From the Han Dynasty to the Sui and Tang Dynasties, the monks who translated the scriptures had a great influence, such as An Shigao in the Eastern Han Dynasty, Zhu Fahu and Zhu Shulan in the Western Jin Dynasty, Sakyamuni in the Southern Song Dynasty, Chen and Bodhi in the Northern Wei Dynasty, Dharma Gupta in the Sui Dynasty, Xuanzang, Yijing and Zhouyi in the Tang Dynasty. There are many assistants around the translator, some are interpreters (called degree translators or interpreters), some are responsible for taking notes (writing), and some are responsible for proofreading and revising the translation (polishing). These people are familiar with the traditional culture of China and are good at writing. When translating, we must choose words and concepts that are equivalent to the original meaning from Chinese and express them in Chinese. The translator's understanding of Chinese at that time was naturally mixed with Chinese characters, and Chinese with the characteristics of the times entered the Buddhist classics. In the Eastern Han Dynasty, besides Confucianism, the Tao of Huang Lao was particularly popular, so some terms and concepts of the Tao of Huang Lao were applied to the Buddhist scriptures translated at that time. For example, nirvana in Buddhism means to get rid of all troubles and achieve complete liberation, which translates as inaction; Turn meditation by focusing on observing Buddhist meaning into keeping one; Translate the absolute truth of Mahayana Buddhism into nothingness. Metaphysics prevailed in Wei and Jin Dynasties. Zhu Fahu translated Prajna Sutra into nature and Supreme Truth into Tao. ...
Just as we can't live without Confucian classics in our daily life, we are most influenced by Confucianism in the process of translating them. Sattva and jantu are the main bodies of Indian Buddhist scriptures, including people, heaven, Asura, beasts, ghosts and hungry ghosts in hell, which are deeply mysterious. Confucianism attaches great importance to man's position in nature, holds that man is the spirit of all things, and holds that man is precious, the sky is far away and man is near. So many Buddhist scriptures just translate all beings into adults and people. Confucian ethics advocates that men and women are different, giving and receiving are not close, which affects people's taboos on sexual relations and generally does not make public descriptions. The translation of Hua Yan Jing is also influenced by this, and the hug is transliterated as Ali and the kiss is transliterated as A Zhong? Wait a minute. In some Chinese-translated Buddhist scriptures, there are also some ethical admonitions that are not in the original Buddhist scriptures, such as the actions of parents, obedience and disobedience, parents' orders, and dare not violate them. According to Pali, the translator added the same classic "The Teaching of Zombie Kaloyo". (See Yuan Nakamura's The Influence of Confucianism on the Chinese Translation of Buddhist Scriptures, Japan, The Study of World Religions, No.2, 1982). There are obvious additions in the Six Degrees of Collection translated by Sang Hui of Wu Kang in the Three Kingdoms, such as loyalty of the monarch, filial piety of the father, loyalty of the husband, filial piety of the wife, filial piety of the family, pastoral piety of heaven and benevolence. There are many terms such as loyalty, filial piety, propriety and faithfulness in the Infinite Life Sutra translated by Cao Weishi, the most widely circulated three countries.
