Property:Description
From Buddha-Nature
This is a property of type Text.
The ''Ratnagotravibhāga,'' commonly known as the ''Uttaratantra'', or ''Gyu Lama'' in Tibetan, is one of the main Indian scriptural sources for buddha-nature theory. It was likely composed during the fifth century, by whom we do not know. Comprised of verses interspersed with prose commentary, it systematizes the buddha-nature teachings that were circulating in multiple sūtras such as the ''Tathāgatagarbhasūtra,'' the ''Mahāparinirvāṇasūtra,'' and the ''Śrīmaladevisūtra.'' The Tibetan tradition attributes the verses to the Bodhisattva Maitreya and the commentary to [[Asaṅga]], and treats the two as separate texts, although this division is not attested to in surviving Indian versions. The Chinese tradition attributes the text to *Sāramati (娑囉末底), but the translation itself does not include the name of the author, and the matter remains unsettled. It was translated into Chinese in the early sixth century by [[Ratnamati]] and first translated into Tibetan by [[Atiśa]], although this text is not known to survive. [[Ngok Loden Sherab]] translated it a second time based on teachings from the Kashmiri Pandita [[Sajjana]], and theirs remains the standard translation. It has been translated into English several times, and recently [[Traité de la Continuité suprême du Grand Véhicule|into French]]. See the [[Texts/Ratnagotravibhāgavyākhyā|Ratnagotravibhāgavyākhyā]], read more [[Articles/On the Ratnagotravibhāga|about the Ratnagotravibhāga]], or take a look at the most complete English translation in [[When the Clouds Part]] by [[Karl Brunnholzl]]. +
In the Tibetan tradition, which parses out the root verses and refers to that as the treatise (''bstan bcos'', ''śāstra''), this title references the full text complete with the root verses and the accompanying prose commentary (''rnam par bshad pa'', ''vyākhyā''). While the earlier Chinese tradition attributes authorship of both aspects of the text to the as of yet still mysterious figure of Sāramati, the Tibetan tradition attributes the treatise to the Bodhisattva Maitreya and this commentary to the illustrious founder of the Yogācāra school, Asaṅga. However, unlike the Chinese tradition which delineates different aspects of the text into the basic verses, the commentarial verses, and the prose commentary, the Tibetan tradition actually preserves two separate versions of the text we know as the ''Ratnagotravibhāga''.
The first, made up entirely of the so-called root verses, corresponds to the Sanskrit title ''Ratnagotravibhāga Mahāyānottaratantraśāstra'', though it is usually referenced in this tradition by the Tibetan equivalent of the latter subtitle, ''Theg pa chen po rgyud bla ma'i bstan bcos'', which is commonly rendered into English as the ''Treatise on the Ultimate Continuum of the Great Vehicle'' and is abbreviated as RGV. However, the full title, ''Theg pa chen po rgyud bla ma'i bstan bcos dkon mchog gi rigs rnam par dbye ba'', does appear at the end of each chapter of the canonical Tibetan recensions. Nevertheless, this version is likely a Tibetan redaction, in that thus far there is no evidence of a Sanskrit version written entirely in verse that excludes the commentarial sections that explain them.
The second, which combines the verses with their accompanying prose commentary, corresponds to the *''Ratnagotravibhāgavyākhyā'' as it has become known in academic circles where it is referenced with the abbreviation RGVV. However, in Tibetan the subtitle is merely appended with the equivalent of ''vyākhyā'', i.e. ''Theg pa chen po rgyud bla ma'i bstan bcos rnam par bshad pa'', and thus a translation of the Tibetan title of the complete text would be something akin to the ''Explanatory Commentary on the Treatise on the Ultimate Continuum of the Great Vehicle''. However, the extant Sanskrit recension of the ''Ratnagotravibhāga Mahāyānottaratantraśāstra'' directly corresponds to the Tibetan version known as the ''*Ratnagotravibhāgavyākhyā'', in that it contains both the root verses and the prose commentary. Though, again, lacking a Sanskrit work entitled the ''Ratnagotravibhāgavyākhyā'', we can surmise that its corresponding Tibetan title was likely manufactured in order to delineate it from the streamlined verse redaction, while the Sanskrit title ''*Ratnagotravibhāgavyākhyā'' was in turn a product of modern scholars. On the surface it would seem that this title is a combination of the Chinese title back translated into Sanskrit as the ''Ratnagotraśāstra'' and the one found in the Tibetan editions, which state the Sanskrit title as the ''Mahāyānottaratantraśāstravyākhya''. Nevertheless, in terms of content, the Sanskrit RGV corresponds to the Tibetan RGVV, in that the ''Ratnagotravibhāga Mahāyānottaratantraśāstra'' is the same text as ''Theg pa chen po rgyud bla ma'i bstan bcos rnam par bshad pa''.
