Textual relationship of the Proto-Buddhāvataṃsaka and its Tibetan parallels

Abstract

This paper examines the intertextuality of the proto-Buddhāvataṃsaka corpus in order to more precisely understand its textual development and relations. To be specific, this study investigates the proto-Buddhāvataṃsaka sūtras in conjunction with the corresponding parts of the complete Tibetan Buddhāvataṃsaka, and analyses their relationships by dividing them into five cases: (1) Lk = ZQ = Tib; (2) Lk = Tib ≠ ZQ; (3) Lk = ZQ ≠ Tib; (4) Lk ≠ ZQ = Tib; and (5) Lk ≠ ZQ ≠ Tib. The following conclusions could be drawn from this analysis: the original sources, which Lokakṣema, Zhī Qiān, and Tibetan translators used respectively, might have been similar in terms of the concept and content of the sūtra; while Zhī Qiān must have referred to Lokakṣema's translation, he would make his own translation as a liberal translation according to the classical Chinese grammar; it is likely that Zhī Qiān had a Sanskrit recension which is different from what Lokakṣema used, considering the fact that the Zhī Qiān version has unique parts; it appears that the original source of the Tibetan version is far different from that of the Chinese versions.