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Buddhist kingship refers to the beliefs and practices with regard to kings and queens in traditional Buddhist societies, as informed by Buddhist teachings. This is expressed and developed in Pāli and Sanskrit literature , early , later, as well as vernacular, and evidenced in epigraphic findings.
The attributes borne by each King also link them to their followers; for instance, the nāgas, magical creatures who can change form between human and serpent, are led by Virūpākṣa, represented by a snake; the gandharvas are celestial musicians, led by Dhṛtarāṣṭra, represented with a lute. The umbrella was a symbol of regal ...
Furthermore, Buddhas are active in the world, constantly devising ways to teach and help all sentient beings. According to Paul Williams, in Mahāyāna, a Buddha is often seen as "a spiritual king, relating to and caring for the world", rather than simply a teacher who after his death "has completely 'gone beyond' the world and its cares". [84]
Within the Eastern Buddhist tradition of China, Vietnam, Korea and Japan, the traditional date for Buddha's death was 949 BCE, [1] but according to the Ka-tan system of the Kalachakra tradition, Buddha's death was about 833 BCE. [63] Buddhist texts present two chronologies which have been used to date the lifetime of the Buddha. [64]
This list of Buddhism by country shows the distribution of the Buddhist religion, practiced by about 535 million people as of the 2010s, [1] [2] representing 7% to 8% of the world's total population. It also includes other entities such as some territories. Buddhism is the State religion in four countries — Cambodia, Myanmar, Bhutan and Sri ...
In the Pāli Canon, the Buddha is asked whether he was a deva or a human, and he replies that he had eliminated the deep-rooted unconscious traits that would make him either one, and should instead be called a Buddha: one who had grown up in the world but had now gone beyond it, as a lotus grows from the water but blossoms above it, unsoiled. [17]
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The Kushans patronised Buddhism throughout their lands, and many Buddhist centres were built or renovated (the Sarvastivada school was particularly favored), especially by Emperor Kanishka (128–151 CE). [421] [422] Kushan support helped Buddhism to expand into a world religion through their trade routes. [423]