Also, see the [[Ratnagotravibhāga_Mahāyānottaratantraśāstra|Ratnagotravibhāga Mahāyānottaratantraśāstra]] and for a recent essay on the text: [[On the Ratnagotravibhāga|On the Ratnagotravibhāga by Alexander Gardner.]]
Texts/Theg pa chen po rgyud bla ma'i bstan bcos kyi 'grel bshad de kho na nyid rab tu gsal ba'i me long +
Gö Lotsāwa Zhönu Pal's commentary to the ''Ratnagotravibhāgavyākhyā'', that presents the text from within the mahāmudrā tradition of [[Maitrīpa]] and [[Gampopa]]. More specifically, as Mathes reports, the author, himself, states in his colophon that "he combined the commentarial tradition of [[Loden Sherab]] with [[Gampopa]]'s and [[Drigung Jigten Sumgön]]'s mahāmudrā interpretation of the ''Ratnagotravibhāga''." (''[[A Direct Path to the Buddha Within]]'', p. 411.) +
The ''Tathāgatagarbhasūtra'' (TGS) is a relatively short text that represents the starting point of a number of works in Indian Mahāyāna Buddhism centering around the idea that all living beings have the buddha-nature. The genesis of the term ''tathāgatagarbha'' (in Tibetan ''de bzhin gshegs pa'i snying po'', in Chinese ''rulai zang'' 如來藏, the key term of this strand of Buddhism and the title of the sūtra), can be observed in the textual history of the TGS. ([[Zimmermann]], ''[[A Buddha Within: The Tathāgatagarbhasūtra]]'', p. 7) +
One of only two extant Sanskrit texts that comment on the ''Uttaratantra'', this highly original work by Sajjana presents a contemplative approach to Maitreya's treatise from an author that was the veritable source for the Tibetan exegetical traditions spawned by his students Ngok Loden Sherab and Tsen Khawoche. +
An important Mahāyāna sūtra that was highly influential in East Asia as well as in Nepal, where a manuscript was discovered that remains the only extant Sanskrit recension of this text. It is notable for its inclusion of many doctrinal features that would come to be associated with the Yogācāra philosophy of Mind-Only (Cittamātra), such as the ālayavijñāna, or store-house consciousness, that acts as a repository for the seeds of karmic actions. It also includes several lengthy discussions of tathāgatagarbha and, though it is never actually referenced in the ''Uttaratantra'', it is often listed among the so-called tathāgatagarbha sūtras. While its lack of mention in the ''Uttaratantra'' has been interpreted by scholars as evidence that the sūtra postdates the treatise, it should be noted that the ways in which the tathāgatagarbha is discussed in the sūtra is often at odds with its presentation in the ''Uttaratantra''. +
An extensive explanatory commentary on the ''the Ultimate Continuum'' by one of the major scholastic voices of the Sakya school. As Bernert states, "Refuting, on one hand, the notion that Buddha-nature is synonymous with mere emptiness, and on the other that the mind is inherently endowed with the Buddha qualities, Rongtön argues for an understanding of Buddha-nature that embraces both aspects of the nature of mind: cognizance and emptiness." (Christian Bernert. [[Perfect or Perfected? Rongtön on Buddha-Nature]], 2018. +
One of the more prominent sūtra sources for the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'', this text tells of the story of Śrīmālādevī taking up the Buddhist path at the behest of her royal parents based on a prophecy of the Buddha. It includes mention of important concepts related to the teachings on buddha-nature, such as the single vehicle and the four perfections, or transcendent characteristics, of the dharmakāya. It also mentions the notion that buddha-nature, which is equated with mind's luminous nature, is empty of adventitious stains but not empty of its limitless inseparable qualities. In his commentary on the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'', Asaṅga quotes this sūtra more than any other source text. In particular, it is considered a source for the fifth of the seven vajra topics, ''enlightenment''. +
