Culture-mar-apr2011

LEGACY OF TAGORE, KOTNIS

The groundswell of goodwill Besides Buddhism, two towering figures have epitomized and carried forward India-China friendship and amity to great heights.

Rup Narayan Das

I

n the narrative of Sino-Indian civilizational linkage, the cultural and philosophical bonding occupies a very important position.

From time immemorial, trade and commercial intercourse between India and China which are well researched and documented, between land and sea, embraced ideas as well as merchandise.

As is well-known, there was a regular stream of Buddhist missionaries from India to China, beginning in 65 AD with Kashyapa Matanga, who was followed by such scholars as Kumarajiva,

Dharma Kshama, and Paramartha. If Chinese scholars gravitated towards India, as also India attracted a number of Chinese scholars, who left behind their indelible imprint on India. Of these, the best known are Fa Hien and Hiuan-Tsang, whose records of travels form an important source material of India’s social and political history.

The imprint and impact of Buddhism on Chinese sculptures and artifacts were eloquently showcased in February this year when the National Museum of India organized a tapestry of Chinese sculptures in New Delhi.

One of the connoisseur’s delights at

the exhibition was a sculpture of the sleeping Buddha.

It is heartening that the civilizational and cultural linkage between the two nations and their people have been assiduously carried forward in modern times. A resounding statement of India’s support and solidarity was evident even prior to India’s independence. The two countries, their leaders and their people found themselves in the same pages of History in the protracted fight against imperialism and colonialism. The first joint action plays against imperialism was by India and China, when their representatives signed and made a ‘joint-declaration’ at the International Congress against imperialism, and for national independence, held in Brussels in February, 1927. Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru represented the Indian National Congress at the Brussels National Congress where thirteen delegates from India were present.

Besides Buddhism, which is a perennial source of bonding between India and China, two towering figures have epitomized and carried forward India-China friendship and amity to greater heights. One is Dr. Dwarknath Kotnis, the legendary doctor who served in China during a very critical juncture of its national life in the late 1930s and died there leaving behind an indelible imprint.

Nobel Laureate Rabindranath Tagore, whose 150th birth anniversary is being celebrated this year, was yet another iconic figure who continues to nourish and nurture relationship between the two countries and their people. Tagore is also rated by the leading Chinese daily People’s Daily as one of the fifty important personalities who have influenced modern Chinese thinking.

The enigma of China had fascinated the cosmic vision of Tagore defying time and space. Tagore’s engagement with China coincided at a time when both India and China were passing through a churning process in the history of the two countries. Those were the times when China was passing through a firmament. In the historic 1911 Revolution, the nationalist party KMT under the leadership of Dr. Sun Yat-sen came to power ending feudalism and imperialism. In India the situation was

March-April 2011  India-China Chronicle |53|

INFOCUS | INDIA-CHINA | CULTURE

not very different. It was a coincidence that the year republicanism came into being in China, in India the capital was transferred from Calcutta to Delhi signaling the consolidation of colonialism and correspondingly the clamour for freedom gained momentum in the country. There was a new awakening in both India and China. The idea of nationalism, freedom and liberty had stirred the hearts and minds of the people of the two countries separately and independently. The two countries were passing through a cataclysm. In China an old and archaic order gave way to republicanism and in India resurgent nationalism was brewing in the length and breadth of the country.

It was against this backdrop that Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature bringing great laurel to Asia.

As soon as Tagore was catapulated to international fame immediately after winning the Nobel Prize, he received accolade and recognition in China as well. According to Liu Jian, an acknowledged Chinese scholar on Tagore, the first Chinese article to introduce Tagore’s philosophy was Qian Zhixu’s ‘Tagore’s outlook on life” which appeared in a leading Chinese journal in the same year. However, Chen Duxiu, a renowned Professor at Peking (Beijing) University, wrote Liu Jian, was the first person in China who translated Tagore’s poetry and introduced the Nobel Laureate to the Chinese readers. He translated some of Tagore’s famous poems including ‘where the mind is without fear’ into Chinese. He also wrote a bioprofile of Tagore.

