China is home to a multiplicity of religious
beliefs, with the world's three major religions - Buddhism,
Catholicism and Islamism - all having large congregations,
organizations and activity venues in the country. Buddhism
in China mainly includes Han Chinese language Buddhism,
which spread into China in 2 B.C.; Tibetan language
Buddhism, which spread into Tibet in the 7th century; and
Pali language Buddhism, which spread into China in the 13th
century. Tibetan Buddhism refers to Tibetan language
Buddhism, and is also known as Lamaism.
Tibetan
Buddhism has exerted extensive and profound influence on the
Tibetan race. Buddhism spread into Tibet in the 7th century,
and gradually infiltrate Tibet's history, politics,
economics, culture, exchanges and habits and customs to
become the most extensively worshipped religion of Tibetans.
Prolonged ethnic cultural exchanges also enabled Tibetan
Buddhism to make its way into the Mongolian, Tu , Yugu,
Luoba, Moinba, Naxi, Purmi and other ethnic minority
nationalitites throughout China. Buddhism has long been
widely worshipped in China's Tibet Autonomous Region, as
well as Sichuan, Yunnan, Gansu and Qinghai provinces, and
the Xinjiang Uygur and Inner Mongolia autonomous regions. It
has also made its way into Sikkim, Bhuttan, Nepal, the
Mongolian People's Republic and Buryat in the Republic of
Russia.
More than 1,400 Tibetan monasteries and
other religious venues were renovated and opened following
the peaceful liberation of Tibet in 1951. Chinese government
and policies for religious freedom enable 34,000 monks in
various monasteries to freely study Buddhist sutras and hold
various types of Buddhist activities in their respective
monasteries. In addition, the broad masses of religious have
set up shrines, Buddha halls and sutra recitation rooms in
their homes, and undertake pilgrimages to sacred sites.
|