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Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c15: Section XII Modern Academic Exchanges

Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v2.c15

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English

Contents

Section XII Modern Academic Exchanges

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A bronze statue of Rabindranath Tagore

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In the early years of modern times, India-China academic exchange had continued with the cultural exchange tradition centered around Buddhism, and on the other hand, it had witnessed further development in the academic fields of language, literature, art, religion, philosophy, history, archaeology, etc. In the early 20th century CE, the Chinese intellectuals represented by Kang Youwei, Liang Qichao and others hoped to explore the contradictions and developments of the Oriental Civilisation in the modern environment by paying close attention to India. Peking University had become the center of Indology in China since 1917 when Liang Shuming was invited by Cai Yuanpei to teach the course of “Indian Philosophy”. Rabindranath Tagore, the famous Indian poet’s visit to China in 1924 had not only caught the attention of all the Chinese intellectuals but also pushed forward India-China modern academic exchanges to a new level. Thereafter, the upsurge of Chinese intellectuals visiting India on academic pilgrimage was carried on by successive visits of Tan Yun-shan, Hsu Chih-mo, Xu Dishan and other Chinese scholars to India. Sino-Indian Cultural Society was established first in Nanjing in 1933, with Cai Yuanpei as the president, and the India chapter of Sino-Indian Cultural Society was established in Visva-Bharati University in 1934 with Tagore as the president. Since then, the Sino-India Cultural Society had promoted the exchange of the scholars and international students between the two countries. At the initiative of the Sino-India Cultural Society, Cheena Bhavana of Visva-Bharati University was established in 1937 with Tan Yun-shan as its Dean. Thereafter in a span of two decades a large number of Chinese scholars such as Xu Fancheng, Zhou Dafu and Ba Zhou had paid academic visits to India. The academic exchange was not interrupted even during the World War II. In 1940, Master Tai Xu paid a visit to India with his delegation and sent Fa Fang and some others to Visva-Bharati University to study. In 1942, the National Oriental Languages Vocational School was established in Chenggong, Yunnan Province, opening Hindi as a subject; Krishna Kinkar Simha, the Indian student of Visva-Bharati University was sent by Tan Yun-shan to China to teach Hindi. In 1943, Jin Kemu, who became an eminent indologist in China later, learned Sanskrit and Pali from Dharmananda Damodar Kosambi and some other Indian scholars in Sarnath. In 1947, Prabodh Chandra Bagchi, the Indian sinologist was sent by the Indian Government to Peking University to teach Indian philosophy and culture; he assisted Ji Xianlin and Jin Kemu to establish the subject of Indology in Peking University.

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A bronze statue of Cai Yuanpei

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West campus gate of Peking University

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Cheena Bhavan, Visva-Bharati, India

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India proclaimed independence in 1947 and the People’s Republic of China was established in 1949, symbolising a new stage of independent development of both the countries. In the 1950s, the scholars of two countries paid frequent exchange visits. Kosambi and some other Indian scholars had visited China several times. Moreover, during this period a batch of Chinese students such as Liu Anwu, Liu Guonan and others were sent to Delhi University and Banaras Hindu University to study. The academic exchange had almost stopped after border clash broke out in 1962 and started to develop again after the normalisation of India-China relation in the 1980s. At this time, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences signed a long-term exchange and cooperation agreement with the Indian Council of Social Science Research, with plans to hold regular academic conferences in both countries on a range of subjects. In May 1988, the two countries signed a cultural cooperation agreement to initiate the implementation of cultural exchange programme covering diverse academic fields such as art and archaeology.

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Former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s historic visit in 1988 ushered in a new era in India-China academic exchange and at the turn of 21ˢᵗ century India-China academic cooperation flourished further. There were increasingly frequent academic conferences and visits of scholars between the two countries that enriched and strengthened the research and study of each other bringing the process of continuous exploration to a new level. In June 2003, when the Prime Minister of India, Atal Bihari Vajpayee visited China, the two countries signed bilateral educational exchange programme agreement by reaching consensuses on the issues of exchange of scholars, mutual recognition of degrees, teachers training programme, exchange between institutions of higher learning and exchange of teachers of Hindi and Chinese. Indian Council for Cultural Relations had been sponsoring Chinese students to study in India and sending Indian experts to China to work on teaching and research activities for a long time and had initiated and implemented agreements of cooperation with Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, Peking University, Shenzhen University, Fudan University, Jinan University, Yunnan University, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies and many other institutions of higher learning in China. Many Indian central universities such as Jawaharlal Nehru University, University of Delhi, Jamia Millia Islamia and Visva-Bharati have signed Memorandum of Understanding with scores of Chinese universities such as Peking University, Jinan University, Fudan University, Yunnan University and Shenzhen University. Their objective is to exchange faculty members and students, conduct joint research activities, participate in seminars and academic meetings, exchange academic materials and other information, organise special-short term academic programmes, exchange administrative managers and coordinators and conduct joint cultural programmes.

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In the recent years academic exchange has not been limited to the institutions of higher learning. On the initiative of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), India, to include Chinese in the CBSE curriculum, the Chinese government offered to train 300 Indian teachers through six months of training programme in the top Chinese universities. The Chinese government also sponsored to cover all the expenses of this training programme. According to the agreement signed with the CBSE, it was proposed to exchange academic staff, teachers and students. Several Chinese teachers were also sent to different states of India to assist and supervise in the Chinese language teaching and curriculum designing of Indian schools.

