Proofreading of Literature of Dunhuang

Regarding the collation of ancient books, Chen Yu, a scholar of modern times said that there are four methods: The first collation is Duixiao which is according to the original text to proofread; the second is Benxiao which is according to the context of the book to proofread; the third is Taxiao which is according to other books to proofread; the fourth is Lixiao which is according to the truth. These four methods are the theoretical summary made by Chen based on the collation practice of the predecessors, and also the only method for the collation of ancient books. The collation of the Dunhuang literature has no other ways. Below we will illustrate the following four methods.