Dol po pa

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དོལ་པོ་པ་ཤེས་རབ་རྒྱལ་མཚན་
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen(1292 - 1361) 
Damngak Rinpoché DzöBuddhist Digital Resource CenterHimalayan Art Resources

Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen was one of the most influential Buddhist masters in Tibetan history. He first became an important scholar of the Sakya tradition, but then moved to Jonang Monastery. There he became the fourth holder of the monastic seat and constructed a monumental stupa. Dölpopa’s ideas, specifically his famous formulation of the zhentong view and his interpretations of Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna doctrine, have elicited controversy for nearly seven hundred years.

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Library Items

Book
A Complete Session of Meditation
This is a book of teachings on how to do a complete session of meditation. The book was composed by the Western teacher, Lama Tony Duff, to help those who would like to practise meditation in general. However, it will be especially useful for those who would like to practise according to the ways of the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. The book emphasizes the practical style of instruction found in those two traditions. It deliberately avoids the scholarly style taught in some other Tibetan Buddhist traditions and focusses on actually doing something with one’s own mind. Nonetheless, the book is very precise and clear about all of the key points involved in meditation practice.

The book emphasizes the Kagyu approach in particular. The author has received teachings from many Kagyu masters and used his knowledge of the tradition as a basis for making this book. He selected teachings from Gampopa and other early masters to set the basis for explaining meditation. Then he added other, necessary teachings according to the extensive teachings he has received over many years from many different Kagyu masters, such as Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Mingyur Rinpoche, and others. The result is a book that explains how to do a complete session of meditation in the style of the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions.

The book begins with a lengthy introduction by Lama Tony which is a teaching in its own right. He writes a lengthy piece about what can and cannot usefully be obtained from science in terms of dharma practice. Following the introduction, there are two chapters on the buddha nature, the second of which uses a significant portion of Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen’s explanation of the ground in his famous Mountain Dharma text. This is the first time that this part of Dolpopa’s text has been fully translated and published. After that are several chapters on the various steps of a complete session of meditation. Anyone who practises meditation will find this book useful in many ways.

The book contains a translation of the following text: “Mountain Dharma, An Ocean of Definitive Meaning” by Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsan, ground section

(Source: Padma Karpo Translations)
Duff, Tony. A Complete Session of Meditation: The Theory and Practice of Kagyü-Nyingma Meditation from Shamatha to Dzogchen. Kathmandu: Padma Karpo Translation Committee, 2014.
Book
Le Bouddha du Dolpo
This book is a French translation of Cyrus Stearns's The Buddha from Dolpo: A Study of the Life and Thought of the Tibetan Master Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen.
Stearns, Cyrus. Le Bouddha du Dolpo: Vie et pensée d'un maître tibétain atypique du XIVe siècle initiateur du shèngtong. Traduit de l'anglais par Sylvie Carteron. Saint-Cannat, France: Claire Lumière, 2005.
Book
Mountain Doctrine: Tibet's Fundamental Treatise on Other-Emptiness and the Buddha-Matrix
Translated here for the first time into any language, Mountain Doctrine is a seminal fourteenth-century Tibetan text on the nature of reality. The author, Dol-bo-ba Shay-rap-gyel-tsen was one of the most influential figures of that dynamic period of doctrinal formulation, and his text is a sustained argument about the buddha-nature, also called the matrix-of-one-gone-thus. Dol-bo-ba recognizes two important types of emptiness—self-emptiness and other-emptiness—and shows how other-emptiness is the actual ultimate truth. He justifies this controversial formulation by arguing that it was the favored system of all the early outstanding figures of the Great Vehicle. The translator's introduction includes a short biography of Dol-bo-ba and an exposition of nine focal topics in his religious philosophy. (Source: Shambhala Publications)
Hopkins, Jeffrey, trans. Mountain Doctrine: Tibet's Fundamental Treatise on Other-Emptiness and the Buddha Matrix. By Döl-bo-ba Shay-rab-gyel-tsen (Dol po pa shes rab rgyal mtshan). Edited by Kevin Vose. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications, 2006.
Book
The Buddha from Dolpo (2010)
The Buddha from Dölpo is a revised and enlarged edition of the only book about the most controversial Buddhist master in the history of Tibet, Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen (1292-1361), who became perhaps the greatest Tibetan expert of the Kālacakra, or Wheel of Time, a vast system of tantric teachings. Based largely on esoteric Buddhist knowledge from the legendary land of Shambhala, Dölpopa's insights have profoundly influenced the development of Tibetan Buddhism for more than 650 years.

Dölpopa emphasized two contrasting definitions of the Buddhist theory of emptiness. He described relative phenomena as "empty of self-nature," but absolute reality as only "empty of other," i.e., relative phenomena. He further identified absolute reality as the buddha nature, or eternal essence, present in all living beings. This view of an "emptiness of other," know in Tibetan as shentong, is Dölpopa's enduring legacy.

