The Spread of Buddhism Through the Silk Road

As the name suggests, the Silk Road was instrumental in the trade of silk but it was also instrumental in the expansion of trade to many different countries and cultures in Asia. This was a revolutionary system that provided people with goods that they never could have encountered without traveling thousands of miles. People used the the Silk Road to trade many goods but it also facilitated the trade of cultural ideas, practices and religions. In particular the Silk Road was a major factor in the spread of Buddhism throughout Asia.


The Silk Road was instrumental in opening the world to new and different cultures as well as goods. During this time Buddhism spread like wildfire among merchants who traveled the Silk Road. Beginning in India, Buddhism made its way throughout Central and Eastern Asia and eventually Northern China. With Buddhism originating in India it shows just how far the Silk Road stretched and how the spread of ideas worked during this period in history. The spread of Buddhism throughout Asia shows how appealing it was to the many merchants who came into contact with it. Buddhism was an entirely new religion that appealed to merchants because it was a form of Brahmin-dominated Hinduism. Eventually the spread of Buddhism moved away from the Silk Road and was taken over by Buddhist monks who wanted to spread the message to those who were not reached by the Silk Road.

There is no question that Buddhism would have spread and become available to different cultures at some point, but without the Silk Road Buddhism never would have been cemented into world history. No one could have predicted that the Silk Road would be such a huge part of world history, but it forever changed the way goods and cultural messages moved throughout the world.