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A Forest of Pearls from the Dharma Garden, Volume V The sap of a hundred-year-old tree is as red as blood. The spirit of a thousand-year-old tree becomes a blue sheep. The spirit of a ten thousandyear-old tree becomes a cow. [End of] Fascicle Twenty-eight of A Forest of Pearls from the Dharma Garden

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Chapter Twenty-one

Feeling Auspicious

Omens

(This chapter consists of two parts:) (1) Introduction and (2) Sacred Vestiges. 1. Introduction

I respectfully ponder Śākyamuni's teaching. Starting from [the reign of Emperor] Ming (57-75) of the Han dynasty up to the brilliant Tang dynasty, political situations have flowed on from time to time throughout the ages, for nearly six hundred years. Light carriages for imperial emissaries go on one after another, completely inspecting all regions. More than a thousand states have entirely turned to [Chinese] customs and influence. Everyone scales mountains and offers tribute [to China]. It is seen that every day they come to our sovereign, but there are discrepancies in the biographies and records before and after; [their descriptions] differ from one another. [Historical] vestiges are seldom explained and there is a lot of confusion about the names of people and places. Even though we have been granted an abundance of benefits from them, their profound purposes are not perfectly understood. Between foreign regions and China there are differences in pronunciation, and the meanings of passages were often incorrect. In investigating sacred traces [those biographies and records] have difficulties in conveying [information on foreign regions] completely. Therefore, all the monks of this land felt bitter and discontented.

At that time Dharma Master Xuanzang, a śramaṇa of the great Tang dynasty, deplored the inarticulateness of the Great Way and regretted the fact that [the transmission of] Śākyamuni's teaching was restrained and muted. Consequently, in late spring, in the third month of the third year of the Zhenguan era (629), he set out completely alone to go in search of sacred vestiges in the west.

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First he departed the capital city and eventually reached Shazhou (present-day Dunhuang county in Gansu province). He alone went on through precipitous and dangerous places. He passed through a dangerous area to Yiwu (present-day Hami) and Gaochang (Karakhoja, near present-day Turfan). At that time he met the king of Gaochang of the Qu [royal family], who granted material and financial help to him. [Xuan]zang was delivered to the place governed by [Tong] Yehu [Khan] of the Turks. Furthermore, he was sent to all the foreign states north of the Snowcapped Mountains. He fully witnessed the Buddhist edification [there]. Again he went southeast and came out of the great Snowcapped Mountains. The ancient people said, "Snow stays on the Pamirs, that is to say, the Snowcapped Mountains." [Xuan]zang personally witnessed these scenes. After passing the area of the Snowcapped Mountains, he reached India. Later, after ten years had passed, he returned [to this land]. He went through all the states from north of the southern Snowcapped Mountains in the Pamirs. When he returned east, he passed through more than a hundred and fifty states, including Kustana and Loulan [south of Lobnor]. He experienced every difficulty [in those places where] there is no human habitation.

Right at the beginning of the winter of the nineteenth year of the Zhenguan era (645) he arrived at the capital city. He received an imperial decree to translate sutras [into the Chinese language]. Concurrently he was ordered to compose twelve fascicles of the record of [Xuanzang's] travels to the Western region (i.e., Da Tang xiyuji, T. 2087). Now, in the third year of the Longshuo era (663), the translations of the sutras and discourses have been completed. There has been no case similar to that of Master [Xuan]zang; he traveled around [many] states, learned extensively, and translated more sutras than anyone else [during the transmission of Buddhism to China]. According to the record of Master [Xuan]zang's travels (Da Tang xiyuji), the Wang Xuance zhuan (Record of Wang Xuance's Travels), and Buddhist monks and laymen of the Western Region, places suitable for a Chinese government office have wonderful and extraordinary features. Following an imperial decree, educational officials and others compiled [Xuanzang's] complete works in detail. They arranged [the length of the compilation] and completed the sixty fascicles entitled the Xiguo zhi (Record of the Western States), in a hundred fascicles, with forty fascicles of drawings 56

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[in addition to the sixty fascicles of the text]. From the region between the state of Kustana and the state of Pārasya (present-day Persia) to the east, the great Tang dynasty has Area Command, Provincial, or District Offices, and an Assault Resisting Garrison at three hundred and seventy-eight locations in total; the Area Command in nine locations, Provincial Offices in eighty locations, District Offices in a hundred and thirty-three locations, and Assault Resisting Garrisons in a hundred and forty-seven locations. What is appropriate in the four continents and distinguished and extraordinary personages were all briefly prepared.

All the chapters are not clarified here. What is recorded now are simply citations about the Buddhist Dharma. Regarding the preservation of sacred vestiges, one fascicle is separately completed. The remaining items that are not mentioned all exist in the larger [original] version. I hope that future generations will take these lacunae as a lesson and be aware that [my work on this] is broad and rough.

2. Sacred Vestiges

The Xiyu zhuan (Exposition of the Western Regions) relates that Master [Xuan]zang left Chang'an and finally reached Gaochang, where he received hospitable treatment. From Gaochang he was given transportation to the eastern border of the state of Kustana, which is precisely the state of Yutian mentioned in the history of the Han dynasty. The local people call this state Yudun. The city of Bhīmā (Pimo) is two hundred-some li east of [Kustana].49 In the city there is a standing [buddha] statue [carved from] sandalwood, more than two zhang tall. The statue has extremely marvelous efficacy and emits light. If anyone who suffers [from pain] pastes gold leaf on the statue corresponding to the area of his pain, then the pain is immediately alleviated. This statue was originally in the state of Kauśāṃbī (Jiaoshangmi); it was made by King Udayana. It flew through the sky and arrived at the city of Roruka (the capital city of Sovīra) in the north of this state. There was a strange arhat who went to worship [the statue] every day. The king at first did not believe in [the buddha statue]. [He ordered people to] cover [the arhat] with sandy soil. The arhat then told someone who respected and believed in [Buddhism], "For the next seven days sandy soil will fill the city. On the day after tomorrow treasures will fall [from the sky] and fill the streets." In 57

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fact, on the night of the seventh day the [sandy] soil that had fallen [from the sky] filled up [the city]. Almost no one survived. The person to whom [the arhat] had previously spoken dug an underground passage beforehand, through which he escaped [from the city].

At that time, in the middle of the road a hundred and sixty li west from the capital city, there was a large pile of gravel, simply a mound of earth created by some rats [when they dug up the ground]. [The rats'] bodies were as large as that of a hedgehog and their fur was gold and silver in color. In the past, when the Xiongnu had invaded [this area], the king prayed to the spiritual power of rats [for help]. During the night [the rats] gnawed on [the Xiongnu] people and their horses, and damaged their weapons and arrows. [The Xiongnu] withdrew on the run of their own accord.

The temple located about five li west from the capital city has a stupa that is a hundred-plus chi high. It frequently emits light. The king obtained several hundred pieces of relics through his receptivity [to the Buddha's power]. An arhat lifted up the stupa with his right hand and [the relics] placed in a box [were buried in the ground]. Then [the arhat] set [the stupa] back down [on the ground], with no collapse or damage.

To the southwest ten-plus li away from the capital city is Mount Gośriṅga (Qushilingqieshan). It is called Mount Ox Horn (Niujiaoshan). There is a temple in which a [buddha] image emits light. The Buddha once traveled here and expounded the Dharma for heavenly beings. An arhat lives in a stone chamber within the mountain cave. He enters the meditation in which mental functions are completely exhausted (Skt. nirodha-samāpatti), waiting for Maitreya [to descend] as a buddha. The southern border of that county is contiguous with Suvarṇa (Dongnüguo, "East State of Women"). Furthermore, going west from the capital city, crossing over mountains and valleys, and traveling more than eight hundred li, we reach the state of Cakoka (Zhejujia, present-day Karghalik), which is precisely the territory of the Juqu [family]. In the south of the state there is a mountain on which many stupas of arhats stand. The pine forest is dense and the stone chamber is deep and pure. [In the chamber] three arhats enter the meditation in which mental functions are completely exhausted. Their beards and hair are constantly long. Monks often shave them. Five Indian monks among them have attained fruition. They frequently stay in this chamber. 58

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Moreover, northwest from the state we go up to a great ridge of gravel, cross over the Śīta River (i.e., Yārkand River; Tuduo he, formerly called Xintou he [in China]), and travel five hundred li to reach the state of Khāṣa (present-day Kashgar; Qusha guo, formally called Shule guo [in China]). According to the customs of the people of this region, when a baby is born his or her head is pressed to become a flattened shape. Going south five hundred li from here, we arrive at the state of Uṣā [or Och] (Wusha). To the west, two hundred-plus li from the capital city, we reach the great mountain range in which there is a stupa. Several hundreds of years ago a precipice of the mountain spontaneously collapsed. Inside [of the collapsed precipice] there was a bhikṣu who sat with closed eyes. His body was very large, and his beard and hair hung down and covered his shoulders and face. The king poured ghee over him and struck a Buddhist gong (Skt. ghaṇṭā) [in order to summon the bhikṣu out of meditation]. The bhikṣu, with uncommon dignity, looked at [the king] and asked, "Where is my teacher Kāśyapa Buddha?" [The king] replied to him, "Nowhere. You must be hearing this for the first time now. He has already entered nirvana." Again [the bhikṣu] asked, "Has Śākyamuni Buddha risen in the world?" He was told, "He already passed away." [The bhikṣu] then ascended into the sky, transformed into fire, and burned up his own body. Furthermore, crossing to the southwest over the great Pamirs, in eight hundred-plus li we reach the state of Kharbanda (Qiepantuo; i.e., present-day Tashkurghan). In the southeastern part of this state there are two large stone chambers. In each of them an arhat has entered the meditation in which mental functions are completely exhausted. They have already passed through seven hundred years. Their beards and hair are long, and they are shaved annually. Again going beyond three states, after traveling four thousand-plus li we arrive at the state of Damo Tiexidi.50 In a temple in the capital city there is a stone statue, over which a bronze cupola is suspended. [The cupola] is ornamented with various kinds of gems. Whenever someone circumambulates [the stone statue] the cupola also revolves, following [the person]. When they stop, it stops as well. All sides [of the temple building] are stone walls, so no one can determine how it works. Someone [once] said that it is due to sacred power.

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From Gaochang to the Iron Gate we pass through sixteen states altogether.51 The evaluations of the people and their degrees of faith [in Buddhism] are fully described in the Zhuguo zhuan (Exposition on Various Countries). Regarding the Iron Gate, this is precisely the western outpost of the Han dynasty and the frontier pass with an iron gate. The two parts of the Han gate, one of which is upright and the other prone, are made of wood covered with iron, on which various bells are hung. When this frontier pass is firmly closed it truly achieves natural security.

Going out of this gate, and traveling south more than a thousand li, we come to a place the eastern side of which the Pamirs occupies, the western side is adjacent to Persia, on its southern side are the great Snowcapped Mountains, and on its northern side is the Iron Gate. The great Vakṣu River (Fuchu; i.e., Oxus River) runs west in the central area [of this place]. This river is what is called the Bocha River in sutras. This area is naturally divided into twenty states; it is impossible to list all of the names [of these twenty states]. In each state there is a ruler who seriously believes in Buddhism. The monks go into retreat (Skt. vārṣika) on the sixteenth day of the twelfth month52 and keep on until the spring equinox. This is because [during that period of time] there are high temperatures and much rain. Again, following a path to the north and crossing through thirteen states from the state of Termez (Demi), we reach the state of Bactria (Fuhe, present-day Balkh). This region is gorgeous and rich. The common people of that time called it the "small Rājagṛha." This state is close to the South Command of [Si] Yehu [Khan of the Turks]. A temple to the southwest outside of the capital city has the Buddha's water bottle, which can contain about a sheng [of water] and which is bright and brilliant in multiple colors. It is hard to say if [the bottle is made of] gold or precious stone. Furthermore, there is the Buddha's tooth [relic], which is one-plus cun long and eight or nine fen wide.53 Its color is yellowish-white and it is bright and clean. There is also the Buddha's broom made from kāśa (a kind of eulalia), two-plus chi in length and about seven chi around. The broomstick is decorated with miscellaneous jewels. Buddhist monks and laymen perceive that these three items emit light on the days of purification.

Fifty-plus li northwest from the capital city is Trapusa's town, and fortyplus li to the north from the capital city is Bhallika's town. In each of these 60

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towns there is a stupa about three zhang tall, and [these stupas] indicate [Śākyamuni Buddha's] wonderful traces. These are precisely the stupas for Śākyamuni's hair and nails in the domiciles of the virtuous men who first offered a cake (Skt. tarpaṇa) to Śākyamuni when he attained buddhahood. Moreover, [Trapusa and Bhallika] built stupas [following the Buddha's instruction that] his saṃghāṭī, uttara-āsaṅga, and saṃkakṣikā robes [are folded and stacked], over which his upended almsbowl is placed, and his staff with metal rings is set [on the very top].

