Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c7.17

v1.c7.17

The area of Xinjiang in the Western Regions was incorporated in China as early as the Han Dynasty. The central government installed a governor to administer the Western Regions. Indian Buddhism was transmitted to the Western Regions, ie, to Xinjiang in China before the Christian Era. This can be seen in the archaeology of the Western Regions. Volume II of the *Gaoseng zhuan* (*Biographies of Eminent Monks*) explains that Taizu of the Liu Song once sent the *Śramaṇa* Daopu with 10 scribes to the West to search for Buddhist sutras. Daopu “travelled through the countries of the Western Regions. He witnessed worshipping of the venerable images and the carrying of the Buddhist alms bowl. He also saw four pagodas and trees along the road as well as (hallowed) footprints and images; there was none he did not meet with. He was versed in Sanskrit and equipped with writings in languages of different countries. He travelled through different areas.”