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- dharma-translation → translation: stripped conventions, kept only technique - Deleted mpi-project-conventions: all content now in AGENTS.md - References moved: meditation-translation, markdown-to-djot → translation/ translation-pitfalls, proofreading-patterns → translation-review/ - Updated AGENTS.md, readme.dj, memory, pdf skill cross-reference - 7 skills → 6 skills
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Translation Pitfalls — MPI Buddhist Texts
Patterns found in CN→EN translation review. Add to this file as new patterns emerge.
Terminology conflation
关爱/关怀 → compassion (WRONG)
Chinese 关爱 and 关怀 mean "care" or "loving care." They are NOT 慈悲 (compassion / karuṇā). Conflating them obscures two distinct Buddhist concepts.
Check every occurrence of "compassion" in a translation against the source:
- If source is 关爱/关怀 → "care"
- If source is 慈悲 → "compassion" (correct)
- If source is 悬壶济世 → "compassionate mission" (correct — the healing spirit)
生存层面 → making a living (WRONG)
生存层面 = the existential/survival dimension. Not just earning wages. → "survival-level needs" or "the level of basic existence"
Loss of Dharma meaning
生生增上 → continuously elevate our life (INCOMPLETE)
生生 = life after life (multi-life Buddhist perspective). The single-life rendering "continuously elevate our life" loses the Dharma meaning entirely. → "continuously elevate our life, life after life"
False implication
因病返贫 → "back into poverty"
"返贫" means becoming poor due to illness, not returning to previous poverty. Use "into poverty" or "driven into poverty."
Diacritics: use DB form, not academic Sanskrit
| Wrong | Right | Source |
|---|---|---|
Mahāsthāmaprāpta |
Mahasthamaprapta |
佛教术语 |
Yogācārabhūmi Śāstra |
Yogacarabhumi-Sastra |
经论名 |
Avalokiteśvara |
Guanyin |
佛教术语 |
pravāraṇā |
Pavarana |
BAICKZ |
Exception: Kṣitigarbha — DoT定稿 uses diacritics, so keep them.
When in doubt, search the DB and follow the highest-priority source. See dharma-translation skill references/diacritics-convention.md.
返贫 = become poor (from a non-poor state) due to medical costs. "Back" implies the person was previously poor — not necessarily true. This is about medical bankruptcy. → "into poverty" or "fall into poverty" (no "back")
DoT定稿 term drift
念死 → recollection of death (WRONG per DoT定稿)
DoT定稿 has "Cultivating mindfulness of death" / 佛教术语 has "contemplating the impermanence of death". The established term is "mindfulness of death", not "recollection of death." → "mindfulness of death" / "death-mindfulness"
三级修学 → Three-Level Study Program (WRONG per DoT定稿)
DoT定稿 has "Three-Stage Practice." → "Three-Stage Practice"
下士道/中士道/上士道
DoT定稿: "Path for Persons of Small/Medium/Great Capacity" — not "path of the initial/middle/great scope."
观音菩萨 → Avalokiteśvara (AVOID in MPI translations)
佛教术语 has "Guanshiyin/Guanyin Bodhisattva." Use "Guanyin Bodhisattva."
Workflow pitfall
Translating before consulting terms DB
Always search key terms BEFORE translating. The dharma-translation skill says to do
this, but it's easy to skip. Use the CLI: /home/user/documents/mpi/terms-search/search.py <query>.
Prioritize DoT定稿 > 内部特色词 > 佛教术语 > 经论名.