無著比丘《初期佛教的口誦傳承：經典的形成與傳播》

Bhikkhu Anālayo’s latest book, Early Buddhist Oral Tradition: Textual Formation and Transmission, is a fascinating investigation into the formation and transmission of the early Buddhist oral tradition.
無著比丘的新書《初期佛教的口誦傳承：經典的形成與傳播》，初期佛教口誦傳統的形成與傳播頗受關注，此書是對此一議題引人入勝的探討。

For hundreds of years after the Buddha’s death, his teachings were transmitted orally, from person to person. In this volume acclaimed scholar-monk Bhikkhu Anālayo examines the impact of such oral transmission on early Buddhist texts, be these monastic rules, verses, or prose portions of the early discourses. He scrutinizes various oral aspects of these texts, surveying evidence for memory errors, the impact of attempts at systematization, and instances of additions and innovations. Finally he explores the implications of the nature of these texts as the final product of centuries of oral transmission and evaluates the type of conclusions that can—and cannot—be drawn based on them.
在佛陀入滅以後，佛陀的教法有數百年是依師父、弟子口傳背誦所傳承下來。是僧眾也是學者的無著比丘在此書檢視了此一口誦傳承對佛教典籍的影響，不論是戒律，或者是初期佛教經典的偈頌和長行。他對這些典籍的各種層面詳細驗證，包含記憶失誤、系統化的努力等證據，以及附加與創新的例子。
當這些口誦文獻經歷千年而最終成為現代的佛教典籍，無著比丘探討口誦傳承在這些後代典籍的意涵，以及評估各種對此一議題能導致或不能導致的結論。

In depth but still accessible, Early Buddhist Oral Tradition is an engrossing and enlightening inquiry into the oral dimensions of the early Buddhist texts.
「初期佛教的口誦傳承」是對初期佛教文獻的語言面向的引人入勝的及具啟發意義的探討，這是一種有深度的而且具影響力的探討。
-----------
A fascinating investigation into the formation and transmission of the early Buddhist oral tradition.

For hundreds of years after his death, the Buddha’s teachings were transmitted orally, from person to person. In this volume, acclaimed scholar-monk Bhikkhu Anālayo examines the impact of such oral transmission on early Buddhist texts, be these monastic rules, verses, or prose portions of the early discourses. He scrutinizes various oral aspects of these texts, surveying evidence for memory errors, the impact of attempts at systematization, and instances of additions and innovations. Finally, he explores the implications of the nature of these texts as the final product of centuries of oral transmission and evaluates the type of conclusions that can—and cannot—be drawn based on them.

In-depth but still accessible, Early Buddhist Oral Tradition is an engrossing and enlightening inquiry into the early Buddhist oral tradition.