is a four-volume diary written by Ennin, a

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

monk in

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

during the ninth century. He was one of eight Japanese Buddhists who studied in China at that time. He wrote his diary while he went on a Buddhist pilgrimage to China for nine and a half years (838–847). The books are translated into English as two volumes by Professor Edwin O. Reischauer of

Harvard University Harvard University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the History of the Puritans in North America, Puritan clergyma ...

under the title ''Ennin's Diary: The Record of a Pilgrimage to China in Search of the Law'' (Ronald Press, New York: 1955) and ''Ennin's Travels in T'ang China''. The first volume is a translation of Ennin's Diary. The second volume, a discussion of Ennin's travels, includes materials from other sources. Ennin's travel books are precious as historical sources, although they have some errors. His book was the first written document about China and its life by a foreigner. He did not write an evaluation of what he saw, but rather wrote about religious matters and Chinese life under the

Tang dynasty The Tang dynasty (, ; zh, c=唐朝), or the Tang Empire, was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 618 to 907, with an Wu Zhou, interregnum between 690 and 705. It was preceded by the Sui dynasty and followed ...

. His diary is a good source on the practice of popular Buddhism in China. He described ceremonies as well. He brought back many sutras and

mandalas A mandala (, ) is a geometric configuration of symbols. In various spiritual traditions, mandalas may be employed for focusing attention of practitioners and adepts, as a spiritual guidance tool, for establishing a sacred space and as an aid ...

to Japan. He struggled in his travel during the Tang's persecution of Buddhism (842–846). Another contribution on his books was about

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

, which records details of Korea's active trade with Northeastern China. Korea had a dominant role in trade between East China, Korea, and

References

* * * Reprinted, Angelico Press, 2020 (), with a Foreword by Valerie Hansen * {{Authority control 9th-century Buddhism 9th-century Japanese books Books about Buddhism in the Heian period Books about China Buddhism studies books Diaries Late Old Japanese texts Mahayana texts Pilgrimage accounts Tendai Travel books