It was in this context that when Tagore’s works were available in Chinese what provided instant resonance and salience to Tagore’s ideas of nationalism and patriotism in China was the historic May Fourth Movement of 1919, which was a momentous event in China. It was an avant-garde movement. It was against this backdrop that Tagore received an invitation to visit China from Professor Liang Qichao, a distinguished scholar sometime in early 1923. Although Tagore felt immensely happy at the invitation, he gave a serious thought to it and finally

made up his mind to accept the invitation. Other members of Tagore’s high profile team included the renowned scholar of Indology Khitimohan Sen who later wrote an excellent account of Tagore’s China visit, the famous artist Nandalel Bose, L.K. Elmhirst, Director of Sriniketan and Dr. Kalidas Nag from Calcutta University.

The high profile team left Calcutta on March 21, 1924 and reached Hong Kong on 7 April. In Hong Kong, Secretary to Dr. Sun Yat-sen met Tagore and conveyed the message to him that he should first go to Peking (Beijing) instead of Canton, the seat of Dr. Sun Yet Sen, father of Chinese nationalist revolution and President of KMT.

India is our elder brother and we are the younger.

This is not only an expression of courtesy, we have got ample proof of the statement in history

|54| India-China Chronicle  March-April 2011

Tagore and his entourage left Hong Kong on 9thApril by boat and reached Shanghai on 12th April, recounts Khitimohan Sen in his ‘Meeting of the Brothers With Gurudeva in China’, published in ‘Sino-Indian Journal’ in 1947 and reproduced by Indian Horizon in 1994. The meeting between Dr. Sun Yat-sen and Tagore, however, could not take place as South China was passing through political turbulence. On 25th April Tagore was greeted in Beijing with a rousing reception, organized by Liang Qichao, who was also the President of the Association Chinese Universities. Liang Qichao introduced Tagore to enthusiastic audience with fulsome praise and said, “India is our elder brother and we are the younger. This is not only an expression of courtesy, we have got ample proof of the statement in history”, wrote Khitimohan Sen, in his above-mentioned article. Tagore responded to the warm sentiment in equal measure and said, “I am only a poet. Mr. Liang Chi-Chao is a scholar.” During his 58 days sojourn in China, which ended on 29 May, Tagore visited important places and befriended a number of distinguished Chinese scholars who later contributed in deepening and strengthening friendship and understanding between the two countries and their people.

The high point of Tagore’s visit to China was the celebration of his sixtyfourth birthday on 8 May, 1924 in Beijing, where Liang Qichao coined the Chinese name of Tagore which was ‘Zhendan’. According to Prof. Tan Chung, a distinguished China scholar of India who was conferred Padma Bhushan by government of India for a surname, Liang Qicha coined the word ‘zhu’ which was the abbreviation of Tianchu (literally ‘Heavenly India’). At a time when India and China are celebrating the poet’s 150th birth anniversary, it is worthwhile to recall the words of former Chinese Premier Zhou Enlai about the Nobel Laureate while receiving the honour Desikottama by Visva Bharati in 1956, where he said, “Tagore was not only a talented poet who had made outstanding contributions to world literature, but also an eminent representative of the great Indian people who resented darkness and strove

for brightness…”. If China impacted Indian minds, like that of Tagore, India has also equally fascinated Chinese scholars. Ji Xianlin, who passed away in July 2009, at the age of 98, was an imminent scholar whose erudition will continue to be a great source of Indian culture and tradition. The government of India, in recognition of his seminal contributions, which includes Chinese translation of Ramayana, had conferred Padma Bhushan on him in 2008.

The legendary doctor Dwarkanath Kotnis was yet another iconic figure who continues to be the harbinger of Sino-Indian amity and friendship. It may be recalled that Jawaharlal Nehru, who crafted the foreign policy of India, even prior to independence, was pained when the war broke out between China and Japan in 1938. He spoke up for the Chinese people and aroused mass support for them. In this context, Marshal Zhu De, the Commander of the Eight Route Army, wrote a letter to Nehru expressing gratitude for the moral support of the Indian people, and appealed for the medical supplies, surgical instruments and to train doctors and nurses. Zhu De’s appeal stirred Nehru to give a call for China Solidarity Day throughout India on 9 January 1938. He also took the initiative to send a medical team with necessary supplies and instruments to China as a token of the Indian peoples’ sympathy and solidarity with the Chinese people in their struggle against colonialism and imperialism.

