Daoxuan's vision of Jetavana: Imagining a utopian monastery in early Tang Item Type text; Dissertation-Reproduction (electronic) Authors Tan, Ai-Choo Zhi-Hui Publisher The University of Arizona. Rights Copyright © is held by the author. Digital access to this material is made possible by the University Libraries, University of Arizona. Further transmission, reproduction or presentation (such as public display or performance) of protected items is prohibited except with permission of the author. Download date 25/09/2021 09:09:41 Link to Item http://hdl.handle.net/10150/280212 INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are In typewriter face, while others may be from any type of connputer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. 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ProQuest Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 DAOXUAN'S VISION OF JETAVANA: IMAGINING A UTOPIAN MONASTERY IN EARLY TANG by Zhihui Tan Copyright © Zhihui Tan 2002 A Dissertation Submitted to the Faculty of the DEPARTMENT OF EAST ASIAN STUDIES In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements For the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In the Graduate College THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA 2002 UMI Number: 3073263 Copyright 2002 by Tan, Zhihui Ai-Choo All rights reserved. UMI UMI Microform 3073263 Copyright 2003 by ProQuest Information and Leaming Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Leaming Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106-1346 THE UNIVERSITY OF ARIZONA ® GRADUATE COLLEGE As members of the Final Examination Committee, we certify that we have read the dissertation prepared by Zhlhui Tan entitled Daoxuan's Vision of Jetavana Imagining a Utopian Monastery in Early Tang and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement for the Degree of Doctor Of Philosophy Ihlt'cX Robert M. Gimd^o Date /u"/S• '0 Donald Harper Date - - /:'2_ Brian McKnight Date Jiang Wu Date Date Final approval and acceptance of this dissertation is contingent upon the candidate's submission of the final copy of the dissertation to the Graduate College. I hereby certify that I have read this dissertation prepared under my direction and recommend that it be accepted as fulfilling the dissertation requirement. r Vhn f U , /Q-ilsr-o^ Dissertation Director (jt^bert M. Gimello Date 3 STATEMENT BY AUTHOR This dissertation has been submitted in partial fulfillment of requirements for an advanced degree at The University of Arizona and is deposited in the University Library to be made available to borrowers under rules of the Library. Brief quotations from this dissertation are allowable without special permission, provided that accurate acknowledgment of source is made. Requests for permission for extended quotation from or reproduction of this manuscript in whole or in part may be granted by the copyright holder. SIGNED: 4 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The writing of this dissertation is the culmination of a course of study that began in Taiwan and concluded in the States. I would not have embarked on this course of study without the encouragement of my religious teacher, the Reverend Houzhong, and his admirably broad vision of sangha education. I am greatly indebted to the Reverend and the congregation of the Mahaprajna Buddhist Society at Singapore for their long years of moral and fmancial support. I also like to thank the Fa-kwang Institute of Buddhist Studies in Taipei and the Yinshun Foundation at New Jersey for fellowship awards at different junctures in the course of my studies. Among the people who have contributed directly to this dissertation, I need first to thank Dr. Robert M. Gimello, who supervised my work as the chair of my dissertation committee. He first called my attention to the Illustrated Scripture ofJetavana Monastery, while 1 was foraying for a text among Daoxuan's writings. He unstintingly shared his vast learning, suggested various sources for consultation, and offered critical feedback on the final draft of my dissertation. Thanks are also due Dr. Koichi Shinohara (McMaster University) who displayed remarkable generosity in sharing his unpublished writings on the text, and patiently responded to my queries via e-mail correspondence from time to time. In addition, the previous excellent scholarship on the text by Dr. Antonino Forte and Dr. Ho Puay-peng has wielded a strong influence over my study. I am especially indebted to my Dharma-sister Shi Zhiru, previously my classmate at the University of Arizona, now teaching at Pomona College. I cannot imagine graduate studies without her lively personality and intellectual companionship. Her constructive criticisms