History and Translations
Some scholars believe that the Infinite Life Sūtra was compiled in the age of the Kuṣāṇa Dynasty, in the first and second centuries CE, by an order of Mahīśāsaka bhikṣus, which flourished in the Gandhāra region. It is likely that the longer Sukhāvatīvyūha owed greatly to the Lokottaravāda sect as well for its compilation, and in this sūtra there are many elements in common with the Mahāvastu. The earliest of these translations show traces of having been translated from the Gāndhārī language, a prakrit used in the Northwest. It is also known that manuscripts in the Kharoṣṭhī script existed in China during this period.
Traditionally the Infinite Life Sūtra is believed to have been translated twelve times from the original Sanskrit into Chinese from 147 to 713 CE. Of those, only five translations are extant in the Chinese Buddhist canon. The earliest of the five translations is attributed to Zhi Qian, who came from the Kuṣāṇa kingdom to Luoyang during the decline of the Han Dynasty and translated the sūtra sometime between 223 and 253 CE. This translation is known most commonly as Dà Āmítuófó Jīng (大阿彌陀經), or "Larger Sūtra of the Amitābha Buddha." This translation has also been attributed to the earlier Han period Kuṣāṇa translator Lokakṣema, who arrived in Luoyang in 164 CE and translated works through 186 CE.
The most well-known version of the Infinite Life Sūtra is the two-fascicle Fó Shuō Wúliángshòu Jīng (Ch. 佛說無量壽經), which translates to "The Buddha Speaks of the Infinite Life Sūtra." This translation is traditionally attributed to the Indian Buddhist monk Saṅghavarman (Ch. 康僧鎧 Kāng Sēngkǎi), who translated the text in 252 CE at White Horse Temple in Luoyang, during the Three Kingdoms Period. However, the common opinion now is that it was more likely a work of the later Indian monk and translator Buddhabhadra (359-429 CE).
In addition to the Chinese translations, the Infinite Life Sūtra is also extant in Sanskrit.
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