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In May 2004, “Sino-India Economic, Trade and Cultural Exchange Forum” was held in Shanghai, where the academic institutions of the two countries held in-depth discussion on many themes of Indian and Chinese economy and culture and strengthened mutual understanding. With the aim to spread awareness and strengthen research in China studies in India, Institute of Chinese Studies, Delhi, has been organising All India Conference of China Studies every year since 2006. From 2008 onwards, the “China South Asia International Cultural Forum” has been held successively in Beijing, New Delhi, Chengdu and Shenzhen, facilitating the exchange and cooperation of the scholars of the two countries in the fields of culture, economy and trade, education and media. In 2012, the Center for South Asian Studies, Peking University founded and held the “Peking University South Asia Lecture Forum”, which has invited several Indian scholars to deliver academic lectures. In May 2013, during the visit of Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang to India, an agreement of cooperation was signed with the Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh; the objectives of the agreement included decision to enlarge educational exchange and cooperation, the decision to complete the *Encyclopaedia of India-China Cultural Contacts* in 2014 and a plan to launch the project of translation of each other’s classics.

India Studies in China

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The contacts between China and India that were recorded could be traced to the 2nd century BCE. In the exchange history over 2,000 years, the understanding of Chinese people about India was deepened and the Indian research was continuously enriched. Before the 10th century, the Indian studies in China were Buddhism-centered. After the 10th century, the business and trade contacts between two countries became more prosperous while the cultural exchanges relatively decreased. At the end of 19th century, both the countries faced the invasion of western colonialism. Some Chinese intellectuals represented by Kang Youwei, Liang Qichao, Sun Yat-sen, Zhang Binglin began the studies of Indian politics, economy and society with original intention of learning from the experience and saving the country. Thus Indian studies in China germinated. At the beginning of 20th century, Chinese people's interest in Indian studies gradually expanded to the area of culture, history, politics, economy etc., and the depth and width of the research was increased, forming a relatively complete discipline system. Development of Indian studies in China was divided into two periods: before the year of 1950 and after the year of 1950.

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Before 1950

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In 1917, Liang Shuming, only 24-year-old, was appointed by Cai Yuanpei to teach Indian philosophy at Peking University. This was the earliest course related with India in modern China universities, marking the beginning of modern Indian studies in China. In 1920s and 1930s, for the people who opened the courses of Indian studies in China institutions of higher education there were also Russian scholar Alexander von Stael-Holstein, Buddhism and Indian philosophy scholar Tang Yongtong from Peking University, Chen Yinke who taught Buddhist scriptures translation literature at Tsinghua University as well as China and western traffic history scholar Xiang Da, etc.

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As Buddhist studies in China was gradually modernised, some Buddhist scholar emerged, such as Liang Qichao, Ouyang Jingwu, Master Taixu, Lü Cheng, etc., and plenty of Buddhism education institutes were founded like Buddhist Institute of China, Wuchang Buddhist Institute and Minnan Buddhist Institute, etc. In these Buddhist Institutes not only Buddhist knowledge was taught but also the courses of language, mathematics, history, geography, philosophy, art and sport, etc., marking the education modernisation of Chinese monks.

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*The Collected Works of Liang Shuming*

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*Cover page of Chen Yinke's 'Sui Tang Zhidu Yuanyuan Luelun Gao'*

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*Fifth All India Conference of China Studies, on the rostrum. Experts (from left): Sabaree Mitra, Alka Acharya, M Mohanti, Madhavi Thampi, S Duttagupta, Tan Chung and Arttatrana Nayak*

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The literary work of Tang Yongtong

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In 1924, Rabindranath Tagore visited China and it spread a wave of translating Indian literature, which was represented by Xu Dishan and Zheng Zhenduo. Tagore's visit promoted the establishment of Sino-Indian Cultural Society in 1930s and China Institute. Under the active operation by Tan Yun-shan and strong support by Cai Yuanpei, Tai Chi-tao, Tagore, etc., Sino-Indian Cultural Society was founded in 1934 in India, while the Visva-Bharati and Tagore was appointed as the chairman. Sino-Indian Cultural Society was founded in Nanjing in 1935 and Cai Yuanpei as the chairman. Under the promotion of Sino-Indian Cultural Society, China Institute in Visva-Bharati was founded in the year 1937, becoming the major institution for India to undertake Chinese students, training numerous scholars of Indian studies such as Wu Baihui, Fafang, Bazhou, Yang Yunyuan, etc. In 1940s, the Chinese scholars going to India for lecture and research through other channels included Jin Kemu, Wu Xiaoling, Xu Fancheng, Chen Hansheng, Chang Renxia, Chen Hongjin, etc who all became the important academic scholars in China and India later. In the same period, Ji Xianlin studied abroad. From the year 1935 to 1941, he mainly studied Sanskrit, Pali and Tocharian at Georg-August-University of Goettingen (Georg-August-Universität Göttingen) in Germany, and engaged in teaching and research work from the year 1943 to 1945.

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In 1942, China established the National Specialised College of Oriental Languages (referred as the NSCOL) in Yunnan Chenggong and Hindi Section was set. This was the first time that an Indian language was introduced in any Chinese University.

