Buddhism

Buddhism

Although Buddhism originated in India it now flourishes predominantly in other parts of Asia. Pockets of Buddhism have always existed in the northern extremities of the subcontinent in the Tibetan-influenced regions of Ladakh, Sikkim, and Bhutan. There has also been a limited revival of Buddhism in India in the 20th century, due partly to an influx of refugees from Tibet, and the conversion of the so-called ‘Ambedkar Buddhists’ who became Buddhists in an attempt to improve their former low status as members of the untouchable caste.

Leaving modern developments to one side, the history of Buddhism in India (used here as a geographical term for the whole of the subcontinent rather than simply the territory of the present republic) extends from the 5th century bce to the 15th century ce, and perhaps somewhat later. Buddhism originates with the teachings of the Buddha, who lived at the beginning of the Magadhan period (546-324 bce) when the kingdom of Magadha was undergoing rapid expansion. In the year of the Buddha's death the Council of Rājagṛja compiled a canon, and some hundred years later the Council of Vaiśālī resolved a dispute over monastic practice, indicating the beginning of sectarianism among the originally unified community. Towards the end of the period north-west India had been colonized by Alexander the Great, and by this time Buddhist monks had established the foundations of their canonical writings and organized themselves into monastic communities. The Mauryan period (324-187 bce) is dominated by the figure of Aśoka and witnessed the expansion of Buddhism throughout India under his patronage. The Edicts of Aśoka carved on rock provide the first tangible historical evidence of Buddhism, and record that the emperor dispatched missions abroad to promote Buddhism. This period was marked by dissension among the monks, and the schism of the Mahāsaṃghikas split the early community into two rival parties (see Council of Pāṭaliputra I). The period of the Śuṇgas and Yavanas (187-30 bce) brought mixed fortunes: in the region of the Ganges Basin Buddhism encountered hostility and persecution under Puṣyamitra Śuṇga, but this period also sees the construction of great stūpa complexes such as those at Sāñcī, Bhārhut, and Amarāvatī. In the north-west Buddhism flourished under Indo-Greek monarchs such as Menander (see Milindapañha). The Śakas and Pahlavas (100 bce-75 ce) who succeeded the Greeks in the north-west also favoured Buddhism, as did the ruler of the later Kuṣāṇa dynasty, Kaniṣka I, who is said to have supported Buddhism and convened the ‘fourth council’ in Gandhāra (see Council of Kaniṣka).

The early centuries of the Christian era saw the rise of the Mahāyāna, a broad-based movement emphasizing inclusivity and an expanded role for the laity. The early understanding of the Buddha was reworked in the new doctrine of his ‘three bodies’ (trikāya), and the figure of the Bodhisattva came to prominence, replacing the early ideal of the Arhat. New sūtras, purportedly also the word of the Buddha, began to appear, notably in the Perfection of Insight literature (see Prajñā-pāramitā Sūtras) and other profoundly influential texts such as the Lotus Sūtra. New philosophical schools, notably the Madhyamaka and the Yogācāra, arose to interpret this material, and in doing so they offered radical reinterpretations of the early teachings. A final wave of new literature known as tantras appeared around the 7th century promoting radical forms of practice, including rituals and meditation techniques for accelerating spiritual progress. This form of tantric Buddhism became known as the ‘diamond vehicle’ or Vajrayāna.

The intellectual vigour of Buddhism during this period attracted large numbers of students to monastic centres of learning. The most famous of these (at least among Mahāyānists) was Nālandā, founded in the second century and later patronised by Kumāra Gupta I, 414-455 ce (see Gupta Dynasty). It was reputed to have been home to 10,000 students, with admission being gained through an oral exam at the main gateway. Through continuing royal patronage, such as that of King Harṣa and the rulers of the Pāla dynasty (650-950 ce), other major centres of learning such as Vikramaśīla and Odantapurī also flourished. It was these institutions that produced the great generation of Indian Buddhist scholars like Śāntarakṣita and Kamalaśīla, who would play a vital role in the transmission of Buddhism to Tibet.

A less fortunate consequence of the growth of monastic centres was that monks became increasingly specialized in abstruse doctrines and began to lose touch with the world outside the cloister. Although little is known about popular Buddhism in ancient India, it can be conjectured that unlike Hinduism, which has always had roots at the village level, Buddhism became concentrated in a few key institutions of higher learning. This proved to be its undoing when Muslim raiding parties began to enter India from the 11th century. Undefended Buddhist monasteries, often containing valuable treasures, proved irresistible targets to raiders bent on booty in the name of holy war. The Turkic general Mahmud Shabuddin Ghorī sacked Nālandā in 1197 and Vikramaśīla in 1203, burning their libraries and destroying priceless literary and artistic treasures. These traumatic events effectively marked the end of the history of Buddhism in India until modern times although some limited activity continued in the south: there were Buddhist monasteries in Orissa and south India in the 15th century, and Buddhist teachers went from India to Tibet even later.