Kumarajiva
Encyclopedia
Kumārajīva; (344–413 CE) was a Kuchean
Buddhist
monk
, scholar, and translator. He first studied teachings of the Sarvastivada
schools, later studied under Buddhasvāmin
, and finally became a Mahāyāna
adherent, studying the Madhyamaka
doctrine of Nagarjuna
. Kumārajīva settled in Chang'an
, which was the imperial capital of China
. He is mostly remembered for the prolific translation of Buddhist texts written in Sanskrit
to Chinese
he carried out during his later life.
(also Kiu-mo-yen) was from an Kashmiri
Brahmin noble family, and his mother was a Kuchean princess who significantly influenced his early studies. His grandfather Ta-to is supposed to have had a great reputation. His father became a monk, left India, crossed the Pamirs and arrived in Kucha where he became the royal priest. The sister of the king, Jīva, married him and they produced Kumārajīva. Jīva joined the Tsio-li nunnery, north of Kucha, when Kumārajīva was just seven.
, and after two years, at the age of nine, he was taken to Kashmir
by his mother to be better educated under Bandhudatta. There he studied Dīrgha Āgama, Madhyama Āgama and the Kṣudraka, before returning with his mother three years later. On his return via Tokharestan and Kashgar
, an arhat predicted that he had a bright future and would introduce many people to Buddhism. Kumārajīva stayed in Kashgar for a year, ordaining the two princely sons of Tsan-kiun (himself the son of the king of Yarkand) and studying the Abhidharma Piṭaka of the Sarvastivada under the Kashmir
ian Buddhayaśa, as well as the four Vedas
, five sciences, Brahmanical sacred texts, astronomy. He studied mainly Āgama and Sarvastivada doctrines at this time.
Kumārajīva left Kashgar with Jīva at age 12, and traveled to Turpan, the north-eastern limit of the kingdom of Kucha
, which was home to more than 10,000 monks. Somewhere around this time, he encountered the master Suryasoma, who instructed him in early Mahayana
texts. Kumārajīva soon converted, and began studying Madhyamaka texts such as the works of Nagarjuna.
teacher in debate, and King Po-Shui of Kucha came to Turpan to ask Kumārajīva personally to return with him to Kucha city. Kumārajīva obliged and returned to instruct the king's daughter A-Kie-ye-mo-ti, who had become a nun, in the Mahāsannipāta and Mahāvaipulya (Mahāyāna) sūtras.
At age 20, Kumārajīva was fully ordained at the king's palace, and lived in a new monastery built by king Po-Shun. Notably, he received Vimalākṣa who was his preceptor, a Sarvāstivādin monk from Kashmir
, and was instructed by him in the Sarvāstivādin Vinaya
Piṭaka. Kumārajīva proceeded to study the Pañcaviṁśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, one of the longer Prajñāpāramitā
texts. He is known to have engaged in debates, and to have encouraged dialogue with foreign monks. Jīva is thought to have moved to Kashmir
.
(苻堅) of the Former Qin
Dynasty to bring Kumārajīva to Qin capital of Chang'an
. To do this, his general Lu Guang was dispatched with an army in order to conquer Kucha and return with Kumārajīva. Fu Jian is recorded as telling his general, "Send me Kumārajīva as soon as you conquer Kucha." However, when Fu Jian's main army at the capital was defeated, his general Lu Guang declared his own state and became a warlord in 386 CE, and had Kumārajīva captured when he was around 40 years old. Being a non-Buddhist, Lu Guang had Kumārajīva imprisoned for many years, essentially as booty. During this time, it is thought that Kumārajīva became familiar with the Chinese language. Kumarajiva was also coerced by Lu into marrying the Kutcha King's daughter, which resulted in his chastity vow being negated.
After the Yao family of Former Qin overthrew the previous ruler Fu Jian, the emperor Yao Xing
made repeated pleas to the warlords of the Lu family to free Kumārajīva and send him east to Chang'an. When the Lu family would not free Kumārajīva from their hostage, an exasperated Yao Xing had armies dispatched to Liangzhou in order to defeat the warlords of the Lu family and to have Kumārajīva brought back to them. Finally the armies of Emperor Yao succeeded in defeating the Lu family, and Kumārajīva was brought east to the capital of Chang'an in 401 CE.
