East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 EAST ASIAN PUBLISHING AND SOCIETY brill.com/eaps From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures: Transmission and Adaptation of the Miaoshan Story in Vietnam Nguyễn Tô Lan Institute of Sino-Nôm Studies, Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences lanhannom@gmail.com Rostislav Berezkin* National Institute for Advanced Humanistic Studies, Fudan University rostislavberezkin@yahoo.com Abstract This article deals with the process of adaptation of Chinese precious scrolls (baojuan) vernacular narratives in Vietnam in the period from the 18th to the early 20th centuries, with the example of the Princess Miaoshan story, which served the popular hagiography of Bodhisattva Guanyin (V Quan Âm) This story was featured in several baojuan texts of the 15th-19th centuries that were transmitted from China to Vietnam in the 18th and 19th centuries Several Vietnamese adaptations, both in Hán văn and in the indigenous language, transcribed in Nôm characters, were circulated in the printed form We have collected these adaptations and undertaken a comparative study of the texts, demonstrating the complex nature of the literary exchange between vernacular literature with religious themes in Vietnam and China We examine the place of these adaptations in traditional Vietnamese culture and demonstrate the differences in the social background of the original Chinese baojuan and their Vietnamese adaptations * This research was assisted by a collaborative research fellowship from the Robert H.N Ho Family Foundation Program in Buddhist Studies administered by the American Council of Learned Societies on ‘The transmission and influence of a Buddhist story in Vietnam: a case study of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain’ and a grant from the Chinese government for research in social studies on ‘Survey and research on Chinese precious scrolls preserved abroad’ 海外藏中国宝卷整理与研究 (17ZDA266) The authors would like to express their gratitude to the Institute of Sino-Nôm Studies of the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences for providing access to their materials and to Prof Hue-Tam Ho Tai of Harvard University for attentive reading of our initial draft and providing valuable comments © koninklijke brill nv, leiden, 2018 | doi:10.1163/22106286-12341323 108 Nguyễn and Berezkin Keywords baojuan – religious storytelling – Nôm literature – history of publishing – Quan Âm beliefs – popular Buddhism – vernacular literature The process of transmitting and adapting Chinese Buddhist narratives in Vietnam reveals the complexity of literary exchanges between the two countries In this article, we focus on precious scrolls (baojuan 寶卷) that deal with the Princess Miaoshan (V Diệu Thiện 妙善) story This story constitutes the earthly biography of Bodhisattva Guanyin (V Quan Âm 觀音), a deity that was very popular in both countries We examine the importation of baojuan into Vietnam and compare the social and cultural contexts in which Vietnamese adaptations of such texts were produced and circulated with the use of their originals in China The term baojuan (precious scrolls) refers to a genre of Chinese prosimetric narratives, which consist of alternating prose and verse passages They were predominantly religious in content and often served as the basis of oral performances During the early period of their development (14th-15th centuries) they contributed to the propagation of Buddhist ideas among the lay population; in the middle period (16th-17th centuries) they became associated with the teachings of folk religious sects; and in the late period (19th-early 20th centuries) they mostly lost connections to sectarian teachings but still often propagated religious ideas Several baojuan were transmitted from China to Vietnam in the 17th-19th centuries and influenced the development of indigenous literature in Vietnam, including oral genres While there is a considerable body of scholarship dealing with the adaptation of Chinese novels in Vietnam, baojuan have been generally neglected by scholars.1 This neglect may be due to the marginal status of such texts in China where they were never highly valued by traditional literati on the one hand and to their rarity in Vietnam on the other While in China more than 1 See Nguyễn Nam, ‘Writing as response and as translation: Jiandeng xinhua and the evolution of the Chuanqi genre in East Asia’ (unpublished Ph.D diss., Harvard University, 2005); Chen Yiyuan, Zhong-Yue Hanwen xiaoshuo yanjiu (Hong Kong: Dongya wenhua chubanshe, 2007); Phạm Quốc Lộc, ‘Translation in Vietnam and Vietnam in translation: language, culture, and identity’ (unpublished PhD diss., University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2011); Ren Xiaoyang, ‘Yuenan Zhaojun gong Hu shu gushi liuyuan kao’, Dongnanya yanjiu (2014); Xia Lu, ‘Sanguoyanyi zai Yuenan’, in Chen Ganglong and Zhang Yu’an, eds, Sanguoyanyi zai Dongfang (Beijing: Beijing University Press, 2016), 111-199; Kiều Thu Hoạch, Truyện Nôm: lịch sử phát triển thi pháp thể loại (Hà Nội: Giáo dục Publishing House, 2007) East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 109 1500 different titles of baojuan are known, we have so far discovered only four such scrolls in areas inhabited by Vietnamese people They include the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain (Ch Xiangshan baojuan, V Hương Sơn bảo 香山寶卷, reprint of 1772); the True scripture of Guanyin’s original vow to save living beings (Ch Guanyin jidu benyuan zhenjing, V Quan Âm tế độ nguyện chân kinh 觀音濟渡本愿真經, reprint of 1887; hereafter abbreviated as the True scripture of the original vow2); and the Precious scroll on the Scripture of self-perfection (Ch Xunxiujing baojuan, V Huân tu kinh bảo 熏修經寶卷; modern manuscript, undated), which was discovered by one of the authors of this article among the Jing 京 (also known as Yue 越) people in Wanwei 澫尾 village, Dongxing 東興, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region in the PRC.3 The fourth text, the Precious scroll of Lady Liu Xiang (Ch Liu Xiang nü baojuan, V Lưu Hương nữ bảo 劉香女寶卷), was discovered by one of the authors in the form of a Vietnamese adaptation written in Nôm, the Vietnamese demotic script It is a woodblock print dated 1908 that is kept in the Assembled Felicity Monastery (Hội Khánh tự 會慶寺) in Bình Dương City, Bình Dương Province in the Mekong Delta The place of printing is not indicated, but it appears likely that it was printed in Foshan 佛山 town in Guangdong Province, as popular texts in Nôm were often printed there at that period.4 We can suggest some reasons for the rarity of Chinese baojuan in Vietnam In China, baojuan belonged to the sphere of vernacular performative literature, which could be used for the general, even illiterate, public In Vietnam, in the 16th-19th centuries, there were similar narratives intended for oral performance, for example, the famous truyện 傳 