A Record Of Buddhistic Kingdoms
A Record Of Buddhistic Kingdoms

Author: Faxian Faxian

Publisher: BoD – Books on Demand

Published: 2023-08-01

Total Pages: 154

ISBN-13: 9359392650

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"A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms" is a travelogue written by Faxian (also spelled Fa Hsien), a Chinese Buddhist monk and scholar who lived during the 4th and 5th centuries CE. The book chronicles Faxian's journey from China to India and back, as he sought to obtain Buddhist scriptures and deepen his understanding of Buddhism. In his account, Faxian provides vivid descriptions of the countries, people, and Buddhist sites he encountered along the way. Faxian's observations shed light on the cultural practices, religious customs, and social conditions of the Buddhist kingdoms he visited. As an ardent Buddhist practitioner and scholar, Faxian's primary purpose was to collect Buddhist scriptures and learn from esteemed teachers. "A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms" is not only a valuable historical record of Faxian's travels but also an important source of information on the spread and development of Buddhism in Asia. It provides valuable insights into the religious and cultural landscape of the time and contributes to our understanding of ancient Buddhist traditions and practices. Faxian's travelogue remains a significant text for scholars and enthusiasts of Buddhism, history, and cross-cultural exchanges.

In the Forest of the Blind
In the Forest of the Blind

Author: Matthew W. King

Publisher: Columbia University Press

Published: 2022-03-15

Total Pages: 209

ISBN-13: 0231555148

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The Record of Buddhist Kingdoms is a classic travelogue that records the Chinese monk Faxian’s journey in the early fifth century CE to Buddhist sites in Central and South Asia in search of sacred texts. In the nineteenth century, it traveled west to France, becoming in translation the first scholarly book about “Buddhist Asia,” a recent invention of Europe. This text fascinated European academic Orientalists and was avidly studied by Hegel, Schopenhauer, and Nietzsche. The book went on to make a return journey east: it was reintroduced to Inner Asia in an 1850s translation into Mongolian, after which it was rendered into Tibetan in 1917. Amid decades of upheaval, the text was read and reinterpreted by Siberian, Mongolian, and Tibetan scholars and Buddhist monks. Matthew W. King offers a groundbreaking account of the transnational literary, social, and political history of the circulation, translation, and interpretation of Faxian’s Record. He reads its many journeys at multiple levels, contrasting the textual and interpretative traditions of the European academy and the Inner Asian monastery. King shows how the text provided Inner Asian readers with new historical resources to make sense of their histories as well as their own times, in the process developing an Asian historiography independently of Western influence. Reconstructing this circulatory history and featuring annotated translations, In the Forest of the Blind models decolonizing methods and approaches for Buddhist studies and Asian humanities.

Xuanzang
Xuanzang

Author: Benjamin Brose

Publisher: Shambhala Publications

Published: 2021-10-19

Total Pages: 321

ISBN-13: 0834844095

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The life and legacy of Xuanzang: a Buddhist seeker, philosopher, and intrepid traveler who became the world's most famous pilgrim. In the fall of 629, Xuanzang (600–662), a twenty-nine-year-old Buddhist monk, left the capital of China to begin an epic pilgrimage across the country, through the deserts of Central Asia, and into India. His goal was to locate and study authentic Buddhist doctrine and practice, then bring the true teachings back to his homeland. Over the course of nearly seventeen years, he walked thousands of miles and visited hundreds of Buddhist monasteries and monuments. He studied with the leading teachers of his day and compiled a written account of his travels that remains a priceless record of premodern Indian history, religion, and culture. When Xuanzang finally returned to China in 645, he brought with him a treasure trove of new texts, relics, and icons. This transmission of Indian Buddhist teachings to China, made possible by Xuanzang’s unparalleled vision and erudition, was a landmark moment in the history of East Asian Buddhism. As with many great pre-modern religious figures, the legends surrounding Xuanzang’s life have taken on lives of their own. His story has been retold, reshaped, and repurposed by generations of monastics and laypeople. In this comprehensive and engaging account, Benjamin Brose charts a course between the earliest, most reliable accounts of Xuanzang’s biography and the fantastic legends that later developed, such as those in the classic Chinese novel Journey to the West. Xuanzang remains one of the most consequential monks in the rich history of Buddhism in East Asia. This book is an indispensable introduction to his extraordinary life and enduring legacies.