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The Great Tibetan Translator

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Abstract

Second only to the famous Rin chen bzang po (958–1055) in receiving the title of a "Great Translator" (lo chen) during the period of the "Later Propagation" (phyi dar) of Buddhism in Tibet, rNgog lo tsā ba Blo ldan shes rab (or rNgog lo) was one of the most influential figures in the establishment of Tibetan Buddhist scholasticism. After having devoted seventeen years of his life to the study of Sanskrit under scholars in Kashmir, India and Nepal, he became renowned for his more than fifty painstaking translations and revisions of Buddhist scriptures. Apart from being the foremost Tibetan translator of works on Buddhist logic and epistemology (Pramāṇa), rNgog lo’s activities as a commentator and teacher are regarded as fundamental for the later development of this field of learning in Tibet, and his tradition came to be well-known in Tibetan literature as the "rNgog tradition" (rngog lugs). This book presents a detailed examination of rNgog lo's life based on the available Tibetan accounts, including his biography (rnam thar) written by Gro lung pa Blo gros 'byung gnas (fl. late 11th to 12th c.). Annotated translations of great parts from the latter work (one of the earliest surviving examples of the rnam thar genre, possibly unique regarding its complicated and elegant style) are included in the book. rNgog lo's oeuvre as a translator and writer is dealt with in detail, making the book an important source on this hitherto little studied scholar and his tradition. (Source Accessed July 24, 2020)

Citation	Kramer, Ralf. The Great Tibetan Translator: Life and Works of rNgog Blo ldan shes rab (1059–1109). Collectanea Himalayica 1. Munich: Indus Verlag, 2007. https://epub.ub.uni-muenchen.de/6834/1/Kramer_Ralf_2007.pdf.

ContentsSources

• Foreword9

Part One: Introductory Matter

• 1 Bibliographical Considerations15
  • 1.1 Non-Tibetan Works of Modern Scholarship15
  • 1.2 Tibetan Sources on rNgog Io's Life24
    • 1.2.1 Pre-20 th-Century Accounts25
    • 1.2.2 Tibetan Works of Modern Scholarship28
• 2 The Main Events of rNgog Io's Life: A Biographical Sketch31

2.1 Birth and Youth in Tibet (1059- 1076) ..................................... 31 2.2 Travels and Studies Abroad (1076-ca. 1092) ............................ 38 2.3 Final Years and Death in Tiber (ca. 1092- 1109) ....................... 42 3 rNgog lo 's Work as a Transfator.. ... ... .. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. ... ... ... ... ... ... ... .. 45 3.1 Tibetan Translators: Some General Remarks ............................. 45 3.2 Works T ranslared or Revised by rN gog lo................................. 51 3.2.1 T ranslarions in the bKa' 'gyur ............................................ 53 3.2.2 Translations in the bsTan 'gyur .......................................... 54 3.2.3 Uncertain Cases................................................................. 68 4 Gro lung pa's Biography of rlVgog lo: Some Remarks on Author a;,d Text ..... ·............................................................................ 71 4.1 Author ...................................................................................... 71 4.2 Text .......................................................................................... 73 Part Two: T ranslation 5 Partial Translation of rlVgog lo 's Biography by Gro lu11gpa................... 81 (Including:) A List of rNgog Io's Translations .................................. 103 A List of rNgog Io's Works ........................................... 109 Colophons .................................................................... 114 Appendices Appmdix 011e: Canonical Texts Traw fated or Revised by rlVgog lo ........... 121 1. 1 Translations in the bKa' 'gyur ................................................... 121

1.2 Translations in the bs Tan 'gyur ................................................. 121 1.3 Uncertain Cases ........................................................................ 122 Appmdix Two: rlVgogl os Trawlatio11C ol/,aboratorGs roupedA ccording to Counuy of Origin ....................................................... 124 2.1 Kashmiris .................................................................................. 124 2.2 Indians ...................................................................................... 124 2.3 Nepalese ................................................................................... 125 2.4 Tibetans .................................................................................... 125 2.5 Country of Origin Uncertain .................................................... 125 Appmdix Three: Two Lists of rNgog lo s Works ........................................ 126 3.1 The List of Bu ston Rin chen grub (1290- 1364) ...................... 126 3.2 The List of gSer mdog pa1_c1h en Shakya mchog ldan (1428- 1507) ............................................................................. 126 Appmdix Four: Canonical Quotations i11 Gro lu11gpas Biography of rNgog lo ......................................................................... 128 4.1 Abhidharmakofa (Vasubandhu ) ................................................. 128 4.2 Abhisamaydla7?1kdr(aM aitreya[natha]) ....................................... 129 4.3 Bodhicarydvatdra (Santideva) ..................................................... 129 4.4 Madhyamakahrdaya (Bhavya) .................................................... 130 4.5 Rat11agotravibhag(aM aitreya[natha]) ......................................... 131 4.6 Suhrllekha (Nagarjuna) .............................................................. 131 Appmdix Five: Text of the BiographyR eproducedfr om the Xylograph. ....... 132 Abbreviations and Bibliograp hy Abbreviatio11.s.. ...................................................................................... 151 Bibliography.. ......................................................................................... 152 Tibetan Primary Sources ................................................................... 152 Tibetan Secondary Sources ............................................................... 155 Sources in Other Languages .............................................................. 156 lndex ..................................................................................................... 170 Sanskrit Works ................................................................................. 170 Personal Names ................................................................................ 171 General Index ................................................................................... 175

A xylograph of the source work can be found on pgs 132-147. This same printing is found on BDRC attributed to a different author, whom the translator regards as merely the author of an addendum to the original work by gro lung pa blo gros 'byung gnas. See:

1. shes rab seng ge. 'jig rten mig gcig blo ldan shes rab kyi rnam thar. N.p.:n.p., 2000?.

pramāṇa - In the Buddhist literature on pramāṇa, it refers to cognition that correctly apprehends its object without any deception or mistake. Such correct cognition include direct perception and inferential cognition. Skt. प्रमान Tib. ཚད་མ། Ch. 量

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