National Geographic Treasure Seekers China s Frozen Desert

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00:00:13 In westernmost China
00:00:15 lie 100,000 square miles of
00:00:21 Once cities thrived here,
00:00:23 oases enriched by China's
00:00:28 until war and the desert did them in.
00:00:32 It's a wasteland so cruel
00:00:37 'Taklimakan' means
00:00:47 Two courageous men entered
00:00:50 one in search of truth,
00:00:56 Both battled for their lives
00:01:03 and in the grip of death
00:01:04 found treasures
00:01:50 Budapest, Hungary, 1872.
00:01:54 A studious 10 year old explores
00:02:00 Fascinated by the exotic East,
00:02:02 young Aurel Stein
00:02:05 Alexander the Great.
00:02:10 The first world's conqueror
00:02:12 from the Mediterranean
00:02:16 The land where Alexander's conquest
00:02:21 Much of the region
00:02:23 was so wild and remote
00:02:28 Here treasures from a secret past
00:02:34 The shy young scholar's obsession
00:02:39 So lost in ideas was the boy that
00:02:45 What no one could guess
00:02:47 how firmly this region
00:02:50 would shape Aurel Stein's life.
00:02:57 And how alone,
00:03:00 he would take on some of the
00:03:03 of the 20th century.
00:03:07 His favorite place was this place
00:03:10 which was a field up in Kashmir
00:03:14 that was only free from snow
00:03:17 And he would go up there with some
00:03:22 all day long.
00:03:23 I think at one point
00:03:27 so he didn't see to need to be
00:03:40 25 August 1891.
00:03:44 The tribal people who pasture
00:03:47 gave me a real serenade.
00:03:50 Some of the songs were very melodic
00:03:57 You have to be solitary
00:03:58 because the thing is
00:04:00 is you've got to be at peace
00:04:02 You've got to be content
00:04:04 in order to do something like that.
00:04:06 You couldn't sit doing
00:04:08 sitting in the middle of a vast
00:04:13 with nobody to speak to
00:04:15 except for your dog,
00:04:18 but you're not going to get
00:04:23 Stein's boyhood obsession
00:04:25 flowered at universities
00:04:30 He studied ancient languages
00:04:31 to understand the ruins
00:04:35 and translate documents
00:04:40 A Ph.D. in oriental languages
00:04:47 He landed a position with
00:04:50 which was then part of British India.
00:04:54 His home base for the rest of his life
00:04:57 in India's Punjab,
00:04:59 the farthest point reached by
00:05:02 in his bid to conquer the world.
00:05:07 At the Lahore Museum,
00:05:08 Stein discovered the artistic legacy
00:05:13 Images of the Buddha
00:05:20 How far east, he wondered,
00:05:26 It was a question Stein would pursue
00:05:28 all the way to China's
00:05:36 Aurel Stein was interested in the
00:05:41 He was fascinated by the remnants
00:05:46 and that he felt there was
00:05:48 between that and the art
00:05:56 Before Stein came here,
00:06:02 He had very special training in
00:06:13 At the time, Sanskrit is
00:06:17 I mean, people are so excited
00:06:20 Sanskrit and Latin and Greek,
00:06:23 So, today, I think, when people study
00:06:27 but for Stein it was computer science
00:06:32 it was the computer science
00:06:37 Armed with Sanskrit,
00:06:40 around colonial India
00:06:48 Stein accompanied army maneuvers as
00:06:54 He had done a year of
00:06:57 and he learned how to survey,
00:06:59 and that proved to be crucial
00:07:01 because when he went out
00:07:06 In some cases
00:07:06 his maps are still the most accurate
00:07:12 In India, Stein put
00:07:17 He began closely examining a book
00:07:18 By a long dead Chinese monk
00:07:25 Around 630 A.D., on a quest
00:07:29 the holy man had trekked some 10,000
00:07:36 His account of his travels called
00:07:39 gave Stein an authoritative guide
00:07:44 temples that had been living centers
00:07:52 When Aurel Stein was in Kashmir
00:07:56 to see whether his topographical
00:08:01 So for all three of his expeditions
00:08:09 The monk proved to be
00:08:14 But Xuanzang had also written about
00:08:18 in China's Taklimakan desert.
