The Role of Sogdians in the Spread of Buddhism in Southern China

The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of Sogdian Buddhist monks in the spread of Buddhism in southern China. Sogdians played an important role in promoting Buddhism because they knew Chinese and Hindi, and they were not as merchants who only carried goods but also they were carriers of religions such as Manichaeism, Zoroastrianism, Christianity, and Buddhism. Based on available sources, such as biographies of Sogdian monks, tomb inscriptions, and Sogdian Buddhist manuscripts in Turfan and Dunhuang, this study shows how they, in their role as religious messengers, spread Buddhism in southern China during the seventh to tenth centuries AD.