出三藏記集 8.57

8.57

此大涅槃經。初十卷有五品。其胡本是東方道人智猛從天竺將來。暫憩高昌。有天竺沙門曇無讖。廣學博見道俗兼綜。遊方觀化先在燉煌。河西王宿植洪業素心冥契。契應王公躬統士眾。西定燉煌。會遇其人。神解悟識。請迎詣州安止內苑。遣使高昌取此胡本。命讖譯出。此經初分唯有五品。次六品已後。其本久在燉煌。讖因出經。下際知部黨不足。尋訪慕餘殘。有胡道人。應期送到此經。胡本都二萬五千偈。後來胡本想亦近具足。但頃來國家慇猥。未暇更譯。遂少停滯諸可流布者。經中大意宗塗悉舉。無所少也。今現已有十三品。作四十卷。為經文句。執筆者一承經師口所譯不加華飾。其經初後所演。佛性廣略之聞耳。無相違也。每自惟省。雖復西垂深幸此遇。遇此大典開解常滯。非言所盡。以諸家譯經之致大不允其旨歸。疑謬後生。是故竊不辭。輒作徒勞之舉。冀少有補益。諮參經師。採尋前後。略舉初五品為私記。餘致惟之悉可領也（祐尋此序與朗法師序及懺法傳小小不同未詳孰正故復兩出）。

Regarding this Mahāparinirvāṇa-sūtra: the first ten fascicles contain five chapters. Its Hu original was brought from India by the eastern monk Zhimeng, who rested temporarily in Gaochang. There was an Indian śramaṇa Dharmakṣema, who possessed broad learning and wide perspective, combining both the secular and the religious; wandering abroad to observe transformation, he was previously in Dunhuang. The Prince of Hexi had long cultivated great deeds and had an innate harmony in his heart; in accordance with his princehood, he personally led the troops and pacified Dunhuang to the west. Upon encountering this man, recognizing his divine understanding and perception, he invited him to the provincial seat and settled him in the inner park, sending an envoy to Gaochang to retrieve this Hu original and ordering Dharmakṣema to translate it. The first section of this sūtra contained only five chapters. The text from the subsequent six chapters onward had long been preserved in Dunhuang. When Dharmakṣema was translating the sūtra, he noticed at the lower portion that the division was incomplete, so he sought and looked for the remaining portions. There was a Hu monk who, answering the need, sent this sūtra; the Hu original totaled 25,000 gāthās. The subsequent Hu original, it is thought, was also nearly complete. However, recently the state has been troubled and overburdened, and there has been no leisure to translate further, so it has been somewhat delayed. As for all those parts that could be circulated, the main ideas and central path in the sūtra have all been presented, with nothing lacking. Now there are already thirteen chapters, making forty fascicles. As for the words and sentences of the sūtra, the brush-holder followed entirely what was orally translated by the master of the sūtra without adding embellishments. What was expounded in the beginning and end of the sūtra are merely matters of broad and abridged hearings of Buddha-nature; they do not contradict each other. I often reflect: although situated on the western frontier, I am deeply fortunate to have had this encounter. Encountering this great scripture resolves longstanding blockages, beyond what words can exhaust. Because the manner in which various masters translated the scriptures greatly failed to accord with their purport, causing doubts and errors for later generations, I therefore privately do not decline to venture this futile effort, hoping it may offer a slight benefit. Consulting the master of the sūtra and collecting the preceding and following, I briefly set forth the first five chapters as a private record; the remaining meanings, upon reflection, can all be comprehended. (Sengyou notes: I observe that this preface differs slightly from Master Daolang's preface and the biography of Dharmakṣema; not knowing which is correct, I present both.)