This "Biographies of Eminent Monks, " also known as "The Liang Biographies of Eminent Monks, " records the biographies of a selection of eminent Chinese monks who lived during the period of 453 years from A.D. 67，when Buddhism is said to have been first introduced into China, to A.D. 519. It contains the full biographies of 257 monks as well as short sketches of the lives of an additional 243 monks. Works devoted to the biographies of monks of high moral virtue are generally known as "Biographies of Eminent Monks, " and the present work is the oldest work of this genre. It is divided into 10 sections, in accordance with the varying achievements of the monks whose biographies it records.
