Gaoseng zhuan

Gaoseng zhuan (J. Kōsōden; K. Kosŭng chŏn 高僧傳), “Biographies of Eminent Monks,” also known as the Liang gaoseng zhuan, is a collection of biographies of famous and/or archetypal monks compiled by the monk Huijiao (497–554) of the Liang dynasty.

The text contains over 500 biographies (253 full biographies and 243 minor biographies) covering the period from in the introduction of Buddhism into China until the Liang dynasty (roughly 67 to 519 CE).

The Gaoseng zhuan set the precedent for subsequent biographical collections, which were compiled in later centuries, such as:

• Xu gaoseng zhuan (“Supplement to the Biographies of Eminent Monks”), also known as Tang gaoseng zhuan
• Song gaoseng zhuan (“Biographies of Eminent Monks [compiled during the] Song dynasty”)

Sources

• Buswell, Robert E.; Lopez, Donald S. (2014), The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Princeton University 

Further reading

• Memoirs of Eminent Monks, Wikipedia