Yixing and Pseudo-Yixing: A Misunderstood Astronomer-Monk

The present study argues that we must differentiate between the historical Yixing ᶨ埴 (673–727), an eminent Chinese monk, and the later legend that developed: a pseudo-Yixing, to whom various texts incorporating elements of astral magic and astrology were attributed. Scholars have not adequately differentiated between the historical Yixing and the later fictionalized figure, resulting in misunderstandings about the evolution of Buddhist astrology in China, and more specifically Yixing’s role within it, in addition to the chronology of Buddho-Daoist interactions. This corrective study examines some Buddhist texts attributed to Yixing and proves that they are all products of the ninth-century.