Buddhism in China DBQ
“Buddhism DBQ”
Buddhism was first introduced to China in the first century C.E., a few centuries after it was first introduced in India. As expected, it was met with mixed results; some criticized it to the point of blaming it for the country’s social and political problems, some defended its beliefs and followed it without hesitation, and yet others remained pretty indifferent and wished to meld Buddhism with other religions and create a unique culture.
For example, Documents 2 and 3 defend the beliefs of Buddhism and completely support it. Doc 2 highly praises Buddhism, proclaiming all the wonderful things that it has to offer to all who follow it. However, seeing as the author, Zhi Dun, was an author, scholar, and confidant of Chinese aristocrats and officials, this may be a little biased because it doesn’t show what the poor gained from following Buddhism. Doc 2 is also rather interesting because Zhi Dun can very easily pinpoint the wrongs of the Chinese social and political system on Buddhism, but instead he gives very high praise for it.
Document 3 answers the questions of Buddhism with logical answers. Since the author is anonymous, we don’t have a precise idea on who the author is, but seeing as he is mentioned as a “scholar”, we assume that he was also part of the upper classes, and therefore this is also a little biased since it doesn’t mention the lower classes’ side on Buddhism.
To counteract Documents 2 and 3, Documents 4 and 6 completely discourage the spread of Buddhism in China. Document 4 comes from a speech given by the leading Confucius scholar and official in the Tang imperial court, trying to persuade the Emperor to not allow the finger of Buddha into the country. He even goes as far as to call those who follow Buddhism a “cult of barbaric peoples.”
While his position in the court might make his word almost count as standard, neither the Emperor nor the other people of China share the same opinion, so this may almost count as
Buddhism was first introduced to China in the first century C.E., a few centuries after it was first introduced in India. As expected, it was met with mixed results; some criticized it to the point of blaming it for the country’s social and political problems, some defended its beliefs and followed it without hesitation, and yet others remained pretty indifferent and wished to meld Buddhism with other religions and create a unique culture.
For example, Documents 2 and 3 defend the beliefs of Buddhism and completely support it. Doc 2 highly praises Buddhism, proclaiming all the wonderful things that it has to offer to all who follow it. However, seeing as the author, Zhi Dun, was an author, scholar, and confidant of Chinese aristocrats and officials, this may be a little biased because it doesn’t show what the poor gained from following Buddhism. Doc 2 is also rather interesting because Zhi Dun can very easily pinpoint the wrongs of the Chinese social and political system on Buddhism, but instead he gives very high praise for it.
Document 3 answers the questions of Buddhism with logical answers. Since the author is anonymous, we don’t have a precise idea on who the author is, but seeing as he is mentioned as a “scholar”, we assume that he was also part of the upper classes, and therefore this is also a little biased since it doesn’t mention the lower classes’ side on Buddhism.
To counteract Documents 2 and 3, Documents 4 and 6 completely discourage the spread of Buddhism in China. Document 4 comes from a speech given by the leading Confucius scholar and official in the Tang imperial court, trying to persuade the Emperor to not allow the finger of Buddha into the country. He even goes as far as to call those who follow Buddhism a “cult of barbaric peoples.”
While his position in the court might make his word almost count as standard, neither the Emperor nor the other people of China share the same opinion, so this may almost count as