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Sitaram · Site Admin Joined: 14 Sep 2005 Posts: 1079

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Shankaracharya arose and once more revivified the Vedanta
philosophy. He made it a rationalistic philosophy. By Buddha the
moral side of the philosophy was laid stress upon, and by
Shankarachaya the intellectual side. He worked out, rationalized,
and placed before men the wonderful coherent system of Advaita.

--
It was the great Buddha, who never cared for the dualist gods, and
who has been called an atheist and materialist, who yet was ready to
give up his body for a poor goat.

--
That is what the Vedanta teaches. It does not propose any slipshod
remedy by covering wounds with gold leaf and the more the wound
festers, putting on more gold leaf. This life is hard fact; work
your way through it boldly, though it may be adamantine; no matter,
the soul is stronger, it lays no responsibility on little gods; for
you are the makers of your own fortunes. You make yourselves suffer,
you make good and evil and it is you who put your hands before your
eyes and say it is dark. Take your hands away and see the light; you
are effulgent, you are perfect already, from the very beginning.

- By Swami Vivekananda

=================================

Indian Influences in China

Buddhism first came to China from India via Central Asia in the 1st
century A.D. As interest in Buddhism grew, there was a great demand
for Buddhist texts to be translated from Indian languages into
Chinese. This led to the arrival of translators from Central Asia and
India.

A few hundred Indian teachers went to China from the first to the
twelfth century. They have bequeathed a legacy of about 3,000 works
translated from Sanskrit into Chinese. Some well-known ones include
Gunavarman, a prince of Kashmir who reached Nanjing in AD 431;
Buddhabhadra, born at Nagarahara, who claimed direct descent from
Amrtodana, the uncle of Lord Buddha. Nagarahara is modern Jalalabad.
He died in China in AD 429. Bodhiruci was from south India. A Chinese
envoy came to the Chalukya court in AD 692 to invite Bodhiruci. He
reached China in AD 693 by sea and translated Sanskrit works. One of
the last outstanding Indian teachers in China was Dharmadeva of
Nalanda. He was received by the Chinese Emperor in AD 973.2

Two of the most beloved personalities of Chinese mythology were
derived from Indian mythical figures.

Early Chinese records mention that cotton had been brought in from
India. Various dates have been given for the beginning of cotton
cultivation in China, but it is generally agreed that the cultivation
of cotton was introduced from India.

Chinese Words of Indian Origin-Muoli - jasmine, from the Tamil term
Malli. Chan - meditation, from the Sanskrit term dhyana.
-------------------
1. Buddhism

Buddhism first came to China from India via Central Asia in the 1st
century A.D. As interest in Buddhism grew, there was a great demand
for Buddhist texts to be translated from Indian languages into
Chinese. This led to the arrival of translators from Central Asia and
India.

A few hundred Indian teachers went to China from the first to the
twelfth century. They have bequeathed a legacy of about 3,000 works
translated from Sanskrit into Chinese. Some well-known ones include
Gunavarman, a prince of Kashmir who reached Nanjing in AD 431;
Buddhabhadra, born at Nagarahara, who claimed direct descent from
Amrtodana, the uncle of Lord Buddha. Nagarahara is modern Jalalabad.
He died in China in AD 429. Bodhiruci was from south India. A Chinese
envoy came to the Chalukya court in AD 692 to invite Bodhiruci. He
reached China in AD 693 by sea and translated Sanskrit works. One of
the last outstanding Indian teachers in China was
Dharmadeva of Nalanda. He was received by the Chinese Emperor in AD
973.2

1.1. The Scriptures

According to historical records, from the end of Han Dynasty till the
end of Song Dynasty, i.e. in the space of 1,000 years from the 2nd to
the 12th century A.D, there had been more than 150 scholars who were
frontline participants in the gigantic undertaking of translating the
Tripitakas into Chinese. History books detail the contributions of 70
monk-scholars from India.3

1.2. Chinese Chan Buddhism and Da Mo (Bodhidharma)

Bodhidharma (Damo to the Chinese; Daruma to the Japanese), the 28th
patriarch of Indian Buddhism, is also the first patriarch of the
Chinese Chan Buddhist lineage.4 He was a son of the king of Kanchi in
southern India.5 After his father's death, Bodhidharma went to
Prajnatara, the 27th Indian patriarch in succession from Buddha, and
asked to be ordained as a monk.6

Following Prajnatara's suggestion, Bodhidharma went to China and
eventually arrived at the Shaolin monastery in about 526.7 His first
Chinese disciple Huike became the second patriarch of the Chinese
Chan Buddhist lineage. . Bodhidharma was said to have sat meditating
facing a cave wall near the temple for nine years, ignoring the many
monks who came to seek his teaching. According to legend, Bodhidharma
finally took his first disciple when Huike cut off his own arm,
showing Bodhidharma he understood the impermanence of the material
world. Since then, the monks of Shaolin have always saluted the
Buddha with only one arm.

