The Western Regions — General Introduction序論
歷選皇猷，遐觀帝録，庖犧出震之初，軒轅垂衣之始，所以司牧黎元，所以疆畫分野。暨乎唐堯之受天運，光格四表；虞舜之納地圖，德流九土。自茲已降，空傳書事之册；逖聽前修，徒聞記言之史。豈若時逢有道，運屬無爲者歟！我大唐御極則天，乘時握紀，一六合而光宅，四三皇而照臨。玄化滂流，祥風遐扇，同乾坤之覆載，齊風雨之鼓潤。與夫東夷入貢，西戎卽敍，創業垂統，撥亂反正，固以跨越前王，囊括先代。同文共軌，至治神功，非載記無以贊大猷，非昭宣何以光盛業？玄奘輒隨遊至，舉其風土，雖未考方辯俗，信已越五踰三。含生之疇，咸被凱澤；能言之類，莫不稱功。越自天府，暨諸天竺，幽荒異俗，絶域殊邦，咸承正朔，俱霑聲教。贊武功之績，諷成口實；美文德之盛，鬱爲稱首。詳觀載籍，所未嘗聞；緬惟圖牒，誠無與二。不有所敍，何記化洽？今據聞見，於是載述。
Go through the plans of the sovereigns one by one and look far into the records of the emperors, and you find that when Paoxi first came forth from the east and when Xuanyuan first let his robes hang down, it was in order to shepherd the black haired people and in order to mark out the borders and divide the fields. So it went until Yao of Tang received the turning of heaven and his light reached the four quarters, and Shun of Yu received the maps of the land and his virtue flowed over the nine regions. After that, only books that set down events were handed on in vain; and listening far back to the worthies of old, one hears only histories that recorded words. How could any of it match this age, which has met with the Way and whose fortune falls in the time of doing nothing? Our great Tang took the throne in the pattern of heaven, seized the age and holds the cord of it; it has made the six directions one and dwells in light over them, and it counts the Three Sovereigns a fourth below it as it looks down. The dark transforming power pours out and flows, the auspicious wind fans far off; it is one with heaven and earth in covering and carrying, level with wind and rain in beating and moistening. When the Eastern Yi bring tribute and the Western Rong fall into their ranks, when the work is founded and the line handed down, when disorder is set right and turned back to what is straight, then truly it strides past the former kings and takes in the ages before. Writing is the same and cart tracks are the same, the rule is perfect and the merit is holy. Without records there is no praising so great a plan; without setting it forth clearly, how is so full a work to be made to shine? Xuanzang went traveling as occasion carried him and gathered what is told of these lands and their ways. He has not examined their bearings or sorted out their customs, yet he believes that this age has already passed the Five Emperors and gone beyond the Three. Every kind that holds life is covered by this gentle bounty; nothing that can speak fails to tell of this merit. From the emperor's own domain as far as the several lands of India, strange customs in dark wastes, cut off regions and lands apart, all hold to the calendar and all are wet with the teaching. They praise the marks of martial merit until it becomes the matter of common talk; they find the fullness of civil virtue beautiful, and it stands foremost in their praise. Look closely through the old books, and this was never heard of; think back over the maps and registers, and there is truly nothing second to it. If it is not set down, how is it to be recorded that the transforming power has reached everywhere? Now, on the ground of what was seen and heard, here is the account.
然則索訶世界，三千大千國土，爲一佛之化攝也。今一日月所照臨四天下者，據三千大千世界之中，諸佛世尊，皆此垂化，現生現滅，導聖導凡。蘇迷盧山，四寶合成，在大海中，據金輪上，日月之所照迴，諸天之所遊舍，七山七海，環峙環列。山間海水，具八功德。七金山外，乃鹹海也。海中可居者，大略有四洲焉。東毘提訶洲，南贍部洲，西瞿陁尼洲，北拘盧洲，金輪王乃化被四天下，銀輪王則政隔北拘盧，銅輪王除北拘盧及西瞿陁尼，鐵輪王則唯贍部洲。夫輪王者，將卽大位，隨福所感，有大輪寶浮空來應。感有金銀銅鐵之異，境乃四三二一之差，因其先瑞，卽以爲號。
Now the Suohe world, the three thousand great thousand lands, is what one Buddha takes in and transforms. The four continents under heaven that one sun and moon now light are within the three thousand great thousand worlds, and all the Buddhas and World Honored Ones let their transforming power down here, showing themselves born and showing themselves passing away, leading the holy and leading the common. Mount Sumilu is made of four precious things together. It stands in the great sea, resting on the golden wheel. Sun and moon turn about it and light it, the gods of the heavens roam and lodge there, and seven mountain rings and seven seas stand round it and lie round it in order. The sea water between the mountains has the eight virtues. Outside the seven golden mountains is the salt sea. In that sea the places fit to live in are, in the main, four continents. In the east is the continent of Pitihe, in the south the continent of Shanbu, in the west the continent of Jutuoni, in the north the continent of Julu. The king of the golden wheel spreads his rule over the four continents; the king of the silver wheel is shut out from the northern Julu; the king of the bronze wheel has neither the northern Julu nor the western Jutuoni; the king of the iron wheel has only the continent of Shanbu. Now when a wheel king is about to take the great seat, then, as his blessings call it forth, a great wheel treasure floats in the air and answers him. There is a difference of gold, silver, bronze and iron, and so a difference of four lands, three, two or one; and from the sign that comes first, the name is taken.
