Elijah Bender PhD Candidate UCSB HistoryQUESTIONS TO CONSIDER KEY TERMS • What are the major theories regarding Buddhism’s initial spread out of India and into China? • What were the major adaptations of Buddhism to Chinese culture? • What were the primary influences of the Japanese ruling class during the 6th and 7th centuries? Mogao Caves (Dunhuang) Prince Shotoku Tōdaiji ShōsōinFirst big jolt under Mauryan Empire (322-185 BCD)Kushan Empire (ca. 50-375 CE) Kanishka the Great (r. 127-150)•Emperor Ming of Han (r. 58-75) •Ming’s dream and the White Horse Temple Buddhist church at Luoyang (capital) ca. 150 CE Non-existence The soul Withdrawing from the world Monastic life and celibacyUse of Daoist approximations Saviors (Amida) Saints (Bodhisattvas) New practices (Zen) Mogao Caves at Dunhuang 492 temples “Thousand Buddha Grottoes” (366-1366)Buddhist sculpture and painting Mandala depicting the western paradise of Amida Buddha (right) Conversion of elites in Han Rising popularity “Buddhist age” of Tang Dynasty (618-907) “Confucian age” of Song Dynasty (960-1274) Buddhism as commoner religionKami worship (later Shinto) Yamato “State” Importance of continentGift of sutras from Korean King in 538 or 550 During period of heavy borrowing from continent (esp. Korea)Religion as political tool – familiar? Soga no Iname (506-570) marries daughters into Yamato lineage Yomei (518-587) dies, sets off battle between Soga (Buddhist) and Mononobe (traditional)Japan’s oldest Buddhist complex (completed 607), now oldest wooden buildings in world!Commissioned 756 by Empress Komyo (701-760) on death of her husband Emperor Shomu (701-756) Mogao Caves (Dunhuang) Prince Shotoku Tōdaiji Shōsōin What are the major theories regarding Buddhism’s initial spread out of India and into China? What were the major adaptations of Buddhism to Chinese culture? What were the primary influences of the Japanese ruling class during the 6th and 7th
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