00:08:21 About this wasteland the modern world
00:08:26 Had Xuanzang given Stein a treasure
00:08:33 And he realizes that he can go into
00:08:38 and discover a past,
00:08:39 and that's what becomes his real
00:08:44 And Stein makes a case to the
00:08:47 that they should fund him to go out
00:08:52 And I think Stein is saying
00:08:56 and I will come back and tell you
00:09:10 In 1900, financed by England,
00:09:12 Stein headed east to seek
00:09:24 His goal to track down the cities
00:09:27 written about by Xuanzang.
00:09:39 With a crew of translators
00:09:41 Stein crossed the Pamir Mountains
00:09:46 From there he followed
00:09:49 the ancient trade rout
00:09:52 on his return from India
00:09:56 The thousand mile journey was
00:09:59 from man and beast alike,
00:10:09 The morning of the 7th December.
00:10:11 Starting the campaign in the desert.
00:10:14 My goal: Dandan uilk.
00:10:19 Most of the time Stein worked during
00:10:24 and that was always the driest
00:10:28 He had to carry a huge amount of ice
00:10:32 so he could leave it behind
00:10:35 to ensure there was enough
00:10:41 Also the cold and dryness
00:10:45 One could easily get lost and die.
00:10:54 It was the most difficult terrain
00:11:00 I think the best modern equivalent
00:11:08 Now Stein's navigation skills
00:11:15 for he had entered the Taklimakan,
00:11:18 one of the most dangerous deserts
00:11:25 About this desert,
00:11:30 It is all the work of demons
00:11:36 When the winds rise, both man and
00:11:44 Sad and plaintive noise are heard,
00:11:49 Combined with the site of this place
00:11:51 where nothing lives,
00:12:03 Characteristically,
00:12:07 and even the haunted desert's
00:12:12 The Chinese call it 'the Desert
00:12:15 The name Taklimakan translates as
00:12:22 The temperature of the desert
00:12:24 the temperature can
00:12:28 It is also a winter desert,
00:12:30 when Aurel Stein was excavating
00:12:33 he did record snow in the desert
00:12:42 The worst part about the desert is
00:12:45 in places they are 1,000 feet high.
00:12:48 So it is very difficult
00:12:50 because they are soft sand.
00:12:56 When you're walking through
00:12:58 it is very difficult to think that
00:13:04 But it is also very inspiring
00:13:06 where you know it is virgin sand and
00:13:13 Yet Stein was convinced that people
00:13:17 some 1,000 years before.
00:13:24 Xuanzang had written about
00:13:27 that had been thriving centers
00:13:30 now buried somewhere in the desert.
00:13:37 If Stein could find them
00:13:40 of a vast
00:13:45 But at what cost?
00:13:48 100 miles into the Taklimakan
00:13:50 the temperature plunged to
00:13:54 Hobbled by the loose sand,
00:14:00 Was the monk Xuanzang guiding them
00:14:05 or a dusty grave?
00:14:10 Finally, on the 11th day hope.
00:14:16 Traces of a ruin natives called
00:14:24 It was the first in a series of
00:14:26 where Stein would find evidence
00:14:34 Stein excavates.
00:14:35 And he finds pictures of Westerners
00:14:44 They saw pictures of angels in this
00:14:51 He also finds some Chinese written
00:14:54 And you could date the slips to
00:14:58 And that it was going to be possible
00:15:01 of the different Silk Road oases
00:15:06 and by taking all the documents
00:15:08 and sending them to scholars
00:15:17 For Stein the remarkable discoveries
00:15:22 First, the civilization that he found
00:15:27 Alexander the Great's influence
00:15:32 Second, he'd uncovered scrolls
00:15:36 dating from the 5th and
00:15:41 On his return trip from India,
00:15:42 Xuanzang would probably have visited
00:15:45 buried by the desert.
