Tứ phần luật tì khưu ni giới bản lược kí 四分律比丘尼戒本略記 [Commentary on the "Book of Discipline" for Ordained Nuns According to the Dharmagupta-vinaya]
Woodblock-printed. 15 (f. 1 lacking), 23, 32, 36; 20, 28, 19 (f. 20 lacking); 43, 38, 34; 30, 36, 33, 8, [1] (duplicate of q. 3 f. 6) folding leaves. Quyển thủ & 12 numbered quyển in four vols. 8vo, new wrappers, knot-bound with new paper cords, red edges. Vietnam: 1901.
First edition of this rare Vietnamese commentary on Huaisu's 懷素 (624-97) Book of Discipline for Ordained Nuns According to the Dharmagupta-vinaya (Ch. Sifenlü biqiuni jieben 四分律比丘尼戒本), compiled at a dharma gathering of monastics in Thành Thái 13 (1901). The work is not in WorldCat, and we find only two other copies, both in Vietnam.
"The Sanskrit and Pali term 'Vinaya' (Tib. 'Dul ba; Ch. lü 律) refers to the body of teachings concerning monastic discipline or law attributed to the historical Buddha...The Sifen-lü (四分律; Four-Part Vinaya; T. 1428 [XXII]; 60 fasc.) is traditionally ascribed to the Dharmaguptakas. With the exception of a few minor Sanskrit fragments, the Vinaya of this school is extant only in a Chinese translation made by the Kashmiri Buddhayaśas (Fotuoyeshe 佛陀耶舍; fl. 4th-5th c.), who is said to have taught the (or a) Sarvāstivādin Vinaya to Kumārajīva (344-409/413), and Zhu Fonian 竺佛念 (fl. early 5th c.) between 410 and 412 C.E. Since displacing the Mahāsāṅghikavinaya and the Sarvāstivādin Shisong-lü in China, at least nominally this Vinaya has been followed by most Buddhist schools in China, Korea, and Japan throughout Buddhist history"-Shayne Clarke, "Vinayas," in Brill's Encyclopedia of Buddhism Online.
Huaisu's Book of Discipline for Ordained Nuns According to the Dharmagupta-vinaya is an instructional handbook that succinctly enumerates the rules and prohibitions from the Dharmagupta-vinaya. Bookended with devotional verses, the bulk of the text is instructions addressed to a female practitioner (V. Đại tỉ 大姊), listing the seven groups of rules in descending order of severity. These range from the most serious rules (Skt. Pārājika), the violation of which leads to excommunication from the saṅgha, to more mundane codes of etiquette (Skt. śaikṣa), which include not speaking with one's mouth full and not preaching the dharma to those wielding weapons.
Around the year 1901, a dharma gathering in Vietnam brought together nuns and monks across the nation. Around a dozen monks, including Thanh Chân 清真, Thanh Khiết 清潔, Thanh Nhụa 清濡, and others, compiled this elaborate commentary on Huaisu's work, their publication supported by donations from 100 or so monks, 300 or so nuns, and a modest group of lay followers. Around 200 woodblocks, carved on both sides, were required to print this large work; the names of 13 artisans who carved them, alongside the full list of the work's editors and donors, are included at the end of Vol. 4.
The content of these Vietnamese commentaries on a canonical Chinese Buddhist manual remains to be studied. A cursory glance shows the expected inclusion of anecdotes drawn from elsewhere in the vinaya literature to illustrate each rule of conduct, but there are also many dialogic and discursive passages that we have not been able to locate in the Taishō Tripiṭaka, and which we therefore suspect to be original writings by the editors themselves. These original interpretations of monastic discipline for ordained nuns are undoubtedly invaluable for future research on Buddhism - and Buddhist women more specifically - in Vietnam.
We find mentions of only two other copies: a single volume at the Institute of Hán-Nôm Studies (AC.541, quyển 1-3 only) and another copy held at the Diệu nghiêm temple 妙嚴寺 in Huế, condition unknown. We do not believe this text has been digitized or re-published in a modern edition.
Excellent condition, free from staining and worming. A few edges are lightly mouse-gnawed. Two leaves are lacking, as mentioned above. Rebound in the traditional format with knotted paper cords.