, the court, and the Buddhist leaders. He was hailed as a great master from the Western regions, and immediately took up a very high position in Chinese Buddhist circles of the time, being given the title of National Teacher. Yao Xing looked upon him as his own teacher, and many young and old Chinese Buddhists flocked to him, learning both from his direct teachings and through his translation bureau activities.
Kumārajīva appeared to have a major influence on Emperor Yao Xing's actions later on, as he avoided actions that may lead to many deaths, while trying to act gently toward his enemies. At his request, Kumārajīva translated many sutras into Chinese. Yao Xing also built many towers and temples. Because of the influence of Kumārajīva and Yao Xing, it was described that 90% of the population became Buddhists.
The second era of translators A. D. 400 was that of Kumaradjiva of Cashmere. There can be no doubt that he made use of SH and S as separate letters for he never confounds them in his choice of Chinese characters. The Chinese words already introduced by his predecessors he did not alter, and in introducing new terms required in the translation of the Mahayana literature, the 大乘 Tasheng or greater development, he uses SH for SH and usually B for V. Thus the city Shravasti was in Pali Savatthi and in Chinese Sha-ba-ti. Probably Kumaradjiva himself speaking in the Cashmere dialect of Sanscrit called it Shabati.
, Amitabha Sutra
, Lotus Sutra
, the Vimalakirti Nirdesa Sutra
, Mūlamadhyamakakārikā
, Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, Mahāprajñāpāramitā Upadeśa which was a commentary (attributed to Nagarjuna) on the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra.
Kumarajiva revolutionized Chinese Buddhism, in clarity and overcoming the previous "ge-yi" (concept-matching) system of translation through use of Daoist and Confucian terms. His translation style was distinctive, possessing a flowing smoothness that reflects his prioritization on conveying the meaning as opposed to precise literal rendering. Because of this, his renderings of seminal Mahayana texts have often remained more popular than later, more exact translations, e.g. those of Xuanzang
. 僧叡 Sengrui
had some influence on this final polished style, as the final editor of his translation works.
Kumarajiva had four main disciples: 道生 Daosheng, 僧肇 Sengzhao
, 道融 Daorong, and 僧叡 Sengrui
.
Where there is emptiness, already there is form.
--Kumarajiva
Kucha
Kuchaor Kuche Uyghur , Chinese Simplified: 库车; Traditional: 庫車; pinyin Kùchē; also romanized as Qiuzi, Qiuci, Chiu-tzu, Kiu-che, Kuei-tzu from the traditional Chinese forms 屈支 屈茨; 龜玆; 龟兹, 丘玆, also Po ; Sanskrit: Kueina, Standard Tibetan: Kutsahiyui was an ancient Buddhist kingdom...
Buddhist
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
monk
Bhikkhu
A Bhikkhu or Bhikṣu is an ordained male Buddhist monastic. A female monastic is called a Bhikkhuni Nepali: ). The life of Bhikkhus and Bhikkhunis is governed by a set of rules called the patimokkha within the vinaya's framework of monastic discipline...
, scholar, and translator. He first studied teachings of the Sarvastivada
Sarvastivada
The Sarvāstivāda were an early school of Buddhism that held to 'the existence of all dharmas in the past, present and future, the 'three times'. Vasubandhu's states:-Name:...
schools, later studied under Buddhasvāmin
Buddhasvamin (monk)
Buddhasvāmin was a Sarvastivadan Buddhist monk and famous scholar from the kingdom of Kucha. During part of the 4th century CE, he presideded over all Buddhist temples and nunneries in Kucha....
, and finally became a Mahāyāna
Mahayana
Mahāyāna is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice...
adherent, studying the Madhyamaka
Madhyamaka
Madhyamaka refers primarily to a Mahāyāna Buddhist school of Buddhist philosophy systematized by Nāgārjuna. Nāgārjuna may have arrived at his positions from a desire to achieve a consistent exegesis of the Buddha's doctrine as recorded in the āgamas...
doctrine of Nagarjuna
Nagarjuna
Nāgārjuna was an important Buddhist teacher and philosopher. Along with his disciple Āryadeva, he is credited with founding the Mādhyamaka school of Mahāyāna Buddhism...
. Kumārajīva settled in Chang'an
Chang'an
Chang'an is an ancient capital of more than ten dynasties in Chinese history, today known as Xi'an. Chang'an literally means "Perpetual Peace" in Classical Chinese. During the short-lived Xin Dynasty, the city was renamed "Constant Peace" ; yet after its fall in AD 23, the old name was restored...
