續高僧傳 4.6.1

4.6.1

Not far to the south of the city, in the city of Hiḍḍa, there is the Buddha's uṣṇīṣa bone, two inches in circumference according to the standard ruler; its appearance is upturned and flat, shaped like a heavenly canopy. The Buddha's cranium is shaped like a lotus leaf plate. The Buddha's eyeball is round, about the size of a Chinese plum, lucid and clear. There is the Buddha's great robe (saṅghāṭī), yellowish-red in colour. There is the Buddha's khakkhara (monk's staff), which has an iron ring and a shaft of red sandalwood. These five sacred traces are located in the same city, and the duty of guarding them is like that of protecting the state's regalia. To the north, it is close to the Turks, and in the past, it suffered their invasions; yet although [the relics] were carried to other places, they secretly returned to their original site. Thus their concealment and appearance correspond to conditions, and have never been overcome by military might. When Xuanzang venerated these spiritual relics, tears streamed from his eyes. Parting the powdered incense with his own hand to view their physical forms directly, his joy doubled. Then, using mixed incense, he pressed an impression on the uṣṇīṣa bone, and seeing an auspicious sign appear, his feelings of awe and celebration increased all the more. Recently, a northern barbarian, the king of the Great Yuezhi, wishing to know his future recompense, used incense to obtain an impression; it showed the form of a horse, which was far from what he had hoped for. He then added more alms, accumulated merit, and repented; when he took an impression with incense again, it displayed the form of a lion. Although it was the lord of the beasts, it was still an animal. With doubled devotion, he further gave alms and kept the precepts; thereupon, the forms of humans and devas appeared, and only then did he return to his native land. For this reason, according to local custom, those who wish to see the five relics pay one gold coin for each, and those who take an impression of them pay seven gold coins. The laymen exploit these treasures to supply funds for merit; since the relics are not under the custody of monks, their safeguarding is even more rigorous, and whether cleric or lay, one must pay the fee first. Receiving the king's order, Xuanzang was able to view all of them completely. The monks of neighbouring countries, relying on this honour, came together to pay homage. Further travelling through the eastern mountains, he reached the kingdom of Gandhāra. There were over a thousand Buddhist monasteries, but the people followed mixed beliefs. In the city, there had originally been a shrine for the alms-bowl, fully adorned in various ways; in the past, the Tathāgata's bowl had remained in this shrine for several hundred years, but it has now been moved to the palace of the king of Persia for worship. To the east of the city, there is the great stūpa of King Kaniṣka, with a base circumference of a li and a half. One hu of relics of the Buddha's bones is housed inside. It rises to a height of over five hundred feet, with twenty-five tiers of finial wheels above and below. Having suffered the three calamities of celestial fire, it was then being rebuilt; this is what is known in the world as the Que-li stūpa. Empress Dowager Ling, née Hu, of the Northern Wei, having deep devotion, sent the śramaṇa Daosheng and others, carrying a great banner over seven hundred feet long, to go there and hang it up; the bottom edge just barely reached the ground. It was this very stūpa. The origin of the name 'Que-li' is unknown. To its left and right, the sacred sites are extremely numerous: nearby are the places where Vasubandhu and Manoratha composed treatises; further off are the places where [the Buddha in past lives] gave up his thousand eyes and served his two parents as Śyāma. The renowned Mount Daṇḍa, the site of Viśvantara's former deeds, where a hermit was disturbed by a woman, and where the Buddha converted the Mother of Demons (Hārītī)—all these are within its borders. King Aśoka built stone stūpas for all of them, the tallest being several hundred feet high, erecting markers for them. Travelling from the northern mountains, he reached the kingdom of Uḍḍiyāna, which is what is commonly known in the world as the kingdom of Uḍḍiyāna in North Tianzhu. Its territory is over five thousand li in circumference; fruits are abundant, and it is held in high esteem by various countries. Tradition relates that it was the pleasure park of a former Cakravartin king. There are more than ten thousand monks, who also study the Mahāyāna. Around the royal capital are many