The Assyrian Branch of Christianity began to appear in China in the 7th century. With the introduction of this form of Christianity, the Assyrian missionaries appeared to utilize seemingly Buddhist symbols, such as Lotus, to spread this new belief to the Chinese audience. Scholars generally maintained that the Lotus Symbol which appeared in Assyrian Christianity in China suggested a close link between Buddhist expressions and Assyrian Christian expressions in China, as these two faiths seemed to interact closely with each other. The Assyrian Christianity had declined in China since the 9th century and did not reappear until the beginning of the Yuan Dynasty in 13th, as many of the Mongols were Christians of the Assyrian Church. These Christians in the Yuan Dynasty usually carried a Bronze Cross (commonly yet wrongly referred to as Nestorian Cross) and many of these crosses contained the Swastika symbol. Based on the Buddhist-Christian relationship during Tang Dynasty, many scholars believe that the Swastika design in the Nestorian Cross further evidenced the continual close relation between Assyrian Christians and Buddhists just as they had done several hundred years ago with the Lotus symbol. The appearance of Lotus and Swastika in Assyrian Christians in China became the strong evidence to support such hypothesis. However this paper would like to suggest that the Lotus and Swastika found in the Assyrian Christian artifacts in China might be a legacy of the Aryan tradition carried over by Persians from Central Asia than syncretic integration from Buddhism in China. Such hypothesis may suggest that there is far less exchange between Assyrian Christianity and Buddhism in China than scholars wished to acknowledge.
收稿日期: 2010-04-27
出版日期: 2010-04-27
引用本文:
陈剑光. 中国亚述教会的莲花与万字符:佛教传统抑或雅利安遗产?[J]. 浙江大学学报(人文社会科学版), 0, (0): 1-.
Chan Kim-Kwong. Lotus and Swastika in Chinese Nestorianism: Buddhist Legacy or Aryan Heritage?. JOURNAL OF ZHEJIANG UNIVERSITY, 0, (0): 1-.