Buddhism was introduced to China from India, and took root in China in the first century. It constantly absorbed the achievements of emerging theories and schools in the western regions and India and combined them with national traditional culture for creative development, forming China Buddhism with China cultural characteristics in three systems: Chinese, Tibetan and Pali. It can be said that it has the longest duration, the widest spread and far-reaching influence in human history.
1. Historical origins of Buddhism in China
If we divide the 15,6-year history of Indian Buddhism from the 4th century BC (more than 1 years after the extinction of Buddhism) to the 12th century into three periods on average, then Chinese Buddhism includes the first and second periods of Buddhism, Mahayana Buddhism and the fundamental part of the third period of secret Buddhism; Tibetan Buddhism has translated and transmitted the early Buddhist codes and most of the classics in the second and third periods; Pali-speaking Buddhism basically uses Pali original scripts, and some of them are translated into minority languages. It can be seen that Buddhism in three language families now circulating in China can be said to have completely inherited three periods of Buddhism in Indian history.
2. The formation and influence of Buddhism in China
However, in addition to Pali Buddhism in China, Buddhism in both Chinese and Tibetan languages has the characteristics of being enriched and developed in combination with their own cultural traditions, and its outstanding performance is the prosperity of various schools and sects. For example, both Chinese and Tibetan languages can list more than ten large and small sects. Secondly, the Buddhism of Sino-Tibetan two languages still pursues the precepts of hearing, hearing and multiplying, and explains them with Mahayana doctrine; Believing in Mahayana, there is no argument between Mahayana and Hinayana. Thirdly, since Buddhism was introduced to China in the first century A.D., most dynasties have adopted policies to protect and help Buddhism develop, and made monks and monasteries enjoy some special treatment by law, and the life of monks is guaranteed by the state in principle. Fourthly, most emperors in China have given Buddhist monks lofty political status and honor, and made them national teachers, emperors and living buddhas. Fifthly, the relationship between Buddhism and other sects and schools (such as Confucianism and Taoism) in China can be said to permeate and promote each other in the process of development. This is different from the situation that Buddhism and heretics in India are always in hostility, opposition and fierce struggle. Sixth, Buddhism has penetrated into all aspects of China's national culture. Since the Jin Dynasty, China's poetry, painting, calligraphy, sculpture, stone carving, printing and architecture have all been influenced by Buddhism. Buddhism also played a great role in the development of medicine and calendar calculation; The development of music, drama and novels is also deeply influenced by Buddhist thought. Buddhism has influenced China's philosophy for thousands of years, while Neo-Confucianism in Song and Ming Dynasties was directly inspired by Zen, so scholars believe that Neo-Confucianism is actually a disguised form of Buddhist Zen. Seventh, the teachings of Buddhism in China have a profound influence on people's daily life. We recently made a preliminary estimate and found that about 1 idioms commonly used in common language originated from Buddhism. Eighth, Buddhism in China has a strong vitality, and it has spread to other countries and nations, forming a prosperous situation. It is the longest, peaceful and powerful ideological and cultural movement in human history. The brilliant cultural achievements it has created are obvious to all.
3. Viewing the inheritance and development of Buddhism in China from the thought of "earthly Buddhism"
In order to carry forward the spirit of the Buddha, the Buddhist circles in China advocate the idea of "earthly Buddhism" with people as the center. In fact, the idea of human Buddhism was not founded by later generations. In "Adding a Han", the Buddha told the Emperor that "I was born in the world, grew up in the world, and gained Buddha in the world." Long Shu, the ancestor of Zhongguan Sect, put forward in "On Great Wisdom" that "all endowment undertakings are Buddhism and Taoism." Maitreya and Wuzuo, the founder of Yoga Sect, put forward in The Theory of Yoga and The Grand Solemn Sutra that a Bodhisattva can't gain wisdom without learning the "Five Enlightenments". In particular, in The Grand Solemn Sutra, it is proposed that the four manifestations of incarnating all beings in Buddhism are led by skill. After being translated into China, Mahayana's brilliant thoughts of actively entering the WTO were inherited and carried forward by Buddhist masters of past dynasties, striving to organically combine Buddhist thoughts with national fine traditions and make the spirit of Buddhism be reflected in people's daily physical and mental activities and social practice. Almost all the major sects established in China during the Sui and Tang Dynasties reflected this spirit and tendency, among which Zen Buddhism was the most outstanding. They held high the seal of "Buddhism is in the world and never leaves the world", which made Buddhism and life become one. China Buddhism's positive attitude of joining the WTO has enhanced its position in society. Thus, human Buddhism is the original idea of primitive Buddhism, but it has been fully developed and embodied in Mahayana Buddhism in China. This ideological movement has gone through more than a thousand years. In the third 5 years after the extinction of Buddhism (Sui and Tang Dynasties), it swept the whole East Asia with a surging momentum, and it produced enviable rich fruits in various nationalities and countries with different languages. Especially in modern times, Master Taixu, a high-ranking monk, pushed the spirit of "Buddhism on earth", which further clarified and sublimated Buddhism on earth in China and even the whole world, with far-reaching influence and richer achievements.