Again, crossing a couple of states to the southeast and entering the great Snowcapped Mountains, we arrive at the state of Bāmiyān (Fanyanna). Crossing over the great Snowcapped Mountains to the east, [we come to] a temple that has the Buddha's tooth [relic] and the tooth of a pratyekabuddha at the time of the formation of this world. It is five cun long and four cun wide. Moreover there is the tooth of the golden-wheel king (Skt. suvarṇa-cakravartin), which is three cun long and two cun wide. In addition, there is an iron almsbowl of the great arhat Śānakavāsa (Shang nuo jiafupo, formally called Shangnahexiu [in China], who is the third patriarch of Indian Buddhism). [The bowl] holds nine sheng [of food]. There is also his saṃghāṭī robe made out of nine pieces of cloth, deep red in color and made from thread spun from the bark of the śānaka plant. In a former existence [Śānakavāsa] had donated [garments made from] this plant to monks on the day the [monks] come out from the summer retreat. Due to the power of this meritorious act, he continually wore [a garment made out of the śānaka plant] during his intermediate state between death and the next life (Skt. antarābhava), as well as at the moment of his rebirth, for five hundred existences. [At his final birth] he emerged from the womb with [the garment], which became larger as his body grew. When Ānanda ordained [Śānaka vāsa, the garment] turned into a Dharma robe. After he had received the complete set of [two hundred and fifty] precepts, it again changed into [a monk's formal robe made of] nine pieces [of cloth, the saṃghāṭī robe]. His teeth, almsbowl, and other items are all sealed with gold. From the meditation in which he testified to his extinction, this arhat entered [the meditation of] ultimate wisdom (bianji zhi). Because of the power of his vow, he left his kaṣāya [in this world]. Later, when the Dharma bequeathed [by the Buddha] becomes exhausted, [his kaṣāya] will disintegrate. Today [the robe] shows only minor damage and [it] truly has efficacious power. 61

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Furthermore, going east we enter the Snowcapped Mountains and cross over the Black Ridge (i.e., mountains without snow during the summertime), to arrive in the state of Kāpiśī (Jiabishi). [The people here] are more distinctive in their respectful belief in Buddhism. Every year the king commissions a silver statue [of Buddha], one zhang and eight chi tall. He cultivates himself by offering worship to it.

At the foot of the northern mountain, three li east from the capital city, is a large temple. To the south of its eastern gate is a statue of a great divine king. [Under the ground] beneath its right foot is a large treasure storehouse. Recently the king of another state drove off the monks [of this temple], intending to dig up and take [the treasures]. The figure of a parrot in the divine [king's] cap flapped its wings and cried out, and the earth quaked. The king's troops all fell down. [Then] they got up, apologized, and returned [to their country]. On the mountain ridge north of the temple are several stone chambers in which a number of treasures are stored. If someone tries to open it secretly, the yakṣa (yuecha, formally called yecha [in China]), transforms into a lion, a snake, or a [vicious] insect that is greatly infuriated at [the interloper]. On the great ridge of the mountain three li west from the [stone] chambers is an image of Avalokiteśvara. To those who sincerely pray, the image manifests the wondrous body [of Avalokiteśvara] and speaks to the practitioners, pacifying them.

Forty-plus li southeast from the city is Rāhula Temple, built by a state minister [called Rāhula]; [the temple] was named after him. A stupa [in this temple] is more than a hundred chi high. In the past, one night the state minister had a dream in which he was ordered to build a stupa and beg the king for the relics. The [next] morning he went to the palace, where someone was holding a bottle of the relics. The minister took the relics and ordered that person to go in first. He then ascended the stupa carrying the bottle of relics. The top part (fubo) [of the stupa] spontaneously opened. After he placed the relics [in the stupa], the king's messengers caught up with him. The stone [top part] had already closed again. On the days of purification [the stupa] emits light and black [fragrant] oil flows out [of the stupa], and during the night music is heard.

On the summit of the great Snowcapped Mountains more than two hundred li northwest from the capital city is the dragon pond. At the foot of the mountain 62

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is Longli (Standing Dragon) Temple. In the stupa [of the temple] there are more than one sheng of the Buddha's relics of flesh and bone. Once, smoke arose [from the stupa] and it violently blazed as if on fire. When [the flames and smoke] gradually abated, [the people] saw the relics that looked like white pearls went around a pillar, entered the clouds, and returned into the stupa. On the south bank of a large river northwest of the city is a temple of the former king in which there is a milk tooth from the Buddha's childhood, oneplus cun long. Moreover, southeast of this [temple] there is a temple of an ancient king, which has a piece of the Buddha's parietal bones, two-plus cun wide and yellowish-white in color. The pores [of the bone] are clear. In early spring of the first year of the Longshuo era (661) of the great Tang dynasty, the envoy Wang Xuance brought [the Buddha's parietal bone] back from a western state. Today it is offered in worship in the palace. Moreover this temple has a hair of the Buddha, blue in color, which spirals clockwise. When [the hair] is extended, it is more than a chi long, and when curled up, it is about a cun long.

In addition, southwest [of the temple of the Buddha's parietal bone] is a temple of the former queen. Its bronze stupa is more than a hundred chi high. [In the stupa] are one-plus sheng of relics of the Buddha. On the night of the fifteenth day of every [month, the relics] emit a halo that revolves around the dew plate (Skt. chattra) [of the stupa] and returns into the stupa at daybreak. Southwest of the city is Mount Beiluopolu.54 On a huge circular stone on the top of the mountain a stupa stands, more than a hundred chi high, which contains one-plus sheng of relics [of the Buddha].

North of this mountain is a spring issuing from rocks (i.e., the dragon pond). This is [the place where] the Buddha rinsed his mouth and chewed a twig of a khadira tree (Skt. dantakāṣṭha) [to clean the teeth and the tongue] after receiving a meal offered by a mountain deity. For this reason, [khadira trees] were planted [around the site] and now they have become a dense forest. The temple [built here later] is called Dantakāṣṭha (Yangzhi; i.e., "Toothbrush").

Again, going east more than six hundred li from the dragon pond, crossing the Snowcapped Mountains and the Black Ridge, we arrive at the boundary of North India. All [the lands] beyond here are already Indian states. The style of clothing and the deportment [of the people in these regions] are not 63

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the same as those of Bactria (Daxia). [This area] is called the border state of the Mleccha [people] (Mieliche [lei], known as Gouzhuozhong, "Disgraceful Evil Race," in the Tang dynasty). On arriving in this region, we are halfway [through our travels to Central India].

Furthermore, going east, we reach the state of Lampāka (Lanbo; presentday Lamghān), which is exactlythe northern boundary of India. Speaking of India, its formal name is Tianzhu, and it is also called Shendu or Xiandou. These are all corrupted forms of pronunciation.

[India is bordered] by the Himalayas in the north and has oceans on three sides. In the configuration of the land, the southern part is narrow just like a waxing moon. The rivers are flat and wide and flow with abundant water. The circumference of the land is nineteen thousand li. More than seventy states are under the rule of one sovereign.

Again, going a hundred-plus li east, crossing over great mountain ridges and large rivers, we arrive at the state of Nagarahāra (Naqieluohe; presentday Jelālābād area),55 which belongs to North India. There is a city called Ku suma pura (Huashi) and two li east of the city is a stone stupa, three hundred chi in height. [The stupa] faced with stone stands erect like a mountain and has extraordinary engraving. This is exactly the place where formerly [Śākyamuni Bodhisattva] met Dīpaṅkara Buddha and received a prediction of his future attainment of buddhahood, and where [Śākyamuni] spread out a deerskin robe and laid out his hair to cover over the mud [in Dīpaṅkara's path]. [The site] still exists here after having passed through a kalpa. King Aśoka built the stone stupa. On the days of purification flowers rain from the heavens. Moreover, in the city is the old foundation of a large stupa in which formerly the Buddha's tooth was deposited. There is another stupa, three-plus zhang high, and it is said that [this stupa] came from the sky. Since it is not manmade it truly has numerous miracles.

More than ten li southwest from the city is a stupa at the site where the Buddha traversed the sky from Central India and alighted. Next, a stupa to the east is the place where [Śākyamuni Bodhisattva] met Dīpaṅkara Buddha and bought flowers [to offer to him].

Furthermore, more than twenty li east from the city is a small rocky mountain ridge on which there is a stupa, two hundred-plus chi in height. There is a large cave on the precipice of the east bank. This is the dragon king's 64

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dwelling. Formerly the Buddha edified the dragon and left the [Buddha's] image here. [The image] is as brilliant as his true appearance. Those who pray with the utmost sincerity can see it clearly for a short time. Outside of the cave is a square stone which contains an imprint of the Buddha's foot. The wheel mark [in the footprint] emits light. There is also a stupa in the northwest corner of the cave, at the place where the Buddha walked about. In addition, next to it there is a stupa which contains [the Buddha's] hair and nail [relics]. A rock in the west of the cave [has an image of the Buddha] and on [the rock] there is also the pattern of the kaṣāya [robe] washed [by the Buddha].

Again, more than thirty li east from the city [of Kusumapura] is the city of Haḍḍa (Xiluo), where there is a two-storied pavilion. On the upper story the Buddha's parietal bone [relic] is placed. The circumference [of the bone] is one chi and two cun; its color is yellowish-white, and the pores are clear. Anyone who wishes to know whether his mind is good or bad can make an imprint [of the bone] with a plaster of incense and then examine the plaster of incense; [a good or a bad pattern] appears in accordance with his mind. Moreover, there is the Buddha's skull [relic], in appearance like a lotus leaf. Its color is the same as that of his parietal bone. There is [also] the Buddha's eyeball [relic], nearly as large as a crabapple (nai), which is clean and shines brilliantly. It is also contained in a seven-treasured bottle. The three [relics] left behind by [the Buddha] mentioned above are all contained in a sealed treasure box. There is [also] the Buddha's saṃghāṭī made of fine cotton, yellow in color, which is placed in a treasure box. It is in a slightly degraded condition. There is [also] the Buddha's staff with metal rings at the top; the rings are made of tin and the staff from sandalwood. It has been placed in a jeweled container.

These five sacred sites [have miraculous virtue]. The king [of Kāpiśī] ordered five men who practiced pure conduct to take full charge of these articles and protect them. [They decided to] collect a gold coin from those who come to see [the Buddha's parietal bone] and to ask those who want to make an imprint [of the parietal bone] for five [gold coins]. The fee [for inspection or imprinting] is high, but more and more people come to view and worship them. A small stupa northwest of the [two-storied] pavilion has many wonders. Whenever someone touches it, the bells of the stupa greatly shake. 65

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Again, traveling five hundred li southeast through mountains and valleys, we come to the state of Gāndhāra (Jiantuoluo), which is also part of North India. There is a place where the great treatise masters, Venerable Manoratha and Venerable Pārśva, compiled the Abhidharma-mahāvibhāṣā. There are also the site where [Śākyamuni] Bodhisattva gave up his eyes [to donate them] through his thousand existences,56 the place where the Buddha edified Hārītī (Guizimu),57 and the place where Śyāmaka (Shangmojia, formerly called Shanzi [in China]) Bodhisattva was shot by the king [of Kāśi].58 In addition, there is Mount Daṇḍaka (Danduoluojiashan, formerly called Tante shan [in China]), on the ridge of which are the sites where Sudāna lived in seclusion and where a brahman beat [Sudāna's] son and daughter, and the blood dyed the ground [red]. Even today the trees and plants [of this place] are all deep red in color. A stone chamber between rocks is the place where [Sudāna's] wife practiced meditation.59 There is also the place where a hermit named One Horn (Skt. Ekaśṛṅga) was bewildered by a woman.60 Again, crossing over the mountains to the north from this city and traveling more than six hundred li, we arrive at the state of Udyāna (the basin of present-day Swāt River; Wuzhangna, formerly called Wuzhang [in China]). This is a well-governed state of North India. Five li east of the capital city is a large stupa, which has numerous good omens. This is the place that the Buddha, who was then a hermit who practiced forbearance, was dismembered by King Kali (Jieli, who is called Douzheng, ["Fight" in the Tang dynasty]).61 Moreover, the Buddha's footprint on a square rock is the place where the Buddha [formerly stepped on this rock], emitted light that shone upon a temple, and expounded a story of his past existence (Skt. jātaka) for heavenly beings. Furthermore, there is the place where in the past [when the Buddha was a bodhisattva] he copied a sutra [with a pen made out of] his broken bone in order to hear the [true] Dharma [from a brahman].62 There is also the place where formerly King Śibi cut his own flesh and [gave it to a hawk] on behalf of a dove.63 Furthermore, there is the place where when the Buddha was a king [called] Maitrībala (Cili) in the past, he stabbed himself so that five demigods called yakṣas could gain nourishment from his blood.64 Moreover, in a great temple is a wood-carved image of Maitreya Bodhisattva (Mei ju liye, formerly called Mile [in China]). [The image] is golden in color, bright and brilliant; it is a hundred-plus chi tall. [The figure] was made by Madhyāntika Arhat (Motiandijia Aluohan, formerly 66

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called Motiandi Luohan [in China]). The arhat guided an artisan through supernatural power and they ascended to Tuṣita Heaven. They returned [to the heaven] three times in order to observe [Maitreya's] characteristics and they subsequently completed this good work. The image greatly possesses wonderful characteristics; it is impossible to give full details of them. Again, crossing over a river through one state, we reach the state of Takṣaśilā (Dechashiluo), which belongs to North India. Seventy li northwest from the capital city is a stupa between two mountains, standing a hundred-plus chi in height. The Buddha formerly made a prediction that when Maitreya comes into the world the four great treasure houses, of which this place is one, will [emerge from the earth].65 Moreover, twelve li north of the city is a stupa commisioned by King Candraprabha. On the days of purification it always emits mystic light, divine flowers rain down, and heavenly music is heard. Recently a leprous woman worshiped and repented of her sins at the stupa. She removed some soot and dirt [from the stupa] and applied scent on it. Soon thereafter she was cured [of the disease] and her body became sweet-smelling and clean. This is the same place that in the past, when the Buddha was King Can dra prabha (Zhandaluobocipo, formerly called Yueguang, "Moonlight," [in China]), he [cut off] his own head and donated it.66 He endured [giving up his body like this] and donated it for a thousand existences altogether. There is also the pond where the dragon king Elāpattra (Yiluobo) heard the [Buddha's teaching]. At the place where [King] Candraprabha's eyes were gouged out,67 a lofty stupa erected by King Aśoka stands at a height of ten zhang. In addition, there are the places where Prince [Mahā]sattva gave up his body and fed it to some tigers68 and where he stabbed his body with a piece of bamboo and allowed beasts to drink his blood. Even today all the earth, plants, and trees [in this area] are dark red in color. Furthermore, there is the place where the Buddha edified the demon yakṣas not to eat flesh. Again, ascending the mountain to the southeast, after passing two states, crossing over an iron bridge, and traveling more than a thousand li, we arrive at the state of Kaśmīra (Jiashimiluo, formerly called Jibin [in China]), which belongs to North India. There are four stupas in the state. Each contains oneplus-sheng relics. Four hundred years after the Buddha's parinirvāṇa, Venerable Pārśva, who renounced the world at the age of eighty and who attained the fruit of no more learning (i.e., arhatship), led five hundred arhats here. 67

