Skip to main content

Secondary sourceBook646 CE

Record of the Western Regions

Xuanzang · 646 CE

Xuanzang's 7th-century account of his journey to India, describing Buddhist sacred sites connected to the Buddha's life.

Xuanzang's travel record helped later scholars locate and verify sites associated with the Buddha's life.

Ask Buddha about this sourceView the original(opens in new tab)
Scanned page of a traditional Chinese woodblock-style printed book, the Siku Quanshu edition of Great Tang Records on the Western Regions, vertical columns of black characters on cream paper with a title block reading 大唐西域記 and attribution to 唐 釋玄奘 譯 (Xuanzang), with a section heading 三國 and place names listed at top.
Page from the Siku Quanshu edition of the Records of the Western Regions, compiled 646 CE.

About this source

What it is

Compiled in 646 CE, this text records the travels of the Chinese Buddhist monk Xuanzang through Central Asia and India between 626 and 645. His disciple Bianji edited the work from Xuanzang's own dictation.

Why it matters

Xuanzang's detailed descriptions of distances, locations, and religious sites have guided modern historians and archaeologists in rediscovering places linked to the Buddha, including Rajagrha, the temple at Sarnath, and the ruins of Nalanda. The text also shaped relations between Tang China and Indian kingdoms, and later inspired a famous Chinese novel.

Look closer

  • Why might a travel record written over a thousand years after the Buddha's life still be useful to archaeologists today?
  • What does the involvement of Xuanzang's disciple in editing the text suggest about how it was produced?
  • How might Xuanzang's religious devotion have shaped what he chose to record?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Buddha on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

More Buddha sources

Meet the AI Buddha →
A large upright marble slab with a red-painted rim and a tablet-shaped top, inscribed with dense Burmese script in many lines. A framed title panel sits at the top, and paper inscriptions are on the wall behind it in a stone-walled alcove.Book

Secondary source

Dhammapada

Attributed to the Buddha · c. 3rd century BCE compilation

Painted leaf of a palm-leaf or wooden-board style manuscript showing a seated, yellow-faced Buddha in red robes in meditation pose, flanked by two small figures, with black and red borders and script at the sides.Painting

Secondary source

Buddha in Dhyana, Perfection of Wisdom Sutra Manuscript

1074

Grey stone sculpture of the head of a Buddha with tightly curled wavy hair in a high topknot, downcast eyes, a small raised dot on the forehead, and a broken neck base. Photographed against a pale background.Sculpture

Secondary source

Head of the Buddha, Gandhara style

Diagram of the Tipiṭaka structure. Top box TIPIṬAKA branches into three: Vinayapiṭaka (Suttavibhaṅga, Khandhaka, Parivāra), Suttapiṭaka (five Nikāyas including Khuddakanikāya), and Abhidhammapiṭaka (seven books). Khuddakanikāya's fifteen texts are listed below.Book

Secondary source

Pali Canon (Tipitaka)

Early Buddhist sangha · oral from 5th century BCE; written c. 29 BCE

A photo of the cover board of a folding book with a red lacquered background and gold floral scrollwork, with a vertical green panel bearing gold Burmese script lettering in the center.Document

Secondary source

Life of the Buddha

19th century

Ready when you are

Start chatting with Buddha now.

20 messages free · No credit card · Available in 50+ languages.

Trial Humy for freeGet a quote for institutions