漢譯佛典之新式標點問題舉例：以《維摩詰所說經．佛國品》及《佛說大堅固婆羅門緣起經》為中心=A Case Study on the Problem of Modern Punctuation in Chinese Buddhist Translations of the Vimalakīrtinirdeśasūtra (Chapter on The Purification of Buddha-fields) and Versions of the Mahāgovinda-sutta
新式標點符號=Modern Punctuation; 古籍=Classical Chinese Text; 漢譯佛典=Chinese Buddhist Translation; 《維摩詰所說經》=Vimalakīrtinirdeśasūtra; 《佛說大堅固婆羅門緣起經》=Mahāgovinda-sutta
The present paper addresses the long neglected problem of the punctuation of Chinese Buddhist translations. These texts originally employed, if any, then traditional punctuation but in recent years modern editions are punctuated in order to aid reading. The results leave, however, more than enough to be desired. As a case study, an attempt is made here to investigate and analyse different punctuated versions of the most popular Chinese translation of the Vimalakīrtinirdeśasūtra, wherein I confined myself to The Purification of the Buddha-fields chapter, plus the extant Chinese versions of the Mahāgovindasutta. The use of punctuation clearly reflects the individual understanding—or misunderstanding—of the editors and it becomes overwhelmingly evident that, if punctuation is to facilitate a correct understanding of a text, the editor not only has to familiarize herself with the proper use of punctuation and the language patterns of the texts involved but has also to gain specialized knowledge about the versions which have come down to us. Else, “punctuation” will only lead to increased confusion.
