Feat ures of Buddhism in China in the 19th Century According to the Works of the Missionary Saint Gury (Karpov), Archbishop of Tauride

Abstract

The article is devoted to the work «Buddhist Vows and the Rite of Laying Them on
the Chinese», which is devoted to the peculiarities of Buddhism in China, compiled and translated
by the missionary Saint Gury (Karpov), Archbishop of Tauride, published in the collection of works of
members of the Russian Ecclesiastical Mission in Beijing and is considered a valuable contribution
to European science. In this work, in particular, Saint Gury singled out Buddhists who lead a celibate
lifestyle and family life, described the main themes of abstinence for Buddhists, expressed in
the following specific commandments and vows of the Buddhist hierarchy of the Buddhist community,
mentioned the role of hermits and lay people in Buddhism, also touched upon the practice
of prayer and the description of the most terrible crimes and vices in Buddhism. Describing these
provisions, the Crimean missionary referred in his work to an exemplary Buddhist Breviary based
on personal observations and conversations with Heshans, and coordinated his conclusions about

Buddhism with a Chinese who knew Chinese perfectly and understood the language of Buddhism.
Thus, we can say that special attention is paid to the analysis and structuring of information about
Buddhism, highlighting the main aspects of Buddhist vows, as well as showing the doctrinal, moral,
ascetic, hierarchical and administrative features of Chinese Buddhism of the XIX century, which
are useful for missionaries who conduct polemics with people who profess Buddhism.