The Buddha from Dölpo contains the only English translation of three of Dölpopa's crucial works. A General Commentary on the Doctrine is one of the earliest texts in which he systematically presented his view of the entire Buddhist path to enlightenment. The Fourth Council and its Autocommentary (which was not in the first edition of this book) were written at the end of his life and represent a final summation of his teachings. These translations are preceded by a detailed discussion of Dölpopa's life, his revolutionary ideas, earlier precedents for the shentongview, his unique use of language, and the influence of his theories. The fate of his Jonang tradition, which was censored by the central Tibetan government in the seventeenth century but still survives, is also examined. (Source: Shambhala Publications)
Stearns, Cyrus. The Buddha From Dolpo: A Study of the Life and Thought of the Tibetan Master Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen. Tsadra Foundation Series. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications, 2010. First published 1999 by State University of New York Press.
Book
The Uttaratantra in the Land of Snows
With its emphasis on the concept of buddha-nature, or the ultimate nature of mind, the Uttaratantra is a classical Buddhist treatise that lays out an early map of the Mahāyāna path to enlightenment. Tsering Wangchuk unravels the history of this important Indic text in Tibet by examining numerous Tibetan commentaries and other exegetical texts on the treatise that emerged between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries. These commentaries explored such questions as: Is the buddha-nature teaching found in the Uttaratantra literally true, or does it have to be interpreted differently to understand its ultimate meaning? Does it explicate ultimate truth that is inherently enlightened or ultimate truth that is empty only of independent existence? Does the treatise teach ultimate nature of mind according to the Cittamātra or the Madhyamaka School of Mahāyāna? By focusing on the diverse interpretations that different textual communities employed to make sense of the Uttaratantra, Wangchuk provides a necessary historical context for the development of the text in Tibet. (Source: SUNY Press)
Wangchuk, Tsering. The Uttaratantra in the Land of Snows: Tibetan Thinkers Debate the Centrality of the Buddha-Nature Treatise. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2017.
Text
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen: The Sunlight Exposition: A Commentary on the Mahāyāna Uttaratantra Treatise
Dölpopa's commentary on the Uttaratantra, which, although it doesn't actually use the term "other-emptiness", is an important precursor and source to the formulation of his unique Zhentong view found in his seminal work Mountain Dharma: An Ocean of Definitive Meaning (ri chos nges don rgya mtsho).
Text
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen: Mountain Dharma: An Ocean of Definitive Meaning
Dolpopa's seminal work considered to be the most definitive philosophical treatise of the Jonang tradition. It became famous as the crucial source for the presentation of his view of other-emptiness (zhentong).
Text
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen: The Great Treasure of Faith and Devotion: A Praise to Sugatagarbha
Verses of praise to sugatagarbha, or buddha-nature, composed by Dölpopa.
Text
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen: Benediction of Sugatagarbha
Verses of benediction to invoke the auspiciousness of sugatagarbha composed by Dölpopa.
Text
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen: Mirror of Buddha-Nature with Qualities
Dölpopa's responds to arguments against the theory that buddha-nature has the qualities of the buddha latent in it. He uses scriptural citations and reasonings to argue that the unconditioned buddha-nature must possess the qualities of the Buddha.
Text
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen: The Great Calculation of the Doctrine Which Has the Significance of a Fourth Council
The seminal work of Dölpopa often simply referred to as the Fourth Council. Structured around the notion of four eons drawn from the Kālacakra Tantra, it is one of the primary sources for Dölpopa's presentation of his other-emptiness (zhentong) philosophy.
Text
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen: Distinguishing Dharma: A Letter to Pön Jangpa
A lengthy polemical work by Dölpopa that addresses various disputed philosophical positions. Pön Jangpa sent Dolpopa some polemical writings with a measure of gold as gift asking him to send him response. In response, Dölpopa wrote this treatise explaining how self-emptiness as many Tibetan scholars understood is not the ultimate truth but buddha-nature endowed with buddha qualities is.

On the topic of this person

Book
A Complete Session of Meditation
This is a book of teachings on how to do a complete session of meditation. The book was composed by the Western teacher, Lama Tony Duff, to help those who would like to practise meditation in general. However, it will be especially useful for those who would like to practise according to the ways of the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. The book emphasizes the practical style of instruction found in those two traditions. It deliberately avoids the scholarly style taught in some other Tibetan Buddhist traditions and focusses on actually doing something with one’s own mind. Nonetheless, the book is very precise and clear about all of the key points involved in meditation practice.

The book emphasizes the Kagyu approach in particular. The author has received teachings from many Kagyu masters and used his knowledge of the tradition as a basis for making this book. He selected teachings from Gampopa and other early masters to set the basis for explaining meditation. Then he added other, necessary teachings according to the extensive teachings he has received over many years from many different Kagyu masters, such as Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Mingyur Rinpoche, and others. The result is a book that explains how to do a complete session of meditation in the style of the Kagyu and Nyingma traditions.

The book begins with a lengthy introduction by Lama Tony which is a teaching in its own right. He writes a lengthy piece about what can and cannot usefully be obtained from science in terms of dharma practice. Following the introduction, there are two chapters on the buddha nature, the second of which uses a significant portion of Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen’s explanation of the ground in his famous Mountain Dharma text. This is the first time that this part of Dolpopa’s text has been fully translated and published. After that are several chapters on the various steps of a complete session of meditation. Anyone who practises meditation will find this book useful in many ways.

