Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c10.s3.t12.32

v2.c10.s3.t12.32

Some contents of the Puranas were introduced into China along with Buddhist texts, among which, for instance, Shiva, Vishnu and Brahma appear as guardians, and after 7^th century, under esoteric Buddhism, even their spouses and carriers are given a place in the temple as well as in the mandala. Some of their avatars became very influential in China. For example, Mahakala, who evolves from Shiva, had a great influence on China in the 13^th and 14^th centuries, and up to now, is still worshipped among Tibetans, Mongolians, Bai people and other ethnic groups. In modern times, a brief introduction was offered by some Chinese scholars, for example, by Xu Dishan in *Indian Literature* (1930) by Jin Kemu in *A History of Sanskrit Literature* (1964), by Huang Baosheng in *The Literature of Ancient India* (1988) and by Ji Xianlin (chief editor) in the *Ancient Indian Literature* (1991) and Wang Xiaodan translated some myths and legends, which were included the 4^th Volume of the *Oriental Myths and Legends* edited by Xue Keqiao (1999).