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They produced the Upadeśa (Wupodishuo), and annotated the Sūtram-piṭaka (Sudelanzang, formerly called Youpotishe lun [in China]). Next, they composed the Vinayavibhāṣa (Pinaiye Piposha lun) and after that, the Abhi dharma-mahāvibhāṣā (Apidamo lun). Each of these three treatises contains a hundred thousand gāthās, and have six million six hundred thousand words altogether. The Tripiṭaka is fully annotated [in the three treatises]. There is also the Buddha's tooth, one and a half cun long, yellowish-white in color, which emits light on the days of purification. In addition, there is a standing statue of Avalokiteśvara. Those who wish to see [Avalokiteśvara] must fast and then they can see him [within the statue]. Again, going east, after passing three states we come to the state of Cīna bhukti (Zhinapudi), which belongs to North India. Going more than five hundred li southeast from the capital city we arrive at Tamasāvana (Anlin) Temple, more than twenty li in circumference. There are several hundreds of thousands of sites for stupas in which the Buddha's relics are placed, and stone chambers as well. A thousand buddhas of the auspicious kalpa expounded the Dharma in this place. Three centuries after Śākyamuni's parinirvāṇa, Kātyāna (Jiaduoyanna, formerly called Jiazhanyan [in China]), composed the Da zhi lun (Great Wisdom Discourse) here.69 A stupa in the temple stands more than twenty zhang high. There is also the site where the four [past] buddhas (i.e., Krakucchanda, Kanakamuni, Kāśyapa, and Śākyamuni) spent their daily lives. Again, going east after passing four states, we come to the state of Mathurā (Motuluo guo, formerly called the state of Motouluo guo [in China]), which is part of Central India. In the capital city there are three stupas as well as numerous sites of the four [past] buddhas and various stupas for [the Buddha's disciples and bodhisattvas], such as Śāriputra (Shelizi), Maudgalyāyana (Moteqieluozi, formerly called Mulian [in China]), Pūrṇamaitrāyaṇīputra (Mancizi, formerly called Fulouna [in China]), Upāli (Youpoli, formerly called Youpoli [in China]),70 Ānanda (Anan), Rāhula (Luohuluo), and Mañjuśrī (Manzhushili). In the three purification months every year and on the six purification days every month, all the monks and nuns assemble and offer worship to all the stupas. Those who study the Abhidharma offer worship to the memorial stupa for Śāriputra. Those who learn meditation offer worship to the stupa for Maudgalyāyana. Those who hold fast to the recitation of sutras offer worship to the stupa for Pūrṇamaitrāyaṇīputra. Those who learn 68

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the Vinaya offer worship to the stupa for Upāli. The nuns' group offers worship to the stupa for Ānanda. Those who have not yet received the complete set of precepts offer worship to the stupa for Rāhula. Those who learn Mahayana [Buddhism] offer worship to the stupas for various bodhisattvas. (In searching for these various stupas it is not always possible to find the remains. By responding to standing figures, [the people] set up offerings and devote their hearts [to stupas] such as those for Rāhula and Mañjuśrī. Judging from the descriptions in sutras, these bodhisattvas have not yet entered parinirvāṇa, so they can know it.)

Six li east of the city is a temple on a cliff, built by Venerable Upagupta (Wupojuduo). Inside [the temple] is a stupa for the Buddha's fingernail relic. North of the temple is a stone chamber. Twenty-plus li southeast of the stone chamber is a large dried-up pond, and beside the pond is a stupa. The Buddha once roamed around here, and this is the place where a monkey had some honey and offered it to the Buddha. [The Buddha] diluted [the honey] with water so all the people could have a drink of it. The monkey was happy but he later died after falling into a pit. He was then reborn in the realm of human beings. In a grove north of the pond is a place where the four [past] buddhas roamed. There are more vestiges.

Again, going northeast more than four hundred li, after passing a state we reach the state of Śrughna (Sululena), which belongs to Central India. The eastern border [of this state] is formed by the Ganges River (Qingqiehe, formerly called Henghe [in Chinese]). The north is contiguous with the Himalayas. Southeast of the city is the Yamunā River (Yanmouna), which issues from the mountains in the northwest of the state and runs through the state territory. The eastern border of the capital city is next to the Yamunā River. There is a stupa outside of the eastern gate of a great temple west of the river. The Buddha once expounded the Dharma and delivered people [from the transmigration of birth and death] here. On one side is a stupa for the Buddha's hair and fingernail relics.

Going more than eight hundred li east from the Yamunā River, we come to the origin of the Ganges River.71 The width [of the river here] is three or four li [and it runs to] the southeast; at the place where it enters the sea its width is more than ten li. The color of the water is blue and its taste is sweet. Fine sand courses, following the water. [The river] is commonly called the 69

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Water of Great Virtue (Fushui; Skt. Mahābhadra). Those who bathe [in the Ganges River] have their sins removed, or if someone takes his own life and submerges [in this river], wishing to be reborn in heaven and receive happiness, he will be able to have a mysterious response.

Again, going southeast from this point, after passing six states we arrive at the state of Kapitha (Jiebita; i.e., Sāṃkāśya), which belongs to Central India. There are ten sites of deva shrines (Skt. devakula). [Heretics reside alongside Buddhists and] they serve Maheśvara in the same way [as Buddhists do].72 They all made the image of the deity [Maheśvara], which in appearance is like a phallus, very long and gigantic. The common people do not take this to be unwholesome; they say that all sentient beings are born from the liṅga (Maheśvara's icon in the shape of a male sexual organ).

Twenty-plus li east of the capital city is a great temple, and within a large fenced area beside [the temple] are three sets of treasured stairs built by Śākra-devendra for the Buddha. The middle set was entirely gold-plated, the left was made of crystal, and the right of silver. They lie north and south and go down to the ground on the east side. This is the place where the Buddha descended after he ascended from Jeta Grove (Shiduolin, formerly called Zhituolin [in China]) to heaven and went to the Wholesome Dharma Hall (i.e., Śākra-devendra's palace; Shanfatang) where he expounded the Dharma for his mother for three months. A hundred years ago the [original] stairs still existed but they now have all vanished. Later kings [of various states restored the stairs by] copying them. Their height is more than seventy chi. On the top a monastery was built. Beside [the restored stairs] is a stone pillar, smooth and glossy, which projects an image within itself according to whether one has committed an evil act or performed a meritorious deed. It was built by King Aśoka. To the side of the stairs is a stupa, the site where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. Moreover there is a place where the Buddha bathed; a stupa was built at that site. There is a monastery where the Buddha entered meditation, and on its side is a rock that the Buddha walked around [to take a break]. The base of the rock is fifty paces long and it is seven chi in height.73 All the spots on which [the Buddha] stepped have the pattern of a lotus flower. Furthermore, small stupas on both sides of [the rock] were built by the king of Brahma Heaven. In front of [these stupas] is the place where Utpalavarṇā Bhikṣuṇī transformed herself into a wheel-turning noble 70

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king in order to get to see the Buddha before others. The Buddha told the bhikṣuṇī, "You are not the first [to see me]. Subhūti (Subudi, formerly called Xuputi [in China]), meditated in a stone chamber. Since he knows all phenomenal things are empty, he is the first one who saw my dharmakāya." Again, going two hundred li north from here, we arrive at the state of Kānyakubja (Jieruojushe), which belongs to Central India, and which is [known in the Tang dynasty as the state of] Qunücheng ("City of Women Who Are Bent"). The western part of the capital city is close to the Ganges River. [The city] is more than twenty li long and four or five li wide. [This state] is the most powerful one and governs five Indian metropolises. Formerly the king was called Śīlāditya (Shiluoyiduo, called Jieri, "Day of Abstinence," in the Tang dynasty). He was from the merchant-farmer caste (feishe; Skt. vaiśya). When he first intended to ascend the throne [after his elder brother, the king, was killed], there was an Avalokiteśvara image on the bank of the Ganges River. He asked it for advice. [Avalokiteśvara] told him, "You were originally a bhikṣu who practiced in this grove (lanruo biqiu; Skt. āraṇya-bhikṣu). King Śaśāṅka of Karṇasuvarṇa persecuted the Buddhist Dharma, and you, king, must restore it. If you continue to have the mind of kindness toward people you will become a king of five territories. Be carfeul! Do not ascend the lion's sat.74 Do not use the title "Great King" for yourself, either." Then, together with a boy king (tongzi wang),75 King [Śīlāditya] subjugated and destroyed the non-Buddhists, King Śaśāṅka, and his followers. Moreover, [Śīlāditya] laid down strict orders. Those who ate meat would have their tongues cut out, and those who destroyed life would have their arms cut off. [The king,] along with his widowed sister[-in-law], managed state affairs. He built more than a thousand stupas along the Ganges River, each [of which] is more than a hundred chi tall.

For twenty years, once every five years he held an [offering] assembly to save all sentient beings, even though the state coffers were depleted by this. He kept weapons but he did not expect the weapons to be useful [for the assembly]. On the first day of the assembly, monks from various states gathered together. For twenty-one days the four kinds necessities (i.e., food and drink, clothing, bedding, and medicine) were offered to them, and the monks were asked to discuss among themselves. If there was [a monk present] who virtuously upheld the [Buddhist] precepts and practices, or whose virtue was 71

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excellent, he ascended the lion's seat. The king received the precepts from him. The king showed respect toward those who were pure yet had no learning. Those who displayed vile behavior were expelled from the state territory. [A stupa] northwest of the city was built by King Aśoka. In the past, the Buddha expounded the Dharma for seven days in this place. Around it are a stupa for [the Buddha's] hair and nail [relics] and the site where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. Moreover, south [of this stupa] there is a temple adjacent to the Ganges River that has the Buddha's tooth, which is one and a half cun long. The luster and the color [of the tooth] change [in the morning and evening]. It is contained in a treasure box. People come from remote as well as neighboring areas to look at it, up to a hundred or a thousand [visitors] a day. Those charged to protect the relic are bothered [by the visitors] and collect heavy inspection taxes of cash or precious items from them. Nevertheless, those who happily worship [the Buddha's tooth] do not refuse to pay large amounts of money. On the days of purification [the Buddha's tooth] is taken out [from the box] and placed on a raised seat. [People] scatter flowers [over it] but even though [the flowers] pile up, the tooth is never covered over.

Again, more than a hundred li southeast of the city is a stupa at the place where the Buddha once expounded the Dharma for seven days. There are relics inside and sometimes [the relics] emit light. Beside [the stupa] is the site where the Buddha spent his daily life. There is another stupa near the Ganges River four li north of the temple, at the place where the Buddha once expounded the Dharma for seven days and five hundred hungry ghosts attained enlightenment and were reborn in heaven. Next to it is a stupa [containing the Buddha's] hair and nail [relics], and also another site where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives.

[Traveling on,] we come to the state of Ayodhyā (Ashutuo), which belongs to Central India. There is a stupa in a large temple near the bank of the Ganges River five li north of the capital city, at the site where the Buddha expounded the Dharma for the sake of heavenly and human beings for three months. [This is also another] place where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. Next, five li west [of the temple] is a stupa for the Buddha's hair and nail [relics]. In a great grove of āmra trees five li southwest of the city is an old temple. [From] this place Asaṅga Bodhisattva ascended to a heavenly 72

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palace at night, where he received from Maitreya the Yogācārabhūmi (Yuqie shidi lun), the Mahāyānasūtrālaṃkāra (Dasheng zhuangyan jinglun), the Madhyān tavibhāga (Zhongbianfenbie lun), and other texts, and then descended to discourse on them for sentient beings during the day. A hundred-plus paces northwest from the grove is a stupa for the Buddha's hair and nail [relics]. Near the Ganges River southeast of the city is a stupa at the place where the Buddha once expounded the Dharma for three months. There is a blue stone stupa for the [Buddha's] hair and nail [relics] and another site where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. Again, going southeast, after passing through two states we come to the state of Prayāga (Boluoyeqie), which belongs to Central India. The southwest border of the capital city is formed by the Yamunā River. [At a place where the river] curves there is a stupa. This is the where the Buddha once subjugated non-Buddhists. There is a stupa with the [Buddha's] hair and nail [relics] and the place where he roamed [for leisure]. There is also the place where [Ārya]deva Bodhisattva composed the Guang Bai lun.76 In the city there is a deva shrine. The branches and foliage of a large tree in front of the [shrine] hall have grown thick, and there are cannibalistic spirits [in the tree]. So human remains can be seen piled up around [the tree]. Anyone who enters the shrine will lose their life without fail. [Recently someone] was thrown down from the tree; he had been tempted by the spirits. [An area] east of the city where two rivers (i.e., the Ganges and Yamunā) meet is more than ten li around. The land is level and lushly vegetated, with fine sand completely spread out. In ancient and modern times, when kings and nobles offer donations all the people come [here]. [This place] is called the Field of Great Almsgiving (Dashichang). Great King Śīlāditya also followed this observance. At the mouth of the confluence [of the two rivers] east of the field, every day several people commit suicide by [going into the churning waters and] drowning. The common people call it the "place to be reborn in heaven." Those who come to to do this fast for seven days and then plunge into the river midstream. [People] come here from remote as well as neighboring areas. Even mountain apes and beasts of the fields such as deer wander about the water's edge, fast, and die by drowning, too. Once when King Śīlāditya was giving alms, a couple of rhesus monkeys, [a male and a female,] were 73

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nearby. The female was killed by a dog. The male carried the dead body [of the female] and threw it into the river, then it committed suicide after fasting for many days.

Again, going more than five hundred li from a large forest southwest of this place, we reach the state of Kauśāṃbī (Jiaoshangmi), which belongs to Central India. There is a great monastery in the old palace of the capital city. [The monastery building] is sixty chi high. A buddha statue of carved sandalwood, above which is a stone canopy, was made by King Udayana (Wutuoyana, formerly called King Youtuoyan, and called Chuai in the Tang dynasty). Mysterious [events] and light occasionally arise there. Various kings have tried to move [the statue] relying on force, but in the end no one could transfer it.

