Shènxīyǒu jīng 甚希有經
Sūtra of the Most Marvellous (Adbhuta-dharma-paryāya) translated by 玄奘 (Xuánzàng, 譯)
About the work
T689 in one fascicle is 玄奘’s rendering of the Adbhuta-dharma-paryāya — the Mahāyāna sūtra on the merit of constructing Buddha-image-bearing stūpas. Translated at Hóngfúsì 弘福寺 in Cháng’ān in Zhēnguān 19 (645 CE), the year of 玄奘’s return from India. The colophon “大唐三藏法師玄奘奉詔譯” attributes the rendering to imperial decree.
Abstract
玄奘’s 645 version is the systematized rendering of the same Indian text rendered in earlier and looser Chinese by an unidentified Han-dynasty (or perhaps Three-Kingdoms / Western-Jìn) translator as [[KR6i0378|Wèicéngyǒu jīng 未曾有經]] (T688). The text consists of the Buddha’s discourse, on Vulture Peak at Rājagṛha, on the unprecedented merit accruing to those who build Buddha-image-bearing stūpas — graduated by the size of the stūpa (from an amalaka-fruit to the size of a needle-tip) and the materials used (mud, sandalwood, gold). 玄奘’s technical vocabulary is the standardized late-Tang form: “薄伽梵” for bhagavān, “苾芻” for bhikṣu, “鷲峯山” for Gṛdhrakūṭa, all in marked contrast to the older translation T688’s “佛” / “比丘” / “耆闍崛山”. The shift in title from 未曾有 (“unprecedented”) to 甚希有 (“most marvellous”) reflects 玄奘’s preference for less paradoxical-sounding renderings of adbhuta-dharma.
The textual relationship between T688 and T689 is the standard one for early Han attributions later re-translated by Tang masters: 玄奘’s version is more accurate and stylistically polished, but the older rendering preserves valuable evidence for early Chinese Buddhist scriptural language.
Related canonical text: earlier translation KR6i0378 (T688); related cluster on stūpa / image merit KR6i0382–KR6i0390.
Translations and research
- Nattier, Jan. A Guide to the Earliest Chinese Buddhist Translations. Tokyo: Soka University, 2008. (Background to T688/T689 pairing.)
No standalone Western-language translation of T689 located.