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In the year 1946, Department of Oriental Languages (referred as Oriental Languages) was established at Peking University, teaching Indian languages and literature, Ji Xianlin acted as head of the department. In the year 1948, Jin Kemu, who taught the History of Indian philosophy at Wuhan University, was employed in the Department of Oriental languages at Peking University. In the year of 1949, the NSCOL was incorporated into the Department of Oriental languages of Peking University. Since then, Peking University became the important base for China modern Indian studies.

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After 1950

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The establishment of People's Republic of China in 1949 provided a favourable environment for academic research of various fields. In the year 1950, the establishment of China and India diplomatic relation promoted the two countries into "honeymoon period". The objective demand and subjective interests of Chinese people for Indian research were significantly increased. China modern Indian studies had made unprecedented development. Peking University had added the

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A group photo with an Indian youth during Bingxin's visit to India in 1953

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Major of Urdu and Sanskrit Pali successively in the year 1954 and 1960 on the basis of Hindi and recruited students for the first time, teaching language and Indian history, literature and so on. In 1955, the Department of Philosophy and Social Sciences of CAS was established with the subsidiary institution engaging in Indian history and culture research. In the year 1959, Beijing Broadcasting Institute (present-day Communication University of China) was established, gradually opening a series of Indian languages majors like Tamil, Urdu, Bengali, Hindi, Assamese, etc., in 1960s. Besides, due to the need of diplomacy and cultural exchanges, in 1950s, the Chinese government selected and sent a group of students to India, Soviet Union and other countries to learn Indian languages, including Hindi scholars Liu Anwu and Liu Guonan and so on who studied successively in Delhi University and Banaras Hindu University.

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During this period, the students who studied and researched abroad in 1930s and 1940s were continuously coming back and began to play a strong role in the field of research, such as Indian languages, literature, philosophy, religion, history, art, politics and economy, etc. Ji Xianlin successively translated Sanskrit literature classics, such as the *Sakuntala* (1956), *Panchatantra* (1959), *Vikramorvasiya* (1962) and the Indian epic *Rāmāyaṇa* from the year 1973 to 1984, as well as some monographs and papers researching the original Buddhist language, Sanskrit classical literature and cultural exchanges between India and China. Jin Kemu translated the lyrics *Meghaduta* (1956) and conducted a detailed study to Sanskrit grammar classic *Panini*. *History of Sanskrit Literature* published in 1964 was the foundational masterpiece in this field of China. Besides, many scholars like Lü Cheng, Tang Yongtong, Zheng Zhenduo, Xiang Da, Zhu Jieqin, Wu Xiaoling, Chang Renxia, He Changqun also published a number of important writings during this period.

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The South Asia Institute (referred as SA Institute) was established in 1978. It was jointly operated by Peking University and CASS with Ji Xianlin as the president, mainly engaging in the research work on religion, philosophy, politics, economy, history, culture, language and literature of South Asia, among which India was the focus of the study. In the year 1979, China South Asia Institute was established and three periodicals were created, "South Asia Studies", "South Asia collection of Translations" and "Information of South Asia and Southeast Asia". The Graduate School of CASS established the Department of South Asia in the year 1978, to recruit graduate students for SA Institute together with Department of Oriental Languages of Peking University. Meanwhile, the former India Teaching and Research Office of Sichuan University was extended to South Asia Institute, founding "Quarterly of South Asia Studies" later. Liaoning University and Central China Normal University successively established the laboratory of India history. Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences also set up a laboratory for South Asia and Southeast Asia. In 1982, South Asia Institute set up the Association of Indian literature and seminar was held every two years. In the Middle of 1980s, SA Institute was divided into two parts. CASS independently established the Institute of South Asia and Southeast Asia, while the original staff of SA Institute in Peking University was incorporated into the Afro-Asian Institute and Department of Oriental Languages. In the year 1991, the SA Institute of CASS was renamed as the Institute of Asia -Pacific with Huang Xinchuan as the president.

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During this period, Indian research teams in China significantly expanded and the research resources were effectively integrated. A large number of professionals emerged and there also were plenty of research results coming out. In aspect of language and literature, mainly there were *History of Indian Hindi Literature* (1987) and *Premchand Critical Biography* (1999) by Liu Anwu, *Ramcaritmanas* (1988) translated by Jin Dinghan, *History of Indian classical literature* (1991) edited by Ji Xianlin, *Indian classical poetry Study* (1993) by Huang Baosheng, *Hindi Grammar* (1993) by Yin Hongyuan, etc. Regarding the aspect of religion and philosophy, mainly there were *Brief Introduction of Indian Buddhist Origins* (1979) by Lü Cheng, *Mukhya Upanishad* (1984) translated by Xu Fancheng, *Manusmṛti* (1986) translated by Jiang Zhongxin, *History of Indian Philosophy* (1989) by Huang Xinchuan, *Comments on Nanhai Guinei Dhamma* (1995) by Wang Bangwei, *Buddha and the original Buddhist thoughts* (1997) by Guo Liangyun. In historical and cultural aspect, mainly there were Jin Kemu's *Indian Culture Essays* (1983), *Comments of Buddhist Records of the Western World* (1985) edited by Ji Xianlin, *From Buddha to Asoka* (1991) by Cui Lianzhong, *Modern History of India* (1995) by Lin Chengjie, etc. In political and economic aspect, there were mainly the *Comparative Study of* *China and India Economic Development* (1991) edited by Sun Peijun, *Himalaya Complex: Studies of Sino-India Relationship* (1998) by Wang Hongwei, *Politics, International Relations and Security in South Asia* (1998) edited by Sun Shihai, *National Conditions and Comprehensive Strength of India* (2001) edited by Sun Peijun and Hua Biyun. Dictionary aspect there was mainly *Dictionary of South Asia* by Huang Xinchuan as chief editor and Ge Weijun as deputy editor, etc.

