History of Mahayana Buddhism its Art Architecture and Literature in Southeast Asia

Buddhism is vast field spanning a wide variety of concerns. For twenty five centuries Buddhism has inspired the greatest achievements of Asian thought and culture, and today the impact of its message is beginning to be felt in the western world as well. The greatness of the religion lies in the method of its spread. In the entire world religions, Buddhism is the only religion which made its way without persecution, censorship or inquisition. As H.G. Wells, the great Historian stated “Buddhism has done more for the advance of world civilization and true culture than any other influence in the chronicles of mankind”. Buddhism is not confined to any particular race, nation or country it is universal. Similarly the torch of Dhamma spread to the lands of gold and islands of gold Suvarnabumi and Suvanadvipa). Andhradesa had been the strong hold of Buddhism from early times and the Andhakas as the Andhra Buddhists were known to Pali literature had been in the forefront of all the later developments in Buddhism. The Mahayana schools of Andhra, and the Andhra Mahayanists who settled at Srilanka have chosen the Southeast Asian countries where there were already commercial colonies set up by Andhra merchants.

Nalinaksha Dutt rightly observes that to South India particularly Andhra goes the credit of being the birth place not only of Mahayana but also its earliest exponents Acharya Nagarjuna and Aryadeva. Buddhism is perhaps the earliest of the missionary religions; it adopted itself to the local condition and absorbed the local systems into itself without any prejudice to its fundamental tenets. That is one of the reason for the rise of different schools and sects not only in India but also Southeast Asian countries. The absorption of the local primitive beliefs and rituals led to the rise of peculiar or even strange principles in each of the countries and in no two countries Buddhist practices look alike. With the rise of worship the Mahayana pantheon like Avalokiteswara, Amitaba, Vajrapani, Manjusri, Prajnaparamita, Tara, Trailokyanatha, Lokanada, Lokeswara huge temples were constructed to these Gods all over Southeast Asia. Theravada and Mahayana coexisted in these countries from early centuries but from about the 12 th century A.D Theravada became predominant.