Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c13.s3.t1.12

v2.c13.s3.t1.12

The Chang’an of the Tang dynasty was the starting point of the Silk Road as well as a major centre of cultural exchange between India and China, especially of Buddhist culture. The eight Chinese Buddhist sects originated in Chang’an. Chang’an retained many of the founding temples of those sects including the Sanlun sect’s Caotang Temple, Dharmalaksana’s Da Ci’en Temple and Xingjiao Temple, the Vinaya sect’s Jingye Temple and Fengde Temple, the Jodo sect’s Xiangji Temple, the Huayan sect’s Huayan Temple and Zhixiang Temple and the Tantra sect’s Great Xingshan Temple and Qinglong Temple. The four famous sites for the translation of Buddhist scriptures such as the Caotang Temple, the Great Xingshan Temple, the Da Ci’en Temple and the Jianfu Temple were all located in Chang’an.