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Jin Kemu's, 'Fanyu Wenxue Shi' (History of Sanskrit Literature)

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Lu Cheng's, 'Yin Ming Ru Zheng Lilun Jiangjie'

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Huang Baosheng's, 'Ao Yi shu'

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Collected Works of Xu Fancheng

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In the 21st century, the Indian studies in China developed sustainably and rapidly. In language teaching, Peking University opened Bengali course in the year 2004. Beijing Foreign Studies University set up the major of Hindi and Urdu successively in the year 2006 and 2007. Xi'an International Studies University opened the Hindi major in 2006. Yunnan University of Nationalities, Guangdong University of Foreign Studies and Shanghai International Studies University opened Hindi major in the year 2011. In aspect of research institutions, Center for Indian Studies was established at Peking University in 2003, Department of South Asian Studies set in 2009 and Center for South Asian Studies founded in 2012, gathering a research team with multilingual and interdisciplinary capability. In January 2013, "The Peking University South and South-East Asian Studies" was created. Moreover, some South Asia Institutes founded earlier such as the Asia-Pacific Institute of CASS, Institute of Foreign Literature as well as the South Asia Institute of Sichuan University continued to play an important role, while newly-built Indian research institutions like Indian Research Center of Shenzhen University, Sanskrit Research Center of CASS, etc. had been established successively. Regional research institutions continued to inject fresh vitality, such as Institute of International Studies, China Institute of Contemporary International Relations, South Asia Institute of Yunnan Academy of Social Sciences, Research Centre of Indian Ocean region in Yunnan University of Finance and Economics, South Asia Studies Center of Shanghai Institute for International Studies. A relatively complete system of teaching and research had been set for Indian studies in China, forming the discipline development situation which traditional Indian studies advanced side by side with modern Indian research.

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In the new century, a number of important research results were created in Indian studies field of China, such as *The Complete Works of Tagore* (2000) edited by Liu Anwu, Ni Peigeng and Bai Kaiyuan, *Introduction to Buddhism* (2002) by Yao Weiqun, *Indian civilisation* (2004) by Liu Jian, Zhu Mingzhong and Ge Weijun, *Indian Art* (2004) by Wang Yong, Indian epic *Mahabharata* (2005) hosted and translated by Huang Baosheng, *Indian Cultural History* (2007) by Shang Huipeng, *History of China-India Cultural Exchange* (2008) by Xue Keqiao, *Hinduism* (2013) by Zhu Mingzhong, etc. At the same time, new generation of scholars emerged one after another, not only publishing numerous writings in traditional field of research but also paying more attention to carry out diversified and multi-level comprehensive research from interdisciplinary and cross-cultural angle. Some breakthroughs had been made.

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With the promotion of India international status and the development of India-China relationship, Chinese government has been increasingly aware of the importance of Indian research. In the year 2010, Wen Jiabao and Manmohan Singh jointly promoted the codification of *Encyclopedia of India-China Cultural Contacts*. In 2013, Li Keqiang and Manmohan Singh jointly launched the "India-China Translation Project of Classic and Contemporary Works," which all indicated the determination of China in deepening the cultural exchanges between China and India as well as India studies.

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(Jiang Jingkui & Jia Yan)

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Cover page of '*A comparative study of Indian literature and Chinese literature*'

China Studies in India

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China Studies is a distinct multi-disciplinary field of scholarly inquiry and education that provides a broad humanistic understanding of China's past and present. China Studies is located in the broader field of Area Studies, and is also interdisciplinary in character, incorporating elements of the social sciences and humanities. The field encourages scholars from diverse disciplines to exchange ideas on scholarship as it relates to the Chinese experience and to experiences of China in the world. In India, although the concept of area studies is relatively recent, China Studies has been an area of interest even before India's independence. India's interest in China Studies is actually rooted in India-China cultural interactions in the ancient times. However, in the later part of the colonial period, the colonial powers imposed a perspective that suited their own interest; as a result, to a large extent the academic scholarship on China became dependent on Western sources. It was then that the great poet and thinker Rabindranath Tagore underscored the shared civilisational heritage of India and China.

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The growth of China Studies in India received its initial impetus from the desire to explore India's cultural ties with its neighbours and such ties were seen to be non-colonialist. This provided an opportunity for forging new relations outside the colonial framework, critiquing western colonialism

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Professor Tan Yunshan and Cultural Relations between India and China: Commemoration Volume, front cover

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and offering an Indian alternative for an emerging post-colonial order. Academic concerns were framed within a larger context of knowledge of China that went back to the early historical ties established by the monks who spread Buddhism, as well as by trade.

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The second layer was formed through the popular support for China's war against Japanese aggression and for the emerging Chinese communist movement. The ideological influence of China on the left movement in India carried through the post-1962 period and exercised a considerable influence in turning people to the study of China in the sixties and seventies. The third layer emerged out of the concern of the government to develop expertise on China after 1962. These layers overlap and have helped to create the context within which China Studies was established and is developing in the universities. The Ford Foundation, because of US interest in learning about China, helped to provide crucial funding through library grants and scholarships to send scholars to study in American universities. Direct contact either with China or Taiwan was not possible on any meaningful basis in the academic sphere at that time.

