Encyclopedia of India–China Cultural Contacts v1.c8.s1.6

v1.c8.s1.6

There were many translators in 4^th century CE, mainly represented by Dao An (refer to Dao An's entry) and Kumarajiva (refer to Kumarajiva's entry). Dao An contributed to the task of translation in many ways. He developed a theory of 'Wu Shi Ben'(五失本); 'San Bu Yi' (三不易) . 'Wu Shi Ben' meant that the translator would delete repeated, trivial and cumbersome words to be found in the original texts of Buddhism and make it fit into a pattern and taste of Chinese expression. 'San Bu Yi' refers to three different types of situations that the translators usually encounter. This theory had profound influence on the translation work of later generations.