On Yuan Chwang's Travels in India, 629–645 A.D. v2.c18.s2.57

v2.c18.s2.57

In this passage the original for "whose minds had attained independence" is *hsin-tê-tzŭ-tsai* (心 得 自 在). These words are the phrase used by Kumārajīva and others to translate the Sanskrit word *vaśībhūta*, in the sense of "having attained mastery", "having become lord", in Burnouf's rendering "parvenus à la puissance". The term is one of the constant epithets of arhats, and denotes that their minds are emancipated from the control of external powers. For "had obtained the three-fold understanding" the text is *tê-san-ming* (得 三 明). The three constituents of this knowledge or understanding are given as the apprehension (1) of impermanence, (2) of pain, and (3) of unreality. But according to another account the *san-ming* are the knowledge of previous existences, of others' thoughts, and of moral perfection, and there are further variations in the enumeration of the "Three Understandings". For the words "known to all who have knowledge" the Chinese is *chung-so-chih-chih* (衆 所 知 識) or "recognised by those who know". Julien's rendering is "connus de tout le monde" which agrees with some of the explanations. The Chinese words represent the Sanskrit term *abhijñātābhijñātā* which means "known to the known". The term is of frequent occurrence in the Buddhist scriptures and the Chinese rendering of it varies a little. Thus we have "known to the wise", and "acquaintances of all who are looked up to", and Yuan-chuang's own rendering "known to those who are looked up to (衆 望 所 識)": and the term is also rendered by "recognized by the recognized" (or "known to the known").