Kunlun and Kunlun Slaves as Buddhists in the Eyes of the Tang Chinese

Abstract

As the entries on Kunluns and Kunlunnus increased in the historical records of Tang, art pieces depicting them also increased. The people of Tang wrote mystical tales about the Kunlunnu, who possessed supernatural powers. Kunlun was not a word that indicated a specific country in Southeast Asia. Kunluns are represented in the historical records as having "wavy hair and dark skin". Even if Hinduism was more prevalent than Buddhism in Southeast Asia from the third century to the seventh century, Kunluns were often presented as followers of the Buddhist faith in Chinese art, which likely resulted from the fact that the Southeast Asians brought in Buddhist goods as items with which to pay tribute to China. This is why the Chinese presumed that the Southeast Asians were fervent Buddhists. Within the tributary system, the Kunlunnus from a certain region in Southeast Asia were strangers to the Chinese, but they became regarded as Buddhists with magical powers, which departed from their real existence.