The medical team selected by a committee headed by Dr. Jivraj Mehta, was led by Dr. M. Atal and had in it Dr. M.R. Cholkar, Dr. Bijay Kumar Basu, Dr. Deben Mukherjee and the young doctor Dwarkanath Kotnis. The Indian medical mission to China was the first of its kind to be sent by any foreign country. Kotnis had just done his MBBS and was set on a career of further studies when the call came.

Yanan, in North Shanxi province, was the revolutionary base area set up by the Chinese Communists on the lines of Soviets in Russia. It was here that the fighting was still going on and the medical aid was necessary.

Impressed with the competence and dedication of the Indian doctors,

The tomb of Dwarkanath Kotnis in China

the Chinese left an entire hospital at Kweimow in their charge, and in their hospital at Kweimow, Dr. Kotnis conducted a number of major and minor operations and cured hundreds of wounded soldiers for whom such medical facilities would have otherwise been impossible.

Dr. Kotnis discharged his responsibilities with dedication despite personal setbacks. His father in the meanwhile passed away on December 28, 1938, under very tragic circumstances and the economic backbone of the family was broken.

Although he was deeply saddened, he maintained his poise and spirit of service and remained committed to the mission of his life.

Though, basically he was a medical practitioner, he identified himself with the Chinese cause virtually leading the life of a proletarian comrade. He fell in love with Guo Qinglan, a medical practitioner in the Eighth Route Army in 1939. Their love culminated in marriage in November 1941. Kotnis developed proficiency in Chinese language and political education with the help of Guo Qinglan.

While his indomitable zeal never deterred him from discharging his duty, Kotnis developed serious illness towards 1941 and his health started deteriorating fast. It is believed that he developed malaria which was endemic at that time. The best medical facilities and attention was offered to him by the Chinese authorities. In spite of this, however he died on 9 December 1942

at a young age of 32 only. His death was deeply mourned by the Chinese people and leaders. Rich tributes were paid to him when he died by leaders such as Mao Zedong, Zhou Enlai, Zhu De and Madam Sun Yat-sen.

Zhou Enlai in a condolence letter to the bereaved Kotnis family wrote that Dr. Kotnis was a symbol of the friendship between the great Chinese and Indian nations and a shining example of the Indian people. The epitaph that Marshal Zhu De wrote on Kotnis’ tomb is worth mentioning. He wrote, “Brought up on the banks of the Ganges, you came to take part in our struggle in the Shanxi-Qatar-Hebei Border Region. An international doctor, your radiance will illuminate our two great Nations.”

It is high time that we revisit the seminal contributions of these two iconic figures who immensely contributed for the lasting goodwill and understanding between the two countries and their people. At a time when the two countries and their people are redefining their cultural, philosophical and political narrative, it is time these facts are find fresh insight and added lustre. 

Rup Narayan Das is a Sr. Fellow at the Institute for Defence Studies and Analyses (IDSA)

March-April 2011  India-China Chronicle |55|

INFOCUS | INDIA-CHINA | CULTURE

ICEC Mansarovar Project

Cultural park for all religions It was the 11th century Tibetan poet who once said: “There is no place more powerful for practice, more blessed, or more marvelous than this (Mount Kailash). May all pilgrims and practitioners be welcome.” How true! |50| India-China Chronicle  March-April 2011

K

ailash Mansarovar, located in Ngari in Tibet China, is considered sacred in five religions – Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, Taoism and Tibetan Bonism. It is one of the most important destinations for all pilgrims. It is the ultimate dream of a pilgrim to visit Kailash Mansarovor, at least once in a lifetime.

However, due to the harsh environment, arduous journey and lack of proper facilities at the site of the pilgrimage, it is difficult for millions of pilgrims to fulfill their life-long dream.