ancient monuments: the sites of Kṣāntirṣi, the Buddha's footprints, giving up one's life over half a verse to avoid an enemy, breaking bones to write scriptures, cutting flesh to ransom a dove, medicine from a serpent saving lives, and giving blood to a yakṣa—all such signs are fully arrayed in this land. He paid respects to each of them, his heart filled with redoubled joy. Less than three hundred li northeast of the city, there is a dragon spring in a great mountain named Apalāla, which is the source of the Indus River, flowing to the southwest; this is what is called the Sindhu River in the sūtras. Going southeast from the royal capital, crossing mountains and ascending the river over iron suspension bridges and wooden plankways, the path was extremely perilous; after more than a thousand li, he reached a very large valley, which was the former royal capital of Uḍḍiyāna. Inside there was a wooden image of Maitreya, over a hundred feet tall; it was made by the arhat Madhyāntika, who took craftsmen up to heaven three times before it was completed. The dignified and noble appearance of its body is exceptionally hard to describe. Turning back from Uḍḍiyāna, he went south to the kingdom of Takṣaśilā, where he saw in detail the pool where the dragon Elāpatra dwelt, the place where Candraprabha sacrificed his eyes, and the stūpa marked by King Aśoka rising ten chang high. To the north there is a stone gate, extraordinarily lofty, towering amidst layered mountains, through the middle of which the road passes; this is also the place where Sattva gave up his body. From here, proceeding southeast along rugged mountain paths, passing through a small kingdom and crossing several iron suspension bridges for less than two thousand li, he reached the kingdom of Kaśmīra, which is commonly called Jibin in local tradition; it is unknown how the name Jibin originated, but looking at its geographical boundaries, it is identical to Jibin. Originally, it was a dragon sea; an arhat took it, settled the assembly there, and propagated the Tripiṭaka. Hence the realm is enclosed on all four sides by mountains, more than seven thousand li in circumference, with narrow passes and approaches. There are five thousand monks, most of whom study the Hīnayāna. The kingdom had an eminent elder, a master of great virtue named Skandhila. Xuanzang studied the Kośa, the Nyāyānusāra, Hetuvidyā, Śabdavidyā, and the Mahāvibhāṣā under him. The king, showing pity for his coming from afar, provided ten scribes to assist him in copying texts. There was a Buddha's tooth about an inch long, bright white like snow. From Lampā to this place, the various kingdoms surrounding the mountains had vulgar physical appearances and followed barbarian customs; though included within the Five Regions, they are not properly within India itself. Because they dwell in mountain valleys, their customs are mixed with those of the borders. Descending southward from here, the view opens up without mountains; after nearly a thousand li, he reached the kingdom of Ṭakka. The territory is situated on a flat plain, more than ten thousand li in circumference, with two rivers flowing separately, and vegetation lush and luxuriant. At that time, accompanied by more than twenty companions, he entered a great forest and was robbed by bandits, barely escaping with his life. Entering a village to beg for alms, they finally reached the eastern border. In the great forest there was a brāhmaṇa, seven hundred years of age, whose appearance was like that of a man of thirty, who thoroughly understood the Madhyamakaśāstra and the Śataśāstra as well as non-Buddhist texts; he said he was a disciple of Nāgārjuna. Xuanzang stayed with him for a month to study. Moving further east, he reached the kingdom of Cinabhukti, where he studied treatises such as the Abhidharma, the Samayapradīpikā, and the Nyāyamukha under Master Vinitaprabha. Moving further east, he went to the Nagaradhana Monastery, where he studied the Prakaraṇapāda-vibhāṣā under the treatise master Candravarmā. Moving further east to the kingdom of Śrughna, he studied the Sautrāntika Vibhāṣā under the bhadanta Jayagupta. He also studied the Satyasiddhi-śāstra of the Sarvāstivāda under the master Mitrasena. Gradually proceeding southeast, he passed through six kingdoms with many relics. The stūpas marked by King Aśoka standing twenty chang high were not few. Among these was the kingdom of Mathurā, which possessed the most abundant traces. Six li east of the city, there is a mountain monastery; long ago Upagupta—translated into the language of the Tang as 'Jinhu' (Near Protector)—who was one of the Five Masters, [dwelt here].