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This multi-layered history of the growth and development of China Studies in India explains its present shape, and the existing lacunae. The early history of contact with China through Buddhism and trade has been studied, but the links through India's northern borders or through the maritime routes through Southeast Asia is an area that still needs to be further explored. The colonial linkages through trading houses, soldiers, missionaries, etc., have also been partially explored, but there exist wide gaps that can provide an entry point for exploiting interest to promote China Studies within the university system.

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The academic programmes in China Studies, as it is understood today, did not develop in a holistic fashion; some aspects of China Studies were integrated into academic programmes before other aspects. The first programme on Chinese language was introduced in Calcutta University in 1918; however, due to lack of students and resources, the programme shut down in the early 20th century. After Rabindranath Tagore's historic visit to China, due to his vision, wisdom and effort, Cheena Bhavana, Department of Chinese Language and Culture, was established in the university he founded, Visva-Bharati, in 1937. Subsequently, in the 1940s, a Chinese language teaching programme was started in the University of Calcutta and Banaras Hindu University, with the University of Delhi following suit in the 1950s. Jawaharlal Nehru University started a five-year integrated Masters Programme in Chinese language in 1970s.

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The academic programmes, especially research programmes on Area Studies, started only after Independence in 1947, as a result of the new Indian leadership's desire to develop and nurture expertise on China. It was with this objective that the Indian School of International Studies, later renamed Indian Council of World Affairs, was established in 1948. This research programme was eventually integrated with Jawaharlal Nehru University as the School of International Studies in the 1960s. In the University of Delhi, a research programme on Buddhist Studies was started in the Department of Buddhist Studies in 1958, and in the Centre for Chinese Studies in 1964. The Centre for Chinese Studies was later renamed the Department of Chinese & Japanese Studies in which an Area Studies model was adopted by combining disciplinary expertise with specialisation on China. In the last decade it has been renamed again as Department of East Asian Studies.

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Campus of the University of Delhi, Delhi, India

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Campus of Jawaharlal Nehru University, India

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The 1962 border conflict with China was a watershed that laid the foundations for greater research on China and building up expertise in the government, mainly focusing on foreign policy and security issues. As travel between India and China was severely restricted in this period there was little academic or other exchange between the two countries. Academic exchanges resumed in 1978, but started to flourish only at the end of the 1980s. The focus of the academic exchanges was on Language, Culture, and some Social Science disciplines, especially History and Political Thought.

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The visit of Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi to China in 1988 is considered a turning point in India-China relations; it enhanced and deepened state-to-state and people-to-people interaction in many aspects of the bilateral relations. There was a rapid growth of interest in China from the 1990s, particularly because of the expanding economic relations, and this manifested itself in a greater exchange of visits and academic interaction, and an increase in the number of students going to China. Many research institutes started to have a section devoted to China or are in the process of establishing one.

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In 1991, the Institute of Chinese Studies (ICS) was established, formalising an informal discussion group of China scholars that had been functioning since the 1950s and that had been bringing out a journal called ‘*China Report*’, the only journal in India exclusively on China. The ICS brought together faculty and research scholars from both University of Delhi and Jawaharlal Nehru University as well as former diplomats and people from other fields and professions with a specialised interest in China. They had wide research interests, namely International Relations and Strategic Studies, Political & Economic Development of China, History and Historiography, Society and Culture and were committed to the study of China from an inter-disciplinary perspective. The ICS holds regular seminars and conferences, undertakes projects, and is involved in academic exchange as well as track exchanges with organisations in China, Russia and Japan. ICS has also been holding many outreach activities such as an annual All India Conference of China Studies, in order to spread interest and strengthen research in China Studies in the hinterland of India.

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In the last decade and a half, China Studies in India has witnessed a steady development with more and more human and material resources being invested in it. While the majority of students graduating from language programmes have been finding jobs in Government Ministries & Departments, the tourism sector and in multinational companies, some are finding teaching jobs in universities and a few are continuing higher studies in Area Studies research programmes. Of the students graduating from International Relations and Social Sciences disciplines, some pursue higher studies in Area Studies research programmes, and others find jobs in research institutes and teaching institutions.

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Along with old and established research institutes such as the Institute of Defense Studies & Analysis, Indian Council of World Affairs, Centre for Policy Research, Institute for Peace and Conflict Studies etc that have been devoting some resources to research on China, new centres of research in China Studies have also emerged since the turn of the century. On the one hand, more and more Central and State Universities are starting teaching programmes focussing on China, while on the other, the University Grants Commission has been establishing Special Centres for China Studies in reputed universities and institutions across the country. At the same time, many private Chinese language teaching centres have emerged in major cities of India; these centres, though not undertaking serious research on China, have managed to attract those keen on learning Chinese because of their professional necessity. Moreover, with the Central Board of Secondary Education introducing Chinese language as a subject at the middle school level, it is hoped that interest in China could be nurtured to an extent that students will carry their interest into high school and universities and will feed into the increasing number of students taking up China Studies as a specialisation.

A. Organisations, Institutions

Peiping Lecture Association

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Peiping Lecture Association, was a Chinese organisation for Sino-foreign culture exchanges, which was established in Beijing on September 5, 1920.

