Chapter VIII

Crossing the river, we come to the country of Wu-chang. The country of Wu-chang commences North India. The language of Mid-India is used by all. Mid-India is what they call the middle country. The dress of the people, their food and drink, are also the same as in the middle country. The religion of Buddha is very flourishing. The places where the priests stop and lodge they call saugharamas.In all there are five hundred haramas; they belong to the Little Vehicle without exception. If a strange Bhikshu arrives here, they give him full entertainment for three days; the three days being over, then they bid him seek for himself a place to rest permanently.

Tradition says: When Buddha came to North India, he then visited this country. Buddha left here as a bequest the impression of his foot. The footprint is sometimes long and sometimes short, according to the thoughtfulness of a man’s heart: it is still so, even now. Moreover, the drying-robe-stone in connection with the place where he converted the wicked dragon still remains. The stone is a chang and four-tenths high, and more than two chang across. It is smooth on one side. Three of the pilgrims, Hwui-king, Tao-ching, and Hwui-ta, went on ahead towards Buddha’s shadow and Nagarahara. Fa-hian and the rest stopped in this country during the rains; when over, they went down south to the country of Su-ho-to.