The reasons for the decline and disappearance of Buddhism from its Indian homeland have long been the object of controversy. It is generally agreed that the assimilation of ideas and practices from the Brahmanical-Hindu environment must have played a major part in weakening the institutions and distinct identity of Buddhism, but authors have differed as to whether this was a matter of 'friendly embraces' or hostile persecution. Some representative or unusual examples of inscriptions illustrating convergences of Buddhism and Hinduism are presented, and some suggestions for new ways to approach the question are proposed.
目次
1. Introduction 1 2. Meta-theories: Thoughts on the decline of religions 5 3. A closer look at the literature: a few selected examples 6 4. A closer look at the data: some epigraphic examples 11 Inscription A 12 Inscription B 13 Inscription C 13 Inscription D 15 Inscription E 18 5. What have we learned? 21 References 22
