INFLUENCE OF INDIAN CULTURE ON ASIA

Contents

What is culture? Two major religions of India. Spread of Indian culture in: Southeast AsiaCentral AsiaEast AsiaConclusion

What is culture?

Culture (Latin: cultura, lit. "cultivation) is most commonly used in three basic senses:

Excellence of taste in the fine arts and humanities, also known as high culture.

An integrated pattern of human knowledge, belief, and behaviour that depends upon the capacity for symbolic thought and social learning.

The set of shared attitudes, values, goals, and practices that characterizes an institution, organization or group(religion).

Greater India

◙Greater India (also called the Indosphere) is a term that refers to the historical spread of the culture of India beyond the Indian subcontinent.

◙This particularly concerns the spread of Hinduism in Southeast Asia, introduced by the Indianized kingdoms of the 5th to 15th centuries, but may also refer to the spread of Buddhism from India to Central Asia and China by the Silk Road during the early centuries of the Common Era and to Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka.

◙It consisted of lands including Burma, Java, Cambodia, Bali, and the former Champa and Funan polities of present-day Vietnam, and most of the Buddhist world including Ceylon, Tibet, Central Asia, and even Japan and China

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SPREAD OF INDIAN CULTURE

Two great religions of India

Hinduism

Buddhism

Hinduism

Oriental religious practices of Aryans transforming and adapting with time to reach present state.

Oldest surviving religion thus sometimes referred as “SANATAN DHARMA”.

Sruti

Dealing with internal principles

Smruti

Dealing with particular application of eternal principles.

Vedas

•The foundation scriptures of Hindus.

•Eternal truth revealed to great sages.

Classification of Vedas

Rig - General knowledge

Yajur – Knowledge of action

Saam – Knowledge of worship

Atharva – knowledge of science

Upanishads

Hinduism encourages questioning and Upanishads are recordings of such conversations and dialogs.

Vedangas

Darshanas

Upavedas

Itihas

Dharm Shastras

Puranas

Panths

Agamas

These are deliberations

In

Specific periods

These are deliberations

In

Specific periods

Ramayan

Valmiki

Life history of Sita and Rama teaching ideal values

Mahabharat

Ved Vyas

Story of Padavas, Kauravas and Sri Krishna

Buddhism According to Mahatma Gandhi,“Buddhism is nothing but Hinduism reduced to practice in terms of masses”

Introduction to Buddhism

Buddhism, one of the major world religions, began in India around the sixth century, B.C.E. The teachings of Buddhism spread throughout Central and Southeast Asia, through China, Korea, and Japan.

THE LEGEND OF SHAKYAMUNI

According to Buddhist tradition, Shakyamuni (a name meaning “Sage of the Shakya Clan”) or “Siddhartha Gautama” is the founder of Buddhism

born around 490 B.C.E. to a royal family.

• At the age of 29,Shakyamuni saw “Four Sights.”(old age, sickness, death, and a seeker of religious truth) and left his wife, new born son and palace to seek enlightenment.

At age of 35,He attained enlightenment at place known as Bodh Gaya and became Buddha “awakened one”.

The Buddha gave his first sermon, known as the “First Discourse,” in Deer park Sarnath explaining his moderate path or the Middle Way• He continued to spread his knowledge throughout towns in India for 45 years

thereafter, gaining increasing numbers of followers until his death at the age of 80.

THE BASIC TENETS OF BUDDHISM• Dharma:•Reincarnation:

• Karma:

Teachings and lectures of Buddha.

the cycle of life and death.

positive thoughts and actions cause good karmaand may direct one into being reborn in a higher form.

Dharma : Four Noble Truths

1. Life is suffering

2. Suffering is caused by craving.3. Suffering can have an end.

4. There is a path which leads to the end of suffering.

Nirvana : the Eightfold Path

MORAL CONDUCT CONCENTRATION WISDOM

1. right speech 4. right effort 7. right thought

2. right action 5. right mindfulness 8. right understanding

3. right livelihood 6. right concentration

Bodhisattvas

►A bodhisattva is a being whohas attained enlightenment, but vows not to enter into final nirvanauntil all living things are released from suffering.

►Some schools of Buddhism believe that becoming a bodhisattva is a more important goal for individuals than achieving nirvana.