1.3. The Martial Arts of Shaolin

After Bodhidharma (Da Mo) came to the Shaolin monastery at the foot
of the Songshan Mountains in north-central China, he taught the monks
special breathing techniques and exercises to develop both their
inner strength and their ability to defend themselves in the
remote and often dangerous mountainous area in which they lived. The
exercises were supposed to help the monks withstand the long periods
of meditation he introduced from his Chan (Zen) school of Buddhism.
Based on these exercises introduced by Bodhidharma, the Shaolin
monks gradually developed a sophisticated fighting system known as
Shaolin Martial Arts.8 One of the Shaolin sword forms is Shaolin
Damo Jian (Shaolin Bodhidharma Sword), attributed to Damo Zushi (the
patriarch Bodhidarma)9.

The exercises Bodhidharma taught the Chinese monks are believed to be
the exercises of Kalari Payattu, a temple art of South India. The
stages in Kalari Payattu are maithari (body), kolthari (sticks),
angathari (metal weapons), verumkai (empty hand), chiktsavidhikal
(treatment), manthrathantra (rememberance of God), and marmagnanam
(knowledge of Marmas or pressure points).10 Today, Kalari Payattu is
still taught as a martial art in South India.

2. Chinese Mythical Figures of Indian Origin

Two of the most beloved personalities of Chinese mythology were
derived from Indian mythical figures.

2.1. Sun Wukong

The character of Sun Wukong, the Monkey King made famous in the
Chinese classic Journey to the West, is believed by scholars to be
derived from Hanuman, the Monkey God of the Hindu epic Ramayana.11

The 2 characters share many traits such as the skill of becoming
gigantic or very tiny, the ability to assume any form, and a magical
staff that the monkey can shrink to the size of a toothpick and hide
in his ear.

2.2 Guanyin (Avalokiteshvara)

Avalokiteshvara, the Bodhisattva of Compassion, is known as Guanyin
Pusa to the Chinese, Kannon Bosatsu to the Japanese, and Chenrezig to
the Tibetans. In India, Japan and Tibet, he is a male figure, but the
Chinese reinvented the deity as a female icon.12

3. Flow of Material Culture and Ideas

3.1. Cotton Cultivation

Early Chinese records mention that cotton had been brought in from
India. Various dates have been given for the beginning of cotton
cultivation in China, but it is generally agreed that the cultivation
of cotton was introduced from India.13

3.2. Chinese Words of Indian Origin

Muoli - jasmine, from the Tamil term Malli

Chan - meditation, from the Sanskrit term dhyana

---- Also visit ----

http://www.vandemataram.com
for all those wishing to discover more about Indian Culture,People,
Religion and Vedic Wisdom !

--
==========

Nine requisites for contented living: Health enough to make work
a pleasure. Wealth enough to support your needs. Strength to
battle with difficulties and overcome them. Grace enough to
confess your sins and forsake them. Patience enough to toil until
some good is accomplished. Charity enough to see some good in
your neighbor. Love enough to move you to be useful to others.
Faith enough to make real the things of God. Hope enough to
remove all anxious fears concerning the future.
-- Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, German poet, dramatist and
scientist (1749-1832)

=================
What Can You Do?

First, focus on your physical health. If your life would be
better if you had more energy, stamina and a greater ability to
resist injury and illness, what could you do to be healthier?

Second, assess your emotional well-being. To feel better about
who you are and what you do, identify the things that make you
really happy and bring you a sense of fulfillment. Start with
your own attitudes and then consider how you can surround
yourself with people and activities that bring out the best
in you.

Third, dedicate yourself to improving your mind. Explore your
curiosities and passions. Determine what you want to learn this
year and how you can become smarter and wiser.

Fourth, think deeply about every important relationship and what
you can do to make it better.

Finally, reflect deeply on your spiritual needs and whether you
are thinking enough about the meaning and purpose of your life
in grand terms.

- Michael Josephson www.charactercounts.org

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