The Silk Road Journey with Xuanzang

by Sally Hovey Wriggins

The Silk Road Journey with Xuanzang tells the saga of the seventh-century Chinese monk Xuanzang, one of China's great heroes, who completed an epic sixteen-year-long journey to discover the heart of Buddhism at its source in India. Eight centuries before Columbus, this intrepid pilgrim traveled 10,000 miles on the Silk Road, meeting most of Asia's important leaders at that time. In this revised and updated edition, Sally Hovey Wriggins, the first Westerner to walk in Xuanzang's footsteps, brings to life a courageous explorer and devoutly religious man. Through Wriggins's telling of Xuanzang's fascinating and extensive journey, the reader comes to know the contours of the Silk Road, Buddhist art and archaeology, the principles of Buddhism, as well as the geography and history of China, Central Asia, and India. The Silk Road Journey with Xuanzang is an inspiring story of human struggle and triumph, and a touchstone for understanding the religions, art, and culture of Asia.

Genres: History, Buddhism, China, Nonfiction, Travel, Asia, Travelogue

326 pages, Paperback

First published April 12, 1996

Reviews

[Artur Matos · Rating 1 out of 5]

Xuanzang's life was nothing short of extraordinary, and his legacy to Chinese Buddhism (and incidentally Korean and Japanese) lives to this day. I was really looking forward to read this book.

Unfortunately, I cannot really recommend it to anyone. The writing is awful and not engaging at all; furthermore, the author repeatedly tries to describe Xuanzang's experiences using Christian quotes and imagery, which is downright silly if not misleading. This one in particular made me cringe:

'To walk where the Buddha had walked and performed his many miracles; (...) these sacred places would be the pilgrim's goal. He would be pursuing a different kind of understanding, the kind that begin's with God's word to Moses: "Take off your shoes. You are on holy ground".'

I actually believe there's a deep connection between Buddhism and Christianity, deeper than most people would realise, but this is not the way to talk about it. This is just downright silly. How do we know Xuanzang's and Mose's experiences are even remotely similar?

[Thukten T · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's such a blessing to learn about the life of Xuanzang, a devout Buddhist monk who traveled all the way from China to India to learn about Buddhism. It shows how a person with sheer amount of devotion endures hardships in his quest for knowledge. Leaving China at the age of 26 and returning back at 42 is really an epic. Xuanzang describes how Buddhism was flourishing when he visited places like Afghanistan, Pakistan and many places nearby. Alas, Buddhism has virtually disappeared from these places. Tears filled my eyes as I read about Xuanzang's last days of his life.

Though the author has covered the life history of Xuanzang, the biography could have been narrated better in the form of a story. Most of the time, the writer loses the attention of Xuanzang by providing description of places and events. Nevertheless, the life of Xuanzang is extraordinary and he has brought unparalleled achievements in spreading Buddhism.

I bought a personal copy of this book and I would definitely recommend others to read. If there is a better version of the book, I would love to read. Though the writer does not deserve 5 star, I gave it because of the extraordinary life of Xuanzang and his legacies.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

After reading the famous book Journey to the West, I became interested to read the true story off which Journey to the West is based.

The author seems to be summarizing from the Chinese version. I think it would have been more interesting to know more of Xuanzang's inner thoughts, but that's unfortunately probably not available.

Back then, Buddhism was widespread throughout Central Asia and India. At one place, his opponents only understood the doctrines of their own school while Xuanzang demonstrated a mastery of the doctrines of all the different schools. I think this is quite an admirable quality to have. Many people today could learn from this.

After returning from India to China with the Buddhist texts, Xuanzang's work was far from complete. This book talks about his many activities once back in China.

Overall, I'm quite impressed by his dedication and achievements. His diligence was impressive and the impact of his translations and other accomplishments are still felt today, not just for Buddhism, but also its historical and archeological value in his detailed documentation the people and places he visited.

If I had lived in China at that time and had the honor of the opportunity, it would have been arduous but amazing and edifying to join him.

[Sam · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was very fun to read while also being on a journey of my own (granted, I had the benefit of planes, trains, hotel, and the internet). I had not heard of Xuanzang before reading this book and knew very little about Asia in the time of the Tang period other than a few poets.

It’s honestly a bit unbelievable, but once I got past that feeling I was excited every day to dip back in and see what this itinerant monk was up to. The author offers a good amount of detail, sourced from both Xuanzang’s account and his biographer Huili, but I do want to echo some of the other reviews in expressing confusion about the constant Christian comparisons. I get trying to make things easier to understand for a lay western audience, but at certain points he was stretching so far I was surprised he didn’t get a charley horse!