Fortunately, since July 2010, the Ngari Airport has started operations it will take only 40 minutes from New Delhi by flight to reach the pilgrimage site as compared to several days of journey.

This will lead to encourage many Indians to visit Mansarovar.

Idea At present, the facilities at Kailash are not up to the mark. In fact HE Mr. Sun Yuxi, former Ambassador of China to India’s visit to Akshardham in Gandhinagar for an ICEC programme two years ago ignited the idea of developing a Cultural Park at Kailash Mansarovar for pilgrims. A lot of research and discussions have since gone into the idea and the Panzhihua Guanghua Group Real Estate Development Co. with support from the local government has started to develop a cultural centre and other local facilities at the site to make the pilgrim’ stay easy and comfortable.

ICEC has been entrusted with the task of involving all major religious and spiritual stake holders in India to come and discuss ideas to make this Cultural Park to meet the requirements and needs of all religions and make it one of the best in the world.

Plan The India China Economic & Cultural Council (ICEC) will understand the requirement for such a site and the associate religious sensitivities. In association with the Center for the South Asia and Western China Cooperation and Development Studies, Sichuan University, the ICEC organized a historic summit on the “Kailash Mansarovar Culture Park” on 16 May 2011 in Delhi.

Action The ICEC personally met all major religions representatives and invited them to the summit which included Swaminarayan, ISKCON, Ram Krishna Mission, Ram Chandra Mission, JITO, Sheth Anandji Kalyanji Trust ( Jains) among others to discuss and share their individual and religions points of view.

The ICEC also invited people who have already visited Kailash Mansarovar to understand the journey from the pilgrims point of view.

Summit People from the two governments, above mentioned religious groups, cultural organizations and business enterprises were also present at the forum and shared their suggestions for the Cultural Park.

Agenda The agenda was to bring all the ideas on the table and decide on the future action plan. It was also agreed in the preliminary discussion to form a committee who will continue to meet at regular intervals once the work has started to discuss on the changes and improvisations as and when needed.

They will also have a task to implement the agreed ideas and suggestions during the construction work.

Suggestions It was a very interesting discussion and the wealth of knowledge and experience which was shared during the summit was compared to nothing else.

With so many different religions and spiritual representations we had some very interesting suggestions from all participants. Some of the suggestions

Those who attended Name

Organization

Mr. Jagat Shah

Convenor, Kailash Mansarovar Cultural Park

Mr. Akshaya K. Jain

Akshaya Jain & Raka Chakravarty (Temple Designing)

Ms. Alice Wang

Director, China National Tourist Office

Mr. Deepak Agarwal

Mangla Exports Inc. (Temple builder)

Mr. Vrajendra Nandan Prabhu ISKCON Mohd. Saqib,

Secretary General, ICEC

Mr. Yang Tianlong

Chairman of Panzhihua Guanghua Group Real Estate Development Co.(PGG), Ltd. & Vice Chairman, China South Asian Business Council

Mr. Atul Shunglu

Assistant Secretary General, FICCI

Mr. Sumeet Gupta,

Adani AgriLogistics Pvt Ltd.

Mr. Kalpesh Bhatt

Swaminarayan Akshardham

Mr. Jayesh Gadhia

Swaminarayan Akshardham

Mr. Jignesh Shelat

Ram Chandra Mission

Dr. R.N. Das

Senior Fellow, IDSA.

Mr. K C Gandhi

UPES

Mr. Arun Pandeya

CEO - Air Canada

Mr. Xiaojun Li,

CEO, Dragon Exim (India) Private Limited

Mr. Shishodia

Adani AgriLogistics Pvt Ltd March-April 2011  India-China Chronicle |51|

INFOCUS | INDIA-CHINA | CULTURE

agreed during the meeting were as follows: 1] Acclimatization: Pilgrims coming from different areas and weather conditions might have some issues to get acclimatized to the extreme weather at Kailash, especially if they reach from a hot and humid weather such as Delhi to an extremely cold Kailash in 40 minutes.

