The spread of Buddhism

TANSEN SEN

Several factors facilitated the spread of Buddhism over vast distances after its establishment in the Gangetic region of northern India in the fifth century bce. First, the encouragement of missionary work, attributed to the Buddha himself, resulted in the travels of monks and nuns through perilous land and sea routes into regions that were far away from the Buddhist heartland in South Asia.

The transmission of Buddhism is often described as a linear process, spreading from ancient India to other parts of Asia. This is illustrated in maps with arrows from the Buddhist heartland in South Asia to Central and Southeast Asia and then from those regions to East Asia. In reality, the process was more complex and the transmission was not necessarily in one direction. Buddhist monks from South Asia, for example, went to China not only to transmit the doctrine, but also to pay homage to Buddhist divinities purportedly living on Chinese mountains. Similarly, ideas formulated by Japanese monks seem to have influenced Buddhist schools in China, con­sidered to be the main source of Buddhism in Japan.

It should also be noted that although the Buddha might have emphasized missionary activity, the transmission of the doctrine outside South Asia was never undertaken in an organized way or through forced conversion. Buddhist teachings, texts, and images spread in fragmented forms, frequently along the major trade routes and often carried by itinerant monks and merchants. Consequently, in several places different schools and doctrines of Buddhism coexisted and mingled with each other, without the followers making a clear distinction between the diverse traditions. The spread of Buddhism, therefore, was not a systematic process. Rather, multiple strains of Buddhist doctrines originating in different regions circulated in Asia from the middle of the first millennium bcb to the twentieth century (see Map 17. ι).

Within this long history of the transmissions and evolutions of Buddhism, the fifth-sixth century cb was an important watershed. Prior to this period, Buddhist ideas had spread to most regions of the Indian subcontinent and made significant inroads into Han and post-Han China. After the fifth century, places such as Sumatra, Japan, and Korea were also incorporated into the Buddhist realm. Additionally, new networks of Buddhist exchanges were established and diverse forms of Buddhist teachings and schools emerged throughout these regions. By the tenth century, the Buddhist world spanned from the western regions of Central Asia to the towns and moun­tains of Heian Japan. The tenth century marked another turning point for Buddhist exchanges. The long-distance networks of Buddhist interactions between South Asia and what is present-day China began unraveling. What emerged after the tenth century were multiple centers of Buddhism, with their own spheres of influence and connections.

This chapter focuses on the above two turning points in the history of the spread of Buddhism. However, since Buddhist exchanges after the fifth century were grounded in the networks and modalities of transmission that developed prior to this period, the first part of the chapter deals with some of the key elements of the early diffusion of the doctrine. The aim, on one hand, is to demonstrate the reasons and methods of the initial spread of the doctrine within South Asia and from South Asia to Han and post-Han China; and on the other hand, it is to argue that the pre-fifth century networks continued to have significant impact on the later transmissions of Buddhist doctrines across Asia.

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Map 17.i. The spread of Buddhism in Asia

The early spread of Buddhism

Gautama Siddhartha, who became known as the Buddha (“the enlightened one”), lived in around the fifth century bce during a period that had witnessed urban growth and flourishing commercial activity. Buddhist bio­graphical works, which were composed several centuries after the Buddha's death, suggest he was born in an upper class, ruling family. He is said to have “renounced” his family and wealth after witnessing for the first time, in his late twenties, some of the most visible and disconcerting aspects of urban life (old age, sickness, death, and ascetic life). After attaining enlightenment, at a place called Bodhgaya (in the present-day Bihar state in India), the first people whom the Buddha met were merchants called Tapussa and Bhallika.

The Buddha lived until the age of eighty. His death, termed as mahaparinirvana (the final or eternal extinction, indicating a state from which there is no rebirth), was also an important element of the early spread of Buddhist doctrines, especially through the development of the relic cult. Early Buddhist works speak of eight rulers of India vying for the bodily remains of the Buddha. Eventually it was decided that these relics were to be distributed equally among the eight rulers, each of whom took the remains to their kingdoms and had them enshrined. In the third century bce, King Asoka reportedly exhumed these relics and redistributed them throughout his empire and also as gifts to foreign polities. Many local Buddhist legends credit the initial transmission of Buddhist doctrines to their regions to this pious act of King Asoka. The most important of these was Sri Lanka (Ceylon), where the Mauryan ruler is recorded to have sent his son Mahinda with a sapling of the Bodhi Tree, the Sacred Fig tree under which the Buddha is understood to have received enlightenment. This was presented to the Sri Lankan ruler Devanampiya Tissa, who shortly after receiving the gift is said to have established the first Buddhist monastic institution in his kingdom. For his contributions, Asoka was portrayed in Buddhist literature as the ideal king with the laudatory title chakravartin or “Universal Ruler.”

While it is generally accepted that King Asoka played an important role in the spread of Buddhism within his empire and in surrounding regions, the process was more complicated than simply a state-sponsored propagation. By the third century bce, an intimate relationship between the monastic community and trading networks had developed in South Asia.¹ These networks connected the Gangetic regions, where the Buddha had dwelled and preached, to the regions in central and southern India.

The spread of Buddhism along the trading networks within South Asia continued after the death of Asoka. The two succeeding empires, the Satavahanas (c. first century bce - c. third century ce) in the Deccan region of India and the Kusanas (c. 30 ce - c. 230) ruling in northern India, were instrumental in this regard, and also played a significant role in the diffusion of Buddhism outside South Asia. The Satavahana court emerged as one of the leading supporters of Buddhism in India, although the rulers themselves may not have converted to the religion. Their patronage of Buddhism can be discerned from the inscriptions that report sponsorship of monasteries, rock­cut temple complexes, and donations to Buddhist institutions in the Deccan region.^{[569] [570]} Also evident in epigraphical records from western and eastern regions of Deccan is the thriving relationship between traders and Buddhist institutions. Places such as Amaravati, Nagarjunakonda and others in the eastern part of the Deccan suggest intimate connections not only between Buddhism and the local trading communities, but also with merchant guilds engaged in overseas maritime commerce.^[571]

The Kusanas, who originated in the eastern part of Central Asia, formed their empire during the first century ce. Expansion under King Kaniska (c. 127 - c. 140) in the second century ce stretched the empire from Central Asia to the Gangetic plains of eastern India.

Buddhism had undergone noteworthy doctrinal changes by the time it entered the urban centers and port towns of Han China. The most important of these was the emergence of the Mahayana (Great Vehicle) school. The teachings of Mahayana Buddhism, appearing mostly in texts written in Sanskrit, allowed the laity to pursue the Buddhist path without the need to renounce society and join the monastic community. Some of these people could also become bodhisattvas, enlightened beings who delayed entering Nirvana in order to help others. The Mahayana Buddhists developed their unique philosophical traditions, texts, and images, which became popular in Central Asia, China, Japan, and Korea. The Theravada school, with its distinct texts, teachings, rules of personal conduct, and the primary use of Pali language, eventually became dominant in Sri Lanka, Myanmar (Burma), and Thailand. This does not imply, however, that people in these regions exclusively practiced one specific form of Buddhism. As noted above, in many of these places one could find texts and images belonging to multiple forms of Buddhism, including those from the later Tantric/esoteric or Vajrayana (Thunderbolt Vehicle) tradition, which developed in the seventh century. Also evident in these regions is the incorporation of local beliefs into Buddhist teachings and practices.

