Buddhism In China

During this early period of constant political and military conflict, Buddhism found an accepting audience in China, while the popularity of Confucianism slowly died out. Buddhism came to China in 1st century AD as the religious belief of merchants who came from Central Asia. For the next couple of centuries, the Chinese encountered a great variety of ideas and practices identified as Buddhist. Buddhism differed from other Chinese philosophies and religions. It was universal religion, embraced by all types of people, regardless of their social standing or race. Buddhism also has a founding figure, Siddhartha an Indian prince , who lived during sixth and seventh century BC. To many people in China, Buddhism was in a sense a variant to Taoism,