中国佛教艺术

Introduction

Chapter One Theravada Art

Section One： Cave Temples and Stupas in Xinjiang

Section Two： Monasteries and Stupas in Yunnan

Chapter Two Mahayana Art

Section One： Han-Jin Period： First Transmission into China

Section Two： Buddhist Pagodas

Section Three： Stone Pillars

Section Four： Shrines for Buddhist Relics

Section Five： Temple Buildings

Section Six： Cave Temples

Section Seven： Stone or Gilded Bronze Statues of Buddha and Steles with Shrines

Section Eight： Monasteries in Sacred Mountains

Section Nine： Scriptures and Ritual Implements

Section Ten： Paintings of Buddhist Subjects by Professional Painters， Scholars and Officials

Chapter Three Tantric Art

Section One： Monasteries and Stupas of Tibetan Buddhism

Section Two： Combination of Hart and Tibetan Elements

Section Three： Cave Sculptures and Paintings of Tibetan Buddhism

Section Four： Thangkas

Section Five： Scriptures and Ritual Objects of Tibetan Buddhism

Section Six： Rare Chinese Tantric Relics

Buddhism originated in ancient India around the sixth-fifth centuries BC. That wasa period of social and religious turmoil， roughly coinciding with the time between theSpring and Autumn Period （770-476 BC） and the Warring States Period （475-221BC） in Chinese history when various schools of thought （like Confucianism， Legalism，Mohism， etc） and their exponents came to the fore. Religiously， Brahmanism had nolonger met the needs of the society， and new Shramanic sects emerged. Politically， therewere 16 kingdoms contending for hegemony in the Ganges-Yamuna river basin， andin the end Magadha rose to prominence under a number of dynasties， peaking with theMaurya Dynasty that unified most of the Indian subcontinent in the middle of the thirdcentury BC.. The history of Indian Buddhism may be divided into four phases： PrimevalBuddhism， Sectarian （Theravada or "Hinayana"） Buddhism， Mahayana Buddhism，and Tantric Buddhism. After a long time of evolution， it eventually developed into acolossal， all-embracing religious system represented by a vast collection of scrolls ofBuddhist scripture， which is fundamentally different from Judaism， Christianity andIslamism all based on one sacred book.