Other than that though this is just a wonder through and through. Xuanzang is inspiring in his thirst for knowledge, his Buddha fandom, and his surprisingly open attitude toward other non-buddhist or non-chinese cultures. It’s the next best thing to actually going out there and seeing it all for yourself!

[Zach · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first learned of this story from a Journey to the West (really it was Dragonball). The story of Xuanzang's travels are fascinating. I try to imagine what it must have been like traveling through monasteries that had been abandoned for decades and then later finding monasteries with thousands of monks. The story of the journey made the old world feel even older. It's encouraging to think about how connected people have always been. I read this side by side with google maps and Wikipedia. It was fun taking detours to learn more about the modern history of places Xuanzang visited. I'll definitely read more about the history of Central Asia and India in the future.

[Terence · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of the books that I’ll always keep on my bookshelf. Having watched CCTV documentary 玄奘之路 on YouTube, I’ve been wanting to read book about Xuanzang’s journey to India. This work definitely helps me understand well about his arduous and difficult journey, and all kinds of difficulties he faced in his life. He has inspired me to believe how a human being can achieve with a strong and determined mind. His book has inspired generations of adventurers and help people to rediscover many Buddhist heritage sites in India and beyond.

[Linus · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great and accesible read on one of the greatest pioneers of travel, up there with Marco Polo and Ibn Battuta, following Xuangzang´s multi-decade journey across Tang Dynasty China, the lost desert kingdoms of the Tarim Basin and ancient India. Highly recommended to anyone interested in the history of the Silk Road or in the development of Chinese Buddhism.

[Asis Rodríguez · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the first time I read about the Silk Road and about Xuanzang, so this book was quite insightful and full of new facts. However, it was also a little bit boring to read as it is mostly descriptive.
What helped me a lot was to find the locations in the map, that gave me a better idea of the distance Xuanzang walked and the places he visited.

[Pauline · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was interesting just to read about someone I'd never heard of before, whose had such an impact on Chinese society. I would have been interested in learning more about his beliefs and teachings, not just his travels, but it was interesting enough, and the photos and maps helped visualize it a bit.

[Allen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A truly life-inspiring story about a Chinese Buddhist monk who decides to walk through Central Asia along the Silk Road to travel in India and collect information and learning about the countries, peoples and most of all Buddhist scriptures and ideas. His recording of his journey and observations of Buddhist sites, archeology and art was critically important to the reconstruction of knowledge about Buddhism in South Asia. Unless you are already a scholar, it is hard not to be surprised about how widespread Buddhism was in the 7th century AD. It is also interesting to see the level of cooperation between kingdoms in that age. Xuanzang would never have been able to bring back 500 boxes of manuscripts, and his beloved collection of 7 Buddha statues if he had not had cooperation and support at each step of his return journey.

[Mallee Stanley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Back in my school days, we were only ever taught about European explorers as if no other nation travelled the world. So this book was a refreshing change. Xuanzang was a Buddhist monk from Chang’an who left China in the seventh century and travelled over 20,000 kilometres to what is now known as Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan, then south-east through Afghanistan and Pakistan to India. He saw flaws in the translations of Buddhist texts in China and was determined to reach the heart of Buddhism in Northern India to discover the truth of these discrepancies. His journey along with his stops where he studied with renowned Buddhist monks kept him away from China for sixteen years. Because he documented his travels in detail, this is a fascinating read.

For more of my 5 out of 5 reviews visit https://readandwrite.blog/malleestanley/

[Leanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you are interested in the life of the great Chinese translator and monk, don't miss Sally Hovey Wriggins very engaging and erudite book, The Silk Road Journey with Xuanzang. Her treatment of the religions and translation issues is superb. And I loved the lasting legacy section. Outstanding writing and engaging storytelling!

[Ayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Already one of my favourites, I am currently reading this book for the second time, and it has become all the more enchanting now after having visited the Buddhist ruins in Taxila myself, seeing the places that Xuanzang once saw, standing where he once stood. Wonderful book!

[Alex Lopez-barton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting overall perspective of the travels of Xuanzang. The lasting legacy part drags on a little and some small details make the book feel more academic than the other seems to have been going for. Worth a read to get an idea of the life of Xuanzang.

[Ata A · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! Talk about an epic story of adventure and travel! Xuanzang travelled farther than frodo, probably more than 10000 miles, faced near equivalent evil, almost died several times in search of the original Sanskrit works of the siddharta Gautama Buddha! He was a Buddhist Frodo

[Dpatterson · Rating 3 out of 5]

A man whose travel writing was so precise that it can still be used as a guide more than a thousand years later

[Aparna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extraordinary is an understatement