The two Indian monks set about translating the sutra, and after several months the first copy of the Chinese sutra was produced. The emperor ordered the construction of the White Horse Temple, where the two monks could live. Over time, the majority of the Chinese people came to acknowledge the existence of Buddhism. Its popularity, however, did not become widespread. Buddhism was only regarded as a school of exotic, philosophical thought. It was not until the arrival of Fotucheng in 304 that the teachings of Buddhism became widespread.

Leaving for China

The family background of Fotucheng is unclear. It is said that he was born in 232 a.d. and left home to become a novice when he was nine years old. He learned the Buddhist doctrines very well, and he also mastered such fields as magic, medicine, history and geography. Hearing of the suffering of the Chinese people during a time of conflicts among warlords, his master advised him to go to China to spread the Buddha's teachings and ease the people's pain.

Decades later, in 304, Fotucheng and several of his disciples traveled through the Pamirs to China. After weeks of hardship in the cold, snowy mountains, during which several of the disciples died, the group finally reached China. At that time, Fotucheng was already seventy-two years old.

From about 265 to 589, China was divided into several states which were constantly at war with each other. Strong non-Chinese tribes also invaded China from the north. Because of these recurring wars, the common people were miserable. In order to avoid the suffering brought upon them, many fled their ancestral homes. In addition, most of the warlords were bloodthirsty and merciless. Once they defeated their enemies, the warlords would often bury their opponents alive. Consequently, the Buddhist concepts of compassion, no killing, nonviolence and retribution became quite popular among the Chinese people. Fotucheng saw the political situation in China as a great opportunity to promote the teachings of Buddhism, and he hoped to dissuade the warlords from slaughtering innocent people. Just as he crossed the Pamirs and entered China, Fotucheng met a group of refugees. The leader of this group, who years later became the monk's protector, was called Kuo Hei-lueh. Kuo was impressed with Fotucheng's determination to preach the Buddha's teachings in the Middle Plain (central China), and he was touched by his compassionate desire to bring peace to the poor people. Not knowing what he could do to help the old monk, he and his group accompanied him to Yuhui, a state located in today's Xinjiang Province in northwestern China.

As Yuhui was a Buddhist kingdom, Fotucheng was treated very well there. A few days later, the kingdom's militia even escorted the monk through several other countries until they finally reached the Taklimakan desert, the second largest desert on earth. There, Fotucheng felt that he had come to China to propagate Buddhism, not to enjoy life. With all these soldiers around, he seemed more like a noble official and not an ascetic monk with a task of saving people. Much to the dismay of the soldiers, he bade farewell and set off alone into the desert.

Finding a home for refugees

Traveling through the desert was dangerous and arduous. Having survived two months of constant desert storms and scorching sun, Fotucheng finally reached a famous city named Tunhuang, in Liangchou.

The governor of Liangchou, Chiang Kui, was a good ruler and his subjects lived very well. Due to the wars among the states in central China, however, many people had fled their countries and sought refuge in Tunhuang and other cities in Liangchou. The area originally had a population of one hundred thousand, but as hundreds and thousands of refugees kept pouring in, it became a great burden for the local government to shelter and feed all of them.

After learning about the situation from a local resident, Fotucheng came up with a plan that would solve the problem once and for all. He went to the city magistrate, Chu Yun-min, and advised him to simply relocate all the refugees to a new territory in the state where they could build homes and cultivate the land.

The simple solution provided the governor and the magistrate great relief. It also raised Fotucheng in the eyes of the governor, the magistrate and the general public, who all saw him as a sage who brought them prosperity and peace.

Fotucheng stayed in Liangchou for three years and took the opportunity to propagate Buddhism. Many temples were built. Tunhuang and all of Liangchou became one of the most well-known Buddhist sites in northwestern China. Still, this foreign monk wanted to realize his commitment of spreading the Buddha's teachings in the main territory of China, which by then was mostly ruled by the state of Chin.

Captive life

Fotucheng left Tunhuang with about ten disciples and headed toward Loyang, the capital of Chin, a city located in the eastern part of China, where he hoped to persuade the Chin emperor to allow him to preach Buddhism. On the way, however, they were captured by Chin soldiers and were locked away with other refugees, who were kept to provide labor or to serve as recruits in the army.

The captives, herded like sheep, were forced to follow the soldiers wherever they went. The soldiers pushed Fotucheng and the other refugees around for about three years. At this time, only one disciple, Chou Meng, was still with him. Luckily, Fotucheng and Chou Meng were able to escape from the Chin soldiers one day and they headed towards Loyang. The original trip from Tunhuang to Loyang should have taken Fotucheng three months, but due to his captivity the trip lasted three years.

