Early Buddhism and Taoism in China (A.D. 65-420)

Buddhism and Taoism appeared as religions almost simultaneously in the first century A.D. in China during the early part of the Eastern Han dynasty. At first, it was difficult to tell the difference between Buddhism and Taoism. Emperor Ming (r. A.D. 58-75) of the Eastern Han dynasty said of his brother, Liu Ying, the Prince of Chu, that he reads the subtle words of Huangdi and Laozi [Taoist thought], while upholding sacrifice to the Buddha. This message tells us that the text Liu Ying read was a Taoist scripture (the original literature of Taoism that comprised the ideas of both Taoism and the Immortality school) but that the sacrifice he performed was according to Buddhist practice. Traditional religious sacrifice in China included killing animals as tributes to gods, a practice forbidden by Buddhism. Therefore, Buddhist sacrifice can be called humane sacrifice. On the other hand, in their search for immortality, the Qin-Han alchemists used fruit as tribute, as Buddhists did. With respect to methods of sacrifice, Taoism and Buddhism shared similarities from the very beginning. In addition, as seen in the Buddhist Sutra in Forty-two Sections, which came into China and was translated into Chinese during the Eastern Han, the Buddha was similar to the supernatural immortals of Chinese legends in his longevity, changeability, and ability to fly. This sutra, like similar Taoist texts, teaches people to purify their minds and to reduce their desires (qingxin guayu). Generally speaking, in the beginning, people could hardly tell the difference between Buddhism and Taoism. Why? The reason is that the form in which Buddhism entered China differed from that in which it emerged in India. The early Buddhism that emerged in India did not treat the Buddha as a deity. Its teaching was mainly to prove the transitoriness or emptiness of the self. The Mahayana school of Buddhism that developed later regarded the Buddha as a deity but at the same time