00:15:48 Perhaps he'd even poured over
00:15:52 Stein must have felt how his own
00:15:55 mirrored that of the solitary holy man.
00:16:04 One year after he'd set out,
00:16:08 With him, cases of artifacts
00:16:16 They would set the world
00:16:18 and make his name.
00:16:22 But they would also give him a
00:16:27 that would haunt him
00:16:31 Stein had the approval of
00:16:35 But on his travel papers it didn't
00:16:38 and would carry on excavations
00:16:48 A British diplomat had told Stein,
00:16:50 "Never tell the Chinese
00:17:00 In time, Stein's disregard for Chinese
00:17:05 but now he had more
00:17:09 Because of his discoveries
00:17:11 knew what lay
00:17:17 The race is on.
00:17:19 Stein goes digs in the ground,
00:17:20 and then a kind of race starts to
00:17:25 languages and documents
00:17:27 of this very remote region
00:17:31 And it becomes, kind of,
00:17:35 to have an expedition
00:17:40 In 1907, a German archeologist
00:17:44 from what was said to be
00:17:48 A French orientalist was scheduled
00:17:55 Spurred by competition,
00:17:57 Stein set out on a course
00:18:03 Once more his company traced the
00:18:10 But this time the grueling trip
00:18:15 He wrote to a friend:
00:18:18 What a desolate wilderness, bearing
00:18:26 On two expeditions the desert
00:18:32 His crew had quarreled
00:18:37 One of his most trusted assistants
00:18:41 Now, without warning,
00:18:47 Finally, Stein's own health gave out.
00:18:50 Malaria racked his exhausted body.
00:18:55 And worse,
00:18:56 the French team of explorers
00:19:09 As he packed his new finds
00:19:11 Stein was anxious about
00:19:14 a cave complex called Dunhaung
00:19:17 where he hoped to find
00:19:25 It is an anxious thought,
00:19:31 whether I shall find the French there
00:19:36 Crossing the Taklimakan to the north,
00:19:39 Stein had the eerie experience of
00:19:45 I could quite distinctly recognize
00:19:48 of seven years before.
00:19:50 I could even make out those of
00:19:54 the ever faithful companion
00:19:58 More shocking, was evidence of
00:20:03 Where Stein carefully protected his
00:20:07 his competitors left theirs open
00:20:12 Artifacts whose value they dismissed
00:20:14 were recklessly tossed aside
00:20:23 Near Dunhaung,
00:20:26 to explore the westernmost section
00:20:31 Of this crew Stein remarked:
00:20:34 They're the craziest crew
00:20:38 So turbulent and feeble
00:20:54 Yet the discovery of Great Wall
00:21:00 If his second expedition
00:21:02 it would have been enough to secure
00:21:09 I feel, as I ride along the wall,
00:21:11 as if I were going to inspect posts
00:21:16 2000 years seems so brief a time.
00:21:22 At the Wall,
00:21:23 just days away from his greatest
00:21:30 Perhaps he through that
00:21:32 was literally guiding his journey.
00:21:36 Perhaps he knew his competitors
00:21:38 his stamina or his scholarship.
00:21:43 In any case, his devotion to the
00:21:47 beyond his greatest expectations.
00:21:51 And still ahead, at a place
00:21:54 he would find one of the astonishing
00:22:00 Aurel Stein heard that
00:22:02 there were some very valuable
00:22:06 and he went there and he met somebody
00:22:10 who was sort of a curious moody monk,
00:22:14 who had sealed up the caves so that
00:22:19 So when Stein finally met him,
00:22:23 I've been following in the footsteps
00:22:28 He's my patron saint.
00:22:30 So the moody abbot sort of softened
00:22:38 The priest proved, in fact, quite as
00:22:42 of Xuanzang as I am.
00:22:45 He proudly showed the series of
00:22:47 representing scenes from the
00:22:53 The fantastic legends there depicted
00:22:55 which had transformed Xuanzang
00:22:57 throughout China as a sort of
00:23:05 He negotiates four silver horseshoes
00:23:07 for thousands and thousands of
00:23:10 and Wong goes for it.