4. The spread and development of Buddhism in modern China
China Buddhism spread to Korea from the Middle East in the 4th century A.D. and to Japan in the early 6th century A.D., and had frequent contacts with Southeast Asian countries including Thailand. In modern times, especially in the past half century, China Buddhism has been paid more and more attention in the world.
since the founding of new China, the people's government has carried out the policy of freedom of religious belief, which has made Buddhism in old China once prosperous, and made great achievements in repairing temples, protecting scenic spots and historical sites, rectifying the Sangha system, developing Buddhist cultural undertakings and training Sangha talents. The people's government reaffirmed the policy of freedom of religious belief, and stipulated specific provisions in the new constitution to protect freedom of religious belief and ensure the normal religious activities of believers. The restoration of key temples, the opening of Buddhist colleges and various training courses, the renovation and protection of scenic spots and historical sites, the opening of Buddhist ceremonies and various festivals, the large-scale training of successors of monks' groups, and the restoration of the printing and distribution business of Buddhist scriptures all show that a lot of work has been done in restoring and carrying forward fine traditions and remarkable results have been achieved.
However, it is more noteworthy that we are combining the idea of "Buddhism on earth" with the new trend and level of modern human culture and civilization, and strive to make positive contributions to the modernization of our country and the cause of world peace.
4.1 We have made friendly contacts with the Buddhist circles in many countries and conducted various forms of academic exchanges on Buddhist culture, and carried out activities such as mutual visits, exchange of students, and mutual gifts of classics and publications. At the same time, the China Institute of Buddhist Culture was established to carry out multidisciplinary and systematic research.
4.2 There are more and more young scholars in famous universities and research institutions who carry out academic research on Buddhism, constantly publish relevant works, and explore specific issues of Buddhism, and have achieved many gratifying results. Of course, a considerable number of works are from the standpoint of criticizing Buddhism. However, we have noticed that: first, the trend of affirming the achievements and contributions of Buddhism in the paper is increasing; Second, the criticism is directed at the negative elements that deviate from the purpose of Buddhism on earth. Therefore, it can also be said that the critics suppressed and eliminated the negative factors from the opposite side, which opened the way for the development of Buddhism on earth. In addition, many publishing houses have formulated long-term plans to systematically publish ancient books, and published Buddhist classics in Chinese and Tibetan, including ancient classics on Buddhist history, biography, medicine, literature and art, with an increasing number. This is a very gratifying phenomenon, which has strengthened our confidence in restoring China's leading position in Buddhism research in the world.
4.3 with the strong support of the government, a large-scale investigation and collection of classics, books and cultural relics were carried out, and efforts were made to centralize, sort out, repair and preserve them. For example, Nanjing Jinling Scripture Engraving Office has made great efforts for Chinese woodcut editions, Sichuan Dege Scripture Printing Institute has made great efforts for Tibetan woodcut editions, and Beijing Buddhist Library and Cultural Relics Museum has made great efforts for Fangshan Shijing, or restored and expanded its original business, or achieved positive results. What is particularly important is that with the support of the people's government, the Tripitaka is being compiled and published. This is an extremely huge project, and its Chinese part, with more than 2 thousand volumes, is the most complete collection of Chinese Buddhist scriptures so far. In addition, the compilation and publication of various reference books on Buddhist research is also noteworthy, such as the editing and publication of the Tibetan-Chinese Dictionary, the reprint of the Buddhist Dictionary and so on. The completion of these works will certainly provide more convenience for the development of Buddhist research.
In short, since Buddhism was introduced to China from ancient India, it has been fully combined with China's traditional culture to form China Buddhism with China's cultural characteristics. It has deeply influenced China's culture and other fields, and spread abroad, especially after the reform and opening up, with the strong support and help of the government, and with the concerted efforts and active work of the national Buddhist and Buddhist circles, the development of Buddhism in China is inspiring, and it has achieved gratifying results. It can be said that China Buddhism originated in ancient India, developed in China, and influenced the whole world. It will continue to nurture and grow in the land of China, and it will move towards the future with full confidence, towards the ideal realm of human Buddhism, a solemn world of China and Tibet where all mankind are peaceful and happy, prosperous and prosperous.