Introduction: The Spread of buddhism

Chapter Summary

The aim of the present work is to examine the spread of Buddhism in order to gain a deeper understanding of the way in which Buddhism found its way into countries and regions different from its area of origin. For the spread of Buddhism it is important to note that India's material culture in the Buddhist scriptures is described as expanding and trade relations are far wider reaching during the time of the Buddha than in the previous Vedic period. When Buddhism arrived in China, it came into contact with long established modes of thinking, cultural traditions and philosophies. The second or later spread" of Buddhism is discussed by Sven Bretfeld. The term later spread" usually refers to missionary movements in Tibet from the late tenth century to around the thirteenth century, the formative period of Tibetan Buddhism as we know it today.

Keywords: Buddhism; Buddhist scriptures; cultural traditions; later spread; Tibetan Buddhism; Vedic period