602 – 664 CE
玄奘
Xuanzang
三藏法師 · The Tripiṭaka Master
玄奘 · Xuanzang
三藏法師 · The Tripiṭaka Master (602 – 664 CE)
願以所譯經典，普利眾生。
May the sūtras here translated benefit all beings.
致敬 · Dedication
這個翻譯計畫——將漢譯佛典再譯為英文——所立足的文本基礎，幾乎全部出自一位譯者之手。心經（T0251）是他譯。百法明門論（T31n1614）是他譯。唯識三十頌（T1586）是他譯。成唯識論（T1585）是他編譯。瑜伽師地論一百卷（T1579）也是他譯。沒有玄奘，就沒有這個計畫所依據的漢傳。
This translation project — rendering the Chinese Buddhist canon into English — rests on a textual foundation that was, almost entirely, the work of one translator. The Heart Sūtra (T0251) is his. The Treatise on the Hundred Dharmas (T31n1614) is his. The Thirty Verses on Consciousness-Only (T1586) is his. The Discourse on the Establishment of Consciousness-Only (T1585) was compiled under his direction. The hundred-fascicle Yogācārabhūmi (T1579) is his. Without Xuanzang, there is no Han Buddhist canon for this project to translate from.
每一頁玄奘譯的經文，背後是十七年西行、十九年譯場、三藏法師之名所承載的一千三百五十年漢傳法脈。本頁是這個計畫對他的致敬——不是讚頌之辭，而是工作之承擔。
Behind every page of his translation lies a seventeen-year pilgrimage, nineteen years in the translation bureau, and the 1,350-year continuity of the Han transmission that the title 三藏法師 carries. This page is this project's homage to him — not as praise, but as the taking-up of work.
生平 · Life
玄奘，俗名陳褘，河南緱氏人，生於隋仁壽二年（602 CE）。十三歲於洛陽淨土寺出家，博學三藏，遊歷蜀地、長安、相州、趙州諸地，廣參名師。然各家所授不一，疑義難決，遂發願西行求法。
Xuanzang — born Chen Yi (陳褘) in Henan, 602 CE — was ordained at thirteen at the Pure Land Monastery (淨土寺) in Luoyang. He studied widely across Sichuan, Chang'an, Xiangzhou, and Zhaozhou, mastering the Tripiṭaka under many teachers. But the masters disagreed on key points, and the disagreements could not be resolved within China. He resolved to travel west and seek the Dharma at its source.
唐太宗貞觀初年（627 或 629 CE，史傳不一），玄奘違禁西出玉門，歷經高昌、龜茲、碎葉、迦濕彌羅，越蔥嶺，達中印度。在那爛陀寺（Nālandā）依戒賢論師（Śīlabhadra，當時年逾百歲，瑜伽行派之傳人）習《瑜伽師地論》及一切大乘要典達五年之久。其後遊歷印度十餘載，遍訪名剎，與外道辯論不敗，名動五印。
In the early Zhenguan era (627 or 629 CE — the sources differ), defying the imperial ban on travel, Xuanzang left Yumen Pass alone and headed west. His route took him through Gaochang, Kucha, Suyab, Kashmir, over the Pamirs, and into India. At Nālandā he studied for five years under Śīlabhadra (戒賢), then over a hundred years old and the chief living transmitter of the Yogācāra lineage. He spent more than a decade traveling India, debating with non-Buddhist masters and reportedly never losing a public debate. His reputation spread across all five regions of India.
貞觀十九年（645 CE）正月，玄奘抵達長安，攜回梵本經律論共六百五十七部。唐太宗於洛陽宮親自接見，敕命設譯場於弘福寺，後遷大慈恩寺、玉華宮。自此十九年，玄奘領眾譯經七十五部、一千三百三十五卷。麟德元年（664 CE），於玉華宮譯場示寂，世壽六十三（一說六十五）。
In 645 CE Xuanzang returned to Chang'an bearing 657 Sanskrit volumes — sūtras, vinaya, and śāstras. Emperor Taizong received him personally at Luoyang Palace and established a translation bureau at Hongfu Monastery (弘福寺), later moved to Da Ci'en Monastery (大慈恩寺) and Yuhua Palace (玉華宮). For nineteen years he led the bureau, producing translations of seventy-five works in 1,335 fascicles. He died at Yuhua in 664 CE, aged sixty-three (some sources say sixty-five).
