East Asian Buddhism orEast Asian Mahayana is a collective term for the schools ofMahāyāna Buddhism which developed acrossEast Asia and which rely on theChinese Buddhist canon. These include the various forms ofChinese,Japanese,Korean, andVietnamese Buddhism.[1][2][3][4] East Asian Buddhists constitute the numerically largest body of Buddhist traditions in the world, numbering over half of the world's Buddhists.[5][6]
The texts of theChinese Buddhist Canon began to be translated in the second century and the collection continued to evolve over a period of a thousand years with the firstwoodblock printed edition being published in 983. A major modern edition of this canon is theTaishō Tripiṭaka, produced in Japan between 1924 and 1932.[10] Besides sharing a canon of scripture, the various forms of East Asian Buddhism have also adapted East Asian values and practices which were not prominent inIndian Buddhism, such as Chineseancestor veneration and the Confucian view offilial piety.[11]
Buddhism in China has been characterized by complex interactions with China's indigenous religious traditions,Taoism andConfucianism, and varied between periods of institutional support and repression from governments and dynasties. Buddhism was first introduced to China during theHan dynasty, at a time when the Han empire expanded its nascent corresponding geopolitical influence into the reaches of Central Asia.[8] Opportunities for vibrant cultural exchanges and trade contacts along theSilk Road and sea trade routes with theIndian subcontinent andmaritime Southeast Asia made it inevitable that the percolation of Buddhism would penetrate into China and gradually into the rest of East Asia at large.[8] Such religious transmissions were able to be afforded to enable the inexorable percolation of Buddhism into East Asia over a millennia due to the vibrant cultural exchanges that were able to be made at that time as a result of theSilk Road.[8][4]
Chinese Buddhism has strongly influenced the development of Buddhism in other East Asian countries, with theChinese Buddhist Canon serving as the primary religious texts for other countries in the region.[14][4]
Early Chinese Buddhism was influenced by translators fromCentral Asia who began the translation of large numbers ofTripitaka and commentarial texts from India and Central Asia intoChinese. Early efforts to organize and interpret the wide range of texts received gave rise to early Chinese Buddhist schools like theHuayan andTiantai schools.[15][16] In the 8th century, theChan school began to emerge, eventually becoming the most influential Buddhist school in East Asia and spreading throughout the region.[17]
The early roots of Buddhism in Japan come from Chinese and Korean influence in the 5th and 6th centuries.[18] Ma notes that the initial rise of Buddhism in Japan can be attributed to theSoga clan (during theAsuka period), which legitimized the religion through construction of temples.[19] Buddhism only continued to grow in Japan during theNara period, as the religion was supported under imperial patronage.[20][21] This included the creation of a new temple system, and the building of schools and temples.[22] Shortly after, new sects such asShingon andTendai emerged as they developed independently during theHeian Period.[23][24]
In theKamakura period, more sects of Buddhism emerged, which includesZen (Rinzai and Soto),Pure Land (Jodo shu and Jodo Shinshu), andNichiren.[24] It was during this era when these new schools provided other ways to enlightenment for the common people.[24] They only continued to develop and differentiate themselves during theMuromachi period.[24]
In theTokugawa period, the shogunate closed ports to foreign exchange. There was further legitimization of Buddhism, and the shogunate enforced tight control of the temples.[25][24] After the Tokugawa shogunate was overthrown, theMeiji period followed. The government promotedShinto over Buddhism as Buddhism was seen as “foreign.”[26][27]
Japanese Buddhism recovered post-World War II and maintained its influence in the 20th century. Soka Gakkai and Rissho Koseikai are examples of Buddhist organizations that have been involved in education and culture.[28] The religion remains prominent in today's society, comprising of mainlyPure Land,Nichiren,Shingon,Zen, andTendai Buddhism.[29]
Buddhism was introduced to Korea from China during the 4th century, where it began to be practiced alongside indigenous shamanism.[30] Following strong state support in theGoryeo era, Buddhism was suppressed during theJoseon period in favor ofNeo-Confucianism.[31] Suppression was finally ended due to Buddhist participation in repelling theJapanese invasion of Korea in the 16th century, leading to a slow period of recovery that lasted into the 20th century. TheSeon school, derived from ChineseChan Buddhism, was introduced in the 7th century and grew to become the most widespread form of modern Korean Buddhism, with theJogye Order andTaego Order as its two main branches.
East Asian Buddhism has a wide variety of traditions, lineages and schools (Chinese:zōng), which developed in China and are also reflected in Korean, Japanese and Vietnamese Buddhism. Traditional Asian Buddhist scholars likeSheng-yen andGyōnen (1240–1321) enumerated thirteen Buddhist traditions or schools.[36][37] These various traditions changed and evolved over time. Some are now defunct or were absorbed into new traditions while some survived or were revived as living traditions. These "traditions" are not always rigid designations as there has always been considerable intermixing among them. Many temples and communities are influenced by many of these traditions, each consisting of different numerous sub-schools or sects.[38]
The Consciousness Only school (唯識宗;Wéishí,Yogācāra), a.k.a. Faxiang ("dharma characteristics") school, founded by Xuanzang (602–664) and based on hisChengweishilun ("The Demonstration of Consciousness-only").
