China: 19th century binding for concertina-folded (jingzhe zhuang) book, in this case a Chinese translation of the Heart of Perfect Wisdom sutra (Maha Prajna Paramita Sutra)

Prajñāpāramitā (Sanskrit Prajñāpāramitā; Tibetan sherchin) means 'Perfection of (Transcendent) Wisdom'. Prajñāpāramitā is a central concept in Mahāyāna Buddhism and its practice and understanding are taken to be indispensable elements of the Bodhisattva Path. The practice of Prajñāpāramitā is elucidated and described in the genre of the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, which vary widely in length and exhaustiveness.

The monk Xuanzang returned to China from India with three copies of the Mahāprajñāpāramitā Sūtra which he had secured from his extensive travels. Xuanzang, with a team of disciple translators, commenced translating the voluminous work in 660 CE using the three versions to ensure the integrity of the source documentation. Xuanzang was being encouraged by a number of the disciple translators to render an abridged version. After a suite of dreams quickened his decision, Xuanzang determined to render an unabridged, complete volume, faithful to the original of 600 fascicles.

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Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

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Pictures From History

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SAN JIAO