Xuanzang traveled to Liang-chou, where he was a “guest lecturer”. The governor refused to let him go, but Xuanzang ignored the governor. He slipped out of town with the aid of two monks. Some guards told him about a detour he took that lead him to the Gobi Desert. Xuanzang made it to the town Hami and a Caravan. The king of Turfan wanted Xuanzang to be in his court.
When he refused, the king sent him on his way with everything Xuanzang could possibly need. Xuanzang crossed the Tien Shan Mountains and descended to the Issyk-Kul lake in what is now the Republic of Kyrgyzstan. He traveled capital of Tashkent and the city of Samarkand and then through the Iron Gates to Bactria (modern Afghanistan). He visited the city of Balkh, where there were many famous relics of the Buddha. Xuanzang arrived in Bamian. He traveled down the Kabul River through the city of Peshawar to Taxila (now ruins near the Pakistani capital of Islamabad). Xuanzang then went to Srinigar, the capital of Kashmir.
He stayed in Srinigar and studied Buddhist texts with nine monks, each expert in a different field, until early 633. In eastern Punjab, Xuanzang and his party were assaulted by 50 bandits, and only escaped because Xuanzang was able to slip away to get help. He traveled on to the headwaters of the Ganges, the sacred river of India. Stopping at Kannauj, he stayed there for three months studying with a famous Buddhist master. Sailing down the Ganges to Kanpur, his boat was captured by pirates who wanted to sacrifice Xuanzang to their god.
As he was preparing to die, the pirate boats were hit by a cyclone and destroyed, and they released him before even worse things happened. Xuanzang visited the sacred sites where the historical Buddha had lived in what had once been the Kingdom of Magadha. At the village of Kasia, he saw the place where the Buddha had entered Nirvana (a kind of heaven). At the great monastery of Nalanda, Xuanzang stayed for five years from 633 to 637 studying the sacred texts. Xuanzang continued down the Ganges to the port of Tamralipti.
From there he sailed down the east coast of India and visited south India and Maharashtra. He returned north and stopped at Nalanda again and then spent some time nearby studying non-religious subjects, such as mathematics and geography, with a famous teacher. Xuanzang was sent to Gauhati, the capital of Assam, to convert the King to Buddhism. Back in Nalanda he took leave of the monks and headed back to his native country in 643.
He crossed the Thar Desert to reach the Indus River. Crossing the Indus, he made it across safely on the back of an elephant into central Asia. Xuanzang faced many hazards, though. He survived blizzards and storms and the death of his elephant, who drowned while fleeing an attack of bandits.
Xuanzang reached Kashgar in what is now the westernmost part of China and Hetien, the capital of the Buddhist kingdom of Khotan. The King of Khotan came out to greet him, and he spent seven or eight months there lecturing on what he had learned during his pilgrimage. He finally arrived back in Sian in the spring of 645. Xuanzang arrived back in China with 150 Buddhist relics, six statues and more than 650 religious texts after a journey of 40,000 miles. The Emperor ordered him to write about his experiences. He had completed this book, Ta-T'ang Si-Yu-Ki (Memoirs on Western Countries) by the time he died in 649.
Sei Shōnagon
The Heian period of Japanese history lasted from 794 to 1185 CE. Sei Shōnagon lived and died during this time. Not a lot is known about her as a child. We only know about her personality by her writing, especially "The Pillow Book". This book contains a lot about her life at the imperial court and her feelings. It is a collection of lists, poetry, gossip and observations from her years in the court (things she saw and how she felt about them). "The Pillow Book" became very well-known during the Heian period. It revealed an interesting view on life at court.
The name "Pillow Book" came from an event where the empress was given a bundle of notebooks. The empress did not know what to use the notebooks for so Sei Shōnagon asked Empress Sadako if she could have them. Sei Shōnagon told the empress that she wanted to use them to make a pillow.
The book has about 320 entries. She also wrote lists in her diaries. There are about 164 lists. Some of the lists that were included in her diary were: "Depressing things" and "Things that arouse a fond memory of the past". Sei Shōnagon completed this book some time between 1000 and 1010 CE. Some people believe that a copy of Sei Shōnagon's book was given to Empress Sadako's daughter.
Tomoe Gozen
When Tomoe Gozen was a girl she was taught the skills of an upper-class Japanese woman: writing, musical theatre, archery, horseback riding and fencing. She became a skilled horseman and brave warrior. She became a lover or a concubine of Minamoto no Yoshinaka when she was a teenager.
When Tomoe Gozen was about 28 years old, she fought in the Gempei War (1180–1185). In the Battle of Awazu (February 1184), Minamoto no Yoshinaka was killed by his cousin Yoritomo. Tomoe's reaction to this is not really known. Some people have theories about what might have happened to her. Some think she may have fled from the Gempei War or she may have continued fighting after his death. She also might have been asked to go by Yoshinaka (who believed that his honor would be destroyed if he was killed by a woman) when he realized he would be killed.
After this time, historians do not know what happened. Yoritomo's friend Yoshimori forced Tomoe to marry him. But Yoshinori died before Tomoe gave birth to a son. According to legend, their son was Asahina Yoshihide. He grew up to be a famous samurai. Tomoe joined a nunnery, where she stayed for the rest of her life. Today, Tomoe Gozen is a role model for many Japanese women.
Al-Kindi
Abu Yūsuf Yaʻqūb ibn ʼIsḥāq aṣ-Ṣabbāḥ al-Kindī (, ; 801 – 873 CE), was an Iraqi philosopher. He was called "the Philosopher of the Arabs". He is often thought of as the first Arab philosopher, and one of the most important scholars in the Islamic world.
Al-Kindi was born in Yemen to a rich family. As well as philosophy, he worked in astronomy, alchemy, mathematics, medicine, geography, and many other topics. He became a member of a scientific place of study called the House of Wisdom. As a member there, he helped to preserve a type of philosophy called Hellenistic philosophy. He also edited Greek treatises (written works that formally explain a topic). He also wrote his own treatises on vision, precious stones and minerals. He wrote the first treatise on various types of steel swords, metallurgy. His treatises on music were thought to be the best works on the subject of music in Arabic. He died at age 72 in 873.
Cai Lun
Cai Lun (; 50 AD – 121) was a Chinese eunuch and politician. He is generally regarded as the inventor of paper. Earlier forms of paper, such as papyrus, were used in China from the 2nd century BC. However, Cai Lun developed another form of paper, which is used today.
Cai Lun was born in Leiyang (then called Guiyang), a part of Hunan. He lived during the Han Dynasty. His courtesy name was Jingzhong (). He served the government as a eunuch from AD 75, and in AD 89 got a promotion to be a "Shang Fang Si", someone who makes weapons, and a Regular Palace Attendant(中常侍). Cai Lun invented paper in the year 105. For his invention, he was rewarded by the Emperor. After his death he was considered the patron of papermaking. To make paper, Cai Lun used a pulp made of materials such as tree bark and rags. He then strained the liquid from the pulp and spread it out to dry. Legend has it that the mortar, a tool he used to grind materials, was buried in a pool near his grave.
Shen Kuo
Shen Kuo (or Shen Gua ; 1031–1095) was a Chinese scientist and politician. He lived during the Song Dynasty. He was a polymath, being good at many fields of study.