COLUMBIA
LIBRARY
COLUMNS
 

The Discovery in
"The Monastery of the Buddha Land"

GARI K. LEDYARD
 

When a few months ago the press services broadcast news of
the finding in Korea of the world's oldest stirviving printed
text, reporters interviewed Professor-emeritus L. Carrington
Goodrich, who has been active for years in investigating Chinese
printing, and Assistant Professor Gari K. Ledyard, concerning
the significance of the discovery. The latter has written the
following article to bring a fuller explanation to our readers.

Editor's Note.

IN the year 751, the Korean aristocrat Kim Taesong, ardent
in the faith that the power of the myriad Buddhas w ould
save him from error and protect his parents in their pres¬
ent and future incarnations, founded the Pulguk Sa—"The
Monastery of the Buddha Land"—a beautiful complex of build¬
ings and pagodas in the hills east of Kyongju, the 8th century
capital of the flourishing Korean kingdom of Silla. He was
doubtless on hand the day the monks and workmen lifted into
place the stonework of the Sakyamuni Pagoda, which was being
erected in front of the main temple of the monastery. He would
have watched with special attention as a number of religious
objects and rehcs were placed in the cache that had been carved