Jingyiji 旌異記

Jingyiji 旌異記 "Manifestation of strange matters" is an early collection of Buddhist stories compiled during the Sui period 隋 (581-618) by Hou Bai 侯白, courtesy name Junsu 君素. He hailed from Weijun 魏郡 (modern Linzhang 臨漳, Hebei) and was state historiographer (xiuguoshi 修國史) in the Palace Library (mishu 秘書). Hou Bai also compiled the humourist collection Qiyanlu 啟顏錄.

The 15-juan-long Jingyiji is already mentioned in the imperial bibliography Jingji zhi 經籍志 in the official dynastic history Suishu 隋書. The Buddhist encyclopaedia Fayuan zhulin 法苑珠林 states that it was 20 juan long, while the Japanese bibliography Nihonkoku genzaisho mokuroku 日本国見在書目録 speaks of 10 juan.

All stories in the Jingyiji deal with the transmission and propagation of Buddhism in China. The biographical collection Xu gaoseng zhuan 續高僧傳 says that many stories of the book talked about the retribution of deeds in a later life (ganying 感應). Other stories deal with Buddhist writings and the Buddha's disciples.

The original book was lost during the Northern Song period 北宋 (960-1126). Yet, it was possible to reconstruct part of the book on the base of quotations in the writings Xu gaoseng zhuan, Sanbao gantong lu 三寶感通錄, Fayuan zhulin, the encyclopaedic collection Taiping guangji 太平廣記 and the collection Shuofu 說郛. The surviving fragments were collected by the Republican writer Lu Xun 魯迅 (1881-1936) in his Gu xiaoshuo gouchen 古小說鉤沉.