Buddhist schools in the 7th Century A.D. according to the Chinese pilgrim Yuan-Chuang

Part 11

Section 1 — The Travels of Yuan-Chuang and its Importance to Indian History

Yuan-Chuang was a Chinese Buddhist monk, who traveled from China to India and back, his pilgrimage lasting sixteen years, between 629 and 645 A.D. He made his journey to India in search of complete texts in their original language of the Vinaya Pitaka (Books of the Discipline), the Sutra Pitaka, and the Shastras (commentaries) of the Indian pundits. He did so, as he was dissatisfied with the Chinese translations that were available to him in his monastery, as well as his eagerness to gain the right understanding of the difficult to grasp doctrines that were included in the teachings. His travel account has survived as the text entitled ‘Record of Western Lands of the Great T’ang period,’ and includes valuable historical information about the state of Buddhism as religion and culture in the regions that he visited in the seventh Century A.D.

Xuanzang

His sixteen year itinerary was comprehensive:

630 A.D., at Sha-lo-ka monastery in Kapisa, The Master rested the Rain-season in this temple.
631-632 A.D., in Kashmir (stayed two years, from around May 631 to April 633).
633 A.D., at Chinabbukti in Eastern Panjab (stayed fourteen month).
634 A.D., at Jalandhara (four months’ stay).
635 A.D., at Matipura in Bijnor District (stayed for half the spring and the following summer).
636 A.D., at Kanauj (stayed at the Bhadra-vihara for three months; and, after leaving, was attacked by the river pirates ‘in the autumn’).
637 A.D., at Nalanda in Bihar (stayed for some time; returned, and then stayed for fifteen months more. Counting his subsequent visit at the end of
642 A.D., his total residence at Nalanda amounted to about two years).
638 A.D., in Irina country (Mungir), where he stayed for a year).
639 A.D., at either Amaravati or Bezvada on the Krishna, where he resided for several months.
640 A.D., at Kanchi probably, the most southern point attained, where he halted evidently for a considerable time, hoping to visit Ceylon).
641 A.D., perhaps at the capital of Pulakesin II (who was dethroned in 648), supposed by Dr. Fleet to have been Nasik at that time.
642 A.D., in the Po-fa-to country, probably Jamu in the south of modern Kasmir State, where he stopped for two months Yuan-Chuang was at Nalanda at the beginning of the first month’, equivalent to the end of January, 643.
643 A.D., at Pi-lo-shan-na, probably Bilsar in the Ita (Etah) District of the United Provinces, where he halted for two months. The early months of 643 were spent in attendance on king Harsha Siladitya; whom he quitted apparently in April, and he must have reached the Indus about the beginning of 644.
644 A.D., perhaps at Khotan, somewhat later than the normal time. Yuan-Chuang spent seven or eight months at Khotan, awaiting his sovereign’s permission to return, and, as he reached Ch’ang-an in the spring of 645 (April), he must have arrived at Khotan in September 644. Probably he had crossed the Hindu Kush early in July.

645 A.D. Yuan-Chuang had been where no other had ever been, he had seen and heard what no other had ever seen and heard. Alone he had crossed trackless wastes tenanted only by fierce ghost-demons. Bravely he had climbed fabled mountains high beyond conjecture, ragged and barren, ever chilled by an icy wind and cold with eternal snow. He had been to the edge of the world and had seen where all things end. Now he was safely back to his native land, and with so great a quantity of precious treasures. There were 657 sacred books of Buddhism, some of which were full of mystical charms able to put to flight the invisible powers of mischief. All these books were in strange Indian language and writing and were made of trimmed leaves of palm or birch-bark strung together in layers. We owe many thanks to this brave pilgrim for rescuing and preserving these Buddhist texts.

The 608 out of 657 texts as classified by school or Buddhist vehicle:

Mahayana — sutras: 224
Mahayana — shastras: 192
Sthavira — sutras, shastras and Vinaya: 14
Mahasamghika — sutras, shastras and Vinaya: 15
Mahisasaka — sutras, shastras and Vinaya: 22
Sammatiya — sutras, shastras and Vinaya: 15
Kasyapiya — sutras, shastras and Vinaya: 17
Dharmaguptaka — sutras, Vinaya, and Shastras: 42
Sarvastivada — sutras, Vinaya, and Shastras: 67

The 49 out of 657 texts that were not specified by school:

Yin-lun — (Logic = Treatises on the science of Inference): 36
Sheng-lun — (Etymological treatises): 13

Section 2 — Classification of the schools and vehicles and the number of monasteries and monks

The account of Yuan-Chuang includes information for each region that he visited, concerning the general classification of the Buddhist vehicle (Hinayana or Mahayana) or particular school they belonged to, how many active monasteries existed, and how many monks were living in these monasteries. In some cases, no information was given for either the number of monasteries and/or the number of monks. In other cases, no Buddhist vehicle nor a Buddhist school is mentioned; these are categorized under section 2.9 ‘no vehicle nor school mentioned.’

2.1. Sthaviravada

Number of regions: 2
Major strongholds according to number of monasteries and monks: Dravida (Capital of Kancipura)
Region names: Dravida (Capital of Kancipura), Samatata (Jessore)
Total number of monasteries: 130
Total number of monks: 12,000

2.2. Mahayanist-(of the) Sthavira

Number of regions: 4
Major strongholds according to number of monasteries and monks: Surastra (Surat)
Region names: Magadha — Mahabodhi Sangharama, Broach (Bharukaccha), Kalinga (South-west of Ganjam), Surastra (Surat)
Total number of monasteries: 71
Total number of monks: 4,800

See Section 3 for more details on this classification.

2.3. Mahasamghika (including Saila sub-sects)

Number of regions: 3
Major strongholds according to number of monasteries and monks: Dhanakataka (Amaravati)
Region names: Andarab (An-ta-lo-fo), Dhanakataka (Amaravati), Kashmir (4)
Total number of monasteries: 24
Total number of monks: 1,130

2.4. Sarvastivada

Number of regions: 7
Major strongholds according to number of monasteries and monks: Irana (2)
Region names: Ayamukha (2), Gurjjara, Irana (2), Magadha — Kapota Vihara, Matipur (1), Navadevakula, Tamasavana
Total number of monasteries: 18
Total number of monks: 2,900

2.5. Sammatiya

Number of regions: 18
Major strongholds according to number of monasteries and monks: Adhyavakila (A-tien-p’o-chin-lo), Malava, Sindh — Cutch province
Region names: Ahichatra, Anandapura, Avantaka (A-fan-t’u) (Middle Sindh), Adhyavakila (A-tien-p’o-chin-lo), Ayamukha (1), Irana (1), Kapilavastu, Kama Suvarna (1), Kapitha (Sankasya) (1), Kapitha (Sankasya) (2), Malava, Nagar Parkar (Pi-to-shih-lo), Sravasti, Sindh — Cutch province, Valabhi, Varanasi, Vaisali, Visoka
Total number of monasteries: 823
Total number of monks: 106,040

See Section 5 for more details on this classification.

2.6. Hinayanists (with no particular school mentioned)

Number of regions: 12
Major strongholds according to number of monasteries and monks: Srughna, Yuddhapati (Ghazipur)
Region names: Champa, Govisana, Kausambi, Kullu, Matipur (2), Paryarta (Bairat), Prayaga, Pushkaravati (Peshawar), Sakala (2), Srughna, Sthanesvara, Yuddhapati (Ghazipur)
Total number of monasteries: 63
Total number of monks: 3,680

2.7. Mahayanists (with no particular school mentioned)

Number of regions: 14
Major strongholds according to number of monasteries and monks: Daksina Kosala (Southern Kosala), Jagudha (Tsao-ku-t’a), Magadha
Region names: Daksina Kosala (Southern Kosala), Jagudha (Tsao-ku-t’a), Kashmir (3), Kullu, Magadha, Magadha — Ti-lo-shi-ka monastery, Odra (Ota), Pundavardhana (2 — Po-shih-p’o), Sinhapura, Svetapura, Takshasila, Udyana, Varana, Vilasana (Bhilasana)
Total number of monasteries: 484
Total number of monks: 35,430

2.8. ‘Both Vehicles’ / ‘Hinayanists and Mahayanists’

Number of regions: 16
Major strongholds according to number of monasteries and monks: Kanyakubja (1), Konkanapura Region names: Ayodhya, Guoh (Huoh), Jalandhara, Kanyakubja (1), Kanyakubja (2), Kheda, Konkanapura, Lankala, Maharastra, Mathura, Nepal, Parvata, Pundavardhana (1), Tamralipti, Ujjeni (Ujayana), Vrji (Vajji)
Total number of monasteries: 647
Total number of monks: 47,500

See Section 4 for more details on this classification.

