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198th out of 319 books
—
220 voters
Ten Thousand Miles without A Cloud
by
Sun Shuyun
Xuanzang should be known as one of the world's great heroes. His travels are legendary. He brought true Buddhism to China. His own book provides a unique record of the history and culture of his time. Yet he is unknown to most of us and even to most Chinese. Sun Shuyun, herself brought up in China, was determined to follow in his footsteps, discover more about Xuanzang and...more
496 pages
Published
2003
by HarperCollins
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“An epic journey – one woman’s search for her roots” – now that sounds like a bunch of crap.
I was pleasantly surprised when I found out that it wasn’t:
Author: Sun Shuyun (孙淑芸)
Title: Ten thousand miles without a cloud
Time: 1999
Destination: China, Central Asia, India
Length: several weeks
Type: mostly overland
Rating: 7/10
A contemplative story
[Please note: This book was originally published in English, but there has also been a Chinese translation (apparently by the author herself) for the Chinese ma...more
I was pleasantly surprised when I found out that it wasn’t:
Author: Sun Shuyun (孙淑芸)
Title: Ten thousand miles without a cloud
Time: 1999
Destination: China, Central Asia, India
Length: several weeks
Type: mostly overland
Rating: 7/10
A contemplative story
[Please note: This book was originally published in English, but there has also been a Chinese translation (apparently by the author herself) for the Chinese ma...more
Nov 29, 2008
Shantiwallah
rated it
4 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
thos interested in the early spread of Buddhism, Buddhist images, and personal travel journeys
Shelves:
travel
I thoroughly enjoyed this book although I think you need a real interest in Buddhism and/or historical Buddhist art to enjoy it completely. The most interesting information was on the presence of Buddhism in what we would now only know of as purely Muslim areas of the world (The bombing of the giant Buddha images at Bamiyan gave the world a clue about this)and also ways in which ancient Greek and Buddhist art have been connected. When my friend read this book she was disillusioned by the author'...more
Ten Thousand Miles Without A Cloud is the first book by Sun Shuyun. It details Sun’s experience as she tries to follow in the footsteps on Xuanzang, a Buddhist monk who, in the 7th century, made a pilgrimage through Central Asia and into India, to find the original sutras of the Buddha. Xuanzang made his trip during a time of political unrest, as does Sun; both confront obstacles and both come to understand Buddhism and themselves better for their encounters with others on the way. I found mysel...more
Without drama, Sun tells of her journeys to the many places that Xuan Zang, the 7th century Chinese monk made to the "West"--Central Asia (the Silk Road) and India. His story was retold with much fantasy and "paranormal" incidents in the 15th century and is regarded as one of the Four great classic novels. It could rightly be called The Monkey King, after one of the superheroes that was chosen to protect the monk on his journey.
"Ten thousand miles" is the sober and sensible but fascinating stor...more
"Ten thousand miles" is the sober and sensible but fascinating stor...more
The writer, Sun Shuyun, tells of growing up in China in the 1960s when, as a well-indoctrinated schoolgirl, she shared a room with her maternal grandmother, an illiterate peasant who, at considerable risk to herself and the rest of the family, maintained her buddhist beliefs throughout her long life.
Later, Sun attended university in London and learnt from a fellow student, an Indian, of a Chinese buddhist monk, Xuanzang who, beginning in 630AD, made a long journey of 15 years through Central Asi...more
Later, Sun attended university in London and learnt from a fellow student, an Indian, of a Chinese buddhist monk, Xuanzang who, beginning in 630AD, made a long journey of 15 years through Central Asi...more
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May 05, 2008
Valerie
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommends it for:
anyone curious about Buddhist history, Sinophiles
Recommended to Valerie by:
Achala
This book was a pleasure. Sun retraces Xuanjang's 16 c. journey along the Silk Road from China to India. A Buddhist monk, Xuanjang wished to return to the land of Buddha's origins to recover a felt-absence in then-Chinese Buddhist practice. By retracing his famous journey, Sun is also attemoting to recapture her family's --and China's, and very nearly India's-- lost legacy of Buddhism.
It's a good travel story, too, as she ventures to places most of us won't reach, such as Kyrgyzstan. If the boo...more
It's a good travel story, too, as she ventures to places most of us won't reach, such as Kyrgyzstan. If the boo...more
what a journey the Chinese have had. This may seem at times a bit tedious, but is worth the read if nothing else to understand what has happened in the recent past to form this country as it is today.
Very engaging and intimate. I read it twice. I highly recommend this book to anyone interested in Chinese history and culture, Buddhism, or in just a plain good read!
Review on Suite101.
http://travel-writing.suite101.com/ar...
http://travel-writing.suite101.com/ar...
Great to read after having read 'Chasing the monk's shadow.' Interesting how she wove in her own search for her identity.
Started reading 'Ten thousand Miles without a Cloud', a interesting journey into the journey of Buddhist monk Xangzung...
The real story of monkey magic and a great book to read while traveling in china
Great Book if you want to know about history of china from a common woman's perspective. An eye opener to an Indian who is blinded by pride of nationalism
Fascinating insight into the relationships between China and India over millennia as well as absorbing reflections upon spiritual beliefs, politics, and economics over generations.
If you like ancient history and/or Asian culture, this book is great! It has vivid discriptions that will make you feel like you are seeing it with your own eyes. Maybe I just say that because I have actually seen many of the places she talks about... :)
Đọc được vài chương và quyết định để dàng mang theo chuyến du lịch sắp tới, có lẽ rất là hợp :D
13/09: Ngừng đọc vì có lẽ lúc này chưa phải lúc thích hợp để đọc, đọc mà chẳng thấy vô gì cả.
13/09: Ngừng đọc vì có lẽ lúc này chưa phải lúc thích hợp để đọc, đọc mà chẳng thấy vô gì cả.
A Chinese-American woman's journey to find herself - following the path of a seventh century monk along the Silk Road (China, India...)
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| topics | posts | views | last activity | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Author's own comments | 2 | 7 | 5 de Abr 02:16 |
Sun Shuyun was born in 1963. She graduated from Beijing University and won a scholarship to Oxford. A filmmaker and television producer, she has made documentaries for the BBC, Channel 4, PBS, and the Discovery Channel.
More about Sun Shuyun...
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