Questions about Buddhism in China - including answers

1. Questions pages 182 - 185
The Definitive answers

2. • When and How did Buddhism spread into China?
– Traders and missionaries brought Buddhism from India
into China in the AD 100’s
•
• What led people to follow Buddhism?
– Han Dynasty was in decline and the people were suffering.
– Buddhism taught that people could escape suffering
through its teachings.
•
• How did monks and nuns help the Chinese people?
– Monks and nuns helped by running schools and providing
food and shelter for travelers. They also served as bankers
and gave medical care.

3. • Why did China become less supportive of Buddhism?
– People believed the monasteries were too wealthy.
– People believed monasteries were ruining respect for the
family because monks and nuns were not allowed to marry.
– Rulers felt Buddhists were an enemy of Confucianism
• Trace Buddhism’s journey from China to Japan.
– In the AD 300’s Buddhism was spread to Korea. In 552 AD
the Korean king sent missionaries to Japan, and many
people converted.
•
• What was different about neo-Confucianism in
relation to traditional Confucianism?
– Neo-Confucianism included some Buddhist and Daoist
beliefs. It became a religious tradition with beliefs about
the spiritual world, and taught that it could bring peace of
mind.

4. • What did civil service exams hope to ensure?
– A government run by educated people was less likely to
become corrupt or weak.
•
• Who was eligible to take the civil service exams?
– Only men were allowed to take the test, and the exam
favored the rich.
•
• Describe preparing for the civil service exam?
– Boys started preparing at age 4. They had to learn to read
and memorize the teachings of Confucius.
•
• What did people do who didn’t pass the test?
– Those who didn’t pass found jobs teaching or helping
government workers.