This paper analyzes the language of the most common healing liturgy (患文) among the Dunhuang manuscripts, focusing on word choice (diction) and figures of speech (metaphor). It assumes a scale of judgment defined by two extremes. At one extreme are expressions linked unambiguously to Indic models and specialized Buddhist terms in the Chinese Buddhist corpus. At the other pole are words with a long pre-Buddhist history in the Chinese language or strongly non-Buddhist associations. In between is a wide range of indigenous Chinese Buddhist discourse, including Buddhist terms that do not require specialized knowledge to be understood. The conclusion finds that the healing liturgy uses terms from both extremes as well as the middle ground between them. The Indic or Buddhist terms include numbered doctrinal categories, Buddhist deities, basic Buddhist physiological concepts, standard Buddhist metaphors, ideas about merit, allusions to well-known events in Buddhist history, honorific names for the Buddha, terms transliterated according to their sound, and Indian toponyms. At the other end of the linguistic spectrum are words deriving from basic Chinese cosmology and physiology, reduplicated terms, pairs of antonyms, verbs, auxiliary verbs, and grammatical constructions based on vernacular and classical Chinese. Occupying the middle ground are a large number of words that could be understood in either a Buddhist or non-Buddhist sense—or neither. These include metaphors for healing, expressions developed within the Chinese Buddhist liturgical tradition, references to the afterlife, and other words that occur in the corpus of Chinese texts translated from Indian originals. A final section of the paper discusses the hybrid nature of Chinese Buddhist liturgical language, implications for the study of Chinese Buddhism, and the importance of the Dunhuang liturgical corpus for future research. An appendix provides a critical edition and unannotated English translation of the primary text.
