living
beings are dirty; no cause and no fate, living beings are
clean”.
In extant historical texts, ideas of Purana Kassapa
are often confused with those of Makkhali Gosala
and Pakudha Kaccayana, since they are usually
identified as teachers of Indian Ajivaka (or Ajivika).
And so, their ideas were not clearly distinguished by
later generations. Ajivika has been existent in India
for about two thousand years. At the time of these
three persons, their doctrines were not hard to be
known, but after they died, people easily forgot and
confuse the doctrinal differences and similarities
between these Ajivika predecessors. Besides, Pali
texts and Chinese texts do not provide consistent
relevant information.
Makkhali
Gosala,
contemporaneous
with
Nigantha, the founder of Jainism, once acted
together with Nigantha, but departed due to disputes
and differences.
Pali Samaññaphala Sutta and Chinese Agamas
all contain concise information about his life. As
the Dirghagama-sutra states in Book 17, “Makkhali
Gosala heads the masses, is learned, reputed,
accepts everything just like a vast sea, and is
followed by many.”
Dirghagama-sutra provides clear information
about his view, as Book 17 states, he asserts “no
giving, no sacrifice, no good or bad law, no good
or bad reward, no this world and no afterworld.”
The Samyuktagama sutra (Book 5 and Book 35)
also contain some relevant information. In fact, as
Pali texts shows, Makkhali Gosala holds that things
develop from its own living environment and its
nature. Humans can do nothing to change it and
their life is not controlled by any specific cause. For
instance, the Samaññaphala Sutta (Book 20) states,
“There is no cause, no requisite condition, for the
defilement of beings. Beings are defiled without
cause, without requisite condition. Beings are
purified without cause, without requisite condition.
432
Cultural Contacts
having directly known and realised it for themselves.
Generosity is taught by idiots. The words of those
who speak of existence after death are false, empty
chatter. With the break-up of the body, the wise and
the foolish alike are annihilated, destroyed. They do
not exist after death.” These ideas are all based on
four elements, since if four elements are the only
basis for all things, then afterworld, heaven, hell
and retribution will be unfounded, and karma will
not arise, alms giving, sacrifice and the like will be
without meaning, and Brahmanic teachings will be
false and useless.
Though not the earliest exponent, Ajita
Kesakambala put forth explicit Lokayata thoughts
quite early. The Pali Samaññaphala Sutta and
Chinese versions of Amagas do not include all
Lokayata theories, and Buddhist texts also fail to
fully present Lokayata’s ideas about the connection
between consciousness and material and about
hedonism, but some Brahmanic or Hindu texts (for
example, the Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha and the
Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha) contain clear information
about Lokayata. However, these texts do not indicate
which can be attributed to Ajita Kesakambala.
Pakudha Kaccayana Little is known about his
life. The Samyuktagama sutra in Book 5 also identifies
him as one of the heterodox teachers, and alleges
that “he is also surrounded by five hundred disciples”.
Pakudha Kaccayana holds a doctrine of “Seven
Substances”. The Samannaphala Sutta (Book
26) represents this view as follows: “There are
these seven substances -- unmade, irreducible,
uncreated, without a creator, barren, stable as a
mountain-peak, standing firm like a pillar — that
do not alter, do not change, do not interfere with
one another, are incapable of causing one another
pleasure, pain, or both pleasure and pain. Which
seven? The earth-substance, liquid-substance, firesubstance, wind-substance, pleasure, pain, and
the soul as the seventh… that do not alter, do not
change, do not interfere with one another, and are
incapable of causing one another pleasure, pain, or
both pleasure and pain. And among them there is
neither killer nor one who causes killing, no hearer
nor one who causes hearing, no cogniser nor one
who causes cognition. When one cuts off [another
person’s] head, there is no one taking anyone’s life.
It is simply between the seven substances that the
sword passes.”
The Samyuktagama sutra, in Book 7, does
not explicitly mention the name of Pakudha
Kaccayana, but has a description similar to the
Pali Samaññaphala Sutta, which, as a result, can be
known to be the ideas of Pakudha Kaccayana. It
says, “There are these seven substances are unmade,
not reduced, and do not kill, do not move, and are
firm. Which seven? The earth-substance, the liquid-
There is nothing self-caused, nothing other-caused.”
This is a kind of fatalism, and it denies the then
popular retribution, reward and punishment as well
as the impact of human deeds on subsequent life.
Historical texts often confuse Makkhali Gosala’s
teachings with those of other “six teacher” Makkhali
Gosala, Purana Kassapa and Pakudha Kaccayana
are all identified as early thinkers of Ajivika, but
Makkhali Gosala is considered to be the major
contributor to early Ajivika thoughts. Therefore,
many tend to deem Makkhali Gosala as the founder
of the Ajivika movement.
Ajita Kesakambala is an important representative
of Lokayata, a philosophical school in ancient India.
Systematic information on his life and activities is
no longer available, but there are many fragmentary
discussions about him and Lokayata ideas. Texts
such as the Pali Samaññaphala Sutta, and Chinese
versions of the Dirghagama-sutra and the Abhidharmamahāvibhāsā-sastra all contain relevant information.
Most of extant Indian and Chinese texts on Lokayata
fail to distinguish ideas of Ajita Kesakambala and
those of other Lokayata thinkers. Therefore, people
cannot rely on Lokayata-related texts to find out the
teachings of Ajita Kesakambala. Clear information
about his ideas can be found in Amagas and the Pali
Samaññaphala Sutta.
The Samyuktagama sutra and the Dirghagamasutra contain some information about the life
or activities of Ajita Kesakambala. For instance,
the Samyuktagama sutra reports that “he is also
surrounded by 500 disciples like others of the Six
Teachers”. Another version of the Samyuktagama
(Pinyin: Bie Yi Za A Han Jing) sutra states in Book 3,
“like others of the Six Teachers, he does not believe
in anuttara-samyak-sambodhi”. The Dirghagamasutra in Book 17 represents him as “a popular
leader, learned and reputed”.
As for his teachings, the Dirghagama-sutra, in Book
17, states, Ajita Kesakambala holds, “When a man
dies, his constituent four elements are gone and
empty, with earth back to earth, water to water,
fire to fire and wind to wind. Put a dead man and
his bed amid tombs, and burn and turn them into
grey colour or ash. Be wise or foolish, a dead man
is nothing”. “Four elements” are the basis of his
teachings, and in this respect, Ajita Kesakambala
thinks that alms giving, sacrifice and offering are
meaningless, and there is no heaven and no hell. For
instance, According to the Pali Samaññaphala Sutta
(Book 23), Ajita Kesakambala asserts that “there is
nothing given, nothing offered, nothing sacrificed.
There is no fruit or result of good or bad actions.
There is no this world, no next world, no mother, no
father, no spontaneously reborn beings; no priests
or contemplatives who, faring rightly and practising
rightly, proclaim this world and the next after
433
Cultural Contacts
substance, the fire-substance, the wind-substance,
pleasure, pain, and the fate as the seventh……that
are unmade, unreduced, do not kill, do not change,
do not move, do not interfere with one another, and
are incapable of causing good luck, bad luck or both
good luck and back luck or of causing one another
pleasure, pain, or both pleasure and pain. When
one’s head is cut off, it is simply seven substances
that the sword is directed to, and there is neither
killer nor killing”. Chinese texts are similar to Pali
ones. Actually, Pakudha Kaccayana proposes a
seven-element theory, and holds that all things or
phenomena are made up of these elements.
Pakudha Kaccayana also denies the causal
relationship in human life. According to the
Dirghagama-sutra represents (Book 17), “No cause
and no fate, living beings are defiled; no cause
and no fate, living beings are purified. All living
beings are powerless and un-free, and no enmity
is predestined. ” Such disapproval of reward and
punishment is popular among the Six Teachers.
Pakudha Kaccayana’s ideas are very close to and
therefore are often confused with those of Makkhali
Gosala in Buddhist texts. However, Makkhali
Gosala represents the orthodox of the Ajivika, while
Pakudha Kaccayana is considered by some scholars
as a heterodox sect.
Sanjaya Belatthiputra A contemporary of the
Buddha, not much is known about his life. The
Samyuktagama sutra (Book 5) reports him “being
surrounded by five hundred disciples”. He is
said to have two major disciples, ie Sariputa and
Maudgalyayana, who later on turn to Buddhism
together with many followers of Sanjaya
Belatthiputra.
Both Pali and Chinese texts contain the teachings
of Sanjaya Belatthiputra. Some of his ideas are
close to Buddhism. For example, according to the
Samaññaphala Sutta (Book 32), he is said to have
said, “If you ask me if there exists another world
after death, if I thought that there exists another
world, would I declare that to you? I don’t think so.
I don’t think in that way. I don’t think otherwise. I
don’t think not, and I don’t think not not.” When
being asked whether there are retribution for
good and bad and whether Buddha exists or not
after death, he would not give an explicit answer,
and indicate the answer cannot be no or yes or
anything clear-cut. This is similar to Buddhism’s
10 or 14 Avyakrtas. The Dirghagama-sutra, in Book
17, also states, that when being asked whether
human deeds and cultivation have retribution, he
replies, “There is retribution, there is no retribution,
there is not and there is not not”. This indicates
that he was skeptical of the then prevailing ideas,
and it was a popular approach then adopted to
oppose Brahmanism.
Samyuktagama-sutra (Za Ahan Jing), Song edition
Nigantha Nataputta A major founder of the
Indian Jainism, Vardhamana is his childhood name,
and later he is called “Mahavira” by his followers.
He was born into a Ksatriya family in Vaishali, and
has stayed with Makkhali Gosala for several years,
but departed later on. He is said to have died at the
age of 72.
Agamas contain many of his deeds or ideas.
For instance, the Samyuktagama sutra in Book 31,
mentions his opposition to killing, As Nigantha
says, “Those who kill and keep killing frequently
are destined for naraka, and so are those who tell
lies.” According to Bie Yi Za A Han Jing, “Nigantha
Nataputta often says: all those who take life are
destined for a state of deprivation, are destined for
hell. All those who steal... All those who indulge in
illicit sex... All those who tell lies are destined for a
state of deprivation, are destined for hell. Whatever
one keeps doing frequently, by that is one led to
a state of rebirth”. One reaps what he sows. What
about religious practices? As the Dirghagama-sutra
(Book 17) states, someone asks Nigantha Nataputta,
“Great merit, like a man rides an elephant or
a horse and the like, now has retribution, will
those that are now cultivating themselves have
retribution?” Nigantha replies, “I am omniscient
and know everything. Like walking, staying,
sitting and lying down, wisdom will arise when a
full knowledge is there.” He does not give a direct
reply, and uses “omniscient” to answer the question
of retribution. The Ekottaragama-sutra, in Book 51,
reports Nigantha as “persuasive, often deranged and
unsettled”, and in Book 41, states that Nigantha has
similar ideas as other teachers, and reports, “there
is an old man in Rājagriha, named Shi Li Jue,……
neglects Buddhist dharma but follows the heterodox
Nigantha. The King and ministers all know him.
Then, non-orthodox Brahmans and Nigantha as well
as laymen and monks belittle Buddhism, including
all Six Teachers.” This revealed some of Nigantha
Nataputta’s features and his view on Buddhism.
“All those who take life are destined for a state
of deprivation, are destined for hell. All those who
steal... All those who indulge in illicit sex... All those
who tell lies are destined for a state of deprivation,
434
Cultural Contacts
the “Six Teachers” are often referred as main or
typical non-orthodox leaders of the Buddha period.
Their lives and teachings are nothing strange to
many ancient Chinese.
In modern China, Buddhism scholars, especially
those that study early Indian Buddhism, all have a
basic knowledge or discussion of “Six Teachers”.
Chinese scholars also publish treatises on the ideas
of the “Six Teachers”, Chinese publications on
Indian Buddhism or philosophy usually contain
chapters on the “Six Teachers”, and college courses
on Indian religion and philosophy also cover the
“Six Teachers”.
(Yao Weiqun)
are destined for hell. Whatever one keeps doing
frequently, by that is one led [to a state of rebirth].”
Nigantha Nataputta has also been mentioned in
Pali texts. According to Samaññaphala Sutta (Book
29), “Nigantha refrains from all cold water, follows
all restraints and avoid all evils”, shows some
characteristics of Nigantha Nataputta and later
Jainas. Restraint from cold water has something to
do with the Jain concept that atman exists in all
things (including earth, water, plants, etc.). Since
water contains atman as well, drinking cold water
will kill atman in it, and killing is an violation of
ordinances and has to be stopped. “Follow all
restraints and avoid all evils” is also related to Jain
asceticism and other strict religious practices.
The Role in the History of Indian Thoughts
In ancient India, Brahmanic or orthodox doctrines
prevail, and the “Six Teachers” have an important
role in non-Brahman or anti-Brahman teachings
around 6th century BCE, and their theories have
a great contribution to the formation of the nonorthodox schools. Many of their ideas directly
oppose prevailing Brahmanism. For instance,
Ajita Kesakambala’s four elements and Pakudha
Kaccayana’s seven elements deny the unitary Braham,
disagree that things are ruled by the Brahman or
the Gods, and hold that all things are made up
of a variety of elements. These thoughts promote
the formation of the atomism that is influential in
the history of Indian thinking. The “Six Teachers”
mostly deny reward and punishment, reincarnation
and karma and reflect the ideas then prevailing
among the lower classes, and a major representative
of these ideas is Lokayata, which daringly opposes
various religious doctrines, including Brahmanism,
and facilitates some scientific thoughts to grow and
develop in ancient time.
Dissemination and Influence in China The “Six
Teachers” were born in the period around the birth
of Buddhism, and they maintain frequent contacts
with early missionary monks, and so are frequently
mentioned in early Buddhist texts. These texts are
brought into China, and many of them are translated
into Chinese. Therefore, the Chinese Buddhist circle
has been familiar with the “Six Teachers” for long.
When refuting or talking about heterodox schools,
Lokayata
Lokayata is a school of ancient Indian philosophy
and one of three non-orthodox schools of thought.
It is popular mainly among lower classes. In ancient
Chinese text, it is also known as Lokaayatika,
Carapace and the like. It has a very old origin and
began to exert an important influence around the 6th
century BCE.
Evolution and Relevant Literature - Lokayata
dates back at least to the Vedic Age or earlier. Some
scholars think it is associated with the earliest Ganges
civilisation and primitive Indian folk beliefs. In the
Vedas, we can see that some hymns are doubtful
of the existence of Gods, and this is consistent
with later atheism of Lokayata. In the Upanishads,
material and element theories mentioned in some
texts are quite close to those of Lokayata.
Its important representative is Ajita Kesakambala,
one of the “Six Teachers” who were active before and
after the birth of Buddhism, and this indicates that
Lokayata then already enjoyed certain influence.
Lokayata is recorded or mentioned in a number
of Buddhist texts. Beside Hinayana and Agama
sutras, Mahayana texts also contain Lokayata
discussion. According to Buddhist records, when at
the Nalanda, Xuanzang argued with non-Buddhist
schools, indicating that Lokayata was very active in
India in the 7th century CE.
Hindu texts between the 8th and 13th century CE
also recorded Lokayata ideas, showing that Indians
then were still familiar with Lokayata.
In the latter 19th century CE, several thousand of
a certain Sikh sect followed the same ideas with
Lokayata.
As a very special school, Lokayata opposes many
popular religious and philosophical thoughts in India
as well as dominating ideas in Indian society, and
therefore, as an antagonist, it’s extremely difficult
to disseminate, and this also affects the preservation
and circulation of its written texts.
No independent works on Lokayata can be found
now. The Brihaspati Sutra, an alleged classic text in
Dirghagama Sutra (Chang Ahan Jing); early Ming supplementary
edition of an earlier version from Song and Yuan periods
435
Cultural Contacts
the 7th century BCE, is already lost. In India, very
few Lokayata texts have been preserved. People
mainly depend on other Indian schools’ introduction
or criticism to find out the development and ideas
of Lokayata. Such extant texts include among
others: the Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha composed by
Samkara (788-820), the Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha
by Madhva (about 13th century CE), the Prabodhacandrodaya by Krsna Mis′ra (about 12th century CE),
and the Saddār ana-samuccaya by Haribhandra Suri
(about the 8th century CE). Besides, Buddhist texts
and others also contain many but sporadic Lokayata
activities and ideas, and lack of any systematic
discussion. The two great Indian epics also contain
some information on Lokayata.
Main Ideas
Lokayata is materialistic and atheistic in many
aspects. Its ideas on four elements, reincarnation and
karma, consciousness as an outcome of elements,
means of valid knowledge and asceticism are eyecatching in ancient India.
Four Elements as the Basis of All Things
Lokayata holds a materialist opinion on the basis
of the world, and thinks, the world, in essence, is
formed by four elements, that is, earth, water, fire
and wind. Nothing exists except four elements.
Everything is made up of four elements, and human
body is also a mixture of four elements. As Samkara
explains in the Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha (Chapter
1), “Lokayata considers four elements ie earth, water,
fire and wind, as the eventual origin, which can be
nothing else.” The Samyuktagama-sutra points out in
Book 7, “A living being lives in this world and dies
with nothing. A body is made up of four elements,
and when life expires, earth returns to earth, water
to water, fire to fire and wind to wind.”
Lokayata holds that things are all made up of
four elements, and denies any supernatural thing
as a fundamental cause for the creation. In ancient
India, many religious schools attribute this cause
to the Gods, Brahma and the like, and think
that all things are created by this supernatural
fundamental cause. In contrast, Lokayata insists
that, there is no such a cause, master or creator,
and everything is born of the Nature. For instance,
the
Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha
(5.3)
relates
Lokayata as follows: “Who decorates the peacock?
Who makes the cuckoo sing? Nothing else but the
Nature.” “Building temples, water houses, ponds,
wells and rest places are praised by travelers
only, not any other existent beings.” With such an
opinion, Lokayata, resolutely opposed to theism
and attacked by many other schools, is extremely
hard to develop itself in ancient India.
Denial of Reincarnation and Karma Historically, major Indian philosophical schools
all agree with reincarnation and liberation, with
Carvaka/Lokayata: An Anthology of Source
Material and Some Recent Studies (front cover)
the exception of Lokayata. Lokayata holds that this
theory is unfounded, and heaven and hell do not
exist at all, sacrifice is meaningless, and various
religious obligations or requirements are nothing
but falsehood.
Lokayata considers heaven and hell as false and
unreal. According to the Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha
(Chapter 8), “There is no other world that is different
from this world, no heaven and no hell, and places
for sivas are fabricated by foolish swindlers of
other schools.” Lokayata believes that the so called
heaven and hell are only descriptions of real life.
The Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha (9.10) states, “The
joy of the heaven is: eat good, stay with young
women, and enjoy requisite clothes, spice, garland
and sandalwood, etc. The pain of the hell is troubles
caused by enemies, weapons and diseases.”
Lokayata denies reincarnation and liberation on
the basis of common sense, as the Sarva-DarsanaSamgraha states, “When once the body becomes
ashes, how can it ever return again?” The SarvaSiddhānta-Samgraha (Chapter 10) says, “Liberation
is death and the end of life.”
Directly related to reincarnation, “karma” for long
has been a popular concept for Indian religions and
philosophies. Under this concept, a man’s deeds will
produce a kind of force to affect his future life, and
he will reap what he sows. Resolutely opposed to
this idea, Lokayata denies karma. As for this, the
Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha states, “Nor do the actions
of the four castes, orders, produce any real effect.”
Lokayata clearly negates any religious practice
intended for good fruits.. According to the SarvaSiddhānta-Samgraha (11.12), “The wise need not
bother about liberation, and only fools afflict
themselves with ascetic practice and hunger.
Chastity and other such ordinances are laid down
by clever weaklings.”
Lokayata denies any connection between joy &
pain and karma. The Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha
(Chapter 4) says, “Do not imagine the existence of
436
Cultural Contacts
if it can be perceived, and does exist if it is never felt
through senses.” While emphasising the importance
of perception, Lokayata also examines other means
of knowledge, with a focus on reference. It deems
inference as unreliable, since inference is based
on necessary causation among things, while such
connection cannot be fully perceived.
Lokayata
also
examines
testimony
and
comparison. It rejects the reliability of testimony,
since testimony in itself relies on recognition of
a kind of language signs, and such language used
by an old man when a kid appears. Comparison is
also rejected as the means of the knowledge of the
connection, since the objective of using comparison
is to establish a different kind of knowledge, ie the
relation of a name to something so named.
According to the Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha, the
Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha and other texts, Lokayata
dismisses inference and other means of knowledge
as incredible and asserts perception as the only
reliable source of valid knowledge. Yet, not all texts
say so, and some texts testifies, Lokayata does not
deny inference indiscriminately, and it only denies
reference in respect of matters such as another
world.
Disapproval of Asceticism
Lokayata suggests that everything is an outcome
of the mixture of four elements, and there are no
heaven, no hell and no karma. And so, ethically, it
denies the meaning of asceticism and urges people
to see for a happy life in the real world.
For many Indian philosophical and religious
schools, the real world is filled with pains, and a
moment of delight or joy is always accompanied by
pains and never lasts long. Man should free himself
from this world and not seek after pleasures in this
world. Moreover, they also hold, ascetic practice in
secular life will produce good fruits and help avoid
pains, while hedonism or sensual pleasures will
produce evil fruits and pains. Lokayata disagrees,
and asserts that only fools will refuse pleasure for
the sake of its connection with pain. According to
the Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha, Lokayata holds that
“the only end of man is enjoyment produced by
sensual pleasures. Nor may you say that such cannot
be called the end of man as they are always mixed
with some kind of pain, because it is our wisdom to
enjoy the pure pleasure as far as we can, and to avoid
the pain which inevitably accompanies it; just as the
man who desires fish takes the fish with their scales
and bones, and having taken as many as he wants,
desists; or just as the man who desires rice, takes the
rice, straw and all, and having taken as much as he
wants, desists. Therefore for us, we should not reject
pleasure through a fear of pain… While life remains
let a man live happily, let him feed on ghee even
though he runs in debt.” It is of the opinion, that
karma in light of happiness or pain, and man feels
joy or pain because of the Nature, and there is no
other cause.”
Such denial of karma, heaven, hell, religious
practice and the like is directly associated with
Lokayata’s assertion of “four elements” as the only
fundamental cause of the world.
Consciousness as an Outcome of Elements Lokayata holds, human consciousness cannot be
separated from human body, and consciousness
exists when body exists, and disappears when
body is destroyed. Human body is an outcome
of the mixture of four elements, and therefore,
consciousness, ultimately, is derived from elements.
Though an individual element may not be conscious
in itself, yet, when combined in some way, that
is, when they form a body, consciousness will
show itself. The Sarva-Darsana-Samgraha describes
Lokayata as follows, “In this school there are four
elements, earth, water, fire, and air; and from these
four elements alone is intelligence produced, just like
the intoxicating power from the mixed ingredients
for wine making . When elements that constitute the
body dissolve, consciousness disappears instantly.”
As the Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha (7) states,
“Consciousness arises from the change of soulless
elements just as red color arises from the mixture of
betel nut and lime.”
For many Indian religious sects, man has
conscious, since he has a spiritual body, that is,
atman (ie soul). When a man dies, his atman
(soul) is gone, and his body is dead and no longer
conscious. Lokayata disagrees, and it opposes an
independent substance that masters or controls
consciousness and denies consciousness being an
attribute of atman. It asserts, if body dissolves, then
consciousness is non-existent, and no atman can
go up to heaven and realize rebirth. For Lokayata,
atman, as a subject of religion or consciousness,
does not exist. If atman indeed exists, it is nothing
but a mixture of four elements. This concept of no
soul is similar to and yet also different from the
Buddhist anatman. Buddhism asserts anatman, but
does not oppose reincarnation and liberation, while
Lokayata insists on non-existence of soul on the
basis on denying reincarnation. Therefore, Lokayata
is a more resolute opponent of atman.
Perception to be the Only Valid Source of
Knowledge
Lokayata is particularly concerned with
perception. It is stated in many texts that, Lokayata
considers perception as the only source of valid
knowledge. For example, the Sarva-DarsanaSamgraha states, “This school holds that perception
is the only source of knowledge and does not allow
inference, etc.” The Sarva-Siddhānta-Samgraha
(Chapter 2) also says, “it holds that an object exists
437
Cultural Contacts
Dissemination and Influence in China
Lokayata is also brought into China, and Chinese
know it mainly through Buddhist texts. Due to its
materialism and anti-religion stance, Buddhists
considers it as heretical and something that should
be refuted. As a result, it is rebuked in many of
ancient Chinese translations and works by ancient
Buddhist monks.
Lokayata is directly mentioned, retold or criticised
in many ancient Buddhist texts. For instance,
Agama translations refer to some Lokayata thinkers
and their ideas when refuting the ideas of the “Six
Teachers”. In the Madhyamaka Shastra, composed
by Nagarjuna, translated by Kumarajiva and with
commentary from Qing Mu, mentions the “birth
from inherent nature” or “elements” advocated
by Lokayata. The Vijbaptimatratasiddhi, translated
by Xuanzang, also refutes Lokayata’s elements
(atomism). Many ancient Chinese texts contain
direct discussion on Lokayata.
In modern China, Lokayata is attached great
importance. Due to its atheism and materialism,
it attracts attention from quite many Chinese
thinkers, and there are translations of Indian works
on Lokayata, while Chinese scholars also publish
their studies of Lokayata. Some works on Indian
philosophy have chapters dedicated to Lokayata,
and college courses on Indian philosophy also have
introduction or study of Lokayata.
(Yao Weiqun)
ascetic practice cannot bring pleasure and avoid the
pain, and so, is meaningless.
In this respect, Lokayata is called by many as
“hedonism”. With original works on Lokayata no
longer available, existing descriptions about it may
be distortions. However, no matter whether these
descriptions are accurate or not, Lokayata has a
clear stance, that is, it holds that man should seek
for a happy life or secular joy. This is rare in ancient
thinking. Other religious and philosophical schools
also call for happiness, which, however, mainly refers
to supreme happiness in a religious sense, realised
through wise liberation, that is, by recognising
that things are unreal, a man can eliminate his
ignorance, stop pursuing external objects or secular
pleasures, and thus avoid pains arising from failure
to obtain pleasures, and eliminate relevant karma
and reincarnation. With a firm opposition to various
religious doctrines, Lokayata calls for secular
Ajivaka
Ajivaka or Ajivika, aka the “School of Wrong
Livelihood” or the “Non-Buddhist School of Wrong
Livelihood”, is a religious and philosophical school
in ancient India. Originated roughly between 5th
and 6th century BCE and initially comprised of a few
prominent Samana thinkers active shortly before or
after the birth of Buddhism, the school underwent
some important transformations afterwards. Popular
in India for over 2,000 years, it spread into China in
the wake of Buddhism.
No literature or written records directly
attributable to the school survived. The existing
records describing the activities and thoughts of
the school are of Buddhist or Jainist origin. Such
religious scriptures as the Chinese Agama Sutra, the
Pali Samannaphala Sutta, and the Jainist “blessing
sutra” contain some inconsistent information about
the school. Certain thoughts of the school were even
contradictorily, classified in these scriptures.
Some of the “Six Samana Masters” were the early
members of the Ajivaka school. According to relevant
Buddhist and Jainist records, the thoughts of three
of the “Six Samana Masters”, ie Makkhali Gosala,
Purana Kassapa, and Pakudha Kaccayana, formed
the theoretical foundation of the school. And among
Lokayata: A study in Ancient Indian Materialism,
Debiprasad Chattopadhyaya, Chinese edition (front cover)
happiness. This is directly related to the firmly
opposition against any other religious theories. Since
another world does not exist, the theory of karma
and reincarnation will be unfounded, and it will be
ethical or rational for people to do the best to have a
happy life in this world.
Lokayata survives, despite its consistent
opposition to ruling ideas and its being suppressed
for thousands of years. But, compared with other
philosophical schools, its influence in the history of
India is limited. To be noted, a number of its ideas
are quite close to modern science and represent
the thinking of ancient middle and lower classes in
India. It makes the great ancient Indian civilisation
more diversified.
438
Cultural Contacts
the three thinkers, Makkhali Gosala was the most
influential, therefore he was also widely considered
the founder of the school. Still other historical
records, such as the Pali “Majjhima Nikaya” and
the Chinese translation of “Madhyam Agama”, also
mentioned some of the early representatives of the
school, such as Nanda Vaccha. However, most of the
information contained in existing records involving
the school was on the thoughts of the three “Samana
Masters” mentioned above.
Makkhali Gosala didn’t believe in such theories as
good/evil karma and reincarnation. In his opinion,
good deeds, such as sacrifice-giving or almsgiving,
have no effect whatsoever. There is no “this life”,
nor an “after life”. People’s living conditions won’t
be affected in any way by the karma of their acts
or behaviours.
Purana Kassapa was not a believer in good/evil
karma. He claimed that such evil deeds as killing,
stealing, sexual misconduct or false speech wouldn’t
bring about any bad karma, just like such good
deeds or virtues as almsgivings, self-control or
truth-telling wouldn’t bring about any good karma.
The reason why he rejected the theory of poetic
justice or karma may be attributed to his denial of
the law of cause and effect. He believed that the
presence of creatures or emotions is only natural
and spontaneous, without any underlying “cause”
giving rise to them. Samyuktagama-sutra Volume
Three contained one of his trenchant observations,
which goes “people are dirty for no reason, just as
people are clean for no reason”. Meant at the time
to subvert the dominant Brahmanism, this thought
also ran counter to Buddhist theories.
Pakudha Kaccayana was also a major thinker of
the school. He espoused a “seven elements” theory,
claiming that all things and creatures in this world
are composed of seven elements, ie earth, water,
fire, wind, hardship, happiness and life. These
elements are all ever-present (non-working, nonworking for those need to be done, non-converting,
non-converting for those need to be converted,
non-killing, non-moving, non-transforming and
non-changing) and eternally changeless. Things
like the human body are essentially made up of
them. Pakudha Kaccayana held that because of
the changelessness and constancy of these basic
elements, a human body composed of them cannot
actually be harmed even if you cut it with a knife,
because the basic elements cannot be destroyed.
The element is the smallest unit of matter that
constitutes such things as the emotional human
body. Therefore, it cannot be divided and destroyed,
it is changeless. This kind of element-based theory
was once very influential in ancient India. It differs
from such central Brahmanist concepts as the Atman
or Brahman, and is also distinct from mainstream
Ekottaragama-sutra
thought of the “emptiness” concept in the Buddhist
philosophy. Like the other two Samana masters,
Pakudha Kaccayana also repudiated the theory of
poetic justice or karma, believing in the spontaneity
of birth and change of things or lives. Because he
claimed that there was nothing one can do, he was
considered somewhat fatalist. His thoughts bear a
striking resemblance to those of Makkhali Gosala,
so much so that the two were often confused in
Buddhist scriptures. Normally the theories of
Makkhali Gosala were deemed the orthodox of the
school, while those of Pakudha Kaccayana were
held to be heretic.
Generally, the theories of these early thinkers
of the Ajivaka school are distinctly different from
the mainstream philosophy then. For instance, the
dominant Brahmanism and Buddhism both believe
in reincarnation and karma, while the Ajivaka
school rejected such beliefs. The mainstream
Brahmanist thoughts popular at the time held that
there is a Brahman or God, a being the Ajivaka
thinkers claimed doesn’t exist. Buddhism espouses
the concept of “emptiness”, claiming that things
are “empty” and impermanent, while some Ajivaka
thinkers upheld pluralistic realism of element-based
theory. Still other schools of thought in ancient
India advocated specific moral and ethical ideas,
what they claimed were also linked to the theory
of reincarnation or karma, while the Ajivaka school
generally repudiated such ideas or thoughts.
During such periods as the Maurya Dynasty, the
Gupta Dynasty and the Vardhana Dynasty, Ajivaka
was moderately active but never dominant, exerting
only a limited influence on society.
The thoughts of the Ajivaka school were also
spread to China, mainly through Buddhism. As it
happens, large portions of Buddhist scripture were
dedicated to criticising or refuting heretical ideas,
the various thoughts and different concepts before
or after the creation of Buddhism by Śākyamuni are
the major contents of schools other than dominant in
ancient India. There are a lot of differences between
the thoughts of Ajivaka and the theory of Buddhism.
Many Buddhist records containing information
439
Cultural Contacts
this word is used in two meanings. One meaning
of “Atman” refers to self (individual), which is
used as the main part of many organs in human’s
body or the centre of vital movement, being the
so-called “individual”. Another sense of “Atman”
means “Brahman”. When discussing Brahman as
the noumenon of the world by many Upanishads,
“Atman” (I) is only applied instead of “Brahman”.
Such kind of “Atman” is the so-called “Collective
Self” or “Brahman”. The “Atman” in this kind of
Upanishad is the noumenon of everything, which
has no difference as that of “Brahman” in its actual
meaning.
In Upanishad or the Indian philosophy of religion
in later generations, “I” or “Atman” is generally
made use of the former meaning. If not otherwise
indicated, it means the subject-of-a-life or the master
of spirit and consciousness of person, being the main
body of eternal cycle of birth and death. In modern
times, “I” or “Atman” is frequently translated into
“soul”. There are many types of “Atman”, however
numerous forms of “Atman” are known as the
phenomenal world.
In Upanishad, many ideologists discuss the
relationship between Brahman and Atman, and the
predominant viewpoint is the so-called “Brahman is
Atman”. They consider that the noumenon of thing
(Brahman or the spiritual self) and the human’s main
part (Atman or individual) are the same at heart.
“Brahman is Atman” has an important position
in the development of Brahman later. The key
reference or branch of Vedanta, which is mostly
influenced in the Indian Philosophy, has this kind of
thoughts. However, many ideologists of this school
have different attitudes towards the same degree
or the actual relation to Brahman and Atman; thus,
diverse branches of Vedanta have been formed.
Badarayana, the originator of Vedanta has a
standpoint of “bhedābheda” in this main work
named “Brahma-sutra”. He thinks that the creator of
world or fundamental cause (Brahman) and Atman
or the phenomenal world are different. Therefore,
Atman has the nature of Brahman. If all things
cannot be existent in the world without Brahman,
then Brahman and Atman is the same.
Gaudapada and Sankara, the thinkers of Vedanta,
think that Brahman and Atman have the relationship
of “Advaita”. In their opinions, Brahman or
the spiritual self is the universal foundation;
everything is the image of Brahman or spiritual
self without things other than being independent
of Brahman or spiritual self. Individual is not
the part of Brahman, nor its variation. As the life
phenomenon, innumerable individual and spiritual
self are the same thing, only due to the limitation
of the body, they are different; in fact, both of them
are the same things. Ramanuja, the ideologist of
Madhyama Agama
about such philosophical “conflicts” or “clashes”
had been translated into Chinese, allowing the
Chinese people have a rare glimpse into the school.
In modern and contemporary China, historical
records concerning the Ajivaka school often
interested Chinese scholars who study the history
of Buddhism and the intellectual history of ancient
India. Some Chinese scholars who focus on heretical
thoughts also published research papers on the school
in Chinese Academic Journals. In some Chinese
books about the Indian religious philosophies, there
are also chapters or parts dedicated to the Ajivaka
school. In addition, the school is also mentioned
in the oriental philosophy courses offered in some
Chinese universities.
(Yao Weiqun)
Concepts
Brahmatmaikya
Brahman is “Atman” which is the core concept in
the Brahman philosophy of Ancient India. It appears
first in some early Upanishads. It is later regarded as
the main philosophical thought by the Vedanta. The
Hinduism which is popular in the later ages of India
also takes it as its theoretical basis.
Upanishad is a batch of Veda document in the
later ages which put forward large amount of
clear philosophy theories earlier in India. The
main content discussed in the documents is the
relationship between Brahman and Atman. The so
called Brahman is the noumenon of all things. It is
the highest reality in the cosmos. The so-called “I” is
the transliteration of Atman. It usually refers to the
subject and soul of biological phenomena.
Many ideologists of Upanishad think that
Brahman is the highest reality without any specific
property, and we cannot give a precise definition
to Brahman by the general conceptual category. If
we are sure to know the true meaning of Brahman,
we can only understand and realise it by various
negations. In Upanishad, Brahman is described as
the supreme god by some thinkers. It is viewed as
the fundamental cause or the creator for things in
the world.
There are many meanings for “Atman” in Sanskrit,
such as self, breath, nature, the whole body and the
highest noumenon of human life. In Upanishad,
440
Cultural Contacts
own theoretical system. The concept has also been
introduced in China, and produced great influence
to Chinese culture.
Samsara concept in Vedic Upanishad - In
the vedic period, Indians started to think where
they would go after death. ègveda mentions
of Death “Yama” and Western Pure Land, and
believed that people who do good will enter
Western Pure Land after they die. ègveda says
that “reuniting with ancestor, meeting Yama, and
obtaining the returns of benevolence in Western
Pure Land”. In Vedic period, people believed that
the soul lasted forever, and death meant that
the soul could walk from one world to another.
Indian religions in later ages emphasised that
Samsara was directly related to a human’s behaviour.
Such contents were also mentioned in the Veda,
but the difference was that the latter stressed that
people doing good would ascend to heaven, but it
had not directly shown that people doing evil things
would go to hell.
The core thought of Indian philosophy of religion
was formed in the Upanishad period, when the
Samsara concept gradually developed into a
system. At this period, Samsara was directly related
to Vimukti, and closely connected with ethics.
The famous theory of Samsara in Upanishad was
“five stages and two approaches”. “Five stages”
referred to the five Samsara stages from death
to rebirth, namely, a human is cremated after
death, first enters the moon, then becomes the
rain, subsequently, turns into food after raining,
sperm after eating food, finally enters the mother’s
womb. The so-called “two approaches” referred to
devayana and pitçyàna. Devayana is the road in
which humans cannot return to the original world
after death, while pitçyàna is the road in which
humans can return to the original world following
the order of the five stages after death.
Ideologists of Upanishad have made a clear
distinction between good and bad results of
Samsara, and have had a definite concept of
karma. The good and bad results of Samsara were
considered to be related to a human’s behaviour
(ie good or evil). Well-doing and evildoing produce
their corresponding karmas, which directly affects
the living pattern or state of the doer in life and
afterlife. Ideologists of Upanishad believe that
people doing good will become saint, while doing
evil will become villain. Well-doing mainly refers
to compliance with various religious regulations of
Brahmanism and performance of various obligations.
Many ideologists of Upanishad clearly put forward
the subject of Samsara during discussion, that is “me”
or “Altman”, which is the producer of Karma, and the
bearer of good and evil results in Samsara. Ideologists
of Upanishad believe that the state of Samsara is
Vedanta, considers that Brahman and Atman have
the relationship of “Visistadvaita”. In his opinion,
Atman (individual or phenomenal world) is the
property or part of Brahman (substance or entity).
Although the property or part attaches to substance
or entity, we cannot think that the property and part
are not complied with each other. The phenomenon
in the world is not visional. However, Ramanuja
is also acknowledging that the supreme Atman
Upanishads: The Holy Spirit of
Vedas (front cover)
or Brahman exists as noumenon. He deems that
although the phenomenal world (individual) is not
meaningless, it is only to limit the nature or part
of the supreme entity. The supreme entities of an
object are same or identical.
In modern and contemporary times of India,
“Brahman is Atman” still has a great influence.
Because the mainstream ideology of Vedanta,
“Advaita” has been mainly accepted by the great
majority ideologists, while the origin of thought
or the core ideology of “Advaita” originates from
“Brahman is Atman” in Upanishad.
“Brahman is Atman” has had its influence on
China. In ancient China, when some Chinese
Buddhist scriptures criticised the heterodox
ideology, the thought of Upanishad or Vedanta
had been related or demonstrated. In modern and
contemporary times of China, the orthodoxy of
ancient philosophy in India has been given great
importance in the academic world, to do research on
Upanishad and Vedanta. There are many research
papers on “Brahman is Atman” in Chinese academic
journals. The introduction to “Brahman is Atman” is
also published by China in the treatise or textbook
about the Indian philosophy of religion.
(Yao Weiqun)
Samsara
Samsara is an important part of the ancient Indian
philosophy of religion. Brahmanism, Buddhism and
Jainism regard it as the fundamental part of their
441
Cultural Contacts
Samkhya, which thinks that everything in Samsara
is painful. If people want to jump out of it, it is
necessary to eliminate ignorance and practice yoga
to achieve liberation. Vaisesika believes that the
state of Samsara is the combination of “Atman” and
the body, which results from the ‘invisible force”.
Invisible force is generated by man’s good and evil
behaviour. If there is no invisible force, there is also
not the combination of “Atman” and the body; thus,
no body will appear, so it will annihilate Samsara.
Nyaya believes that the state of Samsara is “pain”.
Pain evolves from “rebirth”, rebirth from “behaviour”
(proper dharma and improper dharma), behaviour
from “negligence”, and negligence from mistaken
understanding. When people obtain the “correct
understanding”, the mistaken understanding will
disappear, thus, no mistaken understanding means
no negligence, no negligence means no behaviour,
no behaviour means no rebirth, and finally, no
rebirth means no pain. Nyaya holds that to get
the correct understanding is key to get rid of pain.
Mistake and mistaken thought lead to Samsara,
and the way to correct it is to obtain the “correct
understanding”, thereby eliminating negligence and
getting rid of Samsara.
Samsara concept in Buddhism - The theoretical
system of early Buddhism absorbs the Samsara
concept in Vedic Upanishad. It thinks that life
phenomenon is controlled by the karma of sentient
beings, and believes that there is a circulation
process, namely, so-called Samsara, but denies
that there is an eternal Samsara subject. Buddhism
advocates the “theory of Anatman” (or theory of no
subject), uses the idea of “destiny” to explain the
phenomena in the world or life, and thinks that
things and human are composed of many elements
or “destinies”, the changes in life phenomena of
things or human are just the separation and reunion
Wheel of Life painting
associated with pain. Therefore, people should jump
out of Samsara to reach a state of liberation, and
to achieve this goal, the most fundamental point is
to know the true nature of things, and obtain the
supreme wisdom of “Brahman and Atman are one”.
Samsara concept in Vedic Upanishad produces
enormous influence to the philosophy of religion of
later generations in India.
Samsara concept in Astikya - About 300 BCE to
early CE, Brahmanism developed “Astikya”, namely
Sankhya, Yoga, Vaishesika, Nyaya, Mimamsa and
Vedanta. In Samsara concept, Vedanta inherits
the core idea of ancient scripture of Brahmanism.
Its famous ideologist Sankaracarya (788-820 CE)
adhered to the thought that “Brahman and Atman
are one” in Upanishad, and thought that Brahman
was same with the phenomenal world composed
of innumerable ego and related things in nature.
Everything in the world is Brahman in nature,
and if people fail to realise it, they will get caught
into ignorance and Samsara. Mimamsa holds that
what makes people fall into the Samsara are proper
dharma and improper dharma, and what produces
proper dharma and improper dharma is behaviour
(karma). If people want to jump out of Samsara, they
should not hate the troubles confronted in the world,
and realise that happiness is always associated with
pain, and that they should give up enjoyment, so
no karma will be produced, and “Atman” will no
longer return to Samsara. According to Samkhya,
Samsara is the combination of two entities Prakriti and Purusha, divides Samsara into natural
law, animal law and humanity, and believes that
everything in Samsara is painful in nature. The way
to be free from pain is to eliminate the mistaken
understanding, make Prakriti and Purusha survive
alone, in this way, Samsara can be eliminated.
The Samsara concept of Yoga is similar to that of
Wheel of Life painting, Tibetan Buddhism
442
Cultural Contacts
in life phenomenon, and that once the human body
is dead, the “spirit” is still alive, because it can
move to another body, which is a typical theory of
Atman. Hui Yuan advocating such theory is related
to the influence of the original traditional culture
in ancient China, (e.g., theory of Chuang tzu and
Yellow Emperor).
In the Northern and Southern Dynasties, a heated
debate about whether humans have an eternal
subject after death has ever been conducted. For
example, Fan Zhen in Qi and Liang Dynasties
struggles against the independent existence of
“spirit” (soul). He says in his Theory of Spiritual
Perishability that, “the spirit and the body are
the same one. They are interdependent whether
existence or destruction”. Fan Zhen does not fight
against the theory of Atman on the basis of the
theory of Anatman of Buddhism, but against the
theory of Samsara. However, in Northern and
Southern Dynasty, there are also many people who
think that there exists a Samsara subject after death,
such as Emperor Wu of Liang, Cao Siwen. They
believe in the existence of Samsara from the point
of view of Buddhism. About the retribution forms
in Samsara, Chinese Buddhism not only absorbs a
lot of relevant contents from Indian Buddhism, but
also keeps its own characteristics. For instance, Hui
Yuan in his Theory of Three Retributions puts forward
three forms of retribution: present-life retribution,
next-life retribution and future-life retribution. After
Sui and Tang Dynasty, there were many discussions
on Samsara by some Chinese Buddhism sects such
as Tiantai Sect.
Samsara concept also produces a huge impact
on Chinese masses, and it is also reflected in
Chinese literary and artistic works. The thought
of Samsara and karma plays a role of restricting
Wheel of Life, Dazu Rock Carvings, Chongqing, China
of various elements or destinies, and the causality
in life phenomena are correlative or interdependent
relationship of various elements or destinies.
Early Buddhist scriptures put forward the Samsara
of “five paths lam lnga” (heaven, hell, hungry ghost,
human and animal). On the basis of five paths lam
lnga, the later Buddhism schools add an “Asura”,
forming “six-path metempsychosis”. In the division
of Samsara forms, Mahayana adds some paths
from Samsara to nirvana, namely, Sravakayana,
Pratyekabuddha, Bodhisattva and Buddhism, thus,
there is a ten-path theory in Mahayana.
Samsara concept in Jainism - Jainism thinks
that the subject of Samsara phenomenon is “jãva”
(soul), and jãva can be divided into two kinds - jãva
being in Samsara and jãva achieving liberation. Jãva
being in Samsara is divided into the immobile jãva
and mobile jãva. The immobile jãva exists in land,
water and plants, while mobile jãva exists in animals
with more than two sense organs. Jainism argues
that material of karma produced by behaviour of
body, words and thoughts flowing into “jãva”
will make people be bound and fall into Samsara.
Samsara concept in Indian history has been keeping
a wide range of effects, except for Lokayatika, all
sects of Indian philosophy of religion insist on this
theory until modern times.
The spread and influence in China - Samsara
concept was introduced in China with Buddhism.
In ancient China, the most famous representative
who advocates that there is a subject in Samsara is
Hui Yuan in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. He thinks that
“the body can be destroyed, but the spirit cannot
be”. In Disrespect of Sramana to King, he says that
“desire is the mother of life, while spirit is the root
of desire. Desire can change things from one form
to another, while spirit can also be transmitted
with it”, “firewood is burned to ashes, while fire
can spread from one firewood to another, never
extinguished Similarly, the body is destroyed, while
the spirit can move from one body to another”. Hui
Yuan thinks that there exists an immortal “spirit”
Wheel of Life mural at Zhaohua temple, Hebei, China
443
Cultural Contacts
the Brahman (spiritual self) as the noumenon of
universe and the Atman (ego) as the individual are
same in essence. Brahman is the root of everything,
and is the essence of the ego. The worldly people
regard Brahman and ego as different things, think
that only the ego is the root of human, and do not
know Brahman, which is ignorance. Ignorance urges
people to pursue things that does not exist in fact,
which will need the concrete behaviour. People
think that behaviour will produce a variety of
“karma”, promoting people to suffer in the Samsara.
