A Study of the Early-Stage Translations of Foxing佛性 in Chinese Buddhism: The Da Banniepan Jing大般涅槃經 Trans. Dharmakṣema and the Da Fangdeng Rulaizang Jing大方等如來藏經 Trans. Buddhabhadra
foxing; Da banniepan jing; Da fangdeng rulaizang jing; Dharmakṣema; Buddhabhadra
摘要
The Da fangdeng rulaizang jing大方等如來藏經 (Skt. Tathāgatagarbha-sūtra), translated by Buddhabhadra佛陀跋陀羅 (358–429) is one of the early Chinese Buddhist canon texts where the term foxing佛性 (Jp. busshō; Buddha-nature) is clearly used to express Buddha-nature. However, the term foxing cannot be confirmed in other extant translations of the Tathāgatagarbha-sūtra. Another early text in the Chinese Buddhist canon, the Da banniepan jing大般涅槃經 (Skt. Mahāparinirvāṇa-mahāsūtra), translated by Dharmakṣema曇無讖 (385?–433), also used the term foxing, which cannot be correspondingly confirmed in the surviving Sanskrit fragments of this scripture. Some significant differences in foxing between the Sanskrit fragments and Dharmakṣema’s translation of this sutra belong to the first twelve fascicles of Dharmakṣema’s translation completed under his collaborators’ support when he had not mastered the Chinese language. It is very likely that Faxian法顯 (337–422) translated a version of the Mahāparinirvāṇa-mahāsūtra that featured buddhadhātu as foxing. Buddhabhadra, in the same period, translated a version of the Tathāgatagarbha-sūtra, in which he favoured the term foxing over a literal translation of the Sanskrit. As another contemporary monk with these two, Dharmakṣema translated the Mahāparinirvāṇa-mahāsūtra, going further than Faxian by using the term foxing regularly. These texts influenced the Dilun monastic tradition地論宗. Among these, the term foxing and its Sinicism explanations played the most significant role, influencing the whole of the Chinese and even East Asian Buddhist thought.
目次
Abstract 1 Keywords 1 1. Introduction 1 2. Dharmakṣema, Buddhabhadra and Chinese Buddhism at the Beginning of the Fifth Century 2 3. Foxing佛性 in the Da fangdeng rulaizang jing大方等如來藏經 (Skt. Tathāgatagarbha-sūtra) Translated by Buddhabhadra 5 4. Foxing佛性 in the Da banniepan jing大般涅槃經 (Skt. Mahāparinirvāṇa-mahāsūtra) Translated by Dharmakṣema 8 5. Foxing in the Da fangdeng wuxiang jing 大方等無想經 and Guṇabhadra’s Renderings 14 6. The Interpretations of Foxing in Later Chinese Buddhism 15 7. Conclusions 17 Notes 18 References 23 Primary Sources 23 Secondary Sources 23
