The Establishment of the White Horse Temple
from The Record of the Monasteries of Loyang
Yang Hsüan-chih (fl. 555)
The establishment of the Pai-ma Temple (Temple of the White Horse) by Emperor Ming 1 of the Han marked the introduction of Buddhism into China. The temple was located on the south side of the Imperial Drive, three tricents outside the Hsi-yang Gate.
The emperor dreamed of the golden man sixteen Chinese feet tall, with the aureole of sun and moon radiating from his head and his neck. A “golden god,” he was known as Buddha. The emperor dispatched envoys to the Western Regions in search of the god, and, as a result, acquired Buddhist scriptures and images. At the time, because the scriptures were carried into China on the backs of white horses, White Horse was adopted as the name of the temple.
After the emperor’s death, a hall for meditation 2 was built on his tomb. Thereafter stūpas were sometimes constructed even on the graves of the common people.
The scripture cases housed in the temple have survived until this day; to them incense was often burned and good care was given. At times, the scripture cases gave off light that illuminated the room and hall. As a result, both laymen and Buddhist devotees reverently worshiped as if they were facing the real Buddha.
In front of the stūpa were pomegranate trees and grapevines that were different from those grown elsewhere: they had luxuriant foliage and huge fruits. The pomegranates each weighed seven catties, and the grapes were bigger than dates. The taste of both was especially delicious, superior to all others in the capital.3 At harvest time the emperor often came in person to pick them. Sometimes he would give some to ladies in the harem, who in turn would present them as gifts to their relatives. They were considered rare delicacies. The recipients often hesitated to eat them; instead, the fruits would be passed on and on to several households. In the capital there was a saying:
Sweet pomegranates of the White Horse,
Each fruit is as valuable as an ox.
Translated by Yi-t’ung Wang
This is the “official” version of the introduction of Buddhism to China. In all likelihood, the powerful Indian religion must have begun to filter into China in an unrecognized and inchoate fashion long before Emperor Ming’s dream, although the early history of the religion is very difficult to document. This account of the White Horse Temple, the title of which has been supplied by the editor, is taken from a book dedicated to the description of the Buddhist monasteries of Loyang in the early sixth century. The city, with all its grandeur, was destroyed in 534. Noted for its superb literary quality as well as for the wealth of valuable historical, social, and cultural data that it preserves, The Record of the Monasteries of Loyang (Loyang ch’ieh-lan chi) was written by Yang Hsüan-chih, an official of the Northern Wei (Tabgatch) dynasty.
1. Reigned 58–75 C.E.
2. Jetavana—a term that derives from a garden donated by Prince Jeta for the orphaned and helpless, literally “Jeta’s Grove.”
3. Loyang.