The Guoqu xianzai yinguo jing as an Adaptation of the Chinese Translation of the Buddhacarita

Abstract:The Guoqu xianzai yinguo jing 過去現在因果經 (T189) is an account of the life of the Buddha and is considered the source of numerous pictorial representations in China and Japan. It is usually also considered to be a translation by the Indian monk Guṇabhadra who resided in Southern China during the Liu Song 劉宋 dynasty (420–479). The original Indian text on which this translation is based was thought to be lost. In a recent study, Michael Radich pointed out the Guoqu xianzai yinguo jing's composite nature along with its evident similarities with the Buddhacarita, and advanced the hypothesis that the text is based on other Chinese translations as well as on Indian sources This study will prove that the Buddhacarita parts of the Guoqu xianzai yinguo jing (T189) are consistently derived from the Fo suoxing zan 佛所行贊 (T192), the only Chinese translation of the Buddhacarita in the Chinese Buddhist Canon. The case of the demon Māra's sisters will show how a misunderstanding of Aśvaghoṣa's poem spread from the Buddhacarita to its translation (T192) to the re-elaboration of the translation (T189) and to pictorial representations.The present work will link the Guoqu xianzai yinguo jing (T189) to the biography of its presumed author, showing how the name of Guṇabhadra was associated to a text composed under a demanding patronage and probably without the support of skilled interpreters.摘要:《過去現在因果經》 (T189) 敘述了釋迦摩尼佛的生平，在中國與日本成為很多壁畫與圖像的主題。傳統上認為T189是劉宋朝 (420–479) 時印度高僧求那跋陀羅翻譯的，還認為其印度原本已經失傳。最近 Michael Radich 教授介紹了《過去現在因果經》的結構，指出《過去現在因果經》和馬鳴的梵文 Buddhacarita 有許多相似之處。 Michael Radich 教授提出如下假說：T189是根據中文佛經以及一些印度原本所復合雜糅而成的佛經。本文將論證：《過去現在因果經》(T189)和梵文Buddhacarita沒有直接關係，而實際上《過去現在因果經》 (T189) 的大部分內容來源於《佛所行贊》 (T192)。《佛所行贊》 (T192) 是漢語大藏經中唯一本馬鳴的梵文 Buddhacarita 的中文譯本。本文將用摩羅王姐妹的故事論證，一個翻譯誤解如何從T192轉達到T189，又從T189影響了圖像。本文結合求那跋陀羅的傳記來分析T189，可以發現，在求那跋陀羅寫作T189的時候，他的讚助商很苛刻，求那跋陀羅無法得到專業口譯者的幫助。這些都說明求那跋陀羅極有可能並未翻譯T189。