Abstract

In contrast to scholarly research concerned with Buddhist thoughts and practices of eminent monks and upper class lay Buddhists，this book is a social- historical study of beliefs and practices among adherents of Buddhism among the common people in Northern China in the fifth and sixth centuries. Using a bottom-up approach，the study examines how Buddhist ideas and practices shaped the worldviews and daily life of followers of the lower social strata. The book mainly has three parts.

Part I provides an analysis of the backgrounds to the spread of Buddhism in Northern China and argues that through their wide travels and preaching of the dharma medieval monks played a key role in the process. In particular，they made effective use of Buddhist miracle tales，which held special appeal to the Chinese audience thanks to their novel contents and traditional literary styles. These tales helped the early medieval monks convince followers of the efficacy of Buddhist magic and introduced them to Buddhist ideas of life，death，and the afterlife，especially paradise and hell. This argument challenges the traditional view that it was the turbulent wars during the early medieval period that were instrumental to drawing common people toward Buddhism.

Part II is a quantitative analysis of the inscriptions on 1600 statue and stele that are either dated or datable. The analysis focuses on the social backgrounds of the patrons，especially their regional location. The study reveals how，by reading the prayers in the inscriptions on many Buddhist statues and images，Buddhist commoners came to different grades of appreciation for Buddhist teachings，including life and death，the psychology of the Mahayana Rebellion，family and other social groups. This part also discusses how commoner Buddhists connected the images they saw with the paths toward the enlightenment.

Part III of the book focuses on the Buddhist practices among the common people and their impact on early medieval Chinese society. The author argues that the Buddhist image-making and offerings should be regarded as transformations and extensions of Chinese traditional sacrificial offerings. This helps enrich our understanding of how Buddhism imposed its ideas and deepened its impact on the common people. The growing popularity of making merits and making images indicates the completion of the Chinese transformation of Buddhism in people’s daily practices. Meanwhile，Buddhism’s broad following in China across different social classes and sectors enhanced social cohesion. However，it also had negative consequences，such as rampant image-making. The compilation and production of China’s own Buddhist scriptures helped address this problem，a testament to the close interaction between the monastic community and their lay patrons.