Buddhism, one of the most popular religions in the world, was very popularized among Chinese people, with its followers more than 100 million. Whenever you set your feet on most of Chinese tourist attractions, you wouldn’t fail to notice Buddhist temples everywhere. But do you know when and how Buddhism introduce into China?
It’s said that, in the Eastern Han Dynasty, Emperor Mingdi, once dreamed of a golden man, who had a bright halo above his head, the golden man flew around his imperial court and then flew away westwards.
When he woke up, he told this interesting dream to his ministers, Fuyi, one of his ministers, said, “There’s a god lived in Tianzhu, his name is Buddha, the golden man who you dreamed of is the god himself.”
Tianzhu, Fuyi mentioned, was today’s India, the birthplace of Buddhism. About 6 B.C, there was a prince lived in India, he gave up his comfortable imperial life to tonsured practice, he wanted to seek a truth to rescue the people from the suffering and finally founded Buddhism. Afterward, people entitled him as “Sakyamuni”, namely “Buddha”. His doctrine was recorded by people and compiled into Buddhist sutra.
Fuyi’s words had attracted Mingdi’s interested in Buddhism, he dispatched 2 of his officials to India for the Buddhist doctrines. On arriving in India, the officials were warm welcomed by the locals, they introduced the sutras to them and gave them the doctrines as a gift.
67 A.C, the officials, along with 2 monks from India, rode white horses, carried a Buddhist Image and some Buddhist sutras, via the Western Region, came back to Luoyang, the capital of Eastern Han Dynasty.
To remember of this achievements, Emperor Mingdi ordered to build a temple for the monks, gave its name “White Horse Temple”, which was the first Buddhist temple in China.
Since Emperor Mingdi, Buddhism was officially introduced in China, and developed very fast, Buddhism, along with Confucianism and Taoism, have far-reaching influenced Chinese culture.