Historical Geographical Study Of Buddhist Culture In Northwest China

The religious problem is one of the prominent social problems in nowadays China. That problem in northwest China is especially prominent historically and currently. Proper dealt with the religious affairs demands not only in - depth research in such related disciplines as religious history, ethnology and sociology but also the study from the historical geographical perspective. Since most present religious cultural phenomena are rooted in historical periods, it will be difficult to grasp the regional features of present religions without the knowledge of the chronological and geographical change of religions in historical periods. In Chinese history, quite a few religions were widespread in the northwest. However, Buddhism has the deepest impact on the historical culture in those regions. Nowadays, Buddhism still remains the most influential religion with the largest number of followers in the northwest apart from Islam. Therefore, the study of the spread and change of Buddhism in the northwest in different historical periods will play a significant role in our comprehensive and thorough understanding of the sources and evolutions of current religious problems in those regions. Buddhist temples , the important carriers of Buddhist culture , serve as the main places for monks to spread Buddhism . In different historical times, the geographical distribution of Buddhist temples in the northwest took on different characteristics. Around 1st century B. C. by the way of Congling Buddhism was first disseminated in Tarim Basin which was the center of Buddhist temples in the Han and Wei dynasties. In the Two Jins, Northern and Southern dynasties, more temples came into existence in the northwest, and Chang' an became another center for the growing numbers of temples. In addition, a narrow strip of temples appeared in Helong region with Liangzhou (present Wuwei)as the center. The Sui and Tang dynasties were the golden periods for Chinese Buddhism during which Buddhist temples could be found everywhere in the northwest. Temples were densely located in Jingji Dao and Longyou Dao with Jingzhao Fu as the center. The density of temple distribution in Chang' an was rare in the history of Chinese Buddhism. In the Song, Liao, Xia and Jin dynasties, the number of newly -constructed Buddhist temples was rather large in Central Shaanxi, Hexi Gangsu, Yinchuang Ningxia, Yushu Qinghai and Tulufan Xinjiang which also were the major places for temple distribution in the northwest. In the Yuan dynasty there were many Buddhist temples in Guanlong in the northwest. Rather a large number of Tibetan Buddhist temples could be found in Xiningwei (present Xining Qinghai), Ganzhou (present Zhangye Gansu)and Liangzhou(present Wuwei Gangsu). In the Ming and Qing dynasties, Hehuang region was the most densly - located region of Buddhist temples with the largest scale while Hexi region was the second.Grottoes, special forms of Buddhist temples carved in cliffs, are important relics of Buddhist culture in the northwest. Carve temples in those regions are of grand scale, large number and wide spread. From the preserved relics, carve temples in the northwest can be divided into Western Regions district, Hexi district, Central Gansu district, Southeast Gansu district, Eastern Gansu district, Southern Ningxia district and North of the Weihe River district according to their regional features. Owing to different geographical conditions, grottoes in different areas bear distinct regional features in architectural forms and figure - making. The northwest regions have a vast territory with various geographical features and colorful Buddhist figures. Generally speaking, the grottoes close to the Western Regions bear more Indian features while those close to Central Shaanxi assume more Chinese cultural features. In the Northern, Sui and Tang dynasties, Lu learning including Shisong, Wufen, Sengqi, Sifen gained much popularity in the northwest. Before the Sui snd Tang dynasties, Sengqilu had been long adhered to in Central Shaanxi and Wufenlu was also popular...