Xuanzang

At Chang'an's Zhuangyan Temple, Xuanzang took his solemn vow before the altar. Alone and defying imperial edict, he embarked upon a perilous 10,000-mile journey across deserts and icy mountains.

Past the Yumen Gate, Xuanzang stepped into the vast Moheyan Gobi Desert—a barren sea of death spanning 800 miles where no birds fly and only bleaching bones mark the trail.

In the desert, Xuanzang accidentally dropped his water flask, going four days and five nights without a single drop of water. Collapsing in hallucinations, he recited the Heart Sutra until his horse smelled water, miraculously surviving.

Emerging from the desert, Xuanzang entered the Kingdom of Gaochang. King Qu Wentai tried to detain him as State Preceptor. Xuanzang went on hunger strike until the touched King swore brotherhood and equipped him with silver and bodyguards.

Supplied with royal gold, silk, and 24 travel letters to Central Asian kings, Xuanzang set forth along the Tian Shan mountain range, carrying the goodwill of the Oasis Kingdoms into Central Asia.

Trekking across avalanche-swept glaciated passes, Xuanzang crossed Suyab and Samarkand in Sogdiana, meeting the Western Turkic Khagan before traversing the Hindu Kush into ancient India.

At Suyab, the Western Turkic Khagan was captivated by Xuanzang's eloquence, providing cavalry escorts to guide him through the Iron Gates toward the colossal Giant Buddhas of Bamiyan in Afghanistan.

After marveling at the towering Bamiyan Buddhas, Xuanzang crossed the mighty Indus River, finally entering ancient India and proceeding toward Nalanda University, the apex of global Buddhist scholarship.

Before the Bamiyan cliffside grottos, Xuanzang documented the world's largest standing Buddha statues in gleaming gold, preserving eyewitness records for world cultural heritage.

After three grueling years and 10,000 miles, Xuanzang arrived at Nalanda University in Magadha. Ten thousand monks lined the entrance with incense and banners to welcome the venerable master from the Great Tang.

At Nalanda, Xuanzang studied for about eight years under Chancellor Silabhadra. Mastering Sanskrit and epistemology, he was selected as one of the ten Chief Lecturers of the university.

At the grand debate in Kanyakubja, Xuanzang defended his treatises without a single refute. Victorious, he declined all royal entreaties and prepared for his long journey back to China.

At Kanyakubja, eighteen monarchs and thousands of philosophers assembled. Xuanzang's mastery earned him the revered titles of 'Deva of the Great Vehicle' across all of India.

Carrying 657 sacred Sanskrit manuscripts and relics, Xuanzang embarked on the arduous eastward return across the treacherous Pamir Mountains.

On the return, an elephant carrying scriptures drowned while fording a river and some manuscripts were lost. Xuanzang had copies remade at Khotan and other oases, then crossed the Pamirs to bring the bulk of the canon safely home.

In 645, Xuanzang arrived at Chang'an. Emperor Taizong ordered Chancellor Fang Xuanling and hundreds of thousands of citizens to welcome the heroic master.

Xuanzang led the state translation bureau at Da Ci'en Temple, declining high office and dictating the 'Great Tang Records on the Western Regions'. He petitioned for a pagoda to house the Sanskrit manuscripts; the Big Wild Goose Pagoda, built under Crown Prince (later Emperor Gaozong) Li Zhi, became that repository. Over nineteen years he translated 1,335 fascicles.

In his final years, seeking tranquility to translate the 600-volume Great Prajnaparamita Sutra, Xuanzang moved to Yuhua Temple in the quiet Zhongnan Mountains.

In 664, Xuanzang passed away peacefully at age 62. Emperor Gaozong wept: 'I have lost my greatest national treasure.' Over a million mourners gathered at Bailuyuan to bid farewell to this monumental pioneer of global civilization.