Therefore, to get rid of the pain for achieving the
Vimukti, people shall obtain the greatest wisdom,
and the wisdom is the cognition of “Brahman
and Atman are one”. In such state, people will no
longer pursue something outside the Brahman, and
no longer believe that there is difference between
Brahman (spiritual self) and Atman (ego). People
who have such cognition will no longer have the
desire and behaviour, and no behaviour means no
karma, then no karma means no Samsara, finally
Vimukti is achieved. One sentence in Brihadaranyaka
Upanishad is that “people understanding the
Brahman will go to heaven and achieve Vimukti
after they die.” The concept of Vimukti in Upanishad
produces some influence upon that of many schools
of philosophy of religion in India.
Vimukti in Astikya: Various philosophical schools
of Brahmanism appeared very early in India, about
300 BCE to early CE. There are six schools, namely,
Sankhya, Yoga, Vaishesika, Nyaya, Mimamsa and
Vedanta, being collectively called “Astikya”. These
schools have their own opinion on the Vimukti.
Vedanta directly inherits the Vimukti in Upanishad,
and thinks that achieving the cognition of “Brahman
and Atman are one” is liberation. Sankaracarya, the
most influential ideologist of Vedanta, thinks that
liberation can be divided into “gradual liberation”
and “true liberation”. Gradual liberation means that
people’s ego will enter Brahmaloka for enjoyments
after they die, which is not a complete liberation,
while true liberation is achieved after eliminating
ignorance, knowing spiritual self or Brahman,
which is “non-body liberation”. Sankaracarya
believes that human nature is pure, and true
liberation is to eliminate ignorance, know spiritual
self or real Brahman. Two ideologists Prabhakara
and Kumarila of Mimamsa in the 8th century or so
had more discussions on liberation. They argue that
liberation is that eliminating the proper dharma
and improper dharma according to the principle
stipulated in Brahman’s scripture makes “Atman” is
unable to return to the world of Samsara. Kumarila
thought that liberation is that “Atman” gets rid of
all the pains to reach the state of self-nature, also
keeps the state of the destruction of body possessed
by “Atman” and unproduced body in the future.
people’s behaviour. The thought of “the good will
be rewarded with good and the evil with evil” is
deeply rooted in people’s minds. Many people do
good, pray to Buddha and worship Bodhisattva to
get a good retribution or have a good end-result in
the afterlife. Considering karma, those who believe
in Samsara will actively do good and strictly avoid
evil to seek advantages and keep away from the
disadvantages, which is of positive significance for
social peace and stability.
(Yao Weiqun)
Vimukti
Vimukti or vimokùa is an important part of the ancient
Indian philosophy of religion. Many major religious
sects also involve such content. Its early ideological
form can be seen in Upanishad and other ancient
Indian scriptures obviously. Brahmanism, Buddhism
and Jainism all take it as the ultimate goal that
everyone pursues. This concept is also introduced
into China, exerting an influence on Chinese religion.
Vimukti in Upanishad philosophy - Vimukti in
ancient India mainly refers to freeing people
from pain. Indian religions think that the
specific form of life is Samsara which is filled
with pain, while Vimukti is free from Samsara.
The concept of Vimukti can be found earliest in
Upanishad in India. Upanishad philosophy thinks
that Samsara is painful in nature, while Vimukti
is jumping out of the Samsara and getting rid of
the pain. There are two approaches in Upanishad:
pitr·yāna and devayāna. Pitr·yāna is the road to
Samsara, while devayāna is the road to Vimukti.
In the view of many ideologists of Upanishad,
Vimukti in the highest level is directly related to
the understanding of the relationship between
Brahman and Atman. Brahman is the core concept
of the Upanishad and even the entire Indian
philosophy. In Upanishad, Brahman is described as
the noumenon of everything and the highest reality
of the universe by most ideologists. Brahman is a
kind of consciousness in essence, but it is different
from those common ones in the world. Brahman
cannot be understood as and described by common
concepts. Atman’s transliteration is Ateman, and it
is usually used with two meanings in Upanishad.
One refers to “ego” or the individual soul, ie it is
taken as the subject of human’s body organs or the
centre of human’s life activities for use, and the other
refers to Brahman. When discussing the Brahman
as the noumenon of the world, many Upanishads
will not use Brahman, but only use Atman,
and such “ego” is the so-called “spiritual self”.
Among the discussions in Upanishad on the
relationship between Brahman and Atman by many
ideologists, the dominant view is the so-called
“Brahman and Atman are one”. They think that
444
Cultural Contacts
the world or life phenomena is nothing but the
separation and reunion of karma. With people
being in ignorance believe that there are everlasting
things, and pursue the eternal existence of self,
but finally fail to realise it, which is because that
everything is changeable, life is short, and there is
no eternal entity (Atman) in life phenomena. When
people pursue those things beyond their reach with
the ignorant opinion, they will confront all sorts of
troubles and pains. If people realise that everything
or life phenomena is preordained, changeable and
egoless, they will eliminate ignorance and not go
for those that do not exist, thus, they will have no
greed. In this way, people can remove the trouble
and pain, or reach nirvana or liberation.
Hinayana thinks that if you want to reach nirvana,
it is necessary to become a monk and live the ascetic
life. It puts emphasis on individual liberation, not
on helping others for liberation. Directed against the
Vimukti in Hinayana, Mahayana puts forward the
concept of taking across sentient beings universally,
and it emphasises the unity of nirvana and world.
Volume five of Saddharmapundarika-sutra writes that
“For taking across sentient beings universally and
showing what nirvana will become after life ends, the
Bodhisattva will not conduct the real nirvana”. The
sutra is to show that nirvana is not isolated from the
world, instead, lives in the world, which is because of
the reason that Bodhisattva need to moralise humans.
Volume 4 of Madhyamika-sastra, the main works
of Madhyamaka, writes that “there is no difference
between nirvana and world”. The sutra emphasises
that nirvana is a spiritual or cognitive state relating to
the world. In this state, people realise that all dharmas
are atyanta-sunyata, and don’t persist in any prejudice.
Mahaparinirvana-sutra defines a new boundary
between nirvana and world, which maintains the
independence of Buddhist sangha to a certain extent.
But from the view of Buddhism going deep into the
secular society, it is not as convenient as the theory
of Madhyamika, because “reality nirvana” theory
of Madhyamika provides an important theoretical
basis for Mahayana going deep into secular society
for religious activities.
Vimukti in Jainism: Jainism argues that liberation
refers to the state that jãva (soul) as the subject of
human or life phenomena gets rid of the Samsara.
Jainism thinks that jãva can be divided into two kinds
- jãva being in Samsara and jãva achieving liberation.
The former is bound, while the latter is unbound.
The reason that jãva gets into Samsara and is bound
is that the materials of karma produced by the
behaviour of body, words and thoughts flow into it,
making jãva and material combine to form the body,
from birth to death. Such material flowing into jãva is
called a 'leak'. For liberation, it is necessary to destroy
the leak and make jãva free from the material. For
Statue of reclining Buddha, Nirvana Temple, Kushinagar
Sankhya holds the opinion that Samsara is produced
by the combination of material entity - Prakriti and
spiritual entity - Purusha. Liberation is escaping
from the world of Samsara full of pain. The way to
be free from pain is to prevent their combination.
Yoga thinks that the process producing life or
everything in the Samsara is painful. The cause of
suffering is the combination of the observer and
the observed. Achieving “Samadhi” through the
practice of yoga can eradicate all troubles and
ungodliness to obtain liberation. Vaisesika thought
that Samsara is the combination of “Atman” and
the body, which results from the ‘invisible force”.
Invisible force is generated by man’s good and evil
behaviours. If there is no invisible force, there is also
no combination of “Atman” and the body. When the
Samsara is over, people will get liberated. Nyaya
believes that liberation is to get rid of the pain in
Samsara. Samsara is the existence of life form. The
emergence of the form is connected with the karma
produced by human behaviour, and karma relates
to mistaken understanding. In order to eliminate
the mistaken understanding, people shall get the
correct knowledge. In the view of Nyaya, the correct
knowledge is related to man’s appropriate reasoning
and debate, as well as thinking method. And such
knowledge mainly exists in the theoretical system
of Nyaya’s “16 truths” (16 basic concepts involving
rules of reasoning and debate). By knowing 16 truths,
people can eliminate the mistaken understanding to
reach the state of “highest good”, namely, liberation.
Vimukti in Buddhism: It is mainly manifested
in its “nirvana” theory. The original meaning
of Nirvana (nirvàõa in Sanskrit, nibbàna in
Pali) is “extinguishing”. In Buddhism, its main
meaning is removing troubles to achieve the
highest state without any troubles, ie to obtain
the
supreme
consciousness
or
liberation.
Although various schools of Buddhism all discuss
nirvana, the interpretations of nirvana are different.
Buddhism believes that the world is full of pain,
which is directly related to man’s greed or desire,
and desire comes from ignorance. Everything in
445
Cultural Contacts
In modern China, India’s Vimukti still has some
impacts on the Chinese public, and this concept in
Buddhism still plays a major role. The Vimukti is
also attached great importance in modern Chinese
academic circle, and is given the special attention
in study of Indian religious culture. Many papers
on this aspect are often published in Chinese
academic journals, and China has even published the
monograph on such contents.
(Yao Weiqun)
ways to destroy the leak or to achieve liberation, the
main scripture of Jainism - Tattvarthadhigama thinks
that jãva can get rid of the yoke of the material to
reach liberation by relying on “three treasures” of
Jainism, namely - correct faith, correct wisdom and
correct behaviour.
Spread and influence in China: Vimukti was
introduced into China with Buddhism. Chinese
translation of Mahaparinirvana-sutra and other
Buddhism scriptures provide direct discussions on
the concept of nirvana of Buddhism, and there are
also many discussions on nirvana or liberation in
Indian Buddhism. In China, Vimukti in Mahayana
is the most prevalent. The understanding of Indian
Vimukti by the Chinese mainly refers to being
Buddha or enlightenment, which can be reflected
from some main sects of Buddhism in China. The
dominant one among Chinese Buddhist sects is
dhyana, and its Altar Sutra puts forward that, “The
Buddhadharma is here in the world, enlightenment
is not apart from the world”, which shows the basic
opinion of Chinese Buddhism on liberation or being
Buddha, namely, enlightenment or liberation shall
be conducted in the world. Pure land sect advocates
some Indian Buddhist scriptures, and takes the
rebirth in West Pure Land as the main content of
liberation. Other Chinese Buddhist sects often take
the realisation of greatest wisdom of Buddhist
scriptures as the state of liberation. These thoughts
about liberation are widely spread in China and
exert a profound influence on Chinese culture.
In addition to Buddhism, Indian thoughts introduced
into China also include Brahmanism thought. These
thoughts also include Vimukti. Some important
literatures (Hiran Yasaptati and Vais/es!ika-das/apada^rtha-prakaran!a) of Samkhya and Vaisesika in
Brahmanism Astikya were translated into Chinese
in ancient China, making the Chinese gain some
knowledge of basic thoughts of Indian Brahmanism
philosophy about liberation. These thoughts and
Buddhism thoughts produce influence on Chinese
culture to some extent, and are the important contents
of cultural exchange between ancient India and China.
PERSONALITIES
LaoZi
Laozi's dates of birth and death have been hitherto
debatable. His family name being Li, with given
name of Er, and another version of his cognomen is
Lao Dan. He is creator of Taoism School of Learning,
and a great thinker of the Spring and Autumn Period.
Brief biographic notes
Based on Collected Biographies of Laozi and Han Fei
of the Historical Records by Sima Qian, Laozi was
a native of Qurenli of the town of Lixiang, the Ku
County, the State of Chu (presnt-day Taiqinggong
Town, Luyi County, He’nan Province). It is said
that at his birth date his hair was snow-white, and
hence the cognomen of Laozi, an old man. He was
once the head of imperial archive and library of the
Eastern Zhou Dynasty, in charge of state-collected
books, maps, archive and documents. Confucius
is known to ask him for advice on the rites of the
Zhou Dynasty. Laozi had these to say to him: What
you asked about the man and the rites initiated by
him no longer exist, even his bones are decaying,
only his words still ring in our ears. If a man of
honour’s fortune turns, he could get on cart to
accept official appointment, but if he lives at the
wrong time, then his lot is like a piece of fluffy grass
that would be gone with the wind. I’m told that
a good businessman will stash and hide away his
stock of goods, and only present to the outsiders
the facade of seemingly empty warehouse, so
is the man of honour’s way of doing things, who
possesses noble and gracious moral character with
modest appearance as if the dull and stupid. To
cast away your conceit and excessive desire, and
abandon your affected look and outgrown ambition
which would bring nothing good to yourself .That’s
all for what I can offer you as an advice. These
words reveal Laozi’s attainment of virtue, that is,
an advocate of being ready to make change for
adaptability and conservatively receding to have
fewer desires. Confucius highly admires nobility of
Laozi as he comments: Today I have a chance to see
Laozi, isn’t he a loong (means: king-size gentleman)
Nagarjuna's theories
446
Cultural Contacts
foundation to create Change Sect, constructed
with “Dao” as core also by summing up his own
experiences. He attempted to sum up the unitarity
and essence of cosmic inventory, and cosmic
ontology existed not in the vast heaven and earth,
but resided in the minds of people. Dao as natural
property of cosmic inventory is antecedent to the
existence of Heaven and Earth as he said, “There
was something formless yet complete. They existed
earlier than Heaven and Earth. Silent and empty, it
relies on nothing, moving around forever. We may
regard it as the Mother of all things. I do not know its
name, so I name it as Dao.” ( Quoted from Chapter
25. And all quotations hereinafter are referred only
to the chapter number.) Universe is all evolved into
being through Dao, as he said, “Dao begets the One;
the One consists of Two in opposition - the Yin and
Yang; the Two begets the Three; the Three begets all
things of the world,” (chapter XXXXII). Moreover,
Laozi considers Dao as general basis for the comic
existence, believing all things within the Heaven
and Earth take shape and grow through Dao. He has
the connotation of objective laws, and everything
in the universe and including social and human
affairs are governed by Dao, as he said, “Man takes
Earth as his model; Earth takes Heaven as its model;
Heaven takes Dao as its model; Dao takes what is
natural as its model,” (chapter XXV). Whereas, Dao
is beyond human’s vision and perception, “What
cannot be seen is called ‘YI’ without colour; what
cannot be heard is called ‘Xi’ without sound; what
cannot be touched is called ‘Wei’ without shape;
these three things can be in no way defined, so
they are combined into one,” (chapter XIV). Dao
exists independently without being hooked on any
external things, and is moving perpetually without
let-up. “There is a thing formed in an integrated
manner, and born earlier than Heaven and Earth.
It is silent and empty. It relies on nothing, but it
is moving around forever. We may regard it as the
mother of all things,” (chapter XXV). In his mind’s
eye, Dao features “nothingness” and “the shape
without shape”, as Laozi defines in the Chapter 14:
“It is categorised as Nothingness, and is called the
shape without shape as well as the image without
substance. It is hence named as vague and dimly
visible,” which suggests Dao is the root of all things
on earth and exists forever, but is so indistinct that is
beyond our visual perception, nor can be fathomed
or ascertained by our mental capacity.
Laozi’s philosophy is rich in dialectics, believing
all things are in a perpetual process of motion and
change, also contain mutually contradictory two
facets, putting forth the thought of interdependency
of two opposites, as he said, “Therefore Existence
and Nothingness beget each other; long and short
manifest themselves by comparison; High and low
Laozi
Historian Sima Qian also described him as a man
of moral excellence and extensive learning but in
low profile with fervent intent of not seeking to be
known to the outside. After having stayed there for
long and having witnessed declining of the Zhou
House, Laozi finally decided to leave the capital.
When he arrived at Hangu Pass, he was stopped
and requested by the pass officer Yinxi to write a
book. That is the origin of the book of our having
today; it is in two parts, elaborating the concepts of
Dao and De totalling over 5,000 characters. After
he completed and handed over his book, he was
allowed to pass through Hangu Pass and hitherto
gone into reclusion, and his whereabouts have never
been heard of since. In view of the above, Laozi
should have been Lao Dan who lived in the end
period of the Spring and Autumn, and was senior in
age to Confucius. Although Sima Qian was inclined
to this version, yet there has been no consensus of
this point. History after the Han Dynasty abounds
with disputes on Laozi. The recent contemporaries
still believe Laozi actually is none other than Lao
Dan of the end period of Spring and Autumn, such
experts as Ma Xulun, Tang Lan and Guo Moruo.
Whereas Fan Wenlan, Hou Wailu and others alleged
that Laozi should have lived in the Warring State
Period. In short, there has been so far no firm and
ascertained dates of Laozi’s birth and death while
his life story is no more than brief record and
narration highly scattered and fragmentary just
like a swan’s footprints found on snow and mud;
nevertheless, description of his theoretical features
by the scholars of later generations is, for the most
part, highly similar.
Academic thoughts
What it is prevalently referred to with regards to
Laozi’s thoughts is the philosophical view reflected
in the Book of Lao Zi. His ideological system, by
inheriting the tradition of what it calls theory laying
447
Cultural Contacts
ruler ”(Chapter 75). Likewise, he views weapons
as something ill omen (Chapter 31), opposes
the provocation of war and creation of incident,
although he does not rule out all kinds of war
completely, yet he believes a stratagem of gaining
mastery by striking only after the enemy has struck
under the circumstances of “having no choice but
to use it”. He thinks that advancement of human’s
knowledge level and improvement of material life is
an important root cause of disaster and crimes in the
world, “The more prohibitions there are, the poorer
the people become. The more sharp weapons there
are, the more prevailing chaos thee is in the state.
The more skills technique, the more cunning things
are produced. The greater the number of statutes,
the greater the number of thieves and brigands,”
(Chapter 57); “Banish wisdom, discard knowledge,
and the people shall profit a hundredfold; banish
love, discard justice, and the people shall recover
love of their kin; banish cunning, discard utility, and
the thieves and brigands shall disappear,” (Chapter
19). He believes that abandoning knowledge and
culture, virtue and morality, crafts and technique,
human being shall be simple-minded and innocent,
and accordingly a great peace and order, stability
and happiness shall prevail. In social life, he made
criticism against reality in the end period of the
State of Zhou, pointing out what was present then
was dynamic process of retrogression, “Virtue
comes after the loss of Dao; Benevolence comes
after the loss of virtue; Justice comes after the loss
of benevolence; rites come after the loss of justice.
Thus rites result from the lack of loyalty and good
faith, and function as the beginning of the great
disorder” (Chapter 38). Such a retrogression process
is utterly detrimental to the humanistic cultivation
and social stability. It is true that Laozi also advocates
morality, but is differed quite distinctly from that
of Confucius and Mencius. The morality suggested
by Laozi prevailed before the benevolence and
justice, which is in a natural state. Confucius was
born later than Laozi, and foundation of its theory
is benevolence; Mencius, born even much later than
Confucius, further expounded benevolence and
justice; Xun Zi, the most posterior among the three,
attributed everything to the rituals; Han Fei and
Li Si, the disciples of Xun Zi, revered law, cunning
tactics and power, from then on, crafty tricks and
cheat have been surfaced openly, resulting in
confusion of people’s mind and social turmoil. In
this perspective, what Laozi says is true indeed.
In his outlook on life, he believes, “No crime is
greater than greediness; no disaster is greater than
the lack of contentment; thus the contentment of
feeling content is an eternal contentment,” (Chapter
46). Laozi loves the weak but supple, and disdains
strong but brittle, believing only a man is open-
are inclined as well as opposed to each other; musical
sound and singing voice harmonize each other; front
and back follow each other,” (chapter II). And, he
further considers that the both opposite’s sides can
be mutually inclusive and mutually transforming,
“Disaster hides itself behind good fortune; Good
fortune leans against disaster,” (chapter LVIII).
The law of motion for everything is to move and
develop to the opposite direction, “Cycling is the
movement of Dao” (chapter XXXX). He deems the
movement of Dao as a circulating movement and
ultimately will return to ontology of Dao, as he said,
“All things, full of vitality, and finally return to their
own roots,” (Chapter 16).
In epistemology, Laozi comes up with new ways
of understanding things, ie “deeper meditation”.
He is aware of limitation of perceptual experience,
therefore he needs reliance of unique experiences to
experience Dao existence, and thereby he upholds
such an epistemology as it is rendered in this way,
“Block the openings of knowledge, and shut the door
of desires,”(Chapter 52), and “Know everything
without going out; and sees Dao of heaven without
looking out of the window” (Chapter 47), and “I try
my best to be in an extreme emptiness of mind; I
try to keep myself in a state of stillness. From the
vigorous growth of all things, I perceive the way
they move in endless cycles,” (Chapter 16). In short,
we should calmly observe all unceasingly changing
and moving things in the universe by getting rid
of human subjective consciousness, and placing
your body and mind in a void and empty realm;
he so sticks to this view even so far as to put the
understanding of specific matters to be antagonistic
to the cognition of cosmic ontology, believing that “He who seeks learning must increase his knowledge
every day; he who seeks Dao must reduce his
knowledge very day. He reduces and reduces until
he reaches the state of inaction. When reaching the
state of inaction, one can succeed in everything,”
(Chapter 48).
In political idea, Laozi stands for governing a
country by doing nothing that goes against nature
(ie governing through inaction, or non-interference,
or better still rendered in an English equivalent:
Laissez-faire), and sees “small country both in terms
of territory and population” as a typical ideal state.
The way of life he adores is a utopian dream, like
“The dog’s barking and the cock’s crowing in one
state are heard in another; the people of one state
will never have dealings with those of another, even
if they get old and die” (Chapter 80). In political
practice, he lashes out at rulers, pointing out , “The
hunger on the part of the people is the result of
exorbitant taxes on the part of the ruler, and making
light of life on the part of the people is the result
of setting too much store by life on the part of the
448
Cultural Contacts
but its influence still retained, as Wang Chong of
the Eastern Han Dynasty called his theory as the
one that though in violation of Confucianism, it
was still in line with sense of Emperor Huang and
Laozi doctrines. (Weigh in the Balance - Nature).
Taoism, combined later with folk belief, has become
a religion. The Taoism created by Zhang Ling in
his veneration to Laozi, as a local religion, keeps
surviving and stretching long and unbroken. Until
the times of Wei and Jin, Wang Bi and He Yan took
the approach of explaining Confucian classics with
theories of Laozi and Zhuang Zi, thereby assimilating
and giving play to the Taoist’s idea of Natural and
Inaction, integrating the Confucian ethical code
with the nature. Guo Xiang created new approach
in the Chinese Ideological history - Metaphysics
by way of annotating the Book of Zhuang Zi. The
Annotation of the Book of Laozi by Wang Bi exerts
enormous influence on the later generations. After
Buddhism made inroad into China, some scholars
resorted to explaining and commenting Buddhism
with Taoist’s concept to make the dissemination
of Buddhism easier. The disciples of Kumàrajãva
who was a famous Buddhist sutra translator were
all versed in theories of Laozi and Zhuang Zi. In
accordance with the record contained in the third
volume of Dao Xuan’s Collection of Debate between
Buddhism and Taoism, it is quoted to the effect
that on his return from the trip of India and was
given interview by Emperor Taizong in the twenty
first year of Zhenguan Reign of the Tang dynasty
(647 CE), Li Yibiao was debriefed, reporting that
he had given introduction of The Book of Laozi
to King Kumàra in the State of Kàmaråpa (west
region in Assam State, India at present) in ancient
India. The Emperor then gave edict to Monk
Xuanzang to organise the translation of Lao Zi’s
cannon into Sanskrit together with over 30 experts
like Taoist priest Cai Huang and Chengying. They
read through the text five times, discussed elusive
key points, carefully researched into the Book
of Lao Zi, then Xuanzang began to translate Lao
Zi’s classic only after thoroughly comprehending
the delicate and hidden connotations. About this
grand translation event, real or just a legend, the
answers given by different historical records are
differed, but all records establish the truthfulness
of Emperor Taizong’s wish to the Book of Lao Zi
translated in Sanskrit by Monk Xuanzang in order
to have academic exchange with India. In the Song
Dynasty and Ming Dynasty, the Neo-Confucianism
rejected both Buddhism and Taoism, but did not
rejected intake of some elements from Taoism. For
example, Tai Ji Theory by Zhou Dunyi is the fruit
of partial assimilation of the thoughts from Taoist
Chen Po from Mt Huashan. Philosophy of Cosmic
System Mathematics by Shao Yong is the hybrid of
Statue of Laozi, Mt. Qingliang, Quanzhou, Fujian, China
minded with moderate desires, could he be possible
to have easy survival and remain invincible, and he
uses metaphor of the property of grass and trees,
alleging, “While alive, a man’s body is supple;
when dead, it becomes hard. While alive, grass and
trees are supple, when dead, they become dry and
stiff. Thus the hard and strong is of the dying sort;
that is why the army, having grown strong, will be
wiped out, and the tree, when grown up, will be
cut down. Thus the strong and big is inferior to the
weak and supple,” (Chapter 76). Therefore the way
to keep thing sustainably strong and prosperous
is flexible with keeping low profile, as he said,
“Though knowing what is masculine, you are ready
to play the role of female,” (Chapter 28).
Profound impact to the later
generations
The Doctrine of Laozi, with profound and farreaching influence, holds an important position in
Chinese ideological history. Taoism was gradually
taken shape after his death. Zhuang Zi said in
his works of Zhuang Zi - Cantos of Heaven, “Are
they Guanyin, and Lao Dan? Aren’t they the
most erudite and great immortal in the ancient
times? Yes, indeed!” From the eulogy, it is clear
that Zhuang Zi is addicted to Taoism, so after the
Han Dynasty, the doctrines of Laozi and Zhuang
Zi become prevalent hand in hand. The Interior,
the first and second volumes of Intention, and Pure
Mind of Guan Zi belong to this school of learning.
Tian Pian, Shen Dao and Huan Yuan who once
visited, on their study tour, the royal school run by
the state of Qi may be the representative scholars
of this school of learning, and the famous legalist
Han Fei was also influenced by their thoughts. In
the early Han Dynasty, the school of the Emperor
Huang and Laozi prevailed and become the Court
Orthodoxy. Senior courtiers like Xiao He and Cao
Can are fervent lovers of this school of learning.
Then to the Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty when
Confucianism was made as an overwhelming
Orthodox, Taoism had gradually been in decline,
449
Cultural Contacts
zi, music from Changhong, and lyre from Shixiang.
In the 25th year of Duke Lu Zhao (517 BCE) when
the State of Lu was in great turmoil and Duke Zhao
took refuge in the State of Qi, Confucius fled with
him to the State of Qi and became a retainer of Gao
Zhaozi who was prime minister to Duke Jing of the
State of Qi, and thereby he could be able to be near
Duke Jing of the State of Qi. When asked about the
approach of how to govern a state by Duke Jing
of the State of Qi, Confucius answered, “Let the
king be a king, the minister a minister, the father
a father and the son a son.” And at the time when
the Duke asked for his advice, the State of Qi was
in political quagmire and disorder characterised by
so-called the king being unlike a king, the minister
unlike a minister, with dejected human relations.
As Confucius’ response hit his point, Duke of Jing
intended to bestow the land of Nixi to Confucius to
show his courteous reception, but was rebuffed and
aborted by Yan Ying, his prime minister. In the first
year of Duke of Ding of the State of Lu (509 BCE)
when Ji, a clan member of the Duke, held dictatorial
rule by overstepping his authority and followed by
insurrection and usurping of power by Yanghu, a
retainer to the Duke clan member, Confucius who
had already returned to the State of Lu, resigned
from his office and concentrated himself in perusal
of Classics of Odes, History (Collection of Deciphered
Official Documentation of Earlier Dynasty) Rite and
Music and at the same time, was devoted himself
to educational activities with great many followers
regarding him as tutorial master. In the ninth year
of Duke Ding of the State of Lu when Confucius
was 51 years old, Gongsun Buniu intended to
rebel against Ji by virtue of City Fei and sent for
lobbying Confucius. Confucius would love to go,
but did not make it. At the same year, Duke Ding
appointed him the head of Zhongdu. He managed
administrative affairs with Virtue and Rite, making
all surviving spouse, orphanage and helpless people
there in their respective proper place, with social
morality much improved; in one year term of office,
his performance attracted the neighboring localities’
governors to emulate his way of governance. He was
then promoted successively to the posts of Minister
of Water Conservancy & Construction, and Minister
of Justice. In the 10th year of Duke Ding’s reign, he
assisted Duke Ding to meet with Marquis of the Qi
State at the place of Jiagu and tactfully reclaimed the
lost territory of the Lu State. In the 12th year of Duke
Ding’s reign, he recommended his disciple Zilu as
head of clan members. In order to concentrate power
on family of prince, and consolidate prince’s ruling
position for Duke Ding, he suggested enforcement of
the policy of dismantling three cities’ wall of which
the dimension and scale exceeded royal formality, ie
the role-violating city walls of City Fei, City Cheng
Confucianism and Taoism. That is why Cheng Hao
described Shao Yong’s theories as the way of inner
sageliness and outer kingliness, meaning both are
sound in theory and practice.
In allusion to the dissemination of Buddhism
in China, in the end period of the Eastern Han
Dynasty, there had already existed the anecdote
or legend about Lao Zi’s creation of Buddhism in
India and enlightening the local habitants after he
had left Hangu Pass. To the times of Emperor Hui of
the Jin Dynasty, there was a debate between Wang
Fu, libationer of Tianshi Daoism, and Shramana
Po Yuan about the supremacy of two religions,
from then on Wang Fu wrote the book about Lao
Zi’s creation of religion in alien land with the aim
to belittle Shakyamuni. That book was expanded
with additional 10 volumes by the posterities that
were used by the Taoists of various generations to
elevate Taoism and belittle or discriminate against
Buddhism, and, was of cause bitterly opposed by
the Buddhists. In the times of Emperors Xianzhong
and Shizu in Yuan Dynasty, there was a great debate
on true and false of the book of Lao Zi, Creation of
Buddhism in Alien Land, followed by imperial court
ban of the Taoism books. And this book was on
the top of the list of the books to be burned. And
hence this book disappeared from history forever.
In the exchange between China and the West over
contemporary era, Lao Zi’s teaching has spread to
European and Asiatic regions, arousing interests of
many scholars, thus furthering the development of
oriental and occidental philosophies.
(Jiang Julang)
Confucius
Confucius (551 BCE-479 BCE), with given name
of Qiu, also styled Zhongni, is a great thinker
in the spring and autumn period and founder of
Confucianism.
Brief biographic notes
His ancestors had been members of the ducal house
of the State of Song, which was descended from the
royal house of Shang, the dynasty that had preceded
the Chou, and migrated to the State of Lu because of
political and social turmoil. His father, named Shu
Liangho, was governor of Zou in State of Lu. His
mother’s family name was Yan. Confucius was born
in Zou Yi, Changpingxiang of State of Lu (Qufu,
Shandong present-day) on lunar August 27, the 22nd
year of Duke Lu Xiang (551 BCE). When he was a
kid, he loved to hold make-believe temple rituals as
a game, and when he grew up, he once served the
State of Lu, on several occasions, as petty official of
the same category like master of ceremony, granary
keeper and livestock tender. Later, he was on study
tour to other ducal states, learning rituals from Lao-
450
Cultural Contacts
and City Hou, thus weakening the powers of the
three big families of Ji Sun Si, Meng Sun Si and
Shu Sun Si. Although his move was not completely
succeeded, yet it reclaimed the partial usurped
power from them, thus strengthening the authority
of prince family. In the 14th year of Duke Ding’s
Reign (496 BCE), Confucius held concurrently the
offices of Minister of Justice and Prime Minister,
and in an ensuing three months, the State of Lu
was put in great universal peace and order. Later,
resented from the domineering behavior of ruling
official Ji Huanzi, Confucius resigned from his posts
and toured around the other States of Wei, Song,
Chen, Cha and Chu. In transit to State of Kuang, he
was mistaken by the local people as Yanghu and
consequently besieged; in State of Song, he was
narrowly killed by Sima Huantui, the War Minister
of that State; and when he and his followers were
besieged and trapped in the place between the State
of Chen and the State of Cha, he almost starved to
death. In spite of all sorts of hardships and perils,
he always remained the mood of “seeking pleasure
in order to free himself from care without knowing
the insidious approach of old age”, which suggests
his mental cultivation of being content with what
one is, would never wear away even in his displaced
drifting life. In the 11th year of Duke Ai of the State
of Lu (484 BCE) he returned to the State of Lu at
the age of 68. In ensuing years, he did not seek any
appointment in officialdom and began to annotate
the Book of History (deciphered earlier dynasty
documentation), revise and reform the Book of
Rites, edit and revise the Book of Odes and Music,
and annotate and comment on the Book of Change.
In the 14th year of Duke Ai, the State of Lu hunted
and captured an animal known as unicorn. But
Confucius deemed it as a sign of unlucky omen and
hereby lamented that this world had gone to the dogs
with declining moral code and prevalent heresy and
tyrannical rules, which denied him a chance to fulfill
his political dream. And therefore he started his
writing of the Spring and Autumn Annals, lamenting
that, “Is it only the Spring and Autumn Annals from
which you all would understand me and at the same
time find fault with me?” The posterities deemed
his composition of the annals as king-making
enterprises and endeavours of king without crown
or government. In April of the 16th year of Duke Ai
(479 BCE), Confucius passed away and was buried
in the Capital north of the State of Lu. Although his
disciples did not wear mourning gowns according
to the rituals, yet they, with sad and sorrowful
sentiments, resided beside his tomb for three years
running to demonstrate their filial piety. Among his
disciples, Zigong didn’t leave his teacher’s tomb for
his whole life. Confucius influenced the moral code
of the times with his own words, deeds and high
Kongzi/Confucius
moral cultivation, and engaged in educating those
promising budding talents. Since then, it started
fashion of private teaching. It is reputed that he had
3,000 disciples among whom 72 were sages versed
in the Six Classics.
His academic views
Ancient Literati commentators said that what
Confucius did in his lifetime academic efforts was his
editing and revising the Book of Odes and the Book
of History, finalising the Book of Rites and the Book
of Music, annotation and commenting on the Book
of Change and composing of the Spring and Autumn
Annals. He laid emphasis on study, once describing
him as being studious never tired of learning, so he
was a man of very extensive learning with solemn
and refined manners, and was referred to as sage
in his life time. After his death, his followers are
divided into eight different schools and gradually
evolved into the Confucian school, Confucianism,
exerting a profound influence on scholars of the
later generations.
There are two cardinal concepts in his theory:
one is benevolence (or, humane, or humanity,
or goodness, etc.) while other is a rites and
rituals. Whereas benevolence is at the root of his
knowledge foundation, from which all his doctrines
are thus unfolded and converged. Among the most
basic comprehensions of benevolence, it means”
love your fellow men” (quoted from chapter 12
of the Analects, Yan Hui, henceforth wherever it
is quoted, only referred to title of chapter), while
definition of “the benevolent loves others” (The
Book of Rites - Doctrine of Mean) is made on
basis of regarding benevolence as intrinsic quality
of human being. Confucius believed that the rite
is formed by the ancient sage with its function to
restrain human’s excessive human emotion and
451
Cultural Contacts
the essence of his answers never go beyond “love
and respect”. He said, “The person to his dear one
would never ill-treat others; the person to respect his
dear one would never be rude and arrogant towards
others”, (Chapter Son of Heaven, Classic of Filial
Piety). Sages from the ancient time to the present
made their offsprings aware of the virtue of respect
by right of patriarchal awe-inspiring and made
people aware of the virtue of loving people by their
own exemplary role. But Confucius did not consider
the custom of which sons must obey the order of
father as the only filial piety. He advocates the filial
piety should proceed from righteousness, and in the
time of imperative, frank criticism of father’s faults
is also way to show filial piety, and in his words, “If
father is doing something disloyal or unjust, it is the
son’s duty to offer criticism to his father, so is the
duty for court official to do so towards sovereign”
(Chapter Criticism, Classic of Filial Piety).
Confucius’ Analects not just touches upon the
aspects of benevolence and filial piety, the most
important aspect that is elaborated is way of
governance. Confucius’ response to his disciples’
question in this aspect in Analects preserves his
attitude and viewpoint toward politics. Confucius
said, “He who rules the country by virtue can be
compared to the Polestar which holds its own with
a multitude of stars revolving around it” (He Who
Rules the Country), suggesting the virtue is the
foundation for becoming a good statesman, as he
believed that the kernel of political governance lies
in cultivating morale of the people. When asked the
reason of his not becoming involved in government,
he answered, “The Book of Historical Documents
says, ‘Piety means being filial to your parents and
being fraternal to your brothers; spreading this idea
will exert and influence upon the government.’ If
that is so, why must I take part in government?”
(Quoted from He Who Rules the Country), Confucius
believes that holding a key official position is not the
only conduit of becoming a good statesman, actually
good governance skills and ethical conduct can be
acquired through daily practices and interaction
within human relations. “Sweeping before your
own door” maxim can be practised in daily life
whenever and wherever. Confucius emphasised,
“Let them know the way of virtue and keep them in
line with regulations and rituals” (He Who Rules the
Country), also he emphasised that, “Tolerance wins
the hearts of many; generosity gives one authority
to use others” (Yang Huo) and his objection to
arbitrary punishment of kill. In his view, the law
and order of a society and country could not be
maintained merely by law and regulations, nor
sustained merely by posing criminal penalty, but
should be maintained by prevailing law-abiding
populace which is induced and nurtured with
thus conventionalise human being conduct within
the confine of moral code of conduct. That is why
he said “to restrain oneself and observe the rituals
constitute humaneness” (Yan Hui). Only complete
correspondence of one’s words and deeds with the
rituals could one accomplishes the requirement
of benevolence. However, benevolence cannot be
attained by simply acting according to the rituals,
as he once said that - “What have the rituals got to
do with a person who is not humane?” (Eight Row
of Dancers), believing if a man lacks of kind virtue
in his innermost mind, he cannot make rapport
with others; understanding of human nature is
not enough to correctly handle the rituals and
accordingly attain the standard of benevolence. He
hence put forward a concept of Doctrine of Means,
deeming “Going too far is just as bad as not going
far enough” (Those Who First Studied the Rituals
and Music), and asserting not going too far but
reasonably far enough. So Doctrine of Means is not
just a kind of methodology only, what is even more
so is a kind of virtue that could be internalised,
asserting the virtue of Golden Means is the virtue
of heaven and earth, and believing that the human
beings could only attain the rule of Golden Means
by taking rituals as yardstick as he said that - “What
does it mean by rituals? Rituals are employed
to restrain excessiveness and overstepping so as
to keep the interpersonal contact at the centre
of moderation” (The Rituals - Confucius Home
and Living). However, rituals change with times,
believing “It is possible to know the regulations and
rituals which the Shang Dynasty inherited from the
Xia Dynasty, including additions and omissions. In
the same way, we come to know those of which
the Zhou Dynasty inherited from Shang. Therefore,
should there be a successor to the Zhou Dynasty, it
is also possible to know the regulations and rituals
even a hundred generations from now” (He Who
Rules the Country). Which means that the rituals of
the Shang Dynasty differs from that of Xia Dynasty,
and the rituals of the Zhou Dynasty is not the same
as that of the Shang Dynasty, however, the basic
tenet of rituals remain unchanged. Rituals are
within human’s cognition, and benevolence could
be attainable, which hinges on key of desirability
and determination of putting the doctrines into
practice. So Confucius said: “Is humaneness really so
remote? I have only to wish for it and it will come to
me” (I Transmit). In a final analysis, attainment of
benevolence is through seeking the cause in oneself
and engaging in self-examination.
Confucius attached great importance to filial piety,
as it is manifested in his comments in this field in
the legendary Classic of Filial Piety. In the Analects,
he was asked about filial piety by his disciples, his
answers differed from person to person, however,
452
Cultural Contacts
of their aptitude”. He takes stock on an inductive
teaching approach, considering the need of student
in quest of problems, who, in this way, through
tutor’s elicitation and illumination, could be fruitful
in study. In Confucius’ own words, “I do not try to
enlighten my disciples until they have tried hard but
failed to understand something. I do not supply my
disciples with any new vocabulary or put their ideas
into words for them unless they have difficulty doing
so” (I Transmit but Do not Create), To students, he
laid stress on “Is it not a great pleasure to be able
to practice frequently what you have learned?” (Is
it not), and “he is able to acquire new idea through
reviewing old knowledge” (He Who Rules the
Country). The knowledge imparted from teacher
could only be truly grasped through self-fermentation
and digestion, and then it could have comprehension
by analogy, so to speak, when hearing one thing, he
could thereby know 10; therefore it is imperative
to combine study with pondering, and in Confucius’
words, “Learning without reflection will end up in
confusion; reflection without learning will end up
in peril” (He Who Rules the Country). The learning
attitude in a down-to-earth manner is indispensable,
as he believes, “Say you know when you know, and
say you don’t know when you don’t, that is true
knowledge” (He Who Rules the Country). Regarding
teacher, he attaches an importance on role model.
In the eye of his disciples, Confucius lives up to the
image of “never making groundless speculation,
never claiming absolute certainty, never being
inflexible and never being self-centered” (Master
Seldom), ie never conjecture, never be subjectively
assertive, never stubbornly stick to one side of the
matter, and never consider oneself always right.
He demonstrates the significance of teaching by
example with his own words and deeds.
Kongzi composing poetry
lavish bestowing virtue and magnanimity from the
state governor. Thus it can be seen that Confucius’
political theory is benevolence-based.
Confucius takes a positive attitude towards life,
regarding comprehension of one’s destiny as the
important realm. Nevertheless, he is never blindly
self-confident and self-righteous, stating “The man
of honour holds three things in awe - the mandate
of Heaven, people in high position and the words
of sages. The petty-minded man, being ignorant of
the mandate of Heaven, does not stand in awe of
it. He treats people in high position with insolence
and the words of the sages with disdain” (The
Head of the Jisun Family). His outlook on heavenly
mandate pre-determines his attitude of leaving the
question open towards ghosts and gods, so to speak,
phenomenological reduction. Zilu asked about
serving the ghosts and spirits. The Master said,
“Why should one worry about serving the ghosts
and spirits when he is not even able to serve the
living?”, Zilu went on, “May I ask about death?” The
Master said, “How can one understand death when
he does not even understand life?” (Those Who First
Studied). But he pays great attention to worship and
sacrificial offering, as it is evident in passage of He
had Eight Rows of Dancers that “When the Master
offered sacrifices to the dead, he did so as if they
were present. The same when he offered sacrifices
to the gods”, advocating “respect given to the ghosts
and spirits but keeping a distance from them”
(Ranyong). Obviously, his altitude is cautious.
In education, he upholds education for all people
without discrimination as he said, “In teaching,
I take disciples of all backgrounds without
discrimination” (Duke Ling of Wei), and “I have
never refused to teach any disciples who offered me
10 strips of dried meat”, which means such a gift
presented shows sincerity of student’s willingness
to learn. Confucius divides the human being into
three categories according to their intelligent quote,
ie acquiring knowledge which were “inborn”,
“through learning” and “learning with clearer
targets in difficulty”. Different teaching method to
different students, therefor it needs the tailoredmade approach of “teaching students in accordance
Veneration by Posterity
Ever since Confucianism was established its position
as an orthodoxy, emperors from various dynasties
granted numerous titles posthumously to Confucius
in order to manifest their respective reverence
towards him. Here are just a few names: Emperor
Liu Kan of the Western Han Dynasty in the first year
of reign of Yuanshi (the first year CE) bestowed to
Confucius a title of Honourable Baochengxuan Duke
from Ni Mountain; Emperor Xiaowen Yuanhong of
the Northern Wei Dynasty (492 CE), addressed him as
Cultural Sage of Reverent Father from Ni Mountain;
Emperor Yangjian of the Sui Dynasty (581 CE)
named him as Master of Earlier Generation; Emperor
Li Zhi of the Tang Dynasty (666 CE) presented him
the title of Senior Grand Tutor; and Empress Wu
Zetian of the Tang Dynasty (690 CE) gave him the
title of Grand Moral Duke; Emperor Xuanzong of the
Tang Dynasty (739 CE) gave him the title of King
453
Cultural Contacts
Confucius is the greatest sage of sacrosanctity!” The
appraisal of Sima Qian reveals the lofty position of
Confucius as a towering mountain in the mind of
then contemporary. Worship of him by common
people is not out of power and influence but out of
his theory passed down to later generations, which
is urging people to be benevolent and popular
with and supported by the common people. And
thereby the posterities adopted his thoughts as
criterion for scholarly pursuit. Sima Qian showed
his particularly high regard for Confucius by
choosing a particular stylistic rules and layout
in his Record of History, ie placed the biography
within the category of aristocratic family. After
Emperor Wu of the Han Dynasty, Confucianism
was made as a single authoritative official doctrine,
and since then, voices to praise him highly are too
numerous to mention. Zhu Xi of the Southern Song
Dynasty once said of him, “If heaven did not give
us Confucius, eons would be in total eternal night”
which shows his high esteem towards Confucius.
Ma Yifu, a contemporary scholar, quoting from
Record of Art and Culture - History of Han Dynasty
by saying that “the sublime words would be
extinguished if Confucius did not exist”, considers
Confucius’ position irreplaceable since his times to
the present days in that his wise thought and theory
are profound and penetrating.
Confucius’ thoughts have been enriched and
modified ceaselessly through the ages since the
Han Dynasty, to the period of the Tang Dynasty
and Song Dynasty, his thoughts were fused with
Indian Buddhism and gave birth to now schools
of learning of “Neo-Confucianism” and “the
Philosophy of the Mind”, thus raising the Chinese
philosophical intellectual enquiries into a new high.
That is because of the fact that in the process of
replacement of Sanskrit by Chinese language in the
Buddhism Classics, the logical thinking assimilated
from the language also gradually intrudes into the
men of learning who took Confucian classic as basic
language context, and even further, the Buddhism
concept translated from Sanskrit directly became
core concept of the theoretical construct of NeoConfucian classics, for instance, “the Subject and
Object of Knowledge”, and “Body And Function”,
etc. Such a linguistic and ideological blending is
possible as Confucius’ thoughts already contain
potential possibilities. Xu Fancheng, a modern
scholar, is thus able to recount Confucius’ thoughts
represented by Lu-wang philosophical school of
the Ming Dynasty, by basing on the philosophical
thought of Sri Aurobindo, a thinker in the Indian
modern times.
In early 17th century CE, Italian missionary Matteo
Ricci (Matthaeus Ricci, 1552 ~ 1610) and French
missionary Trigault (Nicolas Trigault, 1577 ~
of Cultural Eminence; Emperor Chengzong of the
Yuan Dynasty (1307 CE) increase for him the title
of King of Cultural Eminence of Great Achievement
and Sacrosanctity; Emperor Shizong of the Ming
Dynasty (1530 CE) gave him the title of the Earlier
Sacrosanctity Master; Emperor Shizu of the Qing
Dynasty (1645 CE) honored him as the Earlier Master
of Cultural Eminence of Great Achievement and
Sacrosanctity; then in 1935, National Government
of KMT respected him as the Earlier Master of Great
Achievement and Sacrosanctity.