The route of transmission of Buddhism to China has been debated extensively during the past century. The argument has focused on whether the doctrine was initially transmitted through the overland roads or maritime routes. Erik Zurcher has questioned the long-accepted view that the trans­mission of Buddhist doctrines to China through the overland route was staged from Central Asian oasis states. He argues that the evidence for Buddhism in China predates the evidence for the presence of monastic institutions in eastern Central Asia. While textual and archeological sources make it clear that Buddhism spread to China by the second century ce, the earliest Buddhist remains from places such as Kucha and Khotan in eastern Central Asia date from the fourth century. In other words, Buddhism seems to have penetrated Chinese society at least two centuries before it was established in regions that were considered to be the key staging sites for the diffusion of Buddhism to China. Thus Zurcher contends that the spread of Buddhism from southern Asia to China was through “long-distance” transmission rather than a result of “contact expansion.”^[572]

No matter through which route Buddhism first reached China, it is clear that there was some presence of the doctrine and Buddhist monks in the Han capital Luoyang around the year 65 ce. A popular legend associates the spread of Buddhism to China with a dream of the Han Emperor Ming (r. 58-75 ce). In his dream, the Chinese ruler is said to have seen a “golden man.” Upon enquiring, the court officials told him that it might have been the foreign god called the Buddha. Learning this, the emperor sent two envoys to the “Western Regions” to seek more information about the foreign deity. Three years later, the envoys are said to have returned with two Buddhist monks, who were housed at the “first” Chinese Buddhist monas­tery called the Baimasi (White Horse Monastery) and asked to translate Buddhist texts. The history of Buddhism in China usually begins with this story of official introduction of the doctrine. While it is clear that this story is a later fabrication, meant to link the introduction of Buddhism with the Chinese court and legitimize the presence of a foreign doctrine in China, there are other reliable records to indicate the existence of Buddhist ideas and followers in Han China during the reign of Emperor Ming.^[573]

By the beginning of the sixth century, over two thousand Buddhist texts (known as sutras) were translated and cataloged in China. The rendition of Buddhist texts into Chinese may have been one of the important factors for the successful establishment of the doctrine in China. Often more than four people collaborated in the translation of a single Buddhist sutra. The first person recited the text, either from memory or from a manuscript, the second translated it orally into Chinese, the third wrote down the Chinese translation, and the fourth edited the written version of the Chinese transla­tion. This method of translation of Buddhist texts, due to the lack of bilingual specialists, continued through to the tenth century. Initially, the translations consisted of basic Buddhist teachings and the Jataka tales (stories of the Buddha's previous births). Gradually, more philosophical works belonging to various schools of Buddhism were rendered into Chinese. Several other genres of Buddhist literature, ranging from the biographical accounts of famous monks to apocryphal texts that placed Buddhist teachings within the Chinese socio-cultural framework, were composed in China. Also, by this time, Chinese monks, starting with Faxian (337/342-c. 422) in the fifth century, were traveling to South Asia to procure new texts and make pilgrimages. In other words, networks of Buddhist exchanges between China and South Asia were firmly established by the sixth century. During the subsequent centuries, these networks and the Buddhist centers in China facilitated the further spread of Buddhism to other parts of Asia.

The spread of Buddhism between the fifth and tenth centuries

The fifth and sixth centuries witnessed several developments across most of Asia that resulted in the spread of Buddhism to places that either had no prior encounter with the doctrine or were marginally in contact with it. While Korea and Japan fall into the former category, the maritime polities of Southeast Asia can be associated with the latter. The brisk networks of exchange between South Asia and China, mentioned above, augmented Central and Southeast Asia's participation in the flow of Buddhist monks, merchants, and paraphernalia from one region to another. In the seventh century, these networks had also integrated Korea and Japan. Additionally, many of these regions outside South Asia started developing their own unique schools and traditions of Buddhism to address local needs and situations. This process, sometimes referred to as “domestication” or “localization,” intensified Buddhist interactions, created multiple centers of Buddhism, and transformed Buddhism into the first pan-Asiatic religion.

Buddhism across Asia

Established in the middle of the fifth century, the Nalanda Mahavihara in the present-day Bihar state of India rapidly developed into the leading center of Buddhist learning. By the seventh century, this institution was not only attracting students from across Asia, it was also actively sending monks to propagate the doctrine. The monastery also received donations from local and foreign rulers. Indeed, the establishment of Nalanda seems to have had significant impact on cross-regional Buddhist exchanges during the second half of the first millennium. Two other developments also contributed to the rapid spread of Buddhism during this period. First, new dynasties and polities that emerged in China, Japan, and Korea, as well as in Central and Southeast Asia, started employing Buddhism to legitimize their political authority. Their aim was often to create a distinct identity for the newly established regime through the use of Buddhism. Links with existing Buddhist centers were essential for these political entities to import texts and other parapher­nalia in order to further the cause of the doctrine in their lands. Second, the intensification of long-distance commercial activity in the fifth and sixth centuries reinforced the association between merchants and monastic com­munities and contributed to the spread of Buddhism to new sites of interactions.

Between the fall of the Han Empire in 220 ce and the formation of a new unified empire by the Sui in 589, several contending kingdoms and dynasties rose and fell in China. Some of these, the Liang dynasty (502-557) in southern China for instance, employed Buddhism in unprecedented ways. The founding ruler of the dynasty, Emperor Wu (r. 502-49), not only propagated Buddhist doctrines and rituals within his state, but also established connec­tions with Buddhist centers in South Asia, and took steps to transmit the doctrine to Korea. After ascending to the throne, Emperor Wu dispatched a delegation of eighty-two people to bring an image of the Buddha from central India. This delegation returned in 511 by the maritime route with the image especially made for the Chinese emperor. Emperor Wu is also reported to have sent envoys to the Funan polity in Southeast Asia to fetch Buddhist relics. This interest in Buddhist artifacts by Emperor Wu seems to have triggered various embassies from South and Southeast Asian polities that presented Buddhist relics and other paraphernalia to the Chinese court. The polity of Panpan, for example, presented Buddhist relics to Emperor Wu in 528 and 534, Dandan offered a tooth relic and a Buddha image in 528, and in 540 Funan gave an image of the Buddha and Buddhist texts.^[574] All these polities were located in the maritime regions of Southeast Asia and were encounter­ing Buddhism more intensely due to the upsurge in long-distance mercantile activity in the Bay of Bengal and South China Sea regions.

