Essay on skepticism

What details from these sources will help historians better comprehend West Africa, China, and India at the time? What assertions in these texts might historians be most skeptical of? Many things that are relevant to historians trying to comprehend West Africa, China, and India can be inferred from the material given. First, it can be said that India has a diverse range of religious traditions. Even though Hinduism predominates, there is still a significant Buddhist presence and associated history. According to Xuanzang, a Chinese scholar who traveled to India in 645 C.E., the teachings of Buddha found in China is not complete and the scriptures available are deficient. He further states that he could not find anyone to solve these deficiencies in his country and this is one of the reasons as to why he decided to travel to the West. He believed that he could find the answers to most of these deficiencies on his trip to the west. As a matter of fact, India is said to be the motherland of Buddhism. While there, he hoped that he could find teachers of Buddha as well as sacred text that would be beneficial to him in his bid to understand the disputes that allegedly had caused so much divisions among the people who believe in Buddha in China.

Given this information, historians are able to understand the close relationship that exists between India, China and West Africa. While the three countries are likely to have many other reasons for the close relationship, religion ties seem to be deep rooted. As a matter of fact, these ties could the major reasons as to why the countries have a close relationship. The three nations started their interactions as early as 645 C. E. Xuanzang spent about ten years in India trying to study and understand different teachings and scriptures of Buddha. This is an indication that India hosts a lot of Buddhism history. Most Indians are Hindus but this has not stopped the country from having a lot of history from related to other religions. For instance, it is stated that one of the reasons as to why he travelled was to seek Buddha enlighten under the famous Bodhi tree. As such, it can be concluded that Buddhist practice in India is held with high regard. There is a high possibility that there exist significant number Buddha believers in India.

The other thing from the information in these sources that could be important to historians is the revelation that there are many similarities that exists between Hinduism and Buddhism. This means that there are a number of common characteristics that exists between China, India and West Africa in regard to religion that has contributed greatly to the positive relationship that exists between the three nations. For instance, religious teachings on matters of justice and marriage do not have any significant differences between India and China. In any case, when Xuanzang visited India, these were some of his areas of interests. He believed that by acquiring the knowledge on these matters from India, he could be able to address some of the deficiencies that have existed in Buddhism community back in China for a very long time. These teachings are also available in the West Africa countries. It is important to note that this region is predominantly Muslim. As such, historians can adduce that there is a close relationship that exists between the three religions namely Hinduism, Buddhism and Muslim.

Despite the similarities, there are a number of claims in these sources that can be viewed by Christians with skepticism. For instance, it is known that China is a country where the dominant religion is Buddha. It is therefore expected that there are many Buddha teachings. In other words, it is not expected that a country whose major religion is Buddhism could have any deficiencies in regard to its own religion. Therefore, it is the Indian monks who could go to China to acquire more information in regard to Buddhism rather than the Chinese monk travelling to India. This is a matter that historians are likely to view with a significant level of skepticism.

Bibliography

Bagchi, Prabodh Chandra, Bangwei Wang, and Tansen Sen. India and China: interactions through Buddhism and diplomacy : a collection of essays. New Delhi: Anthem Press, 2011.

De Bary, Wm. Theodore. The Buddhist Tradition in India, China & Japan. New York: Vintage eBooks, 2011