Jiva (nun)
Encyclopedia
Jīva was a sister of a king of Kucha
, and later a Buddhist nun
.
At a young age, Jīva fell in love with Kumārāyana
, a noble India
n who renounced his fortune to become a Buddhist monk and thus travelled to Kucha. Jīva and Kumārāyana married and produced a son, Kumārajīva
. When he was just seven, he had already memorised many Buddhist texts, and Jīva herself joined the Tsio-li nunnery north of Kucha. Two years later, when her son was nine, Jīva took him to Kashmir
to study further. After two or three years they returned to Kashgar
, where they stayed for a year. Finally, they travelled to Turpan before returning home to Kucha
. As Kumārajīva grew up Jīva the two are said to have become more distant, with Jīva supposedly relocating to Kashmir
. Kumārajīva became a noted Buddhist scholar and translator.
Kucha
Kuchaor Kuche Uyghur , Chinese Simplified: 库车; Traditional: 庫車; pinyin Kùchē; also romanized as Qiuzi, Qiuci, Chiu-tzu, Kiu-che, Kuei-tzu from the traditional Chinese forms 屈支 屈茨; 龜玆; 龟兹, 丘玆, also Po ; Sanskrit: Kueina, Standard Tibetan: Kutsahiyui was an ancient Buddhist kingdom...
, and later a Buddhist nun
Bhikkhuni
A bhikkhuni or bhikṣuṇī is a fully ordained female Buddhist monastic. Male monastics are called bhikkhus. Both bhikkhunis and bhikkhus live by the vinaya...
.
At a young age, Jīva fell in love with Kumārāyana
Kumarayana
Kumārāyana was an intelligent man from a noble family in India, whose grandfather Ta-to was supposed to have had a great reputation. Kumārāyana renounced his wealth to become a Buddhist monk, and left India, crossing to the Pamirs to arrive in Kucha. There he became the royal priest, and the...
, a noble India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n who renounced his fortune to become a Buddhist monk and thus travelled to Kucha. Jīva and Kumārāyana married and produced a son, Kumārajīva
Kumarajiva
Kumārajīva; was a Kuchean Buddhist monk, scholar, and translator. He first studied teachings of the Sarvastivada schools, later studied under Buddhasvāmin, and finally became a Mahāyāna adherent, studying the Madhyamaka doctrine of Nagarjuna. Kumārajīva settled in Chang'an, which was the imperial...
. When he was just seven, he had already memorised many Buddhist texts, and Jīva herself joined the Tsio-li nunnery north of Kucha. Two years later, when her son was nine, Jīva took him to Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
to study further. After two or three years they returned to Kashgar
Kashgar
Kashgar or Kashi is an oasis city with approximately 350,000 residents in the western part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Kashgar is the administrative centre of Kashgar Prefecture which has an area of 162,000 km² and a population of approximately...
, where they stayed for a year. Finally, they travelled to Turpan before returning home to Kucha
Kucha
Kuchaor Kuche Uyghur , Chinese Simplified: 库车; Traditional: 庫車; pinyin Kùchē; also romanized as Qiuzi, Qiuci, Chiu-tzu, Kiu-che, Kuei-tzu from the traditional Chinese forms 屈支 屈茨; 龜玆; 龟兹, 丘玆, also Po ; Sanskrit: Kueina, Standard Tibetan: Kutsahiyui was an ancient Buddhist kingdom...
. As Kumārajīva grew up Jīva the two are said to have become more distant, with Jīva supposedly relocating to Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
. Kumārajīva became a noted Buddhist scholar and translator.