원효 전집 (Collected Works of Wonhyo — Foundational Korean Buddhist Philosophy)

...a scribe, who transcribed what was often initially an oral Chinese rendering; a composer, who crafted the initial rendering into grammatical prose; a proofreader, who compared the Chinese with the original Sanskrit; an editor, who tightened and clarified any vague sentences; and finally, a stylist, who sat facing the head translator and was responsible for refining the final version into elegant literary Chinese. In preparing these vernacular Korean and English renderings, we have deemed it important to follow, as much as possible, this traditional style of Buddhist literary translation that had fallen into disuse.

This translation project, like those before it, had its own difficulties. We contended with nearly impossible deadlines imposed by government funding agencies and struggled to maintain a meager infrastructure. It was especially difficult to recruit scholars fluent in literary Chinese, vernacular Korean, and English, who also possessed the background in Buddhist thought necessary to translate the panoply of specialized religious vocabulary. Despite these obstacles, we have prevailed. This success is due to the compilation committee, which overcame myriad obstacles with sincere devotion; the translators both in Korea and abroad; the dedicated employees at our offices; and all our other participants, who together aimed to meet the lofty standard of the cooperative translation tradition that is part of our Buddhist heritage. To all these people, I express my profound gratitude.

Now that this momentous project is complete, I offer a sincere wish on behalf of all the collaborators that this translation will help illuminate the path to enlightenment for all to see.

Kasan Jikwan (伽山 智冠)
32nd President of the Jogye Order of Korean Buddhism
President, Compilation Committee of Korean Buddhist Thought
October 10, 2009 (2553rd year of the Buddhist Era)