A Reexamination on Fengzhaoyi and Jinyi in the History of Chinese Translation of Buddhist Scriptures

As the first climax of translation history in China, the translation of Buddhist scriptures has always been involved in state governance in ancient China. This study, based on the CBETA(Chinese Buddhist Electronic Text Association) online database and detailed reading of other classical works, examines fengzhaoyi(translated by imperial command) and jinyi(presenting translations to the imperial ruler) in the history of Chinese translation of Buddhist scriptures, and finds that they started to appear in the Wu of Three Kingdoms and the Tang Dynasty respectively, and evolved endogenously. Their similarity lies in the fact that both are part of state translation programs dominated by the individual power of the dynastic state, and that whether or not a translated scripture could become a state text, bearing the words fengzhaoyi, depends on the imperial ruler. What sets them apart is that jinyi is a precondition for fengzhaoyi, and that fengzhaoyi is a sign of the success of jinyi. This study deepens the knowledge of Chinese translation tradition of Buddhist scriptures, and provides new materials for its historical study.