How can two neighbors trade silk and sugar for two thousand years and still feel like strangers?

Silk bundles and Buddhist scrolls have crossed the Himalayas for two millennia, yet a curious intellectual silence persists between the world’s two most populous nations. In this piece from 28 May 2026, China appears as a neighbor that is rarely studied or understood, despite being India’s largest trading partner. Unlike the familiar, heated rivalry with Pakistan, China remains a cultural ghost in the Indian mind. The logic moves past border disputes to ask why two giants can share a fence for centuries without ever really speaking the same language.

An analysis of the cultural distance between India and China, tracing why Indians show little curiosity about Chinese history or philosophy despite their border tensions. It examines the one-way spread of Buddhism in ancient times and modern barriers like translation difficulties to explain why China remains a blind spot compared to other countries.

Read at source: The Diplomat

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