I Ching (monk)

Yijing
Artist's impression of Yijing
Born	635 Fanyang, China
Died	713 Chang'an, China
Occupation	Buddhist monk, traveler

Yijing (Chinese: 義淨; Wade–Giles: I Ching; 635–713 CE) was a Tang dynasty Chinese Buddhist monk originally named Zhang Wenming (Chinese: 張文明). The written records of his 25-year travels contributed to the world knowledge of the ancient kingdom of Srivijaya, as well as providing information about the other kingdoms lying on the route between China and the Nalanda Buddhist university in India. He was also responsible for the translation of a large number of Buddhist texts from Sanskrit into Chinese. Yijing's full Buddhist title was "Tripiṭaka Dharma Master Yijing" (三藏法師義淨).

In some 19th-century publications, Yijing's name may appear as I Tsing, following an antiquated method of Chinese romanization.

Zhang Wenming became a monk at age 14 and was an admirer of Faxian and Xuanzang, both famed monks of his childhood. Provided funding by an otherwise unknown benefactor named Fong, he decided to visit the renowned Buddhist university of Nalanda, in Bihar, India, to further study Buddhism. Traveling by a Persian boat out of Guangzhou, he arrived in Srivijaya (today's Palembang of Sumatra) after 22 days, where he spent the next six months learning Sanskrit grammar and Malay language. He went on to record visits to the nations of Malayu and Kiteh (Kedah), and in 673 after ten days additional travel reached the "naked kingdom" (south west of Shu). Yijing recorded his impression of the "Kunlun peoples", using an ancient Chinese word for Malay peoples. "Kunlun people have curly hair, dark bodies, bare feet and wear sarongs." He then arrived at the East coast of India, where he met a senior monk and stayed a year to study Sanskrit. Both later followed a group of merchants and visited 30 other principalities. Halfway to Nalanda, Yijing fell sick and was unable to walk; gradually he was left behind by the group. He walked to Nalanda where he stayed for 11 years.