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Thinkers, Beliefs And Buildings
Question
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‘Buddhism was declined in India but Jainism remained there in few parts. Elucidate its reasons.

Answer

Buddhism grew very rapidly in India and it also declined very rapidly. But the existence of Jainism remained there in many parts of the country. It was deu to the following reasons:

(i) Complexity in Religion: Gradually, Buddhism became very complex with the passage of time. Many evils and unnecessary customs were included in it. As a result, people left this religion.

(ii) Sanskrit Language: Followers of Buddhism begin to compile teachings of Buddha in Sanskrit language. General masses were unable to understand this language. As a result popularity of Buddhism declined.

(iii) Low Morality of Buddhist Monks: Earlier Buddhist monks were of high character but gradually many defects came in their character. They began to live a life full of leisure. It adversely affected the minds of people.

(iv) Lack of Support from the State: After the death of Harsha, it hardly got any help from the state. As a result, the popularity of Buddhism started to decline.

(v) Division in Buddhism: During the reign of Kanishka, Buddhism was divided into two branches called Mahayana and Hinayana. There was hardly any difference between Mahayana and Buddhism. As a result, many followers of Mahayana again inducted into Hinduism.

(vi) Atrocities of Kings: After Mauryan empire, Pushyamitra Shunga committed many atrocities on Buddhists. He killed many Buddhists. People were scared by this and they left the Buddhism.

(vii) Foreign Invasions: Foreign invaders attacked many Maths and Viharas of Buddhism and broke them down. They even killed many Buddhist monks. In this way, Buddhism declined to great extent.

Reasons of Existence of Jainism:

(i) Jainism, in India, Hardly got that much of patronage of the king which Buddhism got. But when this patronage came to an end, Jainism was hardly influenced by this.

(ii) Jainism mainly spread among the people who were engaged in the activities of trade and commerce. These people were hardly affected by the changed circumstances. That’s why Jainism still exists even today in India.

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Or

“The Begums of Bhopal played a significant role in preserving the remains of stupa at Sanchi.” Support this statement with suitable evidence.