title is "Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms." In the Japanese or Corean
recension subjoined to this translation, the title is twofold; first,
"Narrative of the Distinguished Monk, Fa-hien;" and then, more at
large, "Incidents of Travels in India, by the Sramana of the Eastern
Tsin, Fa-hien, recorded by himself."

There is still earlier attestation of the existence of our little work
than the Suy Catalogue. The Catalogue Raisonne of the imperial library
of the present dynasty (chap. 71) mentions two quotations from it by
Le Tao-yuen, a geographical writer of the dynasty of the Northern Wei
(A.D. 386-584), one of them containing 89 characters, and the other
276; both of them given as from the "Narrative of Fa-hien."

In all catalogues subsequent to that of Suy our work appears. The
evidence for its authenticity and genuineness is all that could
be required. It is clear to myself that the "Record of Buddhistic
Kingdoms" and the "Narrative of his Travels by Fa-hien" were
designations of one and the same work, and that it is doubtful whether
any larger work on the same subject was ever current. With regard to
the text subjoined to my translation, it was published in Japan in
1779. The editor had before him four recensions of the narrative;
those of the Sung and Ming dynasties, with appendixes on the names
of certain characters in them; that of Japan; and that of Corea. He
wisely adopted the Corean text, published in accordance with a royal
rescript in 1726, so far as I can make out; but the different readings
of the other texts are all given in top-notes, instead of foot-notes
as with us, this being one of the points in which customs in the east
and west go by contraries. Very occasionally, the editor indicates by
a single character, equivalent to "right" or "wrong," which reading
in his opinion is to be preferred. In the notes to the present