When they arrived in Loyang, the city was already burned and deserted and the emperor had been killed. Bodies of men, women and children were littered everywhere. Fotucheng and Chou Meng were the only two living people in the city. Shortly after they entered the city, they heard a rumbling noise rushing towards them. It was a group of Chin soldiers running back to claim the empty Loyang. The monk and the disciple immediately fled the city and kept walking towards the east.

It was already dark, but they didn't dare to light a lamp, fearing that it might attract the attention of Chin soldiers. After walking until they felt safe, they lay down to rest. Exhaustion overtook them and they quickly fell asleep.

The next morning, Fotucheng was amazed to see a Buddhist temple a few hundred meters away. They quickly hastened there and discovered it was the White Horse Temple. The building, abandoned for decades, looked old and dirty, but to Fotucheng it was like seeing his home again after years of separation. A sense of relief overwhelmed him and he lost consciousness.

The three years of captivity had been so treacherous and tiresome that Fotucheng's health had degenerated greatly. Therefore, he and Chou Meng stayed at the safe, long forgotten temple for more than a month. As wars continued on without an end in sight, Fotucheng became quite anxious about the work he still had to do, since he didn't know how much time he still had. One day, Chou Meng went out as usual to find food. He passed by a military camp and sneaked in, hoping to learn something about what was happening. He knocked a soldier unconscious and put on his uniform. However, as he zigzagged through the camp, he stumbled into a restricted area and was soon caught. A captain thought Chou Meng was a spy and wanted him executed, but at that moment a general arrived. It was Kuo Hei-lueh, who had accompanied Fotucheng to Yuhui many years before when the monk first came to China.

Chou Meng sighed and murmured to himself that he now was quite worried about Fotucheng, since if he himself were killed, no one would care for the old monk.

Suddenly, Kuo Hei-lueh called to him, "Hey, who is this monk you were talking about?"

Fearing that he might endanger Fotucheng's life, Chou Meng immediately denied saying anything. However, Kuo still stared at Chou Meng for a while and finally set him free. Stunned at his freedom, the disciple immediately left the camp and ran straight back to the temple.

Winning the emperor's trust

Fotucheng had been waiting anxiously for Chou Meng to return. When the disciple entered the temple, he told Fotucheng of what had just happened to him. Just as he finished talking, a man in a suit of armor suddenly ran in, knelt down before Fotucheng, and cried, "Master, I have been looking for you everywhere!" The old monk was overjoyed at this unexpected encounter with his friend, Kuo.

After Kuo had left Fotucheng at Yuhui, he heard many good things about the foreign monk, especially how he had solved the refugee problem in Liangchou. He had earnestly desired to see Fotucheng again, and he had sent out agents to look for him. A few days ago, an agent had reported that two people were living in the White Horse Temple. When Kuo saw Chou Meng in the camp and overheard his muttered words, his suspicions were confirmed. He then tailed the young monk to the temple.

Suddenly remembering that they were near an enemy Chin military camp, Kuo invited Fotucheng and Chou Meng to come with him to his own camp. When they got there, Kuo called for three horses, and the three men rode back to Kuo's residence in Hsiangchen.

Kuo was now a general working for Shih Le, a warlord from one of the non-Chinese tribes in the north. He was powerful and capable, yet cruel and ruthless. He captured the royal families of the Chin and established another kingdom, Houchou.

With Fotucheng's help, Kuo gave excellent strategic advice to Shih Le that helped him win every battle. Because Kuo had not been able to offer such excellent advice before, Shih Le became curious one day and asked Kuo about his newfound brilliance. The general confessed it could all be attributed to his mentor, Fotucheng.

Shih Le asked, "Fotucheng? The one who helped the governor of Liangchou to settle all the refugee problems?" It seemed Fotucheng had become famous even in central China and Shih Le had heard about him.

At that moment, a soldier came to Shih Le and reported that a monk named Fotucheng wanted to see him. Surprised by this unexpected visit, Shih Le immediately ordered the soldier to bring him in.

Fotucheng stood before Shih Le and told him that he wanted to help him govern China after he unified it. Shih Le must, however, use Buddhist concepts in bringing peace to the people, instead of brutally killing them.

The warlord only believed in military force, and he did not accept the monk's words. Fotucheng decided he would only win Shih Le's trust by showing his supernatural power. He asked for a huge pot of water and murmured a few words. Suddenly, two lotus flowers appeared on the surface of the water. Awed by this incredible display of magic, Shih Le immediately changed his attitude towards Fotucheng and held him in high regard.

After several battles, Shih Le basically controlled the main territory of northern China. He wanted to attack states south of the Yangtze River, and he asked Fotucheng how to do so. However, Fotucheng questioned his ability to govern the people's hearts. He pointed out to Shih Le that without winning the hearts of the people, victory would be meaningless as his attacks on these states would only bring misery to the people, who would in turn hate him instead of submitting willingly to his government.