2.9. No vehicle nor school mentioned

Number of regions: 17
Region names: Andhra, Bolor, Brahmapura, Chinapati-Bhumi (China-bhukti), Culiya (Cola), Jajhoti, Kajangala, Kama Suvarna (2 — Devadatta), Kashmir (1), Kashmir (2), Khost (K’uo-si-to), Malayakuta, Mulasthanipura, Punach, Rajapura, Sakala (1), Satadru
Total number of monasteries: 402
Total number of monks: 11,450

Section 3 — Mahayanist-Sthavira classification explained

The term that Yuan-Chuang uses is ‘Mahayanist of the Sthavira,’ which has puzzled scholars for quite some time. What this classification likely meant, is that this term ‘the Mahayanist of the Sthavira’ should be interpreted literally. These monks belonged to the Sthavira (orthodox elders) school but held Mahayanic views, and an Arhat was playing the role of a Bodhisattva, i.e., practicing Maitri (loving kindness) and Karuna (compassion) towards all beings, and continuously returning through rebirth to save all beings. The Abhayagiri monastery of Ceylon, a center of ‘progressive’ Theravadins, held Mahayanic views, for which they were criticized by the ‘conservative’ monks of the Maha-vihara monastery of Ceylon.

Section 4 — ‘Both Vehicles’ classification explained

The terms that Yuan-Chuang uses are ‘monks of both vehicles’ or ‘monks of both the Hinayana and Mahayana.’ What this classification likely meant, is that both Hinayana and Mahayana monks had doctrinal differences, but they lived together in the same monastery observing the same monastic rules as those of the Hinayanists, as the Mahayanist monks had no monastic code of their own.

Section 5 — Sammatiya ‘pudgalavadins’ are the biggest school

Unlike popular belief, the Sammatiya school, which held the metaphysical doctrine of the pudgala (transmigrating principle), can be identified as the most prominent school in the seventh Century A.D. It was present in eighteen regions that Yuan-Chuang visited, had three significant strongholds, had by far the most monasteries (823), and the most monks (more than 106 thousand). Not even the combined totals of all Mahayanist monks and all ‘both vehicles’ monks can eclipse the amount that represented the Sammatiya. This result shows that this school was the most popular in the seventh Century. The popularity of this school was perhaps due to their doctrine of the pudgala (metaphysical transmigrating principle), which appealed to the Indian Buddhists, who accepted it along with the anatta (not self) doctrine of the Sthavira (Elders) school.

Section 6 — Monasteries with lay-followers

I would like to point out that in two regions that Yuan-Chuang visited, he accurately points out that the monasteries he encountered there, had lay followers. Historical proof that at least some Buddhist establishments in the seventh Century A.D. supported Buddhist lay followers.

The first one was of the Sammatiya school, it was one monastery, which had 200 monks and ‘myriads’ of lay Buddhists. This monastery was in the Kapitha (Sankasya) region.

The second instance of lay followers was at three monasteries that were classified as ‘both Hinayanists and Mahayanists,’ which had ‘thousands’ of lay Buddhists. These three monasteries were in the Kanyakubja region.

Section 7 — Gradual Decline of Buddhism in India as evidenced by monasteries in ruins

It is joyful to read a travel account of Buddhism of so many centuries ago, but at the same time, it is saddening to read the state in which many monasteries had deteriorated into ruins. One particular region that stands out in this is Kapilavastu, where only one monastery is mentioned as still being active and Yuan-Chuang mentioning ‘a 1000 monasteries in ruins’. Another region that suffered from this was Sravasti, where most of the 100 monasteries were in ruins.

Only a few regions had a significant increase in Buddhist support when compared to Fa-hsien’s travel account of the Fifth Century A.D., and this usually was due to patronage and support from a king, mainly Harshavardana’s reign made Buddhism blossom in his kingdom and during his dynasty.

In the next article, we shall discuss how the Theravada school dealt with the doctrinal points from other Buddhist schools, as recorded in their Katha-vatthu text.

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