, which was the imperial capital of China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. He is mostly remembered for the prolific translation of Buddhist texts written in Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
to Chinese
Chinese language
The Chinese language is a language or language family consisting of varieties which are mutually intelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the branches of Sino-Tibetan family of languages...
he carried out during his later life.
Family and background
Kumārajīva's father KumārāyanaKumarayana
Kumārāyana was an intelligent man from a noble family in India, whose grandfather Ta-to was supposed to have had a great reputation. Kumārāyana renounced his wealth to become a Buddhist monk, and left India, crossing to the Pamirs to arrive in Kucha. There he became the royal priest, and the...
(also Kiu-mo-yen) was from an Kashmiri
Kashmiri people
The Kashmiri people are a Dardic linguistic group living in Kashmir Valley in Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir and parts of the Pakistani territory of Azad Kashmir who speak the Kashmiri language...
Brahmin noble family, and his mother was a Kuchean princess who significantly influenced his early studies. His grandfather Ta-to is supposed to have had a great reputation. His father became a monk, left India, crossed the Pamirs and arrived in Kucha where he became the royal priest. The sister of the king, Jīva, married him and they produced Kumārajīva. Jīva joined the Tsio-li nunnery, north of Kucha, when Kumārajīva was just seven.
Childhood and education
When his mother Jīva joined the Tsio-li nunnery, Kumārajīva was just seven but is said to have already committed many texts and sutras to memory. He proceeded to learn AbhidharmaAbhidharma
Abhidharma or Abhidhamma are ancient Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic and scientific reworkings of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist Sutras, according to schematic classifications...
, and after two years, at the age of nine, he was taken to Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
by his mother to be better educated under Bandhudatta. There he studied Dīrgha Āgama, Madhyama Āgama and the Kṣudraka, before returning with his mother three years later. On his return via Tokharestan and Kashgar
Kashgar
Kashgar or Kashi is an oasis city with approximately 350,000 residents in the western part of the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Kashgar is the administrative centre of Kashgar Prefecture which has an area of 162,000 km² and a population of approximately...
, an arhat predicted that he had a bright future and would introduce many people to Buddhism. Kumārajīva stayed in Kashgar for a year, ordaining the two princely sons of Tsan-kiun (himself the son of the king of Yarkand) and studying the Abhidharma Piṭaka of the Sarvastivada under the Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
ian Buddhayaśa, as well as the four Vedas
Vedas
The Vedas are a large body of texts originating in ancient India. Composed in Vedic Sanskrit, the texts constitute the oldest layer of Sanskrit literature and the oldest scriptures of Hinduism....
, five sciences, Brahmanical sacred texts, astronomy. He studied mainly Āgama and Sarvastivada doctrines at this time.
Kumārajīva left Kashgar with Jīva at age 12, and traveled to Turpan, the north-eastern limit of the kingdom of Kucha
Kucha
Kuchaor Kuche Uyghur , Chinese Simplified: 库车; Traditional: 庫車; pinyin Kùchē; also romanized as Qiuzi, Qiuci, Chiu-tzu, Kiu-che, Kuei-tzu from the traditional Chinese forms 屈支 屈茨; 龜玆; 龟兹, 丘玆, also Po ; Sanskrit: Kueina, Standard Tibetan: Kutsahiyui was an ancient Buddhist kingdom...
, which was home to more than 10,000 monks. Somewhere around this time, he encountered the master Suryasoma, who instructed him in early Mahayana
Mahayana
Mahāyāna is one of the two main existing branches of Buddhism and a term for classification of Buddhist philosophies and practice...
texts. Kumārajīva soon converted, and began studying Madhyamaka texts such as the works of Nagarjuna.
Early fame in Kucha
In Turpan his fame spread after besting a TirthikaTirthika
Tirthika is a general term referring to adherents Jainism...
teacher in debate, and King Po-Shui of Kucha came to Turpan to ask Kumārajīva personally to return with him to Kucha city. Kumārajīva obliged and returned to instruct the king's daughter A-Kie-ye-mo-ti, who had become a nun, in the Mahāsannipāta and Mahāvaipulya (Mahāyāna) sūtras.
