Diet is an important aspect of monastic life. Numerous rules regulate monks' diets. The Vinaya even gives a particular chapter on medicine and food. With the spread of Indian Buddhism into China, Chinese monks were under confinement of foreign cultures and environments. Begging then turned rare. The monks even participated into farming, stored up food and cooked inside monasteries, showing that they followed rules selectively. In addition, meat gave way to vegetable, thereby, the monks projected the spirit of benevolence of Buddhism on their diets. Based on Biographies of Eminent Monks and other historic materials, this essay investigates the dietary culture of early Chinese Buddhist monks, with a view to advance knowledge about the life of Chinese monks and how Buddhism adjusted and transformed itself following its spread to China.
