Find out more about how we use your information in our Privacy Policy and Cookie Policy. HuffPost is part of Verizon Media. To enable Verizon Media and our partners to process your personal data select 'I agree', or select 'Manage settings' for more information and to manage your choices. His example of a prince renouncing the world to save humanity from sins and rebirth and wandering from place to place to convince the people with his messages and sermons came to naturally evoke awe, admiration and acceptance of the people for him and his religion. Royal patronage of Buddhism also accounted for its rapid rise. His simple life, sweet words, life of renunciation attracted a … Various causes were response accounted for the rise and spread of Buddhism. Followers of this group came to practise worship of the Buddha’s image. Report a Violation, The Decline of Buddhism in India (8 Factors). An attempt was made in the council to discuss the issues of conflicting ideas and arrive at a solution based on consensus. Prominent among Buddha’s disciples were Ananda, Sariputta, Maudgalayana, Sudatta and Upali etc. Their example influenced more and more people to follow it. Practical morality, not rites and expensive rituals, came as its beacon feature and helped to set up a healthy tradition in society. As a result. One was ‘Sthavira’ and the other, ‘Mahasanghika’. Kanishka and Harshavardhan worked untiringly for the spread of Buddhism throughout India. in the Magadhan capital at Rajagriha, under the leadership of Ajatasatru and the presidency of Mahakashyap. This council discussed extensively about the many latent problems confronting Buddhism. The people were closely following the deliberations of these councils and were increasingly drawn into its fold. They either became monks (bhikshu) or Upasakas (lay-worshippers) and led lives of austere serenity. and during the illustrious reign of Emperor Asoka, the Third Buddhist Council came to be held in Pataliputra, the coital of Magadha The renowned Buddhist monk Mogaliputta Tissa presided over this council. The Vedic religion was understood only with the help of Sanskrit language which was the monopoly of the Brahmins. It was founded in India, and is based on the teachings of a prince-turned-monk named Siddharta Gautama. The people, already fed up with Brahminical manipulations of Vedic religion, came to accept Buddhism as a soothing and refreshing change. It did not confuse the people. It was a time when people were fed up with the superstitions, complex rituals and rites and … Asoka, the emperor of India, was the cause; because he was a faithful Buddhist, so he tried to spread the Buddhism to the world, and he did. Its teachers like Shilavadra, Dharmapala, Chandrapala and Divakamitra were renowned scholars who dedicated themselves to the cause of the spread of Buddhism. The rites and ceremonies were painfully elaborate and awfully expensive. Plagiarism Prevention 4. 6th Century B.C. Prohibited Content 3. The common man developed a great dislike for these rituals. (or 386 B.C.) Students from various parts of India and from outside India, reading in these universities, were attracted to Buddhism and embraced it. The Buddhist monks and the Buddhist ‘Order’ (Sangha) did incomparable service for the spread of Buddhism. (or 486 B.C.) In recorded time, every nook and corner of the country reverberated with the prayers of the monks (bhikshus) and the lay-worshippers (Upasikas). The Vedic philosophy had lost its original purity and in the sixth century B.C. The Buddha spread his message in the simple language of the masses of people. Thus, the Fourth Buddhist Council split the Buddhists into two groups, namely, ‘Hinayana’ and ‘Mahayana’, The ‘Mahayana’ sect was declared as the state-religion. TOS 7. Content Guidelines 2. As a result. … it was reduced to a bundle of cumbrous rituals. The Buddha was kind and ego-less. Here are some key reasons for the spread of Buddhism in Asia: India's Spiritual Reputation In the era of the Buddha, India was regarded as a pioneer in many fields. The Buddha spent forty-five years traveling across the Ganges Plains in northern India, spreading his teachings to whoever would listen. Following the death (Mahaparinirvana) of Lord Buddha, the First-Buddhist Council was held in 487 B.C. The missionary zeal of Buddhism was conspicuously absent in contemporary Hinduism. The conditions of the then society favoured the rise and growth of Jainism and Buddhism. the Second Buddhist Council was convened at Vaisali under the supervision of Kalasoka Kakavarni. The prime objective was to restore purity by cleansing the sangha of all perversions. Buddhism also lacked the severity of Jainism, as well as the complexity of Vedic rituals. Content Filtrations 6. Asoka deputed his children, Mahendra and Sanghamitra, to Sri Lanka for the spread of Buddhism. This council was unique because all discussions here were carried out in Sanskrit and an analysis of Buddhism was made into the form of an encyclopedia of Buddhism called ‘Mahabivasha’. Soon local people were drawn to these branches of the Buddhist ‘Order’. Buddhism came to hold an unrivalled sway throughout India. Various causes were response accounted for the rise and spread of Buddhism. As compared with Jainism, Buddhism was essentially simple. They also dedicated themselves to the spread of Buddhism. Prominent was also the role of the Universities at Nalanda, Taxila, Puspagiri and Vikramsila in the spread of Buddhism.