At age 20, Kumārajīva was fully ordained at the king's palace, and lived in a new monastery built by king Po-Shun. Notably, he received Vimalākṣa who was his preceptor, a Sarvāstivādin monk from Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
, and was instructed by him in the Sarvāstivādin Vinaya
Vinaya
The Vinaya is the regulatory framework for the Buddhist monastic community, or sangha, based in the canonical texts called Vinaya Pitaka. The teachings of the Buddha, or Buddhadharma can be divided into two broad categories: 'Dharma' or doctrine, and 'Vinaya', or discipline...
Piṭaka. Kumārajīva proceeded to study the Pañcaviṁśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, one of the longer Prajñāpāramitā
Prajnaparamita
Prajñāpāramitā in Buddhism, means "the Perfection of Wisdom." The word Prajñāpāramitā combines the Sanskrit words prajñā with pāramitā . Prajñāpāramitā is a central concept in Mahāyāna Buddhism and its practice and understanding are taken to be indispensable elements of the Bodhisattva Path...
texts. He is known to have engaged in debates, and to have encouraged dialogue with foreign monks. Jīva is thought to have moved to Kashmir
Kashmir
Kashmir is the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent. Until the mid-19th century, the term Kashmir geographically denoted only the valley between the Great Himalayas and the Pir Panjal mountain range...
.
Capture, imprisonment, and release
In 379 CE, Kumārajīva's fame reached China when a Chinese Buddhist monk named Seng Jun visited Kucha and described Kumārajīva's abilities. Efforts were then made by Emperor Fu JianFu Jian
Fu Jian may refer to:* Fú Jiàn , founding emperor of Former Qin, posthumous name Emperor Jingming* Fú Jiān , ruler of Former Qin, posthumous name Emperor Xuanzhao-See also:...
(苻堅) of the Former Qin
Former Qin
The Former Qin was a state of the Sixteen Kingdoms in China. Founded by the Fu family of the Di ethnicity, it completed the unification of North China in 376. Its capital had been Xi'an up to the death of the ruler Fu Jiān. Despite its name, the Former Qin was much later and less powerful than...
Dynasty to bring Kumārajīva to Qin capital of Chang'an
Chang'an
Chang'an is an ancient capital of more than ten dynasties in Chinese history, today known as Xi'an. Chang'an literally means "Perpetual Peace" in Classical Chinese. During the short-lived Xin Dynasty, the city was renamed "Constant Peace" ; yet after its fall in AD 23, the old name was restored...
. To do this, his general Lu Guang was dispatched with an army in order to conquer Kucha and return with Kumārajīva. Fu Jian is recorded as telling his general, "Send me Kumārajīva as soon as you conquer Kucha." However, when Fu Jian's main army at the capital was defeated, his general Lu Guang declared his own state and became a warlord in 386 CE, and had Kumārajīva captured when he was around 40 years old. Being a non-Buddhist, Lu Guang had Kumārajīva imprisoned for many years, essentially as booty. During this time, it is thought that Kumārajīva became familiar with the Chinese language. Kumarajiva was also coerced by Lu into marrying the Kutcha King's daughter, which resulted in his chastity vow being negated.
After the Yao family of Former Qin overthrew the previous ruler Fu Jian, the emperor Yao Xing
Yao Xing
Yao Xing , courtesy name Zilue , formally Emperor Wenhuan of Qin , was an emperor of the Chinese/Qiang state Later Qin. He was the son of the founding emperor Yao Chang . For most of his reign, he did not use the title of emperor, but used the title Heavenly Prince...
made repeated pleas to the warlords of the Lu family to free Kumārajīva and send him east to Chang'an. When the Lu family would not free Kumārajīva from their hostage, an exasperated Yao Xing had armies dispatched to Liangzhou in order to defeat the warlords of the Lu family and to have Kumārajīva brought back to them. Finally the armies of Emperor Yao succeeded in defeating the Lu family, and Kumārajīva was brought east to the capital of Chang'an in 401 CE.
At Chang'an
At Chang'an, Kumārajīva was immediately introduced to the emperor Yao XingYao Xing
Yao Xing , courtesy name Zilue , formally Emperor Wenhuan of Qin , was an emperor of the Chinese/Qiang state Later Qin. He was the son of the founding emperor Yao Chang . For most of his reign, he did not use the title of emperor, but used the title Heavenly Prince...
