History of Buddhism in India - Decline of Buddhism in India

Decline of Buddhism in India

Further information: Decline of Buddhism in India


The decline of Buddhism has been attributed to various reasons. Regardless of the religious beliefs of their kings, states usually patronized all the important sects relatively even-handedly. This consisted of building monasteries and religious monuments, donating property such as the income of villages for the support of monks, and protecting previously donated property by leaving them exempt from taxation. Donations were most often made by private persons such as wealthy merchants and female relatives of the royal family, but this correlated with periods in which the state also gave its support and protection. In the case of Buddhism, this support was particularly important because of its high level of institutional organization and the dependence of monks on donations from the laity. State patronage of Buddhism took the form of massive propertied foundations.

The gradual expansion in the scope and authority of caste regulations shifted political and economic power to the local arena, reversing the trend of centralization. The caste system gradually expanded into secular life as a regulative code of social and economic transactions.

Brahmans developed a new relationship with the state. It became the duty of political officials to enforce the caste regulations written by Brahmans. Caste regulations grew over a long period of time. As they did, states gradually lost control of landed revenue. A key transition was the downfall of the Guptas. Indian social structure developed in a manner opposite to that of China or Rome, where administration of law was dominated by government officials. Instead, Brahmans became hereditary monopolists of the law in a series of weak, ephemeral states.

Brahmans came to regulate more and more aspects of public life, and collected fees for the performance of their rituals. Caste law, administered by Brahmans, was built up to control all local economic production and much of its distribution. The transformation of Brahman priests to linchpins of the caste system transformed the functioning property system. The political ascendancy of Hinduism and its displacement of Buddhism's political and social base came by this indirect route. Orthodox Brahmins were now capable of cutting off the flow of material resources upon which institutional Buddhism depended. Parallel developments that led to the decrease in the influence of Buddhism were the institution of rival Hindu temples, which were an innovation of the bhakti movement, and eventually orders of Hindu monks. These undercut Buddhist patronage and popular support.

A continuing decline occurred after the fall of the last Empire supportive of Buddhism: the Pala dynasty in the 12th century. This continued with the later destruction of monasteries by Muslim invaders and their mission to spread Islam in the region.

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