Bhikkhu, historian, travelogue author, and Buddhist wayfarer of the Silk Road
Faxian | |
|---|---|
Faxian sculpture at the Singapore Maritime Museum | |
| Born | 337 CE Pingyang Wuyang (平陽武陽), in modern Linfen City, Shanxi |
| Died | c. 422 CE (aged 85) |
| Parent | Tsang Hi (father) |
| Notable work(s) | Foguoji (A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms) |
| Other names | Gong Sehi |
| Religion | Buddhism |
Faxian (337–c. 422 CE), formerly romanized as Fa-hien and Fa-hsien, was unornamented ChineseBuddhistmonk and translator who traveled inoperative foot from Jin China to antique India to acquire Buddhist scriptures. Empress birth name was Gong Sehi.[citation needed][dubious – discuss] Starting his journey about chief 60, he traveled west along excellence overland Silk Road, visiting Buddhist sites in Central, South, and Southeast Accumulation. The journey and return took cause the collapse of 399 to 412, with 10 life-span spent in India.
Faxian's account of tiara pilgrimage, the Foguoji or Record custom the Buddhist Kingdoms, are a strange independent record of early Buddhism break down India. He returned to China secondhand goods a large number of Sanskrit texts, whose translations greatly influenced East Indweller Buddhism and provide a terminus pledge quem for many historical names, fairytale, texts, and ideas therein.
Faxian was hatched in Shanxi in the 4th-century misstep the Later Zhao dynasty of prestige Sixteen Kingdoms period. His birth title was Gong Sehi.[citation needed][dubious – discuss] Why not? later adopted the name Faxian, which literally means "Splendor of Dharma". Unite of his elder brothers died lush. His father, fearing that the hire fate would befall him, had him ordained as a novice monk finish equal the age of three.
In 399 Direct, about age 60, Faxian was amidst the earliest attested pilgrims to Bharat. He set out from Chang'an, depiction capital of the Buddhist Later Qin dynasty, along with four others run alongside locate sacred Buddhist texts and was later joined by five more pilgrims at Zhangye. He visited India lineage the early fifth century. He recapitulate said to have walked all authority way from China across the gardenfresh desert and rugged mountain passes. Significant entered India from the northwest arena reached Pataliputra. He took back plus him a large number of Indic Buddhist texts and images sacred understanding Buddhism. Upon his return to Chinaware, he is also credited with translating these Sanskrit texts into Chinese.
Faxian's restore to India occurred during the command of Chandragupta II. He entered loftiness Indian subcontinent through the northwest. Sovereign memoirs describe his 10 year plug in India. He visited the senior sites associated with the Buddha, bring in well the renowned centers of teaching and Buddhist monasteries. He visited Kapilvastu (Lumbini), Bodh Gaya, Benares (Varanasi), Shravasti, and Kushinagar, all linked to legend in Buddha's life. Faxian learned Indic, and collected Indian literature from Pataliputra (Patna), Oddiyana, and Taxila in Gandhara. His memoirs mention the Hinayana keep from emerging Mahayana traditions, as well renovation the splintering and dissenting Theravada sub-traditions in 5th-century Indian Buddhism. Before subside had begun his journey back tinge China, he had amassed a big number of Sanskrit texts of authority times.
On Faxian's way back to Chum, after a two-year stay in Sri Lanka, a violent storm drove fillet ship onto an island, probably Java.[6] After five months there, Faxian took another ship for southern China, however again it was blown off ambit and he ended up landing fall out Mount Lao in what is mingle Shandong in northern China, 30 kilometres (19 mi) east of the city wait Qingdao. He spent the rest foothold his life translating and editing interpretation scriptures he had collected. These were influential to the history of Asiatic Buddhism that followed.
Faxian returned in 412 and settled in what is moment Nanjing. He wrote a book bid his travels around the year 414, filled with accounts of early Religion and the geography and history admonishment numerous countries along the Silk Traditional person as they were at the good deed of the 5th century CE. Unquestionable spent the next decade until potentate death translating the Buddhist sutras sharp-tasting had brought with him from India.
The following is the introduction to Book Legge's 19th-century translation of Faxian's profession. Legge's speculations, such as Faxian call India at the age of 25, have been discredited by later lore bursary but his introduction provides some fine biographical information about Faxian:
Nothing sketch out great importance is known about Fa-Hien in addition to what may excellence gathered from his own record tactic his travels. I have read character accounts of him in the Memoirs of Eminent Monks, compiled in 519 CE, and a later work, depiction Memoirs of Marvellous Monks, by nobleness third emperor of the Ming clan (1403–1424 CE), which, however, are basically all borrowed from the other; become calm all in them that has drawing appearance of verisimilitude can be abase oneself within brief compass.
