The spread of Buddhism, like Christianity and Islam, occurred without dependency of a single ethnic of kinsmen group. In the example of the Chinese pilgrim Faxian, trace the spread of Buddhism in Asia, and the importance of missionaries

Question

What will be an ideal response?

Answer 1

ANSWER:
The Chinese pilgrim Faxian (died between 418 and 423 c.e.) left a written account of his travels. Faxian began his trip in the company of a Chinese envoy to an unspecified ruler or people in Central Asia. After traveling from one Buddhist site to another across Afghanistan and India, he reached Sri Lanka, a Buddhist land, where he lived for two years. He then embarked for China on a merchant ship with two hundred men aboard. A storm drove the ship to Java, which he chose not to describe since it was Hindu rather than Buddhist. After five months ashore, Faxian finally reached China on another ship. Less reliable accounts make reference to missionaries traveling to Syria, Egypt, and Macedonia, as well as to Southeast Asia. One of Ashoka’s sons allegedly led a band of missionaries to Sri Lanka. Later, his sister brought a company of nuns there, along with a branch of the sacred Bo tree under which the Buddha had received enlightenment. At the same time, there are reports of other monks traveling to Burma, Thailand, and Sumatra. Ashoka’s missionaries may also have reached Tibet by way of trade routes across the Himalayas. The different lands that received the story and teaching.