Confucius holds an important position in the
Chinese and world cultural histories. He and his
philosophical theory were highly valued by his
contemporary. Confucianism has become one of
the influential scholastic and academic pursuits as
early as in the Warring States Times. Zigong said,
“Other virtuous men are like low hills that can be
surmounted. But Confucius is like the sun and moon
that are insurmountable. Even if someone wanted to
alienate himself from them, that would not harm the
sun and moon one bit. It would only serve to show
that he did not know his own measure” (Zizhang),
which shows Zigong has the greatest esteem for
his teacher Confucius, deeming the semblance of
his good and honest virtue with the sun and moon.
Mencius also evaluated Confucius by quoting eulogy
made by Confucius’ disciples, thinking that he is the
brightest among the multitude of mass populace, and
has been the greatest man of moral cultivation since
the emergence of human being. It is evident that his
eminent virtue has long been woven into the social
fabric of Chinese civilisation. The comments and
eulogy made by his disciples and scholars of later
generations are perhaps somehow exaggerated, but
it is clearly evident that these comments and eulogy
are expressed from the bottom of their hearts.
Sima Qian, the greatest historian of China of all
the times, who follows school of Master Zhuangzi in
his formative years, nevertheless, made comments
in the chapter Confucius Family of his works, The
Historical Records: The Verse has a saying, “a lofty
mountain inspires a great awe from the beholders
and great thoroughfare of virtue attracts people to
emulate.” Though an ordinary folk cannot reach
such towering high, he is forever longing for it…
there are so many kings and lords, even sages, and
they used to be honored and venerated at their life
time, but too many sank into oblivion after their
death. Whereas Confucius was just an ordinary
commoner, but his thoughts and works have been
passed down to a dozen generations, avidly followed
by the later scholars. From the Son of the Heaven,
princes and marquises downwards, there are so
many who alleged to have perusal of the Six Classics,
but only at the hands of Confucius, The Six Classics
are finalised and enriched. One may well say that
454
Cultural Contacts
He was greatly influenced by the Islamic modernity
movement simmering there.
In the spring of 1849, Ma returned to Kunming in
Yunnan as a Hajji and became an Islamic scholar.
He not only received much prestige and honour for
his accomplishments, but also commanded great
influence over Muslim Yunnanese as a high priest.
Settled in the Linan district (a Ming dynasty Muslim
settlement in Jianxian county) in south Yunnan, he
preached to a large Muslim congregation at the local
mosques and school. In the time when greater Han
migration and the Qing’s ethnic policies had started
to alienate Muslims, his strong religious orientation
arising out of developments in Arabia began to
politicise the populace.
In 1853, conflicts between Han and Moslem
miners increased, which by 1855 finally took the
shape of a local rebellion, known as the Panthey (or
Hui) Rebellion, under the charismatic leadership of
Du Wenxiu. Taking the title of Sultan Sulaiman and
establishing the Pingnan guo [Kingdom of Pacified
South], Du ruled from his capital, Dali, until caught
and beheaded by the Qing in December 1872.
Ma Dexin initially worked closely with Du in the
Rebellion as one of the leading religious and military
leaders. He later shifted his allegiance to the Qing
Government and played the role of a peacemaker
between the state and rebels, propagating a
harmonic integration of Islam into the Confucian
order. Some of his best writings were produced
during this time. He was however, still considered
a rebel by the state due to his early subversive
activities. Finally in January 1874, two years after
the complete suppression of Rebellion, he was
arrested and executed. Some accounts mention that
he was poisoned to death.
As the leading Islamic scholar of his time, Ma is
most famous for producing first authentic translation
of the holy Qur’an in Chinese entitled, A Direct
Explanation of the Treasured Mandate of the True
Scripture [Baoming Zhenjing Zhijie 宝明真经直解].
His other important works reflect his exposition of
theoretical and theological basis for the coexistence
of Islamic and Confucian culture, strong rejection
of incorporation of Daoist and Buddhist elements
in practising Islam, and a positive attitude towards
Tasawwuf or Sufi mysticism. Of his more than 30
publications, the noteworthy are A Summary of the
Great Transformation [Dahua zonggui 大化縂归],
Essence of the Four Canons [Sidian Yaohui 四典要会],
Record of the Pilgrimage Journey [Chaojin Tuji 朝觐途
記], Completing the Path of the Way [Daoxing Jiujing
道行究竟], Essential Discourse on Returning to God
(Huigui Yaoyu 会归要語]. His Arabic works include
Tahqiq al-Salat [The Verification of Prayer], Akadhib
al-Nasara [Lies of the Christians], Mushtaq [Yearning],
Munabbihat [Stimuli], al-Muhkam [The Definite] and
1628) introduced Confucius and his works to West
in Latin and French, respectively. Confucius and
his ideas began to attract the attention of Western
scholars. From the late 18th to the early 19th century
CE, there were several scholars studying Sinology.
Legge (James Legge, 1814 ~ 1897) translated the
“Four Books”, “Five Classics” into English which
were published from 1861 to 1886. In 1867, he
also published a monograph describing the life
and thoughts of Confucius. Soothill (William
Edward Soothill, 1861 ~ 1935) had long been
and missionary and educator in China, having
translated the “Analects of Confucius” into English
(1906), besides which he authored “China’s Three
Religions” (1913) and other works. Thereafter,
English books on the life and thought of Confucius
continued to be published. The Indian intellectual
elite had ample opportunities to read these English
books. For example, an eminent Indian Sinologist P
C Baghchi wrote a special section in his book India
and China to talk about Confucius and his ideas.
(Jiang Julang)
Ma Dexin
In Sino-Islamic intellectual tradition, Ma Dexin
(1794-1874), also known as Yusuf Ma, is widely
recognised along with Wang Daiyu and Li Chi as
the three brightest scholars of pre-modern China.
All of them contributed greatly to the spread of
tenets of Islam through the translation of original
text into classical Chinese using the vocabulary
of Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism. They
were aptly called ‘Islamic Confucian’ scholars who
produced a collection of Islamic and Confucian texts
as the religious Han Kitab.
Born in 1794, Ma belonged to the Hui ethnic
minority from Yunnan province of China. The Hui
are Chinese speaking and have been culturally
similar to Han except for their religion, which is
mostly Islam. In fact, the Chinese character for Hui
[回] also signifies Islam. The educated among the
Yunnan Hui learned Arabic along with Chinese. Ma
is known to have acquired excellent proficiency in
Arabic and Persian as well as in Islamic texts.
In 1841, Ma went to Mecca and Medina to perform
Hajj. As the traditional maritime route was disrupted
due to the Opium War, he accompanied a group of
Muslim merchants and travelled overland to the
south reaching Mandalay in Myanmar, and then took
a boat down the Irrawady River to arrive at Rangoon
(now Yangon). He then boarded a steamship for the
Arabian Peninsula. After conducting the Hajj, he
stayed in the region for another eight years studying
at the al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt which
was famous for Islamic studies, as well as travelling
widely to places connected with the Ottoman
Empire such as Alexandria, Istanbul, Jerusalem, etc.
455
Cultural Contacts
the example of India to buttress the arguments in
support of his own political views at that time.
Kang Youwei many times expressed his
admiration for India’s ancient civilisation, which
he considered as “the ancestor of the European and
American civilisations”. However he bemoaned the
decline of this civilisation to the point where “a
British trading company worth just 1,20,000 taels
ruined India.” “India,” he wrote, “that spans several
thousand kilometres, has been caged by the British
like a bird.” Much of Kang’s writing on India was
devoted to trying to understand how India had come
to this pass. Initially he analysed that it was due
to conservatism and a reluctance to change. This
view was perhaps influenced by his own views on
the pressing need for change and reform in China.
In 1898, even before coming to India, he had
written: “A boundless nation like India perished
due to its reluctance to introduce political reform.”
He further expanded his analysis of the causes of
India’s subjugation to include the disunity among
its constituent parts. He wrote: “I lived in India for
a long time, glanced over its modern history, and
tried to get to the reason for its enslavement; I
found out that it was the independence of various
states.” He saw that the British were able to utilise
the differences among the princely states to extend
their own domination.
In his writings on India, Kang Youwei commented
on social issues as well. He condemned the caste
system, saying “how abominable and absurd it is
to divide people into valuable and worthless!” He
also criticised the colonial system of education,
warning that if education in India was conducted
in a foreign language, the indigenous customs and
traditions were in danger of disappearing. In one
of his writings he mentions having “discussed with
Gandhi and others” the division of Indian society on
caste and religious lines. It is probable that the two
met in December 1901 when Gandhi had come from
South Africa to attend the Calcutta session of the
Indian National Congress.
Asrar al-Ma’ad [Secrets of the Return]. To the SinoIslamic intellectual tradition, Ma Dexin thus made a
lasting contribution.
(Kamal Sheel)
Kang Youwei
Kang Youwei 康有为 (19 March, 1858 – 31 March,
1927) was a famous Chinese scholar, philosopher
and reformer of the late Qing period. He is best
known for the leading role he played in the
Hundred Days Reform Movement 戊戌变法 of
1898, which sought to introduce major political
and institutional reforms in China through the
patronage of the Guangxu emperor. He was the
author of the famous work Da Tong Shu 大同书, in
which he envisioned a future utopia encompassing
the whole world. This book was completed during
From left: Kang Youwei, Commentary on the Analects of
Confucius (front cover)
a period of exile he underwent in India after the
suppression of the reform movement which he had
pioneered. Kang Youwei was one of the earliest
and most influential Chinese intellectuals to
analyse and write about modern India from firsthand experience.
Kang Youwei lived in India from 1901 to 1903.
Although based in the hill station Darjeeling in the
northeastern part of India, he travelled to different
parts of the country. He visited India again in 1909.
We find more than 200 references to India in his
writings, some derived from his direct observations
of India and the Indian people, while others were
based on earlier Chinese writing. One of his most
important essays on India was entitled “Essay for
fellow scholar Liang Qichao and others discussing
the destruction of India due to its fragmentation”,
written in 1902. As can be seen from the title of
this essay, Kang was mainly interested in analysing
India’s situation as a country under foreign
subjugation, as well as the causes for it, so that
his own country would not suffer the same fate.
Like many of his contemporaries among Chinese
intellectuals, he categorised India as a wang guo
亡國 or ‘ruined country’. He also wanted to use
Family photo of Kang Youwei, Shanghai, 1921.
(Middle row, from right): Fifth wife Liao Dingzheng,
fourth wife Shi Gang He zi, first wife Zhang Yunzhu,
Kang Youwei, second wife Liang Suijue, sixth wife
Zhang Guang, daughter Tonghuan. (Front row, from
right): Tongling, Tongjian. (Back row, from right):
Daughter Tongfu, son-in-law Pan Qixuan
456
Cultural Contacts
He inherited the tradition of struggle of the people
of Guangdong and always aspired to the cause of the
Taiping Revolution. He spent his entire lifetime in
the effort to transform China from a poor, backward
feudal monarchy into forward thinking modern
republic, leaving behind an indelible mark of his
achievements on the annals of history and precious
heritage for his political successors. He received his
early education in his native village in the traditional
learning of the classics. However, at the age of 13, he
migrated to Honolulu along with his mother where
he completed his high school and college education
studying Western science and Christianity.
After graduating in Honolulu, he returned to his
native village in 1882 briefly to be married which
was arranged by his family. He later shifted to Hong
Kong to pursue his education in medicine. After
completing his medical training Sun Yat-sen went to
Macau to practice medicine but unfortunately, was
denied permission to stay there by the Portuguese
authorities. Thus he returned to Hong Kong where he
was witness to the treachery, tyranny and rampant
corruption of the Qing government. By this time
his interest in politics overshadowed his interest in
medicine which led him to begin his crusade against
the corrupt Qing government and to formulate
a bourgeoisie political programme which would
completely transform Chinese political thought.
This was the beginning of his political career
where he often aired his anti-government views in
speeches and had intellectual exchanges with other
reform leaders of those times such as He Qi, Zheng
Guanying, etc., forming liaisons with anti-Qing
secret societies and preparing to form revolutionary
groups. In 1894 he wrote a letter to Li Hongzhang,
the Governor of Zhili, a high official in the Beiyang
government, in which is urged for reforms. Sadly
Sun’s appeal fell on deaf ears. In 1894, he returned
to Honolulu to organise the “Revive China Society”
which promised to “expelling the Manchus and
restoring China and forming a unified government.
In February of the following year, the local patriotic
intellectuals of Hong Kong organised the “Fu Ren
Literary Society” which symbolised the Hong Kong
branch of the Revive China Society. A secret uprising
which was to be organised by the society on October
10 of that year was leaked to authorities and thus
failed. Sun Yat-sen was forced to flee abroad. This
set the pattern of his life which was punctuated
with unorganised plots, failures, execution of
coconspirators, overseas wanderings and financial
backing for further coups (hostile takeovers). Sun
grew a moustache, donned Western-style clothes,
and, posing as a Japanese man, set out once again,
first to Hawaii, then to San Francisco, and finally
to England to visit a former school instructor.
Before leaving England, he often visited the reading
Kang Youwei pondered many times over how
Indians would be able to secure their freedom again,
but given the time in which he wrote about India, it is
not surprising that he could not really envision how
this would come about. Nevertheless, his interest in
and links with India represent an important milestone
in the process of Chinese and Indians learning afresh
about each other in the modern era.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Sun Yat-sen (Sun Zhongshan)
Sun Yat-sen, (November 12, 1866 – March 12,
1925), is one of the most prominent figures not only
in the modern Chinese political realm but also a
political leader of international renown. Although
Sun Yat-sen in his many sojourns abroad during
his lifetime, never actually travelled to India, he
Sun Yat-sen (Sun Zhongshan)
remains an extremely popular international figure
in the minds of the Indian people. There is even a
street in Kolkata named after him. He referred to
India a number of times in his writings and speeches.
He thought India’s problems were similar to the
ones in China during the pre-independence days
when much of the country was ruled by warlords
and feudal lords.
He is credited with being the pioneer of the
democratic revolution in modern China, the founder
of the Republic of China and the Chinese Nationalist
Party (Kuomintang Party KMT), and the main
advocate of the revolutionary programme “San Min
Zhu Yi” or “The Three Principles of the People”
and the leader to raise the idea of putting an end
to the 2,000 year old monarchy in China and bring
about republican rule which ultimately paved the
way for the unification of China. He is hailed as the
“Father of the Republic of China” by the Nationalist
Government of KMT and as the “great forerunner
of modern democratic revolution by the Communist
Party of China.
Sun Yat-sen was born to a peasant family in
Xiangshan County of Guangzhou Province in China.
457
Cultural Contacts
room of the British Museum, where he became
acquainted with the writings of Karl Marx. While in
exile in London, he minutely studied the economic
and political conditions of Europe and USA, the
various schools of thought in political theory and
got in touch with several Europeans and Americans
who were progressive in their thought. During this
period he formulated his distinctive “theory of
people’s livelihood” and “the three principles of the
people”. In 1897, Sun reached Japan where he spent
the next 16 years in exile like several other leaders
of that time. After the Reform Movement, which
was led by prominent leaders such as Kang Youwei
and Liang Qichao, there were some attempts made
by Sun Yat-sen’s group to work in conjunction with
the reformists. But because the reformists continued
their support for the monarchy and were against the
revolution, Sun Yat-sen’s alliance with them could
not bear fruit.
Sun believed India became a colony solely
because the English East India Co., “cunningly”
took advantage of the divisive state of Indian
feudal society. His advice for India’s independence
was similar to that for his own country. He said
since India was crucial for Britain’s economy, “the
British authorities would hold on to India with no
stone unturned even to the extent of sacrificing
everything else.” He also predicted that the Indian
revolutionary movement would not be smooth
sailing and urged the Indians to stay united and
persevere in their struggle to end British rule. When
he founded the Zhongguo Tongmenghui (League
of China) in Tokyo, and started Minbao (People’s
paper) as its mouth piece in 1905, he met several
revolutionaries from India, discussed with them the
problems of anti-imperialist struggle and national
liberation. He was the greatest inspiration for these
revolutionaries. These were the earliest contacts
between the revolutionaries of the two countries.
At the beginning of the World War I, Indian
revolutionary organisations inside and outside
Front row: Sun Zhongshan (third from left), Huang Xing (second
from left), Dai Jitao (Back row: second from left) et al., with
Japanese industrialists at the Specie Bank, Shanghai, April 1913.
India which advocated armed struggle often sent
missions to the far East to purchase arms. They often
sought his help. For example, Naren Bhattacharyya
(later M. N. Roy), who was a member of a secret
organisation in Bengal, and the special envoy of the
Ghadar Party in USA, Sachindra Sen (Sachindranath
Sanyal) and Vishnu Ganesh Pingle, had all met Sun
Yat-sen in China. He did what he could in helping
them. When he was in Shanghai and Japan,
he helped Rash Bihari Bose (who had made an
abortive assassination attempt on Governor General
Hardinge in 1912, and had again engineered
an armed uprising in Punjab and north India in
February 1915 for which he was absconding) to
escape arrest twice. He also maintained close
contacts and established cooperation with the wellknown Indian revolutionary Barkatullah. Indian
revolutionaries greatly admired Sun Yat-sen. They
also knew that he was an advocate for armed
struggle. It was but natural that they would seek
his help. Bose recorded the unforgettable memory
of how he had been helped by him in his book
entitled ‘The Revolutionary India’.
When Mahatma Gandhi launched the noncooperation movement, Yet-sen had assumed
power in Guangzhou as the Extraordinary President
of the provisional government, ready to launch
his Northern Expedition against the war-lords. He
hailed Gandhi’s movement as the “awakening of
India”. In 1921, he said in a speech: “The Indians
have long been oppressed by the British. They have
now reacted with a change in their revolutionary
thinking... There is progress in their revolutionary
spirit; they will not be cowed down by Britain.”
He departed from his prepared text to specially
commend Gandhi’s doctrine of non-cooperation
while he was speaking and propounding the
doctrine of his own three people’s principles in
1924. He said: “What is non-cooperation? It is not
to supply what the British are wanting. It is not
Sun Zhongshan and Song Qingling,
Guangzhou, July 1921
458
Cultural Contacts
unification with all the oppressed people, especially
with India.
While Rabindranath Tagore was passing through
Hong Kong on the way to his visit to China in 1924,
Sun Yat-sen sent a person from Guangzhou to pay
him a visit and convey that owing to his illness he
would not be able to meet him in Guangzhou or
Hong Kong. However, he expressed the hope that
he might be able to meet him in Beijing, saying,
“Beijing is the life centre of China, the work of the
Indian representatives must begin from Beijing. I
will meet there at the first available opportunity.”
However, it was very unfortunate that he and
Tagore - the two towering literary personalities who
bore special significance for their respective nations
- could not finally meet.
The Wuchang Uprising broke out on October
10, 1911 which soon spread to several other
provinces. Sun Yat-sen who was in the United
States of America at the time, returned to China in
December after hearing the news of the uprising.
On arrival, he was elected as the provisional
Sun Zhongshan and Song Qingling with naval sailors and officers
on the Yongfeng ship on August 14, 1923.
to accept what the British are eager to supply. If
the British need workers, no Indian would work
for them; if the British bring up a lot of imported
goods for the Indian consumption, the Indians
should refuse to use them, and only consume their
native products. In the beginning, the British had
taken this idea lightly. Through the passage of time
non-cooperation organisations had mushroomed in
India, and this greatly hurt the British economy,
hence, the British Government throws Gandhi into
prison.” He, then, called upon the Chinese people
to emulate the Indian example, become united and
act, “sever economic ties” with the imperialists.
He continued: “If all Chinese could emulate the
Indian example of non-cooperation... we will not
be cowed down even if the foreign powers resort
to the suppression of armed forces, economic
measures, and the presence of their people.”
Apparently it looked strange that a champion
of armed revolution like Sun Yat-sen would be
favourably disposed for a non-violent and noncooperation movement. But he had a wide vision
to look at the strategies and tactics of the national
struggle from various angles. He dwelt upon the
active and passive ways in fighting imperialism:
active, like awakening the national spirit, seeking
the solutions of people’s power and livelihood, and
face-to-face against foreign aggression: passive, ie
“non-cooperation, to weaken the role of imperialists,
hence safeguarding the national position, avoiding
the fate of total extinction.” While he thought that
the non-cooperation movement was an effective
economic weapon in fighting the foreign rule the
people will have to resort to armed struggle to
overthrow it. Sun Yat-sen also advocated IndiaChina unification. He wrote in 1923 that “All the
oppressed peoples should unify their efforts to fight
against the tyranny of foreign aggressors.” “India
and China are the backbone of the oppressed peoples
in Asia.” In deference to his wishes, the Guangdong
revolutionary government and the Kuomintang
Party adopted as one of their foreign policies the
Sun Zhongshan Memorial hall
President by representatives of 17 provinces to set
up the provisional government of the Republic of
China. On January 1, 1912 he was proclaimed as
the provisional President of the Republic of China
in Nanjing. The abdication of the Qing emperor
Pu Yi was announced on February 2, 1912 ending
the more than 2,000-year old absolute monarchy
in China.
Sun Yat-sen as the President of the Republic
formulated and issued a series decrees designed for
the systemic reform and progress of China. On March
11, the provisional Constitution of the Republic of
China was promulgated. However, soon due to the
forces of imperialism and centuries of feudalism as
well as the lax and weak revolutionary party itself,
Sun Yat-sen was forced to resign from the post of the
Provisional President of the Republic on February
13, 1912 to give way to Yuan Shikai. In the next
year, he actively promoted people’s livelihood,
called for the adoption of equal land rights, and
the promotion of industrial projects, personally
459
Cultural Contacts
Some of his important writings on India are to be
found in the 20th issue of Minbao in April 1908,
under the heading “Methods for the Chinese Indian
Alliance (支那印度聯合之法)”.
Some of his earliest comments on India appeared
in a discussion of the views expressed by his
contemporary, the famous reformer Kang Youwei.
He argued that the Indians had been preconditioned
to accept the British rule by their experience of
subjugation of other foreign rulers, particularly,
the Mughals. He wrote: “By the time the Mughals
unified the land, the Indian people had already
pledged their allegiance to different people. To be
owned by the Mughals and then be owned by the
British, what difference did it make to them?”
At that time, there was an extensive literature
in China on the wangguo 亡国 or ruined countries,
which sought to understand the reason for the
apparent decline of countries like India. Like Kang
Youwei, Zhang Taiyan tried to ascribe responsibility
for certain qualities of the Indian people, which had
led to their subjugation, to their environment. As he
puts it - “Various objects quickly rot in the heat, and
so the (Indian) people have little idea of ownership…
Precisely because they lack the idea of ownership,
they think that everything is impermanent and
they cannot hold on to anything… Since their idea
of possession is weak, Indians have generally not
cared if their national territory is lost or if their race
declines.” At this stage, Zhang was convinced that
Oath taken by Sun Zhongshan on assuming the
office of the provisional president.
undertook the supervision of the national railways
and making all efforts to borrow foreign capital for
the construction of railway lines. But, as the power
of governance lay in Yuan Shikai’s hands, his efforts
were of no avail.
With prompting from Russia, Sun Yat-sen arranged
an alliance between China’s Nationalist and
Communist parties in 1923 to fight the remaining
colonial powers and work towards reunification.
The great legacy of this move was the cementing of
his role as the father of modern China in the eyes of
both the Nationalists and Communists. He still plays
an important role in the creation myth of today’s
Chinese Communist Party.
In 1924, he was diagnosed with cancer after
months of deteriorating health. He spent his final
days urging his followers to hold true the goals of
revolution through to victory. He died on March 12,
1925 in Beijing was accorded a state funeral.
(Sabaree Mitra)
Zhang Binglin
(Zhang Taiyan)
Zhang Binglin 章炳麟 also known as Zhang Taiyan
章太炎 (December 25, 1868 – June 14, 1936) was
a well-known Chinese scholar, philosopher and
revolutionary nationalist of the early 20th century.
He was known for his radical political views and
outspokenness, which got him into trouble with
the authorities both at the end of the Qing dynasty
and after the establishment of the Republic of
China. As a writer and contributor to several
papers, among them the Shiwubao and Minbao, he
wrote several pieces analysing the condition of
India. During his exile in Japan, he appears to have
maintained contact with some Indians studying in
Japan who influenced his views on India and Asia.
Zhang Binglin
the Chinese people did not share such weaknesses,
and hence, China was not in imminent danger of
becoming one of the wangguo in spite of the many
troubles that it faced at that time.
A major change in Zhang Taiyan’s attitude
towards India seems to have occurred as a result of
his serious study of Buddhism while imprisoned by
the Qing authorities from 1903 to 1906. In Zhang’s
writings, India is identified repeatedly as the home
of Buddhism, and Indians as Buddhists. In the essay
entitled, “Method for a Chinese-Indian alliance (支那
印度聯合之法)”, he wrote: “There are only two great
460
Cultural Contacts
modern era, his importance lies mainly in his role
as the host of the Indian poet Rabindranath Tagore
during his visit to China in 1924.
There are two phases in Liang Qichao’s
understanding of India, which correspond to the
different phases of his thinking about the nature
of Western civilisation, and the challenge posed to
countries like China and India by the West. In the
early years of the 20th century, Liang was an admirer
of Western civilisation. At this time there was
extensive discussion among Chinese intellectuals
about the ‘ruined countries’ (wangguo亡国), which
had been completely subjugated or extinguished by
external powers, and about how China could avoid a
Asian nations: the Han scholars in the East and the
Buddhist scholars in the West… the world of the Han
owe a great debt to the exchanges across the Congling
(Pamir) mountains.” In another piece on “The Indian
people’s discussion of National Essence (印度人之論
國粹)”, he recounts having had a discussion with an
Indian friend in Japan whom he identifies as “Dai”,
in which both expressed very similar views about
the importance of historical thinking to bring out
the national essence of the people. He wrote that
"When I heard my Buddhist friend say this, I knew
that the Han and Fan (梵) (Buddhist) peoples shared
the same feelings, and I was secretly overwhelmed
with joy (竊沾沾自欣幸).”
After his prison term, Zhang Taiyan left for Japan,
where he associated himself with the Revolutionary
Alliance or ‘Tongmenhui’同盟會led by Sun Yat-sen.
In Japan, he recorded his impressions of a meeting
he attended there in April 1907 organised by some
Indian students to commemorate the 16th century
Indian ruler Shivaji. While in Japan his pan-Asianist
ideas also began to develop. However, Zhang Taiyan
was critical of what he saw as a growing trend of
Japanese hegemonism and gravitated towards the
idea of a Chinese-Indian alliance.
He expressed his support for the struggle of the
Indian people for liberation from British rule, which
he saw as part of their struggle to rediscover their
national essence. He wrote that - “if only the Indian
people gained independence through one war, then
they would already surpass the level of British
culture, but they would not necessarily surpass the
level of culture of their own past."
Although Zhang Taiyan did not have the
opportunity to visit India, unlike his contemporary
Kang Youwei, he was one of the prominent
intellectuals of early 20th century China who did
interact with Indians and tried to understand and
analyse their views, particularly on the subjects
of nationalism and Asianism. He was one of the
early intellectuals of modern China to espouse the
idea of a special bond between India and China
that went beyond their traditional relations, based
on Buddhism.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Liang Qichao
similar fate. India was considered as one of the most
prominent examples of a ‘ruined country’, whose
weaknesses had allowed it to come completely under
the domination of a ‘handful’ of British. That Liang
Qichao was a participant in this discussion can be
seen from the fact that his mentor Kang Youwei, who
had spent a couple of years in exile in India, titled one
of his notable pieces of writing on India as “Essay for
Fellow Scholar Liang Qichao and others Discussing
the Destruction of India due to its Fragmentation”.
However, later in his life, and particularly after
witnessing the terrible destruction wrought by
World War I, Liang Qichao became disillusioned
about Western civilisation and what he saw as its
emphasis on material progress at the cost of great
destruction and of spiritual wellbeing. He wrote
that “of the methods of relieving spiritual famine,
I recognise the Eastern – Chinese and Indian – to
be, in comparison, the best.” His changed stance
brought him into conflict with many young
Chinese intellectuals of the May Fourth generation
(participants in May 4, 1919 demonstrations and
the radical New Culture movement of the time).
This formed the background to Liang Qichao’s role
during Rabindranath Tagore’s visit to China.
As President of the Beijing Lecture Association
(Jiangxueshe 讲学社), Liang formally invited
Liang Qichao
Liang Qichao 梁启超 (February 23, 1873 –
January 19, 1929) was one of the most influential
intellectuals of early 20th century China. A disciple
of the famous late Qing reformer, Kang Youwei, he
later parted ways with his mentor on the path for
the political advancement of China. He was a multifaceted personality and a man of many talents, who
can be considered as the father of both modern
journalism and modern historiography in China. In
the history of India-China cultural contacts in the
461
Cultural Contacts
love, which recognised inseparability between
all beings.” Elaborating what China had learned
from India in various spheres of art and culture,
literature, science and medicine, and religion and
philosophy, Liang concluded that “Indian thought
has been entirely assimilated into our own world of
experience and has become an inalienable part of
our consciousness.”
Liang Qichao is also credited with having given
the Indian poet his Chinese name Zhu Zhendan
on his 64th birthday. Explaining the significance
of the Chinese characters which made up this
name, Liang went on to say: “I wish the revival
of the old friendship between the Indian and the
Chinese people in this person whose name is Zhu
Zhendan.” Liang’s warm sentiments for Tagore and
his wholehearted avowal of the virtues of Indian
civilisation were sharply attacked by several other
intellectuals at the time. Nevertheless, he gave
eloquent expression to the idea of the ancient
spiritual and cultural ties between India and China.
(Madhavi Thampi)
Rabindranath Tagore (2nd from left) and
Liang Qichao (2nd from right) at Beihai Park,
Beijing in 1924
Tagore to China to deliver a series of lectures.
As his host, Liang accompanied Tagore during
much of his visit. His speech welcoming Tagore
provides one of the most eloquent statements
by a Chinese intellectual in modern times of the
spiritual and cultural debt that China owed to
its ‘nearest and dearest brother’ India. Liang
said: “Across our south-western boundary, there
was a great and cultured country, India. Both in
character and geography, India and China are like
twin brothers. Before most of the civilised races
became active, we two brothers had already begun
to study the great problems that concern the whole
of mankind. We had already accomplished much
in the interests of humanity. India was ahead of
us and we, little brother, followed behind. But
nature had not been kind. She had placed between
us a vast area of unfeeling desert and two great
ranges of cruel snowy peaks, which separated
us for thousands of years. It was not until 2,000
Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda (1863-1902 CE) was an
Indian modern philosopher, religious reformer,
and pioneer of Indian nationalism. His name was
paraphrased to be “Identification of Joy” and
transliterated as Swami Vivekananda. He was
born in the Kshatriya caste in Calcutta in 1883.
He graduated from Calcutta Provincial Academy,
and in the following year he was transferred to
the City College of Calcutta, where continued his
studies in law. In college, Vivekananda once had
keen interest in Western philosophy and had read
the works of Hegel, Kant, Descartes, Spencer and
others. After graduation, due to social influence, he
gave up his dream of being a judge and followed
Ramakrishna, the Hinduism reformer, as his guide
and was determined to throw himself into the
Indian religious reform movement. Since 1888, he
spent five years in the identity of mendicant monk,
roaming all over India and extensively contacting
the masses to understand their needs. In 1893, he
broke the canon of Hinduism forbidding Hindus
travelling overseas and went alone to Chicago,in
the United States of America. Here, he attended
the World Conference of Religions. At the meeting,
his excellent speeches won the attention of the
meeting attendants on this young Hinduism scholar.
After the meeting, he was employed by Harvard
University, Columbia University as a lecturer of
Eastern philosophy and made dozens of speeches
regarding Indian Vedanta philosophy throughout
the United States of America, which were popular
in the American intellectual circles. Here, he also
published a number of papers on Indian philosophy,
Liang Qichao
years ago that we were given gradually to know
that we had a very good elder brother on the
earth.” In a similarly lyrical vein, he went on to
say: “India has taught us to embrace the idea of
absolute freedom, that fundamental freedom of
mind, which enables us to shake off all fetters of
past traditions and habits as well as the present
customs of a particular age. India also taught us
the idea of absolute love, that pure love towards
all human beings which eliminates all obsessions
of jealousy, anger, impatience and disgust, which
expresses itself in deep pity and sympathy for the
foolish, the wicked and the sinful, that absolute
462
Cultural Contacts
position, quantity and quality. It is the basis of
the entire universe, any phenomena in the world,
regardless of the nature, human society or human
thinking activity, are all Bráhman’s manifestations.
While expounding the issue of the formation of
the world, Vivekananda advocated that Bráhman
manifested (or created) the world through the
media of time, space and causality. Time, space and
causality were like a mirror. Bráhman manifested
all things in the world with the aid of reflections
in this mirror. The universe includes not only
the physical world, but also the mental world or
spiritual world. The relationship between material
world and spiritual world was not the relationship
between primary and secondary, but a parallel and
juxtaposed relationship, of which both originated
from Bráhman. Here, he had changed the concept
of “Maya” in traditional Vedanta. The traditional
Vedanta usually regarded “Maya” as a kind of magic
power, so the world manifested through “Maya”
was an illusory world. However, Vivekananda
believed “Maya” was not a magic force or magician,
but the real time, space and causality. The time,
space and causality were real existences, thus the
world manifested through the media of time, space
and causality by Bráhman was bound to be true. His
interpretation of “Maya” enabled his new Vedanta
philosophy to step out from the dilemma of the
traditional Advaita Vedanta, which believed the
world was illusory, and could explain all kinds of
phenomena in the world in more scientific ways.
While explaining the material world, Vivekananda
also changed the view of Vedanta and proposed a
lot of materialistic viewpoints by absorbing a lot of
contents of materialism and natural science from
Western philosophy. He believed that the world
composed of constantly changing matter, things
differing in thousands of ways were all manifestations
of matter. The whole universe was like an ocean
of matter, all matters were in the state of flowing
changes. Matter constantly developed and changed,
nothing was immutable, and kept on condensing
or dispersing forever. He also emphasised that the
changes of all things in nature followed laws and
moved in accordance with its own laws, there was
no exception. This view of Vivekananda broke the
negation of the material world of ancient Vedanta,
changed the direction of traditional Vedanta and
manifested the features of new Vedanta philosophy.
Vivekananda’s
philosophy
contains
many
elements of dialectics. He often talked about the
unity of opposites and contradictions of matter,
while he analysed the various natural and social
phenomena. He believed that all things felt by man’s
sense organ or imagined by man’s mind included the
two forces of action and reaction, one force working
on another force, resulting in a complex and mixed
Swami Vivekananda
such as Vedanta Philosophy, Karma Yoga, Raja Yoga,
and so on. In 1896, he established in New York a
“Vedanta Society” and began to spread Vedanta
thought to the United States of America. In the same
year, he paid a visit to Europe, England, Germany,
Switzerland and other countries, and had speaking
tour. In 1897, he returned to his motherland and
welcomed by all circles in India. On May 1st of the
same year, he founded in Calcutta Ramakrishna
Mission Association named after his teacher.
This organisation later became one of the most
influential religious reform communities in India.
In 1899, Vivekananda created at the foothills of
Himalaya an “Advaita Vedanta Academy”, with the
purpose to study and reform the traditional Vedanta
philosophy. In June of the same year, he again went
abroad to the United States and gave academic
lectures, then went to France to participate in the
World Religions History Conference. Vivekananda
died in 1902 at the age of 39.
New Vedanta Doctrine
Vivekananda devoted his life to research and
spreading of Indian Vedanta philosophy, he was
the first scholar who had promoted innovation of
traditional Vedanta, therefore he was known as
the initiator of New Vedanta philosophy. He took
advantage of viewpoints of Western philosophy
and natural science, made a completely new
interpretation of traditional Vedanta. First, he
criticised Sankara’s “Illusory World” theory,
advocated everything in the world were not illusory
but manifestations of Bráhman. He believed that
the world’s highest noumenon was Bráhman, also
known as “Cosmic Rationality.” Bráhman is a pure
existence and has no differences of attributes,
463
Cultural Contacts
man’s correct understanding came from social
practice and experience; there would be no correct
understanding without practice and experience. But
on the other hand, as a religious scholar, he also
often discussed about this issue from the viewpoint
of religious understanding. He believed that human
beings also had a gifted cognitive ability, which
was called “self-explanatory quality”; man could
take advantage of this natural “self-explanatory
quality”, through introspection or intuition to gain
religious truth, which could not be understood
through scientific methods, like the understanding
of the truth of “Bráhman”, the highest noumenon of
the universe or “Brahman is Atman”, and so on. He
believed that Hindus were the people with this kind
of 'self-explanatory quality', they could be finally
enlightened and recognise their inner “I’ were
identical to Bráhman, the noumenon of universe,
thus came to realise the supreme truth of “Brahman
is Atman” through intuition and meditation in a
variety of yoga practices.
Regarding the issue of man, Vivekananda opposed
against the pessimistic view of traditional Vedanta,
and fully affirmed the role of man and the value
of life. He did not regard man’s body as opposite
to “I”, the essence of spirit, but complementary
to “I”. In his view, the ability of man’s body
is much greater than that of any other living
beings. Although there are many animals stronger
than man, also many animals are more sensitive
than man, however in the overall capacity, man
surpasses them a lot. He believed that because the
aspects of human body (including his physical,
psychological and thinking ability, etc.) were
more organically organised together than that of
animals and showed a strong unity. Man’s reaction
to external stimuli is not like that of other living
beings, which is simply intuitive or mechanical
response. All actions taken by man to react on the
external environment always follow a plan, with a
strong sense of purpose and selectivity. Man also
has a self-transcendence capability and can reach
beyond himself through his own efforts to achieve
a high spiritual realm. In addition, the emergence
of human brain and thinking system in a man’s
body made a fundamental distinction between
man and animals and put man at a special position
in the world. In his view, the human body is the
greatest body in the universe, a human’s existence
is the greatest one in the universe; human is
above all animals, also above all angels, nothing is
greater than human. In order to emphasise the role
of human, Vivekananda even regarded the man’s
inner “I” or soul as “God” or “Divinity”, regarded
the man’s body as a “temple of God.” He pointed
out that it was impossible to find God outside of
our body. Our own internal soul represented all
Raja Yoga, Swami Vivekananda (front cover)
phenomenon. These opposing forces took the forms
in the external world of attractive and repulsive
force or centripetal and centrifugal force; take the
forms in the inner world of love and hatred, good
and bad, and so on. The opposite phenomena were
only the different manifestations of the same thing
seen from different standpoints; they were two
forms of a whole. Regarding the topic of dialectics,
Vivekananda offered a lot of vivid exposition:
good and bad were not two separate and discrete
existences, a phenomenon manifested as good
now, tomorrow it might be bad; same thing might
produce pain for a man, while for another man
might be happiness; fire could burn the child, but
could also cook a good meal for a hungry man. The
same nerve might produce a painful feeling, but also
might bring the feeling of happiness. Life or death
and bitter or sweet could not exist alone, because
some aspects inside them were just the different
manifestations of the same thing. The concept of
life had already contained the concept of death; the
concept of happiness also contained the concept
of suffering, and so on. Although Vivekananda
discussed a lot about the phenomena of the unity
of opposites and transformation of contradictions of
relative things, he concluded that contradiction and
transformation between the two contradicted sides
were only relative, temporary, and their harmony
and unity were absolute and eternal.
Regarding epistemological issue, Vivekananda
believed there were two ways of gaining knowledge:
one was through experience, another was through
introspection or intuition. Human knowledge
arises from experience, which we call rational
understanding, ie the understanding is gained from
the partial to the general or from the general to the
partial, also based on experience. Without experience
nothing can be understood. Scientific research is
an understanding based on man’s experiences. In
this regard, there were materialistic components
in Vivekananda’s epistemology, he affirmed that
464
Cultural Contacts
differences and disagreements between the various
religions. In 1893, Vivekananda proposed the ideal
of establishment of a “universal religion” at the
Conference of World Religions in Chicago, with
the purpose to eliminate the differences between
different religions and to realise harmony and unity
between the world’s different religions. His view
gained praise and attention from the attendants. In
his opinion, all religions believe in the divinity they
worship, though the divinities are in different names,
they are the same supreme eternal entity. Like God
for Christian, Allah for Islam, Buddha for Buddhism,
Vishnu and Shiva for Hinduism, and so on, though
these divine names are different, they are essentially
the manifestations of the same omnipresent,
omniscient divinity. Although different religions
have different ways of worship and the liberation
is achieved through different ways as well, however
their ultimate goal to achieve is the same. The
ultimate goal of all religions is to make people free
from sufferings and to achieve universal human
love, harmony and unity between people. Although
the precepts implemented by various religions are
different, they all require their followers to do good
things and love others, have mutual tolerance and
help others. Vivekananda believed that the various
religions in the world had these commonness
or universality, which laid the foundation for
establishing a “universal religion”. He therefore
appealed to the followers of different religion
sects to break the restrictions set by the name of
religion and to eliminate the religious sectarianism,
to promote exchanges and cooperation between
different religions. He also called on people to break
the sectarian prejudices, without denominational
restrictions they could voluntarily worship and pray
to the divinities in the temple of any religions. He
also emphasised that “universal religion” is also an
“action religion”, although this religion could help
one’s humanity to be raised to divinity, it required
each person’s continuous efforts. Everyone must
realise their human transformation through their
own actions and selfless work for the community,
to achieve their union with divinity. Regarding
the contradictions and conflict between Hindus
and Muslims in India, Vivekananda strongly urged
Hindus and Muslims to eliminate differences and
prejudices and unite as soon as possible. He pointed
out that to make our Motherland be stronger, India’s
only hope was the combination of the two systems
of Hinduism and Islam.
divinity outside of our body and our body was the
temple of the greatest God.
The greatest contribution of Vivekananda in new
Vedanta philosophy was his opposition against
pessimistic and reclusive view of life of traditional
Vedanta, and fully affirmed the value of life, and
encouraged people to act positively and realise
the dreams of life through their own efforts. He
argued that every individual could improve his own
humanity to divinity, but this must go through their
own hard work. Through practical action, more
good deeds and selflessly serving the community,
the humanity of a man can be transformed and
spiritual liberation could be achieved. If you want to
find God, first you need to serve the society; if you
want to gain strength, it is necessary to serve your
fellow citizens. He asked his disciples to eliminate
selfish desires, do more good deeds and called on
them to the countryside to help poor farmers. To
realise one’s good, it can be only through doing
Swami Vivekananda
more good things for others; to realise liberation,
only through guiding the others to the road of
liberation. Vivekananda’s philosophy affirming the
value of life and encouraging people to positively
act and devote selflessly is also known as the “Action
Vedanta Theory.”
Religious Reform Thought
Based on the inherited Ramakrishna’s idea of
“human religion”, Vivekananda further proposed
the thought of “Universal Religion”. The socalled “universal religion” took Hindu Vedanta
philosophy as the theoretical basis and was
created as a new type of religion which could be
accepted by any religious sects all over the world,
as it integrated the commonness and advantages of
various religions in the world and was beyond the
Nationalism Theory
Vivekananda’s nationalism theory is one of the most
influential nationalist theories in early India. First,
he boldly exposed the hideous disasters brought
by the British colonial rule to the Indian people
465
Cultural Contacts
examination system. “(Complete Works of Swami
Vivekananda, volume 5, page 129)
Chinese people have started understanding and
researching about Vivekananda since the 1940s.
In 1946, Jin Kemu opened the course of Indian
philosophy for the Philosophy Department of
Wuhan University; he once offered the students
lectures about Vivekananda philosophy. In 1948, he
went to teach Indian philosophy in the Philosophy
Department of Peking University and also taught
Vivekananda’s new Vedanta thoughts. In 1979,
Huang Xinchuan published his scholarly monograph
Research of Modern Indian Philosopher Vivekananda,
which comprehensively introduced Vivekananda’s
life and biographies and discussed his philosophical,
social and political thoughts, and also analysed
his role in the history of Indian philosophy and
the Indian national independence movement. In
another book written by Huang Xinchuan, Indian
Modern Philosophy, there was also a chapter
dedicated to discuss Vivekananda’s philosophy and
religious reform theory. In 1991, Zhu Mingzhong
translated Indian philosopher Basant Kumar Lal’s
book Contemporary Indian Philosophy (1991),
the book included a chapter fully expounding
Vivekananda’s philosophy and Yoga ideology, so the
understanding of Vivekananda by Chinese people
goes further. In addition, there are also introduction
about Vivekananda in the Encyclopedia of Chinese
Philosophy Volume (1987) and the Dictionary of South
Asia (1998).
The main works of Vivekananda include: Vedanta
Philosophy, Spirit of Vedanta and Its Influence, Practical
Vedanta, Buddhism and Vedanta, Vedanta Philosophy
and Christianity, Reason and Religion, Religion and
Science, Indian Religion, Karma Yoga, Jnana Yoga and
Bhakti Yoga and so on.
(Zhu Mingzhong)
Swami Vivekananda
and actively promoted patriotism. He felt very
sad when he saw the “slave-like weakness” shown
by many intellectuals in India under the colonial
rule, and advocated Indians need “iron muscles”,
“ steel nerves”, “giant’s will” and dare to resist
any enemy. He proposed a programme of national
rejuvenation, the core of which was “action religion
and unity of India.” He advocated that all nations
and religions in India should unite on the basis of
Indian spirit, break the sectarian opposition and
caste segregation, improve the labour and living
conditions of masses, improve the social status and
rights of women, popularise modern education and
scientific knowledge, promote national culture,
develop industry and commerce to revitalise India
as soon as possible. He also designed a beautiful
blueprint for the future of India. He believed that
Indian spiritual philosophy and religious culture
were the best in the world, the European science
and technology, production methods and liberal
democratic political system were also models for
other countries to learn, so the best social model
in the future should be a combination of these two,
namely the society combined by “Indian religion”
and “European production mode and liberal
democratic system”. Vivekananda’s nationalism
theory had exerted a significant influence on the
later Indian nationalist movement.
Aurobindo
Aurobindo Ghose (1872 ~ 1950), Indian modern
philosopher and the early Indian national
independence movement leader, was born in an
honourable family in the suburb of Calcutta, with
Brahmin caste. His grandfather was a knowledgeable
scholar, his father was a famous doctor in local and
his maternal grandfather La Narayan Bose was a
famous scholar and enlightenment thinker. At the
age of seven, Aurobindo Ghose went to UK to study,
at first he studied at the tutor’s home, and then was
enrolled in the St. Paul’s School in London and King’s
College of Cambridge University studying literature.
He had a good command of Latin, Greek, English,
French, German and other languages and read a lot
of Western classical and modern masterpieces of
philosophy and literature. When Aurobindo Ghose
was in Cambridge University, he once participated
Chinese Study on Vivekananda
In 1893, Vivekananda had been to China on his
way to Chicago to attend the World Religions
Conference. He visited Guangzhou, Hong Kong
and other places and had certain understanding of
China. In addition, he was very concerned about
the history and current situation of China, there
were many discussions about China in his works,
like he said, “Though today’s China seems like an
unorganised group, however in her great prime
period, she had the most enviable organisation not
known to any country. A lot of skills and creation
which we may call as modern have been carried
out centuries or even thousands of years ago in
China. One example is the competitive imperial
466
Cultural Contacts
known as the “Spiritual Evolution”) in the world.