00:23:12 And Stein knows that it is
00:23:16 He knows.
00:23:17 He writes a letter saying I've gotten
00:23:21 because one of the Sanskrit
00:23:25 would be worth that price.
00:23:28 But most of all was the apprehension
00:23:31 shifty priest
00:23:32 would be moved in a sudden fit
00:23:35 or distrust to close down his shell
00:23:38 before I had been able to extract
00:23:46 Stein was a devoted scholar
00:23:50 It was unthinkable to him
00:23:51 not to be interested in the things
00:23:55 and it is just natural for him to try
00:24:02 He and Abbot Wong were
00:24:06 Stein was very educated
00:24:09 while Abbot Wong was relatively
00:24:15 They were just piles of waste paper
00:24:18 Like a chip of broken glass to me,
00:24:28 The ancient scrolls Stein took from
00:24:33 stories and correspondence a portrait
00:24:41 One of the fragments has since been
00:24:45 which Xuanzang himself is known to
00:24:48 between 645 and 664 AD.
00:24:54 I felt quite sure that
00:24:57 within a few years of the debris
00:25:10 Stein was able to get many of the
00:25:13 take them back to the British Museum,
00:25:15 and one of them is the Diamond Sutra,
00:25:18 which is the world's oldest
00:25:22 It sits in the British Museum
00:25:28 So Stein really
00:25:35 For misleading the abbot,
00:25:40 He reasoned the scrolls he salvaged
00:25:42 would have remained lost forever
00:25:49 You know, the easy answer to
00:25:52 the very PC answer is, sure,
00:25:57 and they were never returned.
00:25:59 But if you judge him
00:26:02 he wasn't a thief;
00:26:05 He published everything he found.
00:26:08 If we judge Stein
00:26:12 by the person who discovered them,
00:26:13 if you were found by the Chinese,
00:26:18 You were a lucky manuscript
00:26:20 because people today can see you,
00:26:23 on the Web.
00:26:26 For his astounding discoveries,
00:26:28 Stein would receive a knighthood from
00:26:33 But the comforts and adulations
00:26:36 paled against the call of the East.
00:26:39 Again and again he would return to
00:26:43 to try and slake his thirst from
00:26:48 At 81, Stein would die as he lived
00:26:51 in the saddle while exploring
00:26:57 But he would never again match the
00:27:01 that put him on the trail of Xuanzang
00:27:03 and the lost treasures
00:27:19 The Dunhaung Scrolls made
00:27:25 His Chinese translator speculated
00:27:27 finding the rare Buddhist text
00:27:31 They were a gift from the monk
00:27:38 Xuanzang, like Stein, had risked
00:27:42 but many times for the sake of
00:27:46 One of history's most remarkable
00:27:55 China, 620 A.D.
00:27:59 As the great Tang Dynasty begins,
00:28:04 Bandits beseech cities within,
00:28:06 while neighboring kingdoms
00:28:11 China's golden age is born
00:28:19 In a remote trade depot,
00:28:23 takes advantage of the chaos
00:28:27 He's a monk on a suicidal mission
00:28:34 In the crisis, the Tang emperor has
00:28:38 but the monk has ignored the ban.
00:28:42 He hopes his disguise will fool
00:28:46 But there's no disguising
00:28:52 Xuanzang was supposed to be
00:28:55 There may be some difference
00:28:58 but he was very tall
00:29:03 You know, the descriptions of him
00:29:05 make him sound like some
00:29:15 From boyhood, Xuanzang
00:29:22 By age 13 he had mastered
00:29:28 By 20, he had humbled the faith's
00:29:31 in debate.
00:29:34 Xuanzang's virtuosity
00:29:41 'The shining of the sun of wisdom,'
00:29:43 they had told the young monk,
00:29:49 In fact, Xuanzang would light the way
00:29:51 for generations of Buddhists
00:29:56 There is no question
00:29:57 about the historical judgments
00:30:01 By any standards he is a hero.
