Jianzhen (688–763), also known by his Japanese name Ganjin, was a Tang Chinese monk who helped to propagate Buddhism in Japan. In the eleven years from 743 to 754, Jianzhen attempted to visit Japan some six times, arriving in the year 753 and founding Tōshōdai-ji in Nara. When he finally succeeded on his sixth attempt, he had lost his eyesight as a result of an infection acquired during his journeys. Jianzhen's life story and voyage are described in the scroll, "The Sea Journey to the East of a Great Bonze from the Tang Dynasty."
Japanese sculpture of Jianzhen in Tōshōdai-ji temple. Nara period, 8th century AD.
Jianzhen Monk Memorial Hall, Daming Temple in Yangzhou, China
Golden Hall of Tōshōdai-ji in Nara, Japan
Yangzhou is a prefecture-level city in central Jiangsu Province, East China. Sitting on the north bank of the Yangtze, it borders the provincial capital Nanjing to the southwest, Huai'an to the north, Yancheng to the northeast, Taizhou to the east, and Zhenjiang across the river to the south. Its population was 4,559,797 at the 2020 census and its urban area is home to 2,635,435 inhabitants, including three urban districts, currently in the agglomeration.
Five-Pavilion Bridge and the Slender West Lake
A late Qing artist conception of the Yangzhou massacre.
The Five Pavilion Bridge over the Slender West Lake.
Yangzhou Railway Station