►Bodhisattvas choose to be reborn so that they can continue to work to relieve the suffering of others and try to make them aware of the Buddha’steachings.►Bodhisattva of Compassion is most revered of them all.

AVALOKITESVARA

FUTURE BUDDHA MATRAIYA

SOUTH EAST ASIA

SRI LANKA

Boddhisattva Tara

Hindu belief is that the bridge was created by Shri Rama and Shri Lakshman with the assistance of Lord Hanuman and the 'monkey army' to reach Lanka in order to find Shri Rama's wife Sita who was kidnapped by Ravana.

Rama's Bridge or Rama Setu

Even before introduction of Theravada Buddhism;an early wave of immigrants came from Kalinga to Sri Lanka.

According to the tradition preserved in the Mahāvaṃsa, the first king of Sri Lanka, Vijaya, was descended from a princess of the Kalingas.

Several other kings who ruled Sri Lanka during the medieval period, such as Nissankamalla, Vikramabāhu, Coranāga, Sāhasamalla and Māgha, also had Kalinga origins.

The ties between Sinhalese and Kaligan language is evident from Dharmapradīpikā written in Kālinga-eḷuwa (Kalinga-Sinhalese language)

First contact with island of Lanka is mentioned in ancient Hindu scripture “Ramayana”.

Buddhist culture

ЭIntroduced in the 2nd century BCE by Venerable Mahinda, the son of the Emperor Ashoka, during the reign of Sri Lanka's King Devanampiya Tissa.

Э A sapling of the Bodhi Tree was brought to Sri Lanka and the first monasteries were established under the sponsorship of the Sri Lankan king.

ЭThe Pali Canon, having previously been preserved as an oral tradition, was first committed to writing in Sri Lanka around 30 BCE.

ЭSri Lanka has the longest continuous history of Buddhism of any Buddhist nation, with the Sangha having existed in a largely unbroken lineage since its introduction in the 2nd century

Э

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Avukana Buddha Statue from 5th century

Myanmar(Brahma)¤ The Burmese language contains many loanwords from Sanskrit and Pali, many of which relate to religion.

¤ In nat worship, practised by the dominant Bamar ethnic group,the king of the nats, Thagyamin, is identified with the Hindu god Indra.

¤Burmese adaptation of the Ramayana, called Yama Zatdaw.

Saraswati (known as Thuyathadi in Burmese), the goddess of knowledge, who is often worshipped before examinations.

Buddhism in Myanmar is predominantly of the Theravada tradition(89% population).

Sohn Uttar Sthavira (one of the royal monks) to Ashoka the Great came to Burma around 228 BC with other monks and sacred texts, including books.

Ari Buddhism era included the worship of Bodhisattas and nagas. King Anawrahta of Bagan, A theravada Buddhist, sent an army to conquer the Mon city of Thaton in 1057 AD in order to obtain the Tipitaka Buddhist canon

Hindu Temple,Bagan,Myanmar

Mandalay's Kuthodaw Pagoda, which houses marble slabs containing all of the Tipitaka scriptures, was constructed during the reign of King Mindon.

Vesak or the full moon of Kason is celebrated by watering the Bodhi tree

THAILAND(Suvarnbhumi)

In the past, the nation came under the influence of the Khmer Empire, which had strong Hindu roots.

The epic, Ramakien, is based on the Ramayana. The city, Ayutthaya, is named after Ayodhya, the birthplace of Rama.

Numerous rituals derived from Brahminism are preserved in rituals, such as use of holy strings and pouring of lustral water from conch shells.

Furthermore, Hindu deities are worshipped by many Thais alongside Buddhism, such as the famous Erawan shrine, and statues of Ganesh, Indra, and Shiva, as well as numerous symbols relating to Hindu deities are found, e.g., Garuda, a symbol of the monarchy.

The famous Hindu rituals of The Giant Swing and the Triyampavai-Tripavai ceremony depict a legend about how the god created the world.

The élite, and the royal household, often employ Brahmans to mark funerals and state ceremonies such as the ploughing ceremony to ensure a good harvest.

