Han Chinese Buddhism Around the first century CE, Buddhism was introduced into China by its western neighboring populations during the
Han dynasty, , thanks to the first translations of buddhist texts from Classical Sanskrit into Chinese by
An Shigao. It became very popular among Chinese of all walks of life; admired by commoners, and sponsored by emperors in certain dynasties. The expansion of Buddhism reached its peak during the
Tang dynasty, in the 8th to 9th century, when Buddhist monasteries had become very rich and powerful. The wealth possessed by Buddhist institutions, the negative impact of Buddhist activities on basic social production, and Emperor Wuzong's personal veneration of Taoism were all practical reasons—the ideal reason was that Buddhism was a "foreign religion"—why the Tang emperors decided to enact a wave of
persecutions of the religion, starting with the
Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution (845) by
Emperor Wuzong, through which many monasteries were destroyed and the religion's influence in China was greatly reduced. However, Buddhism survived the persecutions and regained a place in the Chinese society over the following centuries. Spreading in China, Buddhism had to interact with indigenous religions, especially
Taoism. Such interaction gave rise to uniquely Han Chinese Buddhist schools (
Hànchuán Fójiào). Originally seen as a kind of "foreign Taoism", Buddhism's scriptures were translated into Chinese using the Taoist vocabulary.
Chan Buddhism in particular was shaped by Taoism, developing distrust of scriptures and even language, as well as typical Taoist views emphasizing "this life", the "moment", and dedicated practices. Throughout the Tang period, Taoism itself developed elements drawn from Buddhism, including monasticism, vegetarianism, abstention from alcohol, and the doctrine of emptiness. During the same period, Chan Buddhism grew to become the largest sect in Chinese Buddhism. In contemporary China, the most popular forms of Chinese Buddhism are the
Pure Land and Chan schools. Pure Land Buddhism is very accessible for common people, since in its doctrine even lay practitioners may escape the cycle of death and rebirth. The goal for followers of this popular form of Buddhism is to be reborn in the Pure Land, which is a place rather than a state of mind. In the 2000s and 2010s, the influence of Chinese Buddhism has been expressed through the construction of large-scale statues,
pagodas and temples, including the
Great Buddha of the Central Plains, the
second highest statue in the world. Many temples in China also claim to preserve
relics of the original
Gautama Buddha. The revival of Chinese Buddhism in the 21st century has also seen the development of the
Humanistic Buddhist movement, reintroduced from Taiwan and Chinese overseas communities, with organizations such as the
Cíjì (), which has been working in mainland China since 1991 and has opened its mainland headquarters in the 2010s in
Suzhou.
Tibetan Buddhism ,
Shanxi The Buddhist schools that emerged in the cultural sphere of Tibet (
Zàngchuán Fójiào or
Lǎmajiào, "Lamaism") also have an influence throughout China that dates back to historical interactions of the Han Chinese with neighboring populations. Tibetan Buddhism and its clergy, the
lamas, were introduced in China proper since the 7th century; its emphasis on ritual action was a shared element with Taoism. It spread significantly much later, with
Tibetan influence in the west, and with the
Mongols and Manchus in the north, especially under the dynasties which they established in China, the
Yuan and the
Qing dynasty. Today, Tibetan Buddhism is the dominant religion in
Tibet, among Tibetans in
Qinghai and other provinces, and has a historical and significant presence in
Inner Mongolia (where the religion's traditional name is
Burkhany Shashin, "Buddha's religion", or
Shira-in Shashin, the "Yellow religion"—
Huángjiào in Chinese). However, there are many Tibetan Buddhist temples as far as
northeast China, the
Yonghe Temple in Beijing being an example. There are controversies surrounding the Tibetan Buddhist hierarchy, specifically the succession of Tenzin Gyatso the
14th Dalai Lama—the spiritual leader of the
Gelug school, the major school of Tibetan Buddhism—who, before fleeing China during the
1959 Tibetan uprising, had full political power in
Tibet. The
Panchen Lama, the Tibetan hierarch in charge of the designation of the future successor of the Dalai Lama, is a matter of controversy between the Chinese government and Tenzin Gyatso. The government of China asserts that the present (11th) incarnation of the Panchen Lama is
Gyancain Norbu, while the 14th Dalai Lama asserted in 1995 that it was
Gedhun Choekyi Nyima, who from that year has been detained by the Chinese government and never seen in public. After the liberalisation of religions in China in the 1980s, there has been a growing movement of adoption of the
Gelug sect, and other Tibetan-originated Buddhist schools, by the Han Chinese. This movement has been favored by the proselytism of Chinese-speaking Tibetan lamas throughout China.
Theravada Buddhism Theravada Buddhism is a major form of Buddhism, practised mostly in
Southeast Asia but also among some minority ethnic groups in southwest China, mainly in
Yunnan. Theravada Buddhism spread from
Myanmar to present-day
Xishuangbanna, Dehong, Simao, Lincang, and Baoshan, all in Yunnan, during the 6th and 7th century. Today, this school of Buddhism is popular among the
Dai people, and also the
Palaung,
Blang,
Achang, and
Jingpo ethnic groups. The first Buddhist temple in Yunnan province, the Wabajie Temple in Xishuangbanna, was erected in 615. After the 12th century, Theravada Buddhist influence into the region began to come from
Thailand. Thais began to bring copies of the
Pali canon to Yunnan, to translate the scriptures and to build new temples. The people living in Yunnan where Theravada Buddhism is widespread follow norms similar to those of Thai Buddhists, and their Buddhism is often blended with local folk beliefs. Theravada Buddhism suffered from persecution during the Cultural Revolution, but after the 1980s it was revived. The Vajrayana current of Chinese Buddhism is known as
Tangmi ( "Tang Mysteries"), as it flourished in China during the Tang dynasty (618–907) just before the great suppression of Buddhism by imperial decision. Another name for this body of traditions is "Han Chinese Transmission of the Esoteric (or Mystery) Tradition" (
Hànchuán Mìzōng, where
Mizong is the Chinese for Vajrayana). Tangmi, together with the broader religious tradition of
Tantrism (in Chinese:
Dátèluō or
Dátèluó mìjiào; which may include
Hindu forms of religion) has undergone a revitalisation since the 1980s together with the overall revival of Buddhism. The
Gateway of the Hidden Flower (
Huácáng Zōngmén) and the
True Awakening Tradition (
Zhēnfó Zōng) are two new Han Chinese movements within the Vajrayana, and are among the Buddhist sects which are officially proscribed as evil by the government.
Japanese Buddhism Shin Buddhism From the 1890s to the end of the
Second Sino-Japanese War in 1945, the
Hompa Honganji-ha organisation of the
Jōdo Shinshū (淨土真宗; Chinese reading:
Jìngtǔ Zhēnzōng, "True Tradition of the Pure Land"), or Shin Buddhism ("True Buddhism"), which is a Japanese variation of
Pure Land Buddhism, carried out missionary activity throughout
East Asia, including Manchuria,
Taiwan and China proper. With the unconditional surrender of
Japan at the end of the war, the missions were shut down. Starting in the 1990s there has been a revival of Shin Buddhism among the Chinese, which has taken a formal nature with the foundation of the Hong Kong Fǎléi Niànfóhuì () in 2000, This society has engaged in missionary efforts in China partially aided by the good relationship it has interlaced with the Chinese government. Delegations from the Japanese Soka Gakkai and the Chinese government and intellectual class have made visits to each other, so that the society has been called an "intimate friend of the Chinese government". Soka Gakkai members in China are organized in the form of the
house church, as they "meet quietly in small groups in the homes of other members", with little interference from the government. ==Demographics==