In the past, the Buddha ascended to heaven and expounded the Dharma for his mother. King [Udayana] asked Maudgalyāyana to use his supernatural power to ascend to heaven with an artist so that he could to try to make an image of the [Buddha's] form. When the Buddha descended from heaven, the statue rose to its feet and received him. The Buddha said to [the statue], acknowledging [its service], "Please serve only Buddhism." A hundred-plus paces east of the monastery is the site where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. The Buddha's bathroom and well remain, and even today [the well] still has enough water to draw. In the southeast corner of the city there are the house of the elder Ghoṣila (Jushiluo), a Buddhist monastery, a stupa for the [Buddha's] hair and nail [relics], and the place where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. A stone chamber nine li west of the city is the site where the Buddha subjugated a poisonous dragon. Next to it is a large stupa, more than twenty zhang high. This is the place where the Buddha roamed around [in leisure] as well as a stupa for the [Buddha's] hair and nail [relics]. People who are ill go to pray there, and many of them are healed. [The Buddha prophesied] that the Dharma left by Śākyamuni will be destroyed in this state. When people, regardless of their high and low social positions, enter the territory [of this state], they spontaneously feel sentimental (i.e., nostalgic and softhearted). Traveling seven hundred li northeast of the [dragon] cave, crossing over the Ganges River to the north bank, we come to the city of Kaśapura (Kāśapura or Kājapura; Jiashebuluo). This is the place where Dharmapāla Bodhisattva 74

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subdued non-Buddhists. The Buddha once expounded the Dharma for six months here, and there is the place where he roamed around [in leisure], as well as a stupa for the [Buddha's] hair and nail [relics]. Again, going a hundred eighty li north from this place, we arrive at the state of Viśāka (Bingsuojia), which belongs to Central India. South of the capital city is a temple and a stupa that rises to a height of over twenty zhang. The Buddha once expounded the Dharma for six years in this place. Next to it is a strange tree, seventy chi in height. [The tree] does not change over time. It grew vigorously from a twig the Buddha had tossed away after cleaning his teeth with it. Various people of wrong views and non-Buddhists vie with each other trying to cut [the tree] down, but it soon grows back as before. Those who try to cut down [the tree] receive misfortune. Beside [the tree] is a place where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives and a stupa for the [Buddha's] hair and nail [relics]. The corners of the foundation [of the stupa] are connected. A grove is reflected in a pond.

Again, going five hundred li northeast from here, we come to the state of Śrāvastī (Shiluofaxidi, formerly called the state of Shewei [in China]), which belongs to Central India. The capital city has been devastated. There is a small stupa on the eastern foundation of the old palace. This was [the capital city of the state governed by] King Prasenajit (Boluoxinashiduo, formerly called Posini, called Shengjun in the Tang dynasty). There is a place where a bhikṣuṇī built a monastery. Next, a stupa on the eastern side [of another stupa, formerly Prajāpati's monastery,] is the site of the old house of Sudatta (Sudaduo, called Shanshi in the Tang dynasty). Next to it is a large stupa. This is the place where Aṅgulimāla (Yangjulimoluo, called Zhiman in the Tang dydnasty) abandoned his evil mind [and took refuge in the Buddha]. About six li south of the city is the Jeta Grove, the Garden of Anātha piṇḍada, offered by Crown Prince [Jeta, where Sudatta] built a temple. Today it is in ruins but there are still [two] stone pillars, more than seventy chi in height, which were built by King Aśoka. Only a brick chamber remains; everything else has vanished, and inside there is a golden image [of the Buddha] expounding the Dharma for his mother. Northeast [of the Garden of Anāthapiṇḍada] is a stupa at the place where the Buddha washed [the body of] an ill monk.

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To the northwest is a stupa at the place where Maudgalyāyana tried to lift up Śāriputra's sash. Not far from [that stupa] is a well, from which water was drawn and used for the Buddha. Furthermore, there is a path that Śāriputra along with the Buddha roamed [in leisure] as well as a place where they expounded the Dharma. There are also stupas to show wholesomeness where auspicious signs, heavenly music, and rare fragrance often descended [from heaven]. Some non-Buddhists once killed a woman in order to attempt to slander the Buddha. A stupa was built to mark the place. A hundred-plus paces east of the temple is a large, deep pit. This is the place where Devadatta, who intended to poison the Buddha, fell into [hell] while still alive. To the south is another large pit, where Kokālika (Quqieli) Bhikṣu, who tried to injure the Buddha, fell into [hell] while still alive. In addition, eight hundred paces to the south is another large, deep pit, the place where Ciñcā, a brahman woman, slandered the Buddha and fell into [hell] while still alive. These three large pits are all very deep, [seemingly] bottomless. Even when there is a large amount of rainfall and much [water] pours into them, there is no standing [water] visible within them afterward.

Seventy paces east from the temple is a monastery called Covered-by-Shadow (Yingfu), sixty chi in height. Inside there is a seated figure [of the Buddha] facing east. This is where [the Buddha] debated with non-Buddhists. Next, to the east is a deva shrine, as large as the monastery. In the early part of the day the shadow [of the shrine] covers the western area, but it never casts shade on the monastery, while by evening the shadow has moved east and consequently [the monastery] casts shades on the deva shrine. Moreover, four li east of [the shrine] is a large dried-up pond, which is the place where King Virūḍhaka (or Vidūdabha; Pilushijia, formerly called Liuli [in China]) fell into hell. Someone later erected [a stupa] there on which [the incident] was recorded. There is also the first temple built by Śāriputra at the place where he contested with non-Buddhists. A stupa was erected there and [this incident] was recorded on it, too.

Four li northwest of the temple is Andhavana ("Grove Where One Obtains His Eyes"), in which there is a stupa at the place where the Buddha roamed around [in leisure]. At the edge of this area is where King Prasenajit gouged out the eyes of five hundred bandits. [The bandits] heard of the Buddha's power of mercy and immediately recovered [their eyes]. They then abandoned 76

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the canes [they had used after losing their eyes], and these subsequently grew [into trees and become the Andhavana Grove].

Sixty li northwest of the city is an old city, the place where Kāśyapa Buddha was born during the time [in the present cosmic period] when the human life span was twenty thousand years. To the north of it is [a stupa for] the relics of this buddha's body (Skt. śarīra). King Aśoka built the stupa; this is recorded on its side.

Again, going five hundred li to the southeast, we arrive at the state of Kapilavastu (Jiebiluofasudu guo, formerly called Jiapiluo guo [in China]), which belongs to Central India. There is no longer anyone residing in the old capital city. In a monastery built on the foundation [of the former main palace hall] a statue of King [Śuddhodana] is set up. Beside [the monastery] was the main house of Lady Mahāmāyā (Mohe Moye, called Dashu, "Great Art," in the Tang dynasty). In a monastery built on the foundation [of this house] there is a statue of the lady. In a nearby monastery there is an image of [Śākyamuni] Bodhisattva when he descended to be conceived [by Lady Mahāmāyā]. [Each Buddhist school] holds a different view of [the date when he was conceived]. The Sthaviravāda school advocates that it is the fifteenth day of the fifth month [of the calendar] of the Tang dynasty. Various schools [other than the Theravāda school] say that it is the eighth of the fifth month in this [Tang calendar]. Probably this is simply due to the differing information [they obtained].

A stupa south of the city is the place where the Crown Prince (i.e., Siddhārtha) wrestled [with other boys] and threw an elephant over the city [wall], and where the elephant landed on the ground made a large hole. Near that place is a monastery in which a statue of the Crown Prince stands and the place where he studied his lessons. A nearby monastery was the main house of his wife. Statues of [his wife] Yaśodhārā (Yeshutuoluo) and [his son] Rāhula (Luohuluo) are found [in the monastery].

An alternative version holds that one early evening Crown Prince [Siddhārtha] went through the north gate of the city and departed. Moreover, in a monastery in the southeast corner of the city [there is an image of] the Crown Prince going beyond the sky riding a white horse. This is the place where [the Crown Prince] left the city. [Outside of] each of the four city gates is a monastery in which there are images of the old, the sick, the dead, and a śramaṇa. In a 500c

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nyagrodha grove four li south of the city is a stupa at the place where the Buddha attained enlightenment and expounded the Dharma to heavenly and human beings.

There is a stupa in the old city fifty li south of the city. This was the place where Krakucchanda (Jialuojiacuntuo) Buddha was born when the human life span was sixty thousand years [in the present cosmic period]. The stupa southeast of the [capital] city is precisely where this buddha passed away. King Aśoka built a stone pillar, three zhang in height, in front of it. Moreover, there is a stupa in an old city more than thirty li northeast [of this city]. Kanakamuni (Jianuojiamouni) Buddha was born in this place when the human life span was forty thousand years [in the present cosmic period]. A stupa northeast of this city is placed precisely where this buddha passed away. King Aśoka built a stone pillar, two-plus zhang in height, for [this buddha] and this is recorded in an engraved inscription. More than forty li northeast of the city there is a stupa at the site of a tree under which Crown Prince [Siddhārtha] sat in meditation. There are several hundred to several thousand stupas northwest of the large city for the Śākya people who were killed [by King Virūḍhaka]. There are stupas for the four Śākya men who resisted King [Virūḍhaka's] soldiers. King Virūḍhaka was driven out of the city [of the Śākya clan] but [the four] men were not accepted [by the Śākya people]. They were punished and exiled from the state territory. [Their bloodlines,] however, have continued until now.77 A stupa among nyagrodha trees south of the city is the site where the Buddha returned to see his father, the king, for the first time [after he had attained enlightenment]. A stupa outside of the south city gate is where Crown Prince [Siddhārtha] had a contest with [the Śākya boys like] his brothers and shot [an iron drum].78 More than thirty li southeast a spring gushed out when the ground was pierced by an arrow shot by the Crown Prince. It is commonly called Arrow Fountain (Śarakūpa). If people who are ill drink [this water] they will often be cured. Or if they take some of the mud and apply it to their forehead, all parts of their body that are in pain are healed. Moreover, ninety li northeast [of this place] is the Lumbinī Grove. There is a pond in which the Śākya people bathed. Flowers are reflected in the water. Twenty-five paces north of the pond is an aśoka tree, which has already withered now. This is the place where [Śākyamuni] Buddha was born. A 78

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theory says that [his birthday] is the eighth day of the third month in the [Chinese calendar]. The Theravāda school asserts that it is the fifteenth day of the third month in the [Chinese calendar].

Next, to the east is a stupa at the site where two dragons bathed Crown Prince [Siddhārtha]. Immediately after his birth the [infant] Buddha walked seven paces in each of the four directions without support. Large lotus flowers emerged from the two places where he walked. After Crown Prince [Siddhārtha] was born from [his mother's] right side, Śakra-devendra received him in a cloth, and the four heavenly kings held him in their hands and placed him on a golden table.

Altogether four stupas were built [in memory of the four heavenly kings' service], and a stone pillar was erected to indicate it clearly. Next to [the four stupas] a small river runs to the southeast, commonly called Oil River. After Crown Prince [Siddārtha's] birth, heaven transformed an [ordinary] pond into a smooth and glossy pond so that [Lady Mahāmāyā] could cleanse her body to remove the filth [of childbirth]. [The pond] has now become a river, but the water's surface is still greasy, as if slicked with oil. Again, traveling more than two hundred li east from this [river] through a wild forest, we reach the state of Rāmagrāma (Lanmo), which belongs to Central India. The capital city is in ruins. There is a stupa of the Buddha southeast of the city, which has settled lower than it was originally and now stands a hundred chi high. When it was built [it contained a] one-eighth share of the [Buddha's] relics. Mysterious light occasionally appears here. Nearby is a clean pond. A dragon that transformed into a snake emerged from [the pond] and circumambulated the stupa [in a clockwise direction]. Some wild elephants picked flowers to scatter [over the stupa]. King Aśoka intended to open [the stupa to distribute the relics] but the dragon [of this pond] protected [the relics] and would not allow him to do so.

Furthermore, a hundred-plus li east [of the temple of novices] is a large stupa at the site where Crown Prince [Siddhārtha] took off his valuable clothes when he arrived here, and where he sent [his driver] Chandaka along with the maṇi-stone from [his crown] back to his father, the king. Moreover, in the east there is a jambu tree [whose branches and leaves have already fallen off but the dried-up trunk still remains. There is a small stupa at the site where Crown Prince [Siddhārtha] exchanged his valuable clothes for a 79

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tattered robe. A stupa near this place is where [Siddhārtha] took the tonsure. His age at the time is not certain; it is said that he was either nineteen or twenty-nine years old.

Moreover, traveling a hundred and ninety li southeast, we come to a stupa, three zhang in height, in a nyagrodha grove. In former times people collected the remains of the ashes and charcoal from the Buddha's funeral pyre and built a stupa here. If people who are ill pray here [for their recovery] they will be cured. There is also a stupa at the place where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. It is more than a hundred chi in height and several hundreds of small stupas stand around it.

Again, going five hundred li northeast from here through a great grove along a rough and precipitous path, we come to the state of Kuśinagara (Jushina jieluo), which belongs to Central India. The city is dilapidated and only a small number of people live there. A stupa in the northeast corner of the city is an old residence of Cunda [who made offerings to the Buddha].79 [Water of] the well [at this old residence] is still good. [The well] was dug in order to offer [water to the Buddha].