The book contains a translation of the following text: “Mountain Dharma, An Ocean of Definitive Meaning” by Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsan, ground section

(Source: Padma Karpo Translations)
Duff, Tony. A Complete Session of Meditation: The Theory and Practice of Kagyü-Nyingma Meditation from Shamatha to Dzogchen. Kathmandu: Padma Karpo Translation Committee, 2014.
Article
A Tree In The West: Competing Tathāgatagarbha Theories in Tibet
In this paper, historical materials are employed to point the reader toward scriptural sources for the tathāgatagarbha traditions of India and Tibet, including their relationship with theories of the mind-basis-of-all (kun gzhi rnam shes, ālayavijñāna). In addition, three primary tathāgatagarbha traditions in Tibet are described and compared: those of the Jo-nang-bas following Döl-bo-ba Shay-rap-gyel-tsen (dol bo pa shes rab rgyal mtshan, 1292–1361), the Sa-ḡyas following Bu-don (bu ston, 1290–1364), and the Ge-luk-don following Dzong-ka-ba (tsong kha pa, 1357–1419). Doctrines concerning the basic constituent (khams, dhātu) and three buddha bodies are examined insofar as these doctrines shed light on theories of tathāgatagarbha. Since Dzong-ka-ba extensively refuted the Jo-nang position─often called Other Emptiness (gzhan stong)─in his Treatise Differentiating Interpretable and Definitive Meanings: The Essence of Eloquence (drang ba dang nges pa'i don rnam par phye ba'i bstan bcos legs bshad snying po) and other works on the philosophical view of emptiness, this paper examines Dzong-ka-ba's discussion and critique of the Jo-nang Other Emptiness. Ten specific criticisms of Other Emptiness made by Dzong-ka-ba and his followers are compared with presentations of Other Emptiness by Jo-nang authors. Two Jo-nang texts recently translated by Professor Jeffrey Hopkins are employed in this comparison: Döl-bo-ba Śhay-rap-gyel-tsen’s Mountain Doctrine, Ocean of Definitive Meanings (ri chos nges don rgya mtsho) and Tāranātha’s Essence of Other Emptiness (gzhan stong snying po). These comparisons show that Dzong-ka-ba's critique does not always accurately reflect the Jo-nang philosophical view.
Magee, William. "A Tree in the West: Competing Tathāgatagarbha Theories in Tibet." Chung-Hwa Buddhist Journal 19 (2006): 445–511.
Article
Can We Speak of Kadam Gzhan Stong? Tracing the Sources for Other-Emptiness in Early-Fourteenth-Century Tibet
It has become the norm for scholars familiar with the self-emptiness (rang stong) and other-emptiness (gzhan stong)'"`UNIQ--ref-00003095-QINU`"' in the history of Tibetan Buddhist scholastic tradition to associate the latter doctrine with Dolpopa (dol po pa shes rab rgyal mtshan, 1292–1361), the foremost synthesizer of the Jonang (jo nang) School of Tibetan Buddhism. He developed a systematic, distinctive view of ultimate truth (don dam bden pa; paramārthasatya) and propagated this view widely and earned much scorn for it, leading to one of the most controversial doctrinal-sectarian disputes in Tibetan Buddhist history. His explication of other-emptiness, which he equates with the ultimate truth, is deemed radical and wholly unacceptable by many of his contemporaries and later Tibetan scholars because it stands in sharp contrast to the mainstream fourteenth-century and early-fifteenth-century Tibetan interpretations of self-emptiness, the notion that all phenomena including ultimate truth do not exist inherently. The self-emptiness interpretations are based primarily on Indie sources such as the Prajñāpāramitāsūtras, Nāgārjuna's (c. 200) Madhyamakakārikā, and Candrakīrti's (c. 570-640) Madhyamakāvatāra. In contrast, Dolpopa generally does not claim that middle wheel treatises (’khor lo bar pa’i gzhung) such as the Prajñāpāramitāsūtras are the fundamental sources for his presentation of an other-emptiness view. Rather, he bases his formulation of other-emptiness on tantric sources such as the Kālacakra,'"`UNIQ--ref-00003096-QINU`"' last wheel sūtras {'khor lo tha ma’i mdo) such as Saṃdhinirmocanasūtra,'"`UNIQ--ref-00003097-QINU`"' and Indic commentarial sources'"`UNIQ--ref-00003098-QINU`"' traditionally credited to figures such as Maitreya, Asaṅga (c. 300), and Vasubandhu (c. 300).
      As a prominent fourteenth-century Tibetan doxographer, Dolpopa, however, does not repudiate self-emptiness per se; rather, he speaks of two types of emptiness'"`UNIQ--ref-00003099-QINU`"' that have separate referent points. For him, self-emptiness refers only to conventional phenomena such as tables, chairs, and negative defilements that do not inherently exist'"`UNIQ--ref-0000309A-QINU`"' or that are empty of their own entities. Dolpopa argues that since conventional phenomena cannot withstand analysis, in that their individual entities are essentially empty or deconstructed, as the existence of their nature is thoroughly investigated, they are empty of inherent existence. Therefore, he claims that self-emptiness is not ultimate truth.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000309B-QINU`"'