Similarly, in northern China, under the Northern Wei dynasty (386-534), established by the Tuoba migrants from the steppe region in Central Asia, Buddhism was favored and propagated by several rulers. With the support and sponsorship of these rulers, construction of a large number of Buddhist

Figure 17.ι Buddhist figures, Longmen Caves, Henan Province (Private Collection, Leemage / Bridgeman Images)

temples and monuments took place in the major towns of northern China. Also noteworthy was the building of the cave complexes at Longmen (near the city of Luoyang, Henan Province) and Yungang (near the city of Datong, Shanxi Province), which required the introduction of various kinds of religious paraphernalia, including relics, sculptures, and texts, and created a demand for artists and craftsmen familiar with Buddhist style and practices (see Figure 17.ι). The Chinese monk Falin (572-640) reports that in northern China during the Northern Wei period there were 47 “great state monaster­ies,” 839 monasteries built by the royalty and the elites, and more than 30,000 Buddhist temples constructed by commoners.^[575] In the south, on the other hand, there were 2,846 monasteries and 82,700 monks.^[576]

The impressive growth of Buddhism in China during the fifth and sixth centuries seems to have had considerable impact on the development of Bud­dhism in regions of Central and Southeast Asia. The demand for Buddhist paraphernalia and artisans in China and the corresponding emergence of Nalanda as a center for Buddhist learning and propagation greatly increased the Buddhist traffic between South Asia and China. All the regions in between, as a consequence, came into contact with Buddhist preachers, pilgrims, artifacts, and artisans more frequently and in larger numbers than in any previous periods.

Indeed, while Buddhist doctrines had already penetrated the oasis states of Central Asia before the fifth century, the increased traffic between South Asia and China continued to foster Buddhism in areas such as Kucha, Khotan, and Dunhuang. These places were vital stopovers for Buddhist monks travelling overland between South Asia and China and benefited from doctrines and goods moving along these so-called Silk Roads. In the late fifth century, Kocho (Chinese: Gaochang) emerged as a new polity in the present-day Turfan area of Xinjiang Autonomous Region. Buddhism flourished under some of the rulers of Kocho, who sponsored the translation of Buddhist texts, conducted grand religious ceremonies, and constructed temples and cave complexes. Textual and archaeological evidence suggest that the doctrine was widespread in the Kocho society, both among elites and commoners.

The fifth and sixth centuries were especially important for the spread of Buddhism to the maritime regions of Southeast Asia. In areas of mainland Southeast Asia, such as Myanmar and Thailand, Buddhist doctrines might have entered prior to the fourth century. Some scholars have pointed to the architectural influences of Nagarjunakonda and Amaravati on the design of stupas (mound-like structures containing sacred relics) in the Pyu (in present- day Myanmar) and Mon (in present-day Thailand) areas, as well as the discovery of Mauryan-style Buddhist inscriptions (known as dharmacakra and ye dharma) in these regions, to suggest the transmission of Buddhism to mainland Southeast Asia by the second century ce.^[577] The Pyu site Srisetra (in the lower Irrawaddy river) and the Mon site Dvaravati (in the Chao Phraya basin) also revealed the earliest Pali inscriptions in inland Southeast Asia dating from the fifth to seventh centuries and sixth to eighth centuries respectively, indicating, for some, the presence of Theravada doctrines.^[578]

The earliest concrete evidence for the presence and practice of Buddhism in maritime regions of Southeast Asia, on the other hand, dates to the fourth­fifth century. One of these is a fifth-century Sanskrit inscription found in Kedah in present-day Malaysia. Commissioned by a sea captain named Buddhagupta, the inscription also has an engraved image of a stupa. The three-line inscription offers prayers to the Buddha and records of Buddha- gupta as the “great sea captain” and a resident of Raktamrttika, which most scholars identify as the Southeast Asian polity called Chitu (on the eastern coast of the Malay peninsula) in later Chinese sources. Other early Buddhist inscriptions in maritime Southeast Asia were also found in the Kedah region (see Map 17.2).^[579]

Excavations in Kedah and its vicinity have also revealed several Buddha statues and sculptures from the same period. While some of these images stylistically resemble Gupta art forms and may have been imported from South Asia, others seem to have been made locally. Buddhist statues made of stone and bronze, votive tablets and stupas dating from the fifth to the seventh centuries have also been discovered on the east coast of the Malay peninsula. Made in different styles, these objects indicate links between Southeast Asia and several regions of South Asia, including the present-day Indian states of West Bengal, Odisha, Andhra, and Tamil Nadu, and the presence of distinct traditions of Buddhist doctrines.

The above evidence for the presence of Buddhism in maritime Southeast Asia coincided with the decline of Funan, a polity centered in the present-day Cambodia-Vietnam region, and in the formation of new polities in it. To legitimize their authority, the rulers of some of these new polities opted for Buddhism instead of the Brahmanical doctrines that might have prevailed in Funan. The fact that almost at the same time Chinese dynasties were also using Buddhism for political legitimization would have been apparent to these rulers. The emergence of the powerful Srivijayan polity centered in Sumatra in the seventh century, as noted below, further stimulated the spread of Buddhism in maritime Southeast Asia.

The use of Buddhism to legitimize or project political power was also instrumental in the establishment of the doctrine in Korea and Japan. The development of Buddhism in these areas was closely associated with diplo­matic, commercial, and religious connections to China. According to a twelfth-century Korean work called Samguk sagi (Historical Records of the

Map 17.2. Early Buddhist sites in Southeast Asia

Three Kingdoms), Buddhism was introduced to Korea during the Three Kingdoms period, to the kingdom of Koguryo in 372, the kingdom of Paekche in 384, and the kingdom of Silla in 528.^[580] While contacts with Chinese kingdoms are credited with the transmission of the doctrine to the former two kingdoms, monks from Koguryo are said to have brought Buddhist teachings to Silla.^[581] The spread of Buddhism to Japan, on the other hand, is attributed to Buddhist teachers from Paekche. The Samguk sagi and other sources also suggest that the transmission of Buddhism to the region was intimately connected to the larger networks of Buddhist interactions across Asia. In both Paekche and Silla, for example, the two earliest monks, named Maranant'a (Malananda?) and Mukhoja respectively, seem to have come from Central Asia.1^[582]

Textual sources from the sixth and seventh centuries indicate intense inter­actions between Buddhist communities in East Asia. The Liang dynasty in China, which, as outlined above, fostered Buddhist linkages with South and Southeast Asia, also facilitated Buddhist exchanges in East Asia. Not only did monks from the Korean kingdoms travel to Liang China to study, but Emperor Wu is also known to have sent Buddhist delegations and relics to Korea. In fact in 527, the ruler of Paekche built a Buddhist temple called Taet'ong-sa (Chinese: Datong si) in honor of Emperor Wu's contribution to the spread of the doctrine to his kingdom.^[583] Additionally, within a few decades of the introduction of the doctrine, the rulers of the Silla kingdom, similar to Emperor Wu, were using the symbolism of the chakravartin, associated with King Asoka, to portray themselves as powerful and pious Buddhist monarchs.^[584]