❧ Yuenan Hannan wenxian ziliaoku 越南漢喃文獻資料庫, Academia Sinica. 王小盾 et al., "從越南的四所寺院看漢籍在域外的生存," 域外漢籍研究集刊 18 (2019), p. 430.
First edition of this rare Vietnamese commentary on Huaisu's 懷素 (624-97) Book of Discipline for Ordained Nuns According to the Dharmagupta-vinaya (Ch. Sifenlü biqiuni jieben 四分律比丘尼戒本), compiled at a dharma gathering of monastics in Thành Thái 13 (1901). The work is not in WorldCat, and we find only two other copies, both in Vietnam.
"The Sanskrit and Pali term 'Vinaya' (Tib. 'Dul ba; Ch. lü 律) refers to the body of teachings concerning monastic discipline or law attributed to the historical Buddha...The Sifen-lü (四分律; Four-Part Vinaya; T. 1428 [XXII]; 60 fasc.) is traditionally ascribed to the Dharmaguptakas. With the exception of a few minor Sanskrit fragments, the Vinaya of this school is extant only in a Chinese translation made by the Kashmiri Buddhayaśas (Fotuoyeshe 佛陀耶舍; fl. 4th-5th c.), who is said to have taught the (or a) Sarvāstivādin Vinaya to Kumārajīva (344-409/413), and Zhu Fonian 竺佛念 (fl. early 5th c.) between 410 and 412 C.E. Since displacing the Mahāsāṅghikavinaya and the Sarvāstivādin Shisong-lü in China, at least nominally this Vinaya has been followed by most Buddhist schools in China, Korea, and Japan throughout Buddhist history"-Shayne Clarke, "Vinayas," in Brill's Encyclopedia of Buddhism Online.
Huaisu's Book of Discipline for Ordained Nuns According to the Dharmagupta-vinaya is an instructional handbook that succinctly enumerates the rules and prohibitions from the Dharmagupta-vinaya. Bookended with devotional verses, the bulk of the text is instructions addressed to a female practitioner (V. Đại tỉ 大姊), listing the seven groups of rules in descending order of severity. These range from the most serious rules (Skt. Pārājika), the violation of which leads to excommunication from the saṅgha, to more mundane codes of etiquette (Skt. śaikṣa), which include not speaking with one's mouth full and not preaching the dharma to those wielding weapons.
Around the year 1901, a dharma gathering in Vietnam brought together nuns and monks across the nation. Around a dozen monks, including Thanh Chân 清真, Thanh Khiết 清潔, Thanh Nhụa 清濡, and others, compiled this elaborate commentary on Huaisu's work, their publication supported by donations from 100 or so monks, 300 or so nuns, and a modest group of lay followers. Around 200 woodblocks, carved on both sides, were required to print this large work; the names of 13 artisans who carved them, alongside the full list of the work's editors and donors, are included at the end of Vol. 4.
The content of these Vietnamese commentaries on a canonical Chinese Buddhist manual remains to be studied. A cursory glance shows the expected inclusion of anecdotes drawn from elsewhere in the vinaya literature to illustrate each rule of conduct, but there are also many dialogic and discursive passages that we have not been able to locate in the Taishō Tripiṭaka, and which we therefore suspect to be original writings by the editors themselves. These original interpretations of monastic discipline for ordained nuns are undoubtedly invaluable for future research on Buddhism - and Buddhist women more specifically - in Vietnam.
We find mentions of only two other copies: a single volume at the Institute of Hán-Nôm Studies (AC.541, quyển 1-3 only) and another copy held at the Diệu nghiêm temple 妙嚴寺 in Huế, condition unknown. We do not believe this text has been digitized or re-published in a modern edition.
Excellent condition, free from staining and worming. A few edges are lightly mouse-gnawed. Two leaves are lacking, as mentioned above. Rebound in the traditional format with knotted paper cords.
❧ Yuenan Hannan wenxian ziliaoku 越南漢喃文獻資料庫, Academia Sinica. 王小盾 et al., "從越南的四所寺院看漢籍在域外的生存," 域外漢籍研究集刊 18 (2019), p. 430.
Details
Title
Tứ phần luật tì khưu ni giới bản lược kí 四分律比丘尼戒本略記 [Commentary on the "Book of Discipline" for Ordained Nuns According to the Dharmagupta-vinaya]
Author
VINAYA FOR NUNS, VIETNAMESE
Condition
Unknown