ABSTRACT
The eminent Paramartha traveled widely and had a fine knowledge of the phonetic and semantic aspects of the language of this land. In translating, he did not require the help of an Interpreter. However, although the use of Fan to signify things easily made the meaning clear, when the language was changed to Chinese, it was hard to make the words and the meaning match well. This was why, for every single sentence translated, Paramartha would provide detailed explanations and answer questions and queries raised, until the meaning emerged clearly from the words. Hui Kai would carefully write it down. The activities that took place in a Translation Assembly formed a mixed-mode practice combining lecture, seminar, tutorial and workshop all into one. It is hardly surprising that some Buddhist scholars have observed that the more sizeable Translation Assemblies, especially those led by Kumarajiva, Paramartha, and others, could be regarded as a kind of national Buddhist university of the time.
