[[alternative]]Study on Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi in Kumārajīva’s Meditation Texts

[[abstract]] Buddhānusmṛti，梵文術語為佛隨念，本文簡稱為念佛，已成為大乘佛教中關鍵的修行公式或方法。本論文以念佛為一種禪法實踐作為研究對象，為佛教徒、學者和那些有興趣瞭解念佛背後更深層次的理論和歷史基礎者提供相關的討論。當念佛超越了字面上持唸佛的名號時, 念佛三昧 （Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi） 即可作為架構分明的禪法修持成果。在鳩摩羅什（344–413 CE）的傳記中，他沒有被稱為禪師，反而是以他的譯經和釋經能力享譽。但他在五世紀時所編譯和撰集出的禪經，卻是在中國所出現關於禪法的早期重要經文，對於瞭解五世紀中國佛教徒所接觸到的禪法，和之後對於大乘禪法所產生的影響，是很重要的史料。 本研究試圖透過鳩摩羅什五世紀時所編譯的四部禪經(《坐禪三昧經》、《禪法要解》、《禪祕要法經》、和《思惟略要法》)，探討其中的「念佛三昧」觀，以及鳩摩羅什對佛教禪法實踐的具體貢獻。 透過文獻分析法對鳩摩羅什所編譯的禪經、有關於念佛觀的初期佛教經典、以及同五世紀的相關禪經和三昧經進行分析和比較，試圖回應以下問題：何謂「念佛三昧」的傳承和實踐的發展脈絡？從鳩摩羅什禪經的角度而言， 「念佛三昧」的實踐如何被詮釋？「念佛三昧」的詮解在鳩摩羅什所編譯的禪經中有何異同之處？ 筆者希望通過本研究能夠釐清鳩摩羅什所傳的 「念佛三昧」觀對於禪法發展的具體貢獻。本文推斷鳩摩羅什在禪經中所傳的「念佛三昧」觀是佛陀教誨的一種承先啟後，也是三至四世紀西北印和中亞禪修實踐方法的寫照。這些禪經蘊含著發展出來的多元禪修實踐方法， 反映了禪修實踐者們具體將教義理論轉化為實踐的寶貴經驗。[[abstract]] Buddhānusmṛti (念佛/佛隨念), the Sanskrit term for recollection of the Buddha, has been popularised as a key liturgical and ritual formula in the form of invocating the Buddha’s name in Mahāyāna Buddhism today. The study of buddhānusmṛti specifically as a form of meditative practice in this thesis provides significant discussions relevant to Buddhists, scholars, and those who are interested in understanding the deeper theoretical and historical underpinnings behind buddhānusmṛti, a practice traceable to the teachings of the historical Buddha and his accomplished disciples. Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi (念佛三昧), the absorption of recollection of the Buddha, is a potential attainment only when buddhānusmṛti is carried out as a structured meditation practice beyond the literal recitation of a Buddha’s name. In Kumārajīva’s (344–413 CE) biographies, he is not described as a master of meditation but is lauded for his prowess as a translator of texts and an exegete. Yet the meditation texts that he translated in the fifth century were among the earliest texts on this subject to appear in China, and are important material not only for understanding the kind of content to which fifth-century Chinese Buddhists interested in meditation would likely have been exposed to but also for their considerable influence on later developments of Mahāyāna meditation practice. The present research attempts at exploring the practice of buddhānusmṛti-samādhi within the context of Kumārajīva’s corpus of four meditation texts, namely The Sūtra on the Concentration of Sitting Meditation (T15n614, Zuo chan sanmei jing 《坐禪三昧經》); The Essential Explanation of the Methods of Meditation (T15n616, Chan fa yaojie 《禪法要解》); The Discourse on the Essential Secrets of Meditation (T15n613, Chan mi yaofa jing 《禪祕要法經》); and The Outlining Way of Contemplation (T15n617, Siwei lüe yaofa 《思惟略要法》), establishing his contributions to the development of Buddhist meditation practice with his transmission of buddhānusmṛti-samādhi. The methodology of textual studies is employed specifically on Kumārajīva’s meditation texts in the Chinese Buddhist Canon, texts on buddhānusmṛti in early Buddhism, as well as related meditation and samādhi texts from the fifth century, to answer the following questions: What is the trajectory of development of the concept and practice of buddhānusmṛti-samādhi in Buddhism? What is the practice and transmission of buddhānusmṛti-samādhi from the perspective of Kumārajīva’s corpus of meditation texts? How does the presentation of Buddhānusmṛti-samādhi compare across his meditation texts? Through this study I hope to illustrate the significance of Kumārajīva’s oft-overlooked contributions to Buddhist meditation practice, showing that Kumārajīva’s varied transmissions of buddhānusmṛti-samādhi in his meditation texts are well-grounded in the teachings of early Buddhist texts, and serves as extremely valuable reflections of the meditative practices from northwest India and Central Asia in the third and fourth centuries. I also posit that these texts are valuable examples of the diverse meditation methods developed, which reflect a continuum process of change and diversification, stemming from practitioners’ pragmatic activation and adaptation of doctrinal theory into practices