RUINS OF AYUTTHAYA,THAILAND

Scene of Sagar Manthan at Suvarnbhumi Airport,Bankok

Elements of BuddhismTheravada school of Buddhism, imported from Sri Lanka.

Pāli is the language of religion in Thailand. Scriptures are recorded in Pāli, using either the modern Thai script or the older Khom and Tham scripts. Pāli is also used in religious liturgy. The Pāli Tipitaka is the primary religious text The monastic code (Patimokkha) followed by Thai monks is taken from the Pāli Theravada Canon.

The growing popularity of the goddess Kuan Yin in Thailand (a form of Avalokitesvara) may be attributed to the Chinese Mahayanist presence in Thailand.

Malaysia

Buddhism was introduced to the Malays and also to the people of the Malay Archipelago as early as 200 BCE.

For many centuries the peoples of the region, especially the royal courts, synthesised Indian and indigenous ideas including Hinduism and Mahayana Buddhism and that shaped their political and cultural patterns.

Small Hindu kingdoms in the coastal areas of Malay peninsular notably the Gangga Negara (2nd century), Langkasuka (2nd century), and Kedah (4th century). Between 7th and 13th centuries many of these small, often prosperous peninsular maritime trading states came under the loose control of Srivijaya empire, a great Hindu Malay kingdom centered in Palembang, Sumatra.

Temples were built in the Indian style and local kings began referring to themselves as Raja and more desirable aspects of Indian government were adopted.

Vietnam(Champa)

The Champa civilization was located in the more southern part of what is today Central Vietnam, and was a highly Indianized Hindu Kingdom, practicing a form of Shaivite Hinduism brought by sea from India.

Mỹ Sơn, a Hindu temple complex built by the Champa is still standing in Quang Nam province, in Vietnam. The Balamon Hindu Cham people of Vietnam make up only 25% of the overall Cham population

Buddhism came to Vietnam in the 1st or 2nd century AD through the North from central Asia and China[4] and via the South from India trade routes.[

By the end of the 2nd century, Vietnam developed a major Buddhist centre (probably Mahayana) in the region.

. A number of Mahayana sutras and the Agamas were translated into Chinese script at that centre, including the Sutra of Forty-Two Chapters and the Anapanasati.

Statue of Avalokiteshvara Bodhisattva, crimson and gilded wood, Restored Lê dynasty, autumn of Bính Thân year (1656

Po Nagar, built by the Champa near modern-day Nha Trang

LaosTheravada Buddhism is believed to have first reached Laos during the 7th - 8th Centuries CE, via the kingdom of Dvaravati.

The Nan-chao kingdom introduced the political ideology of the king as defender and protector of Buddhism .

During the 11th & 12th Century, Khmer rulers took control of Muang Sua, the historical region of the kingdom of Luang Prabang in northern Laos. During this period, Mahayana Buddhism replaced Theravada Buddhism as the dominant religious ideology of the ruling classes

The Wat Phou is one of the last influences of that period. The Laotian adaptation of the Ramayana is called Phra Lak Phra Lam.

Cambodia(Funan)

Cambodian statue of Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva. Sandstone, 7th century CE.

The earliest forms of Buddhism, along with Hindu influences, entered the Funan kingdom with Hindu merchants.

Cambodia was first influenced by Hinduism during the beginning of the Funan kingdom.

Hinduism was one of the Khmer Empire's official religions. Cambodia is the home to one of the only two temples dedicated to Brahma in the world. Angkor Wat of Cambodia is the largest Hindu temple in the world

In later history, a second stream of Buddhism entered Khmer culture during the Angkor empire when Cambodia absorbed the various Buddhist traditions of the Mon kingdoms of Dvaravati and Haripunchai

ANGKOR VAT TEMPLE,COMBODIA

Philippines

The chiefs of many Philippine islands were called Rajas, and the script was derived from Brahmi. The vocabulary in all Philippine languages reflect strong Hindu influences.

Karma, a Hindu concept is understood as part of the traditional view of the universe by many Philippine peoples, and have counterparts such as kalma

In the archipelago that was to become the Philippines, the statues of the Hindu gods were hidden to prevent their destruction by a religion which destroyed all cult images. One statue, a "Golden Tara“, a Hindu-Malayan goddess, was found in Mindanao in 1917.

