The Unknown Usuan-Tsang

by D. Devahuti

Hsuan-tsang is known as the Buddhist scholar who visited India in the seventh century AD. While his experiences and observations from these travels are well documented and easily accessible to the English-speaking world, there is a silence on the years that followed his return to China in AD 645. Works that translated Chinese and Uigur texts on the life of Hsuan-tsang into German and French were in print as early as the 1850s, but have not been available to a wider audience. This painstakingly researched book brings together a selection of the available material, freshly translated into English. Devahuti's introduction and summary of life bring out, in sharp focus, the contributions and impact of Hsuan-tsang. The editing of this volume with explanatory notes, footnotes, and commentaries had been undertaken and completed by the late D. Devahuti before her untimely death in 1988. an inventory of the complete works of Hsuan-tsang contained in the Korean Tripitaka has been made available in the Appendix of this book. This work stands out for its in-depth research and use of original sources. It will be a valuable addition to the existing literature on Hsuan-tsang and Buddhism of the time, and opens new areas for further research and analysis.

About the Author:

D. DEVAHUTI (1929-88) specialized in ancient Indian and early South-east Asian history. She taught at the universities of Malaya and Queensland. Her last leaching assignment was with the history department of University of Delhi.