Monks from Korea also started traveling to South Asia in the sixth century to study and procure Buddhist texts. One of the earliest monks to make this journey might have been Kyomik from Paekche who went to India by the sea route.^{[585] [586]} It was also through the maritime networks that monks from Paekche introduced Buddhist doctrines to Japan. After the initial transmission of Bud­dhism to Japan in 552 by a monk named Norisach'igye,1⁸ several other Buddhist missions were sent from Paekche to Japan. Monks from Koguryo were active in Japan during the sixth century as well and are known to have established the

Map 17.3. The Three Kingdoms in Korea

first order of nuns in the island. In 594, Koguryo and Paekche monks, Hyeja and Hyech'ong respectively, were instrumental in explaining the Buddhist doctrines to Prince Shotoku, who became one of the first members of the royalty in Japan to advocate Buddhism.^[587] Aware of the importance of China as a center of Buddhism, Shotoku sent an envoy to the Sui court (581-618) in 607 to bring, among other things, Buddhist texts. By the time of Prince Shotoku's death in 622, Buddhist doctrines had penetrated the easternmost region of Asia.

Buddhist networks and exchanges

The spread of Buddhism across Asia triggered vibrant cross-cultural exchanges during the seventh and eighth centuries. This is manifested in the increased number of monks traveling between various regions of Asia, the growth in the exchange of Buddhist paraphernalia, and the creation of new networks of Buddhist transmissions. This period also witnessed the formation of several localized schools of Buddhist thought, the establishment of unique pilgrimage sites and the creation of new art motifs throughout the Buddhist realm (see Figure 17.2). The latter developments eventually contrib­uted to the emergence of multiple centers of Buddhism that would gradually form their own spheres of influences.

The travels of the Chinese monks Xuanzang (60ctf-664) and Yijing (635-713), the pilgrimage of the Korean Buddhist Hye’cho (c. 700-c. 780), the missionary work of the South Asian Tantric masters Vajrabodhi (671-741) and Amoghavajra (705-774), and the Japanese monk Kukai’s (774-835) sojourn in China are indicative of the highly connected and interactive nature of Buddhist exchanges during the seventh and eighth centuries. The travels of Xuanzang, which were later fictionalized by Chinese writers, are perhaps the best known of these cross-regional interactions that sustained the diffusion of Buddhist ideas, images, and paraphernalia.

Xuanzang seems to have come to know about Nalanda from a South Asian monk named Prabhakaramitra, who reached Tang China in the early seventh century. He set out on his journey through Central Asia sometime around 629, with the intention to learn about Yogacara teachings. During his stay in South Asia, Xuanzang had audiences with two powerful rulers, King Harsa of Kanauj (located in northern India) and King Bhaskarvarman of Kamarupa (in eastern India). After staying at Nalanda for about ten years, Xuanzang returned to Tang China in 645 with over 600 Buddhist texts and many Buddhist images. Xuanzang continued to maintain contacts with his teachers and fellow students at Nalanda and may have even played some role in fostering diplomatic exchanges between the Tang court and kingdoms in South Asia.^[588]

A few decades after Xuanzang’s return, another Chinese monk called Yijing also travelled to Nalanda and observed the ways in which Buddhist practices in South Asia differed from those in China and Southeast Asia.

Figure 17.2 Pensive Bodhisattva, Three Kingdoms period (57 bce~668 ce), mid-seventh century, Korea (Metropolitan Museum of Art / © SCALA)

Yijing wrote about several other monks from East Asia who went to Nalanda in the seventh century, making their journeys either by the sea or the land route. More importantly, Yijing's activities indicate an intimate networking between the Buddhist learning centers in Tang China, Southeast Asia, and South Asia. Before reaching Nalanda, Yijing studied Sanskrit in Srivijaya for about half a year. On his way back, he lived in the Southeast Asian polity again to write his accounts of travels and undertake, in collaboration with other Chinese monks, translation work. In fact, in one of his translations, Yijing recommends that Chinese monks planning to visit South Asia should first study Sanskrit in Srivijaya.

Yijing also mentions several Korean monks who made (or attempted to make) pilgrimages to South Asia. This included the monks Hyeop, Hyeryun, Hyδn^,gak, Hyonjo, Hyonyu, and Hyδnt'ae. Some of these monks lived and died in Nalanda. There were others who, according to Yijing, passed away on their way to South Asia. The most famous Korean monk to travel to Nalanda was Hyech'o, who reached there in the early eighth century. This monk from the Silla kingdom studied in Tang China under the Indian Tantric master Vajrabodhi before making his pilgrimage to the sacred sites in India. After his pilgrimage, Hyech'o returned to China and continued to work under Vajrabodhi and his disciple Amoghavajra. He is credited with writing a memoir called Wang Ocheonchukguk jeon (Memoir of a Pilgrimage to the Five Indias), which also vividly demonstrates the linkages that existed between various Buddhist learning centers and pilgrimage sites in South and East Asia.

The two South Asian masters under whom Hyech'o studied in Tang China were part of the larger movement to transmit new doctrines of Buddhism associated with Tantric practices. Tantra is defined as

that body of beliefs and practices which, working from the principle that the universe we experience is nothing other than the concrete manifestation of the divine energy [or teaching/enlightened consciousness, in the case of Buddhism] of the godhead that creates and maintains that universe, seeks to ritually appropriate and channel that energy, within the human microcosm, in creative and emancipatory ways.^[589]

Spells, chants, and ritual ceremonies were key elements of this tradition which developed in South Asia in the seventh century and influenced both Brahmanism and Buddhism.

Between the second half of the seventh and the late eighth century, Tantric Buddhist doctrines spread rapidly to all parts of the Buddhist realm. Tantra gained favor among the Pala rulers in the Bihar-Bengal region of South Asia, with some of the Tang emperors in China, and also influenced monastic institutions in Sri Lanka, Southeast Asia, Korea, and Japan. It made the most significant impact in Tibet, where Buddhist doctrines entered in the eighth century.

