宣上金殿 Summoned Up To The Golden Hall
三藏即禮拜俯伏。國王又宣上金殿賜坐,命光祿寺辦齋。三藏謝了恩,將關文獻上。三藏即礼拜俯伏。国王又宣上金殿赐坐,命光禄寺办斋。三藏谢了恩,将关文献上。
逐句解 Line by line
Tripitaka at once made his obeisance and prostrated himself.
俯伏 is to lie face down — the fullest form of the prostration, more than the bow that 禮拜 on its own would name.
The king summoned him further up onto the golden hall, bestowed a seat on him, and ordered the Court of Banqueting to prepare a vegetarian meal.
光祿寺 was the office in charge of imperial provisioning and feasts. Purpuria is being given the machinery of a Chinese court rather than a foreign one.
Tripitaka gave thanks for the favour and presented the rescript.
將 is jiāng, the little word that pushes the object in front of its verb — the first of this chapter's nine occurrences, and not the jiàng of a general.
The reception escalates in three moves: summoned to the steps, summoned onto the hall, given a seat. A seat in front of a king is a considerable thing, and it is granted to a travelling monk who has produced no credentials yet.
Only then does Tripitaka hand over the document he came for. The order is polite and also disadvantageous — he has accepted hospitality before stating his business, which is exactly the position that makes it hard to leave.