THE BUDDHISH ART OF CHINA-Öйú·ð½ÌÒÕÊõ

THE BUDDHISH ART OF CHINA-Öйú·ð½ÌÒÕÊõ ½ÚÑ¡

Theravada sutras written in Pali language spread southward to Sri Lanka£¬ Thailand£¬Burma and Indonesia. Mahayana sutras spread northward to Central Asia£¬ China£¬ Koreaand Japan; these Sanskrit scriptures were first translated into Central Asian languages£¬and then into Chinese. The Chinese Tripitaka is the most complete collection of extantBuddhist scriptures; its influence reached beyond China to Korea and Japan. During theseventh century AD Buddhism spread from India to Tibet. As sutras were systematicallytranslated into the local language£¬ Tibetan Buddhism came into being gradually. The relics of Buddhism at different stages £¨except for Primeval Buddhism£© have allbeen found in China. The Theravada Tripitaka scriptures £¨from Pali£¬ meaning "threebaskets"£© spread to the region in southwest China's Yunnan Province inhabited by theTai people£¬ and had been translated into the ancient Tai language. The Sarvastivadinschool of Theravada Buddhism spread to the northwestern Xinjiang£¬ leading to thecutting of the Kizil Thousand-Buddha Grottoes from the fourth to the tenth centuryin the ancient state of Kucha £¨located near present Kuche and Baicheng£©. The ruinspreserved in Yunnan and Xinjiang£¬ though not very notable£¬ reflect the spread ofTheravada Buddhism in China.