本文借用東年（陳順賢，1950-，宜蘭）小說名稱「我是這樣說的」轉化為一種理解途徑用以研討其三部長篇小說：《地藏菩薩本願寺》（1994）、《我是這樣說的》（1996）、《菩薩再來》（2015）如何在反映社會、人性、倫理的故事中，融入佛理詮釋，並諦視臺灣常見的教團組織問題，傳遞他對生死、神通、願力、原始佛教等思考，論證這些小說儘管充分轉譯佛經典故，卻非只探索渡達彼岸的課題，更大量投射的是作者對此岸世俗人生的關懷。
本文擬先研討《地藏菩薩本願寺》、《菩薩再來》這兩部相隔約 20 年的作品，觀察其中有哪些延續性的思考；再論作者新編佛傳的取材重點與寓意，藉此論證東年的書寫之於臺灣宗教文學類型的意義。

Based on “That’s What I Have Said”, the novel name of Dongnian (Shun-Hsien Chen, 1950-, Yilan), this study explores how he integrated his Buddhist interpretation in the stories of his three novels, The Ksitigarbha-Pranidhana Temple (1994), That’s What I Have Said (1996), and Return of Buddha (2015), while reflecting society, humanity, and ethics. These stories reveal the common issues of religious organizations in Taiwan and convey his thoughts on human relations, life and death, magical power, the power of prayer, and original Buddhism. In these three novels, although he signifi cantly translated the allusions in the classics of Buddhism, he did not simply explore the process to Paradise. He revealed his care for earthen life and the criticism on history and society.

This study aims to fi rst explore The Ksitigarbha-Pranidhana Temple and Return of Buddha, which were published 20 years apart, and observe the extensive thoughts. It will also discuss Dongnian’s selection of materials in the new version of Buddhism and the implied meanings to elaborate on the significance of his writing in the religious literature of Taiwan.