The Third Karmapa's treatise on buddha-nature written in verse, which is essentially a synopsis of the ''Uttaratantra''. According to Schaeffer, "This verse text (''De bzhin gshegs pa'i snying po gtan la dbab pa'', or ''De bzhin gshegs pa'i snying po bstan pa'') blends scriptural quotations from both ''sūtra'' and ''tantra'' with Rang byung's own words, creating an evocative picture of the relation between the primordially pure enlightened state- symbolized by the Enlightened Heart (''snying po'')- human existence, and Buddhahood. While Rang byung has relied heavily on the ''Ratnagotravibhāgaśāstra'', (known in Tibet as the ''Uttaratantra'', or ''Rgyud bla ma''), the syncretism of various strands of ''Mahāyāna'' and ''Vajrayāna'' apparent in the text is particular to Tibet. ''Tathāgatagarbha, Madhyamaka, Yogācāra, Mahāmudrā,'' and ''Annuttarayogatantra'' all coalesce in this work, which is a testament to the hundreds of years of appropriation and synthesis of Indian and Tibetan Buddhist thought that preceded it. - [[Kurtis Schaeffer]], from the introduction to ''[[The Enlightened Heart of Buddhahood]]''. +
Kongtrul's commentary on the Third Karmapa's short verse synopsis of the ''Uttaratantra'', ''The Treatise on Pointing Out the Tathāgata Heart''. As he states in the opening of the text:
"The Omniscient Victor spoke about [this Heart] in the collection of the sūtras of the final definitive meaning and in the very profound collection of tantras in an unconcealed and clear way. The illustrious sons of this victor, such as the mighty lords of the tenth bhūmi, the regent Ajita and Avalokiteśvara, as well as the mahāsiddha Saraha and his heirs, noble Nāgārjuna, venerable Asaṅga, and others commented on it as being [the Buddha's] direct and straightforward intention. The way of being of the very profound actuality of this Heart does not fit within the scope of the minds of those who roam the [sphere of] dialectics. It was extensively illuminated by the second mighty sage, Rangjung Dorje, the charioteer who was the first in the land of snow mountains to utter the unassailable great lion's roar of the Heart that is the definitive meaning. The quintessence of all his excellent words is this Treatise on Pointing Out the Tathāgata Heart." +
This text is a lost Yogācāra sūtra. It is preserved only in a few quotes in other Yogācāra texts. +
One of the sūtra sources cited in the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'', especially in relation to the fourth and sixth of the seven vajra topics discussed therein—namely, the teachings on the ''element'', which in this case is a synonym for buddha-nature, and the teachings on the ''qualities''. Though much of it is quoted in the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'', the full text is only extant in a single Chinese translation. +
The main topic of this sūtra is an explanation of how the Buddha and all things share the very same empty nature. Through a set of similes, the sūtra shows how an illusion-like Buddha may dispense appropriate teachings to sentient beings in accordance with their propensities. His activities are effortless since his realization is free from concepts. Thus, the Tathāgata’s non-conceptual awareness results in great compassion beyond any reference point. (Source: [https://read.84000.co/translation/toh100.html 84000: Translating the Words of the Buddha]) +
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''). +
Mipam lays out his view of buddha-nature in a short text called Lion's Roar: Exposition of Buddha-Nature, which draws on another of the five treatises of Maitreya, the Sublime Continuum. Here he presents three main arguments showing why all beings have buddha-nature. He also distinguishes his view of buddha-nature, which he portrays as the unconditioned unity of emptiness and appearance, from other traditions' views. Namely, he contrasts his view with traditions that maintain buddhanature as truly real and not empty (Jonang), traditions that hold buddhanature to be simply the mind's absence of true existence (Geluk), and traditions that maintain that the cognitive quality of buddha-nature—the element that is in unity with emptiness—is impermanent (a Sakya view).
(Source: Duckworth, Douglas. Jamgön Mipham: His Life and Teachings. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2011: p 58.) +
This work details instructions on the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'' that Maitrīpa reportedly received directly from Maitreya in a dream, which he then later retrieved, in actuality, discovering the text concealed within in a stūpa. Mönlam Tsultrim, the attributed Tibetan author of this work that lived centuries later, thus claims that he copied and edited this work from the original manuscript that was passed down in a lineage coming from Maitrīpa, himself. +
One of a series of short texts by the Kadam scholar Kyotön Mönlam Tