Buddhism was founded in India in the sixth century B.C.E., and was diffused to China by the first century C.E. Buddhism gradually gained followers after the collapse of the Han dynasty in 220 C.E. Buddhism’s influence on people continued to expand for several centuries all throughout East Asia. Between 220 C.E. and 570 C.E., China suffered a period of political instability and conflict. Buddhism had very diverse responses in China. The reaction of Buddhism gradually diffused in China by sermons preached by the Buddha, monks that practiced the Way and substituted that for other worldly pleasures, and that Buddha did not understand the duties that bind sovereign and state. Buddhism’s appeal in China varied.
Buddha was a profit that reached enlightenment. He spread his way of teaching all throughout Asia. Buddha preached his first sermon called “The Four Noble Truths” in India. “The First Noble Truth is the Noble Truth of Sorrow… The Second Noble Truth is the Noble Truth of the Arising of Sorrow…” (Document 1) Buddha describes the unpleasant feeling of sorrow and the birth of a new life behind it. Death, disease, and wickedness are sorrow. The craving of power, pleasure, and a continued life can lead to sorrow. “The Third Noble Truth is the Noble Truth of the Stopping of Sorrow… The Fourth Noble Truth is the Noble Truth of the Way that Leads to the Stopping of Sorrow.” (Document 1) To stop sorrow, is to be emancipated from it; not to have a burden on your shoulders. During 350 C.E., Chinese aristocrats and high officials in northern China were invaded by central Asian steppe nomads. “Whosoever in China, in this era of sensual pleasures, serves the Buddha and correctly observes the commandments…makes a vow to be reborn... will at the end of his life… behold the Buddha and be enlightened in his spirit, and then he will enter Nirvana.” (Document 2) To be enlightened like Buddha, one must follow the Way. A follower of Buddha must recite scriptures,