Mumbai, �ndia 2008

Em janeiro de 2008, em Mumbai (antiga Bombaim), na �ndia, acontecer� a Quinta Bi-Anual Confer�ncia Internacional com o tema �Cultura Buddhista na �sia - Unidade na Diversidade�, organizada pelo Centro Somaiya para Estudos Buddhistas, Universidade de Mumbai (Dept de Filosofia), Universidade Nava Nalanda (Bihar) e Universidade de Puna (Dept de Pali).

Ricardo Sasaki (Dhanapala) estar� participando na confer�ncia com a apresenta��o: "Buddhist Education at Crossroads", al�m de aula no Departamento de Pali sobre o tema "Psicologia Buddhista: Oriente Ocidente".

Alguns nomes de peso do Buddhismo Mundial estar�o presentes como Dr.Y.Karunadasa de Hongkong; Ven.Kammai Dhammasami de Oxford; Dr.Mettanando da Thailandia, Ven.Wimalaratna, Ven.Dhammavihari e Dhammisara do Srilanka; Ven.Heng Sure do monast�rio dos mil buddhas em Berkeley; Ven. Bodhipala do Mahabodhi Temple; Dr. Ravindra Panth da Universidade Nalanda; Dr. David Kalupahana da Univerdade do Hawai; Dr.Charles Willemen, um dos grandes especialistas no Buddhismo chin�s; Ven. Bhikkhuni Dhammananda; Dr.S.K.Pathak, um dos grandes especialistas em literatura s�nscrita no mundo; Ven. Nawang Samten, Vice Chanceler da Tibetan University e Diretor do Central Institute of Higher Tibetan studies; Achariya Goenkaji, renomado mestre de medita��o da tradi��o birmanesa; Rev. Esho Sasaki da Universidade de Kyoto; bem como v�rios outros estudiosos da �ndia, Sri Lanka, China e Taiwan.

Buddhist Culture In Asia � Unity in Diversity

Sakyamuni Buddha told people to follow his teachings not with blind faith, but to examine them carefully themselves before accepting them . As the Buddha emphasised �caratha caratha bhikkhave, bahujanasukhaya, bahujanahitaya�.� This maxim was sincerely followed, that Buddhism truly became the religion of the people of the world irrespective of geographical difference , caste and creed purely based on compassion.

Although Buddhism never developed a missionary movement, Buddha�s teachings nevertheless spread far and wide on the Indian subcontinent and from there throughout Asia. In each new culture it reached, the Buddhist methods and styles were modified to fit the local mentality, without compromising the essential points of wisdom and compassion. Buddhism, however, never developed an overall hierarchy of religious authority with a supreme head. Each country to which it spread developed its own forms, its own religious structure and its own spiritual head.

There are two major divisions of Buddhism. The Sravakyana or Theravada (Vehicle of elders) and the Mahayana. Each has many sub-divisions. At present, however, three major forms survive: one known as Theravada, in South and Southeast Asia, and two Mahayana, namely the Chinese and Japanese traditions and three known as Tantric Mahayana Buddhism as in Ladakh, Tibet, Nepal etc�

The Theravada tradition spread from India to Sri Lanka and Burma in the third century B.C.E., and from there to Yunnan in southwest China, Thailand, Laos, Cambodia, South Vietnam and Indonesia. Pockets of Indian merchants practicing Buddhism were soon found on the coast of the Arabian Peninsula and even as far as Alexandria, Egypt. Other forms of Theravada spread from that time to modern-day Pakistan, Kashmir, Afghanistan, eastern and coastal Iran, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan. These were the ancient states of Gandhara, Bactria, Parthia and Sogdia. From this base in Central Asia, they spread further in the second century C.E. to East Turkistan (Xinjiang) and further into China, and in the late seventh century to Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. These forms of Theravada(Hinayana) were later combined with Mahayana aspects that also came from India so that Mahayana eventually became the dominant form of Buddhism in most of Central Asia.

The Chinese form of Mahayana later spread to Korea, Japan and North Vietnam. Another early wave of Mahayana, mixed with Shaivite forms of Hinduism, spread from India to Nepal, Indonesia, Malaysia and parts of South East Asia starting in about the fifth century. The Tibetan Mahayana tradition, which, starting in the seventh century, inherited the full historical development of Indian Buddhism, spread throughout the Himalayan regions and to Mongolia, East Turkistan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, northern Inner China, Manchuria, Siberia and the Kalmyk Mongol region near the Caspian Sea in European Russia.