Tantric Buddhism introduced new styles of religious paraphernalia into the existing networks of exchange. The activities of Tantric masters Vajrabodhi and Amoghavajra, and one of their predecessors, a South Asian monk named Subhakarasimha (d. 735), reveal the vitality of these expanded networks. The three monks were closely associated with the Tang rulers and performed various rituals and ceremonies for the protection of the state, translated numerous Tantric texts, and trained Chinese and other East Asian monks. The Japanese monk Kukai studied with one of Amoghavajra's Chinese students named Huiguo and returned to his homeland in 806 to promote Tantric doctrines in Japan by establishing the school known as Shingon. The Japanese emperors Kammu (r. 781-806) and Junna (r. 823-33) were his leading patrons.^[590] Huiguo also had a student from Java named Bianhong, who, after returning from China, may have contributed to the designing of the temple of Borobudur.^[591]

Not far from Borobudur, in central Java, is a site called Ratu Boko, where an eighth-century Sanskrit inscription indicates the presence of Sri Lankan monks. The architectural features of the Buddhist monastic site in Ratu Boko also show similarities to the Abhayagiri monastery in Sri Lanka.^[592] In 741, Amoghavajra visited the Abhayagiri monastery and passed through Java on his way from Tang China to South Asia. He and his Chinese disciples are known to have stayed in Sri Lanka for several months and brought back Tantric Buddhist texts and artifacts to China. It is clear from textual records and archaeological evidence that Sri Lanka was an integral part of the Tantric networks of the seventh and eighth centuries.

The Tantric masters in China were also responsible for furthering the cult of Manjusri, the bodhisattva of compassion. Mount Wutai, perceived as an abode of the bodhisattva Manjusri, was perhaps the most important Buddhist pilgrimage site outside South Asia. Starting from around the sixth century, Chinese Buddhist texts started promoting the mountain in central China as the site where one could encounter and venerate Manjusri. The legends associated with the presence of the Buddhist divinity at the mountain became so popular that even monks from South Asia began making pilgrimages to the site. Vajrabodhi was one such monk who, after reaching China, fre­quently organized ritual and ceremonies on the mountain. The Manjusri cult associated with Mount Wutai also spread to Tibet and later became an important part of the diplomatic intercourse between the rulers in China and Lhasa.^[593]

Tibet was the last major region of Asia where Buddhist doctrines pene­trated. Although some sources suggest that Buddhist ideas spread as early as the reign of King Songtsen Gampo (Srong btsan sgam po, r. c. 614-650), it was only under King Tri Songdetsen (Khri srong Ide btsan, r. 754-797) that they gained popularity. King Tri Songdetsen is said to have converted to Buddhism and employed it not only to consolidate his political power, but also in Tibet's diplomatic relations with foreign polities.^[594] The process through which the doctrine spread to Tibet reveals the existence of multiple centers of Buddhism and the diverse array of Buddhist ideas that had developed throughout Asia by the eighth century.^[595]

During Tri Songdetsen's reign, several Indian and Chinese monks were active in Tibet. This included Indian monks belonging to the Madhyamika school, represented by Santaraksita and his disciple Kamalasila, the Kashmiri Tantric master Padmasambhava, who is credited for establishing the first Buddhist monastery in Tibet known as Samye (Bsam yas) in 779, and the Chinese Moheyan, who headed the local Chan school. Shortly before the death of Tri Songdetsen, a great debate is reported to have ensued between the followers of Madhyamika and Chan, represented by Kamalasila and Moheyan respectively, to determine the true nature of enlightenment. Tibetan sources hold that Moheyan was defeated and banished from Tibet. It was then decided that the Madhyamika school would be followed in Tibet.^[596]

Buddhist exchanges between Tibet and other regions of the Buddhist world grew considerably during the reigns of Tri Songdetsen and his successor Ralpajen (Ral pa can, r. c. 815-835). Tri Songdetsen was interested in Buddhist pilgrimage sites in both India and China, including Mount Wutai. On one occasion, he is recorded to have sent a diplomatic mission to the Tang court to request a painting of Mount Wutai. Under Ralpajen, on the other hand, several translation academies were established in Tibet to translate Indian Buddhist texts and study Sanskrit. Military expansion into Dunhuang also gave Tibetans access to Buddhist texts and artifacts from Central Asia. These exchanges and interactions were interrupted in 838, when the King Langdarma (Glang dar ma) persecuted Buddhist monks and suppressed monastic institutions. Langdarma may have been eventually assassinated by a Buddhist monk, which, while ending the persecution of Buddhism, also led to the disintegration of the Tibetan empire. It was only in the eleventh century that Buddhist exchanges between Tibet and other Buddhist centers started to revive.

The multiple worlds of Buddhism, 1000-1500

By the eleventh century, three distinct “worlds” of Buddhism seemed to have emerged across Asia: the India-Tibet world, centered on the monastic insti­tutions in the Bihar-Bengal region; the East Asian world, with multiple centers in China, Korea and Japan; and the Sri Lanka-Southeast Asia world, connected through the Theravada/Pali Buddhist networks. This does not imply, however, that the contacts and exchanges across and between the various Buddhist regions ceased. The travels of the South Asian monk Atisa (982-1054) are indicative of the persistent Buddhist connections across Asia. Also known as Dipamkara Srijnana, Atisa traveled to Sumatra in the early eleventh century and studied under a local monk named Dharmakirti. After spending about eleven years in Southeast Asia, he returned to India and settled at the Vikramasila Monastery. In 1040, on an invitation from the Tibetan royalty, Atisa went to central Tibet to teach Tantric Buddhist doctrines.^[597] There was also a monk named Dhyanabhadra (Ch. Chanxian/ Zhikong, 1225-1363), who in the thirteenth century was ordained at Nalanda and then traveled from India to Beijing and subsequently to the Korean peninsula.^[598] Indeed, despite the fact that the contours of the three Buddhist worlds became more distinct with regard to doctrinal practices, the connec­tions between them continued through to the twentieth century.

The India-Tibet Buddhist world

The Vikramasila Monastery where Atisa lived before accepting the invitation to go to Tibet emerged as one of the leading Buddhist centers in South Asia. The Pala ruler Dharmapala (r. 77ctf-810) built the monastery in the late eighth or early ninth century, and it continued to prosper under the patronage of the later rulers of the dynasty. Located not far from Nalanda, the monastery was a key site for interactions between local Tantric clergies and those visiting from Tibet. Until its decline in the twelfth century, Vikramasila played an important role in the spread of Tantric Buddhism to Nepal and Tibet. Another monastic institution that flourished and engaged in the transmission of Buddhist Tantric doctrines during the Pala period was Odantapuri, also located in the modern state of Bihar. Although Nalanda received less attention from the Pala rulers than either Vikramasila or Odantapuri, it nonetheless remained an important destination for foreign monks and attracted donations from polities as far away as in Sumatra.^[599]

The above three monasteries were not only involved in the transmission of Tantric doctrines, but they were also instrumental in the spread of new Buddhist art forms that developed under the Palas and other smaller king­doms located in the Bihar-Bengal region between the eighth and twelfth centuries. Often represented in black stone or metal, with images that incorporated Brahmanical deities, the Pala Tantric art dispersed across Asia, even though the reception and impact was not always comparable. Nepal, Tibet, Yunnan, Java, and Myanmar seem to have been the main regions that were influenced by Pala art forms.^[600]

Other art forms produced during this period suggest serious rivalries between the followers of Buddhism and Brahmanism in several regions of India. In the seventh century, when the Chinese monk Xuanzang visited northern India, he had witnessed the decline of several urban centers and monastic institutions. It seems that the decline of urban centers, which were important for the initial spread of Buddhism, and the conflict with Brahman­ism had considerable impact on Buddhism, despite the strong patronage of the Pala rulers.^[601] Eventually, in the thirteenth century, the invasions by Turco-Mongol pillagers led to the decline of almost all major Buddhist monastic institutions in northern India, including the three mentioned above.