2] Logistics: To take care of logistic requirements for people visiting the cultural park.

3] Construction: To include the ideas and inputs of all the religions involved.

4] Food: Certain religions have specific requirements for food which has to be looked into.

5] Religious sensitivities: To

|52| India-China Chronicle  March-April 2011

understand and follow certain issues relating to the religious sensitivities of various groups.

6] Information and awareness about Kailash Mansarovar: To encourage more and more people to visit the centre.

7] Museum: To develop a museum to share the information and ideas relating to Mansarovar involving all religions.

8] To develop a research lab for studying the geographic impacts and the changes that have occurred in Kailash over a period of time.

9] To develop a library with Indian and Chinese literature to share knowledge with the visitors at the centre.

10] To develop a language centre to learn about and share different cultures and religions.

Next step It was decided to take a trial flight of 40 people from Delhi in July as the first group. This will consist of religious groups present at the meeting and committee members to overlook the construction and implement the suggestions discussed at the summit. ď ą

INFOCUS | INDIA-CHINA | CULTURE

From India to China

The Zen of Buddhism A religion that had its roots in India but blossomed in faraway China.

P S Deodhar

C

ivilizations, they say, grew along the banks of rivers being our life lines. World’s oldest international highway, the Silk Route helped export Buddhism to China.

Besides silk, paper and other goods, the Silk Road carried another commodity which was equally significant in world history, Buddhism. It became the vehicle which spread Buddhism through Afghanistan, Central Asia, Xinjiang (Chinese Turkistan), China, |44| India-China Chronicle  March-April 2011

Korea and Japan. Buddhism not only affected the lives and cultures of those regions but also left us with a world of wonders in arts and literature.

Buddhism penetrated Hun as early as the 2nd century BC but took roots after 65AD when the Han emperor Mingdi dreamt about Buddha and sent his official Cai Yin to India to learn more about Buddhism. Cai Yin returned with two Buddhist monks named She-mo-teng and Chu-fa-lan to preach in China. Soon a Buddhist community was established in Loyang,

the capital and it grew continuously.

Later Kublai Khan also clearly preferred Buddhism. Buddhist Marco Polo has noted that Kublai Khan accorded a magnificent ceremonial reception to the relics of the Buddha, sent to him by the raja of Ceylon. Most of Kublai’s successors were equally fervent Buddhists. Buddhist scholar, Bodhi Dharma travelled from India to China along with other monks in 475 AD. Bodhi Dharma introduced the teachings of the Buddha to the Chinese, who were influenced by the teachings. Buddhism and Chinese Taoism intermingled with one another.

Buddhism in China reached its apogee during the Sui and Tang dynasties (581-907) but the Chinese Buddhism was distinctly different than the Indian Buddhism.

Buddhism was born in India. Lord Gautama Buddha was born in Lumbini, near the small city of Kapilavastu on the borders of Nepal and India in the 6th century BC. He was born in a noble family of Shakyas and grew up as Prince Siddhartha. He is also known as Shakyamuni, ‘the Sage of the Shakyas.’

He renounced his palace life and left home in search of enlightenment after witnessing sights of suffering, sickness, aging and death. He achieved Enlightenment at Bodh-Gaya and gave his first sermon at Sarnath. He spent his remaining life in travelling, teaching and spreading Buddhism till he passed away at 80 in 484 BC. Two centuries later, it was the Maurya King Ashoka who converted to Buddhism having got disillusioned after a deadly war. It was he who vigorously spread the religion across India as far as Hindu Kush, Kabul, Gandhara and other parts of north-western India.

This provided an ideal medium for the further spread of Buddhism along the trade route.

For a variety of reasons Buddhism was not accepted in China in its purely Indian form. Bodhi Dharma introduced various forms of Buddhism to China but actually there were gradual textural changes as Buddhism permeated the life of Chinese society.

It was natural since China was already rich and diversified before the arrival of Buddhism across the Himalayas.

