佛教在中國的演變

The Evolution of Buddhism in China

（Learn to spread China and Chinese cuIture in EngIish）

Buddhism was founded by Shakyamuni （ 釋迦牟尼） who was active in ancient India in the sixth century B。C。 As a religion， it was introduced to China in the middle of the Han Dynasty。 It is a religious system and philosophy of life， aiming at spiritual emancipation or moksha （ 解脫）， to use a Buddhist term。 Buddhists believe that life is empty and life is bitter， and their goal is to detach themselves from reality。 The spiritual liberation preached by them means “this shore” or “this sideness”。 Buddhism，on the other hand， aims at “the other shore”。 Since Buddhism is a speculative religious system， whose extensiveness and profundity can make up for the deficiency in traditional Chinese thinking， its introduction to China is， in a sense， a matter of necessity。 At the same time， as a foreign religion， it has to constantly adapt itself to the actual conditions of China so as to gain in popularity among the Chinese。 Consequently， from the first day when Buddhism was introduced into China， it began to be transformed and integrated into the Chinese culture。 The whole process took about 500 years， spanning many dynasties from the Eastern Han Dynasty to the Northern and Southern dynasties， and ended in the Sui and Tang dynasties， with the emergence of Chinese Buddhism。 By the Sui and Tang dynasties， Buddhism reached a peak in that different famous sects flourished in China。

作為一種宗教，佛教是由釋迦牟尼創立的，公元前六世紀活躍於古印度，在漢朝中期傳入中國。佛教是一種宗教制度和生活哲學，用佛教術語說， 其宗旨在於精神解放或解脫。佛教徒認為生活是空虛的，生活是痛苦的，他們的目標是脫離現實。他們所宣揚的精神解脫意味著“此岸”或“今生”。另一方面，佛教旨在“彼岸”。由於佛教是一種思辨性的宗教體系，其博大精深可以彌補中國傳統思想的不足，因此佛教傳入中國在某種意義上是必然的。同時，作為一種外來宗教，它必須不斷適應中國的實際情況，才能在中國人中普及。因此，從佛教傳入中國的第一天起，它就開始演化並融入中國文化。整個過程歷時約500年，從東漢到南北朝，跨越多個朝代，直至隋唐中國佛教的興起而結束。到隋唐時期，佛教達到了頂峰，分化為多種不同著名教派，呈現出蓬勃的發展景象。

A famous monk of the Tang Dynasty named Xuanzang made special contribution to the development of Chinese Buddhism。 After many hardships， Xuanzang finished his pilgrimage journey from Chang‘an to India in order to study Buddhist classics and learn the Buddhist doctrines from Indian monk scholars。 He returned with volumes of precious Buddhist scriptures， and together with many other monks and scholars，Xuanzang devoted himself to translating the scriptures into Chinese。 Xuanzang’s achievements greatly promoted the development of Chinese Buddhism and enriched Chinese culture。

唐代著名僧人玄奘對中國佛教的發展做出了特殊貢獻。玄奘歷經千辛萬苦，終於完成了從長安到印度的朝聖之旅，目的是學習佛教經典，向印度僧侶學者學習佛教教義。他帶回了大量珍貴的佛經，並與其他許多僧侶和學者一起致力於將佛經翻譯成中文。玄奘的成就極大地促進了中國佛教的發展，豐富了中國文化。

Different from Indian Buddhism， Chinese Buddhism has developed its own sects， among which the Zen （ 禪 ） sect， or the Chan sect， has a dominant position and overwhelming influence on Chinese culture and the thinking and character of Chinese people。Over a long period of development， Buddhism gradually took root in China，integrating the ideas of Confucianism， Taoism and other indigenous philosophical systems， and finally became a significant part of Chinese civilization with its unique characteristics。

與印度佛教不同的是，中國佛教發展了自己的教派，其中禪宗是中國佛教的一個重要組成部分。 禪宗對中國文化、中國人的思想和性格具有主導地位和壓倒性影響。

經過長期的發展，佛教逐漸在中國生根，並融合了儒、道等本土哲學體系的思想，最終以其獨特的特色成為中華文明的重要組成部分。

宣告：文中的英文取材於孫立新主編、中國海洋大學出版社出版的《中國文化要覽》。著作權屬於原作者，本資料室借用相關英文材料，旨在促進中國文化的宣傳和普及。如有侵權，聯絡刪除。