In many ways, Tibet was the inheritor of the Tantric Buddhist traditions developed during the Pala period. Similar to the other regions, Tibet also added its own unique features to the doctrine, including the belief in reincar­nating lamas (Buddhist teachers), which may have derived from the teachings of Atisa. Several other schools of Buddhism developed in central, western, and eastern parts of Tibet due to the distinct interactions each of these places had with other parts of the Buddhist realm that included Kashmir, Central Asia, and China. There were also famous Buddhist monks, such as ‘Brog-mi (992-1072) and Milarepa (Mi-la-ras-pa, 1012-96), who founded their own traditions that were centered at a specific monastery in Tibet. Consequently, different indigenous schools of Buddhism emerged in Tibet, some of which competed with each other for religious and political clout.^[602]

The major Buddhist schools in Tibet that evolved through these cross- regional interactions and individual introspections included the Sakyapa (Sa-skya-pa), established by ‘Brog-mi, who had studied at Vikramasila Mon­astery and translated one of the main Tantric texts known as the Hevajra tantra; the Karmapa (Karma-pa), members of which negotiated the surrender of Tibet to Chinggis Khan; and the Gelukpa (Dge-lugs-pa), which, founded in the fourteenth century, emphasized monastic discipline and is associated with the traditions of Dalai and Panchen lamas. The latter two schools were often in conflict with each other and tried to gain favor from the Mongol and later rulers of China. Many of these Tibetan schools of Buddhism also contributed to the diffusion of Tantric Buddhist traditions. Their impact can be discerned, for example, from the religious practices of the Mongols in Mongolia and the present-day Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region of China. In the eighteenth century, some of these teachings even spread to Buryatia in the southern Siberian region of Russia.^[603]

The East Asian Buddhist world

The persecution of Buddhism by the Tang Emperor Wuzong (r. 840-46) in 845 - often termed the Huichang Persecution, as Huichang is the name given to Wuzong's reign period - used to be viewed as a watershed in the history of the doctrine in China, but the belief that Buddhism declined in China after this event is no longer accepted. Recent studies have demonstrated that the doctrine had already penetrated deep into Chinese society by this time. They also note the fact that Buddhism continued to play a significant role in China's interactions with the neighboring region during the subsequent periods. Under the first three rulers of the Song dynasty, for example, Buddhism seems to have recovered from the persecution in 845 and developed into an integral part of Song China's diplomatic and commercial exchanges with neighboring societies. Translation activity and doctrinal discourse also revived during the late tenth and eleventh centuries.

The Huichang Persecution was one of the most severe measures launched by the state to address the impact of Buddhist monastic institutions on the Chinese economy. Due to their large land ownership and soaring number of tax-exempted clergy, Buddhist monasteries were a significant drain on state revenue. This issue had resulted in at least two earlier suppressions of Buddhism in China. The one under Wuzong in the ninth century, however, was the most brutal. According to a report presented to Emperor Wuzong after the persecution, 4,600 monasteries were destroyed, 260,500 monks and nuns were defrocked and subjected to tax, and a large amount of fertile land belonging to Buddhist institutions was confiscated by the state.^[604]

Neither Emperor Wuzong nor the Tang dynasty survived very long after the Huichang Persecution. When the Song dynasty reunified China in 960, not only did Buddhist monastic institutions recover, but networks of Bud­dhist exchanges were re-established with Japan, Korea, and the nomadic states emerging at the northern and western borders of the Chinese Empire. Several factors were responsible for the survival and resurgence of Buddhism in Song China. The penetration of Buddhist ideas deep into Chinese society, as noted above, was perhaps the most important. Ideas associated with Pure Land Buddhism, for instance, which advocated possible rebirth in the para­dise of the celestial Buddha called Amitabha, became immensely popular among lay Buddhists and spread to Korea, Japan, and Vietnam. Similarly, the Chan tradition that became widespread in China had a significant impact on East Asian societies.^[605] The destruction of monastic institutions and defrocking of monks and nuns during the Huichang period did not seem to have had a dire impact on these practices and beliefs that were already ingrained among the common people.

During the tenth and eleventh centuries, commercial networks and state formations continued to stimulate and sustain Buddhist exchanges in East Asia. A new catalyst to this was the invention of movable-type printing that contributed to the increased circulation of Buddhist texts and canons. The Song court's policy to promote internal and external commerce had a tremendous impact on its economy. New networks and markets developed throughout China, which gradually became integrated with the larger Eurasian commercial exchanges. Buddhist monasteries in Song China became part of this commercial revolution by providing loans to merchants and space for fairs and markets. Trade in Buddhist paraphernalia witnessed rapid growth, although the involvement of Buddhist monks (and merchants pretending to be such) became a concern for the Song court.

The growth in demand for Buddhist paraphernalia was not only connected to the expansion of trade during the Song period, but also to state formation among some of the nomadic tribes in Central and East Asia, particularly by the Khitans and Tanguts, who established the Liao (907-1125) and Xixia (1038-1227) dynasties respectively. Similar to the polities in East and South­east Asia discussed above, the Liao and Xixia, and later the Mongols, also used Buddhism to create state identities and legitimize political authority.^[606]

Another important development that led to increased trade in Buddhist artifacts had to do with the apocalyptic prophecies credited to the Buddha himself. It was prophesied that at a certain point in future, the exact time for which varied from text to text, invasion of India by foreigners, the ensuing destruction of Buddhist monuments, or corruption within the monastic organization would lead to the disappearance of Buddhist doctrines. The world would be rampant with greed, chaos, disease, and starvation until the Buddha of the future, Maitreya, would descend to earth and restore order and revive Buddhism. Reports about the decay of monastic centers in India and the popularity of apocalyptic ideas found in Buddhist texts seems to have influenced Buddhist communities throughout East Asia. This perception amplified the demand for relics and texts, which were to be stored for the future regeneration of the doctrine.^[607]

Within the above contexts, the Chinese Buddhist canon that could be rapidly copied and distributed became an object of high demand in East Asia. This demand contributed to an increase in the need for new Buddhist texts and translators and the establishment of official translation bureaus. The Song translation bureau is known to have employed Indian and Chinese monks, who translated a record number of Buddhist texts and printed several copies of the Buddhist canon. In fact, it seems that the number of Buddhist texts translated during the reign of the first three Song emperors was greater than in any of the previous dynasties. However, the aim to either produce or distribute these canons was not always related to the propagation (or preservation) of the doctrine as such. The Song court in China and the Koryo kingdom (918-1392) in Korea, for example, competed with each other to donate Buddhist canons to neighboring regions as part of their diplomatic 40

maneuverings.

