Jue Tian (Buddhadeva) is one of the four major treatise masters of Sarvāstivādin. He probably lived around the birth of Christ, and little is known about his life history. Since Jue Tian left no written records, all our knowledge to explore his concept of thinking comes from the treatises of Abhidharma Piṭaka in which the “Abhidharma Mahāvibhāṣā Śāstra” provides the most abundant information of his idea. There are three Chinese translations of “Abhidharma Mahāvibhāṣā Śāstra”. In the versions of the Liang and the Tang Dynasties, the opinions of Fa Jiu (Dharmatrāta) and Jue Tian are often confused. This has caused arguments whether the “Buddhadeva” was Jue Tian or Fa Jiu in the Liang translation. According to the “Abhidharma Mahāvibhāṣā Śāstra”, Master Yin Shun once summarized the knowledge of Jue Tian and wrote a special book named “A Study of Sarvāstivādin treatises and treatise masters”. He used an entire section to clarify the difference between the Liang and the Tang translations, introduced the unique view of Jue Tian, and highlighted the similarities and differences of “Abhidharma Mahāvibhāṣā Śāstra” from the other Abhidharma Piṭaka. The present article is based on the investigation of Master Yin Shun, and the classification of Shi Yu (Vasumitra) in “Abhidharma Prakaraṇa Pāda” to explain the choice of rūpa dharma and citta-caitta dharmas of Jue Tian. It also outlines the similarities and differences in viewpoints between Jue Tian and Fa Jiu in the same sect of Sarvāstivāda, and the comments on Jue Tian by other vibhāṣā masters.
