What is the significance of Faxian's travelogue in understanding Gupta society?

Faxian's travelogue, A Record of Buddhistic Kingdoms, is significant because it provides a first-hand foreign account of life in Gupta India. Faxian, a Chinese Buddhist monk, describes the peaceful and prosperous conditions he observed, the presence and condition of Buddhist monasteries, the welfare of ordinary people, the role of merchants and the treatment of different social groups. His observations offer independent evidence about social and religious life under the Guptas and complement Indian inscriptions and archaeological findings.