Buddhism is one of the oldest religions among the three major religions in the world. Since Buddhism was introduced to China in the Eastern Han Dynasty, it has been the main belief of the Chinese people for more than a thousand years. During this period, it has been promoted and promoted by eminent monks and great virtues. Many emperors, ministers, and learned scholars have also joined the ranks, finally making Buddhism penetrate into all walks of life. . Its belief is deeply rooted in the people, "Amitabha is in every household, and Avalokitesvara is in every household." 'It is a faithful portrayal; and the philosophical part of Buddhism is combined, blended and stirred with Confucianism, Taoism, etc., and then merged into the long sea of ??Chinese culture, forming one of the mainstream of Chinese culture, and Chinese culture radiates brilliant and brilliant light. The content of culture is extremely broad and its projects are extremely diverse. All the total achievements of human beings from barbarism to civilization can be called culture. Therefore, here I only want to cite the "literature" in culture, and use the words of Liang Qichao, Hu Shi and other ancestors to illustrate the impact and contribution of the introduction of Buddhism to Chinese literature
1. Liang Qichao believes that Buddhism has five major influences on Chinese literature:
(1) The expansion of the essence of the Chinese language: Due to the translation of Buddhist scriptures, our country’s vocabulary has increased by more than 35,000.
(2) Changes in grammar and style: The study of Buddhist scriptures was the first time that an organized anatomical style appeared in China. The quotations of Zen Buddhism are a great revolution in Chinese literature.
(3) The development of literary taste: Our modern pure literature, such as novels, songs, etc., are closely related to the translation of Buddhist scriptures. The production of long narrative poems such as Peacock Flying Southeast and Shui Lan Ci were probably influenced by Ma Ming's "Praise to the Buddha's Deeds" translated by Tan Wujue in the Eastern Jin Dynasty. In addition, Mahayana classics use extremely majestic prose to interpret extremely subtle teachings, which enhanced the imagination of the Chinese people and revolutionized their interpretation methods. The chapter novels after the Song and Yuan Dynasties were greatly influenced by them.
(4) The introduction of musicals: my country’s first musical—Botou (also known as Botou), according to recent research, was introduced from the Badou Kingdom near South Tianzhu.
(5) Imitation of letters: With the input of Buddhism, Sanskrit also came in. Chinese eminent monks imitated Sanskrit letters to use Chinese characters. Therefore, there are thirty-six works such as Shouwen's "Jianxi Qunyi" in the Tang Dynasty. Making of letters.
2. Hu Shi believed that the import of Buddhism had three major impacts on China:
(1) Buddhist translators used simple and plain vernacular styles to translate Buddhist scriptures, but Seeking to be easy to understand without any embellishment, a vernacular style of writing was formed. Buddhist temple Zen became an important birthplace of vernacular prose and vernacular poetry.
(2) Buddhist literature is the most imaginative and has a great liberating effect on Chinese literature, which is the least imaginative. Chinese romantic works, such as "Journey to the West" and other novels, are products of the influence of Indian literature.
(3) Indian literature attaches great importance to formal layout and structure. 'Pu Yao Sutra', 'Praise of the Buddha's Deeds', 'Buddha's Sutra' are all great long stories; 'Surai Sutra' is a novel style work; 'Vimalakīrti Sutra', 'Siyi Brahma' The Sutras Asked are half novels and half dramas. The input of these Buddhist scriptures directly or indirectly contributed to the development of Tanci, Pinghua, novels, and dramas in later generations. The mixed use of prose and verse in Buddhist scriptures also had an impact on later Chinese literary genres.
As far as ‘literature’ is concerned, it is enough for us to write about. The reason why I am not afraid to quote it at length is because I hope we can be more vigilant and pay more attention to Buddhism. Buddhism is by no means an ordinary religion. No matter from any aspect of life, Buddhism is closely related to us, especially its contribution to Chinese culture, which is indispensable. [5]