The Manner in Which Buddhism Spread

The expansion of Buddhism throughout most of Asia was peaceful and occurred in several ways. Shakyamuni Buddha set the precedent. Being primarily a teacher, he traveled to nearby kingdoms to share his insights with those who were receptive and interested. Likewise, he instructed his monks to go forth in the world and expound his teachings. He did not ask others to denounce others and nor give up their own religion and convert to a new one, for he was not seeking to establish his own religion. He was merely trying to help others overcome the unhappiness and suffering that they were creating for themselves because of their lack of understanding. Later generations of followers were inspired by Buddha's example and shared with others his methods that they found useful in their lives. This is how what is now called "Buddhism" spread far and wide.

Sometimes the process evolved organically. For example, when Buddhist merchants visited and settled in different lands, some members of the local populations naturally developed interest in these foreigners'� beliefs, as with the introduction of Islam to Indonesia and Malaysia. Such a process occurred with Buddhism in the oasis states along the Silk Route in Central Asia during the two centuries before and after the common era. As local rulers and their people learned more about this Indian religion, they invited monks from the merchants' native regions as advisors or teachers and, in this manner, eventually adopted the Buddhist faith. Another organic method was through the slow cultural assimilation of a conquering people, such as the Greeks into the Buddhist society of Gandhara in present-day central Pakistan, during the centuries following the second century B.C.E.

Often, however, the dissemination was due primarily to the influence of a powerful monarch who had adopted and supported Buddhism himself. In the mid-third century B.C.E, for example, Buddhism spread throughout northern India as the result of the personal endorsement of King Ashoka. This great empire-builder did not force his subjects to adopt the Buddhist faith. But by posting edicts engraved on stone pillars throughout his realm exhorting his people to lead an ethical life, and by following these principles himself, he inspired others to adopt Buddha's teachings.

King Ashoka also actively proselytized outside his kingdom by sending missions to distant lands. On some occasions, he acted upon the invitation of foreign rulers, such as King Tishya of Sri Lanka. On others, he sent monks as envoys at his own initiative. These visiting monastics, however, did not forcefully pressurise others to convert, but simply made Buddha�'s teachings available, allowing people to choose for themselves. This is evidenced by the fact that in such places as South India and southern Burma, Buddhism soon took root, while in others, such as the Greek state and West Asia, there is no record of any immediate impact.

Other religious kings, such as the sixteenth century Mongol potentate Altan Khan, invited Buddhist teachers to their realm and proclaimed Buddhism the official creed of the land in order to help unify their people and consolidate their rule. In the process they may have prohibited certain practices of non-Buddhist, indigenous religions and even persecuted those who followed them, but these heavy-handed moves were primarily politically motivated. Such ambitious rulers never forced their subjects to adopt Buddhist forms of belief or worship. This is not part of the religious creed.

The spread of Buddhism paved way for the geographical connotations such as Buddism of South and Southeast Asia, East Asia , Central Asia. Though a lot of research has been published at both academic and non-academic level, there are still many unfolded details or unrevealed facts that are to be brought to lime light .

Keeping the above the papers will cover different aspects of Buddhism.


Sections on Historical background, Buddhism as Religion and Philosophy, Buddhist Language and Literature, Art and Architecture.

1.Indian Buddhism

2.Buddhism in Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand.

3.Buddhism in Central Asia

4.Buddhism in China

5.Buddhism in Korea

6.Buddhism in Japan

7.Its impact in Europe

8.Its impact in Western Countries

Post conference there will be a tour to Karle, Bhaja, Konadane, Bedsa (Buddhist Cave Temples) in Maharashtra.






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Bem-vindo ao site de budismo theravada da maior comunidade brasileira dessa linhagem budista. O centro budista nalanda é uma comunidade budista tradicional, comprometida com a transmissão séria dos valores budistas. Na escola do budismo theravada aprende-se o modo direto e completo dos ensinamentos originais do Buda, meditação budista samatha e vipassana (vipassana vem de vi/de várias formas, penetrante & passana/ver = ou seja, ver de várias formas ou de forma aprofundada), meditar no dia a dia. Das escolas budistas antigas, a do budismo theravada é a única que existe até os dias de hoje. É o budismo praticado na tailândia, sri lanka (ceilão), birmânia (myanmar), laos e camboja. O centro budista nalanda foi pioneiro em trazer os retiros budistas de vipassana e anapanasati para o Brasil e todas as atividades internacionais do budismo theravada no Brasil nos últimos 20 anos tiveram seu início no centro Nalanda. Saiba mais sobre o Budismo!