      On the other hand, he passionately demonstrates that other-emptiness exists inherently and ultimately. Furthermore, it is identified with the tathāgata-essence (de bzhin gshegs pa’i snying po, tathāgatagarbha or buddha-nature (sangs rgyas kyi rigs; buddhagotra) endowed with enlightened qualities that exists in all beings. Dolpopa argues that this form of emptiness is not empty of its own entity, since it ultimately and permanently exists. Also, ultimate truth is empty of all conventional phenomena that are antithetical to ultimately existent other-emptiness. So, while self-emptiness, which he refers to as "empty-emptiness" (stong pa’i stong pa), is primarily taught in the Prajñāpāramitāsūtras of the middle wheel teachings, it is not ultimate truth, as it is empty of its own entity and it is not free from conceptual thought. On the other hand, other-emptiness, which he dubs "non-empty-emptiness" (mi stong pa’i stong pa), while not primarily taught in the Prajñāpāramitāsūtras, is delineated in last wheel teachings of the Buddha, such as Tathāgatagarbhasūtra, Śrīmālādevīsūtra, and others to refer to the naturally enlightened buddha-nature that is empty of all conventional phenomena. This is Dolpopa’s position on the two types of emptiness and the hierarchy of Mahāyāna literature in a nutshell and much of the discourse that follows on other-emptiness in the history of Tibetan Buddhist scholasticism has its roots in Dolpopa’s doctrinal formulation of other-emptiness vis-à-vis self-emptiness.
      While Dolpopa certainly gets the well-deserved credit for making other-emptiness "a place of fundamental importance in the expression of his philosophy"'"`UNIQ--ref-0000309C-QINU`"' in Tibet, his controversial interpretation of Mahāyāna texts and the relative early availability of his writings to international scholars has perhaps led some to assume that Dolpopa’s thought is more original than it really was. Fortunately, the recent release of dozens of Kadam (bka’ gdams) volumes of previously unknown philosophical texts that predate Dolpopa allows us to reconsider this issue. Among the new texts that might be pertinent to a reconstruction of the early history of other-emptiness discourse in Tibet is the writing of Rinchen (rin chen ye shes, 13th-14th c.) in conjunction with the previously available Buton’s (bu ston rin chen grub, 1290-1364) Precious Garland of Rebuttals (’phrin yig gi lan rin po che’i phreng ba).'"`UNIQ--ref-0000309D-QINU`"' I argue that Dolpopa’s unique doctrinal views with respect to ultimate truth and their related Indie sources are found in Rinchen’s doctrinal formulation of Mahāyāna literature. Furthermore, there is a good reason to argue that Dolpopa’s unique views were directly influenced by the Kadam scholar.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000309E-QINU`"' Therefore, in this article, I analyze their points of convergence and divergence on the issues of buddha-nature, textual authority, and doxographical strategy, and suggest that Kadam influence on Dolpopa needs to be recognized more than we do in modern scholarship on Dolpopa’s works. (Wangchuk, introduction, 9–11)
Wangchuk, Tsering. "Can We Speak of Kadam Gzhan Stong? Tracing the Sources for Other-Emptiness in Early-Fourteenth-Century Tibet." Journal of Buddhist Philosophy 2 (2016): 9–22.
Article
Dolpopa and Gyaltsab Debate Tathāgatagarbha: Two Distinct Interpretations of Buddha-Nature in Tibet
Buddhists have discussed the concept of enlightenment since the time of the Buddha, but the notion that all sentient beings have buddha-nature is found in Mahāyāna Buddhism. For the Mahāyāna thinkers, one of the crucial questions at the center of how all beings can achieve enlightenment is this apparent paradox: frailty, ignorance, and delusions presumably exist concomitantly with buddha-nature in all sentient beings. This article provides a brief survey of the textual history of the buddha-nature literature followed by an in-depth discussion of buddha-nature in the terms set out by two influential Tibetan thinkers, Dolpopa and Gyaltsab; the debate between these thinkers is set in relation to extant discourses of Buddhist ontology, epistemology, and enlightenment within the Tibetan Buddhist scholastic tradition.
Wangchuk, Tsering. "Dolpopa and Gyaltsab Debate Tathāgatagarbha: Two Distinct Interpretations of Buddha-Nature in Tibet." Religion Compass 4, no. 11 (2010): 669–78.
Video
Dorji Wangchuk at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium
Dorji Wangchuk discusses critiques of Buddha-nature theory as non-Buddhist and as opposed to the Buddha's teaching on dependent arising. In particular, he looks at how Rongzom Chökyi Zangpo interprets the tathāgatagarbha theory in relation to the pratītyasamutpāda theory.
Wangchuk, Dorji. "Rong-zom-pa on the Tathāgatagarbha and Pratītyasamutpāda Theories." Paper presented at the University of Vienna Symposium, Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia, Vienna, Austria, July 2019. Video, 45:33. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0slogomESI8.
Video
Filippo Brambilla at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium
Filippo Brambilla examines how a broad range of philosophical views translated to Tsoknyi Gyatso's (1880–1940) position on buddha-nature. On the basis of key passages from two of his major philosophical works, Brambilla argues that Tsoknyi Gyatso sought to harmonize the orthodox perspective of his own (Jonang) tradition on this subject with that of the Gelukpas.
Brambilla, Filippo. "Empty of True Existence, Yet Full of Qualities. Tshogs gnyis rgya mtsho (1880–1940) on Buddha Nature." Paper presented at the University of Vienna Symposium, Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia, Vienna, Austria, July 2019. Video, 41:47. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_1cTYaIFa4g
Book
Freedom From Extremes
What is emptiness? This question at the heart of Buddhist philosophy has preoccupied the greatest minds of India and Tibet for two millennia, producing hundreds of volumes. Distinguishing the Views, by the fifteenth-century Sakya scholar Gorampa Sonam Senge, is one of the most important of those works, esteemed for its conciseness, lucidity, and profundity. Freedom from Extremes presents Gorampa's elegant philosophical case on the matter of emptiness here in a masterful translation by Geshe Lobsang Dargyay.