Here the meaning of “integral” is “comprehensive”,
the so-called “Integral Vedanta” was in the
succession of the “tat tvam asi” principle of Advaita
in ancient Vedanta, Aurobindo at the same time
integrated a variety of Vedanta doctrines together,
eliminated the differences between them and
reconciled the essence in a whole. In addition, he
also reconciled various opposite concepts in the
ancient Vedanta philosophy, such as the Bráhman
and the world, one and more, clear and avidya
etc., so they become the different grades or levels
of the highest noumenon Bráhman. From the
perspective of modern philosophy, people also
call “Integral Vedanta” the “Spiritual Evolution.”
Since Darwin’s theory of biological evolution was
published in the mid-19th century, the world has
witnessed a variety of evolutionary theories to
explain the development laws of nature and human
society. Aurobindo’s “Spiritual Evolution” was a
product of this trend. Although he had absorbed
some elements of Darwin’s theory of evolution, he
thought this doctrine was ill-structured as it only
explained the phenomena “existing on the ground”,
without mentioning the existence in “heaven”
and “eternal”. Therefore, Aurobindo tried to use
the highest spiritual noumenon - the Bráhman of
India Vedanta philosophy, through the “spiritual
evolution” approach to link up the existences “on
the ground” and existences in the “eternal heaven”,
thus integrated the natural phenomena and supernatural phenomena in a whole. The fundamental
characteristic of Aurobindo’s philosophy is, it’s
based on the inheritance of ancient Vedanta
philosophy, absorbs a lot of contents from Western
philosophy and modern science, and reconciles the
Eastern and Western philosophy, materialism and
idealism, religion and science together.
in an Indian student organisation with patriotic
thoughts, and was influenced deeply by the ideology
of Hindu nationalism. In 1893, Aurobindo Ghose
returned to India and was appointed as a professor
by the University of Baroda to teach English and
French literature, later he was promoted to be
the vice president. During his teaching career,
he actively participated in the activities of the
Congress Party, and wrote articles criticising the
moderate improvement route proposed by the
leaders of the Congress Party. In 1905, when India’s
national independence movement reached a climax,
Aurobindo Ghose resolutely resigned from his
professorship in University of Baroda and returned
to his hometown - Calcutta, where he actively led
the people of Bangladesh in the “anti-separation
struggle”. He organised demonstrations of patriotic
masses, carried out Swadeshi movement, founded
the patriotic newspaper Salute to our Motherland to
publicise radical nationalism ideology, and became
the chief leader in Bengal National Movement and
the leader of radicals in the Congress Party. During
1907 ~ 1908, Aurobindo Ghose was arrested and
imprisoned twice by the colonial authorities. In
1910, he migrated to Pondicherry which was in
Sri Aurobindo
India’s southeast seashore and reigned by French.
During 1914 ~ 1922, he sponsored the English
monthly Aryan in Pondicherry; in 1926, he founded
the Aurobindo ashram. Aurobindo Ghose lived in
Pondicherry for 40 years from 1910 until his death
in 1950. Here, Aurobindo was divorced from the
mass’s struggle against the British, began to devote
himself to writing scholarly works, and contributed
plenty of works on philosophy, yoga, social
development, literature and culture. He created the
famous New Vedanta Doctrine - Integral Vedanta
and Integral Yoga, and trained many disciples in the
monastery, through them vigorously promoted his
doctrines of spiritual evolution and social evolution
to India and even the world, thus his ideology was
widely spread.
Aurobindo occupies an important position in
the history of Indian modern philosophy. He was
famous for his “Integral Vedanta” philosophy (also
Spiritual Evolution
Aurobindo’s “spiritual evolution” (ie “Integral
Vedanta”) argues that Bráhman, the highest
noumenon of the universe is a supernatural spiritual
entity and is called “Bráhman”, also known as the
“cosmic spirit” or “cosmic consciousness.” Bráhman
transcends time, space, quantity and quality, is a
spiritual entity unspeakable. Bráhman is the basis
of the universe, the origin of everything in the
world. All the phenomena in the world, tangible
or intangible, animate or inanimate, rational or
non-rational are originated from this entity, exist
in this entity and return to this entity. In his view,
everything in the world is the manifestation of
Bráhman, and the manifestations of Bráhman;
Bráhman is not only the origins of everything, but
also the final destination of all things, that is, that
everything will finally return to Bráhman.
467
Cultural Contacts
down to matter. The descending process is a selfdeny for Bráhman, as it’s a process from the pure
spirit state differentiated to all things in the world.
In the nature, Bráhman is covered with a variety
of substances appearing and become the “potential
consciousness” or “potential spirit” with wrapping
shell. This “potential spirit” is hidden among all
things and has a strong demand for restoring of its
true existing, thus promote everything to evolve to
the pure spirit state. The rising or evolution of all
things is opposite to the descending of Bráhman, but
it’s also from one level to the higher level one by one.
The evolution starts from the matter, life is evolved
from the matter, mind is evolved from life, and then
super mind is evolved from mind, finally through
the media of super mind evolved to Bráhman, which
is reaching the highest spiritual level.
In Aurobindo’s view, the evolution of the whole
world is the self-descending and self-rising of the
spiritual entity Bráhman, which is the process from
the pure spirit state transformed to be matter, then
from matter restored to pure spirit state. Aurobindo’s
description of the process of Bráhman’s descending
to the nature is quite similar to the process of
“absolute spirit” transforming from a logical phase to
the natural phase in Hegel’s philosophy. For Hegel,
the “absolute spirit” is externalised or transformed
to be nature, in nature the “absolute spirit” wears
the material covering set by itself, and becomes
the thought or concept with a wrapping shell, it is
hidden behind a natural matter but manipulates the
change and development of natural phenomena.
For Aurobindo, Bráhman, as a “cosmic spirit”,
Aurobindo family: Aurobindo Ghose (front row,
1st from right) with parents and siblings, 1879
In the process of analysing the universe evolution,
Aurobindo regarded Bráhman as a “cosmic spirit”
(briefly referred to as “Spirit”), this “spirit” is
divided into five levels or grades, from the senior
to the lower level the sequence is Bráhman, super
mind, mind, life and matter. Matter, life and mind
belong to the natural world (the phenomenal
world), while the super mind and Bráhman belong
to super nature (noumenon level). Matter refers
to various inorganic matters, ie all inanimate
phenomena, which belongs to the lowest form of
the “spirit”. Life means all living phenomena, such
as plants, animals and so on. Mind refers to the
psychological and mental activity of human being;
it represents human beings with thinking ability. In
Aurobindo’s view, the natural evolution seems that,
life is evolved from matter and human beings are
evolved from life. As the highest level of “spirit”,
Bráhman belongs to the supernatural; it is not only
the origin of everything, but also the end of the
evolution, the highest and the most satisfactory
state of everything. Super mind, refers to a special
spirit or consciousness transcending human being’s
thinking ability (actually, it refers to some kind of
mystical states of consciousness reached by those
who had a long yoga practice). The super mind can
connect with people’s mind on one hand; it also can
be interlinked with Bráhman of the highest spiritual
level, so it becomes a bridge connecting the nature
and the supernatural world. How to connect the
natural world to the super nature through evolution?
Aurobindo believes there are two processes of the
universe evolution: first through the media of supermind, Bráhman descends or appears as all things in
the world, then through the super mind, all things of
the world evolve up to be Bráhman. The descending
of Bráhman is from higher level to lower level one
by one, first Bráhman descends to mind from super
mind, then from mind down to life, finally from life
Statue of Sri Aurobindo
descends from higher level to lower level one by one
to the natural world, also puts on the coverings of
matter, life and mind in the nature and becomes a
“potential consciousness” with a wrapping shell. It
is hidden in the nature but promotes and controls
the development and changes of all things.
Aurobindo designed this evolution model of the
world to provide the theoretical basis for spiritual
evolution of human beings, and ultimately to find
a way to get rid of sufferings and obtain unlimited
freedom and happiness. He believed that the evolution
of the universe had not stopped after humans
468
Cultural Contacts
of increasing knowledge, Karma Yoga emphasised
the importance of selfless acts while Bhakti Yoga
emphasised the importance of the devotional
attitudes and feelings toward God. Though the wide
variety of yoga focused on the different aspects,
they pursued the same targets and results, that is,
to combine the internal human spirit with Bráhman
to realise spiritual liberation. Therefore, Aurobindo
argued that the various yoga should be integrated,
absorbed the essence of every kind of yoga and
created a new yoga, which is “Integral Yoga.” His
integral yoga is, based on the principle of realising
man’s spiritual evolution, specifically, through a
variety of yoga practice, to wake up the internal
soul or spiritual nature of man, give full play of the
role of spiritual nature to realise the progressively
spiritual evolution of man’s body, life and mind, and
ultimately realise the man’s overall transformation,
and become a man with “super-mind consciousness”.
When everyone has a “super-mind consciousness”,
appeared on the planet; humans with the “mind”
still had to evolve to be humans with “super-mind”.
In his view, since all things are the manifestations of
Bráhman, then human is not an exception; human is
also the manifestation of Bráhman. Thus Bráhman
is also hidden in the existence of human in the
form of “potential consciousness”, and become the
Sri Aurobindo presiding over a meeting of
the Nationalists, 1907
spiritual essence of human. Although the bodies
between people are different, the inner spiritual
nature is the same. This spiritual nature has the
features of unity, harmony, love and joy. The reason
why man is selfish, painful and split is because of
his ignorance, failure in recognising and revealing
his inner, unified spiritual nature. The evolution of
man is through the introspective and intuitive yoga
ways to make his life and the others lives, even the
whole social life reach a unity and harmony, such
a man is called “superman” or “spiritualised man”.
The existence of a “superman” is still isolated and
his perfection could not be guaranteed. Therefore,
he must use his own wisdom and strength to help
and inspire others to have spiritual evolution. It’s
like using the first torch to light the second torch,
the second one to light the third one, and so on,
thus to realise the whole human being’s spiritual
evolution. At that time, people will get rid of the
shackles of ignorance, consider himself and others
same in essence, people will coordinate with each
other based on the same spirit and live equally and
harmoniously. There will be an ideal state in the
world without pain, only blessings, joys, harmony
and perfectness. Aurobindo called this state as
“divine life”.
Aurobindo Ghose's home in London,
1884–1887
the relationship between individuals and between
groups will be in harmony, they will respect each
other and live harmoniously, the whole society will
become a “holy family.”
Integral Yoga
To realise the spiritual evolution of man, Aurobindo
also proposed “Integral Yoga” theory. He believed
that although there were many kinds of Indian
traditional yoga, none of them were perfect, as
they all emphasised the aspect of improving the
body, while ignored the other aspects. For example,
Hathayoga focused only on the physical practice, Raja
Yoga focused on inhibition of man’s psychological
activity, Jnana Yoga emphasised the importance
Social Evolution
Aurobindo’s social evolution theory is the extension
and application of his “spiritual evolution”
philosophy in history field. His view of history is
individual-centered and believes that the individual
is the basis of society and the components of a
society, state or society is a community composed
of countless individuals. Therefore, the evolution
469
Cultural Contacts
is a further development of his “spiritual evolution”
doctrine. His so-called “improve ourselves through
internal free development” in fact, is introspecting
“soul” and experiencing the “spirit”, it’s a process of
revealing the potential spirit of nature. He believes
that social evolution, firstly is to gain self-perfection
through the internal development of the individuals
and the countries composing the society, then try
to help and promote the others or other countries
to perfect. On this basis, between individuals
and between countries, the real unity and good
coordination will be achieved on the same spiritual
basis; the whole society will become a “holy family.”
Chinese studies on Aurobindo
Aurobindo’s spiritual evolution theory and social
evolution theory exerted great influences not only
in India but also in the world. Many Philosophy
Departments of European and American Universities
open lectures on the Aurobindo’s philosophy. In
1960s, the Philosophy Departments in Chinese
universities also began to study and teach Aurobindo’s
philosophy. Huang Xinchuan from Department
of Philosophy in Peking University set courses for
graduate students on Aurobindo’s philosophy, later
he incorporated the relevant lecture notes into India
Modern Philosophy (1989). The book introduces
Aurobindo’s life and biography, and expounded
English Heritage blue plaque at Aurobindo Ghose's home in London.
of the state and society is same as the individual
evolution (behind the state and society there’s also a
“spiritual nature”), that is, through the way of selfimprovement to enable the inner spiritual nature be
fully revealed. He believes that despite historical
development is affected by the economic factors,
but in the final analysis it is decided by human’s
rationality. Accordance to the development level of
human rationality, he divided the human history
into five stages: symbolic era, typical era, agreement
era, individualistic and spiritual era. He predicted
that the ultimate goal of social development is
the spiritualised age or spiritualised society. In
the spiritualised society, people will realise the
unity on the basis of a common spirit and live a
harmonious and satisfying life; the unity between
countries based on the same spirit will be achieved
as well, different nations will respect each other and
interact equally and harmoniously. At that time, the
dream of uniting the human beings will be realised.
In order to promote the social development,
Aurobindo proposed a “social development law”.
In his view, society is composed by the three
timeless factors of individuals, nations, and human,
the evolution of a society must make sure these
three factors are satisfactorily developed. For
individuals concerned, it is through the internal
free development to perfect their personality, at
the same time respect and help others to gain same
development. For the countries concerned, it is also
through its internal free development to perfect
itself, and respect and help other countries to
develop. For humankind, it will take full advantages
of the free development and achievements of
all individuals, countries and social groups, and
continue to evolve upward, until human unity is
realised. His “social development law”, in essence,
‘Indian Modern Philosophy’, Huang
Xinchuan (front cover)
his philosophy and social thought. In 1980s, Xu
Fancheng, who went to India to study and practiced
many years in Aurobindo monastery, returned to
China and was specialised in the research work on
Aurobindo philosophy. He translated a lot of books
related with Aurobindo’s philosophy and yoga,
which included the Aurobindo’s representative
philosophical masterpiece The Life Divine (1984),
On Yoga (1988), Integral Yoga (2005), Yoga Basics
(2005), Yoga Proverbs (2005), Yoga Letter Set (2005)
and so on. The translation of these writings made
Aurobindo’s philosophy and yoga thought widely
470
Cultural Contacts
praises from scholars both in domestic and
foreign countries, thus Dasgupta’s name became
wellknown. History of Indian Philosophy was written
in English, divided in five volumes, with total 38
chapters. It was first published in 1922, and was
later constantly reprinted. Till 2009, the 7th edition
had been published. He advocated digging raw data
of India in depth, systematically sorted out national
cultural heritages in order to study the development
history of Indian philosophy from the nationalist
point of view. Thus, in his book, History of Indian
Philosophy, he collected and collated a lot of original
data in Sanskrit, Pali and local dialects, used these
data systematically to discuss the germination,
emergence and development of Indian philosophy.
This philosophy history covered a large time span,
from the Vedic era of 15th century BCE till 16th
century CE, about 3,000 years of history. This book
not only described the philosophy in Vedas and
Sanskrit books, Upanishad philosophy, Buddhist
philosophy, Jainadharma philosophy, the six schools
of Hinduism philosophy: - Samkhya, yoga theory,
Vaisesika, Nyāya, Mimamsa theory, Vedanta theory
- but also discussed the philosophy of Bhagavad
Gita, and a variety of reformist philosophy emerging
during the medieval pietistic reform movement,
such as Vallabha school, Chanitaniya school, brave
Shiva school (also known as Lingayat), Agama
and so on. It not only discussed the theories and
doctrines of the various philosophical schools in
India, but also discussed the ideological differences
and struggles between the various schools. History
of Indian Philosophy has important academic value
for the study of ancient Indian philosophy and its
research methods also had a profound impact on
later philosophers. In addition, his other important
book, Indian Idealism reflected his own philosophical
thoughts and perspectives.
Regarding Dasgupta’s philosophical thoughts,
there are introductions and interpretations in many
dictionaries and books published in China, such as
Encyclopedia of China - Philosophy Volume (1987),
South Asia Dictionary (1998) and so on. History of
Indian Philosophy (English version) is collected
by major libraries in China, such as the National
Library, Library of Peking University, and Library of
Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.
(Zhu Mingzhong)
spread in China. In addition, Chinese scholars also
studied Aurobindo philosophy. Zhu Mingzhong
has published many papers and books related with
Aurobindo’s philosophy, such as Aurobindo’s Social
Darwinism (Philosophical Researches 1983 No. 3),
Aurobindo’s Spiritual Evolution Philosophy (Social
Science Front Bimonthly 1983 No. 2), monograph
Aurobindo Ghose (1994), Master Essentials - Aurobindo
(2009) and so on.
Aurobindo’s main works include The Life Divine,
Social Darwinism, Ideal of Human Unity, Foundation
of Indian Culture, Superman, Revealing of Super Mind
in the World, On Yoga, Integral Yoga and Yoga Basics
and so on.
(Zhu Mingzhong)
Surendranath Dasgupta
Surendranath Dasgupta (1885-1952 CE), an Indian
modern philosopher and pundit, was born in a
Sanskrit scholarly family in Bengal Kushtia. He
received education in his early life at the school
established by Krishna Gal Society. Later he
went to Cambridge University to study Western
philosophy. He devoted his life to philosophy and
the teaching of Sanskrit, and also the research
of Indian philosophy history. Dasgupta had been
the professor at Chittagong College, head of
Department of Philosophy at Calcutta Provincial
S. Dasgupta
College, college principal of Calcutta National
Sanskrit College, professor of Philosophy at the
University of Calcutta and professor of Sanskrit
at the University of Edinburgh, etc. Due to his
outstanding achievements in Sanskrit and research
on the history of Indian philosophy, he was invited
by Western universities and went abroad to give
lectures many times. He had been to the United
States of America, France, Germany, Italy, Poland
and other countries to teach Indian philosophy. He
also attended international Philosophy conferences
as a representative of Indian philosophers.
Dasgupta occupies an important position in
Indian modern philosophy history. After publishing
his book History of Indian Philosophy, he received
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan (1888-1975 CE) was
an Indian modern philosopher, social activist and
politician. He was born in a Brahmin family in the
city of Madras (now Chennai) in south India and
received education in a Christian school from his
early life. In 1909, he graduated from Christian
College in Madras. After graduation, he taught
471
Cultural Contacts
noumenon of the universe to be “Bráhman”, also
known as “absolute.” Like Vedanta followers, he
believed that “Bráhman” was the “only” existence of
universe; also like an absolute idealist, he believed
that everything in the world were products of
the “only one”. In his opinion, Bráhman is “pure
consciousness, pure freedom and with unlimited
possibilities.” Bráhman is the infinite and eternal
pure spiritual entity; it contains infinite possibilities,
not subject to any restrictions and interference and
could create endless things freely. The world we live
in is a creation of Bráhman. He opposed Advaita
Vedanta’s “Illusory World Theory,” and argued
the material world has a real existence. All things
in the world have three features, ie materiality,
temporality and spatiality. The existence of matter
is not the single existence of one feature, but the
combination and unity of the three features. The
material world develops and changes continuously,
and there are certain law for the changes.
On the issue of life, he opposed the pessimistic
views of ancient Vedanta and affirmed the meaning
and value of life. He divided man into two aspects:
the limited aspect and the limitless aspect. The
limited aspect refers to man’s body and physiology,
limitless aspect is the “spirit”, also known as “self”
or “soul” inside a man, which is in harmony with
Bráhman, the supreme noumenon of the universe.
He affirmed the value of physical life and believed
that flesh was part of man’s inner “spirit”, which
did not cut the link with physical life; otherwise,
philosophy in Madras Provincial College. In 1921,
he was employed as a professor with the highest
professorship of King George V in Department of
Philosophy, University of Calcutta. While teaching
here, he completed a book Indian Philosophy (two
volumes), which re-interpreted and evaluated
Indian traditional philosophy with the methods and
terminology of western philosophy. In 1925, on
the initiative and organisation of Radhakrishnan,
“Indian Philosophy Conference” - the Indian
national philosophy organisation was founded,
which was held every year since then in India
S. Radhakrishnan
and continues till now. Since 1926, he had been
invited to Oxford University for many times to
offer philosophical lectures every year for Upton
Lectures. He also visited the United States of
America and taught comparative religion in Haskell
Lectures of the University of Chicago. The main
content of his lectures offered in Europe and in
America were Vedanta philosophy and philosophy
of life of Hinduism, as well as comparative studies
on Eastern and Western philosophy. In 1931, due
to his outstanding achievements in the comparative
study on Eastern and Western philosophy, he was
honoured with knighthood by British King George
V. Since 1931, he had served as a member of the
International Committee of Cultural Cooperation.
In 1946, he served as the head of Indian delegation
to UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific
and Cultural Organisation). In 1949, he took the
post of the first Indian ambassador in Soviet Russia.
In 1952, he was elected to be the Vice President
of the Republic of India. In the same year, in the
seventh Conference of UNESCO, he was elected to be
chairman of the conference. In 1962, Radhakrishnan
served as the President of the Republic of India
(1962 to 1967).
Radhakrishnan was a representative of new
Vedanta philosophy and occupied an important
position in the history of Indian modern philosophy.
The characteristics of his philosophy were the
integration of Indian Advaita Vedanta with
Western absolute idealism. He named the supreme
From right to left: Rajendra Prasad, Zhou Enlai,
Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan and Jawaharlal
Nehru, New Delhi in June 1954.
the integrity of human life would be undermined.
He even argued that the body was “divine temple of
spirit”. He believed that a man could be enlightened
with inherent “spirit” and recognise the truth of
“Brahman is Atman” only through an intuitive
way. Once recognised ““Brahman is Atman”
truth, he would be able to unite with the outside
world, and seek harmony with the entire society.
Radhakrishnan argued that the purpose of life was
to achieve liberation. Liberation is to be enlightened
with the inner “spirit” of every man to achieve the
combination between “I” and “Bráhman”. On this
basis, he further proposed the concept of “universal
liberation”, that people could obtain it in the
472
Cultural Contacts
Radhakrishnan’s philosophy, religion, life, ethics, as
well as his achievements in comparison research on
Eastern and Western philosophy, his contributions
to the development of Indian philosophy and so on.
Radhakrishnan’s main works include: Indian
Philosophy, Hinduism View of Life, Idealism View of
Life, Eastern Religions and Western Thoughts, Religious
Influence in Modern Philosophy, and so on.
(Zhu Mingzhong)
living state, those have gained liberation continue
to live in this world. One man’s liberation is still
imperfect, also not sustainable. Thus, when a man
is liberated, he still needs to continue working
hard to help and inspire others around him to
gain liberation. Only when all men in the world
have gained liberation, there would be harmony
and unity in the whole society, thus human beings
could be free from suffering and distress. In order
to realise the ideal of “universal liberation”, he also
actively proposed a kind of “spiritual religion.” The
so-called “spiritual religion”, is the religion based
Debiprasad
Chattopadhyaya
Debiprasad Chattopadhyaya (1918~) is an Indian
modern philosopher and historian. He was once
awarded an honourary doctorate by USSR Academy
of Sciences and an academician title by German
Democratic Republic Academy of Sciences. After
1959, he has served as an editor for Indian philosophy
Quarterly, Indian Studies: Past and Present.
Chattopadhyaya proved the development history
of ancient Indian philosophy with the approaches of
dialectical materialism and historical materialism,
criticised the views hold by European and American
scholars that Indian philosophy had been the
hometown of idealism and mysticism from ancient
times, and also proved that the entire history of
Indian philosophy not only included the religious
tradition of idealism and mysticism, but also
contained a wealth of materialism, rationalism,
secularism, optimism and atheism traditions. In
Lokayata: A Study in Ancient Indian Materialism and
Indian Atheism, he proved materialistic thinking had
emerged in the early Vedic times, the world view
held by the ancient Indian ancestors had already
reflected the pursuit of material interests and
optimistic attitudes towards life. He also discussed
in the Indian philosophical traditions, Lokayata was
not the only school holding the idea of materialism
and atheism, many other schools, like Samkhya,
Vaisesika, Mimamsa, Jainadharma and some
schools of Buddhism were also bearing materialism
and atheism thoughts in varying degrees. In these
schools with materialist ideology, besides Lokayata,
although some schools were idealistic in view of the
world, however they somewhat negated the role of
divinity. Chattopadhyaya not only explained the
continuity and universality of the development of
Indian Materialism tradition, but also illustrated
that Indian materialism had launched a long-term,
continuous struggle against religious idealism since
its generation.
In dealing with the heritage of Indian philosophy,
Chattopadhyaya also put forward his own
viewpoints. In What is Living and What is Dead in
Indian Philosophy he pointed out that philosophical
thoughts were ultimately for promoting social
progress and development of rationality and
Mao Zedong meeting Dr Sarvepalli
Radhakrishnan, Vice President of India
on Vedanta philosophy, through the “spiritual
enlightenment” and “spiritual experience” to
achieve “spiritual unity” between people. In the
process of “spiritual enlightenment”, people must
overcome ignorance, blindness and selfish desires,
and treat all people with a spirit of “universal love”.
This kind of spiritual religion based on “universal
love” in essence is the product of the combination of
Western humanitarian and Eastern religions.
Radhakrishnan’s thoughts had been introduced
to China very early and exerted certain impacts on
the country. He had some in-depth understanding
about Chinese philosophy and religion, while he
was studying Western philosophy. During May
6-21, 1944 (during Chinese Anti-Japanese War) he
was invited by the Sino-Indian Association to offer
lectures in China. He gave 12 consecutive lectures and
the lecture notes were compiled into a book entitled
with India and China and published in Mumbai
in the same year. The book was divided into six
chapters, expounding Chinese concept of education,
China’s religions - Confucianism and Taoism,
relationship between India and China, as well as
war and world security and other issues. Regarding
Radhakrishnan’s philosophical thoughts, Chinese
scholars have also made researches. In 1993, Zhu
Mingzhong published the paper “Radhakrishnan’s
Biography and Thoughts” in the Yearbook of World
Philosophy. In 1994, Zhu Mingzhong published
the paper of “S· Radhakrishnan’s Philosophical
Thoughts" in the first issue of South Asia Studies. In
1996, Gong Jing published a scholarly monograph
Radhakrishnan, which comprehensively expounded
473
Cultural Contacts
the various materialistic thoughts of ancient India.
Chattopadhyaya’s main works include: Lokayata: A
Study in Ancient Indian Materialism (1959), Indian
Philosophy - A Popular Introduction (1964), Indian
Atheism (1969), What is Living and What is Dead
in Indian Philosophy (1976), Science and Society in
Ancient India (1977) and so on.
(Zhu Mingzhong)
science. Inside the heritage of ancient Indian
philosophy, the ideas and concepts as long as
they could promote today’s social progress and
development of rationalism and science, were
alive and valuable. On the contrary, all the ideas
and concepts that would hinder social progress
and development of rationalism and science
were dead, worthless. Indian ancient philosophy
is a huge treasure house with a variety of ideas,
these ideas are entangled in a complex, even
opposite-to-each-other relationship. They had
played different roles in the development of
history, thus also had a different meaning in
today’s social development. In traditional Indian
philosophy, there were a lot of ideas and thoughts
of obscurantism, mysticism and anti-science, but
there were also many ideas and thoughts against
these decadent ideas which were helpful for
social progress and development of rationalism
and science, showing people’s pursuit of freedom
and equality. Therefore, he appealed to today’s
Indian philosophical workers they should carry
out critical distinction on a variety of traditional
philosophical concepts and ideas, must abandon
dead concepts and ideas of past philosophy,
and vigorously dig and promote those ideas and
concepts promoting today’s social progress and
development of science and democracy.
Chattopadhyaya has also made great achievements
in the study of comparative philosophy. He
believed that the idea of dialectics in Western
philosophy was first proposed by the ancient
Greek philosopher Heraclitus. This dialectics was
built on the basis of materialism; later, Hegel’s
idealist dialectics replaced the original materialism
dialectics. Following that, Marx and Engels set the
dialectics free from the illusion of Hegel’s idealism,
restored its materialistic face and enabled it to rise
to a new level. He pointed out that the intellectual
movement starting from the beginning of the 19th
century CE was “the history of development from
metaphysics to the dialectics, and from idealism
to materialism”. Since then, dialectics had become
the most powerful ideological weapon of human,
not only for illustrating the history, but also for
creating history.
Chattopadhyaya’s
thoughts
have
gained
increasing attentions from philosophy circles in
China, many of his philosophical works have been
translated into Chinese. In 1980, Huang Baosheng
and Guo Liangyun translated Chattopadhyaya’s
Indian Philosophy into Chinese. In 1992, Wang
Shian translated Lokayata: A Study in Ancient
Indian Materialism into Chinese. The translation
and publication of these two books had deepened
Chinese scholars’ understanding of ancient Indian
philosophy and made Chinese people understand
Lao Zi
WORKS
The Book of Lao Zi is the principal classic of
Taoism, also known as The Book of Dao De Jing.
The currently circulated edition is divided into 81
chapters, totaling 5,056 Chinese characters.
The authorship and year of Book final completion
have always been subject to controversy. Master
Han Fei thought its author was Lao Zi (namely, Lao
Dan) while historian Sima Qian suspiciously alleged
the author was court historian Dan of the Warring
States Period. Moreover, there’s someone believes
that the classic is actually the wills and teachings
of from Lao Zi recorded and written down by Huan
Yuan, a thinker in the Warring States Period, and
someone even deduced that the classic might had
been completed during the period between Qin and
Han dynasties. However, this argument of the Book
completion at the early Han Dynasty was refuted by
the silk manuscript edition of The Book of Lao Zi
unearthed from Tomb at Mawangdui of Changsha
city, Hu’nan province in 1972. The prevalent view
Dao De Jing, Hindi edition (front cover)
474
Cultural Contacts
Ming, totaling forty one. Experts to eliminate doubt
and explain Lao Zi’s text in past dynasties are no less
than a thousand, among them the most famous are
as follows: Master Han fei’s Uncoiling Lao Zi and
Explaining Lao Zi in the late Warring States Period,
the Han Dynasty He Shang Gong’s Lao Zi’ Chapters,
Wang Bi’s Annotation of the Book of Lao Zi in Wei
and Jin dynasties, He Yan’s Discussion of Lao Zi’ Dao
and De, Qiang Siqi’s Compilation of Quintessence
of Lao Zi’s Classic, Song Dynasty Taoist Cheng
Jingyuan’s Profound Explanation of Lao Zi’ Cannon,
Song Dynasty Wang Anshi’s Annotation of the Book
of Lao Zi (has been lost), Ming Dynasty Jiao Hong’s
Annotation of The Book of Lao Zi, Qing Dynasty Bi
Yuan’s Editing and Proofreading of The Book of Lao
of majority scholars at the present tend to believe
the Book might be completed in the Warring States
Period, might not be later than the publication
of Mencius and Zhuangzi, as it is evident by Lao
Dan’s thought in the late Spring and Autumn Period
contained in The Book of Laozi, with diction with
literary style of the Warring States Period.
The current version of The Book of Lao Zi consists
of part one and part two, or the Book of Dao and
the Book of De, respectively. In He Shang Gong
annotated version, Wang Bi annotated version and
Fu Yi final edited and revised version, the part one
and part two are all referred to, respectively, as
the Book of Dao and Book of De. However, in the
silk manuscript version of the Book, the Book of De
is placed ahead of the Book of Dao, which is the
most ancient transcript version that could be found
so far. The currently circulated version is divided
into 81 chapters, even though some currently
circulated editions consist of 72 or 68 chapters. But
the unearthed silk manuscript version is not divided
into chapters.
Contents expounded in The Book of Lao Zi is quite
extensive, involving multiple of fields such as nature,
society, human anecdotes, philosophy, politics,
ethic, military affairs and culture. It contains rich
philosophical thoughts, ie apart from the abstract
subject like probing of ontology and unitarity of
the universe, it also includes various exposition,
argumentation and original thesis in the fields of
epistemology, conception of history, outlook on
life, cultural perspective, etc. The Confucianists
and legalists all have assimilated to varying degrees
Lao Zi’s thoughts; even phenomenology of modern
Western world has also been influenced to some
extent by its thoughts. Taoism reveres The Book
of Lao Zi as the principal canon. There have been
circulated many editions of the book throughout
history, such as 14 stone inscription editions among
which Yu Shinan’ edited and scribal edition in Tang
Dynasty under the reign of Emperor Taizong is the
oldest, and the next ancient edition is seen on the
stone tablet of Dao De Jing erected in Long Xing
Temple in Yi Prefecture in the second year of Jing
Long reign of Tang Emperor Zhongzong. Besides,
considerably huge numbers of remnant paper of
hand-copied editions are widely scattered among
Dunhuang Scripture. As for the wood engraving
edition, the earliest appeared is Lao Zi’s Dao De
Jing Begun with Sentence of He Shang Gong that
was published in the Song Dynasty, now available
in photocopy edition among the first compiled
Imperial Collection of Four published by the
Commercial Press. The Orthodox Collected Taoist
Scriptures collected the text of the Book of Dao-DeJing and annotated editions, respectively, published
in dynasties of Han, Wei, Tang, Song, Jin, Yuan and
Dao De Jing, Laozi
Zi; in modern and contemporary times, what are
prominent are Collation and Annotation of The Book
of Lao Zi by Zhu Qianzhi, Authentic Expounding of
The Book of Lao Zi by Gao Heng, Unraveling The
Book of Lao Zi by Ren Jiyu (attached with English
translated version), Lao Zi at Ancient and Modern
Times by Liao Xiaogan, etc. Internationally, The
Book of Lao Zi has been translated into many
languages both in the Western and Eastern Worlds.
Among the multitude of foreign language
translated versions, the so-called Sanskrit version
reputedly translated by the most famous monk
Xuanzang calls widespread attention. In accordance
with the record contained in the third volume of Dao
Xuan’s Collection of Debate between Buddhism and
Taoism, it is quoted to the effect that on his return
from the trip of India and was given interview by
Emperor Taizong in the 21st year of Zhenguan
Reign of Tang Dynasty (647 CE), Li Yibiao returned
after a visit to India, reporting that he had given
introduction of The Book of Lao Zi to King Kumàra
in the State of Kàmaråpa in ancient India (now the
west regions in Assam, India). The Emperor Taizong
then gave edict to Monk Xuanzang to translate Lao
Zi’s cannon into Sanskrit, and “Xuanzang begins
to translate Lao Zi’s classic only after thoroughly
comprehending the delicate and hidden connotation
475
Cultural Contacts
of the classic by analysing the text sentence
by sentence and classifying the text in term of
meaning”. There all along exists a great controversy
on plausibility and availability of such a Sanskrit
version. However, modern people supported Dao
Xuan’s Record with two arguments. One is Lao Zi’
original name, according to legend, is Li Er, whom
Emperor Taizhong treated as ancient wise man of
his own clan. The second evidence can be found
in Introduction of India-New Historical Book of
Tang, which has it to say, “The State of Kàmaråpa
offers exotic gifts and its atlas, but requests to be
given a Portrait of Lao Zi as return gift.” And Monk
Xuangzang once visited that country and used to be
on good term with King Kumàra. The assumption of
real existence of the Xuan Zang’s Sanskrit version
should not be discarded, instead, should be kept as
one of the versions waiting to be certified by any
evidence either on the ground or underground.
Hindi translated version of Tao Upanishad has
appeared for a long time, and its influence is
gradually gaining momentum.
(Jiang Julang)
‘Lun Yu (The Analects of Confucius)’, page fragments, Tang Dynasty
the gentleman), reflecting the compiler’s thoughts
to cultivate oneself through learning and to become
a saint. The Analects, with words and deeds of
Confucius with his disciples as contents, and the
dialog of benevolence, filial piety, governance and
differentiation between man of honour and pettyminded person as core, reveals the Confucian
school’s approach of scholarly pursuit and selfcultivation characterised by rituals and music.
Confucius gave different, but with the same essence,
answers on the same inquiry to his disciples as he
believed his disciples’ aptitude differed, embodying
consistency of the Confucian school of learning
of what it calls “Cherishing benevolence in one’s
heart”. For instance, when Fan Chi asked about
“humaneness”, Confucius replied, “The human being
first of all thinks of overcoming the difficulties and
then of enjoying the benefits. That is humaneness.”
(Ranyong, The Analects, the quotations hereinafter
only refer to the title of volume). Perhaps as Fan
Chi had shortcomings of indolence, Confucius
admonished him to first overcome the difficulties
and then enjoy the benefits. But in giving an answer
to the same question of Yan Hui’ on “humaneness”,
Confucius, nevertheless, said, “To restrain oneself
and observe the rituals constitute humaneness.
Once you have done these, the world will consider
you humane. However, the practice of humaneness
depends on no one but yourself.” (Yan Hui) As
Yan Hui is his brightest student, Confucius’ answer
is straight to the point: Man of honour seeks the
cause in himself. About the question of government,
Confucius’ answer to Z Zhang was that “Never
slacken your efforts at your post, show your loyalty
when carrying out government orders”. (Yan Hui)
As Confucius knows this student suspected to have
weakness of seeking fame but lacking tenacity and
endurance, so the Master exhorts him not to avoid
boredom but to do practical job in good faith.
Regarding the same question by Zi Xia, Confucius
said, “Do not make haste. Do not covet small
gains. Haste makes waste. Great tasks will not be
accomplished if you covet small gains.” (Zi Lu) As
Zi Xia has shortcomings of being easy to be content
but acting rashly, Confucius then advises him to
widen his horizon and make steady and sure efforts.
The man of honour is mentioned in 107 separate
Analects
The Analects, one of the classics of Confucian
school of thought, is a collection of scattered
sayings of Confucius and his disciples which
were recorded and compiled by the disciples of
the second generation. The commonly circulated
version of the Analects consists of 20 volumes
(chapters) that are sub-divided into 492 chapters
totaling 15900 Chinese characters. The period of
completion of this book is estimated to be the early
period of the Warring States.
The present version of the 20 volumes (chapters)
Analects discovered in the State of Lu, another
version of the same 20 chapters discovered in the
State of Qi are found to be more accurate. It is
towards the end of the Eastern Han Dynasty that
Zheng Xuan annotated the Qi version which is
handed down to the present days (20 volumes).
The Analects begins with study and ends with
the comprehension of the Decree of Heaven (by
The Analects of Confucius (Lun Yu), Yuan
Dynasty edition
476
Cultural Contacts
along with Buddhism, and had been attached great
importance by Chinese thinkers.
Literature Components and Main Categories
Sanskrit “Veda” originally means “knowledge”,
especially about religion. It can be divided into two
categories. In a broad sense, it is a collection of some
texts in northwest India, including the Samhitas,
the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas, the Upanishads and
the like, while in a narrow sense, it only refers to
“Four Vedas”, ie Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and
Atharvaveda.
The Samhitas are collections of hymns, mantras,
songs of praise, spells and incantations about the
Deities.
The Brahmaza are also known as Brahman or
Brahmanas, consisting of texts for sacrificial rituals
mentioned in the Samhitas as well as comment on
their origins, methods and associated legends.
The Aranyakas, as an additional part of the
Brahmanas, discuss some philosophical or meditative
issues as well as sacrificial purposes and methods.
The Upanishads, as an additional part of the
Aranyakas, are quite different from other Vedas.
Besides religious and sacrificial content, they
also contain a lot of discussions on philosophical
or speculative issues, and are the earliest Indian
texts offering relatively systematic philosophical
thoughts.
Moreover, some people also include the Srautasutra, Grhya-sutra and Dharma-sutra into the Vedas.
In the Vedic period, India already had philosophical
thoughts, which, strictly speaking, were embryonic,
less abstract and hard to be classified as genuine and
systematic philosophical thinking. The Vedas are
more religious than philosophical, and the Samhitas,
i,e., “Four Vedas”, are a typical representation of
Indian ideas in the Vedic period.
The Rigveda is the oldest Vedic text, and some of
the oldest hymns can be dated back to about 1500
BCE. It mainly contains hymns used by primitive
Indians (supposed by many scholars to be the
Aryans) to praise the gods, and these hymns are
verses loudly chanted at sacrificial rituals to call
the deities. The Rigveda originally was produced
and preserved by oral tradition alone, and was not
written down until much later. The existing Rigveda
includes 10 volumes and a total of 1,017 hymns (if
11 hymns inserted into the volume 8 are included, it
will total 1,028). Given their inconsistency and lack
of coordination, obviously, these 10 volumes are
impossible to have been written by a single person
or co-authored by several persons.
The Samaveda, basically, is a collection of hymns
taken from the Rigveda, with melodies provided. Of
these hymns, all but 75 are taken from volume 8
and volume 9 of the Rigveda. Therefore, of the four
Vedas, the Samaveda has the poorest independence,
occasions in the Analects, the core concepts are
mostly elaborated as “seek the cause in oneself”.
Ever since the times of Emperor Wu, Confucianism
had gradually taken a domineering position in the
realm of Chinese thought, and the Analects also
exerted a wide ranging profound influence on
the Chinese society. Zhu Xi of the Southern Song
Dynasty combined the Analects, the Great Learning,
Doctrine of the Mean, and Mencius into The Four
Books. And in the Yuan Dynasty, this collection of
books were taken as officially assigned required
book for students who intend to appear and pass
the imperial examination, thus further expanding
the influence of the Analects. As for annotation for
this classic, there were several annotators even in
the Han Dynasty, and more were on the increase in
the ensuing dynasties; out of them, the important
and influential annotators are He Yan of the Three
Kingdoms Period, with works entitled Concentrated
Explanation of Analects, Xing Bing of the Song
Dynasty, with works entitled Paraphrasing Analects,
Zhu Xi’s Concentrated Annotation of Analects, and
Liu Baonan’s Full Connotation of Analects.
(Jiang Julang)
Vedas
Veda is a large body of the oldest extant religious
and historical texts in ancient India produced orally
by primitive Indians and collected together by later
generations to form present written texts. It is a great
number of texts that had been produced within a
lengthy span of time, and most texts originated in
about the 16th-9th century BCE. It mainly consists
of hymns on people’s lives and contains many
religious thoughts as well as philosophical ideas
in primitive India. Such thoughts not only have
important impacts on ancient Indian civilisation,
but also are a main source of thinking for modern
Indian civilisation. Its ideas were brought into China
Veda, Sanskrit manuscript, 15th century CE
477
Cultural Contacts
philosophical discussion. In the Atharvaveda, most
verses are metrical, but some sections are in prose.
The Atharvaveda was composed about 1000 BCE,
very close to the date of the Yajurveda. Extant
Atharvaveda contains 20 volumes and a total of
730 verses, and a lot of them are taken from the
Rigveda, and generally, the last two volumes were
added in a later period.
In addition to religious topics, there are also signs
of philosophical thinking. These two aspects closely
relate to and yet differ from each other, and it is the
Upanishads that contains many philosophical ideas.
Main Religious Forms The Vedas, in the main,
is a mirror of the social life shortly after the
disintegration of primitive Indian society. Then,
given the poor state of social productivity and
thinking, people generally could not arrive at a right
understanding of various natural phenomena, and
they were curious about and even fearful of natural
phenomena that had a direct and considerable
impact on their life, but had to explain such things
to themselves or their fellowmen. From such a need,
the oldest religious ideas arose in ancient India
In the Vedas, polytheistic worship is the earliest
form of religion. For instance, hill, river, grass and
tree on the earth, wind, rain, thunder and lightning
in the air, the moon, the sun and stars in the sky, and
the like, all were treated as deities. The following
are some deities of Nature mentioned in the Vedas.
The Sun is deified by Vedic poets and became
Surya, the Sun God. Surya is supposed to be a deity
to observe all persons and creatures and to expel
darkness and to bring the light. He is praised in many
Vedic hymns. For instance, a hymn in the Rigveda
(7.63.4) says: “Golden, far-seeing, from the heaven
he rises, far is his goal, he has on resplendent. Men,
verily, inspirited by Surya speed to their aims and
do their work.”
Ushas as the Goddess of the Dawn originates
from Vedic poets’ marvel at the beautiful scene of
the dawn. In the Vedic hymns, she is said to be
the mother or wife of Surya and to work to expel
the night and to awake persons and all kinds of
creatures. In the Rigveda (4.51.1), she is portrayed
as follows: “FORTH from the darkness in the region
eastward, this most abundant splendid light hath
mounted. Now verily the far-refulgent Mornings,
Daughters of Heaven, bring welfare to the people.”
Indra, the God of the Thunder, is also a product of
Vedic poets. The Rigveda (2.12.2) states, “He fixes
fast and firms the earth that staggered, and sets at
rest the agitated mountains, Who measured out
the air’s wide middle region and gave the heaven
support, He, men, is Indra.” A lot of hymns in the
Vedas are about Indra, who seems to have been
attached great importance then. This has something
to do with climate. India often suffers from high
Yajurveda
but it has an important value for the study of the
development of ancient Indian music. The extant
Samaveda contains two volumes and a total of
1,549 hymns. Volume 1 includes six chapters, and
Volume 2 has nine chapters, with some overlapping
with Volume 1 and the most contents being taken
from the Rigveda. Volume 2 was formed later than
Volume 1.
The Yajurveda, with contents much different from
the Rigveda, narrates events in the central part of
north India. It mainly contains mantras needed to
perform sacrifices, and most of these mantras are
in prose, while some are in verse, and they are to
be lowly chanted at the sacrifices. Generally, the
Yajurveda is supposed to have close connection
with the Brahmanas, and might have been composed
between 1000- 800 BCE. Now, it has two versions,
one is called “Black Yajurveda” and the other is
“White Yajurveda”. The Black Yajurveda consists of
the texts of the Samhita and that of the Brahmana,
which is difficult to be distinguished, that’s why it’s
called “black”. It also contains some commentaries.
While the White Yajurveda separates the Samhita
from its Brahmanas clearly. The Yajurveda has 40
chapters, and 18 of them have an earlier origin, and
the rest might have been added into it later on.
The Atharvaveda tells very different things from
the above three. In ancient India, some schools of
religion or philosophy often called the first three
as “Three Vedas”, or when mentioning the Vedas,
considered that it had three components, and
did not consider the Atharvaveda as a part of the
Samhitas. Its contents are different indeed. The first
three Vedas chiefly include hymns, charms and
mantras, while the Atharvaveda, in the main, is a
collection of spells and incantations used to avoid
disaster and to summon good luck. For example,
spells against enemy, disease, disaster, wild animal
and alleged demons, and summon or pray for health,
long life, wealth, safe journey and domestic peace.
The Atharvaveda also contains some embryonic
478
Cultural Contacts
imagination (reforming a natural object in one’s
mind) or abstraction. These gods do not have any
direct equivalent in Nature, and include among
others Asura (God of demons or spirits), Raksa
(God of the un-righteous) and Yama (God of death).
There are also deities of confidence, love, language
and the like.
Secondly, people move from polytheism to major
gods. In the early Vedic period, people gradually
narrow the scope of their worship, and begin
to choose one or several dominating gods from
numerous deities; for example, Indra (the God
of the Thunder, later often seen as a protector or
a god of war for brave tribes). People gradually
become aware of so many gods, there is one that
has a more powerful and fundamental role, not only
affecting everyday life but also mastering or ruling
other deities. The Vedic shift from polytheism has
something to do with the then prevailing social
and historical development, and at that time, in
the South Asian Subcontinent, there occurred the
combination of tribes or nations and the formation
of many small kingdoms. This is more or less
reflected in the development of religious worship.