Another gold artifact of Garuda, the phoenix who is the mount of Vishnu, was found in Palawan.

Singapore

The introduction of Hinduism into Singapore dates back to the early 19th century, when immigrants from southern India, mostly Tamils, arrived as labourers for the British East India Company, bringing with them their religion and culture.

Their arrival saw the building of Dravidian temples throughout the island, and the beginnings of a vibrant Hindu culture. The first temple, Sri Mariamman Temple in Singapore's Chinatown.

There are currently about thirty main temples in Singapore, dedicated to various gods and goddesses .

Indonesia

Hindu influences reached the Indonesian Archipelago as early as first century.

Bali: Balinese Hinduism is deeply interwoven with art and ritual, and is less closely preoccupied with scripture, law, and belief.Balinese temple is called Pura and is designed as an open air worship place within enclosed walls, connected with series of intricately decorated gates to reach its compounds

Java and Sumatra: Java and Sumatra were subject to considerable cultural influence from the Indian subcontinent during the first and second millennia of the Common Era. The earliest evidences of Hindu influences in Java can be found in 4th century Tarumanagara inscriptions scaterred around modern Jakarta and Bogor. During this time, scholars from India and China visited these kingdoms to translate literary and religious texts.

From 4th to 15th century Hindu kingdoms rise and fell; Tarumanagara, Kalingga, Medang, Kediri, Sunda, Singhasari and Majapahit.

This era is popularly known as Javanese classical era during which Hindu-Buddhist literature, art and architecture flourished and were incorporated into local culture under royal patronage.

During this time, many Hindu temples were built, including 9th century Prambanan near Yogyakarta.

Prambanan Shiva Temple

Acintya is the Supreme God in Balinese Hinduism

A shrine dedicated to King Siliwangi , Bogor, West Java

Srivijyan Empire

Under the patronage of Srivijyan rulers, Mahyana Buddhism was widely promoted.

A GOLDEN STATUE OF AVALOKITEÇVARA DATING BACK FROM THE SRIVIJAYAN EMPIRE, DISCOVERED IN JAMBI, INDONESIA.

BUDDHIST STUPA,BOROBUDUR

CARVED RELIEFS OF BOROBUDUR

CENTRAL ASIAWhen King Kanishka came to power in 78 AD in Central Asia a new system of chronology was adopted, replacing the chronology from the era of the Seleucids..

During the Kushan period, Buddhism found support in Central Asia, where it became widely practiced. the largest number of traces of Buddhist culture during the Kushan period was found in Tolharistan.

Important centres of Buddhism in Central Asia were:

Khotan: Buddhist inscription written in Aramaic script dating back to 2nd and 3rd century B.C. were found.

Kuchi: Referred to as Kushdweep in Puranas. Buddhist kings adopted indian names as rulers.”Kumarjiva” accredited with spread of buddhism in China was born here.

Afganistan: One of the important centres of indian culture in ancient times.It was under indian control during Mauryan regime . The coins, inscriptions, art, literature etc. clearly depict indian influence.

Mongolia

Spread of indian culture by king Ashoka the great.

Blue-eyed Central Asian Buddhist monk, with an East-Asian colleague, Tarim Basin, China, 9th-10th century.

Mongolia

Buddhism penetrated Mongolia from Nepal via Central Asia. Many of the Buddhist terms of Sanskrit origin,which are still used in Mongolia, were adopted via the Soghdian language.

Tibetan Buddhist monasticism made an important impact on the early development of Mongolian Buddhism.[.

The rulers of the pre-Mongol states such as Xiongnu, Xianbei, Rouran and Gokturk Empires received Buddhist priests and built temples for them. The Khitan aristocracy regarded Buddhism as culture of the Uighur Kaganate that dominated the Mongolian steppes before the rise of the Khitans. The monarchs of the Jin Dynasty established by nomadic tribes of Jurchens also regarded Buddhism as a Khitan heritage.

26.4 m statue of Avalokitesvara Megjid Janraisig at Gandan Tegchinling Monastery in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia,

is the tallest indoor statue in the world

East Asia

ChinaBuddhism probably arrived in China around the 1st century CE from Central Asia, although there are some traditions about a monk visiting China during Aśoka's reign by royal monk Massim Sthavira .