, the court, and the Buddhist leaders. He was hailed as a great master from the Western regions, and immediately took up a very high position in Chinese Buddhist circles of the time, being given the title of National Teacher. Yao Xing looked upon him as his own teacher, and many young and old Chinese Buddhists flocked to him, learning both from his direct teachings and through his translation bureau activities.
Kumārajīva appeared to have a major influence on Emperor Yao Xing's actions later on, as he avoided actions that may lead to many deaths, while trying to act gently toward his enemies. At his request, Kumārajīva translated many sutras into Chinese. Yao Xing also built many towers and temples. Because of the influence of Kumārajīva and Yao Xing, it was described that 90% of the population became Buddhists.
The second era of translators A. D. 400 was that of Kumaradjiva of Cashmere. There can be no doubt that he made use of SH and S as separate letters for he never confounds them in his choice of Chinese characters. The Chinese words already introduced by his predecessors he did not alter, and in introducing new terms required in the translation of the Mahayana literature, the 大乘 Tasheng or greater development, he uses SH for SH and usually B for V. Thus the city Shravasti was in Pali Savatthi and in Chinese Sha-ba-ti. Probably Kumaradjiva himself speaking in the Cashmere dialect of Sanscrit called it Shabati.
Legacy
Among the most important texts translated by Kumārajīva are the Diamond SutraDiamond Sutra
The Diamond Sūtra , is a short and well-known Mahāyāna sūtra from the Prajñāpāramitā, or "Perfection of Wisdom" genre, and emphasizes the practice of non-abiding and non-attachment...
, Amitabha Sutra
Amitabha Sutra
The Amitābha Sūtra is a popular colloquial name for the Shorter Sukhāvatīvyūha Sūtra. The Amitābha Sūtra is a Mahāyāna Buddhist text, and it is one of the primary sūtras recited and upheld in the Pure Land Buddhist schools.-History:...
, Lotus Sutra
Lotus Sutra
The Lotus Sūtra is one of the most popular and influential Mahāyāna sūtras, and the basis on which the Tiantai and Nichiren sects of Buddhism were established.-Title:...
, the Vimalakirti Nirdesa Sutra
Vimalakirti Sutra
The Vimalakīrti Nirdeśa Sūtra , or Vimalakīrti Sūtra, is a Mahāyāna Buddhist sūtra. Among other subjects, the sutra teaches the meaning of nonduality...
, Mūlamadhyamakakārikā
Mulamadhyamakakarika
The Mūlamadhyamakakārikā , or Fundamental Verses on the Middle Way, is a key text by Nagarjuna, one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.-Competing interpretations:...
, Aṣṭasāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra, Mahāprajñāpāramitā Upadeśa which was a commentary (attributed to Nagarjuna) on the Pañcaviṃśatisāhasrikā Prajñāpāramitā Sūtra.
Kumarajiva revolutionized Chinese Buddhism, in clarity and overcoming the previous "ge-yi" (concept-matching) system of translation through use of Daoist and Confucian terms. His translation style was distinctive, possessing a flowing smoothness that reflects his prioritization on conveying the meaning as opposed to precise literal rendering. Because of this, his renderings of seminal Mahayana texts have often remained more popular than later, more exact translations, e.g. those of Xuanzang
Xuanzang
Xuanzang was a famous Chinese Buddhist monk, scholar, traveler, and translator who described the interaction between China and India in the early Tang period...
. 僧叡 Sengrui
Sengrui
Sengrui was born in what is now Henan. He became a monk at age 18, traveling extensively from age 24, meeting among others Dao An. He ended up in Changan, where he took part in Kumarajiva's translation project. In fact, he is generally seen as Kumarajiva’s principal disciple....
had some influence on this final polished style, as the final editor of his translation works.
Kumarajiva had four main disciples: 道生 Daosheng, 僧肇 Sengzhao
Sengzhao
Sengzhao , from Jingzhao, was a Buddhist Chinese philosopher and the first disciple of Kumārajīva. He helped translate Indian treatises and also wrote his own. These form the only source of study for early Chinese Mādhyamika Buddhism...
, 道融 Daorong, and 僧叡 Sengrui
Sengrui
Sengrui was born in what is now Henan. He became a monk at age 18, traveling extensively from age 24, meeting among others Dao An. He ended up in Changan, where he took part in Kumarajiva's translation project. In fact, he is generally seen as Kumarajiva’s principal disciple....
.
Sayings
Where there is form, already there is emptiness.Where there is emptiness, already there is form.
--Kumarajiva