At a point four li northwest of the city we cross over the Ajitavatī River (Ashiduo fadi, called Youjin, "Having Gold," in the Tang dynasty). Near the west bank [of the river] are groves of śāla trees. In the middle of two groves, several tens of paces from each other, are four [śāla] trees that are particularly tall. There was a great monastery made of bricks, with an image of the Buddha entering nirvana; he reposes with his head northward. [A stupa] nearby is more than two hundred chi tall. In front of it is a stone pillar that records the conditions of the Buddha's death. [Regarding the date of the Buddha's death,] some schools say it is the fifteenth day of the third month [of the calendar] of this land (i.e., the Tang dynasty). The Sarvāstivāda school advocates that is the eighth day of the ninth month of this [Tang calendar]. [Regarding the period since the time of the Buddha's death,] various schools hold different assertions. One school says that as of this year, the third year of the Longshuo era (663), it has been twelve hundred years. This [theory] relies on a record engraved on a stone pillar of the Bodhi (Puti) Temple. Another school says that it has been thirteen hundred years, another says that it has been fifteen hundred years, and yet another school says that nine hundred years have passed but it has been less than a thousand years [since the Buddha's passing]. 80

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Near the [brick] monastery are [two] stupas, one at the place where the Buddha fought a fire when he was the king of pheasants in the past, and the other where he saved living beings when he was a deer. Next, a stupa to the west is where Subhadra (Subatuoluo, called Shanxian, "Revelation of Wholesomeness," in the Tang dynasty), realized nirvana.80 A stupa next to it is the site where Vajradhara fell down on the ground [in extreme grief over the Buddha's death].81 Next, a nearby stupa is the site where the [Buddha's golden] coffin was detained for seven days. A stupa next to it is where his mother, [Lady Mahāmāyā,] descended and wept for [the death of] the Buddha after Aniruddha had ascended to [Tuṣita] Heaven and reported to her. Crossing over the Nairañjanā (Nilianchanna) River north of the city, at three hundred paces there is a stupa. This is the place where the Buddha's body was cremated (niediepanna, called fenshao, "to burn," in the Tang dynasty). The ground is still yellowish-black and the soil there is mixed with ashes and charcoal. Those who pray wholeheartedly are able to obtain relics here. A stupa next to the place is the site where the Buddha revealed both of his feet [from the golden coffin] for Mahākāśyapa. There is a stupa and a stone pillar in front of it. The incident of the distribution of the relics to eight states is recorded with an engraved inscription [on this pillar]. Again, traveling five hundred li southwest from here through a great grove, we come to the state of Vārāṇasī (Poluoni, formerly called Boluo na [in China]), which belongs to Central India. The west side of the capital city faces the Ganges River. The city is teeming with inhabitants. Northeast of the city is the Barṇa River. Ten-plus li northeast from the river is Deer Park (Skt. Mṛgadāva) Temple. A stupa on the southwest is more than a hundred chi tall. In front of it is a stone pillar, over seventy chi in height, transparent and clean. If people pray sincerely [here various] images appear in accordance with their good or evil [thoughts]. This is the place where the Buddha preached the Dharma for the first time after he attained buddhahood. There are three stupas nearby, at the site where the three [past] buddhas [Krakucchanda, Kanakamuni, and Kāśyapa] spent their daily lives. In the neighboring area are various stupas marking the places where five hundred pratyekabuddhas entered nirvana.

A nearby stupa stands where Maitreya Bodhisattva received a prediction about his future attainment of buddhahood. In addition, a stupa on the west 81

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is where Jyotipāla (Huming) Bodhisattva, who was [Śākyamuni] Buddha in the past, received a prediction of his attainment of buddhahood in the present age from Kāśyapa Buddha. Next, on the south is where the four [past] buddhas roamed around [in leisure]. [The site] is fifty paces long and seven chi high, constructed by piling up blue rocks. On this a statue of Śākyamuni [Buddha] walking is set up. The shape [of the statue] is particularly extraordinary: hair sticks up from the fleshy protuberance (Skt. uṣṇīṣa) on top of the head. His mysterious figure is completely visible and marvelously responsive to prayers. There are numerous sites in [Deer Park] Temple, several hundreds of monasteries and stupas, so it is difficult to give a complete account of [them all]. To the west of the temple is a clean pond, two hundred paces around. The Buddha formerly bathed here. Next, a small pond to the west is where the Buddha once washed utensils. Next, a small pond to the north is where the Buddha formerly washed his clothes. Dragons dwell in these three ponds and the water tastes sweet and pure. If someone touches [the water] in an arrogant [or aggressive] way, a beast called a kumbhīra immediately harms him. Near [the pond in which the Buddha washed his clothes] is a square stone with an imprint of the pattern of the Buddha's kaṣāya [robe]. If non-Buddhists or evil people tread on this spot rashly, the dragons of the ponds generate wind and rain and injure them.

There is another stupa next to this place. The Buddha was once the king of the six-tusked elephants. This is the site where he saw a hunter [who falsely] wore a Dharma robe [attempting to get close to the elephants to take their tusks], so [the Buddha] removed his own tusks and gave them to the hunter.82 There is another stupa at the site where formerly, [in order to teach moderation,] the Buddha asked an elephant and a monkey about the size [of a nyagrodha tree they had seen].83 Furthermore, another stupa in a great grove is the site where in the past, when the Buddha and Devadatta were kings of deer, the Buddha tried to sacrifice his life for a pregnant deer.84 Deer Park was named for this [story].

Three li southwest of the temple is a stupa at the site where five [Śākya] people first received the Buddha. In addition, three li east from the great grove is another stupa [where] in the past, when the Buddha was a hare living together with other various animals, recognizing his body to be small he burned himself to offer it as food [to Śakra-devendra]. Because of this, Śakra-devendra was 82

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moved and descended to praise [the hare].85 Consequently he caused an image of the hare to appear in the moon.

Again, traveling three hundred li following the Ganges River to the east, we arrive at the state of Yuddhapati (or Garjapatipura; Zhanzhu). The capital city, near the Ganges River, is teeming with inhabitants. There is a stupa in a temple northwest of the city in which a sheng of the Buddha's relics is deposited. Formerly the Buddha preached the Dharma here for seven days, and also it is the place where the four [past] buddhas walked about [in leisure]. North of the river is a stupa [at the site where] the Buddha subdued evil demons. [The stupa] has already partly collapsed to the ground. There is also the site where the Buddha expounded the Dharma for cannibalistic demons. Furthermore, crossing the river to the southeast and going more than a hundred li, we come to a stupa placed precisely [at the site where] the Buddha's relics were divided [into eight portions]. The bottle [of relics] and the remaining relics emit light on the days of purification.

Again, crossing the Ganges River to the northeast and going more than a hundred fifty li, we come to the state of Vaiśālī (Feisheli guo, formerly called Pisheli guo [in China]), which belongs to Central India. The capital city is in ruins; the circumference of its old foundation is seventy li. Only a small number of people still live here. The circumference of the imperial palace is five li. Six li northwest of the palace is a temple stupa at the place where [the Buddha] delivered the Vimalakīrtinirdeśa.

Furthermore, to the east is a stupa where Śāriputra testified to the fruit [of arhatship]. In addition, a large stupa to the east was built for one of the eight portions of the relics obtained by the king [of Vaiśālī]. The amount of relics [he obtained] was about one hu, from which King Aśoka took nine sheng and built other stupas in order to evenly [distribute the relics]. Later, a certain king further intended to open [the large stupa to take the remaining relics] when an earthquake occurred. [The king] thereupon stopped. Next, to the south is a pond some monkeys dug out for the Buddha. To the west of the pond is where a group of monkeys climbed up into a tree with the Buddha's almsbowl and collected honey [for the Buddha]. To the south of the pond is where the monkeys offered the honey to the Buddha. Each [of these incidents] has been recorded on the stupas [in these sites]. 83

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About four li northeast from a temple is a stupa [built on] the foundation of Vimalakīrti's old residence, which still shows numerous wonders. A nearby house [appears to have been made by] piling up tiles, but it is traditionally said that it was made by piling up rocks. [The house] is precisely the place where [Vimalakīrti] preached the Dharma in the manifestation of an ill person. During the Xianqing era (656-661) of the Great Tang dynasty, the Imperial envoys Wei Changshi and Wang Xuance passed Vimalakīrti's residence heading toward India. They measured its foundation with their tablets. It was only ten times the length of a tablet. Because of this, it was designated as the tenfoot-square room (fangzhangshi). There are also the sites of Elder [Vimalakīrti's son] Ratnakāra's residence and Āmrapālī's residence, as well as where the Buddha's mother's sisters died. In all [these places stupas] have been put up with inscribed records.

A stupa four li north of a temple [located five or six li northwest of the capital city]86 is the site where heavenly and human beings gathered to send off the Buddha, who was leaving for Kuśinagara. Next, a stupa behind this place is where the Buddha took a final look back at the city of [Vaiśālī]. Next is the place where Āmrapālī donated her garden to the Buddha. A stupa beside this place is where the Buddha repeatedly foretold to Ānanda that he would soon enter nirvana. Moreover, a nearby stupa is where a thousand children met their parents.87 These children are a thousand buddhas who appeared during the auspicious kalpa. A stupa built on the foundation of the lecture hall of an old multistoried building on the east sometimes emits light. This is the place where the Buddha expounded the Pumenzhu (Dwelling of the Universal Gate).88

A large stupa located fifteen li southeast of the city is where seven hundred wise people and sages reconvened [to compile the Buddhist teachings]. On each of the south and north banks of the Ganges River there is a stupa at the sites where Ānanda divided his body (i.e., relics) and gave them to two states. Again, passing through a state traveling fifteen hundred li northwest, and passing through mountains and valleys, we come to the state of Nepāla (Nipoluo guo, a part of present-day Nepal), which belongs to North India. To the southeast, not far from the capital city, is Water-Fire Village. About one li east [from the village] is the Ajīva waterpool (Aqipomishui), the circumference of which is twenty paces. Even in times of drought or flood, [this pool] is calm and does 84

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not overflow but continually releases water. If a household fire is thrown into it the fire spreads all over the pond, and the smoke and flames rise several chi high. If water is poured over it the fire burns even more vigorously, and even if clods of earth are thrown onto it they completely burn up. Regardless of whatever is thrown [onto the flames], it all turns to ashes. If a cauldron is set up over the waterpool of fire to cook food, [it] is immediately cooked. The Xiande zhuan (Biographies of Virtuous People) says: Formerly there was a gold chest in this water. Once, a certain king wanted someone to take it out for him. After the chest was raised out of the mud, people and elephants tried to pull it up but it did not move. One night a god said, "This contains a crown for Maitreya Buddha. Later when Maitreya descends [to this world] to become [a buddha], it is intended that he will put on [this crown]. No one can obtain it." The fire is protection offered by a dragon.

A particularly outstanding temple stands on an isolated mountain located more than ten li south of the city. [The temple buildings] appear stacked one upon another; they look just like clouds. There are pine, bamboo, fish, and a dragon there and [animals] follow people obediently. If a person catches an animal and eats it, all the family members of the criminal are put to death. Recently the laws of [neighboring] states follow those of this state as to comings and goings. [The north of this state] borders the East State of Women (i.e., Suvarṇa) and the Tibetan regime. It is more than ten thousand li from the [lands controlled by either the] Tang dynasty or by India. Again, going a hundred fifty li south and crossing the Ganges River, we arrive at the state of Magadha (Mojietuo), which belongs to Central India. A small number of people inhabit the city but there are very many people living in villages. The old city exists to the north of the mountain [of Rājagṛha and lies toward] the east. Two hundred forty li north is the Ganges River. A stone pillar in the northern part of the old imperial palace, several zhang tall, marks the place where formerly King Aśoka created the infernal regions. [Aśoka] is King Bimbisāra's great-grandson89 and the husband of [King] Śīlāditya's daughter. The city governed by him was named Kusumapura (Huashi) (i.e., Pāṭaliputra). It was given this name because there were numerous flowers in the imperial palace.

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There is a large stupa south of the stone pillar, one of [King Aśoka's] eighty-four thousand stupas. One sheng of the Buddha's relics are contained in it, and it sometimes shows bright good omens. It was comissioned by King Aśoka; Upagupta Arhat employed spiritual beings to construct it. In a monastery near [the large stupa] is a large boulder, at the place where the Buddha was about to enter nirvana. As he was traveling north toward Kuśinagara, he [stopped to] look back at Magadha in the south. He stepped on this rock and left an impression of both feet. [One footprint] is one chi and eight cun long, and six cun wide. [Both] footprints have wheel signs, and each one of the flower patterns on the ten toes is different from the others. Recently an evil king of Karṇasuvarṇa (i.e., Śaśāṅka) tried to destroy the Buddha's footprints. After they were chiseled off, however, [the flatness of the boulder] was restored and the [flower] patterns became as beautiful as before. [The boulder] was then thrown into the Ganges River but it soon returned to its original place. In the twenty-third year of the Zhenguan era (649) a [Chinese] envoy came here to copy the footprints. Next to [the boulder] is a stupa at the site where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. Southeast of the old city is a place where Nāgārjuna Bodhisattva subdued non-Buddhists. Next, in the north is a stupa for [a brahman who received instruction on] eloquence from [evil] spirits. Aśvaghoṣa dealt with him.

Furthermore, going southwest and crossing the Nairañjanā River, is Gayā city, in which a small number live, but there are more than a thousand households [of the brahman caste].90 Going about six li southwest from the city, we come to Mount Gayā (Skt. Gayāśīrṣa, present-day Brahmayoni). The valley is deep, dark, and obscure. People call it the sacred mountain. From ancient times, sovereigns have officiated the rite of worshiping heaven and earth and report the succession to be accomplished. On the peak is a stone stupa, a hundred-plus chi in height, which occasionally emits strange light. The Buddha preached sutras such as the Baoyun jing (Scripture on Treasured Clouds) here.

