2nd century
2nd century: Rome flourishes. A thinker on the throne. Buddhism moves beyond India
What happened — and why
Marcus Aurelius: the philosopher on the throne
The last of the "Five Good Emperors." He ruled for 19 years, most of them on campaign against the barbarians. At night he wrote the Meditations - the diary of a man wrestling with himself.
The philosophical cause
Marcus Aurelius — Stoicism: rule well - not for reward, but because it is right. Power does not make a person better. One must work on oneself every day.
The Meditations were never meant for publication. That is precisely why they are the most honest text about power and weakness.
Nagarjuna: emptiness as the foundation
Nagarjuna formulates the doctrine of shunyata (emptiness): things have no independent existence. Everything arises in dependence on everything else.
The philosophical cause
Nagarjuna — Buddhism had split: Hinayana (liberation for oneself) and Mahayana (liberation for all). Nagarjuna gives Mahayana its philosophical foundation.
His texts shaped Tibetan, Chinese, and Japanese Buddhism. Zen Buddhism is the direct heir of his paradoxical method.