According to Chinese chronicles Buddhism came to China in 147 from the country of the "big yue dzhi", and thanks to the Kushan missionaries Buddhism was adopted as the official religion of the court of the Chinese emperor, Huangdi (147-167).The first known Mahāyāna scriptural texts are translations into Chinese by the Kushan monk Lokakṣema in Luoyang

.Some of the earliest known Buddhist artifacts found in China are small statues on "money trees", dated c. 200 CE, in typical Gandhāran drawing style

Buddhism flourished during the beginning of the Tang Dynasty (618–907). About a hundred years after the Great Anti-Buddhist Persecution, Buddhism revived during the Song Dynasty (1127–1279).

Two Main Schools of Buddhism

•MOST POPULAR FORM OF MAHAYANA BUDDHISM IN CHINA.•REVERENCE TO BUDDHA WILL LEAD TO BIRTH IN HEAVEN(PURE LAND)

PURE LAND

BUDDHISM

• CHAN COMES FROM SANSKRIT WORD”DHYAN” MEANING MEDITATION.

• ORIGIN OF CHAN IS CREDITED TO INDIAN MONK BODHIDHARMA.

• Chan flourished particularly under the Song dynasty (1127–1279).

CHAN BUDDHI

SM

Monkey king, one of the central characters of chinese buddhist mythology, immortalised in “journey to the west”.

GUAN YIN, BODDHISATTVA OF COMPASSION

Shaolin Kung Fu

According to Chinese legend, Bodhidharma began the physical training of the Shaolin monks that led to the creation of Shaolin kung-fu.

Tibet

Buddhism came to Tibet in 127 CE during the reign of King Thothori Nyantsen.

Songtsän Gampo (who died in 650) married a Chinese Tang Dynasty Buddhist princess, Wencheng, who came to Tibet with a statue of Shakyamuni Buddha. He also married a Nepalese Buddhist princess, Bhrikuti. By the second half of the 8th century he was already regarded as an embodiment of the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara.

King Trisong Detsen (755-797) established it as the official religion of the state.He invited Indian Buddhist scholars famous tantric mystic Padmasambhāva to his court.

The form of buddhism that propogated in Tibet had a blend of Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna.

TIBETIAN MONASTORY

Korea

Buddhism was introduced around 372 CE, when Chinese ambassadors visited the Korean kingdom of Goguryeo, bringing scriptures and images.

Buddhism prospered in Korea - in particular Seon (Zen) Buddhism from the 7th century onward.

However, with the beginning of the Confucian Yi Dynasty of the Joseon period in 1392, a strong discrimination took place against Buddhism until it was almost completely eradicated, except for a remaining Seon movement.

JapanThe Buddhism of Japan was introduced from Three Kingdoms of Korea in the 6th century.

Being geographically at the end of the Silk Road, Japan was able to preserve many aspects of Buddhism at the very time it was disappearing in India, and being suppressed in Central Asia and China.

From 710 CE numerous temples and monasteries were built in the capital city of Nara, such as the five-story pagoda and Golden Hall of the Hōryū-ji, or the Kōfuku-ji temple. Countless paintings and sculptures were made, often under governmental sponsorship. The creations of Japanese Buddhist art were especially rich between the 8th and 13th century during the periods of Nara, Heian and Kamakura.

From the 12th and 13th centuries, Zen art is mainly characterized by original paintings and poetry , striving to express the true essence of the world.

Tile with seated Buddha, Nara Prefecture, Asuka period, 7th century. Tokyo National Museum.

CONCLUSION

According to French Indologist Sylvan Levi

“The ancient Hindus of yore were not simply a spiritual people, always busy with mystical problems and never troubling themselves with the questions of 'this world'... India also has its Napoleons and Charlemagnes, its Bismarcks and Machiavellis. But the real charm of Indian history does not consist in these aspirants after universal power, but in its peaceful and benevolent Imperialism—a unique thing in the history of mankind. The colonizers of India did not go with sword and fire in their hands; they used... the weapons of their superior culture and religion... The Buddhist age has attracted special attention, and the French savants have taken much pains [sic] to investigate the splendid monuments of the Indian cultural empire in the Far East."