A History of Agriculture in India v1.c36.11

v1.c36.11

Hiuen Tsang (also known as Hsuan-tsang and Yuan-Chwang), the Chinese scholar, came to India in 630 during the reign of Harsha. Leaving Loyang in 628, he passed through Turfan, Samarqand and Bamiyan. He visited Kashmir and Kulu in the north. He also travelled to Buddhist pilgrimage centres, viz. Kapilavasthu, Pataliputra, Nalanda, and Bodhgaya. He paid a visit to Nasik and there came to Mathura. He resided in Nalanda on different occasions for about two years. He remained in India for about thirteen years (A.D. 630-643). Never before was such an arduous journey performed by any traveller with such meagre resources. He came in search of Buddhist texts and it is his faith which kept him inspired and enabled him to bear the rigours of the journey through pathless deserts and wild mountains. He left India with a large number of books on Buddhism and reached China in 645. He was honoured by the Emperor of China. He left an account of his travels in a book entitled *Si-yu-ki*. He was perceptive and his observations on places, people and plants are of great value as a contemporary record.