People in the Vedic period had a variety of ways
to worship deities, and sacrifice is an important
option. For Indians, sacrificial rituals are to win the
favour and obtain the blessing from the gods and
to realise benefits. Nevertheless, some tend to think
a sacrificial ritual has nothing to do with the gods
and can bring good by itself. The Vedas mentions a
great variety of sacrifices, for example, new moon
or full moon sacrifice (on the first and 15th day
every month), fire sacrifice, horse sacrifice, human
sacrifice (with human beings or any alternative as
an offering), etc.
In the Vedic period, sacrifices are deemed to be
able to please the gods and bring good, and spells to
work on the gods and to help people achieve their
purpose. The Atharvaveda contains many relevant
contents, and the Yajurveda also have relevant
discussions. There are a variety of spells, such as the
spell to remove disaster, to deal with and incapacitate
the devils, and there are also curses to invoke demons
to do harm to those being hated. There are also
mantras for long life and peace. Then, people attach
importance to such spells and charms and use them
to avoid disaster and to summon good luck.
Early Philosophical Thought The Vedas also
contain the oldest philosophical thought in India.
These thoughts originate from some Vedic poets’
skepticism of the gods, and doubtful, people turn to
explain various things outside the sphere of deities.
The Vedas has a number of “philosophical hymns”,
with the most famous including the Ka (Rigveda,
10.121), the Purusha (Rigveda, 10.90) and the
Creation (Rigveda, 10.82)
temperature and little rain, while thunder may
bring rain and have an important effect on people’s
lives. Besides thunder, whenever it appears, is
powerful and impressive. For this, Indra becomes an
important deity in the Vedas.
Agni, the God of Fire, is a frequent topic in the
Vedas as well, since fire is closely associated with
everyday life and is something that often can be
seen. A hymn in the Rigveda (1.1.3) represents him
as, “Through Agni man obtains wealth, yea, plenty
waxing day by day, Most rich in heroes, glorious.”
Fire is necessary for heating and cooking, and
thunder and friction all could give rise to fire,
and so, Agni becomes one of the most important
Vedic gods.
Some other phenomena of nature are also deified,
for example, wind, rain and river. Vayu, the deified
wind, works to facilitate growth and to bring luck
and merit to posterity. Parjanya, the God of Rain,
is to irrigate plants and to promote their growth.
A painting of ‘Primeval Purusha’
Sarasvati, representing rivers, can irrigate the land,
bring harvest and help clean and wash dirt.
The Vedas also mentions other gods, such as
Dyaus, Varuna, Mitra and Marut, each representing
a natural phenomenon that is deified.
Besides, some animals and plants are deified as
well, for example, horse, cow, sheep, snake, soma
grass, herb and tree. There are a great number of
such deities.
These descriptions indicate, in the early Vedic
period, objects or phenomena of Nature, being
powerful or impressive, are primary worship for
Indians. It is not complex to deify the Nature,
animals or plants, and people just need to recognise
their marvelous superpower and to worship them
accordingly. But, with the time going, people have
become more capable and begin to know more
about Nature, and the form of their worship also
changes in the following two aspects:
Firstly, deities are no longer confined to directly
visible natural phenomena or objects, and instead,
there appear some gods that are created by human
479
Cultural Contacts
humans and creatures and is the earliest to advocate
the homogeneity of human nature and the nature
of the world. In the Upanishads, this idea is further
extended to dominate in Indian philosophy and to
form the core of Indian Brahmanism or Hinduism.
The Visvakarman also put forth the concept of
“takedam”, which is thought to be the basis of and
depended by all things, and have a special power
and is the name giver for all deities.
In addition to the above concepts, the Vedas
also contains some quite philosophical terms, such
as Rta, Sat and Brahman. Though not appeared in
the Vedas for many times or frequently, these ideas
have an important meaning for the later formation
of systematic Indian philosophy, and represent
Indians’ earliest attempts to think philosophically.
In the Vedas, philosophical and religious contents
are mixed, and this gradually becomes an important
characteristic for the development of Indian
philosophy and religion, and in later generations,
Indian philosophy is also closely associated with the
development of Indian religion.
The Vedas has a special position in the development
of ancient Indian civilisation. Brahmanism or
Hinduism, as the mainstream in the history of Indian
thoughts, all take the Vedas as a fundamental canon.
It is on the basis of the attitude toward the Vedas
that the orthodox and the heterodox are divided.
Those recognising the authoritativeness of the Vedas
are orthodox, while the deniers are non-orthodox.
Moreover, the Vedas has an impact on the orthodox
Brahmanism as well as on non-orthodox schools.
Some non-orthodox schools in India, in fact, more
or less have absorbed some Vedic thoughts, though
such absorption is either adapted or not evident.
In modern India, the Vedas still has a significant
influence, and many religious ideas, rituals or
customs, and many well-known thinkers are
worshippers of the Vedas, and some even call for the
return to Vedic assertion, and consider the Vedas as
a treasure of wisdom and religious truth.
Dissemination and Influence to China Vedic
ideas, along with Buddhism, have been brought
into China for long, and ancient Chinese knew them
through Buddhist texts.
In Chinese sutras, Veda is transliterated as
“Weituo” or “Weituo” (different characters in
Chinese) paraphrased as “Zhilun” or “Minglun”, and
has been mentioned in a considerable Chinese texts.
In the Matanga Sutra, translated in the Three
Kingdoms by Zhi Qian and Zhu Lvyan, the Volume
1 states that, “There once lived Brahma, who
practiced Zen, has great wisdom, and created a
Veda to preach, and later on, there is a god, named
Svetasvatara, who created four Vedas to praise, to
sacrifice, to chant and to expel disaster”. This means
that the basics of the four Vedas were already known
The Creation states, “Then was not non-existent
or existent”. Deities arose after the creation of the
world. The concept of “tadekam” (that is, One
Thing) is proposed, and there is nothing else other
than tadekam. Actually, “tadekam” is thought to be
the origin of the universe. This hymn shows, some
Vedic poets tend to take the origin of the universe as
something beyond secular existence or nonexistence,
and such cause is something abstract and primary
rather than the then popular deities. However, it
is not ambiguous what “tadekam” is, and roughly
speaking, it is something of fundamental cause or
an origin prior to the unfolding of all things.
The Ka states, “In the beginning rose Hiranya
garbha, Giver of vital breath, of power and vigor, he
whose commandments all the Gods acknowledge,
Lord of men and Lord of cattle, earth’s Begetter ,the
heavens’ Creator. He is the God of gods, and none
Rigveda
beside him”. From “garbha” the concept of “anda”
evolves, suggesting that everything evolves from this
“anda”. Later on, “Garbha” or “anda” turns into a
popular world or universe outlook in ancient India.
The Purusha takes “Purusha” as the universal basis,
and says, “This Puruṣa is all that yet hath been and
all that is to be. The Brahman was his mouth, of both
his arms was the Rājanya made. His thighs became
the Vaiśya, from his feet the Śūdra was produced.
The Moon was gendered from his mind, and from
his eye the Sun had birth; Indra and Agni from his
mouth were born, and Vāyu from his breath. Forth
from his navel came mid-air the sky was fashioned
from his head. Earth from his feet and from his ear
the regions.” This hymn considers and combines
480
Cultural Contacts
the second in quantity was for praising Vulcan Agni,
about 200 poems; the third was for the Bacchus
Soma, about 120 poems. All the gods have their own
roles and responsibilities and were in charge of the
triple realm of heaven, air and land separately.
In heaven, there is mainly the king of the
universe Varuna, who is the most powerful god
in heaven and in charge of the order and morality
of the universe, he keeps an eye on the offenses
in the world. Dyaus is the deification of sunlight,
also known as the heavenly Father and in the shape
of cattle. There are several other sun gods with
different functions: Surya, the god representing the
specific image of the sun, in the poetry he rode
a seven horse-drawn cart through the sky, drove
away the darkness and brought light; Savitri, the
incarnation of the sun in the morning and evening,
in the poetry he was described his whole body
was shining and rode a golden cart, pulled by two
glowing horses galloping in the heaven; Mitra is
the incarnation of radiant sun during daytime;
Usas represents the goddess of the dawn radiating
beautiful morning glow.
In the air realm, there’s mainly the God of
Thunder and Lightning Indra (Later was absorbed
by Buddhism, and known as the “Sakka”), with tall
body and infinite power, holding vajra, when angry
Matanga, painted by Zhang Daqian
in China in the Three Kingdoms period. It is also
mentioned in Chinese sutras of Tang Dynasty. For
instance, the Volume 1 of the Vijāptimātratāsiddhi
translated by Xuanzang sates that, “Minglun can
explain things and should be non-eternal, as a
sound.” Here, “Minglun” means the Vedas.
In modern China, the Vedas is also well-known,
and those who are attentive to Indian scholars usually
know about the position of the Vedas in Indian
culture, and many Chinese scholars concentrate on
Vedic study. Some Vedic texts are translated, and
academic journals often publish articles on Vedic
thoughts. Books on Indian philosophy or culture
generally contain Vedic chapters, and university
courses on Indian culture also provide the study or
introduction of the Vedas.
(Yao Weiqun)
Rigveda: Selected Hymns, Chinese
edition (front cover)
Rig Veda
Rig Veda - Rg-veda is the most ancient religious
classics in India. It was produced approximately
between 1600 BCE and 1000 BCE. It is a poetry
anthology dedicated for praising the gods.
In ancient Chinese books it was translated as
“Samaveda”. There are totally 10 volumes of the
anthology, collecting 1,028 hymns. These hymns
were also chanted by Brahmin priests for praising
God while presiding over ritual ceremonies, and
rich in primitive religious atmosphere. Each poem
contains several verses, where each verse is a “Rig.”
In the anthology, most poems, about 250 poems,
were praising the Thunder and Lightning God Indra;
appearing piloerection, Indra is the most powerful
god in the air realm. Later, he gradually evolved from
Thunder God to the God of War who can destroy the
enemy and symbolises victory. Storm God Rudra is
in charge of storm, his whole body is brown with
gold decoration, wearing braids and holding bows
and arrows, he appears very evil. Aeolus Vayu has
quick action and is a friend of Indra, they often ride
in the same cart pulled by a thousand horses, which
is extraordinarily swift and violent. There is also
Rain God Parjanya, the Water God Apas and so on.
In the land realm, there’s mainly Vulcan Agni,
who can dispel the darkness and eliminate evils, is
481
Cultural Contacts
a more in-depth research on Rig Veda. Jin Kemu
in his History of Sanskrit Literature (1964) made a
profound statement regarding the literature value
and the position of Rig Veda in the history of world
literature: Rigveda Samhita, referred to as Rig Veda is
one of cultural treasures left from the ancient human
society. It is a collection of poems, emitting lights
in world literature, same as The Book of Songs the
poetry collection of our ancient society. Wu Baihui
translated a large number of poems of Rig Veda, and
offered detailed analysis on poems. His translation
works of Selections of Rigveda Sanskrit Philosophical
Poems and Selections of Rigveda Sanskrit Aesthetics
Poems were published in the book The Wisdom of
Moon Country (1997). Wu Baihui’s another book,
Indian philosophy - exploring of the meaning of
the Vedas and analysis of Upanishads (2000) also
conducted in-depth discussion on the philosophical
meaning of Rig Veda poetry.
(Zhu Mingzhong)
Rama and Sita
the most important god in the land realm. Bacchus
Soma, is the deification of soma wine, which was
often used for rituals in ancient India, people
thought all gods enjoy the wine, as wine can make
gods excited, with courage and power multiplied.
In addition, there’re also the Earth Mother Goddess
Bolidipi, Alpheus Saraswati, Horse God Dadhikra
and so on.
In addition to a lot of hymns praising Gods, in the
Rig Veda there are also some poems speaking of the
origin of the universe. Vedic poets raised various
different views about the generation of the universe
through direct observation or subjective speculation
Brahmanas
Brahmana is an ancient Indian Brahmanism Sutra,
also known as “Brahman book” or “Brahmanas”,
formed about between 1000 BCE and 700 BCE. It
is an important book of ancient codes and records,
further explaining the origin, purpose, meaning
and methods of sacrifice, based on the four Vedas.
Brahmana is a prosy scripture, its contents are
mainly in three aspects: ritual procedure, illustrating
the ritual details and a variety of specific provisions,
like the type of sacrifice, number of sacrificial fire
and priests, time and location of sacrifices, etc.;
interpretation, explaining the hidden meanings of
hymn, prayers and spell used in rituals, ultimate
implications, indicating the purpose and, meaning
and philosophy to be achieved of ritual.
There are 15 types of existing Brahmana; they are
all attached to the Vedas. Among which the most
important ones are: Aitareya Brahmana and Kausītāki
Brahmana attached to Rig Veda; Pañcavimśa Brahmana,
Sadvimsa Brahmana and Jaiminiya Brahmana
attached to Sama Veda; Satapatha Brahmana,
Caraka-Katha Brahmana and Taittiriya Brahmana
attached to Yajur Veda; and Gopatha Brahmana
attached to Arharva Veda and so on. Brahmana were
passed on from generation to generation by priests
of different schools in accordance with the masterapprentice relationship, as during the teaching,
there formed different schools. Brahmana’s basic
principle is to emphasize the role of ritual and the
position of priest, and provides the theoretical basis
for Brahmanism which is guided by sacrifice. From
the viewpoint of academic value, Brahmana is the
oldest and most valuable information for studying
ancient Brahmanism religious rituals and social
development status, through the provisions of these
Infant Krishna (Balgopal)
on the universe: some believed that the universe
was born by “The One”, some thought it was born
from “golden base”, and some hold the opinion that
it was born from “Purusha”. Rig Veda not only has
the literature value, but also is the most important
historical documents for the study of ancient Indian
religion and society.
With the introduction of Buddhism, Rig Veda was
introduced to China very early, in many Chinese
translation of Buddhist scriptures there were records
of Rig Veda. In modern times, Chinese people had
482
Cultural Contacts
texts, only a dozen or so are considered relatively
significant or influential:
Some of the earliest significant Upanisads include
the Brhadāranyaka Upanishad, Chāndogya Upanishad,
Aitareya Upanishad, Taittiriya Upanishad, Kaushitaki
Upanishad and Kena Upanishad, which were
generally believed to be composed between 800 BCE
and 500 BCE. Those that emerged still later include
the Katha Upanishad, Isha Upanishad, Shvetashvatara
Upanishad, Mundaka Upanishad, Prashna Upanishad,
Mandukya Upanishad, and Maitrayaniya Upanishad,
which were believed to be created between 500 BCE
and 200 BCE.
The Brhadāranyaka Upanishad is the oldest and
longest of the Upanishads. It elaborates systematically
on the central concept of the Brahmanist philosophy:
Brahman, including the essence of Brahman, the
indescribability of Brahman, the two types of
Brahman, and the relationship between Brahman
and Atman, while also covering a variety of other
topics such as the creation of the world, life after
death, ascetic austerities, abstinence and release.
The Chāndogya Upanishad mainly expounds its
rituals, the construction details of sacrificial altar,
and the methods to decide sacrificial date, we can
learn the status of material production of that time,
as well as the development level of astronomy,
mathematics, calendar and other natural sciences.
Indian Brahmana and a variety of related sacrificial
rituals and procedures of ancient Brahmanism had
been introduced to China long time ago together
with Buddhism, thus Chinese people have a certain
understanding of it. In many Chinese translated
Buddhist scriptures and Buddhist classics written by
Chinese eminent monks, there were related records
as well. For example, in Sui Dynasty, the Chinese
eminent monk, Ji Zang in his book Illustration
of Sata-sastra described horse sacrifice, the most
popular and largest ritual in ancient Brahmanism,
“therefore set the horse sacrifice, choose a white
horse, set it free for 100 days, or say three years,
then trace its footprint, at the cost of gold, with all
means to take the horse and kill it, while killing the
horse they would sing: Vasu kills thee, the horses
might go to heaven for its sacrifice.”
(Zhu Mingzhong)
Upanishad
The Upanishads are a collection of classic texts
that first proposed a host of brilliant philosophical
thoughts in ancient India that were later instrumental
in the formation of the key philosophical theories
of Brahmanism and Hinduism. The creation of the
Upanishads spanned an extremely long period of
time, with the first few Upanishad texts emerging
as early as 9th century BCE, as followed by a myriad
of other related texts over the ensuing centuries.
The latest among the Upanishad collection did not
come out until well after the start of the Common
Era. One of the most important books the world has
ever known, the Upanishads exerted considerable
influence on the development of Indian culture,
especially Indian philosophy, with numerous
philosophical schools in ancient India able to trace
the roots of their theories to the Upanishad texts and
many renowned thinkers of contemporary India also
profoundly exposed to the far-reaching sway of the
canon. The major ideas and theories contained in the
Upanishads spread to China along with Buddhism,
where they went on to make a notable impact on the
Chinese philosophical scene.
Fifty Upanishads, translated by Xu Fancheng (front cover)
Brahman-Atman unity theory, its theory on world
creation, the relationship between man’s fate and
man’s actions in the past life, and man’s duties and
obligations.
The Aitareya Upanishad focusses on such issues as
life after death, world creation and primary cause
thereof.
The Taittiriya Upanishad pays special attention to
the issue of ethics, and also examines certain issues
concerning the understanding of Brahman and
relevant practices.
Major Upanishads and Issues Discussed
The Sanskrit term Upanishad translates to “sitting
down near”, referring to the student sitting down
near the teacher while receiving esoteric knowledge.
There are over 200 Upanishads, which collectively
reflect some of the very basic theories of Indian
philosophy and religion as evolved over a lengthy
period of time. Among this voluminous body of
483
Cultural Contacts
central topic most Upanishads chose to discuss at
great length.
The word “Brahman” was not first proposed by
the Upanishads. In pondering the primary cause or
supreme “lord” responsible for the creation of the
world, besides “Brahmā”, the Brahmana and the
Aranyaka also mentioned the concept of “Brahman”,
albeit rather ambiguously and infrequently.
And when the first Upanishad began to emerge,
“Brahman” as an abstract philosophical concept
also came to dominate the contemporary Indian
philosophical debate.
In the Upanishads, Brahman was depicted by most
thinkers as the essence of all things and the supreme
being of the universe. For instance, according to
Chandogya Upanishad 3.14.1, “All this is truly
Brahman”, and Shvetashvatara Upanishad 3.7 also
states that “The Supreme Lord(Brahman) is higher
than Virat, beyond Hiranyagarbha”.
The Kaushitaki Upanishad explores such issues as
the “breath”, the “knower” and the “Known”.
The Kena Upanishad reveals the real power behind
the workings of the universe both external and
internal, and describes the amazing qualities of
Brahman.
The Katha Upanishad focuses its critical lens on
the essentiality of Brahman.
The Isha Upanishad is the shortest of the
Upanishads, and discusses, among other things,
man’s understanding, actions, wisdom and essence
of Atman.
The Shvetashvatara Upanishad examines some
samkhya and yoga thoughts, and also presents its
theories on the “Lord”;
The Mundaka Upanishad attaches great importance
to ascetic austerities, maintaining that ascetic
austerities can dispel ignorance; it also divides the
knowledge that leads to self realisation into two
types: Para Vidya and Apara Vidya.
The Prashna Upanishad holds the Highest Self
(Brahman) to be the basis of everything, by
understanding which one can attain a sublime state
of immortality.
Despite its relatively short length, the Mandukya
Upanishad nonetheless garnered a great deal of
attention by proposing the famous Four States of
Consciousness, namely, waking, dreaming, deep
sleep and fourth, known as turiya, which is the
highest.
The Maitrayaniya Upanishad discusses the two
forms of Atman and the means to achieve BrahmanAtman unity.
It’s fair to say that the abovementioned
Upanishads shed revealing light on some of the most
representative thoughts of the leading philosophers
and thinkers in ancient India.
Upanishads, English edition
(front cover)
Some Upanishads also described Brahman, or the
“Supreme Being” equivalent to Brahman, as “Vijana”
(“Consciousness”). For instance, Aitareya Upanishad
3.1.3 states that “All this is guided by Vijana, is
supported by Vijana. The basis is Vijana.” It’s worth
noting, however, that the “Vijana” concept in the
Upanishads is distinct from the regular concept of
“consciousness”; it is not a concrete manifestation
of things, but rather, the fundamental basis of
everything. Under most circumstances, Brahman is
considered to be above all concrete things.
The Upanishads thinkers believed that as a
supreme state of being, Brahman adopts no concrete
form and exhibits no concrete attribute, or it will
be subject to the constraints or limitations that
come with concrete things, thus disqualifying it as
a “supreme” being. Brahman cannot be understood
or expressed in regular, secular terms, for the
simple reason that anything that can be understood
or expressed in concepts or words is limited, while
true Brahman shall be infinite. There is no way
Basic Theories
Despite the expansive scope of the Upanishads,
encompassing the philosophical and religious
viewpoints and ideas of a galaxy of thinkers in
ancient India over a span of several hundred years,
it is not difficult for us to identify the few key points
of theoretical significance that commanded the
most attention of those thinkers. The basic theories
of the Upanishads are primarily comprised of three
ones: the Brahman-Atman unity (Brahmatmaikyam)
theory; the reincarnation and release (Moksha)
theory; and the basic elements theory.
Brahman-Atman unity theory (Brahmatmaikyam)
The contributing thinkers to the Upanishads held
that the primary cause or absolute essence of all
phenomena in the world and human life is Brahman
or Atman, and they paid the greatest attention to
the relationship between Brahman and Atman. As
a matter of fact, Brahman-Atman relationship is a
484
Cultural Contacts
understanding is of Atman; one’s meditation is of
Atman; one’s intelligence is of the self; one’s will
is of Atman; one’s mind is of Atman; one’s speech
is of Atman; one’s name is of Atman; one’s mantras
are of Atman; one’s actions are of Atman; all this
is of Atman.” As we can see, the “Atman” used in
the quoted verses refers to the fundamental essence
of everything, and therefore has virtually the same
meaning as “Brahman”.
In the Upanishads and later-day Indian religious
philosophy, the word “Atman” often adopts the first
meaning ie unless otherwise specified, “Atman”
shall mean the owner of an individual life, the
controller of one’s spirit and consciousness, or the
reincarnated. Used in this sense, the word is often
translated as “soul” too.
Among the various theories on Brahman-Atman
relationship as proposed in the Upanishads, there
is a dominant one ie the Brahman-Atman unity
theory (Brahmatmaikyam). The proponents of
the theory posited that Brahman and Atman are
essentially one and the same, and “everything is
nothing but Brahman”. In other words, everyone
has an individual self (“small self”), and others’
“small self”, to one, are external objects, while one’s
“small self”, to others, is also an external object.
Thus, countless “small selves” and related things in
actuality constitute the myriad external phenomena
and objects. In illustrating this, Brhadāranyaka
Upanishad 3.7.15 states that “He who, dwelling in
all things, Yet is other than all things, Whom all
things do not know, Whose body all things are, Who
controls all things from within, He is your soul, the
inner controller - The immortal.” In here, one’s self
and the “inner controller” of all things are actually
one and the same. Verse 2 of Mandukya Upanishad
puts it still more clearly: “All this, verily, is Brahman.
The Self is Brahman”.
The Upanishad thinkers believed that, the
overwhelming multiplicity of “small selves” or
worldly things notwithstanding, only Brahman, as
the highest and infinite being, is real. Anyone who
treats Brahman and Atman as two separate things,
or only regards Atman as the fundamental essence of
a person and fails to recognise the grand quality of
Brahman, is bound to fall into an abyss of delusion
and agony. As Verse 7 of the Isha Upanishad puts it,
“He who has known that all beings have become one
with his own self, and he who has seen the oneness
of existence, what sorrow and what delusion can
overwhelm him?”
Brahman-Atman unity theory (Brahmatmaikyam)
is the central theory of the Upanishads. It emphasises
the unity and oneness between the nature and
one’s true self. More importantly, it established
the existence of a supreme being that controls and
determines everything in the natural as well the
to accurately “define” Brahman using ordinary,
worldly concepts. In order to grasp the true meaning
of Brahman, one must try and understand it from the
various negations thereof. The only valid attempt
to define Brahman is to use the famous phrase
“neti-neti” (“not this - not this”). In other words, in
describing Brahman, we shall relinquish the notion
that Brahman have concrete attributes or forms and
focus instead on describing what Brahman is not,
rather than what it is. As Kena Upanishad 2.3 puts it,
most brilliantly, “It is not known by those who know
It; It is known by those who do not know It.”
The reason why many thinkers adopted the
“negative” approach to describe Brahman is that
the supremacy or essentiality of Brahman can be
highlighted in this way. Although the Upanishads
also contain many passages directly addressing
the characteristics and attributes of Brahman, on
the whole, their primary emphasis was invariably
placed on the indescribability, formlessness and
attributelessness of Brahman. This overarching
belief held a tremendous sway over the later
development of the Indian religious philosophy,
exerting a notable influence not only on the
orthodox philosophical schools of Brahmanism, but
also on some unorthodox schools of philosophy.
In Sanskrit, “Atman” has many meanings,
including self, breathing, spirit, body, transcendent
self, etc. In the Upanishads, however, the word is
normally used to denote the following two meanings:
The first one is the individual self, a “small” kind
of self in the sense that it refers merely to the owner
of body organs or the centre of life activities. As is
stated in Brhadāranyaka Upanishad 3.7.23, “he is thy
Self, the puller (ruler) within, the immortal; unseen,
but seeing; unheard, but hearing; unperceived, but
perceiving; unknown, but knowing. There is no
other seer but he, there is no other hearer but he,
there is no other perceiver but he, there is no other
knower but he. This is thy Self (Atman), the ruler
within, the immortal.”
The other meaning of “Atman” is “Brahman”.
Instead of the word “Brahman”, many Upanishads
used the word “Atman” in describing Brahman as
the source and essence of the material world. And
the “Atman” used for this purpose is the so-called
“(greater) Self”. Chāndogya Upanishad 6.9.4 states
that “Now that which is the subtle essence, in it
all that exists has its True Self. It is Pure Being.
It is Atman, and, O Svetaketu, That thou art.”
Verse 7.26.1 of the same book also explains that
“When one sees this, thinks this, knows this, one’s
breath is of Atman; one’s hope is of Atman; one’s
memory is of Atman; one’s space is of Atman; one’s
fire is of Atman; one’s water are of Atman; one’s
appearance and disappearance are of Atman; one’s
food is of Atman; one’s strength is of Atman; one’s
485
Cultural Contacts
dead rises to the moon, then turns into rain, which
becomes food after falling to the ground, which,
once consumed, turns into semen, and from semen
are all these creatures born. The “Two Paths” refer
to the “Path of Gods” and the “Path of Ancestors”.
“Path of gods”, also known as the “path of the
sun”, is a path along which one entres Brahmaloká
after death without ever returning to the world
he previously lived in; while “Path of ancestors”,
aka the “path of the moon”, is a path along which
the dead one returns to the world he formerly
inhabited after going through the “Five Fires” in
their respective order.
In addition to the “five-fire-and-two-path” theory,
a “three-path-and-four-way-of-birth” theory was also
upheld in certain Upanishads. The “Three Paths” refer
to the “Path of Gods”, the “Path of Ancestors”, and
the “Path of Animals”, while the “Four Ways of Birth”
refer to womb-born (jalābuja); egg-born (aṇḍaja);
moisture-born (saṁsedaja); and seed-born (bījaja).
The theory mainly covers the various physical
manifestations of reincarnation. According to quite
a few Upanishads, whether one’s reincarnation will
be good or bad is determined by one’s prior actions.
As Brhadāranyaka Upanishad 3.2.13 enlightens, “one
indeed becomes good through good work and evil
through evil work”. Chāndogya Upanishad 5.10.7 also
stipulates in clear terms that “When one acts piously,
he attains a good birth. He is born as a brahmana
or a kshatriya or a vaisya. When one acts sinfully,
he attains a sinful birth. He is born as a dog, a pig,
or an outcaste.” “Acting piously” means to abide by
the religious rules of Brahmanism, fulfill one’s caste
duties, study the doctrines of Brahmanism, and come
to fully understand the Brahman-Atman unity and
oneness; while “acting sinfully” means failing to fulfill
one’s caste duties or acting in a way not befitting of
one’s caste status.
Although the Upanishads specified good
reincarnation and bad reincarnation, it shall be
pointed out that the good and bad here are only
relative. Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as
“good” reincarnation, because one is condemned to
pain and agony as long as he or she is still stuck in
the cycle of reincarnation. Therefore, according to
the basic belief upheld in the Upanishads, the truest
“good karma” shall mean exiting the reincarnation
cycle altogether and achieving ultimate release.
To attain this goal, one must strive to eliminate
ignorance or unwisdom. This is the only path
leading to the summum bonum.
The reincarnation and release theory and the
Brahman-Atman unity theory are in actuality closely
related in the Upanishads. Many Upanishadic thinkers
believed that karma and reincarnation originate
from people’s desires and actions induced by said
desires, which can be directly attributed to people’s
human world - a notion of special importance to
the ruling class of ancient India. The Indian caste
system first came into being as early as the Vedic
period, and among the four main classes (also called
varnas), the Brahmins is the most superior, with the
Brahmanism, a religion representing the interests
and beliefs of the Brahmins, enjoying a dominant
status on the Indian philosophical scene. The
mainstream theory of the Brahmanist philosophy is
Brahmatmaikyam (Brahman-Atman unity), a notion
well-enshrined by the Brahmins caste because
it conveniently lends credence to their assertion
that, since there is an eternal, supreme being
that dominates the natural and human world, the
Brahmins, as the most superior among the varnas,
shall too have a legitimate claim to, and a God-given
right of, enteral superiority and domination. The
“Brahman” concept in the Brahmanist philosophy
actually corresponds to the caste of “Brahmins”.
In consequence, the Brahman-Atman unity theory
(Brahmatmaikyam) maintained a strong sway over
the Indian philosophical scene - as dominated by
Brahmanism or Hinduism - in the ensuing centuries.
Reincarnation and release theory
Most schools of religious philosophy in ancient
India had reincarnation and release theories of
their own. Some rudiments of the theory can be
detected in Veda, but it was in the Upanishads
that the notion first acquired a clearly-defined
theoretical framework.
In the opinion of many Upanishadic thinkers,
reincarnation stems from people’s ignorance or
unwisdom. It occurs entirely because of people’s
failure to realize the Brahman-Atman unity, to
recognise that the countless “small selves” that
constitute the world of phenomena are in essence
“Brahman”, and to acknowledge the soleness
and realness of “Brahman”, leading to the wrong
impression that besides Brahman (the only real
being), there are also a vast multiplicity of other
real things in the world, which drives their futile
pursuit of insubstantial objects. Predictably, these
pursuits almost never yield real or full satisfaction,
thus giving rise to ceaseless pain and agony.
Such ill-advised human actions will also generate
“Karma”, which in turn will exert a negative impact
on relevant people’s “Atman” (“small self”), causing
him or her to be stuck in a never ending cycle of
reincarnation and suffering. It’s worth noting
here that the systematisation of the reincarnation
theory in the Upanishads was a process of gradual,
progressive development.
Some Upanishads proposed a “five-fire-andtwo-path” theory to describe reincarnation. The
so-called “Five Fires” refer to the five stages of
the reincarnation process ie after cremation, the
486
Cultural Contacts
responsible for generating all kinds of concrete
phenomena in the world. According to Chāndogya
Upanishad 3.19.1-2, “In the beginning this universe
was non-existent. It became existent. It grew. It
turned into an egg (anda). The egg lay for the period
of a year. Then it broke open. Of the two halves of
the egg-shell, one half was of silver, the other of
gold. That which was of silver became the earth;
that which was of gold, heaven. What was the thick
membrane of the white became the mountains; the
thin membrane of the yolk, the must and the clouds.
The veins became the rivers; the fluid in the bladder,
the ocean.”
The so-called “annam” refers to matter, from
which all things also stem. As Taittiriya Upanishads
3.2.1 explains, “for from the annam, verily, are these
beings born; by the annam, when born, do they live;
into the annam do they entre, do they merge.”
Although these concepts don’t constitute any
particular material elements, they nonetheless
boast a material nature, having exerted significant
influence on certain schools of philosophy which
gained great popularity later in India.
On the whole, in the days of the Upanishads, the
basic elements theory was by no means a dominant
theory in comparison with the Brahman-Atman
theory and the reincarnation theory. Moreover, the
theory also tended to be mixed with the two other
theories in the Upanishadic texts. For instance, when
mentioning “annam”, Taittiriya Upanishads 3.2.1 also
claims that “annam is Brahman”. Such instances are
not uncommon in the Upanishads, in which many
material concepts are considered equivalent to
Brahman, which goes to show that the Upanishadic
thinkers were not thinking in a consistent way while
compiling the books, with many important notions
expressed in an equivocal and ambiguous manner.
ignorance or unwisdom. Complete release can only
be attained by acquiring wisdom on Brahman and
coming to fully understand the Brahman-Atman
unity. Once one realises that everything is Brahman
and one’s true self is Brahman, he or she won’t
succumb to external temptation and futilely pursue
unreal objects anymore. No desires,no actions; no
actions, no karma; no karma, no reincarnation,
thereby achieving the ultimate release.
Chāndogya Upanishad 7.25.2 states, “ The Self,
indeed, is all this. Verily, he who sees this, reflects
on this and understands this delights in the self
sports with the self, rejoices in the self revels in the
Self. Even while living in the body he becomes a
self-ruler. He wields unlimited freedom in all the
worlds.” ‘‘But those who think differently from this
have others for their rulers they live in perishable
worlds. They have no freedom in all the worlds”.
Brhadāranyaka Upanishad 4.4.8 also enlightens,
“The sages - the knowers of Brahman - also go to
the heavenly sphere after the fall of the body, being
freed even while living.”
This approach to achieving total release as
prescribed by the Upanishads is essentially a
wisdom-based approach, which was later widely
adopted and further improved by many schools of
religious philosophy in ancient India. However, it’s
worth noting that these schools tended to understand
and interpret “wisdom” differently.
Basic elements theory
The Upanishadic thinkers’ viewpoints regarding
the primary cause for everything in the world are
mostly reflected in their theory on the BrahmanAtman relationship. Besides the overarching
Brahman-Atman theory, there are also some related
theories or ideas upheld in the Upanishads, the most
prominent one being the Upanishadic theory on the
world’s basic elements. The theory held that the
world is composed of certain basic elements, which
are mainly material by nature. The Upanishads
contain the earliest descriptions of such material
elements as earth, water, fire and wind, which
were frequently mentioned in the philosophical
discourse in ancient India. Not a few Upanishadic
thinkers even considered these elements to be the
fundamental essence of the world. For instance,
numerous chapters of the Chāndogya Upanishad
contain references to such elements as water, earth
(food), air, fire, sky, and wind, regarding them
as the world’s foundational elements. In relevant
Upanishads, these elements were mentioned both
separately and collectively.
In addition, such concepts as “anda” and “annam”
were also mentioned in the Upanishads, which
are also related to material elements. The socalled “anda” is shaped like an egg, and is directly
Influences
The Upanishads occupied a prominent position on the
Indian philosophical scene. The theories contained in
the book have played a vital role in the development
of Indian culture, especially the development of
the later-day Indian religious philosophy and the
formation of its basic characteristics. Varied and
diverse in contents, the Upanishads upheld the
Brahmanist doctrines as its mainstream theories,
wherein other non-Brahmanist ideas were also
incorporated. In addition to being revered by the
Brahmanist school of philosophy, the Upanishadic
texts also received its fair share of attention from
Buddhism and numerous other schools of thought,
with its theories having been extensively adsorbed
or borrowed by the majority of schools of thought in
the history of Indian philosophy.
The core theory enshrined in the Upanishads is
“Brahman-Atman unity”, an outstanding theory
487
Cultural Contacts
translated by Bodhiruci during the Northern Wei
dynasty. The book gave a graphic description of
the egg (anda) concept as proposed by Chāndogya
Upanishad 3.19.1-2 (“In the beginning this universe
was non-existent. It became existent. It grew. It
turned into an egg (anda). The egg lay for the period
of a year. Then it broke open. Of the two halves of
the egg-shell, one half was of silver, the other of
gold. That which was of silver became the earth;
that which was of gold, heaven.”), showing that this
particular Upanishadic concept had already been
very well-known in China at that time.
Much attention has also been paid to the
Upanishads in modern China. Fully aware of the
great importance of the Upanishads in the Indian
intellectual history, Chinese scholars studying
Indian culture, especially Indian philosophy, all
show commendable, if not ardent, interest in the
canon. Most of the Upanishads have been translated
into Chinese and published in China. Many research
papers on the Upanishads have also been published
in relevant Chinese scholarly journals. There are
also chapters dedicated to the Upanishads in books
published in China about Indian philosophy or
religions. In Indian philosophy courses offered in
Chinese universities or research institutions, the
theories of the Upanishads are also extensively
mentioned.
(Yao Weiqun)
that was later inherited and further improved by
the Vedanta school. The latter’s “Advaita Vedanta
theory” was actually evolved from the Upanishadic
“Brahman-Atman unity” theory. This philosophical
theory had wielded considerable influence on the
Indian philosophical scene well into contemporary
times. Many of the important issues discussed
by contemporary Indian philosophers originate
from the Upanishads, or are otherwise related to
the canon.
The Upanishadic “basic elements theory” helped
incubate the later-day schools of natural philosophy
in India and their key theories, especially the
“atomism”, a theory popular not just in Brahmanist
schools of thought such as the Vaisheshika school
and the Nyaya school, but also in non-Brahmanist
systems, including Jainism and Buddhism. Although
different schools of thought tended to interpret the
roles and status of the elements differently, they all
associated the formation of the world with these
elements, albeit in varying degrees. It is fair to say
that they own their theories on the world creation
to the Upanishads.
The Upanishadic “reincarnation and release”
theory has also become a popular philosophical
concept among all major philosophical and
religious schools in India. With the exception of the
Lokayata School, all Indian philosophical schools of
significance have inherited and added to the theory
in varying degrees.
In examining, describing and analyzing Brahman,
the Upanishads adopted the famous “Zhequan”
approach, a negation-based way of thinking.
Many Indian thinkers see as a fundamental way to
acquire the highest truth or reach the highest state
of knowledge. Later adopted and further improved
by the Vedanta school, this particular method
also caught the attention of Buddhism, where
it was widely applied in the Buddhist scriptural
commentaries, especially those of the Mahayana
Buddhism, having become a popular and highly
“Indian” way of thinking.
Yogasutra
Created around 2nd century BCE by Patanjali, the
Yoga-sutra is a foundational classic text of the Yoga
school, an ancient and prominent philosophical
school in India. Containing additional parts
incorporated later, the extant version of the sutra
was compiled between 300-500 CE.
After the Yoga-sūtra, classic texts of the Yoga
school mainly comprised commentaries on the sutra,
including “Yoga-s[tra-bhq2ya” by Vyqsa (around 6th
century CE), the “Tattva-vaisqrabi” by Vqcaspati
mi1ra (around 9th century CE), the “Rqjamqrtqzfa”
by Bhoja (11th century CE), and the “Yoga-vqrttika”
by Vij`qna-bhik2u (16th century CE).
The Yoga-sutra summarised the theoretical
conceptions of yoga practices popular in ancient
India, and proposed for the very first time a
systematised theoretical framework for Yoga,
helping cement Yoga’s position as a prominent
philosophical system in the Indian cultural history.
The Yoga-sūtra comprised four volumes, with
the fourth one generally believed to be composed
much later than the former three ones, as it contains
portions reflecting the views and ideas of Mahāyāna
Buddhism.
Volume 1 of the Yoga-sūtra gives a definition
of Yoga, then goes on to expound extensively on
Spread and Influence in China
The Upanishadic theories also spread to China,
mainly through the country’s importation of
Buddhist texts. The Chinese versions of some
Buddhist scriptures contain references to the
Upanishadic theories; however, the word
“Upanishad” itself never appeared in any of the
Chinese Buddhist cannons, which normally don’t
distinguish between the Upanishadic texts and the
Vedas texts. Therefore, the “Vedas” referred to in
Chinese Buddhist books also cover the Upanishads.
One Chinese Buddhist book that contains the
most Upanishadic elements is Típó púsà shì léngjiā
jīng zhōngwài dào xiǎochéng nièpán lùn, which was
488
Cultural Contacts
themselves of fixation and acquire “viveka-khyati”
(“discriminating consciousness or wisdom”), he
may finally achieve the samddhi of the “Dharmamegha” type, in which the “seeds” will be destroyed,
enabling one to break out of reincarnation cycles,
escape pain and get delivered.
The Yoga-sutra proposes the various overarching
concepts that primarily constitute the theoretical
system of the yoga school, providing extensive
elaboration on mind activities (vṛttayaḥ); Samadhi;
Seer and the Seen; Eight Limbs; and Siddhis.
Mind Activities (vṛttayaḥ) is a major component
of the theoretical framework laid down in the
Yoga-sutra, which defines Yoga as “the mastery of
the activities of the mind-field” in VolumeⅠand Ⅱ,
positing that there are five mind activities: correct
perception, incorrect perception, imagination,
sleep and memory, which in actuality cover the
majority of the spiritual or conscious activities
people normally exercise. Although among the five
activities there are both correct and incorrect ones,
the yoga school held that they all posed hindrances
to the attainment of the highest state of wisdom, and
therefore should be suppressed, or put specifically,
“eliminated” through long periods of “practice” and
“abandonment of desires”. “Practice” means to make
continuous efforts to achieve mental tranquility,
which requires the deepest absorption and great
exertions to fend off the external influences; and
“abandonment of desires” refers to the efforts to
abandon the pursuit of external things, namely to get
rid of worldly pleasures and special, transcendental
pleasures (such as heavenly pleasures). Through
“practice” and “abandonment of desires” one can
finally attain the blessed state of “Samadhi”.
“Samadhi” refers to a sublime state of higher
consciousness all yogis strive to achieve, which is
further broken down into various levels or categories
in the Yoga-sutras, including: Savikalpa Samadhi;
Nirvikalpa Samadhi; Seeded Samāpatti; Seedless
Samāpatti; and Dharma-megha. It is worth nothing,
however, that these “samadhis”, in their respective
order, don’t represent a progressive process, but
rather, overlap or coincide to varying degrees.
Savikalpa Samadhi: A state of consciousness
in which one knows one’s own consciousness
(including imagination) but remains in a subjectobject relationship with the world.
Nirvikalpa Samadhi: The highest, transcendent
state of consciousness in which there is selflessness,
no-mind, non-duality, and the subject-object
relationship momentarily disappears. It is the
highest, samadhi-state of non-dual union with one’s
own consciousness.
Seeded Samāpatti is a state of limited and
conditioned spiritual consciousness, where although
the yogi has gradually expunged many distractions
The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali - stray thoughts of Dr.
Jayadeva Yogendra & Hansaji (front cover)
the types of Mind Activities (vṛttayaḥ), the three
ways of gaining correct knowledge (pramana), ie
Pratyaksha, Anumana and Aptavakya, the various
types of “samadhi”, and the four categories of
“samāpatti”. In addition, the volume also covers the
state of Maheśvara and “scattered mental energy”,
as well as certain philosophical concepts the Yoga
school shares with the Samkhya school.
Voume 2 expounds on the so-called kriyā
yoga, points out the reasons for reincarnation,
pinpoints the source of pain, analyses the various
manifestations of “darkness of unwisdom” or agony,
enumerates the Eight Limbs of Yoga, introduces the
main means of practising Yoga, and specifies the
first five “limbs” of Yoga, ie Yamas, Niyamas, Yoga
Asanas, Pranayama, and Pratyahara.
Volume 3 elaborates on the last three of the
“Eight Limbs of Yoga”, ie Dharana, Dhyana, and
Samadhi, maintaining that when these three are
exercised at once, perfectly concentrated Meditation
(“sanyama”) can be attained, which will usher in
a transcendent illumination of perception after
recognising the difference of the prakrti and the
purusha .
Volume 4 discusses the five means for achieving
“siddhis”, ie by birth; through medicine or herbs;
through spells or incantations; through austerities;
and via the threefold power of Attention, Meditation
and Contemplation; positing that the karma of a yogi
is “neither white nor black,” while the karma of other
people falls into one of the following three types:
black, white or black-and-white. The volume also
emphasises the theory that if the yogi can perceive
the difference between the prakrti and purusha, rid
489
Cultural Contacts
latent force (seed) resulting from his or her past
karmas. If he or she can go one step further and
eliminate or at least effectively suppress the latent
force inherent in the “seeded Samadhi”, the blessed
state of “Seedless Samadhi” may finally be achieved.
There are close links between the theories of
the Yoga school and those of the Samkhya school.
The Samkhya school adopts the ways of practice
of the Yoga school, while the Yoga school accepts
the Samkhya’s basic theoretical “take” on worldly
things. The Yoga-sutra holds that for a yogi to get
truly delivered, a truthful understanding of the
“Seer” and the “Seen” must be gained. The “Seer” is
similar to “purusha” (“spirit”) in Samkhya, with the
“Seen” equivalent to “prakriti” (“nature”), which is
also known as “matter” in the Yoga-sutra. The Yoga
school maintained that reincarnation results from
the combination of “prakriti”and “purusha”. The
Yoga-sūtra (2, 17) states that, “The cause of what is
to be warded off is the absorption of the Seer in the
Seen”, meaning that to end the cycle of reincarnation
and get delivered, efforts must be made to separate
the two, making them independent of each other.
And to achieve this “separateness”, one must attain
Seedless Samāpatti or Dharma-megha. In other words,
practices must be conducted in accordance with
relevant mandates imposed by the Yoga school.
The Yoga-sutra describes the framework of yoga
practices as consisted of the “Eight Limbs of Yoga”,
ie Yamas, Niyamas, Yoga Asanas, Pranayama,
Pratyahara, Dharana, Dhyana, and Samadhi.
“Yamas” refers to a set of binding “laws”, principles
or restraints that must be obeyed by a yogi;
“Niyamas” refers to the moral “observances” that a
yogi must uphold and exercise; “Yoga Asanas” refers
to a steady, firm body position a yogi must adopt
and maintain while practising Yoga, which will help
them ward off external influences or distractions;
“Pranayama” refers to a yogi’s regulating and
control of his or her breathing after practice is done;
“Withdrawal” refers to “Pratyahara” refers to the
withdrawal of the five senses from external objects,
so as to prevent the mind from getting distracted
by the external world; “Dharana” is the fixing
of the mind in a single spot (any chosen object);
“Dhyana” is a progression of dharana, ie Sustained
concentration on the chosen object; “Samadhi” is a
further progression of “Dhyana”, and is the highest
state of wisdom for Yogi practitioners to attain.
“Siddhis”, aka “supernormal power”, can only
be gained by a yogi on the basis of the last three
of the “Eight Limbs of Yoga”, ie Dharana, Dhyana,
and Samadhi, which, collectively, are known as
“sanyama”. Different “Siddhis” can be achieved
by exerting “sanyama” upon different objects. For
instance, through sanyama on animals, the sun,
the moon, the stars, body organs and functions
A practitioner of Yoga
or impressions, he or she has not yet completely
eliminated the lingering latent force (seed)
resulting from his or her past karmas, thereby
condemning himself or herself to the endless cycle
of reincarnation.