00:30:03 He is a hero in many ways.
00:30:05 He is a very inspiring figure
00:30:08 not just for people in his age,
00:30:17 At age 26, Xuanzang wasn't yet a hero,
00:30:22 a holy mission.
00:30:25 His study of Buddhist texts
00:30:31 His solution to travel to India
00:30:39 He is frustrated that
00:30:40 he had multiple versions of
00:30:43 and that nobody in China could
00:30:47 His thirst for knowledge is so great,
00:30:50 he decides the only way out of
00:30:54 and find the original teachings.
00:31:01 The devout Buddhist had another
00:31:05 He wanted to make the pilgrimage
00:31:07 the birthplace of his beloved Buddha.
00:31:16 600 years before Christ,
00:31:21 to search for a solution of death
00:31:30 After six years of spiritual discipline,
00:31:34 supreme enlightenment
00:31:36 while meditating at a place
00:31:42 For the rest of his life,
00:31:43 the gifted teacher was known
00:31:46 which means 'the enlightened one.'
00:31:50 There are four places that every
00:31:54 where the Buddha was born,
00:31:58 where he preached his first sermon,
00:32:01 So Xuanzang was a pilgrim.
00:32:04 He wanted to go to
00:32:06 just as a Christian might want to
00:32:13 Yet the trip came with unholy risks.
00:32:17 When the Chinese Emperor Taizong
00:32:21 he ordered the monk's arrest.
00:32:28 Under this threat,
00:32:29 the monks accompanying Xuanzang
00:32:34 Perhaps it was just as well.
00:32:36 According to caravan traders,
00:32:39 the road to India was choked with
00:32:45 And the worst threat lay just ahead
00:32:55 Somebody called it
00:33:00 It is a place where you go in
00:33:03 Even Aurel Stein talks about
00:33:08 as being tame deserts.
00:33:15 By day its temperatures can reach
00:33:19 and by night plummet to 20 below.
00:33:25 According to legend, thriving cities,
00:33:29 in the thousands,
00:33:30 had vanished in its black hurricanes,
00:33:40 Caravan traders warned the
00:33:44 but the pilgrim replied:
00:33:47 I intend to visit the holy places
00:33:53 I will not regret
00:34:04 But years of monastic study
00:34:08 for the desert's special tortures.
00:34:12 Of this desolate badlands he wrote:
00:34:15 There are no birds in the sky,
00:34:21 no water or vegetation anywhere.
00:34:29 So he's alone.
00:34:30 And he started across the desert,
00:34:36 and his water bag fell down
00:34:43 The water spills.
00:34:44 And he travels for four and a half
00:34:49 and he is hopelessly lost.
00:34:54 Now Xuanzang considered turning back,
00:34:57 but he no longer knew
00:35:06 According to his biographer,
00:35:07 the monk was assailed by the
00:35:13 By day, the wind whipped up
00:35:18 By night, demons and goblins
00:35:23 are as many in number as the stars.
00:35:29 The monk prayed to Buddhist guardian
00:35:44 It was kind of what some Christian
00:35:46 call a dark night of the soul.
00:35:49 He ran out into the unknown,
00:35:55 He has this dark night of the soul.
00:36:00 This is a typical's hero's journey
00:36:08 In the dream a spirit called out,
00:36:12 "Why are you resting when you should
00:36:20 It was the horse
00:36:27 He set off in his own direction,
00:36:40 After four miles, the horse broke into
00:36:44 as a green oasis came into view.
00:36:50 And this old and sickly horse,
00:36:54 because it has done the trip
00:36:58 and he falls into this pool of water
00:37:04 He was able to survive.
00:37:05 He was able the find water
00:37:09 This must have meant a lot to him.
00:37:11 I think in his mind this must be
00:37:17 Buddha himself.
