Shingqo Sheli Tutung Explained

Shingqo Sheli Tutung or Šiŋko Šäli Tutuŋ (Old Uyghur: š̤yṅkq̈w š̤ʾly twtwnk), also known by his Chinese name Master Shengguang was an Uyghur scholar, translator and poet lived in 11th-12th centuries.

Identity

Born in Beshbalik, he was a Buddhist. He is mostly regarded as an Uyghur, but Takao Moriyasu argued that he could be Chinese as well.^[1] Klaus Röhrborn believed that he was not only a translator, but a Chinese head of a group of Uyghur translators who worked on Buddhist texts.^[2] He was also described as a poet^[3] since he translated original Chinese poems creatively, without limiting himself with literal translation.^[4] He is also described as well-versed in kāvya style.^[5]

Works

He is mostly known for his translation of Golden Light Sutra from Chinese to Old Uyghur, which he dubbed Altun Yaruq (Golden Light). A copy of this was found by Russian turkologist Sergey Malov in a Buddhist stupa used by Yugurs in Wenshugou (文殊沟) village in Sunan, which was made in 1687 by Bilge Taluy Shashi.^[6] Yet another copy of it was found by Friedrich Müller during his Turfan expedition. He was proficient in Sankskrit and Tocharian. He is also known as a translator of the biography of Xuanzang.^[7] In 2000, Kahar Barat published an annotated English edition of parts of this translation.^[8] He could be a follower of Vijñānavāda, a Buddhist philosophy embraced by Xuanzang himself. He is also credited with translation of "Eight Heaven Sutra" from Chinese to Uyghur which he named Säkiz Yükmäk Yaruq.^[9] An extensive work dedicated to this translation has been authored by Juten Oda.^[10]

Notes

1.Full title in Old Uyghur: Altun örjlüg yaruk yaltriklig kopda kötrülmis nom eligi atlig nom bitig (Shining with golden luster, exalted king-book above all)

2.Full title: ; Old Uyghur: Täŋri Burhan yarlıkamıš täŋrili yerli säkiz yükmäk yaruk bügülüg arvıš nom bitig bir tägzinč

References

1. Book: Moriyasu, Takao . Aspects of research into central Asian Buddhism: in memoriam Kogi Kudara . 2008 . Brepols . 978-2-503-52751-2 . Zieme . Peter . Silk road studies . Turnhout . 209 . Chronology of West Uighur Buddhism: Re-examination of the Dating of the Wall-paintings in the Grünwedel Cave No. 8 (New: No. 18), Bezeklik.
2. Book: Huili . Xuanzangs Leben und Werk. 5: Die alttürkische Xuanzang-Biographie VIII: nach der Handschrift von Paris, Peking und St. Petersburg sowie nach dem Transkript von Annemarie v. Gabain / hrsg., übers. und kommentiert von Klaus Röhrborn . Yancong . Röhrborn . Klaus . 1996 . Harrassowitz . 978-3-447-03727-3 . Wiesbaden . 2 . de.
3. Book: Arat, Reşid Rahmeti . Eski Türk şiiri . 1991 . Türk tarih kurumu . 978-975-16-0390-6 . 3. bsk . Türk tarih kurumu . Ankara . xviii-xxi . tr.
4. Ayazlı . Özlem . 2022-01-01 . Şingko Şäli Tutung ve Altun Yaruk Çevirisi Üzerine . On the Translation of Shingqo Sheli Tutung and Altun Yaruk . Papers of the International Workshop Old Uighur Studies in Memory of Şingko Şeli Tutung from Beşbalık . tr . Ankara . Turkish Language Association.
5. Yunusoğlu . Mağfiret Kemal . 2011 . Şingko Şeli Tutung'un tercüme üslubu üzerine . On the translation style of Shingko Sheli Tutung . Papers of the International Workshop Old Uighur Studies in Memory of Şingko Şeli Tutung from Beşbalık . tr.
6. Book: Malov, Sergey . Памятники древнетюркской письменности. . . 1951 . Moscow . 145—199 . ru . Monuments of ancient Turkic writing . Отрывки из книги «3олотой блеск» . Excerpts from the book “Golden Sutra” . Sergey Malov.
7. Geng . Shimin . 1990 . 回鹘文《玄奘传》及其译者胜光法师 . The Uighur "The Biography of Xuanzang" and its translator Master Shengguang . Journal of Minzu University of China: Philosophy and Social Sciences Edition . zh . 6 . 66-70.
8. Book: Kahar Barat . The Uygur-Turkic biography of the seventh-century chinese buddhist pilgrim Xuanzang: ninth and tenth chapters . 2000 . Indiana university, Research institute for inner Asian studies . 978-0-933070-46-2 . Uralic and Altaic series . Bloomington, Ind.
9. Barat . Kahar . Kahar Barat . Šïngqo Šäli Tutung traducteur du säkiz yükmäk yaruq nom? . . fr . 278 . 1-2 . 155-166.
10. Book: Oda, Juten . A study of the Buddhist sūtra called "Säkiz yükmäk yaruq" or "Säkiz törlügin yarumïš yaltrïmïs"̌ in Old Turkic . 2015 . Brepols . 978-2-503-56540-8 . Berliner Turfantexte . Turnhout.