Classical Empires of India’s Hinduism and Han China’s Buddhism

The Classical Empires of India’s Hinduism and Han China’s Buddhism religiously influenced culture through both having religious based art and architecture such as temples and stupas as well as offering spiritual traditions such as the bhakti movement and Mahayana however, differed as Buddhism in Han China offered women a greater role in society through monasteries versus India’s Hindu Caste System that limited the role of women through The Laws of Manu.

The Classical Empires of India’s Hinduism and Han China’s Buddhism religiously influenced culture through both having religious based architecture such as temples and stupas. Hinduism or originally known as Brahmanism in India influenced culture through literature that described how to live a good life and have a good society in the Bhagavad Gita. In a similar manner as Buddhism spread in China over time paintings a writings about the Pure Land Buddha became popular as they thought about a Western Paradise. As Buddhism spread along the Silk Road into China, Stupas where built to aid travelers and merchants and became popular among society as place of meditation. As the Stupas were places of meditation so too had the Hindu temples become place to worship gods like Vishnu and Shiva. The reason art and architecture are influence by religion in India and Han China was to bring visuals to the beyond. Shrines, monasteries and stupas allowed Han China to to have places to worship the idea of a celestial afterlife. Sense the Vedic Age in India the people had been building places in which they believed the gods could reside and give blessing to their visitors and pilgrimages.

The Classical Empires of India’s Hinduism and Han China’s Buddhism religiously influenced culture through offering spiritual traditions such as the bhakti movement and Mahayana. India’s bhakti movement became a way for individuals to focus on one of the many gods Hinduism had. Han China missing the idea of gods also had a similar movement as Buddhism changed in China to offer him as a god through Mahayana the Great Vehicle. As the bhakti movement and Mahayana Buddhism spread throughout there respected areas pockets of communities develop. In India people would build temples to certain gods and live near those locations. The same can be said for Han China as people move into pockets of Buddhist families. The reason why culture is influenced is because like mind people gather together in areas like Chang’an. In India it gave people a common practice of worship and in Han China it gave people communities of hope during a declining empire.

The Classical Empires of India’s Hinduism and Han China’s Buddhism religiously influenced culture differently as Buddhism in Han China offered women a greater role in society through monasteries versus India’s Hindu Caste System that limited the role of women through The Laws of Manu. Women in Han China were able to participate in monasteries and find freedom and independence in a strict patriarchal society. This allowed women to leave the home and change the culture of Han China. Buddhism also changed the family dynamic and gave a little more freedom even within Filial piety as some of the roles put more value on the women’s job and more appreciation. However, in The Laws of Manu Hinduism was a strict patriarchal society that limits each woman’s roles and freedoms in the Caste System which established the cultures social laws. The reason for the sharp contrast in the role women played was the consistency of the regions. While India may have changed empires, the Hindu Caste System was a strong functioning domain within society. As Han China started to decline hope was being lost and China became unstable versus India, which gave Buddhism a strong hold in China, which changed the roles for many women in society.

 The Classical Empires of India’s Hinduism and Han China’s Buddhism religiously influenced culture through both having religious based art such as statues and paintings as well as offering spiritual traditions such as ceremonial worship however, differed as Buddhism in Han China offered women more freedom and roles versus India’s Hindu Caste System that limited the roles because of the Caste System.

General Topics of Culture:

• Gender roles
• Art
• Architecture
• Ceremonies
• Patriarchal
• Social Systems
• Customs/holidays
• Beliefs; Karma, ren, afterlife
• Diet
• Language; jobs for translators

Specific Topics of Culture:

• Christian Patriarchal Systems
• Christians gave women more roles; monasteries
• Christianity gave society new traditions/rituals; New Years and Calendars bas on religious events
• Christianity was at odds creating rebellious culture in the Roman society
• Confucian ideas of a social system; merchants and materialism are lower on the social value
• Confucian was strict on filial piety; patriarchal society
• Confucian stressed the idea of ren
• Buddhism did not have a social order
• Buddhism gave women more roles; monasteries
• Buddhism support the idea of missionaries to spread the idea of enlightenment
• Buddhism was absorbed into Chinese society
• Buddhism over time died out in India allowing Hinduism to be the prominent religion
• Buddhism offered the idea of a peaceful society when things were declining in China
• Hinduism had the Caste System
• Hinduism changed society over time to adopt new religious ideas; bhakti movement
• Hinduism put priest on top of the social order and spiritual adoration in society

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The Classical Empires of India’s Hinduism and Han China’s Buddhism religiously influenced culture through both having religious based art and architecture such as temples and stupas as well as offering spiritual traditions such as the bhakti movement and Mahayana however, differed as Buddhism in Han China offered women a greater role in society through monasteries versus India’s Hindu Caste System that limited the role of women through The Laws of Manu.

The Classical Empires of India’s Hinduism and Han China’s Buddhism religiously influenced culture through both having religious based architecture such as temples and stupas. Hinduism or originally known as Brahmanism in India influenced culture through literature that described how to live a good life and have a good society in the Bhagavad Gita. In a similar manner as Buddhism spread in China over time paintings a writings about the Pure Land Buddha became popular as they thought about a Western Paradise. As Buddhism spread along the Silk Road into China, Stupas where built to aid travelers and merchants and became popular among society as place of meditation. As the Stupas were places of meditation so too had the Hindu temples become place to worship gods like Vishnu and Shiva. The reason art and architecture are influence by religion in India and Han China was to bring visuals to the beyond. Shrines, monasteries and stupas allowed Han China to to have places to worship the idea of a celestial afterlife. Sense the Vedic Age in India the people had been building places in which they believed the gods could reside and give blessing to their visitors and pilgrimages.