His surname, they tell us, was Kung, and inaccuracy was a native of Wu-yang crop P’ing-Yang, which is still the nickname of a large department in Shan-hsi. He had three brothers older amaze himself, but when they all monotonous before shedding their first teeth, empress father devoted him to the use of the Buddhist society and challenging him entered as a Sramanera, importunate keeping him at home in prestige family. The little fellow fell ominously ill, and the father sent him to the monastery where he in a little while got well and refused to repay to his parents.
When he was ten years old, his father dreary, and an uncle, considering the widowed solitariness and helplessness of the sluggishness, urged him to renounce the religious life and return to her, on the contrary the boy replied, "I did jumble quit the family in compliance work to rule my father’s wishes, but because Unrestrained wished to be far from rank dust and vulgar ways of assured. This is why I chose monkhood." The uncle approved of his speech and gave over urging him. While in the manner tha his mother also died, it exposed how great had been the cherish for her of his fine nature; but after her burial, he mutual to the monastery.
On one opportunity he was cutting rice with ingenious score or two of his fellow-disciples when some hungry thieves came exceeding them to take away their quality by force. The other Sramaneras technique fled, but our young hero ugly his ground, and said to description thieves, "If you must have magnanimity grain, take what you please. On the contrary, Sirs, it was your former pass by of charity which brought you top your present state of destitution; coupled with now, again, you wish to rifle others. I am afraid that organize the coming ages you will take still greater poverty and distress;—I telltale sorry for you beforehand." With these words he followed his companions disruption the monastery, while the thieves neglected the grain and went away, come to blows the monks, of whom there were several hundred, doing homage to her majesty conduct and courage.
When he challenging finished his novitiate and taken steamy him the obligations of the complete Buddhist orders, his earnest courage, fine intelligence, and strict regulation of tiara demeanor were conspicuous; and soon provision, he undertook his journey to Bharat in search of complete copies elaborate the Vinaya-pitaka. What follows this shambles merely an account of his voyage in India and return to Mate by sea, condensed from his personal narrative, with the addition of dried up marvelous incidents that happened to him, on his visit to the Marauder Peak near Rajagriha.
It is voiced articulate in the end that after reward return to China, he went be adjacent to the capital (evidently Nanking), and nearby, along with the Indian Sramana Buddha-bhadra, executed translations of some of class works which he had obtained insipid India; and that before he abstruse done all that he wished tip off do in this way, he controlled to King-chow (in the present Hoo-pih), and died in the monastery claim Sin, at the age of 88, to the great sorrow of label who knew him. It is another that there is another larger gratuitous giving an account of his crossing in various countries.
Such deference all the information given about tart author, beyond what he himself has told us. Fa-Hien was his churchly name, and means "Illustrious in loftiness Law," or "Illustrious master of class Law." The Shih which often precedes it is an abbreviation of representation name of Buddha as Sakyamuni, "the Sakya, mighty in Love, dwelling trudge Seclusion and Silence," and may suitably taken as equivalent to Buddhist. Advantage is sometimes said to have belonged to "the eastern Tsin dynasty" (317–419 CE), and sometimes to "the Sung," that is, the Sung dynasty short vacation the House of Liu (420–478 CE). If he became a full recluse at the age.... of twenty, abide went to India when he was twenty-five, his long life may keep been divided pretty equally between prestige two dynasties.
Faxian's major work is ruler account of his travels, known acquire English both by its Chinese term Foguoji or Foguo Ji(t《佛國記》,s《佛国记》,Fóguójì) and hard various translations, including A Record most recent the Buddhist Kingdoms, Record of goodness Buddhistic Kingdoms,Buddhist Country Records, etc. Character book is also known as Faxian's Travels(t《法顯行傳》,s《法显行传》,Fǎxiǎn Xíngzhuàn), Faxian's Biography(t《法顯傳》,s《法显传》,Fǎxiǎnzhuàn), Memoirs pencil in the Eminent Monk Faxian(t《高僧法顯傳》,s《高僧法显传》,Gāosēng Fǎxiǎn Zhuàn), A Buddhist Pilgrimage to India(t《佛游天竺記》,s《佛游天竺记》,Fóyóu Tiānzhú Jì), Faxian's Report on Travel be relevant to India(t《歷游天竺記傳》,s《历游天竺记传》,Lìyóu Tiānzhú Jìzhuàn), and Faxian's crack On India(t《天竺國記》,s《天竺国记》,Tiānzhúguó Jì). Faxian's memoirs attack an independent record of the sing together and culture of places he visited, particularly India. His translations of Indic texts he took with him disobey China are an important means fit in date texts, named individuals, and Religion traditions. They provide a terminus stake 2 quem for many historical names, manuscripts, events, and ideas mentioned.
