In search of lost part of Haecho's essay on Silk Road
This photo shows "Journal of Five Nations inindia," written by Silla Kingdom monk Haecho in the early 8th century. Korea Times file
Choi Yearn-hong, center in front row, poses with tourists during his trip to the Silk Road.
By Choi Yearn-hong
I took a trip to the Silk Road to find Wangochonchukukjon or “Journal of Five Nations in India,” written by Silla Kingdom monk Haecho in the early 8th century.
It's the first travel essay written by a Korean on the people, governments, diets, dresses and religions across 40 nations and places, through what is now modern day India, Iran, Central Asia, and the West, compiled throughout his pilgrimage to Buddha's birthplace in India based on his four-year trip there between 723 and 727.?
He died in Tang when he was 78.
His essay was discovered in 1908 by French sinologist and scholar, Paul Pelliot, inside Cave #17 in the?Dunhuang Mogao Grottoes, and was later shipped to the National Library of France in Paris for exhibition.
Choi on camel riding
The front and back of the essay had disintegrated for unknown reasons.
The Buddhist monk's journey inspired me to explore the Silk Road.
In September, I embarked on the journey from Xian, the capital of Shanxi Province in China. While there, I visited again the first unifier of China's many warring kingdoms Qin Si Huang Ti's Terracotta Museum which renewed my excitement for the amazing sculptures and art work it contained. It was my second visit there.
I first visited the museum ten years ago and was able to freely walk around the area of the tomb. On this trip, the tomb was not accessible to the tourists.
That evening, I walked into the Moslem market near there.
Their ancestors settled down in the Tang capital 2000 years ago as international traders have withstood the modernization of China's economy and culture. Xian is a new modern metropolitan city, boasting a booming economy.
It houses a branch of Korea's conglomerate Samsung Electronics. It is the hometown of China's current Premier Xi Jin-ping.
The next day, I climbed Mount Hua, one of the highest mountains in China. The South Peak is 2155 meters high. These five peaks have many lotus flowers.
“Hua” translates to flower, in English. Like Mount Tai, this Hua Shan appeared in many pieces of Korean classic literature.
After Xian, I took a high-speed train to Lianju to see the Huangha Soklim, “Yellow River Rock Woods,” and the old Byungyoungsa Temple and Grottoes.
Most probably, this narrow valley where the temple and grottoes are located was the Silk Road oasis some 2000 or 3000 years ago.
The area was the upper stream of the Yellow River, the birth place of Chinese civilization. I could see the old glorious days of Buddhism in the grottoes.
However, most of the 1000 Buddha caves were empty.
Restoration works are underway here. I was sad to know that Western art thieves and robbers in the early 20th century cut out the earthen Buddha sculptures and mural paintings inside the caves when China was in turmoil under the name of archeological exploration or exploitation.
My next destination was the western end of the Great Wall, Jiayumenguan.
The first the Ming Emperor ordered was the fortification of defenses at China's western frontier in order to prevent and deter the Hun invasions.
This fort was built to house more than one army division, despite its isolated location. However, this must have intimidated the aggressors as after this fort was built, the Huns and Mongols did not attempt to invade China at this location.
Calligraphy by Mao Tse-tung greets tourists on a jade rock in front of the Jiayumenguan.
I arrived at Dunhuang by bus from Lanju in the middle of the night.
Despite the darkness, I could still see and feel the outlines of the ancient cultural oasis.
I fell asleep and in my dream, I searched for Cave #17 of Mogao Grottoes, UNESCO Cultural Heritage, where Haecho's travel essay was discovered.
This was the part of the trip that I was anxious to experience.
The following morning, I visited the tourist information center where I saw a 30-minute film on the history of Dunhuang Mogao, before getting on a museum bus which transported me to another oasis where the famous Mogao [Mogao means caves in the rock cliff] was located in the shade of lined tall silver poplar trees along the stream.?
Dunhuang reminded me of the oases in Arizona and New Mexico and the Indian caves carved into the soft rock cliffs.
Sunny weather and fresh air welcomed me.
The main cave housed the five-story stone Buddha built in Tang, China.
Not all caves were open to the public, but #17 was open.
All my interest was on that cave, because Haecho's travel essay was found inside the cave in 1908.
There was a small library space in the wall to the right side from the entrance.
The care-taker monk sealed the library, another small cave inside Cave#17, of the manuscripts and books.
The library was sealed with a clay wall in order to camouflage and protect the manuscripts and books from possible Hun invaders when Tang was no longer able to resist their invasions.
This is why so many manuscripts and books had so long been protected. Fortunately, I met a Chinese tour guide and Dunhuang researcher who spoke Korean and asked her whether there was any record of Haecho's stay in a Dunhuang cave.
She shook her head.
There is no way to find the complete Haecho's essay in its original state.
The only remnant of Haecho's document was a small photo copy of one page of the Wangochonchukkunjon displayed at a small museum near the cave 17. I was disappointed.