玄奘譯本與本計畫 · The Xuanzang Corpus this Project Draws From
| Taishō | 漢題 | English / Sanskrit | 本計畫使用 · Project use |
|---|---|---|---|
| T0251 | 般若波羅蜜多心經 | Prajñāpāramitā-hṛdaya-sūtra | xinjing — full quadrilingual translation |
| T31n1614 | 大乘百法明門論 | Mahāyāna Śata-dharma-vidyā-mukha-śāstra | baifa — quadrilingual concordance |
| T0220 | 大般若波羅蜜多經 | Mahāprajñāpāramitā-sūtra (600 fascicles) | parent corpus of xinjing |
| T1579 | 瑜伽師地論 | Yogācārabhūmi-śāstra | doctrinal foundation (Series 3 papers) |
| T1585 | 成唯識論 | Vijñaptimātratāsiddhi-śāstra | doctrinal foundation |
| T1586 | 唯識三十頌 | Triṃśikā-vijñaptikārikā | doctrinal foundation |
| T1597 | 攝大乘論釋 | Mahāyāna-saṃgraha-bhāṣya | doctrinal foundation |
| T0676 | 解深密經 | Saṃdhinirmocana-sūtra | doctrinal foundation |
| T1605 | 大乘阿毘達磨集論 | Abhidharma-samuccaya (Asaṅga) | baifa 梵文校驗 |
| T1558 | 阿毘達磨俱舍論 | Abhidharmakośa-bhāṣya (Vasubandhu) | broader Buddhist corpus |
這只是與本計畫直接相關的部分。玄奘一生譯出七十五部，自唯識、般若、阿毘達磨、戒律乃至因明、醫方明，廣涉大小乘各部。
This list covers only the works directly used by this project. Xuanzang's full output of seventy-five works spans Yogācāra, Prajñāpāramitā, Abhidharma, Vinaya, logic (hetu-vidyā), and medical sciences — across both Mahāyāna and the early canon.
五種不翻 · The Five Categories Not Translated
這是玄奘所立的譯經原則：五種情況下，原文應當音譯而非意譯。後世法雲《翻譯名義集》（與周敦義序）將之系統化記錄為——
This is the principle Xuanzang established: five categories of terms that should be transliterated rather than translated. Codified in later sources, most fully in Fayun's Fanyi Mingyi Ji (with Zhou Dunyi's preface):
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秘密故 · Esoteric — 真言、陀羅尼，密義不可顯詮，故音譯保留之。例：心經結尾「揭諦揭諦，波羅揭諦……」。 Mantras and dhāraṇīs whose efficacy lies in the sound itself, not in discursive meaning. Example: the closing of the Heart Sūtra — gate gate pāragate pārasaṃgate bodhi svāhā — transliterated, never translated.
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含多義故 · Multivalent — 一字含多義，譯一義則失餘義，故保留原音。例：薄伽梵（Bhagavān）含自在、熾盛、端嚴、名稱、吉祥、尊貴六義。 Words bearing multiple meanings simultaneously, where translating any single sense would lose the others. Example: Bhagavān (薄伽梵) carries six meanings — sovereignty, brilliance, dignity, fame, auspiciousness, honor — and so is left untranslated.
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此無故 · No local equivalent — 此土所無之物，無對應字可譯。例：閻浮樹（jambū）為印度特產，中土所無。 Items not found in the target culture, for which no equivalent word exists. Example: the jambū tree (閻浮樹), native to India, with no Chinese equivalent.
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順古故 · Established precedent — 前代譯師已立通用音譯，後人不再改譯。例：「阿耨多羅三藐三菩提」（anuttarā-samyak-saṃbodhi），自鳩摩羅什以來通用，玄奘亦不更動。 Established transliterations from earlier translators, where changing the term would only confuse readers. Example: anuttarā-samyak-saṃbodhi (阿耨多羅三藐三菩提) — used since Kumārajīva and not retranslated.
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生善故 · Inducing reverence — 某些原文音譯較意譯更能引發敬意。例：「般若」較「智慧」更能傳達 prajñā 的深度與莊嚴。 Cases where the transliteration carries reverential weight that translation would lose. Example: prajñā rendered as 般若 rather than 智慧 — the transliteration preserves a depth and dignity that the everyday Chinese word cannot.
