Dbu ma la 'jug pa'i rnam bshad dgongs pa rab gsal

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དབུ་མ་ལ་འཇུག་པའི་རྣམ་བཤད་དགོངས་པ་རབ་གསལ།
dbu ma la 'jug pa'i rnam bshad dgongs pa rab gsal
The Thoroughly Clear Intention: A Detailed Explanation of the Madhyamakāvatāra
Text


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Description

This work is perhaps the most influential explanation of Candrakīrti's seventh-century classic Entering the Middle Way (Madhyamakāvatāra).

Written as a supplement to Nagarjuna’s Fundamental Verses on the Middle Way, Candrakīrti’s text integrates the central insight of Nagarjuna’s thought—the rejection of any metaphysical notion of intrinsic existence—with the well-known Mahayana framework of the ten levels of the bodhisattva, and it became the most studied presentation of Madhyamaka thought in Tibet.

Completed the year before the author’s death, Tsongkhapa’s exposition of Candrakīrti's text is recognized by the Tibetan tradition as the final standpoint of Tsongkhapa on many philosophical questions, particularly the clear distinctions it draws between the standpoints of the Madhyamaka and Cittamatra schools.

Written in exemplary Tibetan, Tsongkhapa’s work presents a wonderful marriage of rigorous Madhyamaka philosophical analysis with a detailed and subtle account of the progressively advancing mental states and spiritual maturity realized by sincere Madhyamaka practitioners. (Source: Thupten Jinpa, Illuminating the Intent, 2021)

Reference
Tsong kha pa (ཙོང་ཁ་པ་). dbu ma la 'jug pa'i rnam bshad dgongs pa rab gsal [དབུ་མ་ལ་འཇུག་པའི་རྣམ་བཤད་དགོངས་པ་རབ་གསལ།]. [The Thoroughly Clear Intention: A Detailed Explanation of the Madhyamakāvatāra].

Recensions

Dbu ma la 'jug pa'i rnam bshad dgongs pa rab gsal. (The Thoroughly Clear Intention: A Detailed Explanation of the Madhyamakāvatāra). Recension information:
Tibetan Tsong kha pa. དབུ་མ་ལ་འཇུག་པའི་རྣམ་བཤད་དགོངས་པ་རབ་གསལ།, (Dbu ma la 'jug pa'i rnam bshad dgongs pa rab gsal).
  • In Gsung 'bum/ tsong kha pa (Zhol par khang): The Collected Works of the Incomparable Lord Tsong kha pa Blo bzang grags pa, Vol. 16: 3-536. New Delhi: Mongolian Lama Guru Deva, 1978-1979.
  • In Gsung 'bum/ tsong kha pa (Sku 'bum par ma), Vol. 16: 7-612. Sku 'bum: Sku 'bum byams pa gling, 199?.
  • In Gsung 'bum/ tsong kha pa (Bla brang par ma), Vol. 16: 5-582. Bla brang: Bla brang bkra shis 'khyil, 199?.
Interconnections
1 Full translations
Books2021About this item
This work is perhaps the most influential explanation of Candrakirti's seventh-century classic Entering the Middle Way (Madhyamakavatara).

Written as a supplement to Nagarjuna's Fundamental Verses on the Middle Way, Candrakirti's text integrates the central insight of Nagarjuna's thought—the rejection of any metaphysical notion of intrinsic existence—with the well-known Mahayana framework of the ten levels of the bodhisattva, and it became the most studied presentation of Madhyamaka thought in Tibet.

Completed the year before the author's death, Tsongkhapa's exposition of Candrakirti's text is recognized by the Tibetan tradition as the final standpoint of Tsongkhapa on many philosophical questions, particularly the clear distinctions it draws between the standpoints of the Madhyamaka and Cittamatra schools.

Written in exemplary Tibetan, Tsongkhapa's work presents a wonderful marriage of rigorous Madhyamaka philosophical analysis with a detailed and subtle account of the progressively advancing mental states and spiritual maturity realized by sincere Madhyamaka practitioners.

The work remains the principal textbook for the study of Indian Madhyamaka philosophy in many Tibetan monastic colleges, and it is a principal source for many Tibetan teachers seeking to convey the intricacies of Madhyamaka philosophy to non-Tibetan audiences.

