Nagarjuna's Bodhicittavivarana: Stanzas 1–3: Teaching by the 14th Dalai Lama (Part 6)
From Bodhicitta
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Nagarjuna's Bodhicittavivarana: Stanzas 1–3
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Series: Nagarjuna's Bodhicittavivarana: Teaching by the 14th Dalai Lama (23 tracks)
Description
“Those Bodhisattvas who practice by means of the secret mantra,
Having generated the awakening mind in conventional terms in the form of an aspiration, you must produce the ultimate awakening mind by the force of meditation practice. Therefore, I will explain its nature. I will explain the awakening mind meditation practice here that destroys cyclical existence"
“The Buddhas maintain that the mind of awakening
is not obscured by such ideas
as the consciousness of a self, aggregates and so on
but it is always characterized by emptiness.”
“It is with the mind imbued with compassion,
that you must cultivate developing the awakening mind with effort.
The Buddhas who embody great compassion,
“They constantly develop this awakening mind.”
Citation
Dalai Lama, 14th. "Nagarjuna's Bodhicittavivarana: Free All Beings from Suffering." Part 6 of 23. Radio City Music Hall, New York, 2010. Translated by Thupten Jinpa. Video, 16:35. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ikkJ9ayII4.
Interconnections
1 Teaching on
The Bodhicittavivaraṇa (Tib. བྱང་ཆུབ་སེམས་ཀྱི་འགྲེལ་པ།, Eng. Commentary on the Awakening Mind) is a foundational Mahāyāna text comprising 112 verses, originally composed in Sanskrit, preceded by a prose introduction, traditionally attributed to the second-century master Nāgārjuna. This work serves as both a comprehensive Madhyamaka analysis and a practical guide for cultivating bodhicitta in its two dimensions: conventional bodhicitta as the compassionate aspiration for all beings' enlightenment, and ultimate bodhicitta as the direct realization of emptiness (śūnyatā). The text grounds ethical aspiration in ontological analysis, demonstrating how understanding the empty nature of phenomena naturally generates universal compassion, while also refuting competing philosophical positions including Vijñānavāda idealism, the tīrthika conception of self, and the śrāvaka understanding of the skandhas. Although scholarly questions persist regarding its authorship—particularly given the text’s apparent tantric elements, critique of Vijñānavāda, and absence of citation by Nāgārjuna’s principal commentators Buddhapālita, Candrakīrti, and Bhāvaviveka—the Bodhicittavivaraṇa has exerted profound influence across Indian and Tibetan Buddhist traditions. Its remarkable interpretive flexibility has allowed it to serve as a scriptural foundation for diverse philosophical schools and contemplative practices, from strict Prāsaṅgika philosophy to mahāmudrā and mind training (lojong), making it an essential text for both monastic and lay bodhisattvas throughout the history of Mahāyāna Buddhism.
