析論偈頌語言現象與唐宋古德詮釋發展的關係 - 以《華嚴經》放光見佛偈為例=“The Light Which Lets One See the Buddha” in the Huayan Sutra: Linguistic Features of the Original Verses and Their Hermeneutical Development by Tang-Song Scholars
The aim of this study is to analyze how the mapping of semantic components triggers new interpretations and applications. The current paper takes the Chinese verses from the Huayan Sutra as an example to present the connection between linguistic features of the original verses and their hermeneutical development by Tang-Song scholars. The passage of “the light which lets one see the Buddha” consists of two verses, which read as follows: “[They] also emit a light called ‘seeing Buddha’: this light can awaken those about to die, causing them to see any Buddha they think of, so when their life ends they can be born in that Buddha’s pure land. To exhort the dying to remembrance of Buddha, and show them icons for them to behold, causing them to take refuge in the Buddhas, is how this light can be made.” The topic of this section in the Huayan Sutra is that Bodhisattvas emit various rays in the midst of samādhi, and those lights could bring manifold welfares to all sentient beings. However, Tang-Song scholars, on the basis of their individual knowledge and intention, interpret and use the Huayan verses diff erently. For example, these verses are frequently quoted as a demonstrated example by several masters of the Pure Land Buddhism. Moreover, Buddhist reference books and the works of Vinaya School also treat these verses as Buddhist materials of “attending patients” and “funerals.” These quotations or paraphrases seem to be based on the semantic components of the verses, and to develop diverse applications. In this respect, we examine the syntax and semantic of the original verses in the context of the Huayan Sutra, then probe their annotations and phenomena on citations from different Chinese buddhist discourses. The demonstrated examples not only reveal historical changes, but also show the close relationship between information structures of the verses and the development of their meanings.