ballads in Nôm Unlike Chinese baojuan, which used alteration of prose and verse, they were written completely in verse form, most often using the indigenous six-eight meter (lục-bát 六八), though they adapted storylines from Chinese vernacular literature, including Ming-dynasty novels.5 There were also narratives dealing with 2 Though it does not use the generic term baojuan in its title, this text is usually regarded as a baojuan text, see Sawada Mizuho, Zōho hōkan no kenkyū (Tokyo: Dōkyō kankōkai, 1975), 128, and Che Xilun, Zhongguo baojuan yanjiu (Guilin: Guangxi shifan daxue chubanshe, 2009), 548-51 3 The last text belongs to the category of ‘ritual manuals’, while other baojuan texts found in Vietnam are narrative in nature, so it is not discussed in this essay 4 Yan Bao, ‘The influence of Chinese fiction on Vietnamese literature’ in Salmon, ed., Literary migrations: traditional Chinese fiction in Asia, 17-20th centuries (Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2013), 167 5 Lục-bát is a traditional Vietnamese verse form first recorded in the Nôm script It consists of alternating lines of six and eight syllables, see Yan Bao, ‘The influence of Chinese fiction on Vietnamese literature’, 166-70 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 110 Nguyễn and Berezkin stories of Vietnamese female deities.6 These were certainly more accessible to Vietnamese audiences than baojuan written in Chinese Thus, in early-modern Vietnam, the needs met by baojuan in China were met by indigenous literary forms Still, several baojuan that were transmitted to Vietnam in this period did become popular Connections with Buddhism, and especially the female aspects of this religion, probably promoted Vietnamese interest in certain baojuan Significantly, three of four Chinese baojuan (and their adaptations) that we have identified so far all revolve around stories of female self-perfection; this theme, in fact, constituted one of the main topoi of baojuan in China The gender characteristics of baojuan literature in early modern China have already been noted by scholars, and these characteristics seem to apply to the texts transmitted to Vietnam.7 Two of the four texts we have uncovered narrate the story of Princess Miaoshan, who engaged in religious cultivation and eventually turned into compassionate Bodhisattva Guanyin The third one is about Lady Liu Xiang, who demonstrated remarkable insistence in her wish for religious perfection despite her family’s disapproval and eventually achieved salvation, thus demonstrating her spiritual independence.8 The Precious Scroll of Incense Mountain in Vietnam The Miaoshan story was the subject of several Chinese baojuan, some of which were brought to Vietnam There, where it was known as the Diệu Thiện story, it was re-modeled in indigenous narratives in several forms both in Hán văn 漢文 6 E.g., Maurice Durand, Technique et panthéon des médiums Viêtnamiens (Đồng) (Paris: Publications de l’École franỗaise dExtrờme-Orient, 1959), 35-44; Olga Dror, Cult, culture, and authority: Princess Liễu Hạnh in Vietnamese history (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2007), 119-63 7 With several exceptions in northern local traditions, see Wilt L Idema, ed., The Immortal Maiden Equal to Heaven and other precious scrolls from Western Gansu (Amherst, NY: Cambria Press, 2015), On the gender characteristics of baojuan literature in China see e.g., Xu Yunzhen, Cong nüxing dao nüshen: nüxing xiuxing xinnian baojuan yanjiu (unpublished Ph.D dissertation, Zhongguo shehui kexueyuan, 2010) and Rostislav Berezkin, ‘On the performance and ritual aspects of the Xiangshan baojuan: a case study of religious assemblies in the Changshu area’, Hanxue yanjiu 33.3 (2015): 307-44 8 This text was also very popular in China: the complete catalogue of baojuan lists thirty-nine editions, printed between 1774 and 1930: Che Xilun, Zhongguo baojuan zongmu (Beijing: Yanshan shuju, 2000), 153-4 On this text see also Daniel L Overmyer, ‘Values in Chinese sectarian literature: Ming and Ch’ing Pao-chüan’, in David Johnson, ed., Popular culture in Late Imperial China (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988), 245-53 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 111 (the version of classical Chinese used in Vietnam before 1945) and in the indigenous language, transcribed in Nôm (demotic) characters.9 These adaptations were created in the period from approximately the end of the 17th to the early 20th centuries and were widely circulated We have found several versions of the Miaoshan story in Vietnamese collections.10 The story of Miaoshan is especially noteworthy in the context of baojuan transmission as it appeared in multiple Vietnamese adaptations of several different Chinese sources It was a part of the worship of Quan Âm (Guanyin), the beginning of which in Vietnam dates back to the time of ‘Northern dependence’ (3rd-9th centuries), when Buddhism started to spread in Vietnam It also flourished during the first centuries of autonomous rule (10th-12th centuries) However, we not have solid evidence that Quan Âm was worshipped in the female form in that period The Miaoshan story apparently spread to Vietnam from China together with the cult of Guanyin of the Southern Sea (V Nam Hải Quan Âm 南海觀音) around the 15th-16th centuries when she had already assumed female form.11 One of the most famous narratives about Miaoshan is the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain, an anonymous work that modern scholars estimate to have been composed around the 13th-14th centuries.12 However, the early variants of this text not survive and the earliest available recension is the Vietnamese reprint with the complete title the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain of Bodhisattva Guanshiyin of Great Compassion (Ch Dabei Guanshiyin pusa Xiangshan baojuan 大悲觀世音菩薩香山寳卷) It is currently kept in the Institute of Sino-Nôm Studies of the Vietnam Academy of Social Sciences in Hanoi (hereafter abbreviated as the ISNS).13 As indicated in the colophon of this woodblock edition, it was reprinted under the guidance of Hải Khoát 海濶 ( fl 18th century), the abbot of the Monastery of Repaying Mercies (V Báo Ân tự 報恩寺) in Hanoi, an important Buddhist temple in the capital of the Later Lê dynasty (1427-1789), by commission from the monk Tính Chúc 性燭 (1698-1775), the master of Hải Khoát The original of this precious 9 10 11 12 13 We use the term of Hán văn instead of Chinese or wenyan to denote the combination of Chinese characters and Vietnamese syntax used by Vietnamese literati For a list of these texts, see Table Because of space limitation, we discuss only the most important and representative Vietnamese adaptations Nguyen Tai Thu, et al., The history of Buddhism in Vietnam (Washington, D.C.: The Council for Research in Values and Philosophy, 2008), 181-4 Glen Dudbridge, The legend of Miao-shan (revised edition; New York: Oxford University