Buddha-Nature and a Dialectic of Presence and Absence in the Works of Mi-pham

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|BookToc=* {{i|Abstract i}}
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* {{i|Acknowledgements iii}}
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* {{i|Introduction 1}}
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* {{i|Historical Context 1}}
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* {{i|Monastic Colleges and Buddhist Education 9}}
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* {{i|Epistemology and Negative Dialectics 13}}
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* {{i|Buddha-Nature 15}}
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* {{i|Summary of Contents 18}}
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* {{i|Interpretive Context 24}}
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* {{i|Chapter 1: Buddha-Nature and the Unity of the Two Truths 27}}
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* {{i|Introduction 27}}
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* {{i|Mi-pham's Synthesis 31}}
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* {{i|Two Truths 35}}
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* {{i|Buddha-Nature as the Unity of Appearance and Emptiness 45}}
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* {{i|Buddha-Nature as the Definitive Meaning 56}}
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* {{i|Conclusion 63}}
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* {{i|Chapter 2: Yogācāra, Prāsaṅgika, and the Middle Way 64}}
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* {{i|Introduction 64}}
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* {{i|Middle Way and Mind-Only64}}
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* {{i|Foundations of Yogācāra 67}}
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* {{i|Svātantrika-Prāsaṅgika 73}}
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* {{i|Dialectical Ascent 90}}
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* {{i|Conclusion 99}}
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* {{i|Chapter 3: The Present Absence 101}}
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* {{i|Introduction 101}}
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* {{i|Other-Emptiness in the Jo-nang 102}}
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* {{i|Other-Emptiness and the Nying-ma: Lo-chen Dharma Śrī 115}}
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* {{i|Another Emptiness? Emptiness of Self/Other 122}}
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* {{i|Delineating Phenomena and Suchness 125}}
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* {{i|Delineating Emptiness 135}}
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* {{i|Emptiness as the Unity of Appearance and Emptiness 141}}
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* {{i|Conclusion 149}}
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* {{i|Chapter 4: Buddha—Nature and the Indivisible Ground and Fruition 151}}
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* {{i|Introduction 151}}
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* {{i|Delineating the Views on Buddha-Nature 151}}
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* {{i|Buddha-Nature as Heritage, Buddha-Nature as the Ground 160}}
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* {{i|Delineating Appearance and Reality 170}}
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* {{i|Establishing Buddha-Nature: The Immanent Buddha 180}}
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* {{i|Establishing Appearances as Divine 189}}
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* {{i|Buddha-Nature and a Difference Between Sūtra and Mantra 200}}
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* {{i|Buddha-Nature as the Ground of the Great Perfection 212}}
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* {{i|Conclusion 214}}
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* {{i|Concluding Remarks 216}}
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* {{i|Document 1 221}}
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* {{i|Introduction 221}}
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* {{i|Lion's Roar: Exposition of Buddha-Nature 221}}
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* {{i|1. Stating Other Traditions 224}}
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* {{i|2. Presenting Our Own Authentic Tradition 228}}
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* {{i|1. The Meaning of the First Verse “Because the body of the perfect Buddha is radiant” 228}}
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* {{i|2. The Meaning of the Second Verse “Because suchness is indivisible” 235}}
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* {{i|3. The Meaning of the Third Verse “Because of possessing heritage” 239}}
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* {{i|1. Refuting the View that (the Basic Element) is Truly Established and Not Empty 245}}
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* {{i|2. Refuting the View that (the Basic Element) is a Void Emptiness 247}}
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* {{i|3. Refuting the Apprehension of (the Basic Element) as Impermanent and Conditioned 248}}
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* {{i|Document 2 261}}
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* {{i|Introduction 261}}
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* {{i|Notes on the Essential Points of (Mi-pham's) Exposition (of Buddha-Nature) 261}}
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* {{i|Document 3 272}}
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* {{i|Introduction 272}}
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* {{i|Excerpt from Excerpt from Roar of the Fearless Lion (48.2-97.4) 272}}
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* {{i|1. The Subject of the Extensive Discussion Here, an Explanation of the Progression of Profound Points of the Ground, Path, and Fruition of the Sūtra Perfection Vehicle 273}}
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* {{i|1. The Manner of the Teaching of the Profound Abiding Reality of the Definitive Meaning of the Perfection Vehicle 274}}
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* {{i|1. The Progression of the Wheels of Doctrine which are the Means of Teaching the Definitive Meaning of the Abiding Reality 274}}
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* {{i|1. The Wheels of Doctrine Indicated in the Saṃdhinirmocanasūtra 274}}
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* {{i|1. Presenting Scripture 274}}
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* {{i|2. Establishing the Reason for That Being the Way It Is 279}}
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* {{i|2. The Wheels of Doctrine Indicated in the Dhāraṇīśvararājaparipṛcchā 289}}
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* {{i|1. Presenting Scripture 289}}
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* {{i|2. Establishing (the Reason for That Being) the Way It Is 293}}
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* {{i|3. In Accord with That, the Way They are Indicated in the Nirvāṇa(sūtra) and so forth (75.5) 296}}
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* {{i|1. Presenting Scripture 296}}
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* {{i|1. Presenting Scripture from the Nirvāṇasūtra 296}}
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* {{i|2. Presenting Scripture from the Aṅgulimālīyasūtra 298}}
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* {{i|2. Establishing through Reasoning That Being the Way It Is 300}}
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* {{i|3. An Appended Identification of the Scriptural Collections of Definitive Meaning 306}}
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* {{i|2. The Way that These Commentaries on Buddha’s Viewpoint are Supreme 307}}
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* {{i|Bibliography 313}}
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* {{i|Tibetan Sources 313}}
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* {{i|Non-Tibetan Sources 318}}
 