TheTiantai school, also known as the Lotus school, due to their focus on theLotus Sutra. In Japan it is known asTendai.
TheVinaya school or Nanshan school, a historical tradition which focused on theDharmaguptaka monastic discipline, established by the monkDaoxuan (596–667).[41]
TheChan (Dhyana, "Meditation") school, i.e. theZen tradition attributed to the founderBodhidharma, which focuses on sitting meditation (zuòchán) and developed numerous sub-schools likeCaodong andLinji. This tradition spread throughout Asia. In Japan it isJapanese Zen, in Korea it is known asSeon, and in Vietnam it is known asThiền.
The Zhenyan school (真言宗; 'true word'; "mantra" school", i.e.,Chinese Esoteric Buddhism. Also calledMìjiao (密教; "Esoteric Teaching"),Mìzōng (密宗; "Esoteric Tradition"), orTángmì (唐密; "Tang Esoterica"). This tradition was transmitted to Japan byKūkai, where it is known asShingon.
^Gethin, Rupert, The Foundations of Buddhism, OUP Oxford University Press, 1998, p. 257.
^abcdeKitagawa, Joseph (2002).The Religious Traditions of Asia : Religion, History, and Culture. Taylor & Francis Group. p. 275.ISBN978-0700717620.
^Williams, Paul, Mahayana Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations, Taylor & Francis, 2008, P. 129.
^Gethin, Rupert, The Foundations of Buddhism, OUP Oxford, 1998, p. 258.
^Harvey, Peter, An Introduction to Buddhism, Second Edition: Teachings, History and Practices (Introduction to Religion) 2nd Edition, p. 212.
^Gethin, Rupert, The Foundations of Buddhism, OUP Oxford, 1998, p. 260
^Jaffe, Richard (1998). "Meiji Religious Policy, Soto Zen and the Clerical Marriage Problem". Japanese Journal of Religious Studies. 24 (1–2): 46. Archived from the original on November 19, 2014.
^Kitagawa, Joseph (2002).The Religious Traditions of Asia : Religion, History, and Culture. Taylor & Francis Group. p. 315.ISBN978-0700717620.
^Kitagawa, Joseph (2002).The Religious Traditions of Asia : Religion, History, and Culture. Taylor & Francis Group. p. 278.ISBN978-0700717620.
^Kitagawa, Joseph (2002).The Religious Traditions of Asia : Religion, History, and Culture. Taylor & Francis Group. p. 284.ISBN978-0700717620.
^Kitagawa, Joseph (2002).The Religious Traditions of Asia : Religion, History, and Culture. Taylor & Francis Group. p. 286.ISBN978-0700717620.
^Kitagawa, Joseph (2013).The Religious Traditions of Asia: Religion, History, and Culture (2nd ed.). Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. pp. 310–311.ISBN978-0-7007-1762-0.
^Deal, William E.; Ruppert, Brian D., eds. (2015).A Cultural History of Japanese Buddhism. Wiley-Blackwell guides to Buddhism. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. p. 56.ISBN978-1-4051-6701-7.
^Deal, William E.; Ruppert, Brian D., eds. (2015).A Cultural History of Japanese Buddhism. Wiley-Blackwell guides to Buddhism. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 54–56.ISBN978-1-4051-6701-7.
^Deal, William E.; Ruppert, Brian Douglas (2015).A cultural history of Japanese Buddhism. Wiley-blackwell guides to Buddhism. Chichester, West Sussex, UK; Malden, MA USA: Wiley, Blackwell. pp. 70–71.ISBN978-1-4051-6700-0.
^Kitagawa, Joseph (2013).The Religious Traditions of Asia: Religion, History, and Culture (2nd ed.). Hoboken: Taylor and Francis. p. 323.ISBN978-0-7007-1762-0.
^Deal, William E.; Ruppert, Brian Douglas (2015).A cultural history of Japanese Buddhism. Wiley-blackwell guides to Buddhism. Chichester, West Sussex, UK; Malden, MA USA: Wiley, Blackwell. pp. 211–213.ISBN978-1-4051-6700-0.
^Deal, William E.; Ruppert, Brian D., eds. (2015).A Cultural History of Japanese Buddhism. Wiley-Blackwell guides to Buddhism. Chichester: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 233–235.ISBN978-1-4051-6701-7.
^Cuong Tu Nguyen.Zen in Medieval Vietnam: A Study of the Thiền Uyển Tập Anh. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1997, pg 9.
^abcChan Master Sheng Yen (2007).Orthodox Chinese Buddhism: A Contemporary Chan Master's Answers to Common Questions, pp. 116-119. North Atlantic Books.
^Blum, Mark L. (2002).The Origins and Development of Pure Land Buddhism: A Study and Translation of Gyonen's Jodo Homon Genrusho, p. 15. Oxford University Press.
^abcdWilliam Edward Soothill, Lewis Hodous (1977).A Dictionary of Chinese Buddhist Terms: With Sanskrit and English Equivalents and a Sanskrit-Pali Index. p. 256. Motilal Banarsidass Publ.
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