There are many words with rich meanings in China's writings, such as Tao, Reason, Mind, Sex, etc. Their diverse meanings were formed in the long history of cultural development. However, when translating Buddhist scriptures, these words are generally given specific meanings only according to the occasion. However, times have changed, and later scholars, influenced by the background of the times, will naturally use the different meanings of these words to understand the scriptures and construct their own doctrinal system when reading and interpreting the scriptures. Buddhist sects in Sui and Tang Dynasties borrowed these polysemous words and skillfully used the unique methods in Prajna's middle view theory to establish their own theoretical system. Zen mind can be a mind with ideological function, or a heart with innate inner self and nature. This heart can be connected with truth, dharma and Buddha, which are the source of all things in the world, and can also be called reason and Tao. In the quotations of Zen Buddhism with machine front, it is precisely by borrowing different meanings before and after to remind people of their way out. Lectures are a common method of preaching. If people want to understand the teachings in Buddhist scriptures, they must explain them in their familiar and easy-to-understand language and truth. This method is called Geyi in the history of Buddhism. Zhu is a disciple of the late Zhao Fotu Cheng, who is good at Confucianism, Buddhism, Taoism and Confucian classics. When he gives lectures to disciples and scholars, he often prepares foreign books with the number of things in the classics as an example of living solutions, which is called Geyi. In Buddhist classics, the concepts and expressions of teachings are often preceded by numbers, such as four truths, eight right paths and twelve karma. , called the number of events. Zhu used the words and principles in the Confucian and Taoist classics that people were familiar with at that time to draw inferences from others, making it easy for the audience to understand. According to this method, emptiness and truth can be interpreted as nothingness and Tao; Compare the five precepts to the five permanent members. This is a common phenomenon at that time and later. Daoan, another famous disciple of Fotucheng, also used Geyi in his works. His disciple Hui Yuan Shan Lao Zhuang often borrows Lao Zhuang's words to explain when giving lectures. According to the Biography of Hui Yuan, once when Hui Yuan was giving a lecture, someone raised a question about the concept of reality (that is, the reality of various laws), and he immediately quoted Zhuangzi to explain it, so this confusing person became clear. In the process of realizing Buddhism in China, the so-called Geyi Buddhism has played an important role in understanding Buddhism in China and and promoting its in-depth popularization.
With the in-depth spread of Buddhism, different opinions have emerged in the interpretation and lecture of Buddhism, and then different theories and even schools have gradually formed. During the Jin Dynasty, there were six schools and seven schools because of different understandings of the emptiness of dharma in Prajna. If two of the seven families merge, they will be six. This marks the formal formation of national Buddhism. This is the product of the interaction between Mahayana Prajna theory and the popular metaphysics at that time. Monks learn to cater to the fashion of the times and borrow some metaphysical concepts and prajna ontology to prove that everything is empty. Because they are not good at using the middle way argument method in Prajna Sutra, they draw a simple positive or negative conclusion in the argument between ontology and phenomena-ontology and heteronomy, emptiness and color, mind and matter, truth and vulgarity, instead of using the expression method of covering interpretation (negation) and phase to draw the conclusion that there is no existence, color and emptiness are the same, and truth and vulgarity are only two. Although the same theory is empty and the arguments are biased, there are six factions and seven cases. Among them, there are three influential:
(1) The representative Sect thinks that everything in the world is empty, and this emptiness is. This is similar to the metaphysics of Wang Bi and Yan He.
(2) The color school represented by Zhi Daolin thinks that everything in the world is empty, so color (fire, water, wind and their creation are equivalent to material phenomena) is empty. This is similar to Guo Xiang's spontaneous individualization theory, which advocates nothing but existence.
(3) The mind, represented by support and Tao Heng, thinks that the mind should be divorced from the outside world, not clinging to everything, but does not deny the existence of the objective world. The emergence of six schools and seven schools reflected the popularity and recognition of Prajna ontology at that time. Since then, Seng Zhao, a disciple of Kumarajiva, has made a critical summary of the above three schools from the standpoint of the middle way, and pointed out in his "Zhao Lun's theory of filling the vacuum" that they are either biased towards existence, nothingness or emptiness, all of which deviate from the spirit of the middle way. During the Southern and Northern Dynasties, Buddhist studies in the North and South were unprecedentedly popular. With the wind of notes and lectures, schools focusing on studying one or several Buddhist scriptures have sprung up one after another. Among them, the most influential schools are Nirvana School, Shicheng School, Geology School, Photography School and Three Theories School. In fact, the Confucian classics studied in these schools are not one or two, and no one is necessarily in the same school. For example, Nirvana scholars are often mature scholars at the same time, and mature scholars may also be three talents. The school mentioned here only means that some people have made outstanding achievements in the study of specific Confucian classics and put forward representative views. If the problems they study are classified, there are two main categories:
(1) The ontology of Mahayana Buddhism, or the thought of Prajna, holds that the ontology of all things in the world is empty, and secular knowledge and the external world are illusory; Or play knowledge-only theory and think that everything in the world has changed.