Fotucheng certainly didn't want any war to take place, so he tried to dissuade Shih Le from any military invasions. While the warlord was still trying to make up his mind, it started raining. It rained for a month. Shih Le's soldiers were used to the dry weather of the far north, not the damp climate of central and southern China, and many of them fell ill. But thanks to his medical skills, Fotucheng treated them and brought them back to full recovery. The soldiers thus came to respect Fotucheng very highly. Even Shih Le's officials, while bickering against each other, all admired and praised Fotucheng and never said a bad word about him. All of this did not sit well with Shih Le. He slowly came to believe that Fotucheng was actually trying to replace him as the new leader. The old monk had once told Shih Le that a successful leader should win his followers' hearts. Now it seemed that Fotucheng had won the hearts of Shih Le's followers. The warlord thus saw the monk as a threat that had to be eliminated.

One day, Shih Le put on his armor and sat in his tent. He dispatched a soldier to Fotucheng's tent to announce that Shih Le had disappeared. When that soldier ran into Fotucheng's tent and repeated the message, the monk was very calm and said to the soldier, "The great general is in his tent, dressed up for battle. Why do you say that he is missing?"

The soldier was stunned by these words and reported back to Shih Le, who was also amazed. He decided to send assassins to kill Fotucheng.

Fotucheng, meanwhile, was aware that his life was in danger, and he went into hiding. Shih Le's soldiers went to his tent, but failed to find him there. They then went to Kuo's tent, but Fotucheng wasn't there either. Not even Kuo knew where the monk was. The soldiers searched everywhere but to no avail. It seemed Fotucheng had disappeared.

Shih Le started to felt guilty for what he had done. He recalled how much Fotucheng had helped him, and how he was repaying him by trying to kill him.

The next day Fotucheng unexpectedly showed up at the door to see Shih Le. This time, the warlord was rather delighted to see him. After the incident, Shih Le knew that Fotucheng had no ambition to replace him. He also knew that Fotucheng simply wanted to preach Buddhism, so he ordered a royal temple to be built, and he recruited voluntary monks from the public.

Fotucheng was delighted by the news, because it meant that he could really preach Buddhism and bring many people into the congregation. He felt Buddhism would shine in China. Chou Meng, the disciple who had always kept Fotucheng company, became one of the monks and was renamed Tao Ching.

Shih Le respected the old monk very much and would often go to the temple to hear his advice on important issues. One day in 332, he was talking as usual with Fotucheng at the temple when, without warning, he had a heart seizure and was rushed to the doctor. A bell at the top of the temple tower suddenly rang by itself, even though no wind was blowing. Fotucheng felt an ominous premonition and informed his disciples that a national funeral would soon take place. Indeed, Shih Le died four months later.

The official religion

Although Shih Le had an heir by the name of Shih Hung, his uncle, Shih Hu, overthrew him and assumed the throne himself. Shih Hu, like Shih Le before him, highly respected Fotucheng. The old monk was presented with a set of carriages. When he reached the palace, he would be carried in a sedan chair to the main hall where a special seat was designated for him so that he could join other ministers in audience with the emperor. When Fotucheng entered the main palace for the audience, all the ministers had to stand up and greet him, and they could only sit down after he had been seated.

One day during an audience with Shih Hu, a criminal was brought into the main hall. He was charged with avoiding military service by hiding in the temple. One minister, Wang Tu, came forward and said to Shih Hu, "Your Majesty, many people in the country commit crimes and then evade punishment by becoming monks. This person is just one example. There are others like him, and I hope Your Majesty will ban such people from becoming monks from now on."

Perplexed at this apparent challenge to Fotucheng, Shih Hu asked the minister to elaborate. Wang Tu said to Fotucheng, "Buddhism is now the most widespread religion in the country and the monks are highly respected. Confucius, however, left behind many classics for us to follow, but your Buddha apparently didn't leave any scriptures for his followers. How can you justify what you preach?"

At that time, very few Buddhist scriptures had been translated into Chinese, so most people in China had never seen a copy. One of Fotucheng's disciples, Tao An, was also present that day, so he replied on the monk's behalf: "The Buddha's teachings include scriptures, precepts and commentaries. They are enormous and contain profound wisdom. If you have never seen any of them, how can you claim they don't exist?"

Wang Tu became furious. "All right, then, we who advocate Confucianism emphasize maintaining the family lineage by having children, but you monks practice celibacy, which goes against the social norm. You don't produce anything for society either. What's your view on this?"

Tao An replied confidently, "We cultivate blessings and merits instead of money. We don't fight over fame or position with others. Money and wives are sought after by worldly minds, but we strive after the objective of cleansing people's minds. All the words you have spoken seem full of moral virtue, but I see you full of filth, and your desire to gain something has already ruined your soul."

