A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms

Across the sand there is no bird overhead, no beast below—only the dry bones of those who tried to cross. In 399, the Chinese monk Faxian sets out toward that wilderness, seeking Buddhist rules his community lacks.

Leaving Ch’ang-an with four fellow monks, Faxian travels west through kingdoms unsettled by conflict, welcomed in some places and delayed in others. His goal is to find complete copies of the Books of Discipline, the rules that govern the Buddhist order; but before the pilgrims can reach India, they must cross the vast desert, where hot winds and shifting sands erase every path. A journey of faith becomes a test of endurance, with the remains of earlier travelers their only guide. What will the desert demand of them—and what waits beyond it?

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