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The Microcosm Holds Mountains and Seas: The Sinicization of Buddhism...
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The Microcosm Holds Mountains and Seas: The Sinicization of Buddhism in ‘Multi-Layered Contextualization’ from Local to Global History

A special issue of Religions (ISSN 2077-1444).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 August 2025 | Viewed by 993

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Jinhua Chen

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Department of Asian Studies, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC V6T 1Z2, Canada
Interests: East Asian Buddhism
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Prof. Dr. Ru Zhan

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
College of Foreign Languages, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Interests: Buddhism
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

From its inception, Buddhism has exhibited a tendency towards globalization. Originating in Central India, it expanded in various directions, traversing Central Asia and extending to East Asia. During this process, the intertwining trends of globalization and localization have been constant companions in the spread of Buddhism, giving rise to the unique phenomenon of ‘Glocalization’, a blend of global and local influences.

In the study of Buddhism, it is important to adopt a ‘multi-layered contextualization’ approach, which involves an integration of local, regional, national, and global histories at different levels. On the one hand, the study of Buddhist history cannot be detached from the construction of microhistories to avoid being overly general. Even macroscopic studies require a detailed examination of local and regional histories. On the other hand, a broader perspective and framework are essential to understand the global significance underlying local events.

The Sinicization/localization of Buddhism was an extremely lengthy and complex process, warranting multi-layered, interdisciplinary, and multimedia research from diverse perspectives. Integrating localization and globalization, the ‘multi-layered contextualization’ approach, which considers both local and global history, represents a novel approach worthy of exploration in the study of Buddhism’s adaptation in China. Consequently, it is the aim of this Special Issue that scholars both within and outside China explore these new perspectives on the Sinicization of Buddhism, as well as how Buddhism, once Sinicized/localized, navigated the historical processes of modernization and globalization.

The topics for this Special Issue include, but are not limited to, the following:

  1. The history of regional Buddhism and regional history;
  2. The globalization of Chinese Buddhism since the Ming and Qing Dynasties;
  3. The modernization of Chinese Buddhism in the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican era;
  4. The globalization and modernization of Chinese Buddhism;
  5. Overseas/diaspora Chinese Buddhism: new sources and perspectives;
  6. Overseas/diaspora branches and home bases of Chinese Buddhism;
  7. Modernization and globalization prospects of Buddhism;
  8. Buddhism’s spread and civilizational exchanges in countries along the land and maritime Silk Road.

Prof. Dr. Jinhua Chen
Prof. Dr. Ru Zhan
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Religions is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • sinification of Buddhism
  • localization of Buddhism
  • globalization of Buddhism
  • modernization of Buddhism
  • overseas/diaspora Chinese Buddhism
  • spread of Buddhism through land and the maritime Silk Road

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Published Papers (3 papers)

