Paramārtha (translator)
Paramārtha (C. Zhendi; J. Shindai; K. Chinje 真諦) (499-569 CE) was an Indian monk from Ujjain in central India, who is best known for his prolific Chinese translations of Buddhist texts during the Six Dynasties era.[1][2]
He is known as one of the four great translators in Chinese Buddhist history (along with Kumārajīva and Xuanzang).[3] He is also known for the various oral commentaries he gave on his translations which were written down by his disciples (and now only survive in fragmentary form).[1]
Some of Paramārtha's influential translations include Vasubandhu's Abhidharmakośa, Asaṅga’s Mahāyānasaṃgraha, and Dignāga's Ālambanaparīkṣā & Hastavālaprakaraṇa.[1][4]
Paramārtha is also associated with various works on Buddha-nature that became extremely influential in Chinese Buddhism. These include the Treatise on Buddha Nature (Foxing lun 佛性論) and the Awakening of Faith in the Mahayana (Dasheng qi xin lun 大乘起信論), a key work for Huayan and Chan Buddhism.[1][2] However, modern scholars have expressed doubts about the attribution of the Awakening of Faith to Paramārtha (as well as numerous other texts).[2]
Further reading
Paramartha, Wikipedia
Paramārtha, Buddha Nature: A Tsadra Foundation Initiative
Boucher, Daniel (2004), "Paramartha", in Buswell, Robert E., Encyclopedia of Buddhism, vol 2, Macmillan Reference USA, pp. 630–631- Funayama, Toru (2010). The Work of Paramārtha: An Example of Sino-Indian Cross-cultural Exchange, Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 31, 1/2, 141 - 183
- Paul, Diana (1984), Philosophy of Mind in Sixth-Century China: Paramartha's Evolution of Consciousness, Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University Press
- Paul, Diana (1982). The Life and Time of Paramārtha (499-569), Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 5 (1), 37-69
- Paul, Diana (1981). The Structure of Consciousness in Paramārtha's Purported Trilogy, Philosophy East and West, 31/3, 297-319 – via JSTOR (subscription required)
- Radich, Michael (2008). "The Doctrine of Amalavijñāna in Paramārtha (499-569), and Later Authors to Approximately 800 C.E.", Zinbun 41, 45-174.
Notes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Toru Funayama. The work of Paramārtha: An example of Sino-Indian cross-cultural exchange. JIABS 31/1-2 (2008[2010]).
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Keng Ching and Michael Radich. "Paramārtha." Brill's Encyclopedia of Buddhism. Volume II: Lives, edited by Jonathan A. Silk (editor-in chief), Richard Bowring, Vincent Eltschinger, and Michael Radich, 752-758. Leiden, Brill, 2019.
- ↑ King (1991), p. 21.
- ↑ King (1991), pp. 22-23.