Entering the Path of Enlightenment

From Bodhicitta
< BooksBooks/Entering the Path of Enlightenment

🤓 Admin Zone 🛠️ hidden to non-admins
Entering the Path of Enlightenment: The Bodhicaryāvatāra of the Buddhist Poet Śāntideva
Book
See Timeline of BCA TranslationsTranslation of the BCA Source Texts (Skt-Eng)


Please note that many items in our library are simply pages that represent a detailed library catalog entry and citation of someone else's work, presentation, or performance. Read our General Disclaimer for more information.
Entering the Path of Enlightenment-front.jpg

Description

Entering the Path of Enlightenment contains the first complete English translation of the Sanskrit Bodhicaryāvatāra. In this beautiful and moving classic of Mahāyāna Buddhism, Śāntideva, a monk at the famed Buddhist center of Nālānda in India, describes the Bodhisattva Vow—one of the major concepts of Buddhist belief.

In order to render the Bodhicaryāvatāra accessible to student and layman as well as specialist and scholar, Marion L. Matics divides the book into three parts: a guide which explains and interprets the Bodhicaryāvatāra and places it within the framework of the evolving history of Buddhist thought, the lucid translation itself, and appendices containing all the necessary tools for a thorough understanding of this celebrated work. (Source: back cover)

Citation
Matics, Marion L., trans. Entering the Path of Enlightenment: The Bodhicaryāvatāra of the Buddhist Poet Śāntideva. London: Macmillan Publishing Company, 1970. https://archive.org/details/enteringpathofenlightenmentbodhicharyatvaofsantidevamarionmaticsl._245_J/mode/2up.
Table of contents
  • Preface7
  • PART ONE: Guide to the Bodhicaryāvatāra11
  • Tribute12
  • Introduction: The Rise of the Madhyamika13
  • I The Great Work31
  • II The Perfections47
  • III The Perfection of Contemplation67
  • IV The Perfection of Wisdom106
  • PART TWO: Translation of the Bodhicaryāvatāra by Santideva141
  • I Praising the Thought of Enlightenment143
  • II Confession of Evil147
  • III Grasping the Thought of Enlightenment153
  • IV Vigilance in the Thought of Enlightenment157
  • V Guarding of Total Awareness162
  • VI Perfection of Patience173
  • VII Perfection of Strength186
  • VIII Perfection of Contemplation194
  • IX Perfection of Wisdom211
  • X Consummation227
  • PART THREE: Appendices233
  • Abbreviations235
  • Notes and References for the Guide237
  • Notes and References for the Bodhicaryāvatāra254
  • Bibliography288
  • Glossary of Selected Terms304
Interconnections
1 Full translation of
Shantideva high res brighter cropped.jpg
Classical WorksAbout this item
An "Introduction to Bodhisattva Practice," the Bodhisattvacaryāvatāra is a poem about the path of a bodhisattva, in ten chapters, written by the Indian Buddhist Śāntideva (fl. c. 685–763). One of the masterpieces of world literature, it is a core text of Mahāyāna Buddhism and continues to be taught, studied, and commented upon in many languages and by many traditions around the world. The main subject of the text is bodhicitta, the altruistic aspiration for enlightenment, and the path and practices of the bodhisattva, the six perfections (pāramitās). The text forms the basis of many contemporary discussions of Buddhist ethics and philosophy.
2 Reviews
Cook Francis H. Portrait by daughter Zoe Cook.jpg
Articles1972About this item
Francis Cook's review of Entering the Path of Enlightenment, by Marion L. Matics, published in the Journal of the American Academy of Religion 40, no. 1 (1972): 122–24.
Ruegg-David-Seyfort-WisdomPubs.jpg
Articles1977About this item
David Seyfort Ruegg's review of Entering the Path of Enlightenment, by Marion L. Matics, published in the Journal of the American Oriental Society 97, no. 1 (1977), 88-89.