This is the first of four documentaries from Chinese Central Television’s Channel 9 in a series about Eminent Buddhists in Ancient Chang’an. (Part Two, Part Three and Four).
In this episode we see something of the life story of one of the greatest of Chinese translators, Ven. Kumarajiva, who was born in the kingdom of Kucha, which now lies in what is Xinjiang in western China.
At the young age of seven he was ordained and sent to India to study, returning to Kucha when he was twelve. By the age of twenty he was already a famous monk, with his own disciples.
Eventually he founded the Caotang Temple near the ancient capital Chang-an, and it was here that he did his main translation works, which included some of the most difficult of the philosophical works that had been written in the schools in India.
This film also begins the story of his most influential of the Chinese translators, Xuan Zang, a story that will be continued next week, when we see his travels and work on return. This part focuses on his writing of the A Record of the Western regions of the Tang Dynasty.
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The ancient tribal state of Kucha is in the present day Xinjiang, which is a province in Westernmost China.
Thanks for the correction, included in the text above now.
The video is very good. You must make sure that the Amitabha Sutra , and connect it with Master Shandao , his experience and his mastery of Amitabha Sutra…He reached enlightenment. In this Dharma ending age, we must convert all who has a bit of Buddhism knowledge to
Recite Namo Amitofo , and to be born in
the pureland…to reach buddhahood. The
Dharma door of reciting is the last method we have . “This Dharma is most
difficult to believe ， extremely difficult, really hard to believe,” says Sakyamuni
Buddha. In order that they believed these
words by our own historical Buddha, your
Connection to it is very important. Other
Method won’t really work. We all must reach the stage of being reborned in the pureland to learn to become the Buddha. It’s now 2,600 years after the Buddha goes into stillness. Kamarajiva said “Everything is made from the true mind alone. ”
Amitofo
Gou Soon