Translate the Bodhicharyavatara with RAT (Retrival-Augmented Translation)

Technology Machine Translation
1

What is this project?

This project aims at finding the best combination of LLM modes, APIs and resources to produce the best translations. It aims at finding elegant solutions to issues such as meaning-errors comming from hallucinations or inconsistent vocabulary in longer texts.

Resources

  • Pydurma edition of the Tibetan source text - vulgate edition of the source text generated with the PyDurma tool
  • 17 source etexts - various etexts used to generate the pydurma or vulgate edition
  • Sanskrit source text - sanskrit text prepared by Miroj Shakya from the Digital Sanskrit Buddhist Canon
  • Padmakara English translation - 2011 edition used as benchmark
  • Khenpo David English translation - 2021 version used as benchmark

Integrated Workplan for Translation of Classical Literature

Building upon historical precedents and modern technological advancements, this workplan integrates a glossary-based framework and prompt templates with a retrieval-augmented translation (RAT) system and multi-agent collaboration. It ensures cultural and linguistic fidelity while leveraging Large Language Models (LLMs) for efficiency and scalability.

Glossary and Knowledge Integration Framework

Glossary Development

Structure:

  • Four-way parallel glossary (Sanskrit-Tibetan-English-Chinese) with metadata for grammatical explanations and doctrinal nuances[1].
  • Standardized equivalents for technical terms, including multiple attestations and variant readings[6].

Terminology Categories:

  • Technical Terms: Buddhist philosophical concepts, ritual terminology.
  • Literary Expressions: Poetry, prose, and narrative.
  • Cultural Terms: Region-specific idioms and stylistic elements.
  • Standardized Phrases: Formulaic expressions used across classical texts.

Implementation Steps:

  1. Extract terminology from classical lexicons and authoritative sources[2].
  2. Create a standardized entry format, documenting variant readings, contextual usage, and attestations[4].
  3. Validate entries with subject matter experts, ensuring consistency with doctrinal teachings and cultural context[6].

Knowledge Base Creation

  • Compile critical apparatus, commentaries, and historical translations.
  • Segment content at paragraph and sentence levels for parallel dataset training[4].
  • Store validated translations in a Translation Memory ™ system for reuse[9].

Prompt Template and Multi-Agent Framework

Prompt Template System

Core Components:

  • Specify source and target language pairs.
  • Include genre, contextual markers, and cultural adaptation requirements[5].

Specialized Templates:

  • Technical Translation: Philosophical terms, doctrinal texts, ritual terminology.
  • Literary Translation: Poetry, liturgical texts, and biographical literature.

Development Process:

  1. Design base templates for various genres and their cultural nuances.
  2. Create specialized variants to adapt to text type and historical context[9].
  3. Establish quality checkpoints to refine templates based on feedback from translators[5].

Multi-Agent Translation Pipeline

Agent Teams:

  1. Translation Specialists: Handle linguistic fidelity and cultural adaptation[8].
  2. Knowledge Integration Agents: Retrieve contextual knowledge and link it to translations[3].
  3. Quality Control Agents: Review for consistency, cultural sensitivity, and literary elegance[3].

Workflow Organization:

  1. Perform source text analysis and contextual retrieval.
  2. Conduct a first-pass translation using specialized agent teams.
  3. Facilitate cross-team review and iterative optimization.
  4. Finalize translations through human post-editing and validation[9].

Quality Assurance and Iterative Improvement

Terminology and Translation Verification

  • Cross-reference glossary entries with classical lexicons and doctrinal teachings.
  • Validate templates and translations using subject matter experts and cultural reviewers[4].
  • Implement GPT-4-based evaluation metrics for adequacy, fluency, and literary style[3].

Continuous Optimization

  • Use greedy pruning to combine the best features from diverse agent outputs[7].
  • Incorporate feedback loops for system refinement.
  • Regularly review and update templates and glossaries for evolving needs[9].

Technical Implementation

System Architecture

class TranslationPipeline:
    def __init__(self):
        self.knowledge_base = ClassicalLiteratureKB()
        self.agent_teams = MultiTeamOrchestrator()
        self.quality_control = QualityAssurance()
        
    def process_document(self, source_text):
        context = self.knowledge_base.retrieve_relevant_context(source_text)
        translations = self.agent_teams.generate_translations(source_text, context)
        final_translation = self.quality_control.optimize(translations)
        return final_translation
  • Modular design allows for seamless integration of glossary and knowledge-based components with prompt templates[7].
  • Supports version control, rollback capabilities, and detailed change documentation[4].

Best Practices and Maintenance

Cultural Sensitivity:

  • Retain historical and cultural nuances unique to classical literature[5].
  • Tailor translations to align with stylistic traditions.

Version Control:

  • Maintain detailed logs of terminology changes and template revisions.
  • Enable rollback to address quality issues or user feedback[4].

Regular Updates:

  • Conduct terminology reviews and optimize templates periodically[9].
  • Analyze quality metrics and user feedback for continuous improvement.

Conclusion

This integrated system synthesizes the strengths of glossary-based frameworks, prompt templates, retrieval-augmented translation, and multi-agent collaboration. It ensures the accuracy, cultural fidelity, and stylistic elegance necessary for translating classical literature while leveraging the efficiency of modern LLMs.

Citations

[1] sGra sbyor bam po gnyis pa, An Early Sanskrit-Tibetan Glossary of Buddhist Terms. | Digitální repozitář UK
[2] https://glossaries.dila.edu.tw/data/hopkins.dila.pdf
[3] Benchmarking LLMs for Translating Classical Chinese Poetry: Evaluating Adequacy, Fluency, and Elegance
[4] https://wisdomexperience.org/wisdom-article/masterclass-translating-tibetan/
[5] Prompts For Language Translation: Tips, Examples, And Uses - PromptsTY
[6] Mahāvyutpatti - Wikipedia
[7] Multi-Agent Software Development through Cross-Team Collaboration
[8] Tencent AI Introduces an LLM-Based Virtual LSP for Literary Translation - Slator
[9] https://www.transifex.com/blog/2024/automated-translation-best-practices-and-use-cases/
[10] Sorting Out Tibetan Alphabetical Order - Buddhist Digital Resource Center

2 Likes
2

I am currently setting up a corpora in ObsidianMD with a custom RAG system and one of the principal motivations of the project was to assist with Dharmic translation and philosophical, terminological and poetic finesse, though Baudhadharma inclusive, rather than Bauddhadharma-exclusive or -specific. I extend the ecumenical RimĂŠ worldview and purview to all flowers of the Dharma, not just that of the Himalayan Bauddhadharma, as I view all the Dharma schools systemically (and arise naturally through the workings of Prakriti), rather than discretely or monolithically.

Once my RAG system is working, I intend to extend the ecosystem functionality and translation pipeline with a swarm of agentic AI and hack scripts that I will progressively iterate and refine. I have never heard of R. A. T. before, I love it and I am delighted that I first heard it from you! You provide a very useful high-level purview of a potentially culturally-sensitive digital humanities translation solution, intersecting with best-practice and cutting-edge assisted LLM, generative AI and potentially agentic AI translation solutions, I was aspiring to but had not defined, delineated, or as yet, ventured to set in writing. So, I am going to cite and adapt your solution, rather than in re-creating the wheel, korlo, chakra, mandala, trulkhor or yantra, as the case may be.

Presently, I am interested in translating the tantric proto-Vaishnava corpus of the Pancharatra school, for out of the flowers of the Dharma, in open discourse and in the English language, it is one of, if not the most, formative and earliest Tantric Dharmic influences, that has been persistently and consistently neglected, as it is first attested in the Late Vedic Period, well before the arising of any other Tantric school other than its associated proto-Vaishnava tradition, the Vaikhanasa.

I thank you and your developer team so much for your endeavour. I am a disciple of the belated Choegyal Namkha’ Norbu Rinpoche and embrace Dzogchen as a finesse and superset of Vaishnavism, to which it is a complement in the logical sense of Himalayan Apoha theory.

As devotional seva to my Gurudeva Rinpoche, many years ago, for quite a few years, I dedicated eight (8) hours per day to qualitatively improving English Wikipedia Bauddhadharma content, mostly Dzogchen-specific with Sanskrit in Devanagari and IAST, Tibetan in Uchen and Wylie terminology, and other languages and their transcription and transliteration systems as appropriate and duly cited my iteration. I now see my work mirrored throughout the Internet and even my wording used verbatim in defensible academic Dharmic journals and by Rinpoches and Tulkus, albeit uncited and not attributed. But, my seva was never intended for acknowledgment nor accolade, it was just done spontaneously out of devotion to Guru, Deva, Dakini and Sangha and my love of the Dhamma/Dharma/Dao/Tao - all of it!

In truth, how much Dzogchen borrowed and adapted from the Pancharatra is not generally known, as the work just has not yet been formally undertaken and published. I intend to quicken this. One of the most profound teachings I took to heart of Bhagavan Shri Shakyamuni Samyaksam-Buddha, was his attested first usage evident throughout the earliest extant primary Pali resources, of what subsequently was given the nomenclature Chatushkhoti, doing the sadhana of which quickened my view of Dzogchen and Mahamudra and my understanding and appreciation of differing perspectives of any possible point of view of any possible or potential position and leavened my understanding of my first chosen tradition, Vaishnavism, though I was christened, Presbyterian as an infant, a tradition that has only made sense to me through the Dharma.

Emaho!
Beauford
a. k. a. Nagahari