China’s Ancient Towers

WHAT the Chinese generalize as ＂ta.＂ or ＂tower＂ for the convenience of cross-cultural communication, has its origins in the Indian ＂stupa,＂ which means ＂tomb mound＂ in Sanskrit. Nowadays, a ＂ta＂ can refer to a tower, a pagoda, a stupa, or anything like them. The iconic Buddhist brick-and-mortar architecture of the ta was adopted by China in the first century when Buddhism crossed the border from India.