Seedless Samāpatti refers to the blessed state
wherein the lingering latent force (seed) resulting
from one’s past karmas has been eliminated or
sufficiently suppressed, leading the concerned yogi
to break out of the reincarnation cycle and get
delivered.
Dharma-megha refers to the heightened state of
consciousness achieved by a yogi after he or she has
acquired the permanent “viveka-khyati” on sattva
(prakriti) and purusa (purusha), wherein both
karma and agony have been eliminated entirely,
leaving no trace of latent force or momentum
(“seed”) whatsoever, culminating in a sublime state
all yogis hope to attain.
Certain states of “Samadhi” are also called
“samāpatti”, which is further divided into four
categories in the Yoga-sutras: savitarkā-samāpatti,
nirvitarka-samāpatti,
savichara-samāpatti
and
nirvicāra-samāpatti.
“Savitarkā-samāpatti” depends on the yogi’s
interest in particular gross phenomena, and
represents a state wherein the yogi still retains his
or her subjective speech, conceptions, etc.
“Nirvitarka-samāpatti” depends on the yogi’s
interest in particular gross phenomena, and
represents a state wherein the yogi’s memory is
completely purified and the essential inquiring
nature disappears.
“Savichara-samāpatti” depends on the yogi’s
interest in particular subtle phenomena, and
represents a state wherein the dharmatā (intrinsic
nature) of things is gradually approximated.
“Nirvicāra-samāpatti” also depends on the yogi’s
interest in particular subtle phenomena, and
represents a state wherein the dharmatā (intrinsic
nature) of things is even further approximated.
Though by progressing through the four samāpattis
mentioned above the yogi can achieve a fairly
high level of dhyana, the Yoga school maintained
that these four samāpattis are “seeded Samadhi”,
meaning that although the yogi has gradually
expunged those distractions or impressions, he or
she has not yet completely eliminated the lingering
490
Cultural Contacts
Chinese universities also offer Indian philosophy
or religion courses that contain information on
the Yoga-sutras. And among Chinese people, yoga
elements are adopted primarily with the purpose of
boosting physical wellness, with the practice of yoga
becoming increasingly popular in the country.
(Yao Weiqun)
thereof, etc., one can accordingly obtain a wealth of
supernatural knowledge and miraculous ability. In
addition, one may also acquire the “viveka-khyati”
to distinguish between sattva and purusha. Once the
yogi achieves this particular discerning wisdom, he
can gain a mastery over all existences and infinite
knowledge. If the yogi can go one step further and
get rid of even the “viveka-khyati” itself, the “seed
of evil” will be destroyed, enabling him or her to
attain absolute “independence” and “separateness”
and get delivered.
Since its compilation, the Yoga-sutra has exerted a
considerable influence on the Indian philosophical
scene, in which Yoga practices that had been going
on in the South Asian country since time immemorial
were brilliantly theorised and systematised, leading
to the formation of a dedicated “Yoga School” in
Brahmanism that specialised in yoga practices. The
theories contained in the Yoga-sutra underwent
further improvement thanks to the efforts of
the school’s generations of later practitioners in
refining existing contents and adding new contents.
Numerous philosophical schools in ancient India
incorporated Yoga practices into their systems, and
many famous thinkers in contemporary India also
paid a great deal of attention to the practice of yoga.
The ideas and theories of the Yoga-sutra have
since spread to a great many countries around the
world, including China, mainly via the introduction
of Buddhist literature into the country. The Chinese
translations of certain Buddhist scriptures contain
references to the Yoga-sutra where such subjects as
meditation and yoga are touched upon.
The classic texts and theories of the Yoga-sutra
have also received widespread scholarly attention in
modern China. The Yoga-sūtra has been translated
into Chinese, with numerous versions of the
sutra introduced and published in the country. In
addition, a large number of research papers are
being published every year on the Yoga-sūtra or
yoga theories. There are also many Chinese books
that specifically deal with the Yoga-sutra. Some
Vaisheshika Sutra
As one of the major philosophical schools of
Brahmanism, Vaiśeṣika, or the Vaisheshika school,
was formed around 2nd century BCE. With a
significant philosophical influence in India, it spread
to China along with Buddhism, where it attracted
great attention from some of the major thinkers in
ancient China.
Theoretical Sources and Relevant Legends
The word “Vaiśeṣika”, which is the Sanskrit name
for Vaisheshika, is derived from “Vishesa,” which
means “distinction,” or “distinguishing feature,” or
“particularity.” This school was also transliterated
into “feishishijia” and “pishishi” in ancient China. In
Chinese Buddhist scriptures, it is often referred to as
“Sheng Zong” or “Shenglun Waidao”.
Some of the basic theories of the Vaisheshika
school were covered by certain key philosophical
treatises in ancient India such as the “Brāhmaṇa” and
the “Upanishad”. However, what had contributed
directly to the formation of this particular
philosophical school were the thoughts and ideas of
some Shramana thinkers active in ancient India.
It is generally acknowledged that this school was
originally proposed by the sage Kaṇāda (or Kanabhuk, literally, atom-eater) around 2nd century
BCE, who was also extensively referred to as
“Youloujia” in Chinese Buddhist records. Most of
the information about him contained in existing
records is of a legendary, even mythical, proportion.
For instance, Bailun Shu (Commentary on the Shata
Shastra) describes the legendary figure as “Uluka,
aka immortal of barred owlet, having been born
800 years earlier than Śākyamuni” and “fond of
lecturing during the day and travelling at night. If
you want to keep one, you must feed it in the night
and it will eat with its family dependents”.
Historical Evolution and Foundational Text
- Widely considered the foundational text of the
Vaiśeṣik (Vaisheshika) school of philosophy, the
original version of the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra was created
around 2nd century BCE by Kaṇāda. Containing
additional parts incorporated still later, the extant
version of Vaiśeṣika-sūtra was created around
2nd century CE. Having established some of the
fundamental theories of Vaiśeṣik, the sutra laid the
theoretical groundwork for the school.
Around 6th century CE, there emerged a
significant commentary on the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra,
A practitioner of Yoga
491
Cultural Contacts
Six Padartha Theory
Major Vaisheshika works such as the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra
and the Padartha-dharma-samgraha (commentary on
Kanada’s Vaisesika sutra) proposed that there are six
padarthas (categories): dravya (substance), guṇa
(quality), karma (activity), sāmānya (generality),
viśeṣa (particularity) and samavāya (inherence).
Dravya: It means substance or entity, and the
substances are conceived as nine in number. They
are, pṛthvī (earth), ap (water), tejas (fire), vāyu
(air), ākaśa (ether), kāla (time), dik (space), ātman
(self) and manas (mind). Earth, water, fire and air
constitute material elements and are composed
of atoms. Ether often means space (sometimes,
elements too) according to the “Upanishad”, but
in Vaisheshika it primarily refers to a particular
element on which sound relies. Time is a real
entity according to the Vaisheshika school and all
activities, changes or modifications can be achieved
only through time. Space is a real entity through
which one perceives such directions as east, south,
west, north, up and down. Atman (self) refers to the
inner self or soul, whose existence can be confirmed
by inference from the perception of feelings,
breathing and desire. Manas (mind) is the real sense
organ behind the five senses. When the five senses
come in contact with the external world, perception
can (or cannot) be achieved sometimes, This is the
reason why manas exists.
Guṇa (quality): The Vaiśeṣika-sūtra mentions 17
guṇas (qualities), to which Praśastapāda added
another seven. The original 17 guṇas (qualities)
are, rūpa (colour), rasa (taste), gandha (smell),
sparśa (touch), saṁkhyā (number), parimāṇa (size/
dimension/quantity), pṛthaktva (individuality),
saṁyoga (conjunction/accompaniments), vibhāga
(disjunction),
paratva
(priority),
aparatva
(posteriority), buddhi (knowledge), sukha (pleasure),
duḥkha (pain), icchā (desire), dveṣa (aversion) and
prayatna (effort). To these, Praśastapāda added
gurutva (heaviness), dravatva (fluidity), sneha
(viscosity), dharma (merit), adharma (demerit),
śabda (sound) and saṁkāsra (faculty). While a
substance is capable of existing independently by
itself, a guṇa (quality) cannot exist so.
Karman (action or motion): Motion is of five
types – upward and downward motion, contraction
and expansion, and locomotion.
Samanya (universal): It means is generality. It
refers to nature for the existence of substances.
Visesa (ultimate particularity): It is the extreme
opposite of the universal (samanya). It refers to the
ultimate differences of substances.
Samavaya (inherence) is a relation by which
types are held together while maintaining their own
identities, often defined as the relation between cause
and effect. Each padartha shall be distinguished
the Padartha-dharma-samgraha (commentary on
Kanada’s Vaisesika sutra) by Prasastapada, which is
the only extant Vaisheshika literature in India that
offers a systematic exposition of the Vaisheshika
school. Appearing much later than the sutra, it
offers a clearer and richer picture of the theories
of the Vaisheshika school and also proposes a
more complete theoretical framework, having been
widely recognised as the most representative extant
Vaisheshika literature except the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra.
Around the same period, another important
Vaisheshika work also appeared, which is the
“Daśapadārthaśāstra” by Maticandra. The original
text of the book has been lost, with the extant
version being one Chinese translated by Hsuan
Tsang. Created close to the “Padartha-dharmasamgraha” in time, this book contains descriptive
information about the Vaisheshika system that
differs substantially with that recorded in extant
Sanskrit literature of the school, and has long been
a subject of great interest among researchers and
scholars.
After the 10th century CE, the Vaisheshika school
began to merge with the Nyāya school, with a large
body of significant new works emerging, including:
the “Kiranavali” by Udayana (10th century CE),
the “Nyayakandali” by Sridhara (10th century
CE), the “Saptapadarthi” by Sivaditya (around
10th- 11th century CE), the “Upaskara” by Sankara
Misra (15th century CE), the “Tarka-Kaumudi”
by Laugaksi Bhaskara (17th century CE), and the
“Bhasapariccheda” and “Siddhanta-muktavali” by
Visvanatha (17th century CE).
Since its inception, the Vaisheshika school
has been an important influence in the Indian
philosophical scene, and figured largely in both
Buddhism and the dominant philosophical schools
of Brahmanism. Many Vedānta and Buddhist texts
discuss or refute the theories of the Vaisheshika
school, and therefore constitute valuable sources
of information instrumental in helping people
understand Vaiśeṣika and its philosophical system.
Major Philosophical Theories
The basic philosophical system of the Vaisheshika
school is built around the concept of “Padartha”,
which means “worldly matter corresponding to
concepts”, with “Pada” meaning “words, speech, or
concepts”, and “artha” meaning “things or objects”.
Vaisesika is a system of pluralistic realism, which
emphasises that reality consists in difference. It
classifies all objects of experience or phenomena into
several padartha, or categories. Different Vaisheshika
works tend to adopt different padartha systems,
with the two most widely known ones being the Six
Padartha theory and the Ten Padartha theory. Most
of the specific philosophical ideas of the school fall
under the theoretical framework of “padartha”.
492
Cultural Contacts
(non-existence of nature of one object in another).
Important theories proposed by the Vaisheshika
school include: the atomic theory; “non-preexistence
of effect in cause” theory; and the pramāṇa (means
of valid knowledge) theory.
The Atomic Theory - Atom (Anu) is the smallest
unit of matter postulated by some philosophers in
ancient India. This concept exists in the theories of
many Indian schools of thought, with the atomic
theory espoused by the Vaisheshika school being the
most representative. The Vaiśeṣikas attached great
importance to “fundamental cause” for the creation
of objects, but instead of the prevalent theory of
“single cause”, upheld a “multiple causes” theory,
positing that all objects in the world (the effect)
don’t stem from any single cause, but multiple ones.
It claimed that objects are all composed of small
indivisible “atoms”. In dravya, four bhūtas, ie pṛthvī
(earth), ap (water), tejas (fire) and vāyu (air) are
made of indivisible atoms. The four bhūtas further
fall under two categories: atoms as the smallest unit;
and combination of atoms. All objects in the world
are made of the four bhūtas in infinite combinations.
The Vaisheshika school believed that atoms exist
and there is no smaller “cause” than the atoms;
they cannot be destroyed for they are ever-present,
permanent and eternal. All tangible objects that
have forms are the “effect” composed of “atoms”.
The existence of the “effect” is a mark indicating the
existence of atoms as the “cause”. Effect exists only
because of the existence of cause. Non-eternal is a
special “opposite” of eternal.
The school also held that atoms are essentially
of four kinds: Earth, Water, Fire and Air, the
combination of which can form all kinds of objects
in the world. Atoms are not created, but everpresent and eternal. There is nothing smaller
than the atom. Indivisible and indestructible, it
constitutes the “ultimate cause” for the creation
of objects. It is spherical in shape and reflects the
ultimate difference between objects. By contrast,
objects formed through a combination of atoms
can be created; they are non-eternal, degradable,
destructible, and not spherical in shape, with no
ultimate differences exhibited.
In addition, the Vaisheshika school also
postulated an “invisible force (Adrsta)” theory in
analysing the momentum in the material world
and the occurrence of many natural phenomena.
For instance, the literatures of Vaiśeṣika points out
such phenomena as fire burning up, wind blowing
sideways, sap circulating in trees and earthquakes
striking can all be attributed to “invisible force”.
Actually the Vaisheshika school tended to attribute
all inexplicable natural phenomena at the time to
“invisible force”. Invisible force (Adrsta) can be
seen as a result of one’s own actions, evil or good,
from concept, however in fact, they should be
unified in substance (reality). It is Samavaya that
can produce this inseparable relationship between
one’s own identity and property.
Ten Padartha Theory
According to the “Daśapadārthaśāstra”, there are
10 padarthas: dravya (substance), guṇa (quality),
karma (activity), sāmānya (generality), viśeṣa
(particularity), samavāya (inherence), “śakti”,
“aśakti”, “sadrsya”, and “abhāva”. The first six
padarthas are similar to those proposed by the
Vaiśeṣika-sūtra and Padartha-dharma-samgraha, and
the newly added four padarthas are defined as
follows:
“Śakti” refers to a padartha wherein the innate
inter-relationship among dravya, guṇa and karma
enables them to collectively or individually give rise
to particular results.
“Aśakti” refers to a padartha wherein the innate
interrelationship among dravya, guṇa and karma
enables them not to collectively or individually give
rise to particular results.
“Sadrsya” specifically addresses objects’ relative
universality and particularity. Sāmānya is limited to
existence and viśeṣa is limited to ultimate differences,
while other generalities and particularities shall
constitute an independent padartha. Vaiśeṣika-sūtra
and the “Padartha-dharma-samgraha” both believe
that “universality” and “particularity” are only
relative concepts, and tend to change depending on
the specific perspective people take. Some concepts
may be deemed as “universal” under certain
circumstances, but might be considered “particular”
under other circumstances. For example, for the
concept of padartha, substance is considered as
“particular” because it is a kind of padartha, but
for earth, water, fire and air, it shall be considered
as “universal” because the four elements are
substances. This kind of relativity was never
properly addressed in either the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra or
the “Padartha-dharma-samgraha”. By contrast, the
“Daśapadārthaśāstra” restricts viśeṣa (particularity)
only to the ultimate differences between objects
(“Bian Yi’), and sāmānya (generality) only to the
existence of objects (“You”). In other words, the book
singles out the relativity of viśeṣa (particularity) and
sāmānya (generality) and makes it into a separate,
independent padartha (ie “sadrsya”).
“Abhāva” refers to an objects’ state of nonexistence,
and there are five types of “nonexistence”:
antecedent non-existence (non-existence of objects
that are yet to be created); subsequent non-existence
(non-existence of objects that have been destroyed);
reciprocal non-existence (non-existence of objects
that, if in existence, will contradict existing ones);
absolute non-existence (non-existence of objects
that will never appear); and natural non-existence
493
Cultural Contacts
its basic philosophical system. In explaining the
creation of things in the world, this school upheld a
“multiple causes” theory (anamabhavada), positing
that all objects in the world (the effect) don’t stem
from any single cause, but multiple ones. There
won’t be any effect coming out of a single cause,
only the combining of multiple causes can produce
effect. The “cause” mentioned by the Vaisheshika
school actually refers to the constituent parts that
make up the whole, while the “effect” refers to the
whole or the combined. Thus, the school held that
the process of “generation” or “creation” means
the combining of multiple elements (cause), and
to consider cause and effect to be the same simply
could not explain the creation of things. In their
opinion, the process of “generation” must produce
an effect distinct from the cause. In the theoretical
system of Vaisheshika, all things are made of
multiple elements, ie the formation of everything
in the world is a process of forming one new thing
through combining independent elements, and
the created things (effect) never pre-exist in those
elements (cause), hence the “no effect in cause”
theory.
Bold and audacious, this theory made waves in
the philosophical scene in ancient India, causing a
lot of Vedānta and Buddhist thinkers to violently
react to it.
Pratyaksha and Anumana
Thoughts of Vaisheshika school in epistemology
are included in the theory of pratyaksha and
anumana to a large extent.
Pratyaksha means sense perception. The Vaiśeṣikasūtra further classified pratyaksha into two kinds:
regular partyaksha; and Yogi-pratyaksha. They
were also named as earthly pratyaksha and nonearthly pratyaksha by later generations. The former
only covers the ordinary things in the world,
while the latter covers such diverse metaphysical
dimensions such as ego, emptiness, space, mind,
etc. The “Daśapadārthaśāstra” doesn’t distinguish
between regular partyaksha and Yogi-pratyaksha,
but analyses the major factors contributing to the
generation of perception, postulating that the
generation of perception normally relies on four
factors: “Jing”, literally means “environment”,
referring to the surrounding objects that can be
perceived by five senses; “Gen”, literally means
“root”, referring to one’s five senses; “Yi”, literally
means “mind”, referring to the link between five
senses and “self”; and “Wo”, literally means “self”,
referring to the one who perceives. And according to
the book and other Vaisheshika works, the normal
process of generation of perception can be described
as follows: firstly, one’s “Gen” (five senses) come in
contact with “Jing” (external environment), giving
rising to impressions, which will soon be picked up
and in this sense is not unlike the Buddhist concept
of Karma. The Vaisheshika school posited that it
is always the invisible force that starts the atoms
in motion.
The atomic theory of the Vaisheshika school
served as an important approach in ancient India
to understanding the occurrence and dynamics of
natural phenomena, and as such, was once a highly
influential theory that held considerable sway over
other schools of thought, leading the latter to also
form a habit of discussing this issue extensively.
For instance, some works of the Vedānta school
analysed the atomic theory and eventually “proved”
it invalid. Many other Indian philosophical schools
also expressed their views on the “atom” concept.
“Non-pre-existence of Effect in Cause” Theory
- Like many schools of philosophy in ancient India,
the Vaisheshika school also put a special emphasis
on the theory of causationism, with the Vaiśeṣikasūtra discussing it extensively. Vaisheshika school
opposed the general view that cause and result are
inseparable from each other. For instance, the sutra
states, “there won’t be an effect without a cause, but
there might be a cause without an effect”, setting out
to emphasise that effect cannot exist without cause,
but cause can exist without effect.” For instance, a
table (the effect) cannot exist apart from wood (the
cause), but we cannot say the wood does not exist if
there is no table.
The Vaisheshika school once proved, “Nonpreexistence of Effect in Cause” Theory, and they
believed that there is a fundamental difference
between cause and effect. According to literatures
from other schools, the Vaisheshika school espoused
the idea that “there is no effect in cause, and cause
is different from effect” for the following seven
reasons: firstly, cause and effect are easily perceived
to be starkly distinct from each other: nobody would
take the thread (the cause) to be the cloth (the
effect), just as nobody would mistake the clay pot
(the effect) for the clay (the cause). Secondly, cause
and effect are named differently: nobody would call
thread cloth, or call cloth thread. Thirdly, the same
cause may give rise to different effects: thread can
be used to make not just clothes, but other things
too, like rope; fourthly, cause comes before effect
at all times. Fifthly, cause and effect differ in form:
clay (the cause) has a form of block while the clay
pot (the effect) has a form of ampulla with a wide
base. Sixthly, cause and effect differ in quantity:
a single piece of cloth (the effect) is composed of
many threads (the cause); and seventhly, if cause
and effect are the same thing, then there shall be
only one cause, ie there shall not be a lot of causes
such as material constituting effect and maker
manufacturing effect. Vaisheshika espoused the idea
of “no effect in cause”, which may be attributed to
494
Cultural Contacts
Buddhism spread to China. Some Buddhist monks in
ancient China once expounded or analysed relevant
thoughts or theories of the Vaisheshika school, as
evidenced by relevant expositions widely present in
Buddhist literature compiled in ancient China.
The “Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi” translated and
compiled by Hsuan-tsang contains parts specifically
dedicated to repudiating the Vaiśeṣika theories,
arguing that the Padarthas considered “eternal
and permanent” by Vaiśeṣika cannot be eternal
and permanent if they can generate effect. For
instance, if the atoms of earth, water, fire, and air
in the Dravya-padārtha can be combined to create
“effect”, they must be non-eternal and impermanent,
because they have functions and therefore are
subject to changes. As for those “eternal” Padarthas
that don’t generate “effect”, such as kāla (time),
dik (space), sāmānya (generality) and samavāya
(inherence), they are like such non-existent things
as rabbit horns, having no “prakriti” apart from
consciousness. And those Padarthas considered
“non-eternal and impermanent”, if blocked, will
be like such things as armies and woods, having
no “prakriti” whatsoever; and if unblocked, they
will be like consciousness or manifestations
thereof, having no concrete “vehicle” and thus,
no “prakriti” apart from consciousness. In
addition, the book also challenged the rationality
of categorising pṛthvī (earth), ap (water) and
tejas (fire) into Dravya (substance) and rūpa
(colour) into Guṇa (quality), arguing that they
are all subject to the control of body organs, and
therefore should be put under the same category.
The “Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi” also argued that there
is no need for the sāmānya-padārtha as proposed
by Vaiśeṣika, because according to the school’s
own theory, the Dravya-padārtha shall exist of its
own accord, without having to depending on the
sāmānya-padārtha to verify its existence. For these
reasons, the “Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi” concludes
that the padārtha theory of the Vaisheshika school
is self-contradictory, and therefore is not valid.
Kuiji also mentioned the Vaisheshika school in
his “Commentary on Vijñāptimātratāsiddhi”, which
contains descriptions like “Vaiśeṣika proposed
the brilliant Six Padartha Theory, which is an
unparalleled feat among its philosophical peers. Still
later, a Vaiśeṣika disciple named Huiyue put forth a
Ten Padartha Theory.”
Puguang also stated in volume 5 of his “Jushe Lunji”
that “the Vaiśeṣika masters proposed six Padarthas, ie
dravya (substance), guṇa (quality), karma (activity),
sāmānya (generality), viśeṣa (particularity) and
samavāya (inherence); later, a master named Huiyue
proposed a Ten Padartha Theory”.
There are actually many such descriptions
contained in Chinese Buddhist records (especially
by “Yi”, which is not an element of consciousness
but a material one. It is extremely small in size, and
can move very fast within the body. And when the
information gathered by five senses is transmitted
to “self”, perception occurs. However, according to
the Vaisheshika school, for perception to occur, it is
not necessary to have all four factors at once. Two,
“Wo” and “Yi”, or three, “Wo”, “Gen”, “Yi”, of the
four may be sufficient to generate perception.
Anumana mainly refers to inference. The Vaiśeṣikasūtra specifies five circumstances of anumana: firstly to
infer cause from effect, (e.g., fire can be deducted from
seeing smoke); secondly to deduce effect from cause,
(e.g., sound can be deducted by a deaf from special
relation for drumsticks drumming). Thirdly, to infer
one from the known other, provided that the two are
in conjunction with each other (e.g., touch organ can
be deducted from seeing an animal). Fourthly to infer
one from the know other, provided that the two are in
conflict with each other (e.g., food for snakes can be
deducted behind the tree from restless performance
of a snake); and to infer one from the known other,
provided that one is inherent in the other (e.g., water
can be deducted having been boiled from hot water).
Although Vaiśeṣika, traditionally recognised as
a Brahman school, adopts the social class system
of Brahmanism and believes too in reincarnation
and deliverance, it is less adherent than the other
“orthodox” schools of philosophy in ancient India.
With its theoretical focus on natural philosophy,
it deviates materially from the other mainstream
Brahman schools dominant then.
Spread and Influence in China
The theories of the Vaisheshika school were
also spread to ancient China, exerting a pervasive
influence on the country’s philosophical scene.
One particular Vaiśeṣika work was translated
into Chinese in its entirety in ancient China, ie
the “Daśapadārthaśāstra” as translated by Hsuantsang. Different from the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra, the
Padartha-dharma-samgraha
(commentary
on
Kanada’s Vaisesika sutra) in a substantial way, the
book proposes 10 Padarthas. Some of the Buddhist
monks or scholars in ancient China noticed and
discussed these differences. As a “heretical” work,
the “Daśapadārthaśāstra” was incorporated in
its entirety into the Chinese Dazangjing (“Great
Treasury of Sūtras”), which was extremely rare
throughout the long history of Buddhist literature
compilation, indicating the high level of attention
the Vaiśeṣika work had received in ancient China.
In relevant Buddhist scriptures, the theories of the
Vaisheshika school were extensively criticised and
decisively repudiated. And in refuting the Vaiśeṣika
theories, Buddhist records also gave a brief account
of Vaiśeṣika and quoted its representative thoughts,
some of which were translated into Chinese when
495
Cultural Contacts
Mādhyamika commentaries), either recounting or
repudiating the Vaiśeṣika thoughts.
In ancient China, many non-Buddhist thinkers also
paid a fair amount of attention to the Vaisheshika
school. For instance, Lv Cai, a thinker in China’s
Tang Dynasty, was once attacked by his adversary
for adopting in his philosophical thinking a certain
theory rather similar to the atomic theory espoused
by the Vaisheshika school.
In refuting his adversaries, Zhang Taiyan, a
famous thinker in contemporary China, also cited
the theory for earth, water, fire, air and the atomic
theory of the Vaisheshika school.
The Vaiśeṣika theories also received a lot of scholarly
attention in modern China, with the Vaiśeṣika-sūtra
translated entirely into Chinese and the Padarthadharma-samgraha partially translated into Chinese. In
books published in contemporary China about Indian
religious philosophy, there are dedicated chapters
describing the evolution of the Vaisheshika school and
its major theories. Quite many research papers on the
Vaisheshika school have also been published in some
Chinese scholarly journals.
On higher education front in China, quite some
masters’ theses focussed on the “Daśapadārthaśāstra”,
while many PhD dissertations mentioned the
Vaiśeṣika theories.
Vaiśeṣika is also mentioned in the oriental
philosophy courses offered in modern Chinese
universities, with some courses focussing on the
study of classic texts of the Vaisheshika school and
others aiming to give an account of the evolution
of the school and its basic theories. Among the
scholars studying oriental culture in contemporary
China, the Vaiśeṣika theories remain a familiar
topic. Besides, in some professional conferences
or symposiums held in China, the theories of the
school or papers published on the school were also
discussed with great interest.
(Yao Weiqun)
The Nyaya Sutra: A New Commentary on an
Old Text, English edition (front cover)
builds the theoretical framework of Nyaya. Nyaya
Sutra is divided into five volumes, with each volume
having two chapters. Its main theoretical model is
“16 truths”, including pramana, prameya, doubt,
motivation, example, theory, discussions, thinking,
conclusion, reasoning, argumentation, no defense,
uncertain reason, misinterpretation, opposition and
misunderstanding. It mainly discusses the thoughts
about the logical reasoning and debate rules of
Nyaya. Many theories of Nyaya are put forward or
discussed during the interpretation of the 16 truths.
The main theories put forward in Nyaya Sutra
include reasoning by five-part syllogism, reasons of
producing mistake in reasoning, behaviour of debate
failure, main methods to get correct understanding
and so on. Reasoning by five-part syllogism is
also called “five-branches-type argument”. It is a
relatively fixed basic mode of reasoning first put
forward in the history of Indian thought, and plays
an important role in the formation and development
of systematic logic theory in India. The theory
holds that there are five basic elements during the
reasoning, namely, the proposition, the reason, the
example, the application and the conclusion. “The
proposition” is the proposition put forward in the
reasoning,” the reason” is the reason to demonstrate
proposition, “the example” is the specific example
or evidence used to demonstrate proposition, “the
application” is the application of reason and example
into the reasoning, and “the conclusion” is the
conclusion drawn according to the final statement of
one’s own proposition. Behaviour of debate failure is
an important analysis of Nyaya Sutra on debate, and
the theory on such aspect is mainly manifested in
the conclusion of 22 misunderstandings. The main
Nyaya Sutra
Nyaya Sutra is a fundamental scripture of Nyaya in
ancient Indian philosophy, and is the first literature
putting forward the systematic logical thought and
debate rules in India. It was written by Gautama in
about the 1st century CE. The existing Nyaya Sutra
includes the additional contents added later, which
is finished at about 3rd - 4th century CE.
The main and auxiliary annotations of Nyaya
Sutra include Nyaya-Sutra-Bhasya by Vatsyayana
(about 4th-5th century CE), Nyaya-Varthika
by Uddyotakara (in 6th century CE), Nyayavarttikatatparya-tika by Vācaspti mi ra (in 9th century
CE),
Nyaya-varttikatatparya-tātparya-parisuddhi
by Udayana (in 10th century CE) and so on.
Nyaya Sutra establishes some basic concepts and
496
Cultural Contacts
way to get the correct understanding actually is
the pramana theory. There are four pramana being
put forward in Nyaya Sutra, namely, Partyaksapramana, Anumana-pramana, upama-pramana and
avavada-pramana.
Nyaya Sutra also connects its theories of reasoning
and debate with the religious issues. Nyaya Sutra
first emphasises that reaching the highest good
needs the knowledge of “16 truths”. The core theory
of 16 truths is about the knowledge of reasoning
and debate. Nyaya Sutra thinks that this kind of
knowledge is actually the supreme wisdom, and
that achieving them will eliminate ignorance, while
Vimukti relies on the elimination of ignorance.
Therefore, the knowledge of logical reasoning and
debate is inseparable with Nyaya’s ultimate goal of
achieving the liberation by freeing from Samsara.
The thought of Nyaya Sutra plays a crucial role in
the development of Indian philosophy. Many sects
have absorbed its logical and debate ideas. It is the
reference in the development of Buddhism. Many
thoughts in ancient Buddhist hetuvidya are built
on the basis of the absorption and transformation
of Nyaya’s relevant thoughts. The thought of Nyaya
Sutra still have significant influence in modern times
in India. Some famous Indian ideologists in modern
times compare the thought of Nyaya Sutra with the
western logic, integrate some ideas, and put forward
some new theoretical insights.
The thought of Nyaya Sutra is also introduced
into China with the Buddhism in ancient time. The
ancient Chinese understanding of Nyaya is largely
from the Buddhist relevant literatures. These
literatures are mainly those about hetuvidya theory,
especially the contents involving ancient hetuvidya
in the Buddhist scripture.
In Chinese Buddhist scriptures, there are also many
contents about Nyaya Sutra. The representatives include
Upāya-Kauśalya-hrdaya-śāstra,
Prakaraõàryavàcààstra,
Mahàyànàbhidharma-samuccaya-vyàkhya
and
Tarka-sastra.
Upāya-Kauśalya-hrdaya-śāstra
makes discussions on the theory of four pramana of
Nyaya Sutra, and such contents like uncertain reason,
opposition and misunderstanding. Tarka-sastra,
Prakaraõàryavàcà-àstra and Mahàyànàbhidharmasamuccaya-vyàkhya also make the discussions on
‘Prakaranasyavaca-sastra (Xianyang
sheng jiao lun)’
syllogism being similar to the theory of five-branchestype argument in Nyaya Sutra.
In modern China, the thought of Nyaya Sutra
receives great attention from Chinese academic
circle. Nyaya Sutra has been translated into Chinese
in China, and many Chinese versions have been
officially published or issued. Some research papers
on the theory of Nyaya Sutra have ever been issued
in Chinese professional academic journals. Many
works about Indian philosophy published in China
also include some contents about the thought of
Nyaya Sutra, and they also appears on the Indian
religion and philosophy courses opened in China’s
colleges and universities, even some academic
dissertations of Chinese postgraduates are with the
theme of Nyaya Sutra.
(Yao Weiqun)
Brahma Sutra
Created by Baadarayana around the 1st century
CE, Brahma-sūtra is the foundational text of the
Vedānta school of philosophy. The current version
of Brahma-sutra contains portions added still later
on and wasn’t fully completed until the 5th century
CE. The sutra inherited and improved some of the
key philosophical ideas of Brahmanism contained in
the Upanishads, and its emergence marked the debut
of the Vedānta school as an independent school of
philosophy on the Indian philosophical scene.
The Brahma-sūtra consists of 555 succinct sutras
or aphorisms, whose meanings sometimes can only
be determined by referring to relevant ancient
commentaries. The sutra spawned a large number of
commentaries, which tended to construe the text of
the Sūtra in different ways. Among the assortment
of commentaries, the most famous ones include the
commentaries by three prominent philosophers in
ancient India, ie Shankara (788-820 CE), Ramanuja
(around 11-12 century CE) and Madhava (around
13 centry CE).
‘Prakaranasyavaca-sastra (Xianyang sheng jiao lun)’,
Fangshan Stone Classics, Beijing
497
Cultural Contacts
the sutra describes Brahman and Atman as being
one and the same; on the other hand, it makes a
distinction between the two, a fact that also helps
explain the branching out of the Vedānta school
later on.
The key components of the Brahma-sutra include:
interpretations on Brahman-Atman relationship; the
theory of bhedābheda (“identity and difference”;
repudiations of other schools of philosophy; and the
concept of reincarnation and release.
In describing the Brahman-Atman relationship,
the Brahma-sutra also mentions the different
viewpoints on the issue from various previous
thinkers. According to Bhaskara’s commentaries
on Brahma-sutra 1.4.19-22, the sutra discusses
the views of three thinkers: A-s′marathya upheld
the bhedābheda theory; Audulomi advocated the
satya-bheda theory; and Kqaktsna endorsed the
philosophy of Advaita Vedānta (non-dualism).
These views were further improved and developed
by several later Vedānta philosophers, with clearlydefined theoretical frameworks being established.
Baadarayana, the original author of the Brahmasutra, tended to espouse the bhedābheda theory,
holding that as the creator or the fundamental cause
of the world, Brahman is distinct from Atman(sphere
of phenomena); Brahman and Atman are also a unity
in the sense that Atman or all phenomena bear the
quality of Brahman and nothing can exist without
Brahman, with the relationship between the two
likened to that between the sun and its reflection
on the water.
The Brahma-sutra repudiates the key theories
of certain schools of thought in ancient India.
Despite the conciseness of the sutras, with the aid
of the commentaries thereon by such thinkers as
Shankara, we can nonetheless get a glimpse of the
various schools of thought and theories thereof the
sutra argues against.
He Brahma-sutra repudiates such Samkhya
concepts as Prakriti, Purusha and Gunas, rejecting
as false the theory that Prakriti is the fundamental
cause of everything in the world, as unfounded the
theory that the combination of Prakriti and Purusha
promotes the transformation of things in the
world, and as implausible the Sattva-Rajas-Tamas
relationship proposed by the Samkhya school.
In addition, the Brahma-sutra also rejected the
theories of the Vaisesika School as improbable,
proclaiming as false such Vaisesika theories as the
atomism, the “samavaya” theory and “invisible
force” (adrsta). It argues against the proposition
that things are composed of atomic elements and
asserts that the atomism theory is inherently selfcontradictory. It also rejects the idea that adrsta
is related to movement of things and there is a
“samavaya” relationship between things, arguing
The Brahma-sūtra is arranged in four chapters
(adhyāya), each chapter is divided into four quarters
(pāda). Chapter one presents the overarching theme
of the whole sutra, explaining that Brahmanis is
the ultimate reality and the fundamental essence
of everything in the world; chapter two discusses
and refutes the possible objections to Vedānta
philosophy, and lays out relevant arguments on
such topics as the essence of the material world and
the world’s creation. Chapter three deals with the
Brahma Sutras, English edition
relation between Brahman and Atman (self) and the
concept of reincarnation. And Chapter four discusses
issues such as meditation, karma and release.
Many of the key issues the Brahma-sutra tackled
had already been elaborated on in the Upanishads,
with the sutra’s focus of inquiry primarily placed on
the Brahman-Atman relationship. The Upanishadic
thinkers dwelled largely on the fundamental
cause for all worldly phenomena, both natural
and human, and proposed two basic concepts:
“Brahman” and “Atman”. “Brahman” is generally
considered as the fundamental cause or essence of
everything in the world, and is sometimes referred
to as the “Self”, while “Atman” is regarded as the
main actors in life phenomena, and is sometimes
referred to as the “self”. It is the countless “selves”
and related things that are believed to constitute
the sphere of phenomena. Quite many Upanishadic
thinkers maintained that the “self” and “self” of
worldly phenomena are essentially the same thing,
hence the theory of “Brahman-Atman unity and
oneness”; while some other Upanishadic thinkers
chose to draw a clear distinction between Brahman
and Atman while describing them, leading to the
fact that different Upanishads, or even different
parts of the same Upanishad, contain inconsistent,
even contradictory, interpretations on the BrahmanAtman relationship. The problem turned out to have
exerted a huge influence on the ensuing generations
of Vedānta thinkers, causing the Brahma-sutra
to suffer the same ambivalence: on the one hand,
498
Cultural Contacts
one exit the reincarnation cycle and get released.
Since its emergence, the Brahma-sutra has exerted
considerable influence on the Indian intellectual
history. Major Vedanta thinkers all wrote
commentaries on the sutra, wherein they expressed
their brilliant viewpoints on relevant issues.
For instance, Shankara proposed the “Advaita
Vedānta (non-dualism) theory, Rāmānuj proposed
his “limited non-dualism” theory, and Madhva
proposed the “dualism” theory. These theories
constitute the core components of Brahmanist
and Hindu philosophy and had played a positive
role on the Indian philosophical scene well into
contemporary times.
The theories contained in the Brahma-sutra, as
lumped in with the early-day Vedanta theories,
were introduced to China along with the Upanishads
via Buddhism. Most Chinese Buddhist works don’t
distinguish between the Brahman-sutra’s theories
and the Vedanta theories and generally classify
them all under the category of “Wei Tuo”, “Zhi Lun”
or “Ming Lun”. Chapter 1 of “Chengweishilun” by
Xuanzang mentions such concepts as “Maheśvara”,
that the Vaisesika “samavaya” is actually in
endless need of other “samavaya” and therefore is
not plausible.
The Brahma-sutra launched the fiercest “attacks”
on Buddhism, renouncing the latter’s theories on
the composition of man and things and rejecting as
implausible the religion’s theory of five skandhas
and atomism. It also repudiates the Buddhist
Karma theory, arguing that it is impossible for the
12 laws of karma to mutually cause each other, as
Brahma Sutras
each karma law is only the cause for the next one.
The Buddhist “Chana Shengmie” theory was also
rejected by the sutra as contradicting the Buddhist
Karma theory, and the Buddhist “Ze Mie” theory
was refuted as impossible too. The sutra also blasted
the Buddhist “Emptiness” theory, arguing that
conventional wisdom indicates that things cannot
stem from empties or nothing. In addition, the
Buddhist “dreaming-wakefulness oneness” theory
and the “Chitta-matra” theory were also disproved.
Finally, the sutra concludes that the various
Buddhist theories are all implausible.
The Brahma-sutra also attacked the Jain
theories, repudiating the Jain “seven-limbed
seven Vādavidhāna” as improbable, since wholly
contradictory judgments cannot exist in the same
thing. The sutra also renounced as false the Jain
theory that the Jiva expands and contracts depending
on the size of the body it inhabits, arguing that as a
permanent substance, Jiva shall be of the same size
at all times.
In addition, the Brahman-sutra also refuted the
Paśupati and Bhagvad Gita theories.
The Sutra’s reincarnation and release theory
is closely related to its Brahman-Atman theory.
Although relevant viewpoints are scattered here
and there throughout the text of the sutra, the main
argument is clear: those who don’t have a correct
understanding of Brahman-Atman relationship
and fall prey to ignorance will be condemned to
an endless cycle of reincarnation. And only by
gaining a truthful understanding of BrahmanAtman relationship and the essence of Brahman can
Essentials of Brahmasutra Bhasya,
English edition (front cover)
“maha-brahman” and “Atman”, all of which are core
or basic concepts in the Upanishads, the Brahmasutra and commentaries thereon. The Chinese
Buddhist texts normally never specify the Indian
scriptural source for such concepts.
In modern China, the Brahma-sutra has also
received a fair amount of scholarly attention,
with the Chinese translation of the sutra already
published in the country. Many Chinese scholars
focus their research on the Vedanta school, and as
a foundational Vedanta text, the Brahma-sutra has
gained increasing importance among the Chinese
scholars researching Vedanta, who all dedicate
a chunk of their research time to examining and
studying the Brahma-sutra. Quite some research
papers on the Brahma-sutra and the Vedanta
school have also been published in relevant
Chinese scholarly journals. There are also chapters
499
Cultural Contacts
mentioning the Brahma-sutra in books published in
China about Indian philosophy. In Indian philosophy
courses offered in Chinese universities, the sutra’s
theories are also extensively mentioned.
(Yao Weiqun)
Bhagavadgita
Bhagavadgītā is an important classic of ancient
Hinduism; it is also known as Buddha Song; originally
it was a part of Bhismaparvam, the sixth chapter of the
great Indian epic Mahabharata, which later evolved
into an independent classic of Hinduism. The book
was formed during the time period between 2nd
and 3rd century CE. It is divided into 18 chapters,
with 700 odes in all. Bhagavadgītā is a collection
of poems, elaborating Hindu philosophy of life in
the form of a dialogue. The dialogue occurred in
the battlefield while the two armies of Pandavas
and Kauravas were confronting each other. Prince
Arjuna (one of the younger brothers of Yudhishtira)
of Pandavas commanded the army to encounter the
Bhagavad Gita, an illustration
of life and ethical concepts. It is argued that a
believer must follow their own “Dharma” to act, and
should not consider personal gains or losses, honor
or disgrace, only through action, he could achieve
the unity of his own soul “Atman” with “Bráhman”,
the supreme soul of the universe, finally to achieve
the highest purpose - liberation.
In order to achieve liberation, Bhagavadgītā also
strongly promotes three kinds of yoga as roads:
“Karma Yoga”, “Jnana Yoga” and “Bhakti Yoga”.
“Karma” refers to the behaviour or actions. The socalled “Karma Yoga” is requiring its believers to fulfill
individual’s social obligations and responsibilities
in a detached attitude, do not do anything with a
personal desire or self-interest, and do not care about
the success or failures, gains or losses of actions,
finally through this way to achieve liberation.
“Jnana” in the Bhagavadgītā refers to the Upanishad’s
wisdom of life and wisdom of Samkhya Philosophy.
The so-called “Jnana Yoga” is requiring the believers
to study the wisdom of the Upanishads and Samkhya
Philosophy, and to behave under the guidance
of this wisdom to ultimately achieve liberation.
The wisdom of the Upanishads refers to that the
human soul - “Atman” and the highest cosmic soul
- “Bráhman” are essentially the same, once a man is
enlightened with the truth of “Advaita Vedānta”, he
could achieve the highest ideal of life. The wisdom
of Samkhya Philosophy, refers to that all physical
phenomena in the world have “three virtues” (three
kinds of nature), human behaviour also has three
natures, namely good action, fearful action and dark
action, Krishna in Bhagavadgītā instructed Arjuna to
constantly keep the purity of the soul, not subject to
the “three natures” of action, do not seek personal
gain, not persistent with behavioral consequences,
selflessly fulfill his social responsibilities. “Bhakti”,
refers to the piety, reverence and faithfulness toward
the divinity. The so-called “Bhakti Yoga” in the
Bhagavadgītā is requiring the believers to worship
Krishna devoutly, regard all their actions as devotions
Krishna teaching flute
army of Kauravas. Being confronted of the killing
fight, he saw many relatives, friends and teachers
in the enemy camp. He was compassionate and he
was not ready to go to war with his own relatives.
He had no intention for the battle. At that time,
Krishna, in the embodiment of Arjuna’s royal hand
(ie the incarnation of Mahavisnu), started a serious
dialogue with him and instructed him that he should
not consider personal honour or disgrace, gains or
losses. Only through unswervingly fulfilling his own
mission, will be true loyalty to divinity and also the
noblest acts. Under Krishna’s instruction, Arjuna
finally abandoned personal affairs and followed the
principle of a warrior again and devoted himself into
the battle. Leaving aside the story, the fundamental
idea of Bhagavadgītā is to promote Hindu philosophy
500
Cultural Contacts
Indian national movement leader Mahatma Gandhi,
was incorporated in this book. The translation of
Bhagavadgītā into Chinese greatly promoted Chinese
people’s understanding on Hinduism and also helped
Chinese scholars to study Indian culture.
(Zhu Mingzhong)
to Krishna. Though Bhagavadgītā emphasised the
importance of Karma Yoga, it argued that to truly
understand and implement Karma Yoga, it must be
combined with Jnana Yoga and Bhakti Yoga. Only
through the mutual coordination of the three yogas,
the highest ideal of life - liberation could be achieved
as soon as possible.
Bhagavadgītā is well-known to all in India; it
occupies a high position and absolute authority
in the minds of Hindus. In modern times, many
advanced Hindu thinkers, like national independence
movement leader Tilak and Gandhi, etc., had made reinterpretation of Bhagavadgītā, and praised it highly as
the most important classic. They vigorously promoted
the noble spirits in Bhagavadgītā to firmly fulfill their
obligations (“Dharma”), abandon personal gains and
losses, and make selfless dedication. They took this
classic as a spiritual weapon to mobilise the people
for anti-British struggle. Tilak called on the Indian
people to follow the teachings of Bhagavadgītā, act
positively, and make more contributions to society,
serving the society was also serving the divinity.
Hiran Yasaptati
Hiran Yasaptati is an important work of Sankhya
in ancient Indian philosophy and is one of the main
reference of Samkhya-karika which is the ancient
fundamental literature of Sankhya. It was written
around the 5th century CE, but the author is unknown,
and the original Indian Sanskrit cannot be found
now. It was translated into Chinese by Paramartha
master staying in China in the 6th century CE.
The Chinese version is divided into three volumes,
namely, Volume I, Volume II and Volume III.
Hiran Yasaptati is the more ancient reference among
the five existing references of Samkhya-karika,
and it is very important for people to understand
the philosophy of ancient Sankhya. According to
its record, Samkhya-karika has 72 parts. In main
contents, it is consistent with other references, but
there are also some differences. In the explanation
of Sankhya thought, it is not completely the same
with other references. The main theory of Sankhya
is the two realities and 25 truths, the two realities
refer to Prakriti and Purusha, 25 truths refer to
Parinama-vada, causality, three-component theory
and reincarnation and liberation theory.