Crossing the Nairañjanā River southeast of the mountain and going less than two li, we arrive at Mount Prāgbodhi (Boluojiputi), called Zhengjue ("Right Perfect Enlightenment") [in the Tang dynasty]. When the Buddha testified [to having attained right, perfect enlightenment], he first ascended 86

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[this mountain], and due to this connection it was so named. The Buddha ascended the peak from the northeast ridge of the mountain and was about to enter the vajra meditation when the earth quaked and the mountain trembled. The [mountain] god, afraid, said to the Buddha, ["This mountain is not a good place to attain right, perfect enlightenment"]. So he went further to the southwest and arrived at a stone chamber on the midslope of the mountain, where he sat [in meditation]. The earth and the mountain quaked again. The Śuddhāvāsa [heavenly] god said to [the Buddha], "Fifteen li southwest of here, near the place where you practiced asceticism, there is a vajra seat under a pippala tree (i.e., the bodhi tree). This is the bodhi seat. All buddhas of the three periods of existence completely attained right, perfect enlightenment at that place." So the Buddha departed to go there, but he left his shadow [on the mountain] for the sake of the dragon of the stone chamber, [who had begged the Buddha to stay].91 People of the world call it the "distinguished place." The bodhi tree is surrounded by a fence made of brick, high and strong. It is wide from the east to west, with a circumference of about five hundred and forty paces. Rare trees and celebrated flowers planted in lines cast shade in rows. The main gate opens to the east and faces the Nairañjanā River. The south gate is contiguous with the great flower pond, and the west is blocked by strategic and impregnable topography. The north gate leads to a great temple. In the courtyard [of the temple] numerous sacred sites and various stupas are lined up. In the center of the fenced area around the [bodhi] tree is the vajra seat. In ancient times, at the beginning of the auspicious kalpa, this vajra seat came into existence together with the earth, and is part of the trichiliocosm. Its bottom reaches to the gold layer and its top sits on the surface of the earth.92 It is made of vajra, with a circumference of more than a hundred paces. The thousand buddhas [of the auspicious kalpa] were all seated here and entered the vajra meditation. Therefore, it is called [the vajra seat]. This is exactly the place in which they all attained enlightenment, so it is also called the "place of enlightenment" (Skt. bodhimaṇḍa). Even when the earth quakes, [this place] alone does not tremble. The date of the Buddha's attainment of enlightenment is controversial. Some [schools] say it is the eighth day of the third month [in the Chinese calendar], and others say it is the fifteenth day [of the third month in the Chinese calendar]. 87

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Outside of the north gate of the fence is Mahābodhi Temple, which consists of six compounds including a three-storied building. The fence [around the temple] is four zhang high, made of brick. The king of Siṃhala (present-day Ceylon) purchased this place and built this temple. There are only a thousand monks. [The temple] is maintained by the Mahayana-Sthaviravāda school (Dasheng shangzuo bu). There are relics of bones that look like human finger knuckles and relics [of bits of flesh] as large as pearls. The thirtieth day of the twelfth month in that land (i.e., India) is equivalent to the fifteenth day of the first month here [in China]. People call it the month of the great supernatural transformation (da shenbianyue).93 On the evening [of the thirtieth day] [the relics] always emit light and bring about auspicious omens; rare flowers rain down from the sky and fill up the courtyard of trees. In the regular practice of that land, at this time a huge number of Buddhist monks and laypeople vie with one another in presenting offerings [to these sacred sites] for seven days and seven nights. They have generally two intentions: to see the light and auspicious omens, and to collect some leaves of the tree. [The bodhi] tree is bluish-green in color and it does not change color in winter or summer. Every year, on the [anniversary] day of [the Buddha's] entry into nirvana and in the late summer, the tree withers and drops [leaves] for a short time. Overnight [the tree] puts forth shoots and is restored to its former state. After a time [the original tree] was cut down for King Aśoka's concubine. [Pieces of the tree] were collected [and placed] in an area several tens of paces west [from the original site of the tree], where [a brahman] burned them in order to worship heaven. Before the smoke and flames had dissipated, suddenly a couple of [bodhi] trees began to grow. Amid the raging flames the leaves grew densely and [the trees] were as luxuriant as [their previous condition]. Therefore [these trees] are called the ashen bodhi trees. On witnessing [this extraordinary event] King [Aśoka] gave rise to faith [in Buddhism]. He poured delicious milk on the remaining roots of the [bodhi tree]. By the next morning [the tree] had grown back, just as before. The king's concubine, angered by this, had someone cut down the tree again at night. King [Aśoka] again prayed for [the recovery of the tree] and poured milk on its base, and it soon grew back. [To protect it, the king had] rocks piled up around [the tree] to form a fence more than a zhang high.94 88

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Recently, King Śaśāṅka of the state of Karṇasuvarṇa again had the tree cut down and made [his men] dig the ground deeply to a water vein [in order to uncover its roots], but they could not dig down far enough to reach the bottom of the roots. He then set fire to [the tree] and burned it. Furthermore, he had sugarcane juice sprinkled on to cause it to rot and then uprooted its base completely. Several months later, King Pūrṇavarman (Bucinafamo), who is called Manzhou here [in China], a great-great-grandson of the former King Aśoka, heard that the tree had been destroyed. He prostrated his body [in worship] and begged the [Buddhist] monks to circumambulate the large pit where the tree had been, into which milk from several thousands of cows was poured. On the night of the sixth day, a [bodhi] tree grew to a height of over a zhang. [Pūrṇavarman] was afraid that [the tree] might be cut down again in later ages, so a rock fence, two zhang and four chi high, was built around it. The tree is presently more than two zhang higher than the rock fence, and more than three chi in circumference.

To the east of the [bodhi] tree is a monastery made of blue bricks. Its height is more than a hundred sixty chi and one side of its foundation is more than twenty paces wide. Set into [the foundation] is a hook-shaped railing, one zhang in height, that surrounds [the temple building]. Each of the layered niches houses a gold image, and images of heavenly transcendents are engraved on each of the four the walls. At the top [of the monastery building] is a bronze āmalaka (called a treasure bottle (baoping) or jeweled platform (baotai) here [in China]). To the east next to [the monastery building] is a three-storied pavilion with particularly remarkable eaves. All [parts of the pavilion] are engraved with gold and silver ornaments. Outside of the triple gateways are niches; an Avalokiteśvara image is in the left [niche] and a Maitreya image is in the right [niche]. Both [of these figures] are made of cast silver and about a zhang tall. This monastery was built by King Aśoka. At first [the monastery] was small but it was later expanded and is now quite large. According to the Wang Xuance zhuan, in the western states there are innumerable auspicious images. Moreover, the Record of the Image of the Great Bodhi Tree says:

Formerly, the king of Siṃhala, called Brahma King Siri Meghavaṇṇa (Shimiqubamo, called Gongdeyun, "Clouds of Merit," in the Tang dynasty), 89

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sent two bhikṣus to visit this temple. The senior [bhikṣu's] name was Mahāyaśas (Mohenan, called Daming, "Great Fame," here [in China]), and the junior [bhikṣu's] name was Vyākaraṇa (Youpo, called Shouji, "To Predict the Future Attainment of Buddhahood," here [in China]). Those two bhikṣus worshiped the bodhi tree and the vajra seat. After they finished worshiping, the temple would not accept them to reside there. The two bhikṣus then returned to their own country. King [Siri Meghavaṇṇa] asked the bhikṣus, "You went there to worship the sacred place and returned. How were the wonderful and auspicious omens?" The bhikṣus replied, "There is no place in the great land of Jambudvīpa for us to stay." The king, hearing this, then sent an envoy carrying numerous pearls and valuables to present to Samudragupta (Sanmotuoluojueduo), the king of that country (i.e., India).

Because of this, since that time [many] bhikṣus from Siṃhala [reside] here. Furthermore, at the time when the venerable [buddha] image on the vajra seat was originally created, a foreign visitor told a crowd of people, "I have heard that a good skilled artisan has been invited to make an image. I am skillful and I can make this image."

The people said, "What is necessary [for you to make it]?" The man replied, "I only need incense, water, raw materials, and lamp oil." The materials to support [his work] were already available. He said to the monks of the temple, "I must close the door in order create [the image]. The time limit is up to the sixth month [from now]. Be careful! Do not open the door! Do not worry about food and drink for me, either!" The man then entered [the stupa] and did not come out again. Four days before the six-month deadline [for completion of the image], some people were commenting in a disharmonious way, "The inside of this stupa is cramped and he might slip out. How come he has not opened [the door] and appeared for so many months? I have doubts about his behavior." So they opened the stupa's door and they did not see the artisan, but the image had already been completed, except for only a small incomplete part above the right breast. Later the sky god, surpised [at their behavior], admonished the people and said, "I am Maitreya Bodhisattva." The figure is seated on an east-west axis and is one zhang, one chi, and five cun in height. At its shoulders it measures six chi and two cun wide. 90

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The knees are eight chi and eight cun apart from each other. The vajra seat is four chi and three cun in height, and one zhang, two chi, and five cun wide. The stupa, originally built by King Aśoka, had a hook-shaped stone railing. In later ages there were two brahman brothers: the elder was Wangzhu ("Virtuous King") and the younger was Fanzhu ("Pure King").95 The elder brother rebuilt the stupa to the height of a hundred zhou. The younger brother built the temple.96

That image was brought to completion by Maitreya himself. Since then, all Buddhist monks and laypeople attempt to copy its design but it is difficult to match its sacredness and extraordinariness. No one has yet been able to replicate it. Messengers from the king came to the [temple] seeking the services of various monks, and various messengers of this [land] (i.e., China) requested [the monks] with utmost sincerity and eagerness to circumambulate the image reciting a sutra as well as to repent of sins for a number of consecutive days. Concurrently [the Chinese messengers] explained the aim of their visit. They then obtained drawings that completely resemble [the image] and a textbook was produced for this image. Up to now there are ten fascicles that have been transmitted to this land (China). The skilled workmen for the [project] were Song Fazhi and others. They were extremely skillful in creating the sacred appearance [of the image] and copied the sacred countenance. [The replica image] arrived at the national capital [Chang'an], where Buddhist monks and laypeople vied with one another to [approach it and] touch it. The record of Master [Xuan]zang's travels (Da Tang xiyuji) says: The illustration and the decoration above the right breast of the image was incomplete. That portion was filled in with numerous jewels. When one regards [the image's] appearance from a distance, he ends up being discontented. The image is in a seated position with crossed legs, the right leg crossed over [the left]. The left hand is held up and the right hand hangs down. The reason the image's [right] hand points down is because when the Buddha attained buddhahood he spoke to the king of devils (i.e., Māra) while pointing to the earth to bear testimony [of his attainment of buddhahood]. When the [bodhi] tree was recently cut down by King Śaśāṅka, he ordered a minister to destroy the image, and then the king returned from the East. The minister, who originally had faith [in Buddhism, could not 91

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destroy the image]. So he erected a brick barrier wall in front of the image [to hide it from view]. He felt ashamed that it was now dark [inside of the barrier], so he placed a lamp in there. An image of Maheśvara was drawn on the exterior [of the barrier wall]. [The minister] then reported having completed his mission [to destroy the image to the king]. When King Śaśāṅka heard [this], he became afraid. His whole body broke out in blisters, his skin was cracked all over, and he soon died. The minister swiftly returned [to the image] and removed the barrier wall. Even though many days had passed the lamp had not yet gone out. Today [the image] is placed in a deep inner room. If at daybreak one holds up a mirror to reflect light onto [the image], its appearance can be seen. Viewers worship [the buddha image], pay respect to it, and [are so absorbed in devotion that they forget to depart from the place for a long time]. Moreover, according to the Wang Xuance zhuan:

This Chinese envoy, on receiving the imperial decree, went to Mahābodhi Temple in the state of Magadha and erected a stone tablet. On the eleventh day of the second month of the nineteenth year of the Zhenguan era (645), [the stone tablet] was raised to the west of a stupa under the bodhi tree. The envoy manager and Clerk of the Transit Authorization Bureau, Wei Cai, wrote:

Formerly, when the Han dynasty and the Wei kingdom ruled over the land, they waged war frequently. A hundred thousand troops were mobilized, and a thousand catties of gold were spent per day. They still esteemed the north and ruled there. They did not reach even as far as a village east of Mount Tianyan.97 The great Tang dynasty encompasses the roads of the entire wide world and became the greatest of all rulers. They augment the refining influence of learning and art as universally as does heaven. Because of this, in all the states of India, Buddhist monks and laymen sincerely pledge allegiance to [the Tang dynasty]. His Majesty shows kindness toward their faithfulness and sincerity, and remembers them from a distance with a sacred thought. Therefore, he ordered an envoy [mission comprised of] twenty-two people, including Li Yibiao of the Grand Master for Closing Court, the Court of the Imperial Regalia, and the Senior Military Protector [as the senior 92

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envoy], and Wang Xuance of the former District Magistrate of Huanshui of Rongzhou as the vice envoy, to conduct an imperial inspection tour to comfort the people of that state.

They then arrived at the vajra seat under the bodhi tree in the precincts of the Mahābodhi Temple. A thousand buddhas of the auspicious kalpa all attained buddhahood in the midst of it. They saw [the buddha statue with] reverently ornamented physical characteristics, which completely looked like the real features [of the Buddha]. The divine stupa and the pure pond were unexpectedly ingenious, unequaled by any others then in existence, something never before seen, and not described in detail in history books. His Majesty raised great glory from afar for the brilliant [bodhi] tree. Thereupon, he ordered his envoys to come here to pay their respects to it. This is the greatest affair of the age and an immortal, marvelous accomplishment.

What would one think if they just kept silent without chanting poems and did not include [this affair in] inscriptions on bronze and stone? Thereupon, they engraved [the following statement]: The great Tang dynasty's comfort reaches afar. The one who squares with omens as the Son of Heaven lives long in prosperity. His edification covers the entire wide world. His power extends over the whole universe. [People in] India bow before him. Buddhist monks and laymen came to the ruler, and accordingly he issued brilliant envoys to worship and perform a mission at the place of attaining enlightenment, the vajra seat, where a thousand buddhas stayed for generations. The venerable appearance and physical characteristics [of the buddha image] were formulated by Maitreya. The divine stupa is splendid. The bodhi tree branches out with thick foliage. It never decays through kalpas. Where else could the divine power go?