00:37:23 The stories about people finding water
00:37:27 It happens to Xuanzang;
00:37:29 it happens to Sven Hedin,
00:37:32 Anybody who goes into the desert
00:37:35 and then the ones who live
00:37:38 The ones who die,
00:37:44 Safely across the Taklimakan,
00:37:50 Again, he was proceeded
00:37:53 but as a holy man, not an outlaw.
00:37:58 The king and queen of Turfan
00:38:01 to have such a renowned scholar
00:38:05 "From the first day I heard your name,"
00:38:07 "I've been in a state of ecstasy.
00:38:10 I couldn't keep my hands and feet
00:38:17 But when Xuanzang told him of
00:38:23 He demanded the monk cease
00:38:30 He wanted Xuanzang to be
00:38:33 He wanted him to stay there
00:38:38 He got very angry at Xuanzang
00:38:44 You've got to stay here.
00:38:49 Xuanzang objected.
00:38:52 I came here on my way
00:38:57 You can imprison my flesh and bones,
00:39:05 So he decided to starve himself.
00:39:08 He fasted for four or five days.
00:39:17 Each day the king brought him
00:39:20 but Xuanzang wouldn't touch a morsel.
00:39:26 Again he almost died, and the king of
00:39:30 And then the king of Turfan gave him
00:39:36 and 24 letters of introduction
00:39:39 to all the kings and khans
00:39:43 So he had protection.
00:39:45 He was going to be taken care of
00:39:50 The king provides servants
00:39:55 The most crucial thing the king
00:39:59 who control the region west of China
00:40:04 So suddenly Xuanzang has gone from
00:40:09 through the desert
00:40:09 to having a retinue with him
00:40:16 With India almost in sight,
00:40:18 Xuanzang approached the fulfillment
00:40:21 and the greatest trials of his life.
00:40:32 By now, Xuanzang had trekked
00:40:37 He had become a skillful traveler,
00:40:39 falling in step with the merchants
00:40:42 whose precious goods enriched the
00:40:50 He grew into the roles of accidental
00:41:00 And throughout, the always hearty
00:41:07 After he leaves Turfan, he doesn't
00:41:10 He's bankrolled and he has
00:41:13 But then he has the problems that
00:41:16 like robbers.
00:41:22 There are a bunch of robbers
00:41:25 That is interesting.
00:41:26 He's robbed twice of his own clothes.
00:41:38 He was not just once robbed
00:41:40 he was robbed many times.
00:41:43 Because of his inner strength
00:41:48 he was able to escape from
00:41:55 Finally a year after plunging into
00:41:58 the pilgrim set foot on Indian soil.
00:42:07 He'd proved wrong all predictions
00:42:11 and reached the country
00:42:22 Guided by priests, he visited sacred
00:42:27 examining the stories painted on the
00:42:36 Assisted by as many as 20 scribes,
00:42:41 translating and copying
00:42:46 The most significant contribution
00:42:49 is to translate a large amount of
00:42:55 Scholars are amazed at how accurate
00:43:02 His reputation seems, by this time,
00:43:05 so that when he got to a new place
00:43:12 It was customary for the kings,
00:43:14 when he got to the border,
00:43:17 They would give him a big elephant
00:43:23 Seven years passed like a dream.
00:43:26 Xuanzang's celebrated knowledge
00:43:29 and his scribes from one monastery
00:43:34 At each awaited new Buddhist texts
00:43:40 It was customary in many of
00:43:43 in northern India
00:43:45 There are several kinds of Buddhism,
00:43:47 and so an exponent of one kind would
00:43:57 And he studied the other guys' beliefs
00:44:01 so that he knew their arguments
00:44:04 And that may be one of the reasons
00:44:08 Xuanzang never loses a debate
00:44:12 even if he's debating in Sanskrit
00:44:15 on arcane points of Buddhist
00:44:18 It's just not credible.
00:44:19 Every time that he meets somebody,
00:44:32 At last it came time for Xuanzang
00:44:40 He and his followers traveled by boat
00:44:45 their destination, Bodh Gaya,
00:44:47 the place of the Buddha's spiritual
00:44:55 But on the river, according to his
00:45:01 A whole mess of pirates came in and
00:45:05 and shoved them ashore.