Interlinear notes 6
舊曰娑婆世界，又曰娑訶世界，皆訛也。
In old days it was called the Suopo world, and also the Suohe world. Both are wrong.
唐言妙高山。舊曰須彌，又曰須彌婁，皆訛略也。
In the language of the Tang it is Mount Miaogao. In old days it was called Xumi, and also Xumilou. Both are wrong and cut short.
舊曰弗婆提，又曰弗干逮，訛也。
In old days it was called Fupoti, and also Fugandai. This is wrong.
舊曰閻浮提洲，又曰剡浮洲，訛也。
In old days it was called the continent of Yanfuti, and also the continent of Shanfu. This is wrong.
舊曰瞿耶尼，又曰劬伽尼，訛也。
In old days it was called Juyeni, and also Qujiani. This is wrong.
舊曰鬱單越，又曰鳩樓，訛也。
In old days it was called Yudanyue, and also Jiulou. This is wrong.
則贍部洲之中地者，阿那婆答多池也，在香山之南，大雪山之北，周八百里矣。金、銀、瑠璃、頗胝飾其岸焉。金沙彌漫，清波皎鏡。八地菩薩以願力故，化爲龍王，於中潜宅，出清泠水，給贍部洲。是以池東面銀牛口，流出殑伽河，繞池一匝，入東南海；池南面金象口，流出信度河，繞池一匝，入西南海；池西面瑠璃馬口，流出縛芻河，繞池一匝，入西北海；池北面頗胝師子口，流出徙多河，繞池一匝，入東北海。或曰潜流地下出積石山，卽徙多河之流，爲中國之河源云。
The land at the middle of the continent of Shanbu is Lake Anapodaduo. It lies south of the Fragrant Mountain and north of the Great Snow Mountains, and it is eight hundred li around. Gold, silver, lapis and crystal adorn its banks. Golden sand lies spread everywhere, and the clear waves are bright as a mirror. A bodhisattva of the eighth stage, by the power of his vow, became a dragon king and dwells hidden within it, and he sends out cool clear water and supplies the continent of Shanbu with it. So from the silver ox's mouth on the east side of the lake the Qingqie river flows out, circles the lake once, and enters the southeastern sea; from the golden elephant's mouth on the south side of the lake the Xindu river flows out, circles the lake once, and enters the southwestern sea; from the lapis horse's mouth on the west side of the lake the Bochu river flows out, circles the lake once, and enters the northwestern sea; from the crystal lion's mouth on the north side of the lake the Xiduo river flows out, circles the lake once, and enters the northeastern sea. Some say that it runs hidden under the ground and comes out at Mount Jishi, and that this stream of the Xiduo river is the source of the Yellow River in China.
Interlinear notes 6
唐言無熱惱。舊曰阿耨達池，訛也。
In the language of the Tang it is Wurenao. In old days it was called Lake Anouda. This is wrong.
巨勝反
The sound is spelled from ju (巨) and sheng (勝).
舊曰恒河，又曰恒伽，訛也。
In old days it was called the Heng river, and also the Hengqie. This is wrong.
舊曰辛頭河，訛也。
In old days it was called the Xintou river. This is wrong.
舊曰博叉河，訛也。
In old days it was called the Bocha river. This is wrong.
舊曰私陁河，訛也。
In old days it was called the Situo river. This is wrong.
時無輪王應運，贍部洲地有四主焉。南象主則暑濕宜象，西寶主乃臨海盈寶，北馬主寒勁宜馬，東人主和暢多人。故象主之國，躁烈篤學，特閑異術，服則橫巾右袒，首則中髻四垂，族類邑居，室宇重閣。寶主之鄉，無禮義，重財賄，短製左衽，斷髮長髭，有城郭之居，務殖貨之利。馬主之俗，天資獷暴，情忍殺戮，毳帳穹廬，鳥居逐牧。人主之地，風俗機惠，仁義照明，冠帶右衽，車服有序，安土重遷，務資有類。三主之俗，東方爲上。其居室則東闢其戶，旦日則東向以拜。人主之地，南面爲尊。方俗殊風，斯其大概。至於君臣上下之禮，憲章文軌之儀，人主之地無以加也。清心釋累之訓，出離生死之教，象主之國其理優矣。斯皆著之經誥，問諸土俗，博關今古，詳考見聞。然則佛興西方，法流東國，通譯音訛，方言語謬，音訛則義失，語謬則理乖，故曰「必也正名乎」，貴無乖謬矣。
In an age when no wheel king arises to answer the turning of heaven, the land of the continent of Shanbu has four lords. The lord of elephants in the south has heat and damp that suit elephants; the lord of treasures in the west lies on the sea and overflows with treasure; the lord of horses in the north has a cold and biting land that suits horses; the lord of men in the east is mild and open and has many people. So the country of the lord of elephants is hasty and fierce and earnest in learning, and it is especially versed in strange arts. For dress they wrap a cloth across the body and bare the right shoulder, and for the head they knot the hair in the middle and let it fall in four parts; clan by clan they live in their own towns, and their houses are storied halls. In the country of the lord of treasures there is no rite or right dealing; they think much of goods and money, they cut their clothes short and fold them to the left, they crop their hair and grow long moustaches; they live within walls and work at the profit of trade. The custom of the lord of horses is a nature fierce and rough from birth, and hearts hard enough for killing; they live in felt tents and round huts, and they perch like birds and follow their herds. The land of the lord of men has customs that are quick and clever, and benevolence and right dealing are clear there; they have cap and sash and fold their clothes to the right, their carriages and robes have their order, they rest easy on their soil and count moving a heavy thing, and they work to help their own kind live. Of the customs of the three lords, the east is held highest. They open the door of the house to the east, and at dawn they face east and bow. In the land of the lord of men, facing south is honored. Such, in the main, are the differences of custom from region to region. As for the rites between ruler and subject and between high and low, and the forms of law and writing and cart tracks, nothing can be added to the land of the lord of men. As for the teaching that clears the mind and looses its bonds, and the teaching that goes out from birth and death, the country of the lord of elephants has the better reasoning. All this is written in the scriptures, and it was asked of the customs of each land, ranged widely over old and new, and examined closely against what was seen and heard. Now the Buddha arose in the west and the Law flowed to the countries of the east; and in passing through the translators the sounds went wrong and the local words went astray. When the sound goes wrong the meaning is lost; when the word goes astray the reasoning is bent. So it was said, "There must be the setting right of names." What is prized is that nothing be bent or mistaken.
夫人有剛柔異性。言音不同，斯則繫風土之氣，亦習俗之致也。若其山川物產之異，風俗性類之差，則人主之地，國史詳焉。馬主之俗，寶主之鄉，史誥備載，可略言矣。至於象主之國，前古未詳，或書地多暑濕，或載俗好仁慈，頗存方志，莫能詳舉。豈道有行藏之致，固世有推移之運矣。是知候律以歸化，飲澤而來賓，越重險而款玉門，貢方奇而拜絳闕者，蓋難得而言焉。由是之故，訪道遠遊，請益之隙，存記風土。黑嶺已來，莫非胡俗。雖戎人同貫，而族類羣分，畫界封疆，大率土著。建城廓，務殖田畜，性重財賄，俗輕仁義。嫁娶無禮，尊卑無次，婦言是用，男位居下。死則焚骸，喪期無數。剺面截耳，斷髮裂裳，屠殺羣畜，祀祭幽魂。吉乃素服，凶則皂衣。同風類俗，略舉條貫。異政殊制，隨地別敍。印度風俗，語在後記。
Men have different natures, hard and soft, and the sounds of their speech are not the same. This is tied to the breath of the land, and it is also what custom has made. As for the differences of mountain and river and of what the land brings forth, and the differences of custom and of nature, for the land of the lord of men the histories of that country tell it in full. The customs of the lord of horses and the country of the lord of treasures are set down in the histories as well, and can be spoken of briefly. But for the country of the lord of elephants, the ancients were never exact. One book writes that the land is hot and damp, another records that the custom is to love kindness and mercy; there are a fair number of gazetteers, but none can give it in detail. Surely this is because the Way has its times of showing and of hiding, and the age has its turn of shifting. From this one knows that those who watched the seasons and came home to the transforming power, who drank of the bounty and came as guests, who crossed doubled dangers and knocked at the Jade Gate and brought the rare things of their land and bowed at the crimson palace gates, are hard to find and tell of. For this reason, while traveling far to seek the Way and in the spaces between asking for teaching, he set down the lands and their ways. On this side of Heiling there is nowhere that is not Hu in custom. The Rong are of one stock, yet the clans are divided into many; they draw boundaries and mark off their lands, and for the most part they are settled on the soil. They build walled towns and work at tilling and at rearing beasts; their nature holds goods and money dear, and their custom makes light of benevolence and right dealing. In marriage there is no rite, and between high and low there is no order; the wife's word is followed, and the man's place is below. When a man dies they burn the body, and there is no set number of days for mourning. They cut their faces and slice their ears, they crop their hair and tear their clothes, and they slaughter herds of beasts to make offering to the soul. For happy things they wear white, for ill things black. Where the customs are alike, only the headings are given here. Where the rule and the institutions differ, they are told separately, land by land. As for the customs of India, they are spoken of in a later part.
出高昌故地，自近者始，曰阿耆尼國。
Setting out from the old land of Gaochang and beginning with the nearest, there is the country of Aqini.
Interlinear notes 1
舊曰焉耆
In old days it was called Yanqi.