and astute insights definitively shaped my dissertation throughout the writing process; she read and commented on various versions of the manuscript, offering numerous suggestions to refine my translation of the text. Of course, I alone am responsible for the errors in my translation. Without Zhiru shi's enthusiasm, competence, and gracious assistance (especially selfless because she is just beginning a challenging tenure-track job!), I would not have been able to complete the dissertation in a timely fashion. Last but not least, I wish to express my deep gratitude to my parents (especially my late mother) who unconditionally supported my decisions, however difficult they were for them. Their self-sacrificing love and patience constitute the most solid, unchanging part of my life. I am also grateful to my siblings who took such good care of my aging parents, so that I could pursue graduate studies abroad without worries. Their moral support and concern have been indispensable to this work. 5 TABLE OF CONTENTS ABSTRACT 7 INTRODUCTION 9 PART I - THE ILLUSTRATED SCRIPTURE IN EARLY TANG CHINA 23 Chapter 1 Daoxuan's Life and Times 24 The Question of Authorship 24 Life of Daoxuan 29 The Political and Religious Environment of Daoxuan's Time 36 The Multifaceted Character of Daoxuan's Career and Contributions 51 1. Daoxuan, the Vinaya Master 52 2. Daoxuan, the Historian 71 3. Daoxuan, the Thaumaturge 75 Conclusion 81 Chapter 2 Jetavana: History and Myth 84 Preliminary Remarks 84 The Gift of Jetavana in Indian Buddhist Literature 88 1. Zaahan jing 89 2. Sifeniam^rn 92 3. Shisonglu 4"^# 97 4. Wufenia^^W 99 The Gift of Jetavana in Chinese Buddhist Literature 103 1. Xian yu jing WMM. 104 2. Zhong benqi jing ^ M 113 3. A Few More Scriptures and Commentaries 114 The Gift of Jetavana in Buddhist Art 117 Conclusion 122 Chapter 3 India Through Chinese Eyes 126 Introduction 126 Chinese Perceptions of the Coming of Buddhism 127 India and Jetavana in the Record of Chinese Buddhist Pilgrims 133 Medieval Chinese Attitudes Towards '^Things Indian" 144 Conclusion 158 Chapter 4 T}n»iUmtrated Scripture'. A Chinese Vision of Jetavana 164 A Response to the Crisis of the Final Dharma 165 Sources for the Illustrated Scripture 171 6 TABLE OF CONTENTS - Continued City Architecture as Earthly Paradise 177 Perfect Form, Perfect Society 183 The Ordination Platforms 193 From Learning Centers to Sickness and Dying Quarters 201 Fantastical Phenomena, Preaching Bells, and Other Marvels 209 Devotional Practices 218 Conclusion 229 PART II - ANNOTATED TRANSLATION OF THE TEXT 235 Preface 236 Fascicle One 244 Fascicle Two 301 APPENDIX A: Chronological Biography of Daoxuan 355 APPENDIX B; Works of Daoxuan 358 APPENDIX C: List of Cloisters in the Jetavana Monastery 362 APPENDIX D: List of Illustrations 365 REFERENCES 370 / ABSTRACT This study provides the first complete translation into a Western language of a fairly unknown but yet important Chinese work, titled the Zhong tianzhu shewei guo qiyuan si tujing (Illustrated Scripture of Jetavana Monastery in the Sravasti Kingdom in Central India), which describes Jetavana Monastery through textual and diagrammatic representations. To understand better the background of the text, I first discussed the life and times of its author Daoxuan US (596-667 C.E.), an important figure in the history of Chinese Buddhism particularly in relation to the formation of Chinese Buddhist monasticism. I also explored the scriptural and historical records which might have served as sources for Daoxuan's own portrayal for the history and myth of the Jetavana Monastery. Finally, I offered a synoptic analysis of the text itself. The significance of Daoxuan's representation of Jetavana lies precisely in its function as a blueprint of a Utopian Buddhist monastery for the early Tang Buddhists rather than as a faithful reconstruction of the historical site in India. The spatial complex and architectural design of the monastery visibly appropriates the symmetrical structure of the Chang'an City. The monastic compound is spatially organized into specialized cloisters and halls for the Buddha, the various ranks of Buddhist saints, the immortals and heavenly beings, the different commoners and laity who are visiting or living in the monastery. The text interfuses fact and fantasy, historical reality and religious vision; its description of extraordinary artifacts, divine creatures, and plants certainly mirror the Buddhist paradisal representations in texts and art. It is equally important to realize that such imagery is also derived in part from the exotic products, cultural curiosities, fantastical creatures imported from foreign lands that pervaded the markets of the cosmopolitan Chang'an in the Tang.