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The idea of the Peiping Lecture Association was initiated by Cai Yuanpei, Zhang Yuanji and Wang Daxie, etc., and its purpose was to invite prominent scholars from across the world to give lectures in China, ‘introducing the doctrine of modern noble essence to China so as to strengthen and carry forward its national ideology’. The association invited John Dewey, Bertrand Russell, Hans Driesch and Rabindranath Tagore and many other scholars to China, which enriched China’s social thought at that time and promoted the cultural exchanges between China and India.

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In 1924, the association invited Tagore to visit China and give lectures, which enabled him to meet Liang Qichao, Jiang Baili, Xu Zhimo, Zheng Zhenduo, Qi Baishi and many other Chinese people from the intellectual world, from the academic community and the literature and art circle. On May 8, 1924, the association held a grand meeting for celebrating the birthday of Tagore at Beijing Xiehe Great Hall. At the gathering, Liang Qichao gave Tagore a Chinese name Zhu Zhendan to represent the long standing India-China cultural relations. Xu Zhimo, Lin Huiyin, Zhang Xinhai, et al performed the poetic drama *Chitra* in English. According to the information provided by Lv Jieyu in *The Morning Glory in the Spring of May Fourth Movement—On the Contribution of Peiping Lecture Association to Sino-Foreign Cultural Exchanges*, Peiping Lecture Association was dissolved soon after the visit of Tagore due to the organisational slackness and the lack of funds.

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(Wang Lingnan)

Sino-Indian Cultural Society

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Sino-Indian Cultural Society is an organisation for cultural exchanges jointly launched by India and China in 1930s. After Rabindranath Tagore paid a visit to China in 1924, Chinese and Indian scholars saw increasingly frequent communication, and the two countries witnessed rapid development of cultural exchanges. In 1931, Tan Yun-shan and Tagore put forward the vision of establishing the

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Chiang Kai-shek's meeting with Jawaharlal Nehru on his visit to India in 1942

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Sino-Indian Cultural Society that immediately attracted the attention of Chinese officials, cultural circles and academic community. In 1933, the preparatory meeting for the Sino-Indian Cultural Society was opened under the support of Cai Yuanpei, the then President of Academia Sinica and Dai Jitao, the then President of the Examination Yuan of the Republic of China (ROC). The meeting was initiated by 43 people, including Tan Yunshan, Zhou Gucheng, Master Tai Xu, Liang Shuming and Xu Beihong, and was sponsored by 24 others, including Yu Youren, Cai Yuanpei, Lin Sen and Dai Jitao. In June 1933, *The Sino-Indian Cultural Society: Plan, General Chapter, Origin* was published in volumes, putting forward the society’s purpose of studying Sino-Indian academics, exchanging Sino-Indian culture and integrating Sino-Indian friendship, uniting Chinese and Indian people to create human peace and promote world commonwealth and planning to establish a cultural centre in China and India, respectively and branches and communication offices in other places of both countries. In May 1934, Sino-Indian Cultural Society was founded first in Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan, where Tagore served as the President. In May, 1935, Sino-Indian Cultural Society was founded in Nanjing and Cai Yuanpei was elected as the Council President, while Dai Jitao became the President of the Board of Supervisors.

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One of the contributions of Sino-Indian Cultural Society was that it facilitated the establishment of the Cheena Bhavan, Visva-Bharati University. In September 1934, Tan Yun-shan rolled out the plan on Sino-Indian cultural exchanges with the building of Cheena Bhavan at the core. The details of the plan include the establishment of foundation, scholarship and library in Cheena Bhavan that were highly endorsed by Tagore. Thanks to Tan Yunshan’s active contact and positive efforts, Sino-Indian Cultural Society raised substantial funds for the establishment of the Cheena Bhavan and donated more than 1,00,000 books in succession. On April 14, 1937, Cheena Bhavan was finally founded and was highly valued by leaders of Indian National Congress, Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. Besides, Sino-Indian Cultural Society also called on friends from the educational circles and the academic community to assist with the opening of lectures related to Sinology and Chinese Buddhism in Visva-Bharati University and the opening of lectures on Indian Buddhism and history of civilisation in Chinese universities and recommend more scholars and students to take up advanced studies in the other country. The Sino-Indian Cultural Society in both China and India also took part in receiving visiting scholars and social activists from the other side. On top of that, the Sino-Indian Cultural Society in China took an active part in the reception of Indian National Congress Medical Mission to China.

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A group photograph of Tan Yunshan, J. Nehru and R. Tagore

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In 1942, the Sino-Indian Cultural Society in both countries were reshuffled respectively in Chongqing and Shantiniketan, including the modification of the constitution, expanding in size and the election of new leaders. Zhu Jiahua took the post of the Council President of Sino-Indian Cultural Society in China, while Dai Jitao served as the supervisor of the society. Rathindranath Tagore, son of Tagore, Secretary-General of Visva-Bharati University served as the President of Sino-Indian Cultural Society in India. By 1943, Sino-Indian Cultural Society had seven Honorary Presidents and they were Gandhi, Chiang Kai-shek, Aurobindo Ghose, Dai Jitao, Nehru, Soong May-ling and Sarojini Naidu. Its intellectuals members were well-known people including 18 then or former university presidents. After the founding of the Republic of India, the members of Sino-Indian Cultural Society also included many officials such as the former three presidents of the Republic of India: Rajendra Prasad, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Zakir Husain and the first governor of the Republic of India, Chakravarti Rajagopalachari.

