Shikshin monastic cluster, (near) Yanqi, Xinjiang, CN

Raw data

"Group of Monks and Buddha, from the Shikshin Monastery, Karashar, 9th-10th Century"
http://www.allposters.com/-sp/Group-of-Monks-and-Buddha-from-the-Shikshin-Monastery-Karashar-9th-10th-Century-Posters_i1734029_.htm

The site had stupas - Albert Grünwedel: Altbuddhistische Kultstätten in Chinesisch-Turkistan, Bericht über archäologische Arbeiten von 1906 bis 1907 bei Kucha, Qarašahr und in der Oase Turfan. Berlin, 1912. [as cited in http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qigexing_Buddhist_Temple_Ruins]

"Karasahr, or Yanqi (also Karashahr, meaning 'black city' in Uyghur languages. Turkish Karasehir. Sanskrit Agnideśa; Chinese 焉耆 pinyin Yānqí; Wade-Giles Yen-ch’i; ), is an area that lies in present day Xinjiang, China. The Buddhist Sanskrit name was 'Agni' or 'Fire.' The present name of the main town is Yanqi."
http://www.thefullwiki.org/Karashar

"Die Stätte der buddhistischen Tempel in Shikshin (chin. Qigexing Fosi yizhi 七个星佛寺遗址[1]) in der alten Karashahr-Region ist eine überwiegend tang-zeitliche Anlage von Höhlentempeln (Xikeqin Qianfodong 锡克沁千佛洞 "Shikshin-Tausend-Buddha-Höhlen"; engl. Xikeqin Thousand Buddha Caves) und Tempelruinen im Autonomen Kreis Yanqi der Hui, etwa 30 km südwestlich des Sitzes der Kreisregierung der Großgemeinde Yanqi (Karashahr) im Uigurischen Autonomen Gebiet Xinjiang im Westen der Volksrepublik China, am Nordostrand des Tarimbeckens. […]
Literatur
Chao, Huashan: "The Xigexing caves and temple ruins in Yanqi county, Xinjiang." In: Land Routes of the Silk Roads and the Cultural Exchanges between the East and West before the 10th century. (Desert Route Expedition International Seminar in Urumqi [Aug 19-21, 1990]). Beijing: New World Press 1996."
http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stätte_der_buddhistischen_Tempel_in_Shikshin

"The Qigexing Buddhist Temple Ruins (Uyghur: Xorquᶄ, Chinese: 七个星佛寺遗址; pinyin: Qīgè Xīng Fúsì Yízhǐ; literally "Seven-Stars Buddhist Temple Ruins") is a ruined compound of Buddhist religious sites located about 25–30 km southwest of the town of Yanqi, Yanqi Hui Autonomous County, Xinjiang, China.
[…]
The name "Qigexing" has also been spelled as "Shikchin", "Shikshin", "Šikšin", "Xikeqin", or "Xigexing". The archaeologist Albert Grünwedel who worked at the site during the third German Turfan expedition (1905-1907) refers to the site as Shorchuk (Uyghur: Xorquᶄ), this name is also sometimes spelled as "Chorchuk" or "Shorchuq".
Qigexing was part of the ancient Buddhist Karashara Kingdom that is first mentioned in Chinese sources from the Han Dynasty as the Kingdom of Yanqi (Chinese: 焉耆; pinyin: Yanqi). In 94 CE, Qigexing was conquered by the Han Dynasty in its reconquest of the Tarim Basin. The Buddhist monk Faxian visited Qigexing around 400 CE and mentions the presence of about 4,000 monks who were practicing Hinayana Buddhism. The monk Xuanzang, who lived in the 7th century CE, reports the existence of 10 Buddhist monasteries with 2,000 monks in Qigexing. […]
lat 41.992671, long 86.221046" - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qigexing_Buddhist_Temple_Ruins

Input by: tmciolek, Dec 21, 2010

Final data (and their sources)

Last updated: 17 Jul 2014

Lat/Long coordinates' accuracy:
The monastery in question is assumed to be situated actually no farther than 200 m from the point defined by the coordinates below.

Location of Shikshin monastic cluster, CN.

General location of the Shikshin monastic cluster, CN.
Lat 41.992671 Long 86.221046
Mapping & images: Falling Rain Genomics (http://www.fallingrain.com), 2010.


Google Map link:

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=41.992671+86.221046+(Approx.%20loc.%20of%20the%20Shikshin%20monastic%20cluster,%20CN)&ll=41.992671,86.221046&spn=05.0,05.0&t=k&hl=en

Final data - explanatory notes

1. Monastery's name

2. Monastery's modern country & province

  • China:Xinjiang Uygur Zizhiqu

3. Monastery's alternative/historical names

4. Monastery's lat/long coordinates

5. Other known nearby Buddhist monasteries

  • [missing data]

6. Modern name of the known nearest city, town, or village

7. The settlement's alternative/historical names

8. The settlement's coordinates

9. Monastery's major Buddhist tradition

10. Monastery's Buddhist sub-tradition

  • [missing data]

11. Date-early

  • [missing data]

12. Date-intermediate

MBM chrono-tag 0400-32c - tmciolek 17 Jul 2014
0367-99p 0400-32c 0433-66c

13. Date-late

MBM chrono-tag 0800-32p 0833-66p 0867-99p 0900-32p 0933-66p 0967-99p - tmciolek 17 Jul 2014
0367-99p 0400-32c 0433-66c 0467-99c 0500-32c 0533-66c 0567-99c 0600-32c 0633-66c 0667-99c 0700-32c 0733-66c 0767-99c 0800-32p 0833-66p 0867-99p 0900-32p 0933-66p 0967-99p dated-xl

14. Details of contacts with other monasteries

  • [missing data]

15. Type of evidence regarding the monastery

  • Archaeological, pilgrim accounts

16. Additional notes

17. Corrections & addenda to this page were kindly provided by

  • [missing data]

end of page

0367-99p0400-32c0433-66c0467-99c0500-32c0533-66c0567-99c0600-32c0633-66c0667-99c0700-32c0733-66c0767-99c0800-32p0833-66p0867-99p0900-32p0933-66p0967-99p200mcentral-asiachinaclusterdated-xlplacesstupatrad.theravadaven.faxianven.xuanzangwestern-china
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