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Research

16 pages, 417 KiB  
Article
Buddhism on a Countercurrent: A Case Study of the Hamon
by Donggyu Song
Religions 2025, 16(6), 683; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16060683 (registering DOI) - 27 May 2025
Abstract
In 995, Yuanqing 源淸, a renowned master of the Tiantai school in China, requested the Japanese Buddhist community to critique his work, the Guanjing shu xianyao ji 觀經疏顯要記 (Xianyao ji). In response, Genshin 源信 and Kakuun 覚運, two prominent Japanese Tendai [...] Read more.
In 995, Yuanqing 源淸, a renowned master of the Tiantai school in China, requested the Japanese Buddhist community to critique his work, the Guanjing shu xianyao ji 觀經疏顯要記 (Xianyao ji). In response, Genshin 源信 and Kakuun 覚運, two prominent Japanese Tendai scholars, authored the Kan muryōju kyō sho kenyō ki hamon 観無量寿経疏顕要記破文 (Hamon) containing 21 critiques. This paper examines the historical context, content, and influence of the Hamon. The Hamon serves as an important example of Sino-Japanese Buddhist exchange, as it was the Chinese side that first initiated this intellectual engagement with the Japanese monks—and not the other way around. The analysis of the text indicates that the Hamon was not merely a critique but a platform for intellectual exchange. Genshin and Kakuun’s critiques reflect Silla’s Pure Land Buddhism, whereas Yuanqing’s Xianyao ji embodies the Chinese Tiantai commentary tradition on the Guan wuliangshou jing 觀無量壽經. Although not directly recorded in Chinese sources, some records suggest that the Hamon had reached China and potentially influenced Zhili’s 知禮 thought. This study aims to deepen our understanding of Sino-Japanese Buddhist exchanges during the late 10th and 11th centuries, illustrating what may be described as ‘Buddhism on a countercurrent.’ Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Microcosm Holds Mountains and Seas: The Sinicization of Buddhism in ‘Multi-Layered Contextualization’ from Local to Global History)
36 pages, 9647 KiB  
Article
Mapping the Sacred Landscape: Spatial Representation and Narrative in Panoramic Maps of Mount Wutai and Mount Putuo
by Yiwei Pan
Religions 2025, 16(6), 671; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16060671 - 25 May 2025
Viewed by 187
Abstract
In late imperial China, a type of painting known as “panoramic maps” (shengjing tu 聖境圖, literally “sacred realm maps”) depicted Buddhist sacred sites. Often surviving as woodblock prints, examples from Mount Wutai and Mount Putuo are particularly representative. Previous research has often [...] Read more.
In late imperial China, a type of painting known as “panoramic maps” (shengjing tu 聖境圖, literally “sacred realm maps”) depicted Buddhist sacred sites. Often surviving as woodblock prints, examples from Mount Wutai and Mount Putuo are particularly representative. Previous research has often viewed these images as pilgrimage guides or focused on the relationship between pictorial perspectives and actual geography. This study centers on panoramic maps of Mount Wutai and Mount Putuo, examining both vertical and horizontal layouts, to offer a preliminary understanding of this genre. This study argues that: (1) Unlike urban maps, panoramic maps emphasize significant monasteries and landscape features, incorporating local legends and historical narratives, thus possessing strong narrative qualities. (2) These images likely functioned as pilgrimage souvenirs. Diverging from practical roadmaps, their primary goal was not strict realism but rather to convey the site’s sacredness and associated information through landscape painting conventions, allowing viewers to perceive its sacredness. (3) The woodblock print medium facilitated affordable reproduction, accelerating the circulation of the sacred site’s significance among the populace and aiding in its promotion. This research contends that the panoramic maps primarily function as folk landscape paintings reflecting the sacred site, capable only of approximating the relative positions of features. The widespread adoption of late-period woodblock printing enabled the low-cost reproduction and dissemination of the sacredness inherent in these Buddhist landscapes, constructing idealized spatial representations shaped by religious belief and geomantic principles. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Microcosm Holds Mountains and Seas: The Sinicization of Buddhism in ‘Multi-Layered Contextualization’ from Local to Global History)
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14 pages, 616 KiB  
Article
Biography or Hagiography: The Story of Sengya 僧崖 in the Continuing Biographies of Eminent Monks
by Limei Chi
Religions 2025, 16(4), 508; https://doi.org/10.3390/rel16040508 - 15 Apr 2025
Viewed by 337
Abstract
This paper examines how Daoxuan 道宣, the Tang Dynasty Buddhist historian and founder of the Nanshan Vinaya School, meticulously constructed the saintly image of Sengya 僧崖—a monk renowned for his auto-cremation—in his Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks (Xu gaoseng zhuan 續高僧傳). Drawing [...] Read more.
This paper examines how Daoxuan 道宣, the Tang Dynasty Buddhist historian and founder of the Nanshan Vinaya School, meticulously constructed the saintly image of Sengya 僧崖—a monk renowned for his auto-cremation—in his Continued Biographies of Eminent Monks (Xu gaoseng zhuan 續高僧傳). Drawing on a range of sources—including the now-lost Biography of the Bodhisattva Sengya and regional texts such as the Collection of Miscellaneous Records from the Shu Region—Daoxuan reconfigured Sengya’s narrative, presenting his auto-cremation as a profound religious sacrifice emblematic of transformative spiritual commitment. The analysis explores how Daoxuan navigated the doctrinal tensions between this extreme practice and the Vinaya precept of non-killing by emphasizing the practitioner’s mental state over the physical act. In doing so, he reframed self-immolation not as an aberration but as a legitimate, even exalted, path to liberation. This reinterpretation is situated within the broader context of Chinese Buddhist thought—particularly the ideas of the indestructibility of the spirit and the cosmological framework of “Heaven–Man Correspondence”—highlighting the interplay between religious symbolism, doctrinal adaptation, and lived practice. Crucially, this paper treats Daoxuan’s narrative not merely as biography, but as hagiography—a literary mode in which historical memory and religious narrative are inextricably entwined. By examining the rhetorical and ideological dimensions of this genre, this study contributes to a more nuanced understanding of how religious hagiography functioned as a tool for shaping sainthood, authorizing extreme religious practices, and negotiating the spiritual and social landscapes of medieval China. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Microcosm Holds Mountains and Seas: The Sinicization of Buddhism in ‘Multi-Layered Contextualization’ from Local to Global History)
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