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After 1949, Sino-Indian Cultural Society’s activities in China came to a halt and the position of Sino-Indian Cultural Society in India was gradually replaced by Cheena Bhavan. Sino-Indian Cultural Society as the first-ever civil organisation with promoting Sino-Indian cultural exchanges as the mission was much told in the history of Sino-Indian friendship, and contributed a lot to the development of modern Sino-Indian relations.

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(*Jiang Jingkui & Jia Yan*)

B. Personalities

Xu Chonghao

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Xu Chonghao (June 3, 1882 - 1959 CE) Born in Fanyu (now Guangzhou), Guangdong, Xu is a Chinese military general and politician, who styled himself as Qingjiang and Gongwu.

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He graduated from Jiangnan Army School, joined Tung Meng Hui in 1910 and took the post as the temporary guarding commander of Nanjing and the commander of the No. 1 mixed brigade in 1911, when he was a member of Hubei Science Tutoring Society during the Revolution of 1911. In 1913, he was appointed as the Chief of Staff of the Army of Anti-Yuan Shikai and escaped to Shanghai when the army was defeated. And then he finally arrived in Guangzhou to accompany Sun Yat-sen after overcoming many difficulties. He was appointed successively as the secretary and secretary-general of the examination authority of Nanjing and Chongqing national governments during 1928-1946. In May, 1938, he attended the China Buddhism Conference held in Chongqing as the director of Chongqing. He was appointed as the committee and consultant of Nanjing and Chongqing national governments during 1943-1946. He resigned from the political circle to work on literature in 1946. He was hired as the member of Shanghai Research Institute of Culture and History, the counselor of the municipal office

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[Figure: Xu Chonghao's, 'Yisilanjiao zhilue' (A Brief Outline of Islam)]

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of the counselors, member of the municipal CPPCC and member of the Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang since 1949. He has written *Reference for Tactics Applications* (1929), *Records of Islam* (1944) and *Summary of Chinese Political Systems* (1946) and compiled several books such as *Training Demonstration of Young People* (1929) and *Records of Xinjiang* (1945). He also involved the study of India and wrote the book of *Brief History of Sino-Indian Relation* (1942), describing the history of India-China relations from the Dynasty of Zhou and Qin to the period of the Anti-Japanese War, attached with several newspapers, magazines and articles covering India-China relation.

Feng Chengjun

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Feng Chengjun (June 1887-February 4, 1946) was a Chinese, was an expert in translation, scholar in Chinese and foreign traffic history. He was styled Zi Heng and born in Xiakou County (now Hankou, Wuhan City), Hubei Province.

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He received old-style education in China. In 1903, he went to study in a secondary school in Belgium. Between 1905 and 1906, he studied in Université de Liège, Belgium. Between 1906 and 1910, he went to France and studied the science of law in Université

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[Figure: Feng Cheng Jun’s, *‘Xiyu Diming’* (Place names of the Western Regions)]

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de Paris. In 1910, he obtained the Bachelor Degree in Law and then started his research works in Collège de France. After the outbreak of the Revolution of 1911, he returned to China and successively served as Hubei Governor’s Secretary, First Secretary of the House of Representatives, Secretary of the Education Ministry and head of the third division of the Special Education Department. In 1920s, he successively served as a professor of the History Department of Peking University, professor of the History Department of Beijing Normal University, and also engaged in translating European works on Orientalism. He stopped working after he had a stroke in 1929 and committed himself to translation till he died of illness in Peiping (present-day Beijing) on February 4, 1946.

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His translation works include *Chinese Travelers* (by Chavannes, 1926), *Les seize Arhat’s protecteurs de la loi* (by Sylvain Lévi, 1930), *Buddhist Studies* (by Jean Przyluski, 1930), *Le catalogue geographique des yaksa dans la Mahamayuri* (by Sylvain Lévi, 1931), *Investigations on two sea routes starting from Cochin and Canton* (by Paul Pelliot, 1933) and *Asvaghosa, le Sutralamkara et ses sources* (by Sylvain Lévi, 1934). On top of that, he also compiled and published *Collected Translations of Textual Researches on the History and Geography of Western Regions and South China Sea*, ninth volumes, many of which were translated and introduced from European works, mainly the research results of France in Orientalism. His monograph *China Nanyang Traffic History* (1937) gives a detailed account of the historical interaction process between China and countries in Southeast Asia and South Asia from the Han Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty. He also compiled *Place Names of the Western Regions* (1930.3+) and *Collection of Papers on the Historical Geography of the Western Regions* (1931). His studies were not limited to chronological historical data in Chinese. He integrated the experiences of the academic community of the west and adopted information source like Buddhist documents, which have laid a foundation for studying Chinese and foreign traffic history and broadened the vision of studies.

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(*Zhang Minyu*)

Taixu

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Taixu (January 8, 1890 - March 17, 1947) was a Chinese Buddhist monk and philosopher. He was named Gan Sen as an infant and commonly named Lv Peilin. He was born in Haining, Zhejiang Province, and his family origin was Chongde (present-day Tongxiang), Zhejiang Province.