Samkhya-karika contained in Hiran Yasaptati and
its corresponding reference think that everything
in the world or life phenomenon is changed from
the interaction or combination of two entities.
These two entities are Prakriti and Purusha.
Prakriti, also known as “nature”, is the entity of
materiality. Purusha, also known as “Atman”, is
the entity of spirituality. Both are the fundamental
causes to create things, therefore they are called
as “two realities”. When Purusha acts on Prakriti,
Prakriti interior will begin to change and gradually
develop a variety of phenomena in the world.
Prakriti first evolves consciousness (be equivalent
to the rationality or intellectuality which is
deterministic and crucial), then consciousness
evolves “me” (that is self-awareness or ego), and
on one hand, “me” evolves “eleven organs” (eye,
ear, nose, tongue, skin, voice, hand, foot, excretory
organ, reproductive organ and heart), on the other
hand, it also evolves “five subtle elements” (sight,
sound, smell, taste and touch). Finally, “five subtle
elements” create five gross elements (earth, water,
fire, wind and space). Thus, Prakriti, Purusha,
consciousness, me, eleven organs, five subtle
elements and five gross elements form the so-called
“twenty-five truths”.
Dasavatara
The thoughts of Bhagavadgītā had been introduced
to China very early. In 1940s, Jin Kemu had
introduced the philosophy of Bhagavadgītā to students
in the courses opened for Indian philosophy at Wuhan
University and Peking University. However, the
actual translation work of Bhagavadgītā from Sanskrit
into Chinese was made in 1980s. Today, there are
two versions of Chinese Bhagavadgītā, one version
was translated by Zhang Baosheng (in 1989), another
one was translated by Huang Baosheng (in 2010).
These two versions have made a lot of comments
on the original work, and made elaboration of
the philosophy contained in it. Zhang Baosheng’s
translation was republished in 2007, in this edition he
added a new content, that is, Preface to the Translation
of Bhagavadgītā which was written in 1929 by
501
Cultural Contacts
literatures of Sankhya exert a great influence upon
the Indian intellectual history. Until the modern
times, many Indian thinkers still refer to or adopt
the opinions of Sankhya in building the theoretical
system.
Hiran Yasaptati exerts certain influence on ancient
Chinese ideology history, and receives many attention
from the Buddhists. The famous translator of Buddhist
scripture - Paramartha completes its translation. It
is also brought into the Buddhist Tripitaka in later
generations. In the eyes of Buddhists, it is a complete
foreign literature, and receiving such attention in
ancient China is extremely rare.
Hiran Yasaptati also receives the attention of the
modern Chinese scholars. There are many scholars
studying it, and they have published many papers
on this aspect in Chinese academic journals. Many
Indian philosophy or religious writings published
in China also involve its study or introduction. And
it also appears in the Indian philosophy courses
opened in China’s colleges and universities.
(Yao Weiqun)
According to the Hiran Yasaptati, Prakriti interior
evolved into the fundamental entities consists of
three components, being called “trigunas”, namely,
Satta, Rajas and Tamas, and their respective
characteristics are joy, pain and sloth. Purusha
represents the cripple who can only see the
direction but cannot walk, while Prakriti represents
the blind that can only walk but cannot see the
direction. Only by the cooperation that the cripple
rides on the blind, can both go forward smoothly.
Dasapadarthasastra
Daśapadārthaśāstra is an important work of
Vaiśeṣika in ancient Indian philosophy. It was
likely written in the 6th century CE and authored
by Maticandra. Original Sanskrit version was failed
to be handled down from past generations in India.
In the 7th century CE, it was translated into Chinese
in one volume by eminent Chinese Buddhist monk
Xuanzang of the Tang Dynasty.
Philosophy theories stated in Daśapadārthaśāstra
are quite different from other two major Vaiśeṣika
literatures stored in India which are Vaiśeṣika-sūtra
and Padārtha-dharma-saṁgraha.
Since foundation, Vaiśeṣika devoted to discuss
types and basic forms of natural phenomena. This
school proposed the theory of padārthas (categories)
and believed that categories are solid materials
relative to views or concepts. And things in the
world are constructed by several categories which
are the basic theory frame of Daśapadārthaśāstra. All
of the philosophy thoughts are contained in the ten
categories.
Vaiśeṣika-sūtra, the original fundamental classic
of Vaiśeṣika, believed that there are six basic
categories ie dravya-padārtha (substance), gunapadārtha (attribute), karma-padārtha (action),
sāmānya-padārtha (universal), viśesa-padārtha
(particularity), and samavāya-padārtha (inherence).
However, Daśapadārthaśāstra thought that there
are 10 padārthas, adding four categories to six
basic categories of Vaiśeṣika-sūtra, which are śaktipadārthas (potentiality), aśakti-padārthas (nonpotentiality), sādrśya-padārthas (commonness) and
abhāva-padārthas (non-existence).
Annotated Hiranyasaptati
Similarly, only combine the Prakriti which only
have materiality with Purusha which only have
spirituality (Purusha plays an observation and
caring role on Prakriti), can they create twentythree truths, that is, evolves the everything in the
world or life phenomena.
The causality theory in Hiran Yasaptati holds that
“the cause contains the effect”. That is to say, the
ever-changing things in the world have the nature
of the effect, and any effect is just the evolution from
the cause. The effects have been contained in the
causes of all things. The effect hides in the cause,
cause and effect are respectively the hidden state
and visible state of the same thing, and the cause
condition and effect condition of the same thing.
As to the reincarnation, Hiran Yasaptati divides it
into three categories, namely natural law, animal
law and humanity.
As to the liberation, Hiran Yasaptati holds that
the fundamental way of shuffling off this suffering
is to know the truth revealed by Sankhya. That is,
people can know the theory of “two realities and 25
truths” of Sankhya by the learning and experience
of the truth of Sankhya philosophy to prevent the
integration of Prakriti and Purusha, thus, completely
annihilate Samsara to achieve the liberation. The
theories put forward in Hiran Yasaptati and other
502
Cultural Contacts
Karma-padārtha refers to action form of things.
There are five actions, which are action throwing
upward, action throwing downward, action
contracting, action expanding and action going.
Sāmānya-padārtha refers to generality or universality
among things. Universality in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra refers
to relative sameness among things and existence of
things. But universality in Daśapadārthaśāstra only
refers to existence. In Vaiśeṣika’s opinion, this quality
is shared by all existed things.
Viśesa-padārtha refers to particularity or
otherness among things in Vaiśeṣika. In Vaiśeṣikasūtra, it refers to relatively different relations
among things and final differences of things. But
in Daśapadārthaśāstra, particularity, only refers to
final differences of things. In Vaiśeṣika’s opinion,
everything has particularities to differentiate itself
from other things.
Samavāya-padārtha refers to inseparable causality
related to substance and attribute of things. Inherence
is inner connection existed in things. In Vaiśeṣika’s
opinion, differences of each category are concept.
But in fact, they are all united in substances. It is
inherence which generates the inseparable relation
between substances and attributes.
Śakti-padārthas refers to the inherent connection
in substances, attributes and actions. Potentiality
is indispensable for them to produce their own
common effect co-operatively or their own
particular effects independently. And it is related to
generation or formation of things, which plays a part
in generation of specific substance. This category
could only be found in Daśapadārthaśāstra. There
is no such category in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra and Padārthadharma-saṁgraha.
Aśakti-padārthas refers to the inherent connection in
substances, attributes and actions. Non-potentiality
is indispensable for them to prevent from producing
other effects co-operatively or independently. And
it is related to the matter that substance could not
or will not be generated in specific condition. This
category could only be found in Daśapadārthaśāstra.
There is no such category in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra and
Padārtha-dharma-saṁgraha.
Sādrśya-padārthas refers to relative universalities
and particularities among things that universalities
are limited to existence, particularities are limited to
final distinctiveness, and the rest relative universalities
and particularities are another category. Commonness
could only be found in Daśapadārthaśāstra, however,
it is related to some contents in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra and
Padārtha-dharma-saṁgraha.
Vaiśeṣika-sūtra
and
Padārtha-dharma-saṁgraha believe that universalities
and particularities are relative that they depend
on the perspective human being considered. In
some circumstance, some concepts are considered
as universalities which would be considered as
‘Daśapadārthaśāstra (Sheng zong shiju yilun)’, Dazheng edition
Meanings of these 10 categories are as follow:
Dravya-padārtha refers to substance of things.
Nine substances are Pṛthvī (earth), Ap (water), Tejas
(fire), Vāyu (wind), Ākaśa (ether), Kāla (time), Dik
(space), Ātman (self) and Manas (mind). Among
these nine substances, the first four substances
(earth, water, fire and wind) are material elements
which are formed by atoms and their compounds.
The fifth substance (Ākaśa) refers to spaciousness
which is medium of sound transmission. Things
could move in this substance. The sixth substance
(Kāla) refers to time. And the reason why people
realise the concept of present, past, synchronization,
non-synchronisation, slowness, and quickness is the
existence of this substance. The seventh substance
(Dik) refers to space or location. Because of the
existence of this substance, people could generate
the concept of east, south, west, north, up, and down.
The eighth substance (Ātman) refers to individual
spirit or subjectivity of consciousness. Different
bodies have different selves, and the existence of
selves is confirmed by many biological phenomena.
The ninth substance (Manas) refers to the link (an
internal sense) between self and several external
senses. When five senses get in touch with external
environments, people sometimes generate cognition,
sometimes not. And this is the existence of minds.
Guna-padārtha refers to static qualities or
attributes. There are 24 attributes, which are
colour, taste, smell, touch, number, extension,
individuality, conjunction, disjunction, priority,
posteriority, cognition, pleasure, pain, desire,
aversion, effort, gravity, fluidity, viscidity,
impression, merit, demerit, and sound. First four
attributes individually belong to earth, water,
fire, and wind. Fifth to 11th attributes are related
to relations or forms of things. Twelfth to 17th
attributes are related to qualities or forms of life.
Eighteen to 20 attributes are related to modalities
of objects. Twenty-first to 23rd attributes are
related to potential force or usage of human
behaviours. Twenty-forth is the substance ether.
The 24 attributes stated in Daśapadārthaśāstra are
different from those in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra. There are
only 17 attributes founded in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra.
503
Cultural Contacts
All ancient India philosophy schools discussed
cognitions. There are two cognitions discussed in
Daśapadārthaśāstra which are perception and inference.
It believed that there are three kinds of perceptions. The
first perception is produced by contact of four (factors)
that self, mind, sense-organs and objects are combined
to produce perception. The second perception is
produced by contact of three (factors) that self, mind
and sense-organs are combined to produce perception.
The third perception is produced by contact of two
(factors) that self and mind are combined to produce
perception. Inference discussed in Daśapadārthaśāstra
is of two kinds. The first one is inference from seeing a
common property. For instance, fire can be deducted
from seeing smoke. In this case, smoke and fire exist
at the same time. The second one is inference form not
seeing a common property. For instance, rain can be
deducted by dark clouds. In this case, dark clouds and
rain cannot exist at the same time. Details of cognitions
in Daśapadārthaśāstra are different from cognitions in
Vaiśeṣika-sūtra.
Statements about universality and particularity,
time and space, and actions in Daśapadārthaśāstra
are similar with related statements in Vaiśeṣikasūtra. There are some differences in expression, but
they are the same in essence.
Daśapadārthaśāstra did not have much impact in
ancient India. But it was translated into Chinese
by Xuanzang, and spread in China. It is a work of
India philosophy school, and it is not belonging
to Buddhism. But it is included in Chinese
Tripiṭaka. Thus it can be seen that it was valued
by Chinese Buddhist in the ancient times. The ten
categories are always mentioned when Vaiśeṣika
is discussed in translated or Chinese Buddhism
works. And they are considered as an important
Vaiśeṣika theory after Vaiśeṣika-sūtra. This theory
is often reported and criticized in ancient Chinese
Buddhism works.
Daśapadārthaśāstra is highly emphasised in the
modern and contemporary history of China. There
are papers about it in academic journals in modern
China. And contents on this subject could also be
found in treatises or textbooks of India religious
philosophy published in modern Chinese history.
(Yao Weiqun)
particularities in other circumstances. For instance,
substance-ness (substance) as a concept is different
from category, because it is merely one of the
categories. But it is universal to earth, water, fire
and wind, because earth, water, fire and wind
belong to substance. Relative universalities and
particularities are not treated as an independent
category in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra and Padārtha-dharmasaṁgraha. In Daśapadārthaśāstra, particularity only
refers to final distinctiveness (ultimate particularity)
and universality only refers to the existence (status
of being) of things. Daśapadārthaśāstra separates
relative universalities and particularities from the
category universality and the category particularity,
and founds the category commonness.
Abhāva-padārthas refers to the non-existence
status. The five non-existences are antecedent nonexistence, subsequent non-existence, reciprocal
non-existence, absolute non-existence, and natural
non-existence. Antecedent non-existence refers to
the non-existence status before effect is produced;
subsequent non-existence refers to the non-existence
status after things have been destroyed; reciprocal
non-existence refers to the non-existence status that
things are not mutually present in others; absolute
non-existence refers to the non-existence status that
things cannot be produced in the past, the present,
and the future; natural non-existence refers to the
non-existence status that one thing would not abide
in one another. This category could only be found
in Daśapadārthaśāstra. There is no such category
in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra, however, some statements in
Vaiśeṣika-sūtra are related to the category nonexistence. Vaiśeṣika-sūtra mentions some nonexistence status but not defining them as a category.
Although Daśapadārthaśāstra contains more
categories than Vaiśeṣika-sūtra and Padārtha-dharmasaṁgraha, practical matters discussed in these works
are similar. These categories refer to philosophy
matters such as atoms, cognitions, universality and
particularity, time and space, and actions.
Atoms are considered as the minimum unit of
substance by Vaiśeṣika. In Daśapadārthaśāstra, The
four gross elements - earth, water, fire and wind of
substance are atoms and their compounds. Atoms of
different species have certain qualities, for instance,
earth has colour, taste, smell and touch; water has
colour, taste, touch, fluidity and viscidity; fire has
colour and touch; wind has touch. Original action
of atoms is related to merit and demerit. Merit and
demerit is an invisible power which is called invisible
force in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra. It can cause the action of atoms
and the production of some natural phenomena.
Atoms can create all kinds of species, however, atoms
cannot be produced by other substances. And atoms
are indestructible. Atoms in Daśapadārthaśāstra are
similar with atoms in Vaiśeṣika-sūtra.
EVENTS
Debate between Buddhism
and Daoism
In ancient history of China, the Buddhists and
Daoists have ever conducted a long-term and
continuous debate, which is involved in Theory of
Religions, and, at the same time, embodies secular
contradictions at different times.
504
Cultural Contacts
“benefit other countries while betraying our
own country, where is the so-called morality and
justice?”, and resisted dissemination of Buddhism. A
Daoist in Southern Qi entrusted Zhang Rong to write
Sanpolun, which stated: “Buddhism will destroy
a country, a family and even a person once it is
accepted”. Buddhists felt very angry and published
many works, such as Zhengwulun, as their response.
In their opinion, Buddhism was earlier than Daoism
and Lao Zi is the disciple of Buddha, so Buddhism
should be the orthodox religion. In addition, they
thought that Daoists were just “starting a rebellion”
and “confusing people with immoral religion”. Liu
Xie said: “introduction of Daoism just coincided
with rebellion of common people, so things remain
essentially the same. The rebellion started by Zhang
Jiao and Li Hong poisoned minds of ordinary
people; Lu Xun and Sun En harassed at the end of
Jin Dynasty. There are many people like them were
involved in these events.” In his opinion, troubled
times at the end of Han and Jin Dynasty were all
caused by Daoism. During the period of Emperor
Xiaoming in the Northern Wei Dynasty (520), Jiang
Bin, a Daoist in Qingtong Temple, and Tan Mozui, a
monk in Rongjue Temple, conducted a discussion on
“Lao Zi and Buddha” finally Jiang Bin was exiled to
Mayi County for the rest of his life. During the period
of Emperor Wenxuan in Northern Qi Dynasty (555),
Lu Xiujing, a Daoist, together with his disciples,
competed with people at higher level and masters.
It is recorded in Buddhism-Daoism Balance from
Ancient to Modern Times: “In September of the sixth
year of Tianbao, 10 Daoism and Buddhism scholars
gathered to proofread the theory in person.” The
debate was finally judged by the Emperor, and it was
stated in the imperial edict that Daoism was “false”.
But common people had not been aware of the fact,
so he put a ban on Daoism. They had to follow
the Emperor’s order, and from then on, merely a
religion was allowed. Buddhism-Daoism Balance from
Ancient to Modern Times is the Buddhism classics
in later ages, the processes recorded in it were not
necessarily true, but results of the debate were facts.
In the third year of Tianhe (568), Emperor Wu
of Northern Zhou gave a speech in Book of Rites,
with more than one hundred officials, Daoists and
monks as his audience. “In February of the fourth
year of Tianhe, the Emperor gave a speech to more
than one hundred officials, Daoists and monks.”
“In spring of Jiande (572), the Emperor came to
Xuandu Temple for accepting the master’s revealing
in secular suffering, and then returned to the palace.
In December of the second year, the Emperor,
gave a speech in the three religions, Confucianism
first, then Daoism and finally Buddhism, to all his
officials, Daoists and monks”. Emperor Wu had ever
organised many times of Buddhism-Daoism Debate,
‘Scripture on Lao Zi Revealing Barbarians (Lao Zi hua hu jing)’
Buddhism is, originally, a foreign religion, but
becomes more and more popular with Chinese;
while Daoism is a local religion under gradual
improvement after introduction of Buddhism. In
the early times, both religions depended on each
other, namely that Taoism absorbed a part of
doctrine from Buddhism, which, at the same time,
took over the words used in Daoism. However,
with dissemination and generalisation of Buddhism
in China, conflict, which led to several times of
debates, occurred between Buddhism and Taoism.
Later, with further development of Buddhism and
Daoism, a trend of integration emerged. There are
many important literatures collected in BuddhismTaoism Debate, including Hongmingji, Guang
Hongmingji, Buddhism-Daoism Balance from Ancient
to Modern Times, Theory for Smiting Evil, Beishan
Record and Follow-up of Buddhism-Daoism Balance
from Ancient to Modern Times.
At the end of East Han, it was stated in Lihuolun,
wrote by Mourong, that Buddhism was superior
to Daoism. The book advocated: “Buddha is the
ancestor of morality and spirit of gods; Daoism to
Buddhism is what hill is to Huaheng and Juandu
is to Estuary Sea.” During the period of Emperor
Jinhui, Wang Fu, a Daoist, and Bo Yuan, a Buddhist,
ever conducted a debate on which religion stands
for justice and which represents evil. It was Wang
Fu who, by virtue of Xiangkai’s word: “Lao Zi
came to barbarians as a Buddhist monk”, faked
the Scripture on Lao Zi’s Revealing Barbarians and
initiated the Buddhism-Daoism Debate. During
the ninth year of Yuanjia in Southern Dynasty
(432), He Chengtian wrote an essay, Baoyingwen,
for the purpose of questioning cause and effect,
and later, theory conflicts came to an official start
between Buddhism and Daoism. Until the Southern
Qi Dynasty, Guhuan wrote Yixialun, which read:
505
Cultural Contacts
with an initial purpose of resisting Buddhism and
advocating Daoism. However, drawbacks of Daoism
were fully revealed during these debates, so he
sent out an imperial edict: “considering that both
Buddhism and Daoism have many drawbacks, all
the monks and Daoists should resume secular life.”
From then on, Buddhism and Daoism had been loss
in both sides.
During the third year of Sui Dynasty, Emperor Wen
came to a Daoist Temple for watching the statue of
Lao Zi who was revealing the Northern barbarian
tribes. He felt very strange and then called on Zhang
Bin, a Daoist, and Yan Zong, a monk, to participate
in the discussion. Specific discussion process was
not recorded, but Yan Zong, in accordance with the
discussion, wrote Bianjiaolun to refute the saying of
“Lao Zi’s revealing the Northern barbarian tribes”.
During the 13th year of Zhenguan Period (639),
Huijing gave a lecture named Fahua, and Cai Huang,
a Daoist, upon receiving Emperor Gaozong’s order,
debate against Huijing. In early Tang Dynasty, Xiao
Yu, the crown prince of former Dynasty, “always
wrote his word but never went to the court”, and
this annoyed Emperor Taizong, who, later, gave
an edict, which pointed out that falling of Liang
Dynasty was resulted from Buddhism. Although no
ban was put on Buddhism, he explicitly stipulated:
“as for logical disclosure, Daoists and female Daoists
should be prior to Buddhist monks and nuns. If we
receive moralisation of our own religion, you will
enjoy much more things; if we follow our ancestor’s
custom, we will benefit from it forevelar.” During
the period of Emperor Zhongzong (reigned 705710), Faming, a monk, went to Chang’an for visiting
eminent monks and got to know Buddhists and
Daoists were appointed to judge the authenticity of
Scripture of Fahuchengfo. Faming did not participate
in at first, but later found that conclusions cannot
be drawn, so he requested one of the Daoists: “now
that Lao Zi revealed the Northern barbarian tribes
to be Buddhists, did he speak Chinese or speak
Barbarian? If he spoke Chinese, the barbarian
could not understand; and if he spoke Barbarian,
the scripture must be translated. Have you checked
when the scripture was written, in which dynasty,
who spoke the Barbarian, and who was the author?
After listening to these questions, the Daoist
had nothing to say in reply. During the period of
Shenlong (705), Emperor Zhongzong gave an order
in September 14: “abolish the false scripture (refers
to Scripture of Laozihuahu) and carve it on a stone
in Baima Temple for use as reference in the future.”
Buddhism-Daoism Debate lasted until the flourishing
Tang Dynasty. During the 18th year of Yuan Dynasty
(730), a debate on advantages and disadvantages
of Buddhism and Daoism was conducted in Hua’e
Building. Daoyin, a monk, was so eloquent in
Guang Hong Ming Ji
debate and Yin Qian, a Daoist, gave an incoherent
reply and unable to advance any further agreements
to justify himself. It was obvious that the debate was
ended up with Daoism’s failure. According to New
Book of Tang wrote by Zhixuan: “when Wuzong
governed the whole country, he originally believed
in Buddhism, and later he, after listening to the
wrong people, ordered his officials to build a high
platform in Mount Penglan to pray for immortality.
All advices given by his officials could never change
his minds.” However, during the period of Emperor
Wuzong (reigned 840-846), Wuzong believed in
Daoism, and ever called on Daoists and monks
to carry out a debate on the question: “can we
cultivate immorality?” “Governing a country is like
a cooking” was taken as debated topic. Zhixuan said:
“moralisation is the root of governing a country,
while the so-called immorality cultivation is the
career taken up by hermits lived in woods, and it, at
the same time, requires natural gifts to some extent.
So it is not suitable for the King.” At that time,
Zhixuan was so eloquent in the debate and what
he said shocked all the listeners, who thought that
his words went against the Emperor’s order; and
his neighbours, worried that he may be exiled and
thought it was a pity that his talents in debate may
be buried. However, under the support of Emperor
Wuzong, Daoists won in the debate, and from then
on, “Exterminating Buddhism in Huichang” started.
In August of the fifth year (845), the Emperor
gave orders to officially exterminate Buddhism.
Later, more than 4,600 temples were pulled down,
2,60,500 Buddhist monks and nuns resumed secular
life, over 40,000 private temples and Buddhist
monasteries were abolished, approximately 10
506
Cultural Contacts
convenience of generalisation, learned from Daoism
and took it as initial approach to become a Buddhist
believer. However, debate between Buddhism and
Daoism never came to an end. During the fifth
year of Emperor Xianzong in Yuan Dynasty (1255),
Daoist Li Zhichang and Buddhist monk Fuyu had
ever conducted a debate in front of the palace hall,
with the authenticity of Scripture of Laozihuahu and
Eighty-one Huatu of Lao Zi as debated topic. This
debate was also ended up with failure of Daoism,
and the “false scripture” was burnt and 37 temples
were returned. During the period of Ming and Qing
Dynasty, there were few fierce debates between
Buddhism and Daoism, and integration of them, to
the contrary, was strengthened. Zhu Hong, Zhen
Ke, De Qing and Zhi Xu, the four eminent monks
in Ming Dynasty, promoted Buddhism with an idea
that the three religions were homologous; while
Daoists expounded Daoist’s theory with Buddhist’s
theory. Zhang San-feng said in Xuwupian: “nihility
is just the purpose of Buddhism”. The saying
that “in recent times, Buddhism is the spirit of
natural gifts, Daoism is the spirit of receives, and
Quanzhen Daoism is for cultivation of both natural
gifts and receives” in Daomenshigui embodied the
characteristics of Buddhism-Daoism integration.
Wu Shouyang, a Daoist in the Late Ming Dynasty,
ever wrote the Xianfohezong, in which the method
for inner alchemy in Daoism was directly combined
with mediation in Buddhism.
(Jiang Julang)
million qing of fertile farmland was confiscated, and
1,50,000 slaves and maid-servants were recorded
to double-tax family. Li Deyu, the prime minister,
offered his congratulations to the Emperor and
criticised in Celebration on Demolishing Temples:
“Buddhism poisons people’s mind, buries the
principle taxes, and has degraded the country for
more than a thousand years.”
During the period of Jin Dynasty and Yuan
Dynasty, Quanzhen Daoism actively learned from
Buddhist theory, and imitated Buddhism in many
Eighty-one Huatu of Lao Zi (Lao Zi bashiyi huatu)
aspects, including dogmata, doctrine, as well as
disciplines and monastic rules. Wang Chongyang
even asserted: “Daoism and Buddhism was originally
from the same family, and whether viewing from
the form and theory, they are the same”, and
advised people to read Heart Sutra. Buddhists, for
507
Cultural Contacts
Cultural Contacts
VI
Linguistics
509
Cultural Contacts
510
Cultural Contacts
Linguistics
511
Cultural Contacts
Linguistics
overview
Cultural exchange among people began with
their initial efforts to learn each other’s language.
In the early phase of contact between India and
China, both countries had, therefore, rightly taken
necessary steps and measures in their attempts to
understand each other’s language and script.
It may be noted that ancient Indian scholars
used to attach great importance to the study of
their language and exploring new knowledge on
linguistics. Their script belonged to the category
of alphabetic writing (phonetic script) and for
this reason, they focussed a great deal of attention
on the study of speech sounds. Their books on
grammar appeared in the pre-Christian era and
they had also developed and arranged their
alphabets based on certain scientific study and
analysis. But unlike India, the Chinese in ancient
times did not pay much attention to grammar or
pronunciation though they had also conducted
useful research on scriptography (study of scripts).
Hence, work on Chinese grammar began relatively
later. However, with the spread of Buddhism to
China, the Indian linguistic scholars helped to
promote the study of Chinese linguistics by the
Chinese and there was a great impact, particularly
in the area study of Chinese phonology, grammar
and lexicography.
Before the Common era, no later than 2nd century
BCE, the people of China and India both knew each
other’s spoken and written languages but there is no
clear evidence on record in this regard. However,
Kumarajiva, Understanding the Rhymes (Tong Yun), Dunhuang
Remnants S1344v2
from the 1st-6th century CE, according to the records
in the Biographies of Eminent Monks, the Indian
monks who visited China from 1st-3rd century CE, had
acquired a thorough understanding of the Chinese
language, and were engaged in the translation
of Buddhist scriptures of alphabetic writing with
active assistance of Chinese monks. During the
3rd and 4th centuries CE, there were several monks
who were fluent in both Sanskrit and Chinese. For
example, the Kapisa (present day Kashmir) monk,
Sanghadeva (Seng-jia-ti-po), after staying several
years in China, was able to 'have a thorough grasp
of Sanskrit, and spoke the Jin dialects fluently'.
Faxian and Kumarajiva are outstanding examples of
monks who were quite proficient in both Sanskrit
and Chinese.
During this period, the Chinese scholars had
also developed some understanding of the Indian
phonology in the course of translation of the
Buddhist scriptures. Dharmaraksa (vide the entry)
had translated the Lalitavistara Sutra (Pu Yao jing)
in eight volumes in the second year of the reign of
Yong Jia ie, in 308 CE, and Jnanagupta (vide the
entry) translated the Sutra of Buddha’s Fundamental
Deeds in 60 volumes during the 7th to 12th year of
the reign of Kai Huang i.e., from 587-592 CE. It may
be noted that the account offered by them on the
'Sixty-four scripts (shu)' was actually a reference to
the 64 kinds of Chinese characters and it talks about
'Qin Shu' or the Qin script (written as 'Cina-lipi',
namely the Chinese calligraphy). This shows that
Kuchean (Tocharian) language manuscripts unearthed in Xinjiang, China
512
Cultural Contacts
same in transcribing Chinese characters. Further, it
was during this early phase of the Sui Dynasty (581618 CE), that Lu Fayan, a descendant of an official
family, raised and discussed some concrete issues
on the transcription of the Chinese characters along
with Yan Zhitui (531-?) and eight other scholars
of his time. The results of this team work is to be
found in the compilation of the five volumes of “qieyun” under the leadership of Lu Fayan during the
reign of the Emperor Wen (personal name Yang
Jian) of the Sui Dynasty. This particular work of
Qie Yun, the rhyming dictionary, then proved to
be the most authoritative among various Chinese
linguistic works. It may be noted that the two more
rhyming dictionaries of much scholarly value such
as the 'Tang-yun' of Sun Mian of 8th century of the
Tang period and 'Guang-yun' of Chen Fengnian (961
~1017 CE)of the Song period were based on the
earlier 'Qie-yun' dictionary.
Four Tones Three Questions (Si sheng san wen), Chen Yinque
the ancient Indians had also, by that time, noticed
the unique features of the Chinese language and
characters. Further, the 26th volume of Mahisasaka
Vinaya (《Wu fen Lu》), which was translated
during the first half of the 5th century CE, mentions
the fundamentals of Sanskrit grammar, such as
long and short vowels, the voiced and the voiceless
features of the consonants, gender and number
features of nouns and the tense aspects of the
verbs, etc. The fifth volume of Mahanirvana Sutra
(《Da Nie Pan-jing》) further talks about Indian
grammar, the Vyakarana-sastra (《Pi jia luo lun》),
which had attracted much attention from Chinese
scholars like Xie Lingyun (385-433 CE) and Shen
Yue (441~513 CE). Both of these two scholars had
thus, for the first time, made an intensive study on
phonology and written much about this subject.
Their contribution towards the growth of Chinese
phonology is noteworthy and commendable.
Commenting on Shen Yue’s linguistic works and
his acquaintance with and knowledge of Sanskrit
studies, the 14th volume of Dream Pool essays
(《Meng xi bi tan》) written by Shen Kuo (10311095 CE) during the Song dynasty rightly says,
“The study of phonology and the discovery of the
four tones by Shen Yue is closely linked with the
introduction of Sanskrit learning in China. All the
linguistic scholars of China from Song Dynasty to
the Qing Dynasty believed in this theory, and even
the modern phonologists like Luo Changpei, Wang
Li, etc, also uphold this view."
As part of the phonological study, as many as five
to six Rhyming Dictionaries such as the Collection of
Rhyming (yun-ji) by Lu Jing and the Brief Account
on Rhmying by Xia Houyong were compiled during
the time of Western Jin to Southern and Northern
Dynasty (265-589 CE). The Chinese people had then
developed the 'fan-qie' method and started using the
7th-10th century CE
From the beginning of the 7th century, more
knowledge and information on the Indian languages
was transmitted to China through the translations
of Buddhist texts, and through the visit of a large
number of Chinese monks to India in search of
Buddhist scriptures. For example, the second volume
of Xuanzang’s Great Tang Records on the Western
Region (《Da Tang Xi Yu ji》) introduces Panini’s
(vide the entry) 'phonology' 《Sheng Ming Lun》
(vide the entry). The third volume of the Greater
Grace Temple Tripitaka Master (《Da Ci-en Si Sanzang Fashi Zhuan, vide the entry), mentions all the
grammar that Xuanzang had learnt when he travelled
through India. Again, in the fourth volume of the
Western School of Law and in Account of Buddhism
Dispatched from the South Seas (《Nan hai ji-gui neifa
Zhuan》, vide the entry), there is a comprehensive
The ‘Records of the Siddham Script (Xitan ziji)’,
mentions ‘letters of an alphabet’
description on ancient Indian grammar. The
influence of all these Indian written texts on China
had thus become increasingly reflective, the most
typical example being the Tibetan script which took
on its initial shape quite successfully imitating the
Sanskrit written text during this period.
513
Cultural Contacts
In 1271 CE before the establishment of the Yuan
Dynasty, Kublai Khan (vide the entry) had ordered
the State Teacher Pagba (vide the entry) to create
the Mongolian script along the lines of the Sanskrit
scripts, which were formalised in 1269 CE though
the use of these were later discontinued
But it is to be admitted that although there was
frequent reference to the term 'phonology' in the
translations of the Sanskrit Buddhist sutras into
Chinese, and both the Indian monks visiting China
and the Chinese monks were well-acquainted with
this term, yet the Chinese people failed to carry out
any substantial research on Chinese grammar before
the introduction of Sanskrit grammar in China.
Compilation of Dictionaries
Another area in which the impact of Indian phonology
on the growth of Chinese linguistic works became
increasingly known was that of lexicography. The
need and task of translating the Indian Buddhist
literature in Sanskrit into Chinese led to the growth
of awareness among the scholars of the Chinese
Buddhist community to have Sanskrit-Chinese
dictionaries. The Chinese monks compiled several
volumes of such dictionaries. Among these the
most important were the 25 volumes of Sounds and
Meanings of the Scriptures (Yiqie jing Yinyi) by Xuan
Ying (circa 7 CE, vide the entry) and 100 volumes
of Sounds and Meanings of the Scriptures by Hui Lin
(737-820 CE, vide the entry). Later, the former was
often referred to as Xuan Ying’s Sounds and Meanings
and the latter was known as Hui Lin’s Sounds and
Meanings, just to bring about the distinction between
the two. These are the two major reference books
which have played an important role in the history
of compilation of Chinese dictionaries.
The period from late 10th century to early 11th
century marked another period of resurgence of
translation of Buddhist scriptures in China and the
The concept of alphabet
Around the 5th century CE, Chinese, people came
to know about the concept of 'letter' (alphabet)
from the Buddhist scriptures, and it was termed
'half word' by them in the beginning. Sometimes,
it was also known as the 'knob'. By the 8th century,
Sanskrit Textbook, a hand-carved mimeograph, Peking University, 1979
the Shaman Zhi Guang (vide the entry) acquired
understanding and knowledge about 'letter' (zimu) while studying the Tuo-luo-ni Sutra (Dharani).
This was with the help of the South Indian monk
Prajnanabodhi, who mentioned the term “letter”
(zi-mu) in the Records of the Siddham (《Xi Tan
ziji》). A significant development in the history of
Chinese phonology was noted after this where a
Chinese monk named Shou Wen of the 10th century,
for the first time, formulated 30 Chinese alphabets.
Around the 11th century, six more alphabets were
added to the earlier 30 alphabets of Shou Wen
which thus became the very famous '36 letters'.
These 'letters' were used to represent the initials
of the Chinese characters and that helped in the
simplification and standardisation of the initials
of the Chinese syllables (characters). Many other
works concerning this, were brought out later
which had become very popular in facilitating the
study and pronunciation of the Chinese characters
with some degree of uniformity. For instance, the
alphabets listed in the Yun Lue Yi Tong(韵略易
通) and Wu Fang Yuan Yin(五方元音) of the 15th
and 16th centuries were very similar to the modern
Pinyin initials B, P, M, F, D, T, N, L and so on.
Hundred Family Surnames in Phags-pa script
study of Indian grammar continued to influence
Chinese phonology. The 14th and 15th volume of the
Dream Pool Essays by Shen Kuo extensively talks
about the issues of Chinese and Sanskrit phonology
which proved to be quite comprehensive and
authoritative. As an impact of all this academic
interest in Indian grammar, many new dictionaries
514
Cultural Contacts
1st-6th century CE: According to Lu Cheng
(refer to Lu Cheng’s entry), An Shih-kao (refer
to An Shihkao’s entry) and Lokaksema (refer to
Lokaksema’s entry) must be considered as the
earliest translators in China. An Shih-kao was from
Parthia. His scriptures were altogether 39, which
maintained righteous argumentation, fair and
proper writing, natural words, plain but not vulgar
letters. An Shih-kao’s writing set solid foundation
for translators of later generations. Lokaksema
was from Yuezhi and whatever he translated
from Sanskrit amounted to over 10 scriptures in
translation. His translation was true to the original
text and maintained a plain style. In the 2nd century
CE, there were Indian, central Asian and Chinese
translators of the Buddhist scriptures and they often
worked together. Their work could be divided into
three parts: Kou-xuan (reading the original text),
Chuan-yan (interpretation) and Bi-shou (writing
into texts).
It was found that the number of translators of
Buddhist literature greatly increased during the
3rd century mainly represented by Zhi Qian (refer
to Zhi Qian’s entry) and Dharmarakasha (refer to
Dharmarakasha’s entry). Zhi Qian translated 36
books and 48 volumes. His translation tried to fit
into Chinese taste, thus relatively magnificent.
Dharmarakasha translated a good deal of Buddhist
scriptures that mainly included 175 books and 354
volumes. Yet most of his work didn’t come down.
His translation style was comparatively plain.
There were many translators in 4th century CE,
mainly represented by Dao An (refer to Dao An’s
entry) and Kumarajiva (refer to Kumarajiva’s
entry). Dao An contributed to the task of translation
in many ways. He developed a theory of 'Wu Shi
Ben'(五失本); 'San Bu Yi'(三不易). 'Wu Shi Ben'
meant that the translator would delete repeated,
trivial and cumbersome words to be found in the
original texts of Buddhism and make it fit into a
pattern and taste of Chinese expression. 'San Bu
Yi' refers to three different types of situations that
the translators usually encounter. This theory had
profound influence on the translation work of
later generations.
Kumarajiva occupies a very important place in the
history of Chinese translation. First, he translated
a great number of Buddhist scriptures including 74
books and 384 volumes (Catalogues of Kai Yuan
Buddhist Books - volume 4). Secondly, he paid full
attention to his predecessors’ success and failure
in translation. He treated translation carefully
and combined literal and free translation. Thirdly,
unlike former translators who substituted concepts
of Buddhist scriptures with metaphysical terms and
words, he tried to innovate new and simple ways of
expressions. He invented Buddhist terminology for
appeared during the 11th century of the Song Period.
For example, the few that may be mentioned here
are: Tian zhu Zi Yuan (天竺字源) compiled by Fa Hu
and Wei Jing in seven volumes, Xu Yiqie Jing Yinyi
(续一切经音义) compiled by Xi Lin in 10 volumes,
Long Kan Shou Jian (龙龛手鉴) by Xing Jun in four
volumes and Shi Shi Yao Lan (释氏要览) by Dao
Cheng in three volumes.
The impact of Indian linguistic works on China
continued till the 18th century. In 1750, the
newly compiled set of Traditional Rhyme with Text
(Tong Wen Yun Tong) caught the attention of
Emperor Qian Long (1711-1799). This book had
an appendix including a comparison table which
showed four kinds of sounds and the meanings of
the words in which the Sanskrit scripts were listed
in the beginning followed by Tibetan, Manchu and
Chinese scripts.
Ancient Chinese
Translation
Like modern times, translation in ancient China
was of two kinds: interpretation and translation.
Translation has played an important role in cultural
exchanges between India and China. Interpretation
lacked documentary records, although it appeared
much earlier. Translation had rich data in spite of
its late appearance, especially with the spread of
Buddhism into China and the translation of Buddhist
scriptures, translatology in China developed
very early, both with theoretical summary and
operational standard.
Painting depicting translation of scriptures, Western Xia Period
515
Cultural Contacts
successively as director. Another was in Luoyang,
with Dharmagupta (refer to Dharmagupta’s entry)
as director. Translation in those two organisations
involved such works as 'interpreting Sanskrit' (duyu), 'word recording' (bi-shou), 'auditing' (chongdui), 'sorting out literary content and finalising
(quanding)'. They had many people with careful
division of labour.
During the period starting from 7th to 10th centuries,
the translation of Buddhist scripture reached its
heyday. In the early 7th century, Prabhamitra, the
sramana in ancient middle India, arrived in Chang’an
and started organising translation work in Da Xingshan Temple in the third year of Zhenguan Period
(629 CE). Prabhamitra died in the seventh year of
Zhenguan Period. Twelve years later, Xuanzang
returned to China and directed the translation work
in Hongfu Temple. After that Xuanzang translated
Buddhist scriptures in Ci’en Temple and Yuhua
Palace. From the 19th year of Zhenguan Period
(646 CE) to the first year of Linde Period (664
CE), he translated 73 amounting to 1,330 chapters.
Xuanzang had unprecedented contribution in
translation history. Firstly, he set up a large scale
translation organisation and founded a complete set
of organisational system for it. Secondly, he used
various translation skills that could be referred to
by modern scholars even till today. Thirdly, he put
forward important translation theories and enacted
'five conditions that were appropriate to the
principle of transliteration'. Fourthly, the Buddhist
scriptures he translated took up over half of newly
translated Buddhist Scriptures in the Tang Dynasty.
Fifthly, he was the first Chinese in Chinese Buddhist
scripture translation history that translated alone
without the help of any Indian or other scholar of
the Western Region. Sixthly, he had outstanding
achievements in translating Chinese into Sanskrit
and had translated 5,000 words of Lao Zi into
Sanskrit. Seventhly, his professional ethics became
a model for posterity.
After Xuanzang, Yijing and Amoghavajra served
as director of the organisation of translation.
Amoghavajra was one of the 'four Buddhist scripture
translators (the other three were Kumarajiva,
Paramartha and Xuanzang)', he translated 110
books and 143 volumes of Buddhist Tantra Classics
and played a significant role in the spread of Tantra
in China.
Yijing also had significant contributions in
translation. He possessed flexible translation
methods and his translation organisation featured
exquisite division of labour. Yijing also compiled
A Thousand Sanskrit Words to Cultivate Buddhist
Scripture Translator. The book has 1,000 Chinese
characters and is a Chinese-Sanskrit dictionary.
During this period of 10th–17th century, especially
Jianfu Temple at Xi’an was a translation centre during the Tang Dynasty
translation more faithful to original texts. Fourthly,
in order to be responsible, he started the rule to sign
the translator’s name at the front of the translation.
Fifthly, his institution set some guidelines to
be followed by the government-run translation
organisations of later times. And sixthly, most of the
Buddhist scripture translated by him were preserved
and had profound impact on posterity.
The translation of Chinese Buddhist scripture
flourished during the period from 5th and 6th
centuries to the early 7th century. Two points need to
be mentioned in the translation work of this period.
The first is the theoretical issue, namely translation
theory put forward by Yan Cong. The second is a
practical issue, namely, the organisational system
and translation procedure of government-run
translation organisation of that time. Both issues
were of great importance because they served as
preludes to the climax in the translation of scriptures
during the Tang Dynasty. Yan Cong’s common
surname was Li and was from Zhao County. He
came to Beijing in the 12th year of Kai-huang Period
(592 CE). In the second year of Ren-shou Period
(602 CE), he accepted the emperor’s command to
compile Catalogue of Scriptures.
In the second year of Da Ye Period (606 CE), he
took charge of a royal translation organisation and
translated 23 books and over 100 volumes. Yan
Cong’s contribution in theory was the writing of the
famous essay in the history of Chinese translation
named Syndrome Differentiation. In the book, he first
approved Dao An’s theory of Wu Shi Ben, San Bu Yi
and then he developed it into another theory of the
Eight Requirements (ba-bei) to be followed by Buddhist
translators. The theory included comprehensive
requirements both in psychological quality like aim,
manner and style and in professional quality like
knowledge, scope and the nature of writing.
In the Sui Dynasty (581-618 CE), the government
organised
and
supported
two
translation
organisations. One was in Chang’an with Na
lian ti li ye she (refer to Na lian ti li ye’s entry)
and Jnanagupta (refer to Jnanagupta’s entry)
516
Cultural Contacts
while in the Yuan and Ming Dynasties, Buddhist
scripture translation appeared occasionally. But in
Tibet, large-scale translation of Buddhist scriptures
still continued.
(Xue Keqiao)
in the early Northern Song Dynasty, translation
of Buddhist scripture in China reached another
climax. In the seventh year of the Taiping Xingguo
Period (982 CE), the emperor ordered to set up
a translation school and renamed it as Chuanfa
School the next year. The organisational scale and
ability of the translation work during Northern
Song was as big as that of the Tang Dynasty. It was
managed and supported by senior officials of the
government. They had a full-fledged organisation
Terms - Concepts
Shabdavidya
Shabdavidya was an ancient Indian subject dealing
with the study and knowledge of Sanskrit linguistics
that include research on pronunciation, grammar
and rhetoric and was reckoned as one of the five
sciences. According to free translation, the English
term, Sound is equivalent of the Sanskrit word
Shabda, and the whole term of shabda-vidya may
be rendered into English as “knowledge of sounds”.
Its corresponding transliteration forms in Chinese
language are 'She-tuo-bi-tuo'('摄拖苾驮' and '摄拕苾
驮'),' etc. There is an entry titled 'Learning Dharma
in the West' in the fourth volume of Yi Jing’s An
Account of the Inner Law Sent Home from the South Sea
A Collection of Terms in Translation
(Fanyi mingyiji), Ming Period edition
including director of translation along with other
officials in-charge of other tasks like 'checking
the doctrine' (Zheng Fanyi), 'check the Sanskrit
terms and words' (Zheng Fanwen), 'recording'
(Bi Shou), arrange the text (Zhui Wen), take part
in discussion (Can Xiang). Until the fifth year of
Tian-sheng Period (1027 CE), they translated
over 500 volumes. Later, the translation work
was intermittent due to lack of new Buddhist
scriptures. This period lasted till the early Zhenghe
Period (1111 CE). Famous translators of Buddhist
scriptures included Fa Tian from India (refer to Fa
Tian’s entry) Tian Xizai (refer to Tian Xizai’s entry),
Danapala (refer to Danapala’s entry), Dhararaksa
(refer to Dhararaksa’s entry), Jin Zongchi (refer
to Jin Zongchi’s entry), and Buddhist Wei Jing
(refer to Buddhist Wei Jing’s entry) of the Chuanfa
School. All these scholars translated about 284
books and 758 chapters.
During the period of Renaissance of Tibetan
Buddhism, people translated a large number of
Buddhist scriptures. Those who were famous in
the translation of Buddhist scripture in this period
included Buddhist Atisha (982-1054 CE) from India,
Buddhist Rinchen Zangpo (958-1055 CE) from Tibet,
Zhuomi Shijia Yixi (993-1074 CE) and E. Luodan
Xirao (1059-1109 CE). The translation of Buddhist
scriptures was basically suspended in Song Dynasty
Selected Papers on the Languages of Ancient
India, Ji Xianlin (front cover)
which says that the term 'sheng-ming' was derived
from the Sanskrit word shabdavidya, in which the
meaning of the term shabda was sound and that of
Vidya was science. It was one of the five sciences.
