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Kumārajīva

Kuchan Buddhist monk and translator (344–413)

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Kumarajiva in front of Kizil Caves, Kuqa, Xinjiang, China
Yoshi Canopus · CC BY-SA 3.0

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Kumārajīva first studied teachings of the Sarvastivadin schools, later studied under Buddhasvāmin, and finally became an adherent of Mahayana Buddhism, studying the Mādhyamaka doctrine of Nāgārjuna. After mastering the Chinese language, Kumārajīva settled as a translator and scholar in Chang'an (c. 401 CE) under the patronage of the Later Qin dynasty during the Sixteen Kingdoms period. He was the head of a team of translators which included his amanuensis Sengrui. This team was responsible for the translation of many Sanskrit Buddhist texts into Chinese.

Kumārajīva also introduced the Madhyamaka school of Buddhist philosophy into China which would later be called Sanlun (the "Three Treatise school").

Life

Early life

Kumārajīva was born in 344 CE in the Kingdom of Kucha – one of the Tocharian-speaking city-states of the Tarim Basin. His father was an Indian monk called Kumārāyana, who was probably from Kashmir or Gandhāra, and his mother, Jīva, was a member of the Kuchean royal family.

Himself an eminent Buddhist monk, Kumārāyana endeavoured to journey from his native Kashmir to China to spread his Buddhist teachings. After crossing the Pamir Mountains, Kumārāyana stopped in Kucha, where he stayed as a guest of the king. The king of Kucha was so impressed with Kumārāyana's ideas that the king proposed the marriage of his younger sister Jīva (also known as Jīvaka), a Kuchan princess and herself a devout Buddhist, to Kumārāyana. Kumārāyana and Jīva both acquiesced to this marriage. It was therefore that Kumārajīva's father Kumārāyana settled in Kucha, became the royal priest, met Kumārajīva's mother Jīva who influenced both his own subsequent Buddhist studies and later those of their son, and thereafter begat Kumārajīva.

When Kumārajīva was just seven, his mother Jīva joined the Tsio-li nunnery, north of Kucha. Beginning at the age of nine, Kumārajīva studied the Agamas and the Sarvastivada Abhidharma under masters in North India, Kashmir, and Kucha: all centers of Sarvastivada monasticism and scholarship. He later converted to and studied Mahayana under the Kashmirian Buddhayaśas in Kashgar.

In Kucha at the age of 20, Kumārajīva received full monastic ordination. Around this time he also began to study the Sarvastivada Vinaya and the Madhyamaka philosophy. Over his early life, Kumārajīva became a famous figure in Buddhism, known for his breadth of studies and skill in debate.

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 Jian (苻堅) of the Former Qin Dynasty to bring Kumārajīva to the Qin capital of Chang'an. To do this, his general Lü 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 Lü 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, Lü Guang had Kumārajīva imprisoned for many years, essentially as booty. During this time, it is thought that Kumārajīva became familiar with the Chinese language. Kumārajīva was also coerced by Lü into marrying the Kucha King's daughter, and so he was forced to give up his monk's vows.

After the Yao family of Later Qin overthrew the previous ruler Fu Jian, the ruler Yao Xing made repeated pleas to the warlords of the Lü family to free Kumārajīva and send him east to Chang'an. When the Lü 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 Lü family and to have Kumārajīva brought back to them. Finally the armies of Emperor Yao succeeded in defeating the Lü family, and Kumārajīva was brought east to the capital of Chang'an in 401 CE.

Chang'an and translation work

At Chang'an, Kumārajīva was introduced to the emperor Yao Xing, the court, and the Buddhist leaders. He became a famous and well respected in China, being given the title of "National Preceptor" (guoshi). At Chang'an, Kumārajīva led a court sponsored translation team of scholars who worked on translating numerous Sanskrit Buddhist texts into the Chinese language. 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 at the Xiaoyao Gardens where daily sessions were held (attended by over a thousand monks). Within a dozen years, Kumārajīva's translation bureau had translated about thirty five sutras in 294 scrolls. His translations are still in use today in Chinese Buddhism. Kumarajiva had four main disciples who worked on his team: Daosheng (竺道生), Sengzhao (僧肇), Daorong (道融), and Sengrui (僧睿). According to Paul Williams, Mahāprajñāpāramitopadeśa, a text translated by him, also has a clear association with the Vaibhāṣikas (Sarvāstivādins).

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