It slowly trickled into the minds and imaginations of a people. Much of this trickling occurred during the time of Emperor Mingdi and by 200 AD Chinese translations of Buddhist scriptures started to appear. The main reason for Chinese reluctance rooted in the fact that Indian Buddhism inherited the tradition of asceticism from Hindu thought. But the Chinese, as more practical people, focussed more on some compelling ideas and qualities in Buddhism which they found of value for their lives as individuals and a society.

Actually Buddhism was the only religion assimilated into Chinese civilization before Christianity arrived.

Prior to it Chinese life philosophy hinged on what crystallized between 250 and 600 AD in Confucianism and Taoism, with their emphasis on practical matters, such as family, civic duty, harmonious living and blending life with the natural order.

Unlike in India, it emphasised on the particular rather than the general and its conduciveness to harmonious resolution rather than debate.

Experts point out that Indian and Chinese thought and culture have been never divided by more than just their languages, which indeed influenced the ideas, attitudes and even social conventions of their people.

Therefore Chinese, in ancient times, philosophically lived in ‘the here and now’ and had little concern with ideas focused on the possible life after death.

They point out that the limitation of word-symbols of Chinese language to express ideas of existence beyond the reality as perceived through the senses had probably caused this. Early Indian sages and thinkers however expressed the opinion that life was suffering and a sort of test or ironic game of Brahma.

They thought and believed that life truly begins with death and that the physical senses often mislead people into the world of pain and misery until enlightenment frees them from their torments. That’s why Indian religious scriptures teem with words dealing with philosophical and religious abstractions. That’s why one can see that, now globally popular, Yoga uses classical Indian terms such as samsara,

March-April 2011  India-China Chronicle |45|

INFOCUS | INDIA-CHINA | CULTURE

maya, atman etc. For example, the average Indian sees man’s role within the context of a larger, abstract whole while the Chinese interprets everything from a personal point of view since most Chinese grow up to be utilitarian and pragmatic.

The differences between Indian and Chinese culture can also be seen in common visual symbols. In Indian thought the sphere — a threedimensional embodiment of harmony — was the preferred symbol for the perfect expression of reality. Indian thinkers also considered the wheel to be a symbol of perfect reality. Here, the idea of motion was inherent in the symbolism of the wheel. Life was a wheel, in a sense, as human life rolls from birth to death to rebirth over countless incarnations.

Chinese thinkers, however, once again revealed a different dimensionality in their thought processes. While the Indian symbol of perfect reality is three-dimensional and kinetic, the Chinese symbol, the circle, appears flat and stationary. The circle however appears throughout Chinese culture in many important contexts, such as the unit of the yin/yang icon.

One of the most appealing premises of Buddhism is its emphasis on individual exploration, deliberation, debate and practice. According to the Buddha himself, enlightenment cannot be reached by team effort.

Ultimately, it is one man or woman working alone who can uncover the path to the

For a variety of reasons Buddhism was not accepted in China in its purely Indian form. Bodhi Dharma introduced various forms of Buddhism to China but actually there were gradual textural changes as Buddhism permeated the life of Chinese society. truth. Buddha reportedly said, “Accept my words only after you have examined them for yourselves; do not accept them simply because of the reverence you have for me.” It was just this emphasis on individual action and practical rewards in the here and now which greatly appealed to many Chinese once the philosophy crossed their borders.

This idiosyncratic quality developed in China takes shape in the form of the

Mahayana school. Buddhism in India was a rational evolution emerging from the context of Hindu philosophy.

Buddhism accepted the Vedic posture that sense-based life is suffering and must be transcended to experience a higher state of realization. However, it differed from Hinduism on a number of important points such as the use of rites, moral precepts and the definition of God etc.