Press, 2004), 52; Wilt Idema, Personal salvation and filial piety: two precious scroll narratives of Guanyin and her acolytes (Honolulu: Hawai’i University Press, 2008), 31; Che Xilun, Zhongguo baojuan yanjiu, 113 ISNS, call number A.1439 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 112 Nguyễn and Berezkin scroll was printed in Nanjing by the sūtra publisher Chen Longshan 陳龍山, on behalf of the Lengyan (Śūraṅgama Sūtra) Monastery 楞嚴寺 in Jiaxing 嘉興 Prefecture (modern Zhejiang Province) The original printing of this scroll occurred sometime in the 16th or early 17th century.14 The exact date of transmission of this text to Vietnam is unknown, but it probably took place at the end of the Ming or beginning of the Qing dynasty Significantly, this version was lost in China and remained unknown to the majority of Western and Chinese scholars of baojuan; they treated another version of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain, called the Scripture of the previous life of Bodhisattva Guanshiyin of Great Compassion (Ch Guanshiyin pusa benxing jing 觀世音菩薩本行經) as the earliest surviving one That version was ascribed to the monk Puming 普明 (ca early 12th century), but was printed in Hangzhou in 1773 and is now kept in a private collection in Japan.15 The Hanoi reprint of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain is the only baojuan text that was printed outside China in the 18th century Three prefaces in this reprint, though they use Hán văn, were written in Vietnam and demonstrate the importance of this text for Vietnamese Buddhists at the end of the 18th century The first of them, dated 1772, is ascribed to Emperor Hiển Tông 顯宗 of the Later Lê dynasty (r 1740-1786) It praises this precious scroll as a Buddhist scripture with miraculous qualities.16 Thus, it appears that the emperor himself gave sanction to the printing and dissemination of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain in Vietnam The second preface, ascribed to the monk Tính Chúc and also dated 1772,17 similarly treats it as a Buddhist scripture and relates it to the ‘Chapter of the Gates of Universal Salvation’ (Ch Pumenpin 普門品) of the Lotus Sūtra—or, to call it by its complete title, the Sūtra of the Lotus flower of the wonderful dharma 14 15 16 17 Rostislav Berezkin and Boris L Riftin, ‘The earliest known edition of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain and the connections between precious scrolls and Buddhist preaching’, T’oung Pao 99, no 4-5 (2013): 445-99 See Berezkin and Riftin, ‘The earliest known edition’, 448-9 Xiangshan baojuan (A.1439), 1a-b Tính Chúc was a famous monk of the Tào Ðộng School (Ch Caodong 漕洞) of Chan Buddhism in Vietnam His dates are given in a commemorative inscription on the Linh Nghiêm stupa 靈嚴塔 located in the Pagoda of Repaying the Country (V Báo Quốc tự 報國寺) in Bình Vọng village 平望村, Văn Bình Commune 文平社 (now Thường Tín District 常信县in Hanoi): ‘The stupa inscription on the award of the title of Bodhisattva, Broadly Rescuing Living Beings to the forty-ninth patriarch of Ðộng Thượng school Bản Lai senior monk—Bhikshu Thiện Thuận-Đạo Chu Chan master’ (V Động Thượng đệ tử tứ thập cửu Bản Lai hoà thượng Thiện Thuận tỳ khưu Đạo Chu thiền sư tặng phong Phổ Hoá Độ Sinh Bồ Tát chí tháp 洞上弟子四十九世本來和尚善順比丘道周禪師贈封 普化渡生菩薩誌塔) (1775) East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 113 (Ch Miaofa Lianhua jing 妙法蓮華經)—in the translation by Kumārajīva 鳩摩羅什 (344-413).18 This chapter is one of the most important texts on the worship of Guanyin in China and was known in Vietnam already for a long time.19 Indeed, the Hanoi reprint of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain represents a combination of the canonical text of the ‘Chapter of the Gates of Universal Salvation’ with the story of Miaoshan.20 The third preface (undated) says that the original reprint of this precious scroll in Vietnam was sponsored by several officials of high standing The colophon of the 1772 edition contains the names of more than 300 sponsors who donated money for its printing The list includes numerous Buddhist monks and nuns as well as members of the aristocracy and officials’ families, thus suggesting broad social support for the printing of this text The attitude expressed in the Vietnamese prefaces to the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain is very different from the situation in China, where baojuan were generally despised by Confucian scholars as well as by ordained Buddhist clergy For example, the eminent monk Yunqi Zhuhong 雲棲褚宏 (1535-1615), who was familiar with the text of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain, wrote that only vulgar monks could believe it.21 Although Chinese Buddhist clerics participated in the compilation and printing of baojuan (including sectarian scriptures) in the 16th-18th centuries, these efforts usually did not enjoy the support of the state.22 Still, the original printing of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain in Nanjing was commissioned by a Buddhist Monastery of the Śūraṅgama Sutra in Jiaxing Prefecture The 1773 version (Hangzhou recension) of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain is ascribed to several monks, but this text generally was not disseminated through official Buddhist institutions.23 Analyzing the status of this scroll is complicated by the fact that many sectarian teachings in China developed as deviant forms of Buddhism and sectarian 18 19 20 21 22 23 Xiangshan baojuan, 3a-3b Chün-fang Yu, Kuan-yin: the Chinese transformation of Avalokiteśvara (New York: Columbia University Press, 2001), 151 For details, see Berezkin and Riftin, ‘The earliest known edition’ Zhuhong, Yunqi fahui (Nanjing: Jinling kejingchu, 1897), 27 40a-b See also Berezkin and Riftin, ‘The earliest known edition’, 456-8 Ma Xisha and Han Bingfang, Zhongguo minjian zongjiao shi (Beijing: Zhongguo shehui kexue chubanshe, 2004), 1.145-148, 499-508; Barend ter Haar, Practicing scripture: a lay Buddhist movement in Late Imperial China (Honolulu: Hawai’i University Press, 2014), 38-47 Yoshioka Yoshitoyo, ‘Kenryū han Kōzan hōkan (fukusei) fu kaisetsu, in Yoshioka Yoshitoyo and Michel Soymié, eds, Dōkyō kenkyū (Tokyo: Henkyōsha, 1971), 122-126 (reprinted in Yoshioka Yoshitoyo chosakushū [Tokyo: Gogatsu Shobō, 1988-1990], 245) East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 114 Nguyễn and Berezkin leaders could be disguised as Buddhist monks.24 Therefore, baojuan could easily pass for orthodox Buddhist teachings though in fact they were not related to their monastic forms In modern times, Chinese monks never recite baojuan and not allow such recitations in Buddhist monasteries.25 The attitude of Vietnamese monks towards baojuan narratives seems to be considerably different Vietnamese monks regarded these vernacular texts as a part of the authoritative Chinese Buddhist tradition Moreover, they were not especially knowledgeable about the particular