238 stephan peter bumbacher
Besides omitting such typical Buddhist concepts, the second important
kind of modi cation made by Yang Xi was his substituting certain Bud-
dhist names and terms by Daoist ones. One example we have already
come across: in the Daoist version it is no longer the Buddha who
speaks but a whole series of Daoist deities and immortals. Furthermore,
whereas the second part of section nine is omitted, the rst part is kept
in the Daoist version but the original expression chi wu jie zhe
(somebody who observes the ve precepts) is substituted by the term
yi xue dao zhe (one who studies the Way). Or elsewhere we
nd, for example, the term shamen for rama a replaced by either
yi ren (one person)^165 or by daoshi (Daoist).^166
An interesting example is section ten. Here the Buddha, or in the
Daoist version: Zi Yuan furen (Lady Purple Prime), are
de ning the “ ve dif culties” that exist on earth. Whereas both versions
agree in the rst three of them, namely:
[.. .] It is dif cult for the poor to give alms, it is dif cult for the very wealthy
to study the Way, it is dif cult to control fate and avoid death [.. .]^167the Buddhist version then has
[.. .] it is dif cult to attain a glimpse of the Buddha’s stras, and it is dif-
cult to be born at the time of a buddha.^168Yang Xi’s version now substitutes fo jing (Buddhist Stra s) by dong
jing (Grotto Scriptures), meaning Daoist texts. In addition, the
original sentence “it is dif cult to be born at the time of a buddha”
is replaced by the phrase “is dif cult to be born at the time of the
Latter Sage of the renchen [year].” This now clearly refers to the
apocalyptic and messianic ideas of the Daoists of the fourth (and fth)
century. The Latter Sage is, as Strickmann and others have shown, a
messianic gure to appear in a renchen year when humankind will be
tormented with catastrophes, inundations, famine, re and, nally, with
facing the end of the world, when only those will be saved who believe
in the Latter Sage and follow his instructions.
Section 33 concerns a Buddhist monk who cherished the idea of
returning to secular life. The Buddha seeing his intention summons
(^165) Op. cit., p. 723c, Zhen gao 6.9b.
(^166) Sishier zhang jing 724a, Zhen gao 6.6b.
(^167) Sishier zhang jing 722c, Zhen gao 6.8a.
(^168) Sishier zhang jing 722c, Zhen gao 6.8a.