The nature of the relationship between linguistic expression and thought has been a source of controversy in linguistics and psychology. This relationship should be considered one of mutual influence and subject to change. An example of this interrelationship can be found in the process of alteration and assimilation that Indian Buddhist thought underwent in order to conform to the traditional and distinctive Chinese way of thinking. Differences which caused conflict between the two systems include: (1) the Indian emphasis on the universal and abstract, as opposed to the Chinese fondness for the particular and concrete; (2) Chinese grammatical ambiguity, not found in Indo-European languages; and (3) the importance of negative virtues in Indian thought. Where Indian Buddhist thought came into conflict with Chinese, the Chinese translation accomodated the latter. A broader influence of Indian Buddhism can be seen in the development of Chinese literature, as, for example, in the adoption into Chinese of the Indian habit of mixing verse and prose style. A final example of the relationship between language and thought is the language reform which sought to adapt the Chinese language to modern political ideology, specifically Communist ideology. Where Buddhism failed to change the class-conscious Chinese language, Marxism has eliminated most expressions of hierarchical distinctions in the Chinese language. (AM)