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Revision as of 15:37, 6 June 2019

Buddha-Nature and a Dialectic of Presence and Absence in the Works of Mi-pham
Dissertation
Dissertation

Abstract

This dissertation addresses the relationship between metaphysical presence and absence (emptiness) in Buddhism through a focus on the Nying-ma tradition as articulated in the works of Mi-pham ( 'ju mi pham rgya mtsho, 1846-1912), a great synthesizer of Buddhist doctrine and Nying-ma philosophy. I draw widely from his writings on Yogācāra, Madhyamaka, and tantra to discuss the significance of an ontological "ground" (gzhi), or Buddha-nature, as the central theme in his overall interpretative scheme. Mi-pham was a prolific writer on a variety of topics, and had a remarkable ability to synthesize diverse strands of thought. The tradition of the Nying-ma is a complex one, and there are many divergent and competing voices that lay claim to the tradition. I will try to present important facets of this central theme in Mi-pham’s philosophy of Nying-ma, and show how he uses a dialectic of presence and absence around which he discusses a unified ground.

Mi-pham was a prominent figure in the Tibetan non-sectarian (ris med) movement in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. He most notably brought esoteric Nying-ma doctrines into conversation with the exoteric scholastic discourses of his day. Mi-pham formulates the Nying-ma tradition of his predecessors Long-chen-pa (klong chen rab 'byam, 1308-1364) and Rong-zom (rong zom chos kyi bzang po, ca. 11th c.) in response to traditions of "other-emptiness," through which he distinguishes his Nying-ma tradition.

Buddha-nature is a theme in Mi-pham's work that has a strong association with tantra in the Nying-ma tradition. His affirmation of the presence of Buddha-nature as intrinsic within the ground of existence shares predominant characteristics of the discourses of tantra in the Nying-ma tradition and, in particular, the Great Perfection (rdzogs chen). The Great Perfection is an antischolastic textual and meditative tradition that consistently evades systematic analysis, and in a fundamental way is antithetical to abstract conceptual determination. Mi-pham creatively formulates the esoteric discourses that have defined the Nying-ma tradition—the Great Perfection and the tantric tradition of the Guhyagarbha—in terms of central exoteric discourses of Buddhism: Buddha-nature, the Middle Way, and Buddhist epistemological systems. This dissertation explores a range of topics within Mi-pham's thought to underscore Buddha-nature and a dialectic of presence and absence as a central thread that runs through his interpretative system.

Citation Duckworth, Douglas S. "Buddha-Nature and a Dialectic of Presence and Absence in the Works of Mi-Pham (mi pham rgya mtsho)." PhD Diss, University of Virginia, 2005.