Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s2.t5.11

v2.c10.s2.t5.11

One of the outstanding features of Xu Dishan's literary creation is that his works were deeply influenced by Indian literature. Especially, in his early proses and short stories, he uses a lot of Buddhist vocabulary, and expresses the thought of Buddhism. In his first novel *The Jivajivika Bird* he quotes from the allusion in a Buddhist story. In 1923, he had not yet been to India but he had introduced the Hindu mythology 'Samudra manthan' in his story *Goddess Lakshmi*. It relates the story of Lakshmi (lucky lady) who rises from the sea made of cream and milk, and she is the wife of Visnu, who protects the world.