Gorampa's text is polemical, and his targets are two of Tibet's greatest thinkers: Tsongkhapa, founder of the Gelug school, and Dolpopa, a founding figure of the Jonang school. Distinguishing the Views argues that Dolpopa has fallen into an eternalistic extreme, whereas Tsongkhapa has fallen into nihilism, and that only the mainstream Sakya view—what Gorampa calls "freedom from extremes"—represents the true middle way, the correct view of emptiness. Suppressed for years in Tibet, this seminal work today is widely regarded and is studied in some of Tibet's greatest academic institutions.

Gorampa's treatise has been translated and annotated here by two leading scholars of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy, and a critical edition of the Tibetan text on facing pages gives students and scholars direct access to Gorampa's own words. José Cabezón's extended introduction provides a thorough overview of Tibetan polemical literature and contextualizes the life and work of Gorampa both historically and intellectually. Freedom from Extremes will be indispensable for serious students of Madhyamaka thought. (Source: Wisdom Publications)
Cabezón, José Ignacio, and Geshe Lobsang Dargyay, trans. Freedom From Extremes: Gorampa's "Distinguishing the Views" and the Polemics of Emptiness. Studies in Indian and Tibetan Buddhism. Boston: Wisdom Publications, 2007.
Video
Karl Brunnhölzl: On the Views of Dolpopa, the 3rd Karmapa, and Different Views within the Kagyu School
Brunnhölzl, Karl. "On the Views of Dolpopa, the 3rd Karmapa, and Different Views within the Kagyu School." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, February 26, 2022. Video, 5:43. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLF_ye2wOEg.
Brunnhölzl, Karl. "On the Views of Dolpopa, the 3rd Karmapa, and Different Views within the Kagyu School." Conversations on Buddha-Nature with Lopen Dr. Karma Phuntsho. Produced by the Tsadra Foundation Research Department, February 26, 2022. Video, 5:43. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gLF_ye2wOEg.
Video
Khenpo Ngawang Jorden at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium
Khenpo Ngawang Jorden discusses Gorampa’s interpretation of the concept of buddha-nature presented in his Supplement to the Three Vows. In particular his presentation is focused on Gorampa's refutation of the Jonang view of buddha-nature, as represented by the writings of Dolpopa and his zhentong philosophy.
Jorden, Khenpo Ngawang. "Revisiting Gorampa on Buddha Nature." Paper presented at the University of Vienna Symposium, Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia, Vienna, Austria, July 2019. Video, 45:05. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmhgtw5HwCE.
Video
Klaus-Dieter Mathes at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium
Klaus-Dieter Mathes discusses Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen’s position on Buddha-nature. He describes how his student Zhangtön Sönam Drakpa defends his teacher's position by arguing that one faces eight undesired consequences if one does not strictly differentiate buddha-nature from the ground consciousness.
Mathes, Klaus-Dieter. “Zhang ston Bsod nams grags pa’s Defense of Dol po pa’s Clear-Cut Distinction between Buddha Nature and the Ground Consciousness.” Paper presented at the University of Vienna Symposium, Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia, Vienna, Austria, July 2019. Video, 40:48. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-ALrY63cho.
Book
Le Bouddha du Dolpo
This book is a French translation of Cyrus Stearns's The Buddha from Dolpo: A Study of the Life and Thought of the Tibetan Master Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen.
Stearns, Cyrus. Le Bouddha du Dolpo: Vie et pensée d'un maître tibétain atypique du XIVe siècle initiateur du shèngtong. Traduit de l'anglais par Sylvie Carteron. Saint-Cannat, France: Claire Lumière, 2005.
Video
Michael Sheehy at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium
Michael Sheehy explores the “images of emptiness” or expressions of emptiness in the Kālacakra Tantra. He discusses how these were interpreted by Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen (1292-1361) and his immediate disciples to be direct expressions of tathāgatagarbha.
Sheehy, Michael. "Tantric Zhentong Visions of Tathāgatagarbha in Tibetan Kālacakra Yoga Manuals." Paper presented at the University of Vienna Symposium, Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia, Vienna, Austria, July 2019. Video, 46:01. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fm7z5pR1EGA.
Book
Mountain Doctrine: Tibet's Fundamental Treatise on Other-Emptiness and the Buddha-Matrix