circumstances of religious life in China Therefore, even a vernacular narrative concerning a Buddhist deity was highly valued This phenomenon is also observed in the later history of the reception of the Miaoshan story in Vietnam Unfortunately, we not have much information about the history of the dissemination of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain after it was reprinted in Hanoi in 1772 However, its contents must have been transmitted through oral storytelling and indigenous adaptations of the story written down in Nôm characters Early Vietnamese Adaptations of the Miaoshan Story So far, no early Vietnamese adaptations of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain have been found, but there exists an earlier adaptation of the Miaoshan story, known as the Wondrously composed national version of the original deeds of Guanyin of the Southern Sea (V Nam Hải Quan Âm hạnh quốc ngữ diệu soạn (also tuyển) 南海觀音本行國語妙撰; hereafter abbreviated as the National version of the original deeds of Guanyin) It is ascribed to Thích Chân Nguyên (Tuệ Đăng) 釋真源(慧燈) (1647-1726), the famous monk who revived the Trúc Lâm 竹林 school of Buddhism in northern Vietnam at the end of the 17th century; but it survives only as a woodblock reprint made in 1850.26 It has already been demonstrated that the National version of the original deeds of Guanyin is based not on the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain but on the Chinese vernacular novel called the Story of the birth and self-perfection 24 25 26 Ma Xisha and Han Bingfang, Zhongguo minjian zongjiao shi, 499-508; Liang Jingzhi, Qing dai minjian zongjiao yu xiangtu shehui (Beijing: Shehui kexue wenxian chubanshe), 292-4 Xie, Shengbao, ‘Hexi baojuan yu Dunhuang bianwen de bijiao’, Dunhuang yanjiu 4, cumulative 13 (1987): 82 See Berezkin & Nguyễn Tô Lan, ‘On the earliest version of the Miaoshan-Guanyin story in Vietnam: an adaptation of a Chinese narrative in the Nôm script’, Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (University of Social Sciences, Hanoi, Vietnam) 2, no (2016): 552-63 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 115 of Bodhisattva Guanshiyin of the Southern Sea (Ch Nanhai Guanshiyin pusa chushen xiuxing zhuan, V Nam Hải Quan Thế Âm Bồ tát xuất thân tu hành truyện 南海觀世音菩薩出身修行傳) by Zhu Dingchen 朱鼎臣 (ca late 16th century), with the abbreviated title of the Complete story of Guanyin of the Southern Sea (Ch Nanhai Guanyin quan zhuan, V Nam Hải Quan Âm toàn truyện 南海觀音全傳).27 Scholars of Chinese literature regard this novel as an amplified adaptation of the baojuan text in prose form.28 There are many passages in this novel that almost literally follow the relevant parts of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain (1773 recension) An original edition of this novel has not been discovered in Vietnamese collections so far In our view, the National version of the original deeds of Guanyin represents the indirect influence of Chinese baojuan on Buddhist literature in vernacular Vietnamese, for the Complete story of Guanyin of the Southern Sea was based on the text of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain We have no solid evidence that the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain was known in Vietnam at the time, when Thích Chân Nguyên composed his adaptation of the Miaoshan narrative (ca late 17th-early 18th centuries), so we cannot assert any direct influence of the original baojuan text on this Vietnamese adaptation We suggest instead that Thích Chân Nguyên based his work, the National version of the original deeds of Guanyin, on Zhu Dingchen’s novel, which in turn was based on the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain The form of the National version of the original deeds of Guanyin is noteworthy It is written in the indigenous six-eight verse meter, which was also used in later adaptations of the Miaoshan story in the late 19th-early 20th centuries This feature reveals that this early adaptation was intended to be recited Though sometimes Nôm is considered by scholars to be a means of popularizing literary subjects in Vietnam, not many people could read it since it was based on Chinese characters At the same time, modern scholars of traditional Vietnamese literature argue that ‘a vernacular text (in Nôm characters) could be read aloud and thereby understood by large numbers of illiterate listeners; moreover, it could be memorized and recited by illiterates’.29 The use of the popular six-eight meter undoubtedly facilitated the memorization of such texts It is quite probable that the National version of the original deeds of Guanyin was transmitted orally and thus represented the popularization of this vernacular story among the common people, especially women, in Vietnam This text was thus similar to baojuan texts in China that were recited by literate performers 27 28 29 Berezkin & Nguyễn Tô Lan, ‘On the earliest version’ Dudbridge, The legend of Miao-shan, 65-6 Dror, Cult, culture, and authority, 119-20 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 116 Nguyễn and Berezkin to lay audiences among whom illiterate women were prevalent However, because of differences in length and style of the texts (long prose passages), baojuan texts in China were usually not intended for memorization.30 Vernacular hagiographic narratives were common in Vietnam already at the beginning of the 18th century Thích Chân Nguyên is said to have composed similar poetic texts in Nôm.31 These include the Story of the appearance in the world of Prince Dana, the ancient Buddha of Bright Light (V Thái tử Đạt Na thị Quang Minh vương cổ Phật xuất 太子達那是光明王古佛出世)32; the Story of the origins of the world (V Hồng mơng Tạo hố chư duyên hạnh 洪濛 造化諸緣本行); and the Story in native language of the mind teaching of the Truc Lam School of Chan Buddhism of Yen Tu Mountain during the Tran Dynasty (V Yên Tử sơn Trúc Lâm Trần triều Thiền tông truyền tâm quốc ngữ hạnh 安子山竹林陳朝禪宗傳心國語行).33 All of these apparently served to disseminate Buddhist teachings among the laity At the time Thích Chân Nguyên compiled his adaptation of the Miaoshan story, the cult of Quan Âm already had its own sacred sites in Vietnam These were two mountains, both called Incense Mountain (Hương Sơn 香山): one was located in Hà Tĩnh 河靜 Province (modern Can Lộc 干禄 District) and one in Hà Tây 河西 Province (modern Hương Sơn Commune, Mỹ Đức District, Hanoi) Of the two, the Hà Tây site, known as Incense Traces Pagoda (Hương Tích tự 香跡寺] is the more famous, although it was probably established later than the more remote Hà Tĩnh site Judging by historical records and epigraphic evidence, the Incense Traces Pagoda had already become an important Buddhist center from the 17th century The Incense Traces Cave was celebrated as ‘the First cave of Southern heaven (i.e Vietnam)’ (V Nam thiên Đệ động 30 31 32 33 The oral transmission by illiterate (or even blind) performers also was known there, though; see (Berezkin 2010: 30-1) Lê, Mạnh Thát, Chân Nguyên Thiền sư toàn tập (Hồ Chí Minh city: Tu thư Vạn Hạnh, 1979 & 1980), vol An adaptation of the Perfection of Wisdom Sutra for Humane Kings Protecting their Countries (Ch Renwang hu guo Boreboluomi jing 仁王護國般若波羅蜜多經, Sansk Karunika-rāja Prajñāpāramitā sūtra) Printed copies of the first two texts, dated 1838 and made from the woodblocks stored in the Pagoda of Great Fortune (Hồng Phúc tự 洪福寺), Hoè Nhai Ward, Vĩnh Thuận Province (now Hanoi), were collected by Lê Mạnh Thát and transcribed in Chân Nguyên thiền sư toàn tập, vol.2 Other editions were printed in 1830 (Story of the appearance in the world of Prince Dana, the ancient Buddha of Bright Light) and in the period from 1820 to 1841 (Story of the origins of the world); they are kept in ISNS, call numbers AB 374 and AB.322 Another edition of both texts together is kept in the Library of Société Asiatique in Paris, call number SA PD.2389 Woodblocks of the third text are kept in the Eternal Garland Pagoda (Vĩnh Nghiêm tự 永嚴寺), Bắc Giang Province East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 130 Nguyễn and Berezkin popular there, too Thus, the Explanation of the true scripture of Guanyin continues the tradition of diglossia in printed Vietnamese vernacular hagiographies of Quan Âm The combination of vernacular narrative with Chinese scripture apparently demonstrated the authoritative status and religious efficacy of the Explanation of the true scripture of Guanyin in the eyes of Vietnamese Buddhist believers, similar to the use of canonical text in the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain Though dated copies of the Explanation of the true scripture of Guanyin are of fairly recent vintage, the text itself is not necessarily a late composition While it uses the term ‘true scripture’ in the title, the details of the story are more similar to the National version of the original deeds of Guanyin than the True scripture of the original vow These include, for example, the episodes of Miaozhuang praying for descendants and the re-incarnation of three princesses and well as detailed characteristics of the imperial sons-in-law, the husbands of two elder princesses The names of the princesses and their husbands are the same as in the National version of the original deeds of Guanyin Thus, the influence of the True scripture of the original vow is not obvious in the Explanation of the true scripture of Guanyin; this may indicate that it was composed earlier than the adaptations of the True scripture of the original vow published in 1904 and 1909 We can even surmise that it represents the earlier version of the story that was referred to in the prefaces to these two adaptations The developed form of the narrative with numerous details, as well as the domesticated form of Miaoshan-Guanyin as the Virtuous [Female] Bodhisattva (德佛婆 Đức Phật Bà), the Third Princess (Bà chúa Ba 婆主𠀧), or the Third Lady (Cô Bơ 姑𠀧) under which she appears in this text, may explain its popularity among Vietnamese believers and its multiple printings at the beginning of the 20th century.82 One can imagine that the numerous poetic texts about Miaoshan-Guanyin were designed to be recited by the pilgrims who traveled to Incense Mountain We have not found evidence for this in the texts discussed above, but there is such information in other texts in Vietnamese collections For example, there is a text called the Ballad of Incense Mountain (Hương Sơn truyện 香山傳), with the subtitle ‘song performed on the way [of pilgrimage]’ (Nhật trình hành ca 日程行歌), which is a woodblock edition published by Quán Văn Đường 82 Yet another poetic Nôm adaptation of the True scripture of the original vow designed for singing performances by Trần Điền Chi 陳田之 has the title of Explication of the origins of deities of Incense Mountain (Hương Sơn linh phả diễn âm 香山靈譜演音) and was printed in 1920 It is kept in the NLV, call number R.426 The preface, written in Hán văn, refers to the True scripture of the original vow as well as the temples of Incense Mountain Besides, it indicates that the author consulted Kiều Oánh Mậu’s adaptation East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 131 觀文堂 in Hanoi and dated 1916, now kept in the National Library of Vietnam.83 It consists of verses in the song thất lục-bát meter (alternating two lines of seven syllables with six and eight syllables lines), and among the description of the relics of Incense Mountain also briefly mentions the Miaoshan story It was probably inspired by the long narratives discussed above.84 This text resembles the songs of female pilgrims sung on the way to Guanyin temples in Hangzhou.85 These also use the story narrated in the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain Conclusions Our analysis of the Vietnamese reprints and adaptations of Chinese baojuan from the 18th to the early 20th centuries have uncovered several special features of the transmission of religious literature in the vernacular from China to Vietnam Although only a few baojuan have been found in Vietnam so far, they are noteworthy from the point of view of its cultural history Chinese baojuan texts and their Vietnamese adaptations have four features in common relating to their cultural meaning and social context First, numerous Vietnamese adaptations of baojuan used the Miaoshan story, which was one of the most common subjects of baojuan texts in China as well Though it appeared in the 1772 reprint of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain, this story had already become well known in Vietnam through the intermediary of the Chinese vernacular novel by Zhu Dingchen, which was adapted into the indigenous Buddhist scripture in Nôm in the late 17th-early 18th centuries This early Nôm adaptation of Zhu’s novel exercised considerable influence on later Vietnamese adaptations of Chinese baojuan texts about Guanyin, namely the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain and the True scripture of the original vow The complicated process of transmission of this subject, involving the direct and indirect influence of baojuan during different periods, demonstrates the vicissitudes of literary transmission from China to Vietnam Second, in Vietnam, as in late imperial China, baojuan attracted a broad audience from diverse social backgrounds; the texts that were transmitted to Vietnam were primarily related to the female dimension of popular religiosity 83 84 85 NLV, call number R.661 Another version of such song, titled Hương Tích động nhật trình 香跡峒日程, compiled by Vũ Quán Phủ 武冠甫 (early 20th century), is represented by an undated manuscript kept in the NLV, call number R.1944 Yu, Kuan-yin, 505-9 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 132 Nguyễn and Berezkin This phenomenon is similar to the Chinese cultural background, where the Miaoshan story, popularized in diverse literary forms of which baojuan were only one, represented