China

Buddhism was brought to China in the 1st century C.E. as the religion of merchants from Central Asia. During this period of near-constant political and military strife, Buddhism found a receptive audience in China, while the influence of Confucianism waned. Buddhism was considered the first universal religion; it embraced all people, regardless of their ethnicity or social status. The Buddhist monastic establishment grew rapidly in China. It was a very difficult step for a man to become a monk: he had to give up his last name and take a vow of celibacy, breaking from the ancestral cult tha…