Contents
Faxian
Travelling to India for Buddhist texts and recording the journey in A Record of Buddhist Kingdoms.
A Record of Buddhist Kingdoms · Mahāsāṃghika Vinaya
- Born
- c. 337
- Birthplace
- Shanxi, China
- Died
- c. 422
More people
Faxian
Faxian was a Chinese Buddhist monk who crossed Central Asia, visited India and Sri Lanka, and returned by sea. His account preserves observations of monasteries, pilgrimage sites and everyday life in the early fifth century.
Early life
Monastic life
Entered Buddhist religious life in China before undertaking his long journey.
A textual problem
Wanted more complete rules for monastic communities than those then available to him in China.
Career
- 399
Departure
Left Chang’an with other monks to seek Buddhist texts.
- Early 400s
India
Visited sacred sites and studied texts, including in Pataliputra.
- Early 410s
Sri Lanka and sea voyage
Stayed in Sri Lanka before a difficult maritime return to China.
- After returning
Translation
Worked on bringing collected Buddhist texts into Chinese.
Texts and contributions
A Record of Buddhist Kingdoms
Described his travels and the communities he encountered.
Mahāsāṃghika Vinaya
Worked with Buddhabhadra on a Chinese translation of monastic rules.
Manuscript collection
Brought Buddhist scriptures back from South Asia for study and translation.
Along the journey
Language study
Learned Sanskrit during his travels so he could work with texts directly.
Danger at sea
Described storms and uncertainty during the merchant-ship voyages that brought him home.
Sources & photo credit
Life, career and references ↗Buddhist Digital Text: Mahāsāṃghika Vinaya ↗Travel account ↗Photo: Ms Sarah Welch. CC0 · Original image. Cropped and displayed in monochrome.
