Buddhism in China

Buddhism and its mythology have formed an important part of Chinese
thought for nearly two thousand years. The religion was brought
to China about A.D. 65, ready-made in its Mahayanistic form, in
consequence of a dream of the Emperor Ming Ti (A.D. 58-76) of the
Eastern Han dynasty in or about the year 63; though some knowledge
of Buddha and his doctrines existed as early as 217 B.C. As Buddha,
the chief deity of Buddhism, was a man and became a god, the religion
originated, like the others, in ancestor-worship. When a man dies, says
this religion, his other self reappears in one form or another, "from a
clod to a divinity." The way for Buddhism in China was paved by Taoism,
and Buddhism reciprocally affected Taoism by helpful development of
its doctrines of sanctity and immortalization. Buddhism also, as it has
been well put by Dr De Groot, [17] "contributed much to the ceremonial
adornment of ancestor-worship. Its salvation work on behalf of the
dead saved its place in Confucian China; for of Confucianism itself,
piety and devotion towards parents and ancestors, and the promotion of
their happiness, were the core, and, consequently, their worship with
sacrifices and ceremonies was always a sacred duty." It was thus that
it was possible for the gods of Buddhism to be introduced into China
and to maintain their special characters and fulfil their special
functions without being absorbed into or submerged by the existing
native religions. The result was, as we have seen, in the end a
partnership rather than a relation of master and servant; and I say
'in the end' because, contrary to popular belief, the Chinese have
not been tolerant of foreign religious faiths, and at various times
have persecuted Buddhism as relentlessly as they have other rivals