Xuanzang

Xuanzang ({{zh-cpw|c=玄奘|p=xuán zàng|w=Hsüan-tsang}}; Cantonese IPA: jyn4dzɔŋ1; Cantonese Jyutping:jyun4zong1) (602-644/664) was a famous Chinese Buddhist monk.

Legacy

Xuanzang was known for his strenuous translation of Indian Buddhist texts to Chinese, and subsequent recoveries of lost Indian Buddhist texts from translated Chinese copies. He is credited with writing or compiling the Cheng Weishi Lun as a commentary on these texts. He also founded the short-lived but influential Faxiang school of Buddhism. Additionally, he was known for recording the events of the reign of the northern Indian emperor, Harsha.

Related Topics:
Cheng Weishi Lun - Faxiang - Harsha

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In 646, under the Emperor's request, Xuanzang completed his book

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"Journey to India in the Great Tang Dynasty" (?????),which has become one of the primary source for study of ancient history of India

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This book was first translated into French by Sinologist Stanislas Julien in 1857. English translation by Thomas Watters was published

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in London in 1905

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Xuanzang's journey, and the legends that grew up around it, inspired the Ming novel Journey to the West, one of the great classics of Chinese literature. The Xuanzang of the novel is the reincarnation of a disciple of Gautama Buddha, and is protected on his journey by three notorious monsters. One of them, the monkey, was a popular favourite and profoundly influenced Chinese culture and contemporary Japanese manga.

Related Topics:
Ming - Journey to the West - Chinese literature - Xuanzang of the novel - Gautama Buddha - Monkey - Chinese culture - Japanese - Manga

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In the Yuan Dynasty, there was also a play by Wu Changling (吳昌齡) about Xuanzang obtaining scriptures.

Related Topics:
Yuan Dynasty - Play - Wu Changling

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