Buddhism in Korea had developed and diversified significantly under the Silla kingdom, which unified the region politically in the seventh century. Buddhist schools and cults entering Korea from China were synthesized and domesticated by monks including Wonhyo (617-689) and Uisang (625-702). Some Korean monks, such as the monk Ch'egwan belonging to the Tiantai school, were even invited to China for doctrinal input. The Buddhist clergy in Korea, similar to their counterparts in China, also transformed several sites in their region into leading pilgrimage centers. This included the establishment of a Mount Wutai-like pilgrimage site at Mount Odae, where the devotees could encounter the Manjusri cult without the need to travel to China.^{[608] [609]}

Many of the accomplishments attained during the Silla period contributed to the growth of Buddhism under the Koryo rulers. Teachings related to Son Buddhism in particular became popular during this period, and state-sponsored Buddhist rituals were common. A cordial and mutually beneficial relationship between the Buddhist community and the Koryo state was established during the reign of T'acjo (r. 918-43), the founding ruler of the kingdom. And while restrictions were imposed on the ordination of monks, Buddhism in general and Son monks in particular received state support during most of Koryo period. The Buddhist monasteries were also prosperous, with large land holdings, private donations, and state support. In fact, it is estimated that Buddhist monasteries in Koryo controlled one-sixth of all arable land.^[610]

The Korean pattern of domestication of Buddhism and the continued links to Buddhist centers and institutions in China also took place in Japan. Monks from Japan frequently visited Tang China to study with either Chinese or Indian teachers. Ideas associated with Tiantai, Tantric, and Chan Buddhism entered Japan mainly through these channels. These three traditions developed into what are known as the Tendai, Shingon, and Zen schools during the Heian (794-1185) and Kamakura (1185-1333) periods. While the monk Saicho (767-822) is credited with establishing the Tendai school, Kukai, as noted above, was instrumental in introducing Tantric teachings in Japan. The monks Honen (1133-1212) and Shinran (1173-1262), on the other hand, are associated with propagating Pure Land Buddhism in Japan. Each of these schools, although originally imported from China, went through evolution in Japan, sometimes leading to the establishment of new branches. The most pertinent example is that of the Nichiren school, which emerged when the Japanese monk Nichiren (1222-82) decided to reform the ideas of the Tendai school by emphasizing the Lotus Sutra as the only true text of Buddhism.

Under the Kamakura shogunate, Buddhism enjoyed state support, the expansion of monastic economic prowess, and the widespread popularity of Buddhist rituals and ceremonies. Similar to other parts of East Asia during this period, the relics of the Buddha became prized items of monastic insti­tutions and the state itself. As a consequence, a number of Buddhist cere­monies during the Kamakura period revolved around the veneration of the relics. The relics housed in the Toji temple in Kyoto, for instance, were considered to be the “spiritual jewels” of India, China, and Japan, and described as the “spiritual treasures of the realm and protectors of the imperial family.”^[611]

By the time Qubilai Khan established the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368) in China, Korea and Japan had created their own Buddhist worlds, with their own unique doctrinal and ritualistic emphases. For the clergy and lay followers of Buddhism in these regions, the necessary monastic institutions, learning centers, and pilgrimage sites had all been established. Despite these localizing developments, however, linkages and exchanges continued within the larger Buddhist realm. In fact, because of the acceptance of Tibetan Buddhism by Qubilai in China and Hulegu in Iran, pan-Asiatic Buddhist networks, spanning from Japan to the Persian Gulf, persisted during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries.

The Sri Lanka-Southeast Asia Buddhist world

After the eleventh century, networks associated with Theravada Buddhism drew together Sri Lanka and different mainland and maritime polities of Southeast Asia more closely than in the previous periods. With links to various regions of India, the monastic sites in Sri Lanka, and influences from southern and southwestern regions of China, Buddhist practices in Southeast Asia were diverse and multifaceted. They included doctrines and art forms originating from the Andhra region in India, Theravada and Tantric teach­ings transmitted from Sri Lanka, and the influx of Chan and other schools of Buddhism from China. There were also various cults and ideas that developed locally and spread to several regions of Southeast Asia. After the tenth century the Theravada linkages became much stronger, primarily due to political changes taking place in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, and Thailand.

In the second half of the eleventh century, Vijayabahu I (1055-1110) ended the rule of the Colas from southern India and consolidated his power in Sri Lanka. The Sinhalese political hold over the island grew stronger during the reign of Parakramabahu I (1153-1186), who reportedly launched military offensives against South Indian kingdoms and revitalized the maritime net­works connecting Sri Lanka to the regions in the South China Sea. Buddhist institutions flourished under the patronage of Vijayabahu I and Parakrama- bahu I.^[612]

During his battles against the Colas, Vijayabahu I is known to have asked Aniruddha (1044-1077), the ruler of the newly established Pagan polity in Myanmar, to preserve the Buddhist tradition and paraphernalia during the period of chaos and warfare in the island. Even before this, the Pagan ruler seems to have decided to use ideas associated with Theravada Buddhism, which had entered Myanmar previously, to legitimize his political authority. Monks from Myanmar are reported to have visited Sri Lanka after Vijaya- bahu I's victory and assisted in the re-establishment of Buddhism on the island. The collaboration between the Pagan rulers and the Sinhalese kings during the succeeding periods resulted in frequent Buddhist exchanges between the two regions, including gifts of relics and texts. One of the most famous Buddhist monks from Myanmar to visit Sri Lanka was Uttarajiva, who reached the island during the reign of King Parakramabahu I. Chapata, a member of Uttarajiva's delegation, remained behind to study in Sri Lanka. After returning to Myanmar in 1181 or 1182, Chapata established a Sinhala Buddhist center, which, according to R. A. L. H. Gunawardana, not only played a significant role in the spread of Sinhalese Theravada Buddhism in Myanmar, but also to other parts of Southeast Asia.^[613] It should be noted, however, that several other schools of Buddhism, deriving from specific local teachers, monastic institutions and regions of origin, also existed within the Pagan polity.