00:45:07 They wanted a sacrifice
00:45:11 They said, oh, there's that handsome
00:45:21 They decided he's the
00:45:23 They tell him this, and he has
00:45:27 which is he doesn't wanted
00:45:28 but if he's going to be killed,
00:45:31 he wants to be allowed to meditate.
00:45:35 If this cold body is suitable
00:45:40 then I dare not crush the offer.
00:45:44 But if you kills this body of mine,
00:45:52 At that moment a tremendous gale came
00:45:55 that scared the hell
00:45:58 And so they said, who is this man?
00:46:08 He was really not afraid of death.
00:46:09 He was prepared for death.
00:46:12 He is not just a courageous person;
00:46:14 he was also a very calm person,
00:46:17 Whenever he faced difficulty, he
00:46:22 So, of course,
00:46:24 they threw away their weapons,
00:46:26 and they became good Buddhist,
00:46:29 This is another story that follows
00:46:33 which is that a representative
00:46:36 encounters the representatives
00:46:39 and the Buddha bests the local deity
00:46:41 the Buddha proves that he's more
00:46:45 So, did it happen? We don't know!
00:46:50 These are just stories, I think,
00:47:00 Finally, Xuanzang arrived at
00:47:04 Here the Buddha had achieved
00:47:09 But for the wandering pilgrim,
00:47:14 Xuanzang's trials and years of
00:47:18 even a taste of the sublime unity
00:47:23 Instead, under the sacred tree
00:47:27 Xuanzang could only weep at the
00:47:32 When Xuanzang finally got there,
00:47:39 "In what cycle of life was I
00:47:45 And then he wept.
00:47:46 And there were lots of other
00:47:49 and they were all very moved
00:47:53 At a time when the Buddha
00:47:57 I know not in what condition
00:48:00 but in the troublesome world
00:48:07 It's very rare for an enlightened
00:48:11 and he was crying almost, prostrating.
00:48:17 This kind of gesture was witnessed
00:48:25 Where Xuanzang saw unworthiness,
00:48:31 The most virtuous among them
00:48:37 This is somebody
00:48:38 whose whole travel description
00:48:43 He has, for him,
00:48:47 bursting into tears and saying that
00:48:53 as good as the Buddha.
00:48:57 In a remarkable adventure,
00:49:02 He was perfectly humble
00:49:09 At last he arose more determined
00:49:12 to pursue his destiny on the wheel
00:49:29 On his return trip through
00:49:32 Xuanzang anxiously awaited word
00:49:39 How would he receive the monk
00:49:40 who flagrantly disobeyed him
00:49:52 At Dunhaung's 'Caves of a Thousand
00:49:57 probably to let monks copy the
00:50:04 While he waited, the holy man studied
00:50:09 and sculpture in the cave's
00:50:16 Little did he know that
00:50:19 would someday join
00:50:27 Eventually word would come to
00:50:29 waiting on the lip of the Taklimakan
00:50:38 The Emperor Taizong said he wanted
00:50:42 And then, of course,
00:50:45 "Why did you go on this trip?"
00:50:48 Emperor Taizong at the very beginning
00:50:51 probably had a kind of
00:50:55 as he realized that someone who has
00:51:00 traveling through Central Asia
00:51:04 about these regions and the region
00:51:06 that he always had a great
00:51:10 Afterwards,
00:51:11 they gradually developed this kind of
00:51:18 The emperor invited the prodigal monk
00:51:23 But Taizong would settle instead for
00:51:27 in which Xuanzang described each step
00:51:34 There are plenty of bookworms
00:51:36 and there are lots of great trekkers,
00:51:39 and there are some good diplomats,
00:51:43 but he was all of them.
00:51:46 And I think he was a real man
00:51:51 The monk's last bit of uncommon good
00:51:57 It permitted Xuanzang to spend the
00:52:01 translating the treasures he wagered