In the second volume of the Travelling Notes of
the Western Regions of the Great Tang Dynasty (datang xi-you-ji), Xuanzang remarked that the term
Shabdavidya meant 'explaining the meaning of words
and their differences'. According to some Indian
myth, the earliest Shabdavidya work was created by
heavenly god. As per the information available in
Volume 21 of the Records of the Yogacharya by Monk
517
Cultural Contacts
Chinese scholars. The nature and content of these
works showed that they were very much influenced
by Indian Shabdavidya science. It is worthwhile to
make an in-depth study on how much influence the
Indian linguistic works had on the history of Chinese
linguistic works. For instance, the Standardisation
of Transliteration of the Western Regions compiled by
the Imperial Order during the Reign of Qian Long of
the Qing Dynasty had many chapters such as Indian
Alphabet Genealogy, Supplement to Indian Alphabet
Genealogy, Indian Transliterated Word Genealogy,
Supplement to Indian Transliterated Word Genealogy
and Chinese and Sanskrit Genealogy, etc, is proof of
Chinese interest in Sanskrit. Some more works such
the Sanskrit Dictionary translated by Su Manshu and
Preface to Fundamental Sanskrit Dictionary by Zhang
Taiyan in late Qing Dynasty reflected that Indian
Sanskrit knowledge had been quite popular in some
section of Chinese intelligentsia for a long time.
(Chen Ming)
Dun Lun’s titled Accounts of the Western Countries,
the Shabdavidya Shastra with one million slokas was
prepared by Brahman in the beginning of kalpa (a
period of time) and Sakra (Indra) reduced its size to
1,00,000 slokas. Thereafter, Fairy Gunabhadra again
simplified it to 12,000 slokas. Fairy Panini created
Panini Sutra with 8,000 slokas afterwards. Master
Dharmapāla created 3,000 slokas, and named them
as Miscellaneous Treasure of Shabdavidya, which
was popular in the world. All the major linguistics
works on Sanskrit such as those of the one million
slokas made by Brahman, one lakh made by Sakra,
8,000 slokas of Fairy Panini (Panini Sutra) and 2,500
slokas written by the Brahmins of South India have
been listed in the third volume of A Biography of the
Tripitaka Master of the Great Ci'en Monastery of the
Great Tang authored by two monks named Hui Li
and Yan Cong. These were reported to be the basic
works dealing with the 'sounds of the language of
the Western Regions' and were popular in India and
its surrounding areas and 'people desirous to attain
scholarship in classical studies had to go through
them'. Later, all these works motivated other
scholars to produce works like Brief Shabdavidya
Shastra with 1,000 slokas, Munduk scripts of 300
slokas, and Anudhatu with 800 slokas and they dealt
with the dhatu of the Sanskrit word, the basis of
the combination of the words and their ultimate
meaning etc. The valuable work titled A Biography
of the Tripitaka Master of the Great Ci' En Monastery
of the Great Tang used the noun Purusha as an
example listed different forms of 18 rhymes and 24
rhymes which were related to eight case endings,
ie, 'explaining actors' (nominative case), 'explaining
actions' (accusative case), 'explaining instruments'
(instrumental case), 'explaining objectives' (dative
case) 'explaining reasons' (ablative case), 'explaining
genitive affairs' (genitive case), 'explaining location'
(locative case) and 'explaining vocative affairs'
(vocative case) as well as three different forms
including the male sound (masculine), the female
sound (feminine) and the non-male and non-female
sound (neutral).
From the time of the Wei and Jin dynasties to the
early Song Dynasty, all those Chinese monks who
went to India to seek dharma had to learn Shabdavidya
works. Master Xuanzang learnt the same twice at
Nalanda Monastery. The Shabdavidya science of India
had its influence on the study and analysis of ancient
Chinese language through the translation of the
Buddhist sutras into Chinese. In order to translate and
read sutras, eminent foreign and local monks used
works such as the miscellaneous names in Sanskrit,
thousand Sanskrit Words, Collections of Sanskrit Words
in Tang, Collection of Terms in Translation, Sound and
Meaning of All Sutras and Supplement to Sound and
Meaning of All Sutras, etc., edited by many eminent
Siksa
Siksa/ Shiksha (式叉论) was ancient Indian
phonetics and one of the six Vedas. This term can
be found in ancient Chinese literature, especially
in Buddhist sutras translated into Chinese. The
fourth volume of the Lalitavistara Sutra translated
by Indian monk, Dharmaraksa, in the Tang Dynasty
described multiple subjects and techniques that
Bodhisattva learned including Veda, Nirukta, Siksa,
Vaisheshika, Atharvaveda, Ambhiri and Hetuvidya,
etc. During the Southern Dynasty, volume I of the
Samkhya classic Hiranyasaptati translated by Master
Paramārtha in the Chen Dynasty listed two kinds of
wisdom: external and internal, and the six branches
of the Vedas were the subjects (disciplines) to
Books on Sanskrit-Chinese Comparative
Studies of Buddhist literature
external wisdom. The six Vedangas included Siksa,
Vyakarana, Kalpa, Jyotisa, Chhanda and Nirukta. The
first article titled Abandoning of Sins and Blessings
included in the first volume of Ji Zang’s Commentary
518
Cultural Contacts
on One-Hundred-Verse of the Sui Dynasty quoted the
same statement, and explained the six shastras (liulun). The statement was that 'the first was Siksa in
which one has to learn 64 different techniques and
rules of grammar. The second was Vyakarana, which
explained sounds and their etymology'. Further,
the 10th volume of Explanations of Annotations on
Dharmagupta-vinaya, authored by Master Ding
Bin of the Tang Dynasty offers an account on six
Vedangas. It says that that the discipline of Shiksha
meant 'science' here. Actually, shiksha was an
ancient Indian discipline of phonetics. The task of
translation of sutra into Chinese by all those Chinese
monks seeking Dharma (fa) necessarily required
some knowledge on Sanskrit phonology and thus the
influence of Sanskrit phonetics on identifying and
discovering the four tones of Chinese is perceptible.
The study of Sanskrit-Chinese transliteration and
the comparison of both Sanskrit and Chinese sounds
thus became an important means to study and learn
ancient Chinese phonetics.
(Chen Ming)
Nirukta. The fourth volume of the Lalitavistara Sutra
translated by Divakara in the Tang Dynasty listed
many ancient Indian subjects such as Nirukta and
Siksa etc. According to certain available sources,
the most important work of Indian etymology in the
early period was Nirukta written by Yaska which
was finished in the 5th century BCE (or 7th century
BCE), and is believed to have been prepared before
the Panini-sutra. It was similar to the earliest ancient
Chinese exegesis of Er-ya (尔雅). The concerned
work of Nirukta has been divided into 12 chapters
and it mainly annotated large collection of words.
According to a highly valued opinion of Yaska, the
root of all the words can be traced in this book with
etymological meanings of nouns and verbs. It has
been further remarked that 'Nirukta can explain the
causes of the names of all the objects'. However, it
doesn’t have much more obvious influence in China
and Rao Zongyi’s Nirukta and Liu Xi’s 'Explanations
on Names' are the only important research papers for
Chinese scholars to study and understand Nirukta.
(Chen Ming)
Nirukta
Vyakarana
Nirukta (尼卢致论) is an ancient Indian
etymological work dealing with one of the six kinds
of supplementary knowledge of Vedanga and a
compulsory subject to be studied by all the students
of the Brahmin community in the early stage of
their education. The first volume of Hiranyasaptati
which was the Samkhya classic translated by Indian
Vyakarana (毗伽罗论) was the generic term of an
ancient Indian grammar book and was one of six
auxiliary disciplines of the Veda. Its Sanskrit name
was Vyakarana which had the meanings such as
'grammatical method, grammar and treatise on
grammar etc'. The first volume of Hiranyasaptati,
the Samkhya classic translated by Indian Tripitaka
Paramārtha in the Chen Dynasty says that the second
category of the six Vedangas was Vyakarana. The
21st volume of Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra
translated by Indian Tripitaka D
harmaksema in
Northern Liang Dynasty listed the heretical sutras
that include the Four Vedas, Vyakarana, Vaisesika,
Samkhya and some works dealing with medical
science, etc. The 25th volume of the Great Treatise on
the Perfection of Wisdom written by Nagarjuna and
translated by Kumarajiva mentioned that Buddha
didn’t preach heretical sutras 'including the 18
great sutras such as Vyakarana, Samkhya and the
Vedas etc'. It has been recorded in the 13th volume
of the Other Translation of Samyuktagama Sutra that
a young Brahmin would be found to be proficient
in the Four Vedas, Paragandha Shastra, Treatise on
Sound, Vyakarana, Natya Shastra, Vaisesika and was
good at explaining grammar and the meanings of
various texts. It can be seen that Vyakarana was
one of the basic classics for Brahmins to learn. The
transliteration of Vyakarana’s in Chinese was 'bi-jialan-na' ('弊迦兰那'). But the old Chinese transliteration
of the term Vyakarana is reported to have been 'pi
jia luo lun' (毗伽罗论). Master Xuanzang thought
the transliteration was not accurate and should have
been transliterated as 'pi ye jie la nan' (毗耶羯剌諵)
A Collection on Buddhism: Nirukta and Liu Xi’s
‘Explanation of Names’ (Fanxue ji: Niluzhilun yu
Liu Xi de ‘Shiming’), Rao Zongyi
Tripitaka Paramārtha during the Chen Dynasty,
had the earliest reference of 'ni-lu-duo'( 尼祿多) for
Nirukta in Chinese translation. The first volume of Ji
Zang’s Commentary on One-Hundred-Verse completed
during the Sui Dynasty had another Chinese name
ni-lu-duo (尼鹿多) for the same Indian term of
519
Cultural Contacts
It has been recorded in the 10th chapter titled
Displaying of Books of the fourth volume of Lalitavistara
Sutra that as per the knowledge of Bodhisattvas
there were then 64 scripts of different forms. The
concerned book has been translated by an Indian
monk, Divakara, in the middle of the Tang Dynasty.
The Brāhmī (fan-mei) lipi in Sanskrit was reckoned
as the first form of the script. Its transliteration
in Chinese was 'fan-mei' (梵寐). Another Indian
monk, Dharmaraksa, translated another version of
Lalitavistara Sutra during the western Jin dynasty.
The seventh chapter titled Appearing Books was to be
found in the third volume of the same Lalitavistara
Sutra, that recorded the names of 64 scripts and
the first kind of the 'Brahmana script' corresponded
with 'Brāhmī script'. There are two important
'Account of Buddhism Dispatched from the South Seas
(Nanhai jigui neifa zhuan)', Dunhuang Remnants P2001
according to accurate Indian sounds and further
commented that the name in free translation should
be Lucid Treatise on Sounds as this book has an
extensive record of all things that could be explained.
Master Ding Bin of Tang dynasty, in his 10th volume of
Annotations on Dharmagupta-vinaya explained the six
Vedangas and said that Vyakarana meant A Treatise
on Grammar here. At the beginning of the kalpa (a
period of time), Brahma instructed Vyakarana to
heavenly people and because it was preached by
Brahma, it was also called Brahmana. It is said that
Vyakarana which was preached by Brahma was
really long and had over 10,00,000 gathas (sloka).
It has been further recorded in a chapter entitled
Learning Dharma in the West in fourth volume of Yi
Jing’s An Account of the Inner Law Sent Home from
the South Sea that the general term used in India in
reference to ancient secular books was Vyakarana'pi he jie la nu' (毗何羯喇拏). This included five
books, ie, Siddharastu, Sutra (Panini-sutra),
Dhatu, Khila and Vrttisutra which may be considered
to be equivalent to the five ancient Chinese
Confucian classics.
(Chen Ming)
Brahmi Script
Brāhmī lipi (梵寐书) was one of the earliest scripts
of ancient India to be found in Ashokan Pillar
inscriptions of 3rd century BCE. It had several
varieties that evolved into other scripts such as
Siddham, Nagari and Devanagari which were
then widely in use. The Arabian scholar Al-Biruni
recorded in his book of India that multiple scripts
were used in different areas of India in the 11th
century CE. According to him, Brāhmī script was
then in use to write many languages and was
popular on the Silk Road. The so-called Tocharian
and Khotan Saka language were written in Brāhmī
script of the middle Asian italic type.
Brahmi script on the Ashokan stone pillar
sources that have reference to the names of Indian
speech sounds which must be mentioned. First, the
concerned chapter titled Learning of Techniques in
the 11th volume of Abhiniskramanasūtra translated
by Indian Tripitaka master in the Sui Dynasty,
listed the names of the 64 scripts and the book of
annotations titled the Present Brahmana preached by
Brahma covered all the sounds (pronunciation) of
all the scripts in 14 words. Second, the biography of
Zhu Shihang found in Biographies of Eminent Monks
authored by Hui Jiao of the Liang dynasty records
520
Cultural Contacts
period of the Brāhmī script. This is now found to
have been engraved in stone inscriptions of Asoka
in the middle of the 3rd century BCE. In ancient
Chinese literature, the script was variously called
– ‘Qu lou (佉楼)’, ‘Qu-lu-se-zha-shu-zi (佉卢瑟吒书
字)’, ‘Qu-lu-shi-di (佉卢虱底)’ and ‘Qu-lu-shi-zha (佉
卢虱吒)’ etc, all of which were transliterated names
of the Sanskrit word, Kharosthi. According to free
translation, their equivalent Chinese terms were: ‘luchun-shu’ or ‘lu-chun wen’ which means ‘donkey lip
script’. It has been recorded on the basis of certain
legends and myths of ancient India in Volume
101 of Abhidharma-Jnanaprasthana-mahavibhasasastra authored by 500 Arhats that the Kharosthi
script was made by one celestial being, Kharosthi.
This book has been translated by Xuanzang and is
available in China.
Another book titled Sutra on Causes and Effects of
the Past and Present translated by Indian Tripitaka
Gumarabhatha of the Song Dynasty mentions that
there were 64 scripts in ‘Jambu-dipa’ and the two
forefront scripts recorded there were the Brāhmī lipi
and Kharoùñhī lipi. Another scholar Shi Sengyou of
Liang Dynasty pointed out in chapter four titled
Records on Similarities and Differences in Sounds and
Meanings of Sutras to be found in the first volume
of the A Collection of Records on the Tripitaka that
that Zhu Shihang arrived in Khotan (Yutian) in the
5th year of Gan-lu of the Wei Dynasty (260 CE).
Another monk, Shi Sengyou, pointed out in the
fourth chapter titled Records on Sound and Meaning
of Sutras with similarities and difference that there
were three makers of scripts in ancient China and
India. They were Brahma, Kharosthi and Cang Jie.
Brahma and Kharosthi lived in India and the scripts
created by them 'explained dharma in the Pure
Land', and were called Brahmi and Kharosthi script.
Dunhuang Brahmi script, fragment of
‘Pratītya-samutpāda-sūtra (Yuan qi jing/Sutra
on Conditioned Arising)’
Brahmi script meant Brāhmī lipi here and it was
written from left to right, while Kharosthi script was
from right to left. The two differed from Chinese
which was written from top to bottom. Further, the
volume numbering 51, Abhidharma-mahavibhasasastra which was written by Kātyāyani-putra,
interpreted by 500 Arhats and translated by Indian
monk Buddhavarman and Dao Tai in the Northern
Liang Dynasty recorded that the Brāhmī script was
made by Govindara Brahman. The Book of the Sui
Dynasty: Records of Sutras gives reference about
'One Volume of Brahmi Script' which was the basic
teaching material to learn Sanskrit. Many relics
written in Brāhmī script have been transmitted to
the areas of north-west China. In 1943, Xiang Da
found a piece of broken stone of sutra pillar of India
in Dunhuang area. The Indian scholar Professor
V V Gokhale thought that it was the fragment of
Pratītyasamutpādasūtra written in Brāhmī script
in the middle of the 5th century. Similar relics or
literature related to the Brāhmī script had played a
great role in the propagation of Indian language and
culture beyond the borders of the Western Region.
(Chen Ming)
Fragment of Kharosthi Script found at Tarim Basin
encampments, preserved in Xinjiang Museum
Brahma and Kharosthi were two innovators of these
two scripts of India. The concerned work has been
translated from Sanskrit into Chinese. These two
kinds of scripts, ie, Brahmi and Kharosthi scripts
were regarded by Indian kingdoms as "heavenly
scripts" (tian-shu). The Brahmi script is written
from left to right whereas Kharosthi is written
from right to left. Further, the seventh chapter
titled Appearing Books found in the third volume
of the Lalitavistara Sutra in the beginning mentions
the names of 64 scripts and the second kind was
Kharosthi script. This too has been translated by
the Indian scholar monk, Dharmaraksa. Again,
in Tang dynasty, chapter 10 titled the Displaying
Kharosthi Script
Kharosthi lipi was a common script of ancient India
which came from the Aramaic script (alphabet) of
West Asia. This was widely used in Gandhara of
northwest of India and it occurred in the similar
521
Cultural Contacts
Gandhari literature unearthed in Afghanistan region
in the late 1990s have great academic significance
for studies on important issues. Some of the issues
were the history of the growth of Buddhist classics
in the early period, gradual propagation of Indian
Buddhism in the eastern region and the history of
the exchange of Buddhism between India and China
during its early phase.
(Chen Ming)
Personalities
Xuanying
Tocharian, fragments of Maitri Simit (Mile huijian ji),
found in Xinjiang, China in 1957
Xuanying was a Buddhist monk and linguist of the
Sui and Tang Dynasty. His main work was Sound
and Meaning of All Sutras. He compiled Annotations
of Mahayana-samuparigraha-sastra, Annotations
of Shastra on Determination of Mean and Extremes,
Annotations of Nyayadvaratarka-sastra etc. Xuanying
made important contributions in the propagation
and understanding of Indian sutras in China and
towards the exchange of linguistic science between
the two nations.
Xuanying lived during the Sui and Tang Dynasties
and he joined the institution of translation run by
Master Xuanzang after the 19th year of the reign of
Zhenguan in the Great Tang Dynasty (645 CE) as 'the
Eminent Monk of Lexicology'. He resided in Li-quan
Temple, the Great Zong-chi Temple of the capital
and the Great Ci’en Temple etc. He was proficient
in lexicology, understood Sanskrit and Chinese and
had profound knowledge in classical studies. As the
only 'eminent monk of Lexicology' in Xuanzang’s
institution of translation, Xuanying was given a
place of honour in the Buddhist text catalogue of the
Great Tang as the 'Master of Generation' and 'Unique
Talent in the Court' along with Dao Xuan who was
one of his contemporaries. Besides translating sutras,
Xuanying transliterated difficult words of sutra of
465 volumes with large number of quotations from
many dictionaries and literary and historical works
of previous generations and compiled Xuanying’s
Scripts found in another version of Lalitavistara
Sutra (volume four) translated by another monk
named Divakara refers to 64 scripts as the first
type, and the second of its kind was the Kharoùñhī
lipi corresponding to Kharosthi script. The 11th
volume of Abhiniskramanasūtra translated by an
Indian monk during the Sui Dynasty lists names
of 64 scripts and the annotations made about this
mentions Kharosthi lipi as the second type and it was
termed as donkey lip (lu-chun) language of the Sui
Dynasty. As for Fairy Saint Kharoùñhī mentioned
in volume 41 of Mahavaipulya-mahasanni-patasutra, it has been translated by Indian Tripitaka
Narendrayasas with an annotation on translation
talks of the donkey lip language of the Sui Dynasty.
This shows that the free translation of Kharosthi or
Kharoùñhī is donkey lip. It has been recorded in
volume 42 of the Abhidharma-mahavibhasa-sastra
that Brāhmī script was ranked before Kharosthi
script and people usually learned the Kharosthi
script after studying the Brāhmī script. This work
has been written by Kātyāyani-putra with necessary
interpretation by 500 arhats and the same has been
translated by Indian monk Buddhavarman and
Dao Tai of the Northern Liang Dynasty. Further
mention has been made in volume 67 of Hui Lin’s
Sounds and Meanings of All Sutras that it shall be
called Kharoùñhī, meaning the script of broader
area people of the north. The entry of Kharosthi
in volume 5 of Fa Yun’s Collection of Terms offers
the same explanation saying that Kharoùñhī
or Kharosthi meant script of Bianchu people in
the north. The script was mainly used to spell
northwestern dialects such as Gandhari in India.
It was quite popular all throughout the Silk Road,
especially in the areas including Niya in Xinjiang
of China till the closing decades of the 6th century
CE. It was one of the common scripts on the Silk
Road at that time and was also used to spell the
languages such as Sanskrit and Tocharian.
The sutras unearthed in Yu-tian including
Dhammapada in Gandhari and several plethora of
Master Xuanying of Tang Dynasty, ‘Sound and Meaning of All Sutras
(Yiqiejing yinyi)’, Yuan Dynasty edition
522
Cultural Contacts
Sound and Meaning in the 5th year of Yong-hui
(654 CE). This book consisting of 25 volumes was
also named Sound and Meaning of Buddhist Sutras
and Sound and Meaning of All Sutras,etc. It may be
reckoned as the earliest extant work explaining
sounds and meanings of Buddhist sutras, and
provided paradigms and solid foundations for the
later generations to work on 'sounds and meanings of
Buddhist sutras' by Chinese scholars. The concerned
work, thus, with a large collection of Buddhist sutra
is also to be found in the form of Japanese transcript
and in multiple fragments in Duanhuang and Tulufan
areas. According to statistics, Xuanying’s Sounds and
Meanings has a collection of over 9,400 entries in
which over 850 entries are Sanskrit transliterated
words. Xuanying not only explained pronunciations
and meanings of words but also paid attention to
the connotations of those words in the context of
multiple aspects of Indian culture and in actual
practice of Indian customs, convention and religion.
For example, the entry of 'red pillow' in volume six
of Xuanying’s Sounds and Meanings pointed out that
India didn’t have wooden pillows. Instead, they used
red leather and cotton cloth for pillows in which
Dou-luo cotton and feathers were put. They could
be used as pillows as well as back cushions, and the
colour was mostly vermilion. Similar explanations
of various words provided basic information for
readers to understand Indian Buddhism and secular
culture. This work of Sounds and Meanings of All
Sutras of Xuanying is rated as one of the famous
works in the field of study of 'sounds and meanings
of Buddhist sutras'.
(Chen Ming)
Master Huilin of Tang Dynasty, ‘Sound and Meaning of the Tripitaka
(Yiqiejing yinyi)’
Shen, it has been further pointed out that Huilin
started writing all these books towards the end of
Jian-zhong (783 CE) era, and completed them in the
second year of the Yuan-he (807 CE) period.
The Sound and Meaning of the Tripitaka is also
otherwise known as Sound and Meaning of All Sutras
and Sound and Meaning of Hui Lin, consisting of
about 100 volumes with plenty of quotations from
normal dictionaries and rhyming dictionaries such as
Analytical Dictionary of Chinese Characters, Dictionary
of Characters, Uniform Characters, Category of Sounds,
Three Cangs, Essentials of Rhyming, Jade Chapters,
Ancient and Modern Standard Characters, Classical
Dictionary of Characters and Kai-yuan Sounds and
Meanings of Characters. It has also a lot of references
about many classical books, history and on many
volumes of Sounds and Meanings of Sutras authored
by eminent monks such as Xuanying, Hui Yuan, Yun
Gong and Kuiji of the previous generations. The same
work of Huilin's too provides various annotations on
a large quantity of words and terms of more than
1,300 sutras translated into Chinese that amounts
to over 5,700 chapters. The Sounds and Meanings of
All Sutras has been divided into many volumes with
many catalogues based on the contents of the sutra
and it is roughly the same as the order followed in
compiling the Records of Sakyamuni's Teachings of
the Kaiyuan Period.
According to the statistical information provided
by Xu Shiyi, the Sounds and Meanings of All Sutras
actually annotated sounds of over 1,160 sutras of
the work of Maha-Prajnaparamita Sutra translated
by Xuanzang and those of another work titled
Protection of Life and Release of Animals written by
the eminent monk Yi Jing of the Tang Dynasty.
The Sounds and Meanings of All Sutras has over
31,000 entries in which Huilin personally compiled
over 21,200 entries. The entries offer answers
to various questions that are likely to be raised
by the readers of Sutra. Further, the Sounds and
Meanings of All Sutras explained a lot of Sanskrit
transliterated words besides pointing out correct
Chinese characters and correct pronunciation of
the Sanskrit words. This book proves to be very
Huilin
Huilin (慧琳737-820 CE) was a Buddhist monk
and linguist of the Tang Dynasty. His family name
was Pei (裴) and belonged to a place called 'Shu-le'
( 疏勒) of the Western Regions (Kashgar, Xinjiang
at present). All the deeds and achievements of his
life have been described in the fifth volume of
Biographies of Eminent Monks of the Song Dynasty and
in Biography of Hui Lin of the Xi-ming Temple of the
Tang (dynasty) capital. Huilin took his lessons on
classical studies from An-xi (安西) scholars in his
childhood and adopted a monastic life at the age
of 20. Further, he also studied Buddhist classics
with the Tripitaka Master Amoghavajra, an eminent
esoteric monk. He 'learned esoteric treasures
internally and studied Confucianism externally',
read sutras extensively and was proficient in Indian
Shabda-vidya (linguistics) and Chinese exegesis. He
compiled 100 volumes of the Sound and Meaning of
the Tripitaka during the period from the fourth year
of Zhen-yuan (788 CE) to the fifth year of Yuan-he
(810 CE). In the preface to the book written by Jing
523
Cultural Contacts
Chapter, A-le-jia-luo Chapter, A-le-jia-po Chapter,
A-le-jia-mo Chapter, A-le-jia-na Chapter, Ang-jia
Chapter, Qi-li Chapter, A-suo-jia Chapter, Guhe Chapter and so on. The Records of Siddham
Script had many words of annotation which was
of great help to understand the content of a text.
Compared to Siddham Chapter of the Tang Dynasty,
helpful in understanding various facets of ancient
Indian culture and provided valuable information
on the history of India-China cultural exchange.
According to the contents of the sixth volume of
Sound and Meaning of All Sutras, the word 'cane'
means 'sarkara'. Explanations on Chinese characters
used to translate the term 'cane' mentioned that it
was the name of 'a grass of good smell'. When the
juice of the cane is heated, it produces 'sugar' (shatang). After the completion of Sounds and Meanings
of All Sutras, it has been carefully preserved in
Xi-ming Temple of Xi’an along with other sutra,
and is held in high esteem both by the Buddhists
and laymen of the capital. It became part of the
Tripitaka since the fifth year of Da-zhong (851
CE) reign and enjoyed much popularity in the
Buddhist world. After this book was circulated to
other places like Korea and Japan, it made great
contribution towards the propagation of Buddhist
culture in East Asia.
(Chen Ming)
Zhiguang
Zhiguang was a Buddhist monk and language
scholar of the Tang Dynasty. He is also the author
of a volume of Siddham Script but nothing much is
known about him in detail. The official title of this
work is Records of the Shan-yin Buddhist monk Zhi
Guang of Tang Dynasty. According to the records
of Yu Qing Lai Catalog written by Konghai (774835 CE), a Japanese Buddhist monk who came
to China during Tang Dynasty, one volume of
Siddham Script and one volume of Explanation of the
Siddham Script were introduced in Japan. Zhiguang
probably lived during the time of Emperor Dezong
of Tang (780-805 CE). The Siddham Script was
another record of the copy of the Siddham Chapter
written by a South Indian Buddhist monk, Prajnabodhi. When Prajna-bodhi was young, he learned
phonetics and linguistics based on the language
of South India from Prajna-ghoùa written by
Mahesvara. Prajna-bodhi came to China by sea
with a Sanskrit "Dharani". He paid religious
homage to Mount Wutai and lived in a house built
on the mountain. Zhiguang learned about Siddham
script from Prajna-bodhi in Mount Wutai. Based on
this information and understanding, he compiled
this volume of Siddham Script. The Records of
the Siddham Script included 47 fundamental
letters and the book in its final form with further
explanation turned out to be one of 18 chapters.
Each chapter took the first two letters or the first
letter combined with others as its name and the
names of all chapters are– Jia-jia Chapter, Zhi-yezhi-ye Chapter, Jia-lue Chapter, Jia-luo Chapter,
Jia-po Chapter, Jia-mo Chapter, Jia-na Chapter,
A-le-jia Chapter, A-le-zhi-ye Chapter, A-le-jia-lue
‘The Records of Siddham Script (Xitan
ziji)’, front cover
the Records of Siddham Script was more close to the
actual characteristic features of Sanskrit language.
It has not been kept together along with other
literary works and was maintained separately
with an independent existence of its own. Hence,
it was widespread and popular and is regarded
as one of the most important works among other
such research works of Siddham script in China.
The Records of Siddham Script was introduced into
Japan and was named as the Eighteen Chapters of
Southern India Prajna-bodhi Siddham. It was read
and used by Kong Hai (Hong-fa master) An Ran
(the author of Siddham Collection), contributing to
further study and development of Siddham science
in Japan.
(Chen Ming)
Shouwen
Shouwen (守温) was a Buddhist monk and Chinese
phonologist of the period of the Five Dynasties of
the late Tang era. According to the information
contained in the work of Jade Sea, 'Shouwen wrote
a book entitled Chart of Thirty Six Alphabets, which
is also otherwise known as Shou Wen’s Thirty Six
Alphabets. The original work of Shouwen is believed
to have been lost long back. However, its fragments
are still available in the Dunhuang cave. From page
2012 of the Dunhuang Collection, a text titled Records
of Monk Shou Wen in the Southern Liang Dynasty has
524
Cultural Contacts
spread in ancient China based on the information
contained in Panini-sutra.
The earliest record of legend of Panini was in
volume two of Xuanzang’s Travelling Notes of the
Western Regions of the Great Tang Dynasty. He
was born in Salatura, Gandhara (Lahor/Lavor
near Ohind, Pakistan). He followed the classical
traditions of the Sanskrit grammar established by
Brahma and Sakra (Indra) and learned grammatical
knowledge from Shiva. He then wrote his famed
grammar book, Panini-sutra. This book was based
on his profound understanding of the relevant
literature of the ancient time which made him a
world-famous grammarian. Volume three of A
Biography of the Tripitaka Master of the Great Ci en
Monastery of the Great Tang recorded that Sanskrit
grammar books expounded by Brahma had over
1,000,000 slokas. Sakra simplified the size into
100,000 slokas, Fairy Gunabhadra further reduced
it into 12,000 slokas, and Panini simplified it
into 8,000 slokas. In Indian tradition, Panini was
also called Salaturiya. His alternative name was
Daksiputra which may hint that his mother was
Daksi. According to the information contained in the
opening chapter of Somadeva’s Kathasaritsagara,
Panini was enlightened by Shiva, created a new
grammar book and beat the grammar system of the
Indra school.
The fourth volume of Yi Jing’s An Account of
the Inner Law Sent Home from the South Sea titled
Shouwen’s writing, Dunhuang Remnants P2012
been discovered. The introduction of the fragments
of that record offers a list of the labial sounds (such as
bu, fang, bing and ming), lingual sounds (duan, tou,
ding and ni were tongued sounds; zhi, che, cheng
and ri as retroflex sounds), glottal sounds (such as
jian, jun, xi, qun, lai and ning, etc.), dental sounds
(such as jing, qing and cong further sub-categorised
as tip-toothed sounds and shen, chuan, chan and
zhao as conical-toothed sounds), and guttural sounds
(such as xin, xie and xiao, further sub-classified as
unvoiced guttural sounds and xia, yu and ying as
voiced guttural sounds). These alphabets differed
from the Thirty Six Alphabets of Shou Wen which were
seen in extant literature sparsely. Some scholars
thought that the 'thirty six alphabets' of the Song
Dynasty were the same as those of Shouwen’s '36
alphabets'. These alphabets were used to represent
the initials of the pronunciation of the Chinese
characters. Thus, the ideas and method to use some
representative characters to show different sound
categories was inspired by Sanskrit letters. However,
the work titled Shou Wen’s Fragments of Rhymes was
an important piece of literature to study phonology
of the Tang Dynasty which reflected information
on speech sounds of the northwestern part of Tang
rule. Although Shouwen was not the first scholar
to talk about letters (alphabets) in the comparative
context of the Sanskrit and Chinese languages yet his
contribution in the notation of Chinese characters
was immense, and the influence of Sanskrit linguistic
works on the growth of Chinese phonological study
has been quite significant.
(Chen Ming)
Panini
Panini was an ancient Indian grammarian and his
Chinese name was ‘Bo Nini (波你尼)’ or Bo Nini
(波腻尼). He was born in about 4th century BCE and
wrote Panini-sutra which turned out to be a famous
grammar book in Sanskrit. The legend of Panini
was recorded in Chinese literature including the
Travelling Notes of the Western Regions of the Great
Tang Dynasty, and knowledge of Sanskrit grammar
‘Elementary Panini’s Grammar (Bo Nini yufa rumen)’, Duan
Qing; (front cover)
525
Cultural Contacts
segments of Katyayana’s Varttika. The fourth volume
of Yi Jing’s An Account of the Inner Law Sent Home
from the South Sea titled Learning Dharma in the West
recorded explanations of Varttika-sutra, which was
named "Curni" which had been authored by the
scholar Pantanjali. Patan-jali was his transliteration,
who was also claimed as Curnikrtor Curnikara, the
author of "Curni", while Curni meant ‘Mahabhasya’,
which provides new annotations to Pàõini-Såtra
and Varttika. Only those scholars with profound
academic background can master Mahabhasya after
having studied the same for three years. The book,
An Account of the Inner Law Sent Home from the South
Sea also mentioned that the important annotation
of the book of Mahabhasya was Bhartrhari-tika,
which was compiled by the great scholar Bhartrhari
during the 6th and 7th centuries. This book had
25,000 slokas and is regarded as one of the important
grammar books.
It is generally believed that another important
book of Patanjali was Yoga-sutra. Some scholars
thought that the author of Yoga-sutra was different
from Mahabhasya. Yoga-sutra was the earliest book
of the Yoga school which was one of the six schools
of ancient Indian philosophy and this continued
to exert profound influences on the later thought
system of India. It had been translated into Arabic
by Islamic scientist Al-Biruni in the 11th century
because of its deep and inherent cultural content.
(Chen Ming)
Learning Dharma in the West says that Paninisutra was the fundamental classic of all sounds
(linguistics), i.e., 'it was the fundamental sutras
of all sounds'. The book containing about 1,000
slokas, explains the essential meanings of many
words and expressions. Panini-sutra was also
named Astadhyayi in about 4,000 sentences in all
while adopting the form of sutra. Each sentence
explained a rule so that a theory and grammar
system could be built based on the texts. The book
explained the complex grammatical system of the
Sanskrit language, and was regarded as the oldest
work dealing with the grammatical structure
of Sanskrit texts. Furthermore, it had three
appendices such as the Dhatupatha, Ganapatha
and Unadi. Moreover, the later generations edited
three kinds of appendices including Paniniya-siksa,
Paribhasapatha and Linganusasana. Panini-sutra
was the most authoritative classical Sanskrit book
and was held as a classic by later Sanskrit writers.
It is also regarded as the oldest intact grammar
book in the world and was also claimed as 'one of
the greatest milestones of human wisdom'.
Some ancient Chinese literature retained part
of the original analysis of the Sanskrit grammar
as found in Panini-sutra but there was no specific
edition of translation of Sanskrit grammar book.
The paper of Jin Kemu named Panini Sutra: An
Overall Survey of Sanskrit Grammar was the first
paper of Chinese scholar studying Panini-sutra
which systematically explained the characteristics
of the system of Panini-sutra, and its important
significance in linguistic philosophy and history
of cultural thought. In 1996, Ji Xianlin, et. al.,
translated the book, An Introduction to the Sanskrit
Language, written by German scholar Adolf
Fridrich Stenzler. In 2001, Duan Qing published a
book Introduction to Panini Grammar: Explanations
of Sarasiddhantakaumudi which used the Sanskrit
grammar series of Panini with the Sanskrit text of
Sarasiddhantakaumudi as the basis of explanations.
It offered an overall introduction to the grammar
system of Panini and has been rated as the first
contemporary book devoted to the study of Sanskrit
grammar in China.
(Chen Ming)
Dictionaries
Sanskrit-Tibetan
Dictionary
Tibetan: sgra bye brag brtogs byed chen mo; pinyin:
Fayi mingyi daji.
This is one of the earliest dictionaries compiled
and used for reference in translating Buddhist
scriptures in China. The Chinese characters (翻译名
义大集) for it mean A Great Collection of Sanskrit
Terms with Definitions in Tibetan for Reference in
Translation. In early 9th century CE, Kride Zukzain,
then tsampo or king of Tibet, recruited Indian and
Tibetan Buddhist scholars to collate terms already
translated into Tibetan Buddhist scriptures and
compiled a Sanskrit-Tibetan Buddhist vocabulary.
More than 9,000 entries divided into 285 categories
were collected into the vocabulary which has
since served as a standard dictionary in Buddhist
translation and studies. Later on, it was included into
the bostan gyur or the sastra section of the Tibetan
tripitaka. In modern times, a separate edition of the
dictionary was published by the Beijing Nationalities
Publishing House in 1992.
(Kalsang gyal)
Patanjali
Patanjali was an ancient Indian grammarian and
philosopher. He was born in the 2nd century BCE.
Not much is known about him. His main grammar
book was Mahabhasya and its full name was
Vyakaranamahabhasya. This book in its textual form
adopted the pattern of ‘one question and one answer’.
It revised and supplemented the earlier grammar
book Pàõini-Såtra and retained parts of another
grammar book after Pàõini-Såtra, for example,
526
Cultural Contacts
translated by Xuanzang mentioned that “one word
had multiple meanings in Nighantu” written by
ancient wise men. Further, the fifth volume of
Explanations on Mahayana-samuparigraha-sastra
written by Sunyata Bodhisattva and translated
by Xuanzang mentioned that “one thing had
multiple names in Nighantu”. All this show that
Nighantu collected different names of synonyms.
The explanation was consistent with actual
conditions of which Nighantu was the earliest
extant book in India.
(Chen Ming)
Siddharastu
Siddharastu It was a set of ancient Indian teaching
materials for the beginners to learn Sanskrit,
explaining the grammatical knowledge of Sanskrit
phonetics and fundamentals such as Sanskrit
letters, combinations of initials and finals and some
newly formulated coherent words etc. It is said that
‘Siddharastu’ was made by Brahman. The Chinese
term ‘Xi-tan’(“悉昙”) is the transliteration of the
Sanskrit word Siddha and its other transliterations
in Chinese are– Xi tan (“悉檀”, “悉谈”) and Si tan
(“肆昙”) etc. The Sanskrit term Siddham means
achievement, attainment, auspiciousness and
peaceful abiding. It has been recorded in volume
‘A Great Collection of Sanskrit Terms with Definitions in Tibetan for
Reference in Translation (Fanyi mingyi daji)’
Nighantu
Nighantu (ni-jian-tu尼揵荼) was an ancient work
on Indian lexicology which is equal to modern
synonym dictionary. Nighantu had multiple names
such as Ni-jian-tu ('尼揵荼') and Ni-jian-tu ('尼建图')
in Chinese translation with different characters for
the last syllable 'tu'. This work of Nighantu had five
chapters that generally include the list of synonyms,
homonyms and names of gods and deities etc. It
was one of the ancient linguistic works and was the
fundamental reference book for Brahmins to learn
Sanskrit. It has been recorded in the 54th volume of
A Treasury of Mahayana Sutras Selections (translated
by Xuanzang) that Brahmins were proficient in
linguistics, literature and other classics such as
Nighantu, Ketubha Shastra, Shastra of Classification,
Itihasa, and the Vyākarana of Five Attributes and
Lokayata Shastra etc. The fourth volume of the
Lalitavistara Sutra translated by Divakara in the
Tang Dynasty listed various kinds of miscellaneous
techniques and talents that includes linguistic books
such as Nighantu, Nirukta and Siksa etc.
According to the information available about these
two items of Nighantu and Ketubha Shastra recorded
in the 13th volume of the Sound and Meaning of All
Sutras, both the above works (Nighantu and Ketubha
Shastra) were regarded as “secular and wise books
of heretical nature”.
The 15th volume of Abhidharma-Jnanaprasthanamahavibhasa-sastra written by 500 Arhats and
Sanskrit text of Prajñāpāramitā Hṛdaya/Heart Sūtra
(Bore xinjing) in Siddhaṃ script
two of the Traveling Notes of the Western Regions in
the Great Tang Dynasty that the most useful materials
for the Indians to learn Sanskrit were incorporated
in chapter 12 of the book Siddharastu which also
had an enlightened message. The fourth chapter
titled Learning Dharma in the West of Yi Jing’s An
Account of the Inner Law Sent Home from the South
Sea pointed out that Siddharastu occupies the first
place among the five main Shabdavidya (shengming lun) works. The Chinese term Xi-tan-zhang
527
Cultural Contacts
sutra, propagation and learning of the Sanskrit
words and development of Chinese characters.
During the Ming and Qing dynasties, the merger of
the study of Siddharastu with Chinese phonology led
to the research and compilation of famous works
such as Zhao Huanguang’s An Account of Siddharastu
and Zhou Chun’s Profound Treatise on Siddharastu
etc. Aside from its effect on the growth of Chinese
phonology, Siddharastu also affected the growth of
rhythm of the poems and prose poems composed
by eminent scholars and poets of that period. After
the knowledge of Siddham studies (science) was
propagated by envoys (monks seeking Dharma) in
the Tang Dynasty into Japan, the Japanese monk An
Ran in the Heian period (794-1185/1192 CE), wrote
representative works of Siddham science named
Siddham Treasure in Japan which further led to the
expansion and popularity of ancient Indian culture
in different areas of east Asia.
(Chen Ming)
(《悉谈章》)is also otherwise named Xi-diluo-su-du (《悉地罗窣覩》)– the transliteration
of the Sanskrit book - Siddharastu. The title
also stands for the chapter to begin with and it
means "achievement" and "auspiciousness". It is
a specialised book of 18 chapters containing 49
Sanskrit letters as the fundamental ones and large
number of words and vocabularies formed out of
series of mutual combinations. It had over 300
slokas with over 10,000 words in total. Children
of the age of six can finish reading Siddharastu
within a time period of six months. Yi Jing
believed that this book was used by Maheśvara
while teaching. Along with the spread and
propagation of Buddhism in China during late
Han Dynasty, Siddharastu and other relevant texts
were introduced to China, and the texts that was
exposed earlier were all about the 14 Sanskrit
sounds (14 Sanskrit initials) and 42 syllables
(42 alphabets). Siddharastu propagated by Hui
Yuan was also known as Siddharastu of Script of
Mahayana Mahaparinirvana Sutra which was quite
popular in most of the areas of the land. Multiple
transcripts (S.4583, P.2204, P.2212, P.3082 and
P.3099 etc.) of Siddharastu have been unearthed
in Dun Huang cave with different titles such
as Popular Siddharastu and Chan Siddharastu of
Lankavatara Sutra Preached by Buddha etc. Many
monks and men of letters studied Siddharastu in
the Sui and Tang Dynasties, Buddhist masters such
as Xuanzang, Yi Jing, Buddhapālita and Kong Hai
propagated Siddharastu and Indian monks including
Bao Yue and Nanda also orally propagated it. The
Chinese monk Zhi Guangshi learned Siddharastu
from South Indian Tripitaka Prajna-bodhi and wrote
a book named Records of the Siddham Script.
Yi Jing in the preface to his work titled One
Thousand Sanskrit Words said that people can
begin to translate Buddhist sutras after learning
Siddharastu, the One Thousand Sanskrit Words and
few other Sanskrit lessons. After the introduction
of Siddharastu into China, Chinese scholars mixed
language, religion and cultural knowledge of
China and India, and brought out some integrated
philosophical works that included some Buddhist
doctrines on the basis of their linguistic study. All
this led to the growth of a unique field of study and
research that came to be known as the Siddham
Studies (Siddham Science). The Chinese Siddham
Studies (science) can be regarded as a new paradigm
with marked innovations that were considerably
influenced by Indian culture. The growth and
propagation of Siddham Studies in China was not
only closely linked to the local Buddhist schools
such as Fa-xiang School, Hua-yan School, Tantrism,
Tian-tai School and Chan School etc, but it exerted
considerable influence on translation of the Buddhist
Shabdavidya Sastra
Shabdavidya Shastra (Shengming lun声明论) was
an ancient Indian linguistic work that refers to
Pàõini-Såtra of Pàõini. The entry of “learning
dharma in the West” in the fourth volume of
An Account of the Inner Law Sent Home from the
South Sea recorded that the work of Vyakarana
consists of five categories of secular books in
India, Siddharastu, Såtra (Pàõini-Såtra), Dhàtu,
Tri-khila and Vçtti-såtra. These five books were
equal to the five Confucian classics and they were
actually the Indian linguistic works. Volume 3 in
A Biography of the Tripitaka Master of the Great
‘Sound and Meaning of All Sutras (Yiqiejing yinyi)’, Xuanying
528
Cultural Contacts
Ci'en Monastery of the Great Tang translated the
book’s name of Vyàkaraõa into Treatise on Sounds
and the Structure of Sanskrit which could explain
all things comprehensively. Thus, it was named
Treatise on Sounds and the Structure of Sanskrit.
In Indian Shabdavidya works, Dhàtu discussed on
meta character specifically, verb root or dhàtu. Trikhila meant three kinds of appendices and included
Aùñadhàtu with 1,000 slokas which was also named
Treatise on Eight Cycles; Muõóa with 1,000 slokas;
Uõàdi-dhàtu with 1,000 slokas (Uõàdi). The main
grammar contents explained “seven cases” (seven
change forms of noun) and “la-kara” (10 changes
of Sanskrit verb), and “eighteen verb endings” (18
verb endings in Sanskrit), “twenty one changes”
(21 changes singular, dual and plural changes of
noun declension) and so on. A 10-year-old boy
could understand meanings after having diligently
studied these three kinds of appendices for three
years. Vàrttika-Såtra with 18,000 slokas was the
annotation book of Pàõini-Såtra. A 15-year-old boy
could also understand profound meanings after
having studied these for five years. After studying
Vàrttika-Såtra, Chinese monks seeking dharma
could read other Indian classics, thus making it to
be a very important fundamental grammar book.
Vàrttika-Såtra needed annotation books itself, Cårõi
with 24,000 slokas by the scholar Pantanjali was
such a book, Cårõi was Vyàkaraõamahàbhàùya
and its function was equal to Spring and Autumn
Annals and Book of Changes. The annotation books
of Cårõi included Mahàbhàùya-ñãka (Mahàbhàùyadãpikà) of the great scholar Bhartçhari which
had 25,000 slokas. Moreover, Vàkyapadãya made
by Bhartçhari had 700 gathas of slokas and 7,000
gathas of explanations. Gathas of Prakãrnaka had
3,000 slokas which was written by Bhartçhari; its
explanations had 14,000 gathas which were written
by Dharmakathika Dharmapàla. Prakãrnaka was
regarded as a famous grammar book in Sanskrit
which “could solve various riddles of the language.”
Ancient Indians could read from Siddharastu to
Prakãrnaka and be proficient in this series of
linguistic books, so that they could thus claim to
be the “masters of shabdavidya” which could be
compared to “successful candidates in Imperial
Examination” after reading “the nine classics”,
including Rites of the Zhou Dynasty and classics of
100 Schools of Thought.
(Chen Ming)
529