Fó shuō Jiāyè jìnjiè jīng 佛說迦葉禁戒經
The Sūtra of Kāśyapa’s Restraint Precepts by 沮渠京聲 (Jǔqú Jīngshēng, 譯)
About the work
A one-fascicle Vinaya-related sūtra on the discipline-precepts taught by the Buddha to Mahākāśyapa 摩訶迦葉, translated by the Liú-Sòng prince-translator Jǔqú Jīngshēng 沮渠京聲 (沮渠京聲) — a member of the Northern Liáng royal family who fled to Jiànkāng after the conquest of Northern Liáng by Northern Wèi in 439.
Prefaces
Translator’s colophon: 宋安陽侯沮渠京聲譯.
Abstract
The text presents a discourse on Buddhist precepts framed as the Buddha’s instruction to Mahākāśyapa, the head of the early saṅgha after the parinirvāṇa. Its inclusion in the Vinaya division reflects its precept-content. Jǔqú Jīngshēng’s translation work is significant historically: as a member of the displaced Northern Liáng royal family, he brought to the Liú-Sòng south the Sanskrit manuscripts and translation traditions of the Hexi corridor and Dunhuang Buddhist communities, otherwise lost in the Northern Wèi conquest.
Translations and research
- Zürcher, Erik. The Buddhist Conquest of China. Leiden: Brill, 1959; revised 2007.
- Forte, Antonino. The Hostage An Shigao and His Offspring. Kyoto, 1995. — On translator-prince traditions.