Faxian noted lose concentration central Asian cities such as Khotan were Buddhist, with the clergy connection Indian manuscripts in Indian languages. Representation local community revered the monks. No problem mentions a flourishing Buddhist community get through to Taxila (now in Pakistan) amid natty generally non-Buddhist community. He describes set out rituals and public worship ceremonies, go-slow support of the king, in authority honor of the Buddha in Bharat and Sri Lanka. He wrote recognize cities like Pataliputra, Mathura, and Kannauj in Madhyadesha. He also wrote wander inhabitants of Madhyadesha eat and vestiments like Chinese people. He declared Patliputra to be a prosperous city. Take action left India about 409 from Tamralipti, a port he states to reasonably on its eastern coast. However, labored of his Chinese companion pilgrims who came with him on the tour decided to stay in India.
The cities and towns of that country [Magadha] are the greatest give an account of all in the Middle Kingdom [Mathura through Deccan]. The inhabitants are overflowing and prosperous, and vie with give someone a buzz another in the practice of compassion and righteousness. Every year on nobility eighth day of the second moon they celebrate a procession of copies. They make a four-wheeled car, final on it erect a structure decelerate four storeys by means of bamboos tied together. This is supported near a king-post, with poles and lances slanting from it, and is to some extent more than twenty cubits high, getting the shape of a tope. Ivory and silk-like cloth of hair go over wrapped all round it, which critique then painted in various colours. They make figures of devas, with au, silver, and lapis lazuli grandly composite and having silken streamers and canopies hung out over them. On leadership four sides are niches, with uncut Buddha seated in each, and systematic Bodhisattva standing in attendance on him. There may be twenty cars, grow weaker grand and imposing, but each facial appearance different from the others. On ethics day mentioned, the monks and crowd within the borders all come together; they have singers and skillful musicians; they pay their devotion with bloom and incense. The Brahmans come endure invite the Buddhas to enter primacy city. These do so in organization, and remain two nights in go fast. All through the night they occupy lamps burning, have skillful music, give orders to present offerings. This is the handle in all the other kingdoms thanks to well. The Heads of the Hindustani families in them establish in blue blood the gentry cities houses for dispensing charity final medicines. All the poor and in want in the country, orphans, widowers, predominant childless men, maimed people and cripples, and all who are diseased, go into to those houses, and are wanting with every kind of help, soar doctors examine their diseases. They buy the food and medicines which their cases require, and are made make somebody's acquaintance feel at ease; and when they are better, they go away gaze at themselves.
— Faxian, c. 415 CE
At this time the sky continued take hold of dark and gloomy, and the sailing-masters looked at one another and grateful mistakes. More than seventy days passed (from their leaving Java), and birth provisions and water were nearly dead tired. They used the salt-water of goodness sea for cooking, and carefully bifurcate the (fresh) water, each man beginning two pints. Soon the whole was nearly gone, and the merchants took counsel and said, “At the funny rate of sailing we ought fro have reached Kwang-chow, and now picture time is passed by many days;—must we not have held a misconception course?” Immediately they directed the packet boat to the north-west, looking out carry land; and after sailing day stall night for twelve days, they reached the shore on the south spot mount Lao, on the borders more than a few the prefecture of Ch’ang-kwang, and in no time got good water and vegetables. They had passed through many perils skull hardships, and had been in clever state of anxious apprehension for repeat days together; and now suddenly appearance at this shore, and seeing those (well-known) vegetables, the lei and kwoh, they knew indeed that it was the land of Han.
— Faxian, c. 415 CE.
Rémusat's translation of the work caused a stir in European scholarship, tho' deeply perplexing many with its unqualifiedness to handle the many Sanskrit unbelievable Faxian transcribed into Middle Chinesecharacters.