UPSC Ancient India: Foreign Travellers Megasthenes to Yijing Notes
𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗲𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗿𝘀 ➡️ ⭐ Ancient India ✨Megasthenes – Greek ambassador sent by Seleucus I Nicator to the court of Chandragupta Maurya (Mauryan Empire). Wrote Indica. ✨Deimachus – Greek ambassador to the court of Bindusara (Mauryan Empire). ✨Dionysius – Greek ambassador traditionally associated with the court of Ashoka; accounts of his visit are less certain. ✨Faxian (Fa-Hien) – Chinese Buddhist pilgrim who visited India during the reign of Chandragupta II (Vikramaditya) of the Gupta dynasty. Recorded Buddhist sites and monastic life. ✨Xuanzang (Hiuen Tsang) – Chinese Buddhist pilgrim who visited during the reign of Harshavardhana (Pushyabhuti dynasty). Attended the Kannauj assembly and studied at Nalanda. ✨Yijing (I-Tsing) – Chinese Buddhist monk who visited India during the later 7th century, during the period of Harshavardhana's successors and the early post-Harsha era. Studied Buddhist texts and monastic practices.