Title: The Gāthā of Bodhisattva Juélín: translation and variations
Abstract:Among the most revered verses of the East Asian Buddhist tradition, the Gāthā of Bodhisattava Juélín (覺林菩薩偈) is presented here in five distinct English translations that seek to capture the essence of...Among the most revered verses of the East Asian Buddhist tradition, the Gāthā of Bodhisattava Juélín (覺林菩薩偈) is presented here in five distinct English translations that seek to capture the essence of its 40 lines through the use of contemporary metaphor from the realms of postimpressionist art, psychedelic art, digital art, and quantum physics. The verse, found in both the Avataṃsaka Sūtra (Huáyán Jīng 華嚴經) and popular editions of the Kṣitigarbha Bodhisattva Pūrvapraṇidhāna Sūtra (Dìzàng Púsà Běnyuàn Jīng地藏菩薩本願經), plays on the imagery of a painter mixing oils and the polysemy of Chinese terms such as sè 色 (literally “color”, but also “matter”, “form”, or “appearance”) to advance its view of the world as a construct of the mind. In the new translations presented here, an effort has been made to approximate the effect of Chinese polysemy and to preserve, as much as possible, the symmetry of the original lines, so that, in addition to representing the metaphysics and worldview advanced, the translation also enables English language readers to appreciate the vivid imagery and wordplay inherent in the Chinese source text, which contribute significantly to the core message of the Gāthā.Read More
Publication Year: 2017
Publication Date: 2017-05-04
Language: en
Type: article
Indexed In: ['crossref']
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