此原則於本心經之譯，直接生效。§25 之咒語音譯不譯，依「秘密」；§01 之題目「般若」音譯不譯，依「生善」。本計畫凡遇此類情況——英譯中保留梵文原音——皆遵玄奘原則：有些地方，譯即是失，誠實之路是讓原音承載下去。
This is operative in this project's Heart Sūtra translation directly. §25's mantra is transliterated, per 秘密. §01's title term 般若 is transliterated, per 生善. Wherever this project encounters such cases — Sanskrit terms left as Sanskrit in the English rendering — it follows Xuanzang's principle: there are places where translation is loss, and the honest path is to carry the original sound forward.
譯場 · The Translation Bureau
漢傳佛典翻譯，自始即是團隊合作。玄奘譯場制度繼承羅什、真諦之傳統，分工嚴密：
Chinese Buddhist translation has been collaborative from the start. Xuanzang's bureau inherited the tradition of Kumārajīva (鳩摩羅什) and Paramārtha (真諦) and refined it into a precise division of labor:
| 職位 · Role | 漢 | English |
|---|---|---|
| Chief Translator | 譯主 | Reads the Sanskrit and dictates the Chinese rendering. |
| Doctrinal Verifier | 證義 | Verifies that the meaning is sound and consistent with canonical teaching. |
| Text Verifier | 證文 | Verifies the Sanskrit source-text against extant manuscripts. |
| Interpreter | 度語 / 傳語 | Mediates between Indic and Chinese where needed. |
| Scribe | 筆受 | Records what the chief translator dictates. |
| Stylist | 綴文 | Recasts literal renderings into idiomatic Chinese. |
| Cross-checker | 參譯 | Cross-checks consistency across the work. |
| Final Editor | 刊定 | Finalizes the text. |
| Literary Polisher | 潤文 | Final literary refinement; in the Tang sometimes performed by chancellors. |
| Sanskrit Chanter | 梵唄 | Verifies metrical and phonetic accuracy. |
| Collator | 校勘 | Collates variant readings across multiple manuscripts. |
譯主一人，通常配置十至二十人團隊。一部《瑜伽師地論》一百卷，譯場運作四年；《大般若經》六百卷，亦運作四年。
A single chief translator typically led a team of ten to twenty. The Yogācārabhūmi (one hundred fascicles) took the bureau four years; the Mahāprajñāpāramitā Sūtra (six hundred fascicles) took another four.
這對本計畫具有方法學上的深意。本計畫每一頁皆標明「釋慧鏡——與 AI 輔助一致性校驗」。這份揭露不是現代偏離傳統的辯詞，而是延續。一千三百年來，沒有一位偉大的漢譯佛典譯者是獨自工作的；玄奘有譯場團隊，當代譯者有協作型 AI——形式不同，原則相同：精確的翻譯需要多重視角檢驗。本計畫之「AI 輔助」一語，誠實地承擔此一傳統。
This carries methodological weight for the present project. Each page here credits "Shi Huijing — with AI-assisted consistency checking." That disclosure is not a modern deviation from tradition; it is its continuation. For 1,300 years, no major translator of the Chinese Buddhist canon worked alone. Xuanzang had his bureau; the present translator has collaborative AI. The forms differ; the principle is identical — precise translation requires multiple verifying perspectives. The phrase "AI-assisted" carries this tradition forward honestly.
原典與譯本之問 · A Note on Source and Translation
近代學者 Jan Nattier (1992) 提出心經短本（T0251）可能為中土撰集後再回譯為梵文之假說，學界已嚴肅看待。本計畫於心經 §01 對此議題已作正面回應。
Jan Nattier (1992) advanced the hypothesis that the short-version Heart Sūtra (T0251) was composed in Chinese and subsequently back-translated into Sanskrit. Mainstream scholarship now takes the hypothesis seriously, and this project addresses it directly in the §01 apparatus of the Heart Sūtra.
對玄奘而言，此議題之意義在於：無論文本譜系為印度→中土或中土→梵文，他的譯出與弘傳，使此經成為東亞佛教千餘年來最為流通之經典。是他的譯筆與威望，將此經帶入歷史。
For Xuanzang's place in this story, the textual genealogy matters less than the transmission. Whether the text traveled from India to China or from China to Sanskrit, his rendering and the authority of his name carried it into history. For over a millennium it has been the most widely circulated sūtra in East Asian Buddhism. That circulation is his.
法脈承擔 · Lineage as Work
譯經之道，自漢末安世高、支婁迦讖始，歷經支謙、竺法護、鳩摩羅什、菩提流支、真諦、玄奘、義淨、不空，至宋代法護、施護而漸息。一千年漢傳譯經史，由梵入漢，諸師輾轉相承。
The Chinese Buddhist translation tradition began with An Shigao and Lokakṣema in the late Han, passed through Zhi Qian, Dharmarakṣa, Kumārajīva, Bodhiruci, Paramārtha, Xuanzang, Yijing, and Amoghavajra, and gradually settled by the Song dynasty under Dharmapāla and Dānapāla. A millennium of translators, working from Sanskrit into Chinese, hand to hand.
如今，漢譯佛典本身已成所譯之原文。將漢譯再譯為英文，是這一法脈的下一個自然延伸。本計畫不敢自比於諸師之譯業，但願以三事為紀念：
Now the Chinese translations themselves have become source-texts. Carrying them into English is a natural next step in the same lineage. This project does not presume to stand alongside those masters' translation work. It simply hopes to honor it through three commitments:
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譯場式查驗 — 每一段落於漢、梵、巴、英四語對照中交叉檢驗，承譯場分工之精神。 Bureau-style verification — every passage cross-checked across 漢, 梵, 巴, 英 in the spirit of the bureau's division of labor.
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遵奉先賢譯詞 — 凡玄奘已立之譯詞（般若、菩薩、阿耨多羅三藐三菩提、五蘊、十二因緣……）皆遵之，不以己意改易。 Respect for established renderings — wherever Xuanzang fixed a term (般若, 菩薩, 阿耨多羅三藐三菩提, 五蘊, 十二因緣 …), this project keeps it; it does not improvise replacements.
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誠實標明疑義 — 於困難處公開示明，不掩飾譯者之不確定。 Honest marking of uncertainty — difficulties surfaced openly, never smoothed over.
法脈不在頭銜，在工作。譯出每一段的人，就是當下承擔此一法脈的人。玄奘畢生願力，是讓正法在漢土生根；今日將漢譯之果再譯入英語世界，正是此一願力的延續。三藏法師若見此事，當歡喜——非為譯者之名，乃為譯業之續。
A lineage lives in the work, not in the title. Whoever renders the next passage faithfully is the lineage in that moment. Xuanzang's life-aspiration was for the true Dharma to take root in Chinese soil. To carry the fruit of his Chinese translations onward into the English-speaking world is the natural continuation of that same aspiration. If the Tripiṭaka Master could see this work, he would be glad — not for any translator's name, but for the work itself carrying on.
來源 · Sources
Primary · 原典:
- 《大慈恩寺三藏法師傳》(T2053) — 慧立、彥悰，玄奘最完整之傳記。 Da Ci'en Si Sanzang Fashi Zhuan (T2053) — by Huili and Yancong; the most complete biography.
- 《大唐西域記》(T2087) — 玄奘自述之西行紀錄。 Da Tang Xi Yu Ji (T2087) — Xuanzang's own record of his journey through the Western Regions.
- 《翻譯名義集》(T2131) — 宋·法雲，含五種不翻之系統化記錄。 Fanyi Mingyi Ji (T2131) — by Fayun (Song); contains the codification of the Five Categories Not Translated.
Modern scholarship · 現代學術:
- Lusthaus, Dan. Buddhist Phenomenology: A Philosophical Investigation of Yogācāra Buddhism and the Ch'eng Wei-shih Lun. RoutledgeCurzon, 2002.
- Wriggins, Sally Hovey. Xuanzang: A Buddhist Pilgrim on the Silk Road. Westview, 1996.
- Mayer, Alexander L. Xuanzang: Pilger und Übersetzer. Harrassowitz, 1992.
- Nattier, Jan. "The Heart Sūtra: A Chinese Apocryphal Text?" Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 15.2 (1992): 153–223.
願 · Closing Aspiration
願以此譯，承玄奘三藏之願， 普利眾生，續法脈於英語世界。
May this translation carry forward the aspiration of the Tripiṭaka Master, benefit all beings, and continue the Dharma lineage in the English-speaking world.
釋慧鏡 · 指月 · han-canon-translations · figures/xuanzang.md · v0.1 · 2026-04-26 Shi Huijing — with AI-assisted consistency checking