Patronage of Buddhism by local rulers, diplomatic interactions with Sri Lanka, and the exchanges between monastic communities were also the reasons for the gradual dominance of Theravada Buddhism in Thailand during the Sukhothai period (1238-1438). Under King Rama Khambaeng (r. c. 1279-99) and his successors, Sinhalese Theravada doctrines and monastic traditions spread throughout the Sukhothai-controlled regions of Thailand. Similarly, rulers in the Chiangmai region developed their own links with Sri Lanka, leading to the diffusion of Sinhala Theravada Buddhism to almost all regions of present-day Thailand.^[614]

Even in regions that were not dominated by the Sinhala Theravada tradition, Buddhist interactions between Sri Lanka and Southeast Asian were also boosted by the popularity of the relic cult. The tooth and other remains and relics of the Buddha found in Sri Lanka attracted monks, envoys, and donations from almost all regions of Southeast Asia. A ruler from Tambra- lifιga named Candrabhanu is said to have even attacked Sri Lanka on two occasions, in 1247 and 1262, to obtain Buddhist relics.^[615] The popularity of relics may have also enticed Qubilai Khan in China to procure the Buddha's alms bowl by sending a special envoy in 1284. It is also possible, furthermore, that the conflict between the Ming admiral Zheng He and the Sri Lankan ruler Alakeswara in 1410-11, which led to the arrest and removal of the latter to China, took place over the sacred remains of the Buddha preserved on the island.^[616]

The interest of the Yuan and Ming (1368-1644) courts in Sri Lanka reflects the entry of China-based trading and diplomatic networks into the Indian Ocean region. By the end of the thirteenth century, Chinese diasporic communities had been established at ports in South and Southeast Asia. As noted above, Buddhist ideas from China had previously spread to Vietnam, Myanmar, and perhaps also Java. With the formation of Chinese diasporic networks, popular forms of Buddhism carried by the migrants also began spreading to various regions of Southeast Asia. The cult of Guanyin, for example, became widespread in maritime Southeast Asia, especially at sites where Chinese diasporic communities had been established. During the later periods, these communities also erected temples and shrines dedicated to Guanyin in South Asia. Indeed, the maritime networks of the Sri Lankans, Southeast Asians, and the Chinese continued to link the Buddhist worlds in Asia during much of the colonial period.

Concluding remarks

The spread of Buddhism was not simply the diffusion of religious doctrines. It included the transmission of art forms, literary genres, ritual items, geographical knowledge, and technologies and scientific ideas. The cultural, political, and social lives of numerous people living across most of Asia were transformed because of these transmissions. The worldviews, belief systems, and even self-perceptions of settled societies, nomadic tribes, and island dwellers were fundamentally changed as they encountered and accepted Buddhist teachings. At the same time, however, each of these regions contributed to the adaptations of Buddhist ideas and teachings based on local needs and values. Indeed, the pan-Asiatic nature of Buddhism was remark­able not only because of its geographical spread, but also due to the input each of these regions made to the doctrine itself.

Closely linked to the mercantile communities and networks, the spread of Buddhism also had a significant impact on economic activity and cross- regional commercial interactions. Monastic institutions were sometimes large landowners and accumulators of substantial wealth. While some of these aspects led to instances of state interventions and suppressions of Buddhism, they also promoted economic activity. Temple fairs, investment in commercial ventures, and provision of lodging facilities for itinerant traders were conducive to commercial exchanges. Merchants, as noted above, also facilitated the movement of monks, supplied ritual items, and helped establish and sustain monastic institutions through donations. They were also key transmitters of Buddhist ideas from one region to another.

For almost two millennia, the above aspects related to the spread of Buddhism had a significant impact on Asian history. First, Buddhism inte­grated various regions of Asia, from Iran to Japan, through cultural, diplo­matic, and commercial exchanges. Missionary and pilgrimage activities of Buddhists, as well as their attempts to seek new teachings and texts, bonded distant towns, ports, oases, and sacred sites more intimately than perhaps mercantile networks alone. Second, common interest in the teachings of the Buddha, no matter in what form they actually manifested in a local region, led to the circulation of a wide range of ideas among Asian societies. Third, Buddhism shaped economic activities, statecraft, the formation of political/ cultural identities, and the creation of sacred landscapes throughout most of Asia. In fact, in the late eighteenth and early twentieth centuries, when Asian intellectuals started formulating the idea of pan-Asianism, Buddhist connec­tions prior to European colonization were at the core of their vision.

Beyond Asia, however, Buddhism seems to have made very little impact before the sixteenth century. It is possible that some Buddhist ideas may have filtered into the Mediterranean region, transmitted perhaps by the same networks that introduced some Greek and Roman imagery and art forms into Buddhism.^[617] Substantial European, and subsequently American, encoun­ter with Buddhism took place after the sixteenth century. During the past two centuries, the American Henry Steel Olcott (1832-1907), the Ukrainian Helena Petrovna Blavatsky (1831-1891) - the two founders of the Theosoph­ical Society - the Sri Lankan monk Anagarika Dharmapala (1834-1933), and eventually the fourteenth Dalai Lama were instrumental in transforming Buddhism into a global religion.

FURTHER READING

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Birnbaum, Raoul. The Healing Buddha. Revised edn. Boston, MA: Shambhala, 1989. Bogel, Cynthea J. With A Single Glance: Buddhist Icon and Early Mikkyo. Seattle and London: University of Washington Press, 2009.

Chen, Jinhua. Monks and Monarchs, Kinship and Kingship: Tanqian in Sui Buddhism and Politics. Kyoto: Italian School of East Asian Studies, 2002.

Chou, Yi-liang. "Tantrismin China,” Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 8 (1944—5): 241-332. Davidson, Ronald M. Indian Esoteric Buddhism: A Social History of the Tantric Movement.

New York, NY: Columbia University Press, 2002.

Fontein, Jan. Entering the Dharmadhdtu: A Study of the Gandavyuha Reliefs of Borobudur. Leiden: Brill, 2012.

Gregory, Peter N. and Daniel A. Getz, Jr, eds. Buddhism in the Sung. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press, 1999.

Kieschnick, John. The Eminent Monk: Buddhist Ideals in Medieval Chinese Hagiography. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press, 1997.

The Impact of Buddhism on Chinese Material Culture. Princeton University Press, 2003. Kohn, Livia. Laughing at the Tao: Debates among Buddhists and Taoists in Medieval China. Princeton University Press, 1995.

Lamotte, Etienne. History of Indian Buddhism: From the Origins to the Saka Era. Transl. Sara Webb-Boin. Louvain: Institut Orientaliste, 1988.

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Mollier, Christine. Buddhism and Taoism Face to Face: Scripture, Ritual, and Iconographic Exchange in Medieval China. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press, 2008.

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Prazniak, Roxann. "Ilkhanid Buddhism: Traces of a Passage in Eurasian History,” Com­parative Studies in Society and History 56.3 (2014): 650-80.

Reichle, Natasha. Violence and Serenity: Late Buddhist Sculpture from Indonesia. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press, 2007.

Sharf, Robert H. Coming to Terms with Chinese Buddhism: A Reading of the Treasure Store Treatise. Honolulu, HI: University of Hawai'i Press, 2002.

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