Buddhist Influences On Print Technology - Buddhism and Printing in China

Buddhism and Printing in China

The period following the collapse of the Han (220 AD) is known as (one of the many) “Dark Ages” and was typified by political strife, wars, and social upheaval. Despite the turmoil of that period, learning and culture continued to grow. Among the intellectual elite and rulership, Confucianism continued to be the dominant philosophy. Taoism and Buddhism emerged as religions and began to flourish.

Buddhism, a populist religion, had been introduced to China at the beginning of the Christian Era and quickly became a religion sought after in times of strife by the masses where it was propagated. The first translation of a Buddhist text appeared in China in the 2nd century AD and by the 3rd century the volume of translations had increased a great deal. Buddhism’s influence on literature and scholarship grew in relation to the conversion of the elite and ruler ship. (17)

During the Sui Dynasty (581-618 AD), Buddhism enjoyed an explosion in the production of printed texts. This is partly due to the reunification of the empire and partly because Emperor Wen decreed that all Buddhist texts then in print were to be copied and placed in temple libraries in all the major cities. Another factor that influenced this increase in printing was the creation of a bureau in 606 AD for the translation of Buddhist texts at the behest of Emperor Yang. To illustrate this diffusion of Buddhist texts, the History of the Sui Dynasty’s bibliography lists 1950 Buddhist titles as compared to 377 Taoist titles.

Buddhism was, therefore, probably the most important factor in the development of printing. The demand for Buddhist texts was so great that it encouraged accelerated levels of printing for the following century. Despite the increased demand for Buddhist literature, the production of books by hand did not end. Printing only increased the number of copies of books, thus facilitating the ease and degree of communication. (18, 205)

As Confucianism was the major competing native belief set among the elite, the reason that Buddhist texts enjoyed such widespread printing needs explanation.

Mair suggests that perhaps there is something inherent in Buddhism that is conducive to its being written in what he calls “vernacular Sinitic” as opposed to the “literary Sinitic” used for native Chinese texts. One aspect of Buddhism that Mair cites is the notion of upaya, known as fang-pien in Chinese; followers of the Buddha should do whatever is in their power to do to insure the salvation of all living things.(713) This would certainly help explain why Buddhist texts would be printed and circulated in a written language that is more accessible to a wider audience. Another point Mair makes is that lecture notes for sermons by laymen and monks were written in the vernacular language. This makes sense considering that these notes were to be spoken from; one would not make notes for a sermon in a stilted and highly literary language. Other Buddhist texts such as parables were popular with the masses and so when written, the vernacular is the clear choice.

Another inherent trait that Mair cites is the ostensibly oral nature of Buddhism and how the religion stresses that “…Buddha is beyond the ‘paths of speech’” and “…’the way of language is cut off, the workings of the mind are obliterated’….” (Ibid.) Mair also writes:

“Even the Zen masters, whose words are ironically preserved in written vernacular (perhaps one should say, especially the Zen masters),…’nonestablishment of written words’ (pu li wen-tzu), which disparages the efficacy of language, especially in its written form, to convey essential truths.” (713-714)

Despite this, even Buddhism could not survive and function as a religion without sacred texts. Many Buddhist texts begin with the phrase evam me sutam (ju shih wo wen, “thus I have heard”). Buddhist texts also make use of other expressions such as fo shuo (“spoken by the Buddha”). Mair points out that this underlines the direct oral transmission of Buddha’s teachings to the community through Ananda. So, these phrases are a stamp of authenticity for the text, even when a text did not originate in India.(714) Given this oral nature of Buddhism, it makes sense that its texts would be rendered in vernacular rather than literary Chinese.

The strongest explanation for the use of vernacular, and by extension the rapid spread of Buddhism and its influence on print culture, is the process by which Buddhism was introduced to China. Mair argues that the process of translation was what influenced the use of vernacular in Chinese Buddhist texts. Commerce also played a strong role, but this will be discussed later. It was foreigners that began the process of translation into Chinese (“…the early impetus for the translation of Buddhist texts into Sinitic came primarily from foreign monks resident in China.”)(714-715, 717) What Mair calls “literary Sinitic” is an extremely difficult language to learn, “…requiring at least ten to fifteen years to gain a modicum of proficiency.”(716) These foreign translators were adults when they came to China and most likely learned spoken Chinese through immersion in the culture before learning how to write the language. When it came time to write, they used the language they knew which was the vernacular. Also, when it was Chinese Buddhists working on writing a text, they worked in teams with other Chinese dictating their translations. Obviously since literary Chinese is unspeakable, the dictation was done in the vernacular. (Ibid.)

The above argument is the strongest for what might be called the mechanical process for the rapid spread of Buddhism and the vast amount of texts available (and the rise in the use of printing) to a wider audience. What is also a very important aspect in the spread of Buddhism and its influence on printing is the ideological aspects of Buddhism. As opposed to the native Chinese religions/philosophies, Buddhism is a populist religion. As Mair writes: “…Buddhism functioned (and perhaps originated) as a means for the individual to escape from the normal societal bonds.” (719) Buddhism appealed to the dispossessed, those that were outside the Confucian institutions. Because Confucianism stressed a rigid social order, many people found themselves stuck in a social position they could not escape from.

The Buddhist community in China consisted of, for example, a large number of widows, orphans, and others that had no place in the fabric of Confucian society. Literary Chinese was associated with the elite; those that could afford to attend the bureaucratic schools for example. Buddhism aggressively pursued the conversion of followers and to move into a new area such as China(721), it makes sense that Buddhism would make use of the vernacular in its texts; it was more accessible to the masses. Because of this accessibility there was an increased demand for texts and thus the rise in printing.(720)

Mair cites Daniel Gardner and his work on Neo-Confucianism. It seems that the vernacular was employed in Neo-Confucian texts because of its:

“…more inquisitive approach it permitted toward the classics…Considering the powerful influence of Buddhism

on the formation of Neo-Confucian thought and practice, the adoption of the written vernacular as a legitimate form of serious intellectual discussion would seem to be one more example of the radical restructuring of Confucianism brought about by this foreign religion.” (Ibid.)

So, not only did Buddhism wield an influence on printing, but also it also influenced society at large in adapting to the norms of Buddhist thought. These influences were manifested in literature, philosophy, government, etc. As Mair writes, “…may be analyzed sociolinguistically as emanating from the fundamentally demotic impulses of the religion.”(721)