BUDDHISM AND ISLAM ON THE SILK ROAD . By Johan Elverskog . Philadelphia : University of Pennsylvania Press , 2010 . Pp . 340 . $69.95 .
摘要
Buddhism and Islam have interacted in the vast area of Central Asia, stretching along the silk road from China to the Mediterranean, for over a millennium, since the time of the initial Islamic expansion in the seventh century. Elverskog starts the story earlier, with the rise and spread of Buddhism in the preceding ten centuries. He examines the extensive interactions between Buddhists and Muslims according to the themes of trade and economics, attempts at mutual religious understanding, images and visual culture, conversion and conflict, and differences in dietary patterns. At the same time, he adheres to a roughly chronological narrative. This long‐lasting interaction has been as important for world history as that between Christians and Muslims, but has received far less attention. Kushans, Guptas, the Caliphate, Turks, Mongols, Tibetans, Uygurs, the Ming Dynasty, Timurids, Moghals, the Indian Sultanate, Mughals, Safavids, Ottomans, the Qing Dynasty, Tantric Buddhists, Confucians, Sunnis, Shi'is, and others all make their appearance in his account. Elverskog employs an impressive range of European‐language secondary sources and translations in this synthetic study. The sheer scope of his enterprise means that any reader will feel that key information or theories have been left out; for example, incorporating the work of world systems theorists, such as I. Wallerstein, A. G. Frank, and J. Abu‐Lughod, would have enriched his analysis. But the success of this path‐breaking study is undeniable.
