Buddhism from India has declined in India. Why can it develop and grow in China?

As one of the three major religions in the world, the spread of Buddhism is still very wide. From the 6th century BC to the 5th century BC, Sakyamuni enlightened and founded Buddhism, which was gradually perfected afterwards. The spread of Buddhism in the Ganges River Basin of India had a great influence. At that time, King Ashoka regarded Buddhism as the state religion and built stupas to promote Buddhism. Buddhism entered a prosperous situation in India and then spread around. In the late Western Han Dynasty, Buddhism was introduced to China. At that time, there were two routes, one from the north and along the Silk Road, and the other from Southeast Asia in the south. Since the two passed through different regions, they were affected differently. When they were spread to China, there was a little difference between North and South Buddhism.

Buddhism was introduced to China, and after development and changes, it finally formed a unique version of Chinese Buddhism . Today's Chinese Buddhism is still very different from Indian Buddhism. As India continues to be invaded by foreigners, causing cultural gaps, religions have also changed. Different governors have different religions. Nowadays, there are many religious sects in India, and Hinduism, which ranks first, accounts for 82% of the population. Followed by Islam , Christianity, Sikhism , Buddhism and so on.

However, the number of Buddhists only accounts for 0.77%, which cannot be compared with the previous ones, which shows the status of Buddhism in India. Buddhism in China has a very high status and is very glorious, especially in ancient times. Buddhism, which has been nurtured in China, has its own unique charm, and it has been carried forward in China. From many Buddha statues, grottoes , Buddhist temples and other aspects, we can see the glorious history of Buddhism in China. Then why can Buddhism flourish in China?

1: Uninterrupted Chinese civilization. From the perspective of civilization, only by maintaining a civilization without interruption, many things have been developed and are brilliant. When Buddhism was introduced to China, religion was also popular in China.Especially from Southern and Northern Dynasties to Tang Dynasty, Buddhism entered a heyday in China. Unlike India, India is constantly being invaded by foreigners, dynasties are constantly changing, and religions of faith are constantly changing, which makes Buddhism decline. But China is different. After Buddhism took root in China, subsequent dynasties have always respected Buddhism and promoted Buddhism.

2: Mainstream of ancient Chinese religions. As the main ethnic group, the religions we are familiar with are Buddhism and Taoism . Other religions belong to ethnic minorities. In ancient times, Buddhism and Taoism were the mainstream in China, and their influence on the Chinese people was profound. When no other religions entered here, the foreign Buddhism has accepted China's changes and is more suitable for the local ethnic group. Local Taoism is also deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. Nowadays, many sacrificial activities are related to these two religions, which shows their position in the hearts of Chinese people. The religion that forms the mainstream will naturally be recognized by people.

3: King power is greater than divine power. Judging from the national conditions of ancient India, religious beliefs are always comprehensive. Sometimes theocratic power is even greater than the royal power, as was the case in ancient Europe. But China is different. In the East, theocratic power cannot be greater than the royal power. This is why Buddhism must be changed. In order to adapt to the localization of China, Buddhism must be customary. Only in this way can the emperor get rid of his fear. Buddhism is important, but the founders of Buddhism cannot interfere with the rule of the royal power, otherwise they will be slaughtered. Regardless of religion, it cannot threaten the rule of the emperor. This is an iron law in ancient China. If it can threaten it, let alone development, it would be good if it is not destroyed. And under the admiration and propaganda of the emperor, the localized Buddhism also has a glorious page.

These three reasons all promote the development of Buddhism in China. Compared with Buddhism, he does not have a more imprisoned mind like other religions. This may be the reason of China's national conditions. For India, a religious country, if Buddhism is the state religion, I believe it is better than the current Indian church.Because Hinduism is closely related to the caste system.

The caste system has done a lot of harm to India. It puts the rule of India in a stable but extremely harmful mode. Outsiders, as long as they make good use of the caste system, they can control the whole of India without much effort. Regrettably, Buddhism in India could not be carried forward, and it was suppressed and restricted by foreign races, and eventually it could not become the state religion. If Indians knew the importance of Buddhism, they would probably regret it. After all, this might be the key to changing India’s own problems. But in all respects, Buddhism is more suitable for development in China, because China's national conditions are more suitable for Buddhism's survival.