430 Xuanzang miles from north to south It bordered the Gobi Desert in the north and included the Gansu Corridor in the west, which was important because that was the route of trans-Eurasian trade from which it received much revenue The core of the state was the Xia area, which contained extensive irrigation works originating from the Han dynasty (202 b.c.e.–200 c.e.) that sustained a mixed agricultural and pastoral economy Beyond the agricultural core much of the land was desert Xixia had two capital cities, Xiping (Hsi-p’ing) on the east side of the Yellow River and Xingqing (Hsing-ching) on the west side near present-day Ningxia (Ning-hsia); a royal cemetery was located nearby with tombs built on the Song model At the height of its power under Yuanhao, Xixia defeated the Song and under a peace signed between the two states, Song gave large annual gifts of silk and silver to Xixia As with the Song, Xixia adopted Confucianism as state ideology, shrines were built in the capital to honor Confucius, schools were established in cities to teach the Confucian Classics, and a national academy was established to train advisers to the rulers As the dynasty progressed, the trend toward Sinicization in philosophy, arts, ritual, and even fashion grew Several among the nine Xixia rulers had Chinese mothers and wives To the Xixia elite Chinese things represented sophistication, and they became more assimilated to Chinese values than their contemporary Khitan nobles in the Liao dynasty were This trend also produced tension and division because some Tangut continued to honor their traditional tribal values; these conflicts were never resolved Although Daoism (Taoism) was patronized and Nestorian Christianity and Manicheanism had adherents, most Tangut followed the Tibetan model of Buddhism, deviating from the Chinese Many Buddhist texts were translated to Tangut and printed from carved wood blocks Xixia existed internationally in complex relationships with the Song, Liao, and Jin dynasties in shifting alliances, war, and peace, until the rise of the Mongols The first Mongol attack occurred in 1205; Temujin, who became Genghis Khan one year later, led it A request for aid from Jin (who would later be a Mongol victim also) was refused Xixia sued for peace and became a subject ally of the Mongols under very oppressive terms When Xixia revolted later, their doom was sealed In 1226 Genghis Khan personally led an army to destroy Xixia, which they did systematically and continued even after Genghis died in 1227 When the capital surrendered every inhabitant was killed and the royal cemetery was plundered The state and dynasty, which had produced nine rulers, disappeared It is unclear what happened to the survivors There is evidence that some of the ruling clan members and followers fled to the upper reaches of the Yarlung River in present day western Sichuan province Other small groups fled to northeastern China, where fragments of their culture survived for some time See also Tibetan Kingdom Further reading: Dunnell, Ruth W The Great State of White and High, Buddhism and State Formation in Eleventh Century Xia Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 1996; Franke, Herbert, and Denis Sinor, eds The Cambridge History of China, Vol 6, Alien Regimes and Border States 907–1368 Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994 Jiu-Hwa Lo Upshur Xuanzang (Hsuan-tsang) (c 600–664) Chinese Buddhist monk Xuanzang was a Chinese monk who journeyed to India to study Buddhism He was preceded by others, among them Fa Xian (Fa-hsien), but was surpassed by none Together the pilgrims’ translations and other writings enhanced China’s knowledge of many lands and added to the understanding of Buddhism A precocious boy from a literati family, he followed his elder brother to pursue a monastic life at 12 and was given the religious name Xuanzang upon ordination at age 20 In 629 he embarked on a 16-year journey to India, leaving China at night and in secret because Emperor Taizong (T’ang-tsung, r 626–649) of the newly founded Tang (T’ang) dynasty had forbidden his subjects to leave the country His journey involved crossing formidable deserts and high mountains, with rest periods among monastic communities and as guest of rulers in the oasis towns, across modern Afghanistan, down the Indus River valley, across Kashmir, to the Ganges valley In India he studied, lectured, and debated with Buddhist scholars and teachers of other religions and was entertained and honored by kings Twice he was the guest of King Harsha Vardhana, the powerful ruler of northern India Xuanzang traveled widely throughout the subcontinent except the southern tip He studied and lectured at Nalanda, where Buddhist scholars from many Asian lands studied at the famous university He also visited holy sites such as Bodh Gaya and Sarnath that were associated with Gautama Buddha’s life and