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In May 1904, Taixu was tonsured and he became a monk of Xiaojiuhua Temple in Pingwang, Wujiang City. He was given the religious name ‘Wei Xin’ and Master Zang Nian gave him the Chinese style name ‘Taixu’. He was initiated into monkhood with Master Zang Nian in Ningbo Tiantong Temple in December 1904, during which he showed his extraordinary memory by remembering all kinds of vinaya fluently within a short time. In 1907, he went to Xifang Temple in Cixi City to read Tripitaka and was inspired somewhat after reading the Mahaprajna Paramita Sutra. He went to Nanjing in 1909 and studied in the Jetavana, founded by Yang Renshan Lay Buddhist. In 1911, he went to Guangzhou to promote Buddhist doctrines and was elected to be the Abbot of Baiyun Mountain Shuangxi Temple. In 1912, Tai Xu together with Yang Renshan Lay Buddhist founded the Association for the Advancement of Buddhism that was later integrated with the General Buddhist Association of China headed by Ji Chan. He was chosen to be the Chief Editor of The Buddhist Monthly, and he put forward the Buddhist Revolution with the slogan of "Doctrine Revolution, System Revolution, Property Revolution" that was opposed by ‘the conservatives’. In 1914, he went to Xiling Zen Temple on Mount Putuo, Zhejiang Province for practising in a closed room of meditation. In 1917, he walked out of the room and went to Taiwan and Japan for giving lectures and researching on local Buddhism. In 1980, he returned to China and founded the Jue Society together with Chen Yuanbai and Zhang Taiyan et al. Jue Society Series, later named Sound of the Tides, was published and never suspended in 30 years. In 1922, he founded Wuchang Buddhist Institute. In 1924, he made preparations for the establishment of the World Buddhist Federation and appointed himself as the President. In 1925, he led a Buddhist delegation to attend the East Asian Buddhist Conference held in Tokyo, Japan and studied Japanese Buddhism once again. In February 1927, he founded the Buddha Dharma Sangha Garden - Jue Yuan and became the abbot of Nanputuo Temple, and the concurrent President of Minnan Buddhist College. In 1928, he founded the Chinese Buddhist Association. In the same year, he went abroad for researches and gave lectures on Buddhism respectively in Britain, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Belgium and the United States of America. He also prepared to set up the World Buddhist Center as suggested by French scholars. In 1931, he went to Sichuan and established the Han-Tibetan Buddhist Teaching College in Xuyun Temple, Beian, Chongqing City for the communication of Han and Tibetan cultures and harmonising national sentiments. He was also involved in initiating the establishment of Sino-Indian Cultural Society in Nanjing in May 1935. In 1939, he organised a Chinese Buddhist visiting mission, and they set out from Yunnan to Myanmar, Ceylon (present-day Sri Lanka), India, Thailand and the South Sea Islands. In 1945, he became a member of the Standing Committee of the Buddhist Organization Committee of China. On New Year’s Day of 1946, he was awarded with the Religious Leader Victory Order. On March 17, 1947, he died in Yufo Temple, Shanghai.

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Taixu

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He made great contributions to patriotic apologetics, and spared no effort to cultivate Buddhist talents and consolidate the Buddhist system. The Buddhist education schools founded

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Complete works of the Master Taixu

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by him include Wuchang Buddhist Institute, Minnan Buddhist College, World Buddhist Center, Chongqing Han-Tibetan Buddhist Teaching College, Xi’an Pali Tripitika Institute and Beijing Buddhist Research Institute. He also founded a number of Buddhist journals, including the monthly magazine - Sound of the Tides and Awakening the Multitude Weekly News. His works include The Reorganization of the Sangha System (1929), Interpretation of New Monks, New Cittamatra, Fa Xiang Wei Shi Xue and True Reality Theory (1940).

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In 1940, he arrived in Calcutta, India and was welcomed by Maha Bodhi Society and the Visva-Bharati University. During his visit, he met Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Rabindranath Tagore, Jawaharlal Nehru and Tan Yunshan, etc. He also visited Buddha-gaya, Varanasi, among other Buddhist holy lands. He used to send Fa Hang to Ceylon and India to spread Mahayana and study Pali and Sanskrit, as he sought further cultural cooperation between India and China. In order to establish life Buddhism and spur the universalisation of Buddhism, he also dispatched monk students to China’s Tibet, India, Ceylon and other places to study, and thus to engage in researches on Pali, Sanskrit and Tibetan. He knew *Vinaya*, *Sutras* and *Abhidhamma Tripitaka*, religious doctrines and theories of different schools. He also delved into studies in ancient philosophers and even science and philosophy. His disciple, Yin Shun sorted out his works and compiled them into Complete Works of Master Tai Xu, that was published by Religious Culture Press. The book has altogether seven million words, and is divided into four parts and 20 sections, and 60 volumes.

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*(Zhang Ran)*

Huang Chanhua

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Huang Chanhua (1890-August 28, 1977) was a modern Chinese Buddhist scholar. His style name was Can Hua and his assumed name was Feng Xi. He was born in Shunde, Guangdong Province (now Foshan City, Guangdong Province).

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He studied in Japan in his early years. After returning to China, he studied Vijbana-vada under Chinese lay Buddhist Ouyang Jian (Jingwu). He also learned Tibetan language, Sanskrit and cursorily read Indian philosophy, Tibetan Buddhism and Western Philosophy. In 1926, he met Master Taixu and later followed the master and helped him establish Chinese Buddhist Association, and he served as the director. During the Anti-Japanese War, he taught at Fudan University and Xiamen University, engaged in Buddhist studies and created a large number of books of Buddhist theory. In 1961, he was appointed as a librarian of Zhejiang Research Institute of Culture and History, and took part in the compilation of *China Buddhist Encyclopedia* and part of *Ocean of Words* related to Buddhism.

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