ABSTRACT
3 https://s3-euw1-ap-pe-df-pch-content-public-p.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/9780429267949/a7894cf8-f1be-4da6-a5b8-25af3ccb2a6d/content/inline1.tif"/> In 629 c.e. a young monk named Xuanzang left China with a warrant on his head; he departed in secret by night. He made his way safely past five watchtowers in the desert and the Jade Gate, the last outpost of the Tang Empire. The fears of this solitary pilgrim were not over, for he was traveling against the wishes of the Emperor Taizong (T'ai-tsung, 626-649 c.e.) (Fig. 1.1).
