Message #29596

[Bianca]

“They spin thread from the bark [of the Fu Sang] from which they make cloth. They make houses of planks, but have no walled cities. They have a written language and use the bark of the Fu Sang to make paper.”

Speaking here of peoples far to the east, Hwui Shan commented at length on the system of justice, the method a ruler follows in assuming power, the colors and style of the ruler’s clothing, ceremonial processions, social ranks in the land, and the presence of cattle (perhaps bison) and deer.

“The ground is destitute of iron, but it has copper. They do not value gold and silver and have no taxes in the markets.” (28) The priest went on to outline wedding customs and the manner of burial. He also noted carefully that the people of the land were ignorant of the Buddha’s way of life until about C.E. 458 when five priests voyaged to that country and tried to covert them.

Of great interest is that Hwui Shan, unlike some surveyors, provided some detail of the trip east.

Added to the priest’s account in the court record is a story of certain unnamed man who a few years later (C.E. 507) were crossing the sea and were blown ashore in the unknown land. Their story confirms some of the priest’s comments. The women of the country to the far east resembled Chinese women, but their language could not be understood. Some men had human bodies but dog heads and dog voices. These people made round adobe houses, the doors of which resembled burrows.