Furthermore, the record of Master [Xuan]zang's travels (Da Tang xiyuji) says:

The Buddha attained buddhahood on the eighth day of the third month in the Chinese calendar. The Sthaviravāda school says that it is the fifteenth day of the third month of this [Chinese] calendar. When [the Buddha] 93

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attained buddhahood he was thirty years old, or it is also said that he was thirty-five years old.

These differences are naturally distinct from one another in that land (i.e., India). Because of the different calendars used, there are discrepancies [in the dates]. Calculating by the Chinese calendar, [these dates] are originally different from one another. The three dynasties (i.e., Xia, Yin, and Zhou) settled [the calendar] correctly. Is it worth harboring doubt that [a period of time of the calendar] has been lengthened or shortened? Moreover, if you understand anything on the basis of one aspect, you will then go no further. In a large monastery to the west of the [bodhi] tree is a standing brass figure facing east. [The figure] is decorated with rare and precious objects. In front of it is wonderfully patterned, extraordinary bright blue stone. In the past, on the day [the Tathāgata] attained buddhahood, the king of Brahma Heaven erected a hall adorned with the seven treasures, and Śakra-devendra fashioned a seat out of the seven treasures, which the Buddha occupied for seven days in contemplation. [The Buddha] emitted light that shone upon the [bodhi] tree. [Since that time] the treasures have turned into stone. A stupa to the south of the [bodhi] tree is more than a hundred chi high. Formerly the Buddha bathed in a river (i.e., the Nairañjanā River) and contemplated while sitting upon a grass seat. Śakra-devendra transformed into a man [in order to collect] the grass called kuśa (called jixiangcao, "auspicious grass," here [in China]), and offer it for the Buddha's seat. King Aśoka built the stupa and recorded [the story].

Next, there is a stupa to the northeast at the place where when the Buddha testified to fruition a flock of small blue birds came and flew around the World-honored One, and also a group of deer presented a good omen. There are [two] stupas, on the right and left sides of a main street east of the [bodhi] tree. This is the place where the king of devils [Māra] tried to harass the Buddha but failed.

[A statue of] Kāśyapa Buddha is in a monastery northwest of the [bodhi] tree. It often emits light. It is commonly said, "If someone circumambulates [the image] with utmost sincerity seven times, he will naturally attain the wisdom of knowledge of one's former existences and those of others (Skt. pūrve nivāsa-jñāna)."

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Moreover, northwest of the fence [surrounding the bodhi tree] is the kuṅkuma incense [stupa], one zhang and four chi in height. On the southeast corner of the fence [surrounding the bodhi] tree is a nyagrodha tree, and next to the tree is a stupa. In a monastery [near the stupa] a sitting [buddha] figure is enshrined. This is the place where formerly, when [the Buddha] testified to fruition, the great king of the Brahma Heaven asked him to turn the wheel of the Dharma (i.e., expound the Buddhist teachings). There is a stupa on each of the four corners inside the fence [surrounding the bodhi tree]. In the past, when [the Buddha] received the grass [for his seat] and went to the [bodhi] tree [to sit in meditation], he first went to the southwest [corner] and the earth quaked. Then he went to the northwest [corner], to the northeast [corner], and to the southeast [corner], and in each corner the earth quaked. He then went to the northwest, under the [bodhi] tree, and sat on the vajra seat facing east. Only then was the earth peaceful. Therefore, stupas were erected in commemoration of [this incident at each of the four corners]. To the southwest outside of the fence was the site of the residence of the two shepherd girls. Next to it is the place where they cooked milk-gruel [that was offered to Śākyamuni], and to the side is the place where he received the gruel. In all these places stupas were built to mark [and venerate] the sites. Outside of the south gate of the [bodhi] tree is a large pond more than seven hundred paces in circumference. [Its water] is so clean and clear that fish and a dragon dwell within it. Next, a pond to the south was made by Śakra-devendra for the [the Buddha] to wash his robe. A large rock on the west side of the pond was brought from the Himalayas by Śakra-devendra for [the Buddha] to lay out his robe to dry in the sun. Next a stupa nearby marks the place where the Buddha donned an old robe. Next, a stupa in a grove to the south is where the Buddha received an old robe donated by a poor elderly woman.98

The pond of the dragon [king Mucilinda] is in a grove east of the [large] pond created [by Śakra-devendra]. [The dragon pond] is clean and the water is delicious. On the west bank is a small monastery in which a [buddha] image is enshrined. In the past, when the Buddha attained buddhahood he sat in meditation here for seven days. This is the place where the dragon king [Mucilinda] wrapped its body around the Buddha sevenfold times and transformed itself 95

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to have many heads in order to shade [and protect] the Buddha. In a monastery in the grove east of the pond of the dragon [king Mucilinda] is a buddha statue showing the emaciated body of Śākyamuni [when he was practicing austerities]. Next to this is the place where [the Buddha] roamed around in leisure. This place is seventy paces in length and on both its north and south sides is a pippala tree. [While doing ascetic practice Śākyamuni] leaned on the tree [for support] and stood up to walk around. This is the very place where [Śākyamuni] practiced asceticism for six years, taking only a single sesame [seed] and a grain of barley [for his daily food]. Today if people who are ill apply perfumed oil on this statue, many of them are cured. In addition, there is the place where the five bhikṣus [including Ājñāta-kauṇḍinya] dwelled. Moreover, a stupa southeast [of the five bhikṣus' dwelling] is the place from where [Śākyamuni] Buddha went into the Nairañjanā River and bathed. Nearby is the place where the Buddha received and ate the milk-gruel. Next to this place are two stupas at the sites where [two] wealthy persons presented a wheat-honey cake [to the Buddha].99 A stupa southeast of the [bodhi] tree marks where the four heavenly kings offered stone almsbowls to the Buddha.100 Next to this is a stupa at the place where after he had attained buddhahood the Buddha expounded the Dharma for his mother. Moreover there is the place where [the Buddha] liberated the [three] Kāśyapa brothers and their thousand disciples from [the transmigration of birth and death].101 Outside of the north gate of the fence [surrounding] the [bodhi] tree is Mahābodhi Temple. As for courtyards and buildings, [the temple consists of] six compounds. The observation pavilion is three-storied. The fence surrounding [the temple] is five zhang in height. The Buddha's relics [contained in stupas] include [a bone relic] as large as a finger joint, lustrous, bright white, and transparent. A flesh relic is as large as a blue pearl, and its appearance is tinged with red. Every year, [on the days to complete] the Buddha's great supernatural transformation months (i.e., the first, the fifth, and ninth months when purification is observed), [the relics] are taken out and shown to the people. The date for this is the thirtieth day of the twelfth month in India, which is equivalent to the fifteenth day of the first month in China.102 At that time [the relics] emit light and flowers fall like rain. People greatly give rise to deep faith.

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This temple regularly has a thousand monks [in residence], who study the teaching of the Mahayana-Sthaviravāda school. The monastic codes of conduct are clear and solemn. This temple was built at the request of the king of Siṃhala (present-day Sri Lanka) of the Southern Sea. Now four hundred years have passed [since then] and there are many people from Siṃhala at the temple.103 Every year, when the bhikṣus are released from retreat, a large number of Buddhist monks and laypeople from the four directions gather together, [carrying] fragrant flowers and playing music, and tour throughout the grove to make offerings to [this sacred site] for seven days and nights. All the monks of India enter summer retreat on the sixteenth day of the fifth month in the Chinese calendar, and the summer [retreat] ends on the fifteenth day of the eighth month in the Chinese [calendar]. These dates vary according to a calendar used in each locality; [the dates of the retreat] cannot be fixed. It is just as in some states north of the Himalayas there is a spring retreat or an autumn retreat. I think that in a place where there are high temperatures most of the year [this retreat period] was instituted to be three months [during the summer]. If a [calendar] month is advanced or delayed before or after [this period], then [the retreat dates] are not definite, and if it is based on the practice of the [Buddhist] Way, [the dates of the retreat] are not fixed. Therefore, the Vinaya regulates that traveling around for the three periods (i.e., the entire year) and entering a retreat somewhere else is an offense. [Monks] surely have a good relationship with [the Buddha during retreat], and concurrently they also provide salvation [for sentient beings]. Going east of the [bodhi] tree courtyard and crossing a river (i.e., the Nairañjanā River), there is a large grove in which a stupa stands. A pond on its north side is the place where in the past the Buddha attended his blind mother elephant when he was a fragrant baby elephant.104 A stone pillar stands in front of the stupa. Formerly Kāśyapa Buddha sat in meditation here. Nearby is where the four [past] buddhas spent their daily lives. A small stone pillar in the grove is the place where Udrakarāmaputra (Yütoulan) made an evil vow.

Again, going east, crossing a yellow river, and going more than a hundred li, we come to Mount Kukkuṭapada (Ququchibotuo, formerly called Jizu, "Cock's Foot" [in China]). At the top there are three peaks that resemble the 97

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shape of a rooster's foot. On the summit is a large stupa that sends forth a mysterious light in the night, which illuminates the entire area. This is precisely the place where Mahākāśyapa entered meditation. In the past, the Buddha consigned to [Mahākāśyapa] a gold-brocaded saṃghāṭī robe and a kaṣāya made by the married sister of the Buddha's mother (i.e., Prajāpati) in order to pass them on to Maitreya. [The Buddha] ordered him to save the four kinds of [the Buddha's] disciples following the Dharma he had bequeathed. [Mahā]kāśyapa accepted the Buddha's instructions. Twenty years after the Buddha entered parinirvāṇa, [Mahākāśyapa] ascended the mountain carrying the robes in both hands in order to await Maitreya.

The mountain path is full of obstacles and rough. There are various groves and bamboos. Lions, tigers, and elephants come and go freely and approach close to you.

Dharma Master [Xuan]zang came to this place. He repeatedly thought to ascend [the mountain] but he had no means to undertake the journey. [Xuan]zang therefore related [his present condition] to the king and asked for guards and support. He received more than three hundred soldiers provided by the king, each equipped with a sharp weapon with which to cut a path through the bamboo. They advanced ten li a day.

At that time [the people of] that state heard that [Xuan]zang was going to the mountain. The number of men and women, adults and children, who wanted to worship him was fully a hundred thousand. They hurriedly followed after him one by one and together ascended [Mount] Jizu. They reached the recess of the mountain but a wall stood in their way and there was no path. Therefore, they [cut and] bound bamboo to make a ladder and climbed up one after the other. More than three thousand reached the summit of the mountain. As they looked out in the four directions they were very happy; their joy increased and they danced about. They saw the cracks in the rocks and scattered flowers as offerings.

Again, according to the Wang Xuance zhuan:

In the third month of the seventeenth year of the Zhenguan era (643) of the Great Tang dynasty, a brilliant imperial decree was issued. [His Majesty] dispatched an envoy party including Li Yibiao, Grand Master for Closing Court, the Court of the Imperial Regalia, and Senior Military Protector, 98

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[as the senior envoy,] and Wang Xuance, former District Magistrate of Huanshui of Rongzhou, as vice envoy. They were sent to escort brahman guests who [wished to] return to their home country. In the twelfth month of that year they arrived in the state of Magadha. Accordingly they made the rounds of inspection in the provinces and visited the Buddha's native place. They traveled to see the remains and traces. The sacred vestiges are deified. They felt omens when they were in [those] places. On the twenty-seventh day of the first month of the nineteenth year [of the Zhenguan era] (645) they came to Rājagṛha. Thereupon they ascended Vulture Peak (Skt. Gṛdhrakūta). They looked around and gazed freely and extensively over the infinite views. A thousand-plus years have passed since the time the Buddha entered parinirvāṇa. The sacred sites and the remaining foundations solemnly and completely perdure. [The Buddha's] every action is entirely recorded on each stupa. They spontaneously thought of the magnanimity [of the Buddha and his] intellectual outlook. In such borderlands they suddenly could see personally the wondrous traces, and they could not restrain their emotions of grief and joy. Therefore, an inscription was made on the peak. By making [the inscription, this event] is passed on for all eternity. They wished to make His Majesty of the great Tang dynasty last as long and shine as brightly as the sun and moon and cause the Buddhist Dharma to be widely propagated and become as stable as that mountain.

The inscription says:

In the great Tang dynasty all things spring up. [His Majesty] ascended the throne in accordance with auspicious omens. His glory extends throughout the world. His grace reaches to the four barbarian tribes on the borders of China. His edification is as lofty as that of the Three Augusts and the Five Thearchs. His virtue exceeds that of Xuanyuan (i.e., the Yellow Emperor) and Fuxi.

[First,] he hangs a jade mirror high, lets his robe fall down, folds his hands, and allows matters to take their own course, [and then the land is ruled in an orderly way].

[Second,] the way of enlightenment is spontaneous. One who is admired and respected by the scholastic community follows the world, 99

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rests in his topmost position, and is venerated. The influence on customs, music, and all measures happened in the Middle Land (i.e., China), which is different from the border regions. Śākyamuni's teaching descended here, and his fortune is boundless.

[Third,] [the Buddha's] supernatural power is free from resistance. His transformation responding [to people's prayers] is vast and expansive. Sometimes he rises from the earth or descends from heaven. Ten billion suns and moons, the trichiliocosm, and the Dharma clouds all give support to him. The ingenious truth is altogether propagated by him. [Fourth,] how luxuriant this mountain is! Extraordinary shapes increase, beautiful clouds scud above, and clear waves are seen below. This is the place where the wondrous spirits descend and gather, as well as the place wise and virtuous people pass by. Sacred sites remain on a lofty peak. We stand for a long time in the remains of the rocky edge. [Fifth,] jagged and precipitous mountains in succession resemble a palace. We hear tinkling jeweled bells, smell extraordinary fragrance, and look at marvelous vestiges on the spendid mountain. We have engraved inscriptions on a virtuous stone tablet on the lofty ridge and propagate the pure and sincere edification of the great Tang dynasty, which is as permanent as heaven and earth.