(2) Mahayana Buddhism's theory of mind and nature demonstrates the internal basis of achieving enlightenment. The exploration of ontology by Shi Cheng, San Lun and others is basically the continuation and development of the ontology of Prajna in Jin Dynasty. Because Shicheng school failed to rise to the status of all things being the same, it was finally replaced by the Three Theories School. In addition to demonstrating that everything in the world is based on the heart, the Institute of Geographical Photography also explored the internal basis of good and evil between the heart and consciousness. Nirvana school mainly demonstrates the problem of mind. The theory of mind and nature represents the trend of thought of the times after the Southern and Northern Dynasties and has far-reaching influence.
1. Nirvana is represented by Zhu Daosheng (355-434). The Nihuan Sutra, translated by Fa Xian in the Eastern Jin Dynasty, contains the words of all sentient beings, all of which are Buddhist words. On this basis, Zhu Daosheng proposed that since all sentient beings have Buddha nature (innate mind function, which makes it possible to become a Buddha), then an explanation among all sentient beings (the wicked who have broken their good roots due to lack of faith) also has Buddha nature and can become a Buddha. Does Beiliang have a similar statement? Although the Great Nirvana Sutra has been translated, it has not yet spread to the south. Daosheng's inference was the beginning of loneliness at that time, which was opposed by conservative monks and was expelled from the monk group. Later, the Great Nirvana Sutra spread to Jiangnan, and Daosheng's statement was printed, which made him famous. He also put forward the theory of epiphany. According to Chen Huida's book Zhao Lun Shu in the Southern Dynasties, he believes that the truth (truth, dharma and reality) pursued by Buddhism is a complete whole and inseparable, and the practitioner's awareness of it should be completed in stages. This is an epiphany, and the so-called "two-way understanding" is the principle that symbols are indistinguishable. In other words, an epiphany is to make one's original Buddha nature suddenly appear, that is, to become a Buddha by seeing nature. Daosheng communicated ontology with the theory of mind and nature, and demonstrated that human nature originated from the ontology of the world within the framework of Mahayana Buddhism, and the transcendence spirit was to show its own nature, which promoted the exploration and research of the theory of mind and nature in China.
2. The school of geopolitics is in the north, with Luoyang and Ye (now the north of Anyang, Henan) as the center. The Ten Classics studied by this school was written by relatives in India, and its center is the Ten Classics of Huayan, which is one of the early works of the only-knowledge school and translated by Bodhi Six Fingers and Lena Motti in the Northern Wei Dynasty. Because monks are illusory about the three realms of Confucian classics, they have different views on mind and writing in their works and are divided into two factions. The school headed by Tao Chong, a disciple of Bodhi Six Fingers, is called Xiangzhou North School, and the school headed by Huiguang, a disciple of Lenamotti, is called Xiangzhou South School. The only-knowing school thinks that besides the six senses of eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body and mind, there is the seventh ignorance and the eighth knowledge of Araya. Alier is equivalent to the spiritual subject and soul, and its spiritual seed (psychological function) is said to be the source of all things in the world. Xiangzhou North School believes that Aliye is impure in nature and advocates that Buddhism should exist (as opposed to the original, it will only exist after, also known as the beginning), and only through repeated practice can it be freed. The South School of Xiangzhou advocates that Aliye is pure and clean, just to hide his own purity, that is, Buddha's nature. Through the practice of getting rid of delusions and troubles, one can see nature and become a Buddha.
3. The school of photography focuses on Mahayana theory and knowledge transformation theory, which is translated from Indian martial arts research on the true meaning of the Southern Dynasties, and establishes Amoro knowledge (pure knowledge, pure knowledge, that is, true knowledge) as the ninth knowledge on the basis of Aliye knowledge. Its theory of three natures is the most unique:
(1) According to otherness, the eight senses and their functions are the source of all things;
(2) Access refers to secular knowledge and external things (that is, from knowledge);
(3) Authenticity, that is, truth beyond words (also the ninth knowledge).