Many caves along the Silk Road were constructed for places of prayer to Buddha.
Every cave was occupied by Buddha images, sculptures and paintings, seemingly managed by a monk or a group of monks. Merchants' must have relied on their faith of the Buddha to protect them in their adventures to the next oasis city with the many hardships they faced traveling the Silk Road.
Now, it was sad to see that all the Buddha sculptures and mural paintings inside the caves were gone and had been shipped to European and American museums in the early 20th?century. However, I could faintly see the artworks in ruins as good mixtures of Eastern and Western people, colors and designs. The Silk Road was not only the trade route but also the cultural exchange route. All the art works in almost all Chinese caves were sadly stolen and shipped to the West. Restoration works were going on in all caves right now.
Dunhuang and other caves on the Silk Road were cities of religious arts like the European cathedrals with Christian paintings and sculptures.
In the afternoon, I enjoyed a camel ride to Mingsha Shan, or the “Echoing Sand Mountain.” The camels were small, compared to those in the Middle East deserts.
They were vegetarian, slow-moving animals, under the guidance of a caravanner. After the camel riding, I walked on the soft sand field to see Yueya Lake, Charming Crescent Moon Lake, which was mysteriously located in between two sand mountains. Sand storms over many thousand years laid the foundation of the two mountains, but did not drop a dust of sand into this lake which sits between the two sand mountains.
Can you believe it? A five-story pavilion and a temple were built adjacent to this mysterious lake.
On the slow-moving night train, I was heading to Trupan from 11: 30 pm to 8:30 am.
There were four beds in a small cabin. Two must climb to their beds on top, because there was no ladder. An old man on the night train could not find comfort at all. After we pulled in to Trupan, I visited the Bezekkilik Thousand Buddha Grottoes on an oasis cliff, but there was not much to look at inside the cave.
I could see only the ruins of mural paintings. The most memorable part of Trupan was walking into the old Gaochang ruins where Tang monk, Xuanjang, stayed under the invitation of the ardent Buddhist King of the Goachang Kingdom in the mid-seventh century.
This was one of the few places that still housed relics, including sculptures of the characters of Journey to the West, e.g., the monk, monkey and a faithful servant, a famous fictional story modeled after Monk Xuanjang’s pilgrimage to Buddha before Haecho.
Haecho stayed in this area and recorded his arrival here in early November of 727 in his Wangochonchukkunjon. Tang’s military headquarters to control and govern the vast Western Territories was located in Kucha (640-790).
Haecho wrote about Kucha and Anxi, about 400 km from Kucha. Later in 751, the commander of this territory was General Koh Sun-ji, a son of a Koguryo officer.
Monk Haecho must have felt safe when he arrived in this Tang-controlled area after a long journey to India and the West. He must have found comfort here, because of its proximity to his final destination, Changan, about 1000 km away, and that its produce of melon, watermelon and pomegranates were produce from his native region.
The oasis farmers wisely managed snow-melted water from the Tian Shan Mountain via underground channels, or the “Kaze.” The best fruit in the world was harvested under the desert weather and long hours of sunlight. I enjoyed very much the Trupan melon during my two-day stay here. I could feel that I took Haecho’s pleasant walk on Trupan land.
On the following day, I went to my final stop of the Silk Road, Urumqi, pronounced as Urumuchi, the capital of Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, which was crowded with people and cars.
I could see the burgeoning economy, driven by the oil and coal industries. There were many check-points by armed police and soldiers at the entrance of each hotel and even at restaurants.
The Chinese government carefully watches all foreigners visiting the region who could possibly be with a terrorist independence movement.
The best sightseeing at Urumqi was a boat cruise of the Tian Shan Heavenly Lake, comparable to Paektu Mountain-top Lake. This is a sacred mountain to the Xinjiang people, much like how all Korean people think of Mount Paektu as their sacred mountain.
The Tian Shan divides Xinjiang in half, creating northern meadows and southern desert areas.
The following day, I visited a Kazakh village, located a couple of hours from my hotel in the commercial district. This village is located in the South Mountain Meadow. While there, I was invited into the home of a local Kazakh family.
The home was constructed out of a tent, and I was offered a glass of milk, dried fruit and cookies.
The woman of the tent house rode horses. She was proud of her participation in the annual horse riding contest of the village. Her 14-year old middle school daughter danced for the visitors inside the carpet-walled and floored tent. Each tent has a number, which is the address. I had grilled lamb for lunch.
The traditional market in downtown Urumqi was crowded with many tourists. I bought a couple of bottles containing dried black matrimony vine fruits as souvenirs.
They said that tea in lukewarm water, not in boiling water, would be good for an old man’s health. I smiled at them. I went to the airport for my return to Korea.
My short eight-day pilgrimage to Haecho was over when I arrived at Incheon Airport at 6:30 am of September 18. Another 13-hour flight to Washington, the last leg of my modern day journey on the Silk Road.
Choi Yearn-hong is a Washington-based Korean poet and writer.