the process of domestication of Bodhisattva Guanyin through its gradual feminization Quan Âm beliefs in Vietnam underwent a similar transformation, which was intensified by the importation and adaptation of Chinese texts Third, the connection with the lay, and especially female, audience explains the oral performative connotations of baojuan adaptations in Vietnam, and this is reminiscent of the Chinese situation The majority of female believers in both countries lacked sufficient education to read traditional texts, and oral transmission was very useful for Buddhist proselytizing In China, the prosimetric form and vernacular language used in baojuan facilitated their accessibility to illiterate audiences In Vietnam, poetic adaptations of baojuan in the native language were similarly designed for oral transmission Fourth, we can find connections with pilgrimages and festivals at the sacred sites for popular deities (in this case Guanyin) both in China and Vietnam In this respect, the Miaoshan story played the same role in the domestication of this deity in both countries: in China, this story initially developed around the sites of Guanyin worship in Henan province and later spread to other sacred sites.86 In Vietnam, it became associated with the local Incense Mountains (even two of them!) Nevertheless, there are four important differences between reception of such texts in China and Vietnam First, Chinese baojuan devoted to Miaoshan (and their adaptations) received higher cultural status in Vietnam than in China The interest of Buddhist monks and Confucian literati in these texts in Vietnam in the 18th and 19th centuries greatly exceeded those in China in the corresponding period One reason for this discrepancy was the origin of these texts in Chinese Buddhist literature, which was highly valued in Vietnam One should also consider the syncretic nature of religious beliefs represented in these texts It was common in China, but in Vietnam it was even more conspicuous, for even Confucian scholars valued texts such as the True scripture of the original vow regardless of its sectarian origins Second, in the 18th-19th centuries, the Miaoshan story appeared in Vietnam in several forms: original baojuan transmitted from China, as well as adaptations in Hán văn and Nôm Texts in classical (as well as semi-vernacular) 86 Dudbridge, The legend of Miao-shan, 5-20; Yu, Kuan-yin, 347-8; Che Xilun, Zhongguo baojuan yanjiu, 109-14 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 133 Chinese and Hán văn could be used in the Buddhist monastic context as well as in literati circles, but needed to be translated for commoner devotees The process of ‘translation’ represented the gradual domestication and popularization of this story in Vietnam and also reflected the complex linguistic situation in this country in that period, which can be termed ‘diglossia’ Third, baojuan adapted in Vietnam were transformed into the poetic forms of native meters (mostly six-eight verse) These adaptations were close to the long ballads that constituted the core of indigenous Vietnamese literature in the pre-modern period Thus, the form of the Vietnamese adaptations was different from the prosimetric texts of Chinese baojuan This poetic form facilitated not only recitation to illiterate audiences, but also the memorization and oral transmission of the texts Fourth, in Vietnam, through a process of adaptation and domestication, the Miaoshan story became popular among the general public regardless of social background As such, it became an important component of Vietnamese traditional culture (formed in part from borrowings from Chinese culture) In this respect, the Nôm adaptation of the True scripture of the original vow made by Kiều Oánh Mậu, as well as the preface to another adaptation by Hoàng Đạo Thành, both of whom were famous Confucian scholars and forerunners of the anticolonial movement of the early 20th century, are especially noteworthy Interest in these texts by leading intellectuals of that period testifies to the importance of the Vietnamese adaptations of Chinese baojuan about Miaoshan for the development of Vietnamese culture table Texts on the Miaoshan Princess story in Vietnam—table of sources Locations and corresponding call numbers: Institute of Sino-Nôm Studies (Hà Nội): A; AB; AC, VHv, VNv National Library of Vietnam (Hà Nội): R Bibliothèque Nationale (Paris): BN ẫcole franỗaise dExtrờme-Orient (Paris): EFEO Thanh H Pagoda (Hi Dương Province): TH Thắng Nghiêm Pagoda (Hà Nội): TN Phúc Hưng Pagoda (popular name Cổ Loan, in Ninh Bình Province): CL Diên Phúc Pagoda (popular name Khuyến Lương, in Hà Nội): KL Huệ Quang Pagoda (Hồ Chí Minh City): HQ Quán Sứ Pagoda (Hà Nội): QS Xu Canhuang, 許燦煌 Private collection (Taipei, Taiwan): XU Nguyễn Tô Lan, Private collection (Hà Nội): TL East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 134 table Nguyễn and Berezkin Texts on the Miaoshan Princess story in Vietnam—table of sources (cont.) No Name of text Date and place (if known) Nam Hải Quan Âm hạnh quốc ngữ diệu soạn/tuyển 南海觀音本行 國語妙撰 Wondrously composed national version of the original deeds of Guanyin of the Southern Sea Xiangshan baojuan 香山寶卷 Precious scroll of Incense Mountain Guanyin jidu benyuan zhenjing 觀音濟渡本愿真經 True scripture of Guanyin’s original vow to save living beings Quan Âm hải chân kinh 觀音過海真經 True scripture of Guanyin crossing the sea Reprint dated to 1850, under the supervision of the monk Từ Đàn 慈坛 of the Pháp Quang Pagoda 法光寺, in Kim Cổ 金鼓 village, Thuận Mỹ 順美 Commune, Thọ Xương 壽昌 County, Hoài Đức 懷德 District, Hà Nội 河內 Reprinted in Hà Nội 河內 in 1772 by the Báo Ân Pagoda 報恩寺; original printing Nanjing 南京, uncertain date (late 16th-early 17th cent.) Reprinted in Hà Nội 河內 in 1886 by the Tam Thánh Temple 三聖廟, from the original Chinese edition dated to 1870 Printed in 1898; reprinted in 1905; reprint executed by monks of the Thiên Trù Pagoda 天廚寺, Hương Tích 香跡 Mountain Reprinted in 1930 Reprinted in 1931 Reprinted in 1941 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 135 Author (if known) Language Location Special notes Thích Chân Nguyên (Tuệ Đăng) 釋真源 (慧燈) (16471726) Nôm with the elements of Hán văn AB.550 Nôm adaptation based on the Chinese novel Nanhai Guanshiyin pusa chushen xiuxing zhuan 南海觀世音 Anonymous Classical Chinese with elements of baihua A.143 The earliest known version of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain Huang Dehui 黃德輝 (廣野山人), 1st half of the 19th century Edited by Tâm Chúc 心燭-the abbot of the Thiên Trù Pagoda 天廚寺 (dates unknown) Classical Chinese with elements of baihua AC.154 Hán văn with inclusion of Nôm characters A.2479, QS.1 (Woodblocks used to be kept at the Quan Âm Pavilion 觀音閣, Hương Tích Pagoda 香跡寺, Hà Tây 河西 Province) R.1075 QS.2 Sectarian adaptation of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain, also in prosimetric form Complete title: Bạch y Quan Âm hải tướng thần thông kinh 白衣觀音 過海現相神通經 