Fó shuō fēnbié yuánshēng jīng 佛說分別緣生經
The Buddha’s Sūtra Discriminating Dependent-Origination translated by 法天 (Fǎtiān / Dharmadeva, 譯)
About the work
T718 in one fascicle is the Northern Sòng translation of a short Mahāyāna sūtra on dependent-origination by 法天 (Dharmadeva, d. 1001), produced at the Sòng Yìjīngyuàn 譯經院. The date bracket 982–1001 reflects 法天’s active period at the Institute for the Translation of Sūtras from its inauguration (TàipíngXīngguó 7) to his death.
Abstract
The text is a brief exposition of the twelve nidāna chain in the standard Mahāyāna formulation. The Buddha addresses the bodhisattvas, articulating the discrimination (fēnbié 分別 = vibhāga) of the twelve links. The text is doctrinally close to the Pratītyasamutpādasūtra tradition (cf. KR6i0413 / T719 Shíèr yuánshēng xiángruì jīng by 施護) and represents the Sòng-period canonical taste for short, doctrinally-anchored sūtras suitable for liturgical and pedagogical use.
The text is one of a cluster of late tenth-century Sòng renderings of short Indian pratītyasamutpāda-themed sūtras: KR6i0412 / T718 (this work), KR6i0413 / T719 (Dānapāla), KR6i0419 / T725 (Fǎtiān), KR6i0420 / T726, KR6i0421 / T727, etc. The cluster reflects an apparent Sòng programme of canonical completeness: rendering all the short Indian doctrinal sūtras the bureau could obtain.
Translations and research
- Sen, Tansen. Buddhism, Diplomacy, and Trade: The Realignment of Sino-Indian Relations, 600–1400. Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2003. (Background on the Sòng Yìjīngyuàn programme.)
- Jan Yün-hua, “Buddhist Relations between India and Sung China,” History of Religions 6 (1966), 24–42, 135–168.
No standalone English translation located.