Buddha Bank Set By The Time Preposition Study

Preposition belongs to a group of syncategorematic words. It plays a very important role in Chinese grammatical system due to its significant grammatical functions. Chinese translated Buddhist scriptures have been regarded by many scholars as a valuable research resource for studying ancient Chinese, and have been chosen as the preferred study material in the field. In the present work, we have investigated a group of preposition describing time orders (henceforth referred as timing prep) from the material Abhinis!kraman!asu^tr(a《佛本行集经》), which is one collection of ancient Chinese translated Buddist scriptures. We have found and listed all timing preps appeared in the material and have statistically analyzed its pattern.The thesis consists of four chapters. The first chapter is introduction, which is to elucidate the significant research value of the material Abhinis!kraman!asu^tra, and to summarize undergoing studies in preposition. The second chapter is the main part of research. We will describe all timing preps based on single syllable and double syllable categories. Meanwhile, all timing preps will be categorically explained by meanings and functions. The third chapter will select three documents coming from middle Asian, and compare the timing preps appeared in the documents with the timing preps appeared in Abhinis!kraman!asu^tra, in order to find differences and reasons underneath. The forth chapter will summarize this study and make conclusions.As a summary, given the fact that Abhinis!kraman!asu^tra came from a transition period from ancient Chinese to modern Chinese, its linguistic characteristics covers the two periods. Therefore, this material is of particular significance in Chinese language history studies.