法華傳記 1.13

1.13

真諦三藏云。西方相傳。說法華大教。流演五天竺。造優婆提舍。釋其文義五十餘家。佛涅槃後五百年終。龍樹菩薩造法華論。六百年初。堅意菩薩造釋論。並未來此土。不測旨歸。九百年中。北天竺丈夫國國師大婆羅門憍尸迦子婆藪槃豆。此云天親。亦製法華論。以六十四節法門。釋其大義。中印度沙門勒那摩提。魏云寶意。學識優贍理事。兼通三藏。凡誦一億偈。偈有三十二字。意存遊化。以宣武帝正始五年戊子。初屆洛邑。譯法華論為一卷。侍中崔光沙門僧朗等筆受。當翻經日。於洛陽內殿。菩提流支傳本。勒那扇多參明其後。三德乃徇流言。各傳師習。不相詢訪。帝以弘法之盛。略敘曲煩勅三處。各翻訖乃參挍其間隱沒。互有不同致者。文旨時兼異綴。後人合之。共成通部。又北印度沙門菩提流支。此云道希。新云覺愛。遍通三藏。妙入總持。志在弘法。廣流視聽。遂挾道霄征。遠莅葱左。以魏永平之歲。至止東華。宣武下勅。慇懃敬勞。後處之永寧大寺。供待甚豐。七百梵僧。並皆周給。勅以流支。為譯經之元匠也。重譯成二卷。曇林受并製序。題云妙法蓮華經優婆提舍。初有歸敬頌者是也。與寶意譯大同少異。彼題同云妙法蓮華經優婆提舍。而無歸命頌也。此土亦有作論者。如胡吉藏玄論等。不可具述矣。

Tripiṭaka Master Paramārtha said: It is traditionally said in the West that the great teaching of the Lotus Sūtra spread across the five regions of India, and more than fifty masters composed upadeśas to explain its text and meaning. At the end of five hundred years after the Buddha's nirvāṇa, Nāgārjuna Bodhisattva composed a commentary on the Lotus Sūtra; at the beginning of six hundred years, Sthiramati Bodhisattva composed an explanatory treatise. Neither has come to this land, and their central imports cannot be fathomed. In the middle of nine hundred years, the state preceptor of the Country of Men in North India, the great brāhmaṇa Kauśika's son Vasubandhu—translated here as Tianqin—also composed a commentary on the Lotus Sūtra, explaining its great meaning through sixty-four Dharma approaches. The Central Indian monk Ratnamati—translated into Wei as Baoyi—was rich in erudition and insight into phenomena and principles, and fully versed in the Tripiṭaka; he had recited a total of one hundred million verses, each verse containing thirty-two syllables. Intending to travel and transform beings, he first arrived in Luoyang in the fifth year of Zhengshi, a wuzi year, under Emperor Xuanwu, and translated the Lotus Sūtra Commentary into one fascicle. The Palace Attendant Cui Guang, the monk Senglang, and others served as scribes. On the day of translating the scripture, in the Inner Palace of Luoyang, Bodhiruci transmitted the text while Ratnaśānta participated in clarifying it afterward. The three virtuous ones, however, followed rumors; each transmitted his own master's tradition without consulting the others. The Emperor, considering the flourishing of the Dharma's dissemination, briefly set forth their petty grievances and ordered them to translate at three different places. After each finished translating, they compared and cross-checked the hidden omissions between them, and there were discrepancies that resulted in divergences in phrasing and intent. Later generations combined them to form a single continuous work. Furthermore, the North Indian monk Bodhiruci—translated here as Daoxi, newly translated as Jue'ai—was comprehensively versed in the Tripiṭaka, profoundly entered into dhāraṇīs, and had his heart set on spreading the Dharma far and wide. He thus journeyed through the night carrying the Dharma, arriving from afar to the west of the Congling. In the Yongping era of the Wei, he arrived in the Eastern Cathay. Emperor Xuanwu issued an edict offering attentive respects and comfort, and later accommodated him at the great Yongning Monastery, treating him with great generosity; seven hundred foreign monks were all fully provided for. By imperial decree, Bodhiruci was appointed the chief master of scripture translation. He retranslated it into two fascicles. Tanlin took it down and composed a preface, titled Miaofa lianhua jing youpotishe; it begins with verses of homage. It largely agrees with Ratnamati's translation, with minor differences. That one is likewise titled Miaofa lianhua jing youpotishe, but lacks verses of taking refuge. In this land there have also been authors of commentaries, such as Hu Jizang's Xuanlun and others, which cannot be recounted in full.