Again, the record of Master [Xuan]zang's travels (Da Tang xiyuji) says: Going sixty li east from this mountain, we arrive at the city of Kuśāgrapura (Jushejieluobuluo). There is a stupa outside of the north gate at the site where the Buddha stretched out his hand and five lions emerged [from the tip of his finger] to subdue Devadatta's intoxicated elephant.105 Furthermore, a stupa to the northeast is the place where Śāriputra heard Aśvajit's exposition of the Dharma and testified to the sacred [fruition]. A stupa close to a large pit north of this stupa is the place where Śrīgupta tried to injure the Buddha by means of setting up a pit of fire.106

Again, going east, we come to Mount Gṛdhrakūṭa (Gulituoluojuzha, called Jiufeng, or Jiutai, formerly called Qishejue shan, "Vulture Peak," here [in China]). There is a large rock near [a monastery on the mountain], one zhang and four or five chi in height and more than thirty paces wide. This is the place where Devadatta threw [a rock] at the Buddha.107 At the 100

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foot of a cliff to the south is a stupa. The Buddha expounded the Lotus Sutra here. A large stone chamber in the mountain cliff south [of the monastery] is where the Buddha entered meditation in the past, when Ānanda was frightened by [the king of] devils [Māra] in a separate room. [The Buddha] pierced the rock [wall] with his hand and patted the crown of [Ānanda's] head [to comfort him]. Today the hole made [by the Buddha can still be seen]. A large rock northeast of the monastery is the site where the Buddha dried his robe in the sun, on which the patterns of the robe can be clearly discerned. On a rock next to it is an impression of the Buddha's [footprint].

West of the north gate of a mountain city is Mount Vipula.108 [To the north of] a cliff on the southwest face [of the mountain] there used to be five hundred hot springs. Even today there are still several tens of [hot] springs. To the west is the pippala stone chamber in which the Buddha often resided in the past. A cavern in the back wall is the asura palace. Going one li from the north gate of the mountain [city], we come to the monastery of Kalandaka Bamboo Grove [Garden]. A large stupa east [of the monastery] was [erected by] King Ajātaśatru (Asheduomotulu, called Weishengyuan in the Tang dynasty), namely King Asheshi. About six li southwest from the Bamboo [Grove] Garden is a large stone chamber in a big bamboo grove on the north side of the Southern Mountain (Skt. Dakṣiṇagiri, present-day Mount Baibhāra). This is the place where Mahā kāśyapa compiled the Tripiṭaka together with a thousand arhats. Since [Mahā kāśyapa] was a senior in the sangha (shangzuo), this [assembly] is called the sthavira (shangzuo) [assembly]. A stupa northwest of the [stone] chamber is where Ānanda came after he was reproached [by the other monks and did not attend the assembly], and where he testified to the fruit of arhatship.

Going about five li north of the mountain city, we come to the city of Rājagṛha (Heluoshejiliwen), called Xin Wangshecheng ("New Capital City") in the Tang dynasty. A stupa on the left side of the street outside the south gate is where Rāhula was ordained.

Again, going more than thirty li north, we arrive at Nālandā (Nalantuo) Temple, (called Shiwuyan si, "Donating without Loathing Temple," in the Tang dynasty). This is the greatest of the temples in Jambudvīpa; no 101

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temple or monastery is loftier. All five kings [contributed to] the construction [of this temple]; the supplies they provided doubled the prosperity [of the temple], and therefore, it was named after [their donations]. The temple has five compounds altogether, which share a great outer gate. The surrounding four-storied gates are more than eight zhang in height. [The wall is made] entirely of brick. Its lowest wall is six chi thick.109 The outer wall, also of brick, is three-storied and about five zhang in height. [Water courses] run between all the compounds. Its ponds and moats are extremely deep. There is plenty of fragrance from flowers, solemn and beautiful, and it is worthwhile to view them. Since the time [Nālandā Temple] was established, it has been protected, kept clean and majestic. Women are filthy and licentious and have not been allowed to live here in seclusion. There are normally more than four thousand resident monks. Visitors, both monks and laypeople, experts [on the teaching], heretics, and orthodox [followers] number more that ten thousand.They all are given clothes and food; no one suffers from a lack [of these supplies]. Therefore, [the temple] is also called Shiwuyan ("Donating without Loathing"). Inside of and near [the temple] numerous sacred vestiges appear over one another. It is impossible to record them all.

There are various śāstra masters whose knowledge is virtuous and profound. The king bestowed them manor estates, up to ten cities. Gradually the amount of the grants was lowered but it was not reduced to fewer than three cities. Today this temple has more than three hundred great virtuous monks who have received manors. Those who are above the level of being versed in sutras do not have charge of a service in the sangha. They set value on learning and love it; they ask questions about different teachings [of the Buddhist Dharma]. Therefore, as for all the monks throughout the land bordered by the four seas west from Agni, many study the philosophical principles [of Buddhism]. All masters who travel to and from the states where they are appointed to perform [Buddhist services] encounter no obstruction [in their travels]. Even through the kings protect their own states, they do not venture to interfere with [the monks' travel]. Again, going east and entering mountains, traveling more than two hundred li, we come to the state of Īraṇaparvata (Yilanna[bofaduo]). There one can see the vestige of the Buddha's seat, which makes a slight depression 102

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of about one cun in a rock. [The rock] is five chi and two cun long and two chi and one cun wide. There is [also] the trace of a water bottle in a depression of about one cun in a rock. There are patterns of an octopetalous flower, which seem to be newly produced. There is also a trace where the Buddha stood, a little longer than one chi and eight cun and about six cun wide. Again, going northwest after passing seven states, we arrive at the state of Karṇasuvarṇa (Jieluona[sufalana]), where both heterodoxy and orthodoxy are concurrently practiced. Additionally there are three temples where dairy products are not eaten. [These temples] are for monks of Devadatta's school.

Furthermore, going seven hundred li southwest, we come to the state of Oḍra (Uḍra, Oḍḍa, Oṭa, or Utkala; present-day Orissa in Bengal; called Wutu in China). The eastern border [of the state] is the sea [coast]. In the coastal area of the city of Caritra (Faxing) many merchants and travelers stay [after crossing the sea].

Next, in the ocean to the south is the [island] state of Siṃhala (Seng qieluo; present-day Sri Lanka), called Zhishizi [in China]. [The state of Siṃhala] is about twenty thousand-plus li away from [the city of Caritra]. Every night, looking south [from the city], a treasure gem (i.e., a maṇi gem) on the top of the stupa of the Buddha's tooth [relic] in that state can be seen emerging from the horizon, shining as brightly as rising flames. Again, going southwest we pass through various states in which there are also wondrous traces. Going about five thousand li, we reach the state of Kosala (Jiaosaluo), which forms the border of South India. [Buddhism] is worshiped more deeply here. More than three hundred li southwest from the capital city is Mount Bhrāmara (Heifeng, "Black Bees"). Here in the past a great king built a temple for Nāgārjuna Bodhisattva (Longmeng, formerly called Longshu [in China]). The temple is arranged in five tiers from top to bottom, made by chiseling rocks. Water channeled [from the high peaks of the mountain] runs around the [temple buildings] and drains into [a pond]. There are numerous various extraordinary things that reach other regions along [the watercourse].110 Today sextons guard [the temple] firmly, and there are few visitors [to the temple]. The appearance of a stone image enshrined in a niche is extremely grand. On the day the temple was completed, Nāgārjuna went to the mountain and 103

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applied medicine to [the image], and it changed to a purplish-gold color. There is no equivalent to this in the world.

Moreover, there is a scripture depository containing innumerable folded and bound [sutras].111 Elders say, from generation to generation, "All [sutras] are from the first assembly of the compilation of the teachings and the complete set [of teachings] exists now. Even though the Buddhist Dharma outside of [this temple] frequently experiences extermination, there is no change in this temple in regard to the preservation of the Buddhist Dharma. Recently a monk came and undertook a summer retreat there. He was able to study and recite [sutras] but he was not allowed to take them out [of the temple]." These things are explained in detail. The path [to the temple] is quite deep and steep. It is difficult to visit and make inquiries there.

Again going south, we arrive at the state of Āndhra (Andaluo), which belongs to South India. More than twenty li southwest of the capital city is an isolated mountain, on the ridge of which there is a stone stupa. This is the very place where Chenna (Dignāga) Bodhisattva composed the Yinming lun (Discourse on the Clarification of Causes). Again going a thousand li south, we reach the state of Dhānakaṭaka (Duona jiezhejia guo), which belongs to South India. There are [two] great temples on the hillsides east and west of the capital city. Formerly the king built them for the Buddha by excavating into the mountains and removing rocks. They were created to be extremely splendid and extensive. Wandering sages and virtuous people would take a rest here. Before a thousand years after the Buddha [entered nirvana], there were a thousand ordinary monks in these places. They all testified to arhatship on the day they were released from retreat and flew away beyond the sky. Today [the temples] are quiet and no one is there. [Near] those places is [the site for] the śāstra master Bhāviveka (Popifeiqie, called Mingbian in the Tang dynasty), namely the master [who wrote] the Boruodeng lun shi (commentary on Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā). Before [an image of] Avalokiteśvara he took no food and drank only water for three years. He set his mind and entreated to await and see Maitreya. Avalokiteśvara then revealed his physical form to [Bhāviveka and said,] "Now, recite the vajradhāraṇī for three years at Vajrapāṇi's place in a cave in the great mountain 104

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located south of the city." The deity [Vajrapāṇi] gave an instruction [to Bhāviveka], "There is an asura palace in this rock cave. If you entreat according to the Dharma, the rock wall will surely open for you. You should immediately enter and wait for Maitreya to appear. I will report to you just at the moment [Maitreya emerges]." Three more years passed. [Bhāviveka] then chanted a spell to some mustard seeds and struck the rock wall, and [the wall] broke open, revealing a cave. At that time a great number of people all saw and marveled at this. The śāstra master [Bhāviveka] stepped through the opening and then looked at the people and commanded them [to follow after him] repeatedly. Only six people entered after him. The rest of the people said that the cave was full of poisonous snakes. At that moment the rock door immediately closed and again formed a wall.

Again going more than six thousand li south, we come to the state of Malakuṭa (Moluojuzha), namely the southernmost coastal border of Jambudvīpa. Mount [Malaya] produces Borneo camphor (Skt. karpūra). There are also sandalwood trees as well as karpūra trees. [The trunk of a karpūra tree looks like] that of pine tree and the tree has no leaves, but it is fragrant and [white in color], just like ice or snow. This is precisely Borneo camphor.

In the ocean south of here is a palace of heavenly beings, which is the place where Avalokiteśvara Bodhisattva (Guanzizai pusa, "Bodhisattva Who Observes Freely," formerly called Guanshiyin pusa, "Bodhisattva Who Hear the Sounds of the World" [in China]), usually resides. Facing the ocean is a city. The state, formerly called the Land of Lions (i.e., Siṃ hala), is about three thousand li across the ocean from here. Without a large group it is impossible to reach this place.

Going more than four thousand li northwest from here, witnessing various miracles in the states we pass through en route, [we come to the state of Mahāratha (Mohelata)]. In the southeast corner of the state [of Siṃhala is Mount Laṅkā]. Several thousands of li [south] is Nārikeladvīpa, [which means "Coconut Island"]. The people here are [small], only three chi tall. They [have beaks like those of] birds, and they eat only coconuts.112 Again, we arrive at the state of Mahāratha. The king of this [state] does anything he wishes at will; he has not submitted to [King] Śīlāditya. There 105

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are more than a hundred temples and five thousand monks. A temple on a mountain on the eastern border of the state was built by an arhat (i.e., Acala). In a large monastery building, a hundred-plus chi in height, a stone image is enshrined. [The image] is more than eight zhang long. A stone canopy above [the image], comprised of seven layers altogether, floats in the air. Each [layer of the canopy] is separated from the other by three chi. None among those who worship and come before [the image] fails to exclaim at the extraordinary sight. One legend says, "It is held [in the air] by the power of the arhat's vow"; another says, "It is held by the power of medicine or incantation."

Again going northwest beyond two states, we come to the state of Mālava, which belongs to South India. More than twenty li northwest of the capital city is a great brahman village. There is a large depression nearby in which water will not remain even though it flows into [the hole]. This is the place where in the past a greatly self-conceited brahman slandered the Mahayana [teaching] and fell into hell alive. Again going northwest, we reach the state of Aṭāli (Azhali), which belongs to South India. This state produces peppers and [a type of incense called] kunduruka. The leaves of the [kunduruka] tree look like those of the wild pear tree.

Furthermore, making a tour to the northwest and passing through more than ten states, we arrive at the state of Pārasya (Bolasi; present-day Persia), which is not under Indian sovereignty. This state produces great quantities of gold, silver, brass, sphaṭika (quartz), and crystal. When people die their corpses are mostly left unattended. The almsbowl of the Buddha is kept in the palace here. The northwest [region of Pārasya] borders on the state of From (Fulin; i.e., the Eastern Roman Empire). This state produces white dogs. Originally the red-headed duck was born in a cave here. According to the Liang gongzhi tu (Illustrations of Tributes to the Liang Dynasty):

On an island in the southwestern sea ten thousand li north of Pārasya, there is the Western State of Women (Xinü), which is not under Indian sovereignty. Every year [the state of] From sends men to mate with [the women of this state].

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Sacred vestiges have been briefly explained just as mentioned above. They are completely enumerated in worldly historical records, and fully recorded in the large original version [of the record of Master [Xuan]zang's travels (i.e., the Da Tang xiyuji)].

Verses say:

Rare precious sound flows afar. Then, looking back I think of the East. Being delighted with the wind and admiring the Way, I respectfully plan to cross over to the West. The subtlety is complete at the tip of a brush. Fortune is as subtle as a thin silk. Phenomena are entrusted to temporarily take shapes. Clouds and fog shine.

In the remains numerous images flow. Truth deepens its meaning.

I give vent to my interest and open my mind. Ordinary people are led to the sacred way. A thousand buddhas assimilate.

To ten thousand virtuous people, dawn has come. His Majesty makes a comment from his feeling: "Buddhist monks and laypeople are equally treated." [End of] Fascicle Twenty-nine of A Forest of Pearls from the Dharma Garden

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