Though it is often cited and well known, this is the first full translation of this key work in a Western language. (Source: Wisdom Publications)
1 Classical commentary of
Classical WorksAbout this item
Madhyamakāvatāra. (T. Dbu ma la 'jug pa). In Sanskrit, "Entrance to the Middle Way" (translated also as "Supplement to the Middle Way"); the major independent (as opposed to commentarial) work of the seventh-century Indian master Candrakīrti, who states that it is intended as an avatāra (variously rendered as "primer," "entrance," and "supplement") to Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā. The work is written in verse, to which the author provides an extensive prose commentary (bhāṣya). The work is organized around ten "productions of the aspiration to enlightenment" (bodhicittotpāda), which correspond to the ten stages (bhūmi) of the bodhisattva path (drawn largely from the Daśabhūmikasūtra) and their respective perfections (pāramitā), describing the salient practices and attainments of each. These are followed by chapters on the qualities of the bodhisattva, on the stage of buddhahood, and a conclusion. The lengthiest (comprising approximately half of the work) and most important chapter of the text is the sixth, dealing with the perfection of wisdom (prajñāpāramitā). This is one of the most extensive and influential expositions in Indian literature of Madhyamaka philosophical positions. In it, Candrakīrti provides a detailed discussion of the two truths—ultimate truth (paramārthasatya) and conventional truth (saṃvṛtisatya)—arguing that all things that have these two natures and that conventional truths (which he glosses as "concealing truths") are not in fact true because they appear falsely to the ignorant consciousness. He also discusses the crucial question of valid knowledge (pramāṇa) among the unenlightened, relating it to worldly consensus (lokaprasiddha). The sixth chapter also contains one of the most detailed refutations of Yogācāra in Madhyamaka literature, treating such topics as the three natures (trisvabhāva), the foundational consciousness (ālayavijñāna), and the statements in the sūtras that the three realms of existence are "mind-only" (cittamātra). This chapter also contains Candrakīrti's most famous contribution to Madhyamaka reasoning, the sevenfold reasoning designed to demonstrate the absence of a personal self (pudgalanairātmya). Adding to and elaborating upon a fivefold reasoning found in Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā, Candrakīrti argues that the person does not intrinsically exist because of it: (1) not being the aggregates (skandha), (2) not being other than the aggregates, (3) not being the basis of the aggregates, (4) not depending on the aggregates, (5) not possessing the aggregates, (6) not being the shape of the aggregates, and (7) not being the composite of the aggregates. He illustrates this reasoning by applying it to the example of a chariot, which, he argues, is not to be found among its constituent parts. The sixth chapter concludes with a discussion of the sixteen and the twenty forms of emptiness (śūnyatā), which include the emptiness of emptiness (śūnyatāśūnyatā). The work was the most widely studied and commented upon Madhyamaka text in Tibet among all sects, serving, for example, as one of the "five texts" (zhung lnga) that formed the Dge lugs scholastic curriculum. The work is preserved only in Tibetan, although a Sanskrit manuscript of verses has been discovered in Tibet. (Source: "Madhyamakāvatāra." In The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, 489. Princeton University Press, 2014. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt46n41q.27.)
2 Partial translations
Books1980About this item
This volume presents a translation and commentary on Tsongkhapa's Illumination of the Intent, an extensive explanation of Chandrakirti's Supplement to the Middle Way (Madhyamakāvatāra), focusing on the central role of compassion in Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophy and practice. The work is divided into two main parts: Meditations of a Tantric Abbot by Kensur Lekden, covering topics including cyclic existence, altruism, love and compassion, wisdom, and the relationship between person, mind, and body; and "Way of Compassion," featuring Jeffrey Hopkins's introduction and Tsongkhapa's detailed commentary. The text explores the causes of Bodhisattvas, types of compassion, and the six perfections (giving, ethics, patience, effort, and concentration) while examining the philosophical foundations of the Madhyamaka school. This work illuminates how compassion functions as the essential foundation for the Bodhisattva path and distinguishes Mahāyāna from Hīnayāna approaches, offering both theoretical understanding and practical meditation guidance for cultivating compassion within the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.
Books2019About this item
The initial idea for this study, reflection and meditation manual took seed in 2004, when I first started to translate for His Holiness the Dalai Lama. I found many of the Nalanda texts frequently taught by His Holiness to be very useful; it occurred to me that a compilation of these in the English language would greatly benefit many seekers who might otherwise lack the opportunity to access them. It is only now, after many years of sharing the working drafts of this manual at Tibet House in New Delhi, as well as in many other places that the idea has finally come to fruition.

The book is divided into five parts:

I. Daily Recitation and Practice
II. Selected Texts for Study, Reflection and Meditation
III. Additional Prayers, Vows and Commitments
IV. Daily Dedication Prayers
V. Appendix

Part I and Part IV serve as a useful guide for all, who have an inclination towards dharma practice, but do not know how to start and design a daily practice session. It is also useful for those seekers who might be misguided and surmise that dharma practice comprises only of mantra recitation and so forth, thereby missing its essence.

Part II helps strengthen the practitioner’s dharma practice on the basis of selected compositions of great scholars and yogis. The actual breakthrough in the mental transformation happens through changes in the thought process, for which study and reflection are the cornerstones. Any of these profound texts and short extracts may be selected for study, reflection or meditation, on an on-going basis.

Part III reinforces and rejuvenates dharma practice and to that end, may be undertaken on a regular or occasional basis.

Part V introduces the reader to meditation practices, both shamatha (calm abiding) and vipasyana (special insight), including meditation on the breath, as well as methods to cultivate Bodhicitta and the wisdom of emptiness. While there are many texts on the wisdom of emptiness, the meditation included here is designed for all those who are not thoroughly introduced to this subject and still want to familiarise and habituate themselves with the wisdom of emptiness.

Brief notes, Endnotes and Glossary have been added to help the readers unfold the meanings of the texts with ease. (preface, xiv–xv)
2 A topic of
Books1980About this item
This volume presents a translation and commentary on Tsongkhapa's Illumination of the Intent, an extensive explanation of Chandrakirti's Supplement to the Middle Way (Madhyamakāvatāra), focusing on the central role of compassion in Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophy and practice. The work is divided into two main parts: Meditations of a Tantric Abbot by Kensur Lekden, covering topics including cyclic existence, altruism, love and compassion, wisdom, and the relationship between person, mind, and body; and "Way of Compassion," featuring Jeffrey Hopkins's introduction and Tsongkhapa's detailed commentary. The text explores the causes of Bodhisattvas, types of compassion, and the six perfections (giving, ethics, patience, effort, and concentration) while examining the philosophical foundations of the Madhyamaka school. This work illuminates how compassion functions as the essential foundation for the Bodhisattva path and distinguishes Mahāyāna from Hīnayāna approaches, offering both theoretical understanding and practical meditation guidance for cultivating compassion within the Tibetan Buddhist tradition.
Books2021About this item
This work is perhaps the most influential explanation of Candrakirti's seventh-century classic Entering the Middle Way (Madhyamakavatara).

Written as a supplement to Nagarjuna's Fundamental Verses on the Middle Way, Candrakirti's text integrates the central insight of Nagarjuna's thought—the rejection of any metaphysical notion of intrinsic existence—with the well-known Mahayana framework of the ten levels of the bodhisattva, and it became the most studied presentation of Madhyamaka thought in Tibet.

Completed the year before the author's death, Tsongkhapa's exposition of Candrakirti's text is recognized by the Tibetan tradition as the final standpoint of Tsongkhapa on many philosophical questions, particularly the clear distinctions it draws between the standpoints of the Madhyamaka and Cittamatra schools.

Written in exemplary Tibetan, Tsongkhapa's work presents a wonderful marriage of rigorous Madhyamaka philosophical analysis with a detailed and subtle account of the progressively advancing mental states and spiritual maturity realized by sincere Madhyamaka practitioners.

The work remains the principal textbook for the study of Indian Madhyamaka philosophy in many Tibetan monastic colleges, and it is a principal source for many Tibetan teachers seeking to convey the intricacies of Madhyamaka philosophy to non-Tibetan audiences.

Though it is often cited and well known, this is the first full translation of this key work in a Western language. (Source: Wisdom Publications)