Scripture of Guanyin in white robes crossing the sea, revealing her forms and sacred penetrations Printed by Nguyễn Thị Nhân 阮氏仁, the wife of Mr Ngô 吳-former Magistrate 知县 of Cẩm Khê 錦溪 County, Bắc Ninh 北寧 Province 菩薩出身修行傳 TN.054 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 136 table Nguyễn and Berezkin Texts on the Miaoshan Princess story in Vietnam—table of sources (cont.) No Name of text Date and place (if known) Hương Sơn Linh Cảm Quan Âm phật tích 香山靈感觀音佛事蹟 The Deeds of Miraculous Buddha Guanyin from Incense Mountain Printed in 1904 in Hà Nội 河內 (Woodblocks used to be kept in the Lý Quốc Sư Temple 李國師祠 in Hà Nội 河內) Nam Hải Quan Âm phật tích ca 南海觀音佛事跡歌 Song of the deeds of buddha Guanyin of the south sea Printed in 1907, place unknown Printed in 1907, place unknown Printed in 1907, place unknown Hương Sơn Quan Âm chân kinh tân dịch 香山觀音真經新譯 New translation of the true scripture of Guanyin from Incense Mountain (Alternative title Thiên Nam Hương Sơn Quan Thế Âm chân kinh tân dịch 天南香山觀世音真經新譯 New Vietnamese translation of the true scripture of Guanshiyin from Incense Mountain) Printed in 1909, place unknown East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 137 Author (if known) Language Location Special notes Compiled by Nguyễn Tử Nho 阮子儒 The preface was composed by Hoàng Đạo Thành 黃道成 (?-1908) from Kim Lũ 金 侶 village, Thanh Trì 青池 District, Hà Đông 河東 Province; transcribed by Nguyễn Gia Chính 阮嘉正 from Cổ Điển 古典 Ward Anonymous Nơm AB.111 Complete title: Hương Sơn Linh Cảm Quan Âm phật tích diễn âm 香山靈感觀 音佛事跡演音 Explication of the deeds of Miraculous Buddha Guanyin from Incense Mountain (An amplified translation of the True scripture of the Guanyin’s original vow, in lục-bát verse form) Nôm EFEO.VIET/AB/ Litt.7; BN.VIETNAMIEN B.23 CL.1; KL1; HQ.1 Briefly retells the story of Princess Miaoshan Edited by Nguyễn Mạnh Hương 阮孟香 Printed by Hương Sơn believers 香山 XU 善信譜奉鐫 Written by Kiều Oánh Mậu 喬瑩懋 (1854-1912); revised by Phạm Văn Thụ 範文樹; commented by Trần Xuân Thiều 陳春韶 Nôm AB.271; R.1833; TH.2 The improved adaptation of the True scripture of Guanyin’s original vow AB.194 included in Vị thành giai cú tập biên 渭城佳句 集編 Collection of perfect verses from Vị citadel East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 138 table Nguyễn and Berezkin Texts on the Miaoshan Princess story in Vietnam—table of sources (cont.) No Name of text Date and place (if known) Quan Âm chân kinh diễn nghĩa 觀音真經演義 Explanation of the true scripture of Guanyin Printed copy dated 1909, made in the Thanh Linh Pagoda 清靈寺 in Phú Thọ 福壽 Province Printed copy dated to 1916, made by the Gia Liễu Đường 嘉柳堂 in Hà Nội 河內 Dates and places unknown Hương Sơn truyện 香山傳 Ballad of Incense Mountain Printed copy in 1916, place unknown Hand-written copy, date unknown (probably early 20th century) 10 Hương Sơn linh phả [diễn âm] 香山 靈譜(演音)Explication of the origins of deities of Incense Mountain Printed in 1920, place unknown East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 139 Author (if known) Language Location Special notes Anonymous Nôm R.388 This text has several alternative titles: Đức Phật Bà truyện 德佛婆傳 Hagiography of the immortal Lady Virtuous Buddha; Nam Hải Quan Âm phật tích diễn ca 南海觀音佛事 蹟演歌 Song of the deeds of the Buddha Guanyin of the South Sea; Quan Thế Âm chân kinh 觀世音真經 the True scripture of Guanyin; Quan Thế Âm thánh tượng chân kinh 觀世音聖像 真經 True scripture of the sacred images of Guanyin (Another adaptation of the True scripture of the Guanyin’s original vow in lục-bát verse form) Alternative title is Nhật trình hành ca 日程行歌 Songs sung on the pilgrimage road; briefly retells the story of Princess Miaoshan The latest version of the Miaoshan story AB.631; VHv.725; R.[no call number]; HQ.2; HQ.3 VHv.726; VHv.727; VNv.122; AB.224; AB.176/2; AC.174; VNv.286; TH.1 Anonymous Nôm Compiled by Vũ Quán Phủ 武冠甫 Transcribed by Trần Điền Chi 陳田之 R.661 R.1944 Nôm R.426 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 140 Nguyễn and Berezkin table Comparison of names in major texts about Miaoshan in Vietnam Title of work Precious scroll of Incense Mountain (Hanoi reprint, 1772) National version of the original deeds of Guanyin True scripture of the original vow of saving people by Guanyin True scripture of Guanyin crossing the sea Deeds of Miraculous Guanyin from the Incense Mountain Explanation of the true scripture of Guanyin Name of the country Father-King Mother-Queen ? 興林 興林 南陽哀牢 興林 興林 莊王 ？(莊 王夫人) 妙音 妙莊 (莊王) 妙莊 (莊王) 莊王 寶德 伯牙氏 寶德 妙莊 (莊王) 妙莊 (莊王) 伯牙氏 寶德伯牙氏 妙清 妙音 妙音 妙音 妙清 妙音 妙元 妙顏 妙元 妙音 妙善 妙善 妙善 妙善 妙善 First daughter (elder princess) Second daugh- 妙緣 ter (second princess) Third daughter 妙善 (third princess) Bibliography Primary Sources Bạch y Quan Âm hải tướng thần thông kinh 白衣觀音過海現相神通經 Woodblock printing made in Thiên Trù Monastery in Hà Tây Province, 1898 (reprinted in 1905) ISNS, A.2479 Xiangshan baojuan: Dabei Guanshiyin pusa Xiangshan baojuan 大悲觀世音菩薩香山 寳卷 Woodblock printing made in the Báo Ân Pagoda 報恩寺, Hanoi, 1772 ISNS, A.1439 Guangye shanren 廣野山人 Guanyin jidu benyuan zhenjing 觀音濟渡本愿真經 Yunyi 雲邑: Peixianzhai 培賢齋, 1856 Photocopy of a printed edition at Waseda University Library, Tokyo Guangye shanren 廣野山人 Guanyin jidu benyuan zhenjing 觀音濟渡本愿真經 (V Quan Âm tế độ nguyện chân kinh) Woodblock printing made in the Tam Thánh Temple 三聖廟, Ngọc Sơn Temple 玉山祠, Hanoi, 1887 ISNS, AC.154 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 141 Huân tu kinh bảo 熏修經寶卷 A manuscript from Wanwei 澫尾 Village, Dongxing 東興 of Guangxi-Zhuang Autonomous Region in PRC; date unknown Hương Sơn Linh Cảm Quan Âm phật tích diễn âm 香山靈感觀音佛事跡演音 Woodblock printing made in the Lý Quốc Sư Temple 李國師祠, Hanoi, 1904 ISNS, AB.111 Hương Sơn truyện nhật trình hành ca 香山傳日程行歌 Woodblock printing by Quán Văn Đường 觀文堂 publishers, Hanoi, 1916 VNL, R.661 Kiều, Oánh Mậu 喬瑩懋 Hương Sơn Quan Âm chân kinh tân dịch 香山觀音真經新譯 Woodblock printing, 1909, place unknown ISNS, AB.271 Lưu Hương diễn nghĩa bảo 劉香演義寶卷 Woodblock edition of 1908, place unknown; now kept in Hội Khánh Pagoda 會慶寺, Bình Dương Province, Vietnam Thích, Chân Nguyên (Tuệ Đăng) 釋真源 (慧燈) Nam Hải Quan âm Bản hạnh Quốc ngữ diệu soạn/tuyển 南海觀音本行國語妙撰 Woodblock edition printed in Kim Cổ Canton, Thuận Mỹ District, Hà Tây Province, 1850 ISNS, AB.550 Thích, Chân Nguyên (Tuệ Đăng) 釋真源 (慧燈) Thái tử Đạt Na thị Quang Minh vương cổ Phật xuất 太子達那是光明王古佛出世 Woodblock edition printed in Hanoi in 1830 ISNS, AB.374 Thích, Chân Nguyên (Tuệ Đăng) 釋真源 (慧燈) Hồng mơng tạo hố chư dun hạnh 洪濛造化諸緣本性 Woodblock edition printed in Hanoi during the Minh Mạng reign (1820-1841) ISNS, AB.322 Thích, Chân Nguyên (Tuệ Đăng) 釋真源 (慧燈) Yên Tử sơn Trúc Lâm Trần triều Thiền tông truyền tâm quốc ngữ hạnh 安子山竹林陳朝禪宗傳心國語行 Third printing from woodblocks kept at Vĩnh Nghiêm Pagoda 永嚴寺, Bắc Giang Province, 1932; collected by Nguyễn Tô Lan Similar edition in ISNS, AB.562 Vũ, Qn Phủ 武冠甫 Hương Tích động nhật trình 香跡洞日程 Manuscript, date unknown VNL, R.1944 Yoshioka Yoshitoyo 吉岡義豊 ‘Kenryū han Kōzan hōkan (fukusei) fu kaisetsu’ 乾隆 版《香山寶卷》（覆製）付解説, in Yoshioka Yoshitoyo and Michel Soymié, eds, Dōkyō kenkyū 道教研究 (Tokyo: Henkyōsha, 1971), 122-126; reprinted in Yoshioka Yoshitoyo chosakushū 吉岡義豊著作集 (Tokyo: Gogatsu Shobō, 1988-1990), 245-405 Zhuhong 褚宏 Yunqi fahui 雲棲法彙 Nanjing: Jinling kejingchu, 1897 Secondary Works Berezkin, Rostislav ‘The development of the Mulian story in baojuan texts (14th-19th centuries) in connection with the evolution of the genre’, unpublished Ph.D diss., University of Pennsylvania, 2010 Berezkin, Rostislav ‘On the survival of the traditional ritualized performance art in modern China: a case of telling scriptures by Yu Dingjun in Shanghu Town area of Changshu City in Jiangsu Province’, Minsu quyi 民俗曲藝 181.9 (2013): 103-56 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 142 Nguyễn and Berezkin Berezkin, Rostislav ‘On the performance and ritual aspects of the Xiangshan baojuan: a case study of religious assemblies in the Changshu area’, Hanxue yanjiu 漢學研究 33.3 (2015): 307-44 Berezkin, Rostislav and Nguyễn Tô Lan ‘On the earliest version of the MiaoshanGuanyin story in Vietnam: an adaptation of a Chinese narrative in the Nôm script’, Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities (University of Social Sciences, Hanoi) 2.5 (2016): 552-63 Berezkin, Rostislav and Boris L Riftin ‘The earliest known edition of the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain and the connections between precious scrolls and Buddhist preaching’, T’oung Pao 99 (2013): 445-99 Che Xilun 車錫倫 Zhongguo baojuan zongmu 中國寳卷縂目 (Beijing: Yanshan shuju, 2000) Che Xilun 車錫倫 Zhongguo baojuan yanjiu 中國寶卷研究 (Guilin: Guangxi shifan daxue chubanshe, 2009) Chen Yiyuan 陳益源 Zhong-Yue Hanwen xiaoshuo yanjiu 中越漢文小說研究 (Hong Kong: Dongya wenhua chubanshe, 2007) Đỗ Phương Quỳnh Traditional festivals in Vietnam (Hanoi: Thế Giới Publishers, 1995) Đỗ Thiện Vietnamese supernaturalism: views from the southern region (London: Routledge, 2003) Dror, Olga Cult, culture, and authority: Princess Liễu Hạnh in Vietnamese history (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2007) Dudbridge, Glen The legend of Miao-shan (revised edition) (New York: Oxford University Press, 2004) Durand, Maurice Technique et panthéon des mộdiums Viờtnamiens (ng) (Paris: Publications de lẫcole franỗaise dExtrờme-Orient, 1959) Goossaert, Vincent, and David A Palmer The religious question in modern China (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2011) Hà Văn Tấn Buddhist temples in Vietnam (Hanoi: Khoa học Xã hội Publishing House, 1993) Hoskins, Janet The Divine eye and the diaspora: Vietnamese syncretism becomes transpacific Caodaism (Honolulu: Hawai’i University Press, 2015) Idema, Wilt L ‘The Filial parrot in Qing dynasty dress: a short discussion of the Yingge baojuan (Precious scroll of the parrot)’, Journal of Chinese religions 30 (2002): 77-96 Idema, Wilt L (trans.) Personal salvation and filial piety: two precious scroll narratives of Guanyin and her acolytes (Honolulu: University of Hawai’i Press, 2008) Idema, Wilt L (ed., trans.) The Immortal maiden equal to heaven and other precious scrolls from western Gansu (Amherst, NY: Cambria Press, 2015) East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 From Chinese Precious Scrolls to Vietnamese True Scriptures 143 Jammes, Jérémy ‘Divination and politics in southern Vietnam: roots of Caodaism’, Social compass 57.3 (2010): 357-71 Kiều Thu Hoạch Truyện Nôm lịch sử phát triển thi pháp thể loại (Hà Nội: Giáo dục Publishing House, 2007) Lê Mạnh Thát Chân Nguyên thiền sư toàn tập (Hồ Chí Minh city: Tu thư Vạn Hạnh, 1979&1980) Liang Jingzhi 梁景之 Qing dai minjian zongjiao yu xiangtu shehui 清代民間宗教與鄉 土社會 (Beijing: Shehui kexue wenxian chubanshe, 2004) Lin Wanchuan 林萬傳 Xiantian dao yanjiu 先天道研究 (Taibei: Taiwan qingju shuju, 1985) Ma Xisha 馬西沙 and Han Bingfang 韓秉方 Zhongguo minjian zongjiao shi 中國民間 宗教史, two vols (Beijing: Zhongguo shehui kexue chubanshe, 2004) Nguyễn Nam ‘Writing as response and as translation: Jiandeng xinhua and the evolution of the Chuanqi genre in East Asia’, unpublished Ph.D diss., Harvard University, 2005 Nguyen Tai Thu, Hoang Thi Tho, and Dinh Chi Minh The history of Buddhism in Vietnam (Washington, D.C.: The Council for Research in Values and Philosophy, 2008) Nguyễn Tô Lan ‘Diện mạo văn tuồng truyền thống Việt Nam’, Tạp chí Nghiên cứu Phát triển (2011): 39-57 Oliver, Victor L Caodai spiritism: a study of religion in Vietnamese society (Leiden: E J Brill, 1976) Overmyer, Daniel L ‘Values in Chinese sectarian literature: Ming and Ch’ing paochüan’, in David Johnson, ed., Popular culture in Late Imperial China (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1988), 255-91 Phạm Quốc Lộc ‘Translation in Vietnam and Vietnam in translation: language, culture, and identity’, unpublished PhD diss., University of Massachusetts Amherst, 2011 Ren Xiaoyang 任晓鸯 ‘Yuenan Zhaojun gong Hu shu gushi liuyuan kao’ 越南《昭君贡 胡书》故事源流考, Dongnanya yanjiu 东南亚研究 (2014): 70-74 Sawada Mizuho 澤田瑞穗 Zōho hōkan no kenkyū 增補寶卷の研究 (Tokyo: Dōkyō kankōkai, 1975) ter Haar, Barend J Practicing scripture: a lay Buddhist movement in Late Imperial China (Honolulu: Hawaii University Press, 2014) Wang Jia 王嘉 ‘Tình hình dịch thuật xuất tiểu thuyết Minh—Thanh (Trung Quốc) Việt Nam đầu kỉ XX (1900-1930)’, Tạp chí Khoa học Đại học Sư phạm Thành phố Hồ Chí Minh 32 (2011): 145-53 Xia Lu 夏露 ‘Sanguoyanyi zai Yuenan’《三国演义》在越南, in Chen Ganglong 陈岗龙 and Zhang Yu’an 张玉安, eds, Sanguoyanyi zai Dongfang《三国演义》在东方 (Beijing: Beijing University Press, 2016), 111-99 East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 144 Nguyễn and Berezkin Xie Shengbao 謝生保 ‘Hexi baojuan yu Dunhuang bianwen de bijiao’ 河西寶卷與敦 煌變文的比較 Dunhuang yanjiu 敦煌研究 4, cumulative 13 (1987): 78-83, 95 Xu Yunzhen 許允貞 ‘Cong nüxing dao nüshen: nüxing xiuxing xinnian baojuan yanjiu’ 從女性到女神：女性修行信念寶卷研究, unpublished Ph.D dissertation, Zhongguo shehui kexueyuan, 2010 Yan Bao, ‘The influence of Chinese fiction on Vietnamese literature’, in Claudine Salmon, ed Literary migrations: traditional Chinese fiction in Asia, 17-20th centuries (Singapore: Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, 2013; 1st ed.—International Culture Pub Corp., 1987): 163-195 Yu, Chün-fang Kuan-yin: the Chinese transformation of Avalokiteśvara (New York: Columbia University Press, 2001) East Asian Publishing and Society (2018) 107-144 ... oral storytelling and indigenous adaptations of the story written down in Nôm characters Early Vietnamese Adaptations of the Miaoshan Story So far, no early Vietnamese adaptations of the Precious. .. site in that country We find this detail in all later Vietnamese adaptations of her story Despite the important place of the True scripture of Guanyin crossing the sea in the history of Vietnamese. .. closer to other Chinese texts imported into Vietnam, such as the Precious scroll of Incense Mountain, than the indigenous adaptations of the Buddhist story like the National version of the original