Wang Tu argued back: "Our ancient sages didn't practice Buddhism, and none of the dynasties before us believed in it either. It's so sad that we are doing so now!"

Tao An smiled and replied, "Our country is blessed, so the people are practicing Buddhism."

Wang Tu did not like Fotucheng, and he had been hoping to get rid of him and his followers. The best way to achieve this, Wang Tu thought, was to put pressure on the emperor to kick the old monk out. So Wang Tu turned to Shih Hu. "Your Majesty, the Buddha they are talking about is a foreign god, and that is why the emperor of China should not accept Buddhism as his faith, nor even acknowledge its presence. No Chinese emperors should believe in this religion, nor should our people be allowed to become monks!"

Many other ministers echoed the same words. They knelt before the emperor and begged him to take this advice. Shih Hu, himself not a Chinese, yet hoped that he would one day rule all of China. He strongly disagreed with the ministers' bias against the Buddha, and the air became very tense. Shih Hu finally spoke: "No Chinese emperors should believe in Buddhism? I believe in it, so does that mean I can't be an emperor?"

Although Shih Hu was speaking calmly, the ministers sensed something was wrong. Shih Hu suddenly changed his tone and growled, "I am the emperor and I make the rules! Now you people want to set the rules for me to follow?"

The ministers all implored Shih Hu for mercy. He said to them, "I now declare Buddhism to be the official religion of this country, and anyone is allowed to leave home to join the sangha as he pleases. You people have just dishonored Master Fotucheng, so how are you going to be punished?"

"Gentlemen," said Fotucheng calmly, " Buddhism should not be desecrated, so you can just light three incense sticks at the main doors of your houses and repent of your mistakes. As for me, I am simply an old monk, someone who is not involved with worldly affairs. You have been kind enough to let me sit here in audience with the emperor. I am certainly not annoyed by what you have all just said. I am actually happy to hear what you really think."

Fotucheng was very happy that Tao An would be the one to succeed him in propagating Buddhism in China. On the other hand, he was quite sad and concerned about the interpersonal bickering in the court, as it would do the public no good. After returning to the temple, Fotucheng gathered Tao An and other top disciples for a meeting. He said to them that although there were people who expressed their desire to join the congregation, there were also indecent people who just wanted to avoid punishment or their duties to the government. Thus, there was a need to clean up the sangha. Fotucheng also wanted his disciples to start translating more Buddhist scriptures so that Buddhism could take root and flourish in China.

Nirvana

One morning in 348, his final year, Fotucheng was staring at the statue of the Buddha. "Three years? No? Two years? No? One year? One hundred days? One month? No? Alright then," he sighed.

One disciple, Fa Tso, was there when this happened, and he was surprised to see his master suddenly looking pale. He immediately went to support the old monk, and he asked him what had happened.

Fotucheng sighed and said to him, "Fa Tso, it's about time for me to see the Buddha."

Fa Tso was shocked to hear this, but he managed to control his emotions as he helped Fotucheng to his room. The old monk then wrote a letter and asked Fa Tso to deliver it to Shih Hu. Several minutes later, the emperor's loud roar blared through the temple. In the letter, Fotucheng wrote that he would die soon, so Shih Hu rushed to see him. The monk told the emperor that he hoped he would listen more to the people and apply compassion and the rule of law in his government. Fotucheng then closed his eyes, and Shih Hu left sadly. Next, Fotucheng told Tao An and Tao Ching that he wanted to visit the White Horse Temple. Tao An later succeeded Fotucheng and became a well-known Buddhist master.

White Horse Temple had become a well-known temple once again and was frequented by many visitors. One of Fotucheng's disciples was the abbot of the temple at the time, so when Fotucheng arrived at the temple, it caused a commotion and thousands of people went to see him. Fotucheng, however, simply paid deep obeisance before each buddha's statue. Tao Ching knew that his master was reminiscing about the time when he first came to the temple many decades before.

A few days later, Fotucheng died at the age of 117, and the whole country mourned for him. Shih Hu died the following year. Two years after Fotucheng's death, Shih Hu's kingdom, Houchou, was conquered by another barbarian tribe.

Considering Fotucheng's old age, it was quite incredible that he could travel from India to China in order to propagate Buddhism during a chaotic period of China's history. Thanks to his courage, wisdom, and strong belief in the Buddha, many people were saved from the brutality of Shih Le and Shih Hu. Furthermore, Buddhism was able to spread and attract numerous followers and monks. A total of 893 temples were established in China. In addition, Fotucheng also nurtured many talented monks. If it had not been for him, Buddhism would only have been a matter of philosophical talk without any organized congregations. Without him, the Buddha's teachings would have had to wait for another miracle to take root in China.