The Bodhisattva Path to Unsurpassed Enlightenment
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The Bodhisattva Path to Unsurpassed Enlightenment: A Complete Translation of the Bodhisattvabhūmi
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Description
Ārya Asanga’s Bodhisattvabhūmi, or The Stage of a Bodhisattva, is the Mahāyāna tradition’s most comprehensive manual on the practice and training of bodhisattvas—by the author’s own account, a compilation of the full range of instructions contained in the entire collection of Mahāyāna sutras. A classic work of the Yogācāra school, it has been cherished in Tibet by all the historical Buddhist lineages as a primary source of instruction on bodhisattva ethics, vows, and practices, as well as for its summary of the ultimate goal of the bodhisattva path—supreme enlightenment.
Despite the text’s seminal importance in the Tibetan traditions, it has remained unavailable in English except in fragments. Engle’s translation, made from the Sanskrit original with reference to the Tibetan translation and commentaries, will enable English readers to understand more fully and clearly what it means to be a bodhisattva and practitioner of the Mahāyāna tradition. (Source: Shambhala Publications)
Citation
Engle, Artemus B., trans. The Bodhisattva Path to Unsurpassed Enlightenment: A Complete Translation of the Bodhisattvabhūmi. By Ārya Asaṅga. Tsadra Foundation Series. Boulder, CO: Snow Lion Publications, 2016.
Publisher Link
Table of contents
- Foreword by His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lamavii
- Abbreviationsix
- Translator's Introductionxv
- Book I: The Support
- 1. The Spiritual Lineage3
- 2. Generating Enlightenment Mind21
- 3. One’s Own and Others’ Aims35
- 4. The Nature of Reality63
- 5. Power105
- 6. Ripening141
- 7. Enlightenment159
- 8. The Lineages of the Powers171
- 9. Generosity205
- 10. Morality237
- 11. Patience313
- 12. Effort331
- 13. Meditative Absorption343
- 14. Wisdom355
- 15. The Principles for Attracting a Following365
- 16. Worship, Service, and the Immeasurables387
- 17. The Spiritual Qualities That Are Conducive to Enlightenment415
- 18. The Qualities of a Bodhisattva465
- Book II: The Qualities That Accord with the Support
- 1. The Marks of a Bodhisattva495
- 2. Factions505
- 3. Superior Attitudes511
- 4. The Pleasurable States517
- Book III: The Perfection of the Support
- 1. Births583
- 2. Embracing587
- 3. The Stages595
- 4. Conduct601
- 5. The Marks and the Secondary Signs607
- 6. Preeminence621
- The Successive Order of the Topics665
- Outline and Summary Verses671
- Bibliography693
- Index703
Interconnections
1 Full translation of
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The Bodhisattvabhūmi (literally "The Stage of a Bodhisattva") stands as one of the most comprehensive and systematic expositions of the Mahāyāna Buddhist path from classical India. Formally the fifteenth section of the massive Yogācārabhūmi corpus, this foundational treatise provides an encyclopedic manual detailing the entire spiritual trajectory of a bodhisattva—from the initial arising of the "mind of awakening" (bodhicitta) to the ultimate attainment of perfect buddhahood.
Traditionally attributed to Ārya Asaṅga (c. fourth–fifth century CE) through revelation from the future buddha Maitreya, the text likely represents a compilation of earlier materials (c. 230–300 CE) that predates the fully developed Yogācāra philosophical system. Its existence in multiple Chinese translations from the early fifth century onward confirms its early date and widespread influence across Asian Buddhism.
2 Scholarly presentations
Dr. Art Engle gave a lecture on his recent translation on the Bodhisattvabhumi, The Bodhisattva Path to Unsurpassed Enlightenment: A Complete Translation of the Bodhisattvabhūmi (Tsadra), forward by His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
ARTEMUS B. ENGLE received a PhD in Buddhist studies from the University of Wisconsin and has studied Tibetan Buddhism for more than forty years. He teaches Tibetan language and Buddhist doctrine at the Mahayana Sutra and Tantra Center in Howell, New Jersey, and has published numerous translations of works by Indian and Tibetan masters. He has been a Tsadra Foundation Fellow since 2005.
Artemus B. Engle talks about the Bodhisattvabhūmi by Asaṅga. This video is part of a video series that followed the release of his full English translation of the text titled The Bodhisattva Path to Unsurpassed Enlightenment.