The Four “Noble Truths” in Buddhism state that “suffering exists, there is a cause to suffering, suffering can cease and there is a path which leads to permanent cessation of suffering. It is interesting to note that Buddhism holds that life is suffering, not evil, such as some of the Hindu pundits proclaimed. Mahayana Buddhism, accepted in China, contradicted the doctrine of Nirvana as conceived by other Hindu thinkers. The Nirvana of the Hindu yogis was a complete annihilation of being, for they thought that existence is evil, and evil is misery, and the only way to escape misery is to destroy the root of existence, which

is nothing less than the total cessation of human desires, sensual pleasures and activities. This is a point of view antithetical to Chinese thought. It is also a point of view which Paramahansa Yogananda, a highly regarded yogi of the 20th century, does not endorse. He too says that existence is not evil, but the play or game of God. Buddha did not teach that Nirvana (complete awareness) could

be achieved through the complete cessation of existence as we commonly know it. The way to conquer suffering and attain Nirvana is outlined in the “Eightfold Path” which holds that one must develop the “right” understanding, thought or motives, speech, action, means of livelihood, effort, mindfulness and concentration.

These concepts are abstract enough to inspire many contrasting canons of philosophical speculation and yet specific enough to promote a certain level of ethical commitment or behaviour in anyone who claimed to follow the Buddha’s way. Underlying these precepts are injunctions to mindfulness and compassion which adds warmth through personalization and concern for others, making the Path more than a cold list of required commandments.

Chinese thinkers were especially attracted to the idea that the doctrine (Dharma) and rules of conduct were not in themselves the end, but rather practical guides to help individuals achieve their highest potential.

Buddhism gradually adapted itself to Chinese attitudes and customs. The

early Chinese were especially suspect of any philosophy that taught ‘suffering in this life, happiness in the next.’ During the Han and T’ang dynasties, Buddhist ideas benefited due to the state of instability and uncertainty of those times, just the sort of environment which welcomes a point of view which admits that life is tough and that there is a way to overcome it, at least on a personal level. With the disillusionment with Confucianism, widespread anarchy and invasions by non-Chinese in the north, Buddhism made major inroads into China and also adapted itself along the way. It was during this time in the sixth century that the 28th Bodhi Dharma and thousands of less well-remembered monks communicated an alternative way of living and thinking to men and women looking for a new answer to ancient concerns.

Chinese Buddhism, Mahayana and Zen, took on a very different cast from its expression in India. Chinese scholars were quick to translate the sutras into their native tongue but not without reflecting certain national idiosyncrasies.

China’s

March-April 2011  India-China Chronicle |47|

classical conservative ways of thinking modified the form of its reception of Buddhism. Chinese Buddhists took over the doctrine founded and taught

by Sakyamuni, and considered it their duty to exalt their interpretation of his teaching, in spite of the fact that Chinese Buddhism differs from Indian Buddhism in many respects. Therefore, they rewrote arbitrarily even the sentences of the sutra. This modified Mahayana Buddhism therefore appealed to the Chinese during its period of greatest acceptance when the promise of a higher life beyond the suffering of the present was a strong cultural idea; something which neither Confucianism nor Taoism could provide. Unlike the Theravada school popular in southern Asia, however, Mahayana Buddhism placed more focus on helping others achieve the goal of liberation. This led to the ideal of the bodhisattva, the saint who comes to the threshold of Nirvana and proceeds no further, accepting reincarnation in the world until others experience freedom.

Bodhisattvic philosophers would not be content with thinking things through for themselves; they wouldn’t rest until their students, too, were well on their way to understanding.

Zen Buddhism, on the other hand, is the most and least mystical of religion-philosophies; the most, if by mysticism you mean focus on the inner life and cultivation of insight; the least, to the extent that Zen teaches

that there is no other reality than everyday life. China was, after all, the home of Taoism, one of the premier mystical traditions of the world.

Taoism, most noted for its colourful rituals and magic, has as its foundation a profound tradition of introspection; understanding of the essential elements of life, as expressed through nature and beauty. The Chinese have always been utilitarian, down-to-earth people, more concerned with creature comforts and practicality than the abstract concepts addressed by Buddhism. Therefore the Chinese hunger for ideas, as opposed to a specific religious “solution,” led to the unique symbiosis of Buddhism, Confucianism and Taoism in China through modern times — a situation where worldly people and intellectuals alike combined elements of all three philosophies in constructing their own, individual perspectives.

This emphasis on individualism also is a Chinese characteristic which shaded its approach to Buddhism.

