The Memoirs of Eminent Monks (), also known as the Biographies of Eminent Monks, is a compilation of biographies of monks in China by Hui Jiao æ §ç of Jiaxiang Temple in Kuaiji Mountain, Zhejiang from the introduction of Buddhism to China up to the Liang Dynasty. Hui Jiao explains himself that the title is supposed to draw a contrast with monks who are famous but not eminent - an allusion to the lost work of his contemporary Baochang, MÃÂngsÃÂng zhuàn Ã¥ÂÂå§å³ (= Biographies of Famous Monks).
The manuscript is 14 scrolls in length with the preface given in Scroll 14. It contains 257 major biographies, arranged in ten categories: (1) translators of scripture/ sutras è¯綠(yijing), (2) expounders of righteousness 義解 (yijie), (3) monks of miraculous spirit ç¥Âç° (shenyi), (4) practitioners of meditation ç¿Â禪 (xichan), (5) experts in the vinaya æÂÂå¾ (minglu), (6) those who give up their bodies éº身 (yishen), (7) chanters of scripture/ sutras 誦綠(songjing), (8) those bringing happiness and fortune èÂÂç¦Â(xingfu), (9) masters of scripture/ sutras ç¶Â師 (jingshi), and (10) leaders of chanting å±å°Â(changdao). Hui Jiao also lists 259 minor biographies. The text includes the biographies of An Shi Gao, KumÃÂrajëva, Faxian, Dao An, Fotudeng, and others. Hui Jiao used a wide range of other biographies, some of which are still extant, and this makes the way he shaped his stories highly revealing of his historical method and ideals.