The transformation of modern Buddhism,at the theoretical level,is represented by the formation of the study of Buddhism in the modern sense.Among these,the theoretical interactions between Buddhism and philosophy,science and psychology are both a conscious attempt by modern scholars to modernize traditional culture and one of the ways to establish Chinese cultural subjectivity.Liang Shuming consciously used philosophical thought to converse with Buddhism and modernise Buddhism through the dimension of philosophy.However,Liang was still at the stage of experimentation with the interaction between Buddhism and philosophy and,as he reflected,inevitably fell into the dilemma of comparison.In his discussion of the relationship between Buddhism and philosophy,Mou Zongsan no longer " embarrassed" or "rejected",but straightforwardly affirmed the importance of Buddhist philosophy and explored the differences between Eastern and Western philosophy based on the philosophical dimension,proposing the possibility and path of "convergence".He also explored the differences between Eastern and Western philosophies based on the philosophical dimension and proposed the possibility and path of "convergence".In modern times,the question of how Buddhism can continue to develop in modern society dominated by the spirit of science has become a topic of scholarly concern.Wang Jitong interpreted Buddhism,previously defined as a superstition,through science as a way of proving that Buddhism was not dross behind the times.Based on an empirical perspective,Hu Shih argued that Wang Jitong’s analogy was absurd in the extreme.The difference between the two can precisely reflect the ecology of Buddhism under modern scientific thinking,which,on the one hand,was under the impact of science and,on the other,had to move closer to it.Mou Zongsa)illustrated the value of scientific knowledge by stating that samvrtisatya(or "satya") and that even within Buddhist theory there should be a place for science,but such a purely willful "should" often seems difficult to be acknowledged in the face of traditional Buddhist doctrine.The interplay between psychology and Buddhism is hermeneutic and complimentary.Liang Qichao proposed a basic model for the interaction between Buddhism and psychology:Buddhist theory as a source for psychology,and psychology as a dimension of understanding for Buddhist theory.Similar to Liang Shuming,Liang Qichao saw similarities between the two on the one hand,and Buddhist theory as transcendent in comparison to psychology on the other.For Liang Shuming and Liang Qichao,it was imperative to prove that Buddhism was modern and could be in dialogue with science,including psychology.In contrast to Liang Shuming’s and Liang Qichao’s highlighting of Chinese cultural subjectivity,Mou Zongsan’s comparison of the two and even the revelation of the transcendence of Buddhism has reached a deeper level.
