"Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey" by Kenneth K.S. Book Report.

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Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey

        With the book Buddhism in China: A Historical Survey by Kenneth K.S. Ch'en, professor Ch'en has made a great contribution to those who study Buddhism. His book deals with the study of Buddhism in China, this is important because of the influence of Buddhism on the Chinese way of life throughout history.

        Buddhism was founded by an Indian prince, Gautama Sakyamuni, who lived during the sixth and fifth centuries B.C. He was the son of the king of a tiny state at the foot of the Himalayas and was brought up amidst the luxuries and pleasures befitting one

of his birth and class. However, unlike other Indian princes, Sakyamuni soon became disenchanted with the life of sensual pleasures he was leading, and left the sheltered, comfortable, and luxurious life of the home to become a religous mendicant. After years of religous striving he attained enlightenment at the age of thirty-five and there after was known as the Buddha.

The next forty-five years of his life were spent in preaching his message to his fellow men and at the age of eighty he died.

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        The introduction of Buddhism into china constitutes a major event in the history of cultural relations between China and India. By the 3rd century, Buddhist thought began to play an increasingly important role in Chinese philosophy, the development of which had been, up to this point, indigenous. During the centuries that followed, the best Chinese minds were attracted to Buddhism. Several schools of Budhhism were imported from India, and several more developed in china. Buddhism in China Championed the idea of universal salvation and made room for sudden enlightment.

        The book is presented in five parts, 'Introduction', 'Growth and Domestication', 'Maturity and Acceptance', 'Decline', and the 'Conclusion'. In the...