As Buddhism became more “human” in China, it also had something to contribute to Chinese ideas about man and his place in society. Apart from the strict social codes of Confucianism, there was little in Chinese ethical thought relating to the obligations of the individual to others not in his family. One of the ways in which Buddhist ideas freshened stale patterns of thought and enriched the moral texture of the nation was through

the introduction of altruism and the concept of the bodhisattva mentioned above.

Like in India, in China too, ethics was written and taught for the use of those literate few who were the potential leaders of the people. The common people, being illiterate, were expected to follow the practices of the literate; hence if morality was taught to the literates, it would spread through the society. What started out in India as an abstract concept, in China took root because it was an idea with practical consequences. From the first century onward, Buddhist ideas about man’s responsibility to others resulted in the growth of relief measures to aid the poor, medical treatment even for the indigent and education offered through the temple. Chinese Buddhists performed these acts not out of individual concern for others, but rather “to identify with others” in the sense that one should achieve oneness with the Tao and identity with all sentient beings.

Bodhidharma is credited with introducing Zen in the sixth century to a China which already had proven fertile ground for the development of Buddhism. It suited the Chinese tradition of practicality, common sense and its matter-of-factness.

However once the path of nonverbal, direct awareness entered the Chinese consciousness, profound changes occurred. To many observers, the

convergence of Buddhism and Taoism in China and its later refinement in Japan produced the philosophy we know today as Zen. Zen in China challenged the ritual trappings which impeded intellectual and spiritual progress. Ritual, at the popular level, persisted in all religious practices —Zen-like practices included; it was Zen’s emphasis on a monastic, more contemplative existence which inspired intellectual consideration of the role of ritual in the pursuit of truth. Zen masters criticized reliance on rituals for a number of reasons: one begins to depend on the practice of rites for the comfort of a pseudoreligious atmosphere; rites encourage personal laziness and discourage individual search for answers; one becomes attached to temples or other sites and to certain modes of behaviour, none of which inspire bold individual initiatives; rituals can lull us to sleep philosophically and spiritually, acting as a kind of Novocaine of the mind and soul. This manifestation of religion

is today seen everywhere in India; actually more in educated rich than the poor have-nots!

The Indian goal, whether intellectual or spiritual, is to transcend nature, which is often portrayed as a deluder of the senses, in order to attain a higher order of consciousness. In contrast, the practical Chinese mind delights in a nature which is the source of all good things. For this reason, when Buddhism became part of the Chinese mindscape, love of nature and what is “natural” became a significant part of its philosophy. Nirvana which in India was perceived as a state akin to samadhi, or ultimate transcendence, became in China a state of heightened, all-absorbing awareness of a reality which included nature and the ordinary. Members of a Buddhist sect taught that all existences — even grass, trees, and earth can attain Buddhahood. Because they were forced to express this unique philosophy in non-logical terms and because of the limitations of the Chinese language,

Zen adepts became masters of the arts such as calligraphy, ink painting, archery, flower arrangement, and impressionistic poetry.

According to the Zen practitioner it is about the search of the most ordinary of questions: “Why am I here?” and “What am I supposed to do about it?” Even at the outer limits of philosophical inquiry, the Chinese manage to bring a “down to earth” attitude to whatever they undertake.

As a result of these adaptations, Buddhism in its Chinese incarnation flourished in China by the 11th century whereas by then it had all but disappeared in India!!. 

PS Deodhar is President of India China Economic and Cultural Council. He can be reached at psdeodhar@icec-council.org.

Our Experience, Your Imagination

Tour Packages-inbound and outbound.

Have got qualified Chinese language experts in the company and also in its panel.

Experienced in handling MICE events.

Era Tours & Travels (India) Pvt. Ltd. (Recognised by Ministry of Tourism, Govt. of India)

210 New Delhi House, 27 Barakhamba Road, Connaught Place, New Delhi-110001 (India) Tel.: (0091-11) 23323190, 23711404, 23311337 Fax: 011-66304663 E-mail: richanayal@hotmail.com, info@eraindiatours.com Website: www.eraindiatours.com

March-April 2011  India-China Chronicle |49|