I’ve been reviewing modern Mandarin, as well as starting to learn some classical Chinese grammar, so I can read sutras in the Agamas. I was talking to Bhanta @sujato about this, and he said starting a thread might be a good idea. So I thought I’d reach out to gauge interest in having a thread where we discuss Buddhist Hybrid Chinese. I was thinking to focus on the grammar and terminology unique to Buddhism. I know @cdpatton is knowledgeable in this area, and Bhante also mentioned @llt, Ven. @vimalanyani, and Ven. @Suvira. I believe there are also some native Chinese speakers who frequent this forum. Perhaps they would also be interested?
I have a sutra in mind that I think would be a good one to start with, since it is fairly short and to the point. It doesn’t have much of a narrative framework. It’s just a discussion of Dharma. So there won’t be a huge number of obscure translations of Indian flora and fauna that get in the way of understanding what the sutra is about. Would people be interested in this, specifically the people I mentioned who have knowledge of and experience with these texts?