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|jumbo-text=In the ninth chapter of the ''Bodhicaryāvatāra'', Śāntideva gives a thorough primer on the view of the Middle Way philosophy and its style of reasoned argumentation against what it deems to be lower or flawed positions. Known simply as the Wisdom Chapter, Prajñāpariccheda (''shes rab le'u''), this is by far the most famous, yet contentious, chapter of the treatise, and the extensive commentarial literature it spawned became the source of numerous debates in the Tibetan tradition. | |jumbo-text=In the ninth chapter of the ''Bodhicaryāvatāra'', Śāntideva gives a thorough primer on the view of the Middle Way philosophy and its style of reasoned argumentation against what it deems to be lower or flawed positions. Known simply as the Wisdom Chapter, Prajñāpariccheda (''shes rab le'u''), this is by far the most famous, yet contentious, chapter of the treatise, and the extensive commentarial literature it spawned became the source of numerous debates in the Tibetan tradition. | ||
|main-text=While Śāntideva's poem about the bodhisattva path is often praised for the accessibility of his writing style and the inspiring nature of his prose, the text itself is not always easy to understand, especially for those new to the study of Buddhism. Among the more challenging aspects of the text, the Wisdom Chapter of the ''Bodhicaryāvatāra'' stands out for being nearly impenetrable without reliance on one of the many commentaries to the chapter. However, even in these works interpretations can vary widley. As Douglas Duckworth explains, | |main-text= | ||
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While Śāntideva's poem about the bodhisattva path is often praised for the accessibility of his writing style and the inspiring nature of his prose, the text itself is not always easy to understand, especially for those new to the study of Buddhism. Among the more challenging aspects of the text, the Wisdom Chapter of the ''Bodhicaryāvatāra'' stands out for being nearly impenetrable without reliance on one of the many commentaries to the chapter. However, even in these works interpretations can vary widley. As Douglas Duckworth explains, | |||
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|quote-text=The ninth chapter of the ''Way of the Bodhisattva'', the Wisdom Chapter, is notoriously difficult, given that it is often cryptic and truncated, and it presumes knowledge of many Buddhist and non-Buddhist systems. It also propounds the view of emptiness and describes emptiness and interdependence as the metaphysical basis of ethics. The ninth chapter is also where we see pronounced differences in the interpretation of the text, as different commentaries on the other chapters for the most part accord with one another. | |quote-text=The ninth chapter of the ''Way of the Bodhisattva'', the Wisdom Chapter, is notoriously difficult, given that it is often cryptic and truncated, and it presumes knowledge of many Buddhist and non-Buddhist systems. It also propounds the view of emptiness and describes emptiness and interdependence as the metaphysical basis of ethics. The ninth chapter is also where we see pronounced differences in the interpretation of the text, as different commentaries on the other chapters for the most part accord with one another. | ||
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As for the four main Buddhist tenet systems, these are divided by vehicle (''yāna''), thus there are the two Śrāvaka Schools, Vaibhaśika (Particularists) and Sautrāntika (Followers of Sūtra) and the two Mahāyāna Schools Cittamatra (Mind Only) and Madhyamaka (Middle Way), the last of which is of course Śāntideva's own tradition and the perspective from which he sets out to refute all the others. | As for the four main Buddhist tenet systems, these are divided by vehicle (''yāna''), thus there are the two Śrāvaka Schools, Vaibhaśika (Particularists) and Sautrāntika (Followers of Sūtra) and the two Mahāyāna Schools Cittamatra (Mind Only) and Madhyamaka (Middle Way), the last of which is of course Śāntideva's own tradition and the perspective from which he sets out to refute all the others. | ||
And the following are some examples of the argumentation that is typical of the Middle Way school. | And the following are some examples of the argumentation that is typical of the Middle Way school. | ||
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