Source: Hureau 2006

Hureau, Sylvie. "Preaching and Translating on poṣadha Days: Kumarajiva's Role in Adapting an Indian Ceremony to China." Journal of the International College for Postgraduate Buddhist Studies 10 (2006): 118-86.

Assertions

Assertion Argument Place in source Search

Hureau points to a passage in LDSBJ which claims that Zhu Fonian was the oral interpreter 傳語 for the translation of Kumārajīva's T227: 摩訶般若波羅蜜經三十卷(舊二十七卷。僧叡二秦錄云。譯大品時。大秦天王姚興自執舊本。什執梵文。竺佛念傳語。僧叡[+ 僧SYMP]肇筆受。并製序。以此知先譯今三十卷), T2034 (XLIX) 77b26-27. Fei's source for this assertion is supposed to be Sengrui's Er Qin lu 二秦錄. Hureau suggests that even though Fei is often unreliable, it is not impossible that this note conveys an historical truth.

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 Hureau points to a passage in LDSBJ which claims that Zhu Fonian was the oral interpreter 傳語 for the translation of Kumarajiva's T227: 摩訶般若波羅蜜經三十卷(舊二十七卷。僧叡二秦錄云。譯大品時。大秦天王姚興自執舊本。什執梵文。竺佛念傳語。僧叡[+ 僧SYMP]肇筆受。并製序。以此知先譯今三十卷), T2034 (XLIX) 77b26-27. Fei's source for this assertion is supposed to be Sengrui's Er Qin lu 二秦錄. Hureau suggests that even though Fei is often unreliable, it is not impossible that this note conveys an historical truth. Zhu Fonian 竺佛念 T0227; 小品般若波羅蜜經

Hureau points to a very interesting document attached to T434, which describes the circumstances of its translation in 麟嘉 6 (394) [this reign period is attached to the regime of 呂光, who held Kumārajīva "hostage" for seventeen years --- MR], in Kucha 龜茲. [In her brief discussion, Hureau omits some details, and I am unsure of her interpretation in some others; this note is based, to the best of my ability, on the text of the document itself, copied below --- MR.] The text was first translated by an Abhidharma master Tanmobatan 曇摩跋檀 from "Fan" into Tokharian 龜茲語. A figure named only as Lin 林, presumably the author of the document, commissioned 請命 that first translation. A monk called Huihai 慧海, who was bilingual in Tokharian and Chinese 晉音, was then "commanded" 命使 by this same Lin to translate the text into Chinese, and Lin himself acted as amanuensis. [Hureau states that "a Chinese monk who was present at that time brought the manuscript to China where it was translated into Chinese...", but this seems to me to overlook the detail that the same figure, Lin, commissioned both phases of the operation, and that the Chinese translation is explicitly stated to have been from Tokharian; I also myself can see no reference to a manuscript in the document, nor to a change in scene to China. If this account is accurate, our present text should therefore represent a second-hand translation from Tokharian, rather than a direct translation from the Indic base text --- MR.]

麟嘉六年六月二十日，於龜茲國金華祠演出此經，譯梵音為晉言。曇摩跋檀者，通阿毘曇，暢諸經義，又加究盡摩訶衍事，辯說深法，於龜茲國博解第一。林即請命出此經，檀手自執梵本，衍為龜茲語經。當如是時，道俗歡喜歎未曾有，競共諷誦美其功德。沙門慧海者，通龜茲語，善解晉音。林復命使譯龜茲語為晉音，林自筆受，章句鄙拙，為辭不雅，貴存本而已。其聞此經，歡喜信樂，一心恭敬，受持諷誦諸佛名字、興顯讚揚如來功德，廣加宜傳，得不退轉，疾成無上正真之道，無數天魔不能毀壞無上道心。所生之處，嚴淨佛剎，常得值遇諸佛世尊。端正殊妙，顏容光澤，常能解了無量智慧。得無礙辯，常為眾生闡揚大法，於大眾中最為上首。後成佛時。剎土清淨。於諸佛國。最尊第一。願使十方無量眾生普令諷持，解了如來無礙之慧功德巍巍，亦當如此諸佛世尊, T434 (XIV) 105a15-b4.

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 Hureau points to a very interesting document attached to T434, which describes the circumstances of its translation in 麟嘉 6 (394) [this reign period is attached to the regime of 呂光, who held Kumarajiva "hostage" for seventeen years --- MR], in Kucha 龜茲. [In her brief discussion, Hureau omits some details, and I am unsure of her interpretation in some others; this note is based, to the best of my ability, on the text of the document itself, copied below --- MR.] The text was first translated by an Abhidharma master Tanmobatan 曇摩跋檀 from "Fan" into Tokharian 龜茲語. A figure named only as Lin 林, presumably the author of the document, commissioned 請命 that first translation. A monk called Huihai 慧海, who was bilingual in Tokharian and Chinese 晉音, was then "commanded" 命使 by this same Lin to translate the text into Chinese, and Lin himself acted as amanuensis. [Hureau states that "a Chinese monk who was present at that time brought the manuscript to China where it was translated into Chinese...", but this seems to me to overlook the detail that the same figure, Lin, commissioned both phases of the operation, and that the Chinese translation is explicitly stated to have been from Tokharian; I also myself can see no reference to a manuscript in the document, nor to a change in scene to China. If this account is accurate, our present text should therefore represent a second-hand translation from Tokharian, rather than a direct translation from the Indic base text --- MR.] 麟嘉六年六月二十日,於龜茲國金華祠演出此經,譯梵音為晉言。曇摩跋檀者,通阿毘曇,暢諸經義,又加究盡摩訶衍事,辯說深法,於龜茲國博解第一。林即請命出此經,檀手自執梵本,衍為龜茲語經。當如是時,道俗歡喜歎未曾有,競共諷誦美其功德。沙門慧海者,通龜茲語,善解晉音。林復命使譯龜茲語為晉音,林自筆受,章句鄙拙,為辭不雅,貴存本而已。其聞此經,歡喜信樂,一心恭敬,受持諷誦諸佛名字、興顯讚揚如來功德,廣加宜傳,得不退轉,疾成無上正真之道,無數天魔不能毀壞無上道心。所生之處,嚴淨佛剎,常得值遇諸佛世尊。端正殊妙,顏容光澤,常能解了無量智慧。得無礙辯,常為眾生闡揚大法,於大眾中最為上首。後成佛時。剎土清淨。於諸佛國。最尊第一。願使十方無量眾生普令諷持,解了如來無礙之慧功德巍巍,亦當如此諸佛世尊, T434 (XIV) 105a15-b4. Huihai 慧海 Lin 林 Tanmobotan 曇摩跋檀 T0434; 佛說稱揚諸佛功德經