出三藏記集 10.48

10.48

阿難所出十二部經。於九十日中佛意三昧之所傳也。其後別其逕至小乘法為四阿含。阿難之功於斯而已。迦栴延子撮其要行。引經訓釋為阿毘曇四十四品。要約婉顯外國重之。優波離裁之所由為毘尼。與阿毘曇四阿含並為三藏。身毒甚珍。未墜於地也。其後曇摩多羅剎集修行。亦大行於世也。又有三羅漢。一名尸陀槃尼。二名達悉。三名鞞羅尼。撰鞞婆沙廣引聖證。言輒據古釋阿毘曇焉。其所引據。皆是大士真人佛印印者也。達悉迷而近煩。鞞羅要而近略。尸陀最折中焉。其在身毒登無畏座。僧中唱言。何莫由斯道也。其經猶大海與深廣浩汗千寶出焉。猶崑岳與嵬峨幽藹百珍之藪。資生之徒於焉斯在。茲經如是。何求而不有乎。有祕書郎趙政文業者。好古索隱之士也。常聞外國尤重此經。思存想見。然乃在崑岳之右艽野之西。眇爾絕域末由也已。會建元十九年。罽賓沙門僧伽跋澄。諷誦此經四十二處。是尸陀槃尼所撰者也。來至長安。趙郎飢虛在往求令出焉。其國沙門曇無難提筆受為梵文。弗圖羅剎譯傳敏智筆受為此秦言。趙郎正義。起盡自四月出。至八月二十九日乃訖。胡本一萬一千七百五十二首盧長五字也。凡三十七萬六千六十四言也。秦語為十六五千九百七十五字。經本甚多其人忘失。唯四十事。是釋阿毘曇十門之本。而分十五事為小品迴著前。以二十五事為大品而著後。此大小二品全無所損。其後二處是忘失之遺者。令第而次之。趙郎謂譯人曰。爾雅有釋古釋言者明古今不同也。昔來出經者。多嫌胡言方質而改適今俗。此政所不取也。何者。傳胡為秦。以不開方言求知辭趣耳。何嫌文質。文質是時幸勿易之。經之巧質有自來矣。唯傳事不盡。乃譯人之咎耳。眾咸稱善。斯真實言也。遂案本而傳不令有損言遊字時改倒句。餘盡實錄也。余欣秦土忽有此經。挈海移岳奄在茲域。載玩載詠欲疲不能。遂佐對挍一月四日。然後乃知大方之家富。昔見之至夾也。恨八九之年方𨶳其牖耳。願欲求如意珠者。必牢莊強伴勿令不周倉若之實者也。

The twelve divisions of scripture produced by Ānanda were transmitted within ninety days during the Buddha-intention samādhi. Later, separating its branches down to the Śrāvakayāna teachings resulted in the four Āgamas; Ānanda's merit concluded with this. Kātyāyanīputra extracted its essential practices, quoting sūtras to expound and interpret them into forty-four chapters of Abhidharma; concise, subtle, and lucid, it is highly valued in foreign lands. What Upāli arranged from its sources became the Vinaya. Together with the Abhidharma and the four Āgamas, they constitute the Tripiṭaka. Shendu treasures it dearly; it has never fallen to the ground. Later, Dharmatrāta compiled the *Practices* (Dharmatrāta-dhyāna-sūtra), which also circulated widely in the world. Furthermore, there were three arhats: the first was named Śītavani, the second named Daśī, and the third named Vairāṇī. They compiled the *Vibhāṣā*, extensively citing sacred attestations, in every word relying on ancient authorities to explain the Abhidharma. Those whom they cited and relied upon were all great beings and true men stamped with the Buddha's seal. Daśī was confused and approached verbosity; Vairāṇī was concise and approached brevity; Śītavani struck the finest middle course. When in Shendu, he ascended the fearless throne and proclaimed among the Saṅgha: 'Why should one not follow this path?' This scripture is like a great ocean, deep, vast, and boundless, from which a thousand treasures emerge; it is like the Kunlun Mountains, towering, secluded, and lush, a thicket of a hundred rarities, wherein the means of sustenance abide. Such is this scripture; what could one seek that is not found therein? There was the Gentleman of the Palace Secretariat Zhao Zheng, an accomplished man of letters who loved antiquity and searched into the hidden. He had often heard that foreign lands especially valued this scripture, and he longed and yearned to see it. However, it was to the right of the Kunlun Mountains and west of the desolate wilds, far off in a remote region, with no way to reach it. It happened that in the nineteenth year of Jianyuan, the Kapiśa śramaṇa Saṅghabhadra, who could chant forty-two sections of this scripture—namely, the compilation by Śītavani—came to Chang'an. Gentleman Zhao, thirsting [for the teaching], went to ask him to produce it. The śramaṇa Dharmanandin of that country served as scribal recorder for the Fan text; Buddharakṣa translated and transmitted it; Minzhi served as scribal recorder for this Qin language; and Gentleman Zhao rectified the meaning. From beginning to end, the translation began in the fourth month and was completed on the twenty-ninth day of the eighth month. The Hu text comprised 11,752 ślokas of five syllables each, totaling 376,064 words. In the Qin language it came to 165,975 words. The original scriptures were very numerous, but the man had forgotten them; there were only forty sections, which were the original text explaining the ten gates of the Abhidharma. Fifteen sections were divided into the Lesser Chapter and placed at the beginning; twenty-five sections formed the Greater Chapter and were placed at the end. These two chapters, Greater and Lesser, are entirely undamaged. The two sections after them were the remnants of what had been forgotten, and were ordered sequentially. Gentleman Zhao said to the translators: 'In the *Erya*, there are "Explaining the Old" and "Explaining Words," which clarify that antiquity and the present differ. Translators of scriptures in the past have mostly disliked the unadorned directness of Hu language and altered it to suit contemporary custom. This is not what I, Zheng, accept. Why? In transmitting Hu into Qin, it is only because we do not understand the regional language that we seek to grasp the direction of the phrases. Why dislike simplicity or ornament? Whether plain or ornate, it is best not to change it at this time. The scripture's skill and plainness have their own sources. Only when the transmission of the matters is incomplete is it the translator's fault.' Everyone praised this, saying, 'These are truly authentic words.' They then transmitted it according to the original text without letting anything be lost; only occasionally altering redundant expressions or transposed sentences, everything else was faithfully recorded. I rejoice that the land of Qin suddenly has this scripture, as though lifting an ocean and moving a mountain to suddenly be in this realm. Studying and chanting it, I wished to tire but could not. I then assisted in proofreading for one month and four days. Only then did I realize how rich the masters of the Great Way are, and how extremely narrow my previous view had been. I regret that only in my eighties or nineties have I opened its window. May those who wish to seek the wish-fulfilling jewel be sure to make firm preparations and strong companions, lest they lack the provisions of Cangruo.