The CBETA Copy & Cite feature automatically includes the relevant source information when a user copies a short passage from a text. This allows the source and origin of the passage to be quickly identified.

Except for the Shinsan Zokuzōkyō, which differs slightly, the sources for the Taishō Tripiṭaka and other collections are recorded in the order of volume, text number, page, column, and line. For example:

《雜阿含經》卷1：爾時，世尊告諸比丘：「當觀色無常。如是觀者，則為正觀。正觀者，則生厭離；厭離者，喜貪盡；喜貪盡者，說心解脫。」(CBETA 2025.R1, T02, no. 99, p. 1a7-9)

Citation records for the Shinsan Zokuzōkyō cite the following three editions in parallel format:

1. Manji Shinsan Dainihon Zokuzōkyō (X: Xuzangjing 卍新纂續藏, Tokyo: Kokusho Kankōkai)


2. Manji Dainihon Zokuzōkyō (Z: Zokuzōkyō 卍續藏, Kyoto: Zokuzōkyō Shoin)


3. Manji Zokuzōkyō, Shinwenfeng Edition (R: Reprint, Taipei: Shinwenfeng)

These three editions are listed together, for example:

(CBETA 2025.R1, X78, no. 1553, p. 420a4-5 // Z 2B:8, p. 298a1-2 // R135, p. 595a1-2).

For more information, please refer to CBETA’s Comparative Notes on the Three Editions.

Remarks:

1. Since August 2017, CBETA Online has adopted a new format. For details, please refer to this page (in Chinese).

2. Prior to 2024, version identifiers followed a quarterly “Q” format (e.g., “2023.Q4” for the 4th quarter of 2023). Beginning in 2024, releases use an “R” format (e.g., “2024.R1” for the 1st release of 2024).

Academic Citation Examples

When citing CBETA in thesis writing, you may refer to the format below and place it directly before the References section of the thesis to explain the CBETA Copy & Cite format:

Citations and reference for the Taishō Tripiṭaka and the Shinsan Zokuzōkyō (Xuzangjing) are based on the corpus of the Comprehensive Buddhist Electronic Text Archive Foundation (CBETA Foundation). Citations for the Taishō Tripiṭaka are referenced and enumerated according to the volume order, text number, page, column, and line, e.g. CBETA 2025.R1, T30, no. 1579, p. 517b6-17. Citations for the Shinsan Zokuzōkyō (Xuzangjing) contain corresponding references for the three editions currently in print, which are the Manji Shinsan Dainihon Zokuzōkyō edition (X: Xuzangjing, Tokyo: Kokusho Kankōkai), the Manji Dainihon Zokuzōkyō edition (Z: Zokuzōkyō, Kyoto: Zokuzōkyō Shoin), and the Manji Zokuzōkyō reprinted edition (R: Reprint, Taipei: Shinwenfeng), e.g. CBETA 2025.R1, X78, no. 1553, p. 420a4-5 // Z 2B:8, p. 298a1-2 // R135, p. 595a1-2.

(2025.R1 refers to the first release of the year 2025. Please adjust the sample text above to match the specific canon and data version you are citing.)