Question

The worship of images (of Buddha) in India began during the __________ period.
A) Mauryan
B) Sunga
C) Kushana
D) Gupta

Answer 1

Hint: Gautam Buddha whose pet name was Siddhartha Gautama was a monk and an Indian scholar. He is also the architect of the religion of Buddhism which today is spread all over the world. His birthday is celebrated by the people of Buddhism religion every year as 'Buddha Purnima'.

Complete answer:
The religion and teachings of Buddha were spread by his followers since ancient times. Kanishka who was the ruler of Kushana Dynasty was the first emperor under whose kingdom people started worshipping Buddha's images.

The Kushana kingdom under Emperor Kanishka reached its height and it is considered as one of the powerful Eurasian kingdoms of that time. King Kanishka had a great hand in spreading Buddhism to China.

During his rule, followers of Buddhism religion started arguing over his teachings. So Kanishka called over the fourth Buddhist Council at Kundalvana in the state of Kashmir to settle their issues and debates. As a result of the meeting, the religion of Buddhism was divided into two forms, out of which one is known as Hinayana and the other is known as Mahayana. The people who were the followers of Mahayana believed in worshipping and nurturing Lord Buddha in the form of images similar to God. While the people who believe in the Hinayana group, respect and love God as an invisible form of him.

Hence, the correct answer is option (C).

Note: King Kanishka was himself the follower of Mahayana sect. During his reign, a lot of images and statues of Lord Buddha were constructed. Asvaghosha is the biography of Lord Buddha in which his life incidents and his journey from childhood are portrayed.