Therefore, according to otherness, it is equivalent to the heart. As the source of all things, it contains distinction and authenticity. From the concept of good and evil, the distinction is false and belongs to pollution; Authenticity belongs to truth and is pure, while according to others, it is polluted and pure. Knowledge transformation theory: being able to distinguish is knowledge, and being separated is the realm; Being able to rely on difference and independence ... in this case, ignorance is reality. Reality is a kind of immoral knowledge. Practice is to know the truth of only knowledge, to be empty, and to make the existing net knowledge manifest. In the history of Buddhism in China, the Mahayana belief theory translated into the true meaning has a great influence. This is a classic that reconciles various viewpoints of mind and nature at that time. It is believed that the heart takes the eternal and pure truth as the body, and Alier knowledge with thinking function and trouble as the phase and purpose. The essence of practice is to directly explore the source of the heart and return to purity.
In the history of China's thoughts, the Confucian ethical theory of human nature occupies an important position. Or advocating goodness, or advocating malignancy, or advocating both good and evil, so as to explore the basis of becoming a saint. Among them, orthodoxy is the theory of goodness of human nature since Confucius and Mencius, which holds that human nature is good, and through learning and moral cultivation, human nature can be expanded and developed, and people can become saints. Although it also involves the origin of human nature, such as heaven, destiny or vitality, the theory is too simple and simple. Buddhism's theory of mind and nature is the product of the deepening of Mahayana Buddhism theory. Buddhist scholars in China have to be influenced by the Confucian theory of human nature when demonstrating the issue of mind, which in turn has an influence on the Confucian theory of human nature. From the above-mentioned theory of mind and nature, it seems that we can see the shadow of Confucian theory of mind and nature, and the pure theory of mind and nature of Nirvana and Geology is equivalent to the theory of good nature in human nature; The theory of mind and nature of the northern geocentric theory is equivalent to the theory of evil nature; The theory of mind and nature and Mahayana belief of photography school are similar to the theory of good and evil of human nature. Of course, the Buddhist theory of mind and nature provides a theoretical basis for his becoming a monk and being born, which is different from the Confucian theory of human nature with the purpose of self-cultivation and governing the country. Buddhism's theory of mind and nature has important enlightenment for later Confucianism to explore the universal origin of human nature and everything in the world and establish a new theory of life in heaven. After 500-600 years' spread and development, Buddhism was integrated with the traditional culture of China ideologically, and a temple economy centered on land management adapted to the feudal economic system of China was established economically, thus providing conditions for the establishment of Buddhist sects with national characteristics in the Sui and Tang Dynasties. The main Buddhist sects established in Sui and Tang Dynasties are Tiantai Sect, Sanlun Sect, Faxiang Sect, Legalist Sect, Huayan Sect, Pure Land Sect, Zen Sect and Tantric Sect. These Buddhist sects, except tantric sects, were directly founded by monks in China. Although there are also one or several Indian Buddhist scriptures translated into Chinese, the most important thing is the works of the founders. Among them, Tiantai Sect, Huayan Sect and Zen Sect have the most distinctive national characteristics and the greatest influence. Generally speaking, these Buddhist sects have the following characteristics:
(1) combines the ontology of Taoism and metaphysics in China with the world view of Mahayana Buddhism, which takes emptiness, truth or Buddha nature as its ontology. According to the unique method of Prajna's middle view theory, it puts forward the Buddhist philosophy that phenomena are consistent with ontology, truth is consistent with vulgarity, and body is consistent with use.
(2) According to the theory of combining color and mind, ability and place, positive report and trust, the ontology and the theory of mind are integrated, and it is considered that the true Buddha nature is not only the origin and ontology of the universe, but also the gene of human consciousness, and the Confucian theory of human nature is absorbed in the argument.
(3) Give full play to truth and vulgarity, that is, worry is Bodhi theory, and advocate that life cannot be separated from WTO, and daily life is Buddhism and Taoism. Zen is particularly prominent, putting meditation in daily life, saying that a normal mind is the Tao, that is, Tathagata purifies Zen, which has a great influence after the Song Dynasty. (4) Absorbing the Confucian ethics of good and evil and moral preaching into the most popular and easily accepted preaching of the cycle of good and evil in Buddhism has played a role that Confucianism cannot play in controlling people's spiritual world and restraining people's behavior. (5) Influenced by China's patriarchal feudal system, on the one hand, the Buddhist order is regarded as a big family with teachers as their surnames, and monks and nuns call themselves teachers and children, and they are brothers and sisters; On the other hand, a strict hierarchical inheritance system is established in various monasteries.