Translated here for the first time into any language, Mountain Doctrine is a seminal fourteenth-century Tibetan text on the nature of reality. The author, Dol-bo-ba Shay-rap-gyel-tsen was one of the most influential figures of that dynamic period of doctrinal formulation, and his text is a sustained argument about the buddha-nature, also called the matrix-of-one-gone-thus. Dol-bo-ba recognizes two important types of emptiness—self-emptiness and other-emptiness—and shows how other-emptiness is the actual ultimate truth. He justifies this controversial formulation by arguing that it was the favored system of all the early outstanding figures of the Great Vehicle. The translator's introduction includes a short biography of Dol-bo-ba and an exposition of nine focal topics in his religious philosophy. (Source: Shambhala Publications)
Hopkins, Jeffrey, trans. Mountain Doctrine: Tibet's Fundamental Treatise on Other-Emptiness and the Buddha Matrix. By Döl-bo-ba Shay-rab-gyel-tsen (Dol po pa shes rab rgyal mtshan). Edited by Kevin Vose. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications, 2006.
Article
On the Commentary on the Ratnagotravibhāga by Dol po pa
I refer to the commentary on the Dharmadhātustava by Dol po pa Shes rab rgyal mtshan (l292-1361) in the last volume of this Journal'"`UNIQ--ref-00000265-QINU`"' and make it clear that this text is one of the important texts for him to establish the theory of other-emptiness (gzhan stong) or the great Madhyamaka (dbu ma chen po) in the Jo nang pa'"`UNIQ--ref-00000266-QINU`"' Though it is not so cited as the five Treatises of Maitreya, he seems to acknowledge the reason why he must depend on it. Though the authorship of Nāgārjuna is doubted on the ground of reference to the tathāgatagarbha idea, this is convenient for Dol po pa who wants to establish the great Madhyamaka mixed the Madhyamaka idea with the Yogācāra idea or the tathāgatagarbha idea. That is to say, he uses it in order to prove that the idea of tathāgatagarbha is also taught in the Mādhyamika literature of Nāgārjuna.
      Then which text does he depend on to establish his original idea? As the Ratnagotravibhāga is cited most frequently in his bDen gnyis gsal ba'i nyi ma"`UNIQ--ref-00000267-QINU`"', it seems to be the most important text in his great Madhyamaka. I consider his commentary on the Ratnagotravibhāga"`UNIQ--ref-00000268-QINU`"' attributed to Maitreya here'"`UNIQ--ref-00000269-QINU`"'. (Mochizuki, introduction, 111)
Mochizuki, Kaie. "On the Commentary on the Ratnagotravibhāga by Dol po pa." Indogaku Bukkyōgaku Kenkyū [Journal of Indian and Buddhist Studies] 57, no. 3 (2009): 111–18. https://www.jstage.jst.go.jp/article/ibk/57/3/57_KJ00005488021/_pdf/-char/en
Article
Other-Emptiness in the Jonang School: The Theo-logic of Buddhist Dualism
In this essay I aim to clarify the meaning of other-emptiness in the Jonang (jo nang) tradition of Buddhism of Tibet. It focuses on the writings of Dölpopa (dol po pa shes rab rgyal mtshan) (1292–1361), the renowned forefather of this tradition. Dölpopa famously differentiated two types of emptiness, or two ways of being empty—self-emptiness (rang stong) and other-emptiness (gzhan stong)—and proclaimed the superiority of the latter. (Duckworth, introduction, 485)
Duckworth, Douglas S. "Other-Emptiness in the Jonang School: The Theo-logic of Buddhist Dualism." Philosophy East and West 65, no. 2 (2015): 485–97. https://sites.temple.edu/duckworth/files/2013/07/duckworth_other-emptiness-and-theo-logic.pdf.
Video
Sina Joos at the 2019 Tathāgatagarbha Symposium
Sina Joos discusses the ways in which Tāranātha utilizes the famous nine examples from the Ratnagotravibhāga in his Dbu ma theg mchog to assert his understanding of buddha-nature as zhentong (other-emptiness). She also compares Tāranātha’s position on Buddha-nature to Dolpopa's own view.
Joos, Sina. "The Role of the Ratnagotravibhāga in Tā ra nā tha’s dBu ma theg mchog." Paper presented at the University of Vienna Symposium, Tathāgatagarbha Across Asia, Vienna, Austria, July 2019. Video, 40:46. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxn5XgPGnSU.
Book
The Buddha from Dolpo (2010)
The Buddha from Dölpo is a revised and enlarged edition of the only book about the most controversial Buddhist master in the history of Tibet, Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen (1292-1361), who became perhaps the greatest Tibetan expert of the Kālacakra, or Wheel of Time, a vast system of tantric teachings. Based largely on esoteric Buddhist knowledge from the legendary land of Shambhala, Dölpopa's insights have profoundly influenced the development of Tibetan Buddhism for more than 650 years.

Dölpopa emphasized two contrasting definitions of the Buddhist theory of emptiness. He described relative phenomena as "empty of self-nature," but absolute reality as only "empty of other," i.e., relative phenomena. He further identified absolute reality as the buddha nature, or eternal essence, present in all living beings. This view of an "emptiness of other," know in Tibetan as shentong, is Dölpopa's enduring legacy.

The Buddha from Dölpo contains the only English translation of three of Dölpopa's crucial works. A General Commentary on the Doctrine is one of the earliest texts in which he systematically presented his view of the entire Buddhist path to enlightenment. The Fourth Council and its Autocommentary (which was not in the first edition of this book) were written at the end of his life and represent a final summation of his teachings. These translations are preceded by a detailed discussion of Dölpopa's life, his revolutionary ideas, earlier precedents for the shentongview, his unique use of language, and the influence of his theories. The fate of his Jonang tradition, which was censored by the central Tibetan government in the seventeenth century but still survives, is also examined. (Source: Shambhala Publications)
Stearns, Cyrus. The Buddha From Dolpo: A Study of the Life and Thought of the Tibetan Master Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen. Tsadra Foundation Series. Ithaca, NY: Snow Lion Publications, 2010. First published 1999 by State University of New York Press.
Book
The Other Emptiness: Rethinking the Zhentong Buddhist Discourse in Tibet
This book brings together perspectives of leading international Tibetan studies scholars on the subject of zhentong or “other-emptiness.” Defined as the emptiness of everything other than the continuous luminous awareness that is one’s own enlightened nature, this distinctive philosophical and contemplative presentation of emptiness is quite different from rangtong—emptiness that lacks independent existence, which has had a strong influence on the dissemination of Buddhist philosophy in the West. Important topics are addressed, including the history, literature, and philosophy of emptiness that have contributed to zhentong thinking in Tibet from the thirteenth century until today. The contributors examine a wide range of views on zhentong from each of the major orders of Tibetan Buddhism, highlighting the key Tibetan thinkers in the zhentong philosophical tradition. Also discussed are the early formulations of buddhanature, interpretations of cosmic time, polemical debates about emptiness in Tibet, the zhentong view of contemplation, and creative innovations of thought in Tibetan Buddhism. Highly accessible and informative, this book can be used as a scholarly resource as well as a textbook for teaching graduate and undergraduate courses on Buddhist philosophy. (Source: SUNY Press)
Sheehy, Michael R., and Klaus-Dieter Mathes, eds. The Other Emptiness: Rethinking the Zhentong Buddhist Discourse in Tibet. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2019.
PhD Diss
Wangchuk, Tsering: The Uttaratantra in the Age of Argumentation: Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen and His Fourteenth-Century Interlocutors on Buddha-Lineage
This dissertation examines the intellectual history of the Uttaratantra in Tibet from the 12th century to the early 15th century. It is between these centuries that the text, which is one of the most authoritative works on the notion of tathāgata-essence, takes its shape in Tibet through the writings of some of the most formidable Tibetan thinkers of the time.
Wangchuk, Tsering. "The Uttaratantra in the Age of Argumentation: Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen and His Fourteenth-Century Interlocutors on Buddha-Lineage." PhD diss., University of Virginia, 2009.
Book
The Uttaratantra in the Land of Snows
With its emphasis on the concept of buddha-nature, or the ultimate nature of mind, the Uttaratantra is a classical Buddhist treatise that lays out an early map of the Mahāyāna path to enlightenment. Tsering Wangchuk unravels the history of this important Indic text in Tibet by examining numerous Tibetan commentaries and other exegetical texts on the treatise that emerged between the eleventh and fifteenth centuries. These commentaries explored such questions as: Is the buddha-nature teaching found in the Uttaratantra literally true, or does it have to be interpreted differently to understand its ultimate meaning? Does it explicate ultimate truth that is inherently enlightened or ultimate truth that is empty only of independent existence? Does the treatise teach ultimate nature of mind according to the Cittamātra or the Madhyamaka School of Mahāyāna? By focusing on the diverse interpretations that different textual communities employed to make sense of the Uttaratantra, Wangchuk provides a necessary historical context for the development of the text in Tibet. (Source: SUNY Press)
Wangchuk, Tsering. The Uttaratantra in the Land of Snows: Tibetan Thinkers Debate the Centrality of the Buddha-Nature Treatise. Albany: State University of New York Press, 2017.
Article
Tāranātha's "Twenty-One Differences with Regard to the Profound Meaning"
For a short but brilliant analysis of the positions of Dol po pa and Śākya mchog Idan we are very much indebted to the Jonang master Tāranātha, who is considered to be a follower and proponent of Dol po pa's doctrine. In each of the Twenty-one Differences with regard to the Profound Meaning a fictive initial statement of Śākya mchog Idan is followed by a similarly fictive reply of Dol po pa, Tāranātha being, of course, well aware of the fact that this is all ahistorical.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000203-QINU`"' To be sure, it is not possible to establish Śākya mchog ldan's or Dol po pa's views on the basis of this short text alone, but it does sharpen our awareness of the subtle aspects of gźan stoṅ when studying the bulky and often not very systematic works of these masters. Furthermore, critically evaluating these doctrinal differences against the background of pertinent Indian texts in such traditions as the Madhyamaka, Yogācāra and Tathāgatagarbha promises to be a second interesting task. Both are, however, beyond the scope of this paper. Such an evaluation will, however, be undertaken with regard to the different presentations of trisvabhāva as an example of how one might proceed.
      Tāranātha begins his somewhat delicate task of comparing the two masters Dol po pa and Śākya mchog ldan in a conciliating manner, by explaining that both supposedly see what is profound reality and hence should not have different thoughts about it. It is only in order to accommodate the different needs of their disciples that they enunciate variant views. Even though the essential gźan stoṅ view and meditation practices of both masters are the same, there are a lot of minor differences regarding tenets (grub mtha') that arise when formulating the view on the level of apparent truth.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000204-QINU`"'
      The first four of the twenty-one points address differences in the exegesis of the Madhyamaka and Maitreya texts which are considered to be commentaries on the Buddha's intention underlying the second and third turnings of the "Wheel of the Dharma" (dharmacakra).'"`UNIQ--ref-00000205-QINU`"' Points 5-8 embody Śākya mchog ldan's and Dol po pa's different understanding of non-dual wisdom. In points 9-16, their views on the trisvabhāva theory are distinguished. In a related topic, Tāranātha also elaborates the different understandings of self-awareness (point 11), entities and non-entities, and conditioned and unconditioned phenonema (all in point 13). Next, our attention is drawn to different ways of relating the four noble truths with the apparent and ultimate (point 17). The last four points deal with the two masters' views on the Buddha-nature. (Mathes, "Tāranātha's 'Twenty-One Differences with Regard to the Profound Meaning'," 294–95)

Read more here . . .
Mathes, Klaus-Dieter. "Tāranātha's 'Twenty-One Differences with Regard to the Profound Meaning': Comparing the Views of the Two Gźan Stoṅ Masters Dol po pa and Śākya mchog ldan." Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies 27, no. 2 (2004): 285–328. https://journals.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/index.php/jiabs/article/view/8952/2845.
Video
Which Tibetans Wrote about Buddha-Nature? by Karl Brunnhölzl
Karl Brunnhölzl discusses the various Tibetan figures who addressed and wrote about buddha-nature teachings and the Uttaratantra. Among the Tibetans he mentions include: the Third Karmapa Rangjung Dorje; Dölpopa; Tāranātha; the Eighth Karmapa Mikyö Dorje; Gyaltsap Je Darma Rinchen; Jamgön Kongtrul; Mipam Gyamtso; Longchenpa; Gö Lotsāwa; and Śākya Chokden.
Brunnhölzl, Karl. “Which Tibetans Wrote about Buddha-Nature?” Interview by Marcus Perman. Tsadra Foundation Research Department, December 3, 2018. Video, 6:58. https://youtu.be/wWzrtDltUwE.
Text
Dölpopa Sherab Gyaltsen: Mountain Dharma: An Ocean of Definitive Meaning
Dolpopa's seminal work considered to be the most definitive philosophical treatise of the Jonang tradition. It became famous as the crucial source for the presentation of his view of other-emptiness (zhentong).

Philosophical positions of this person

Is buddha-nature considered definitive or provisional?
Definitive 
Do all beings have buddha-nature?
  Yes


"The crucial stanza [RGV] I.27, in which the three reasons for the presence of a buddha nature in sentient beings are presented, is thus explained in the following way: Since the dharmakāya of the perfect buddha embraces and pervades all phenomena, since there is no differentiation [to be made] within the dharmatā concerning all samsāra and nirvāna, and since the potential of the tathāgata exists in all sentient beings as the natural purity of the dharmadhātu, which can be purified of hindrances, truly every being possesses, always, continuously, and throughout beginningless time, the ultimate essence of the Buddha." Mathes, K., A Direct Path to the Buddha Within, p. 82.

Click for more on this topic
To which "turning of the wheel" do the buddha-nature teachings belong?
Third Turning 
Is buddha-nature equated with emptiness or alayavijnana?
  

Dolpopa has a unique view on this issue as Wangchuk points out:

  • "Dölpopa argues the following: (1) Cittamātra is categorized into Conventional Cittamātra (kun rdzob pa'i sems tsam) and Ultimate Cittamātra (don dam pa'i sems tsam); (2) Cittamātra must not be conflated with Vijnānavāda; (3) Madhyamaka is grouped into Madyamaka without Appearance (snang med dbu ma) and Madhyamaka with Appearance (snang bcas dbu ma). His Mahäyäna doxography differs significantly from that of other fourteenth-century Tibetan scholars." Wangchuk, Tsering, The Uttaratantra in the Land of Snows, p. 47.
  • It seems that the simple answer is that Dolpopa espoused Great Madhyamaka (dbu ma chen mo) or Madhyamaka with Appearance (snang bcas dbu ma), which is equivalent to Ultimate Cittamātra (don dam pa'i sems tsam). See Wangchuk, Tsering, The Uttaratantra in the Land of Snows, pp. 49-50.
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Do buddha-nature teachings belong to the zhentong or rangtong view of emptiness?
  Zhentong

He was not the first to use the term, but he was the one to define and make it a central feature of his innovative philosophical position:

  • "According to traditional Tibetan accounts, the revolutionary theory that the ultimate is not "empty of an own-being” (rang stong) but “empty of other” (gzhan stong) arose in Dölpopas mind during a Kālacakra retreat at Jonang. Lhai Gyaltsen informs us that Dölpopas realization was connected with the Kālacakratantra and the construction of the great stūpa in Jonang, which was consecrated in 1333. One of the first works in which Dölpopa expressed his new zhentong understanding of the Buddhist doctrine was his famous Ri chos nges don rgya mtsho. His last major work was the Bka bsdu bzhi pa (Bka' bsdu bzhi pa'i don bstan rtsis chen po, The Great Reckoning of the Doctrine That Has the Significance of a Fourth Council), which can be seen as a final summary of Dölpopas views." Mathes, K., A Direct Path to the Buddha Within, p. 75.
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Are there one or three vehicles on the path to buddhahood?
 
Do the author's writings belong to the analytic or meditative tradition of Uttaratantra exegesis?
 
What is Buddha-nature?
  Tathāgatagarbha as the Emptiness That is an Implicative Negation (with enlightened qualities)

"He typically describes both buddha nature and the dharmakāya as being ultimately really established, everlasting, eternal, permanent, immutable (ther zug), and being beyond dependent origination. He also equates the tathāgata heart with “ālaya-wisdom” as opposed to the ālaya-consciousness." Brunnhölzl, K., When the Clouds Part, p. 68.

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Does the author advocate the Svatantrika or Prasangika view of emptiness?
 

Other names

  • ཤེས་རབ་རྒྱལ་མཚན་ · other names (Tibetan)
  • ཤེས་རབ་མགོན་ · other names (Tibetan)
  • རྟོན་པ་བཞི་ལྡན་ · other names (Tibetan)
  • shes rab rgyal mtshan · other names (Wylie)
  • shes rab mgon · other names (Wylie)
  • rton pa bzhi ldan · other names (Wylie)

Affiliations & relations

  • Jonang · religious affiliation
  • tshul khrims snying po · teacher
  • skyi ston 'jam dbyangs · teacher
  • skyi ston grags pa rgyal mtshan · teacher
  • sa skya slob dpon shes rab bzang po · teacher
  • gzhon nu bzang po · teacher
  • blo gros bstan pa · teacher
  • jo gdan mkhan po bsod nams grags pa · teacher
  • nag 'bum · teacher
  • jo nang chos rje yon gtan rgya mtsho · teacher
  • jo nang lo tsA ba blo gros dpal · student
  • g.yag sde paN chen · student
  • bsod nams rgyal mtshan · student
  • phyogs las rnam rgyal · student
  • sa bzang ma ti paN chen blo gros rgyal mtshan · student
  • 'bri gung lo tsA ba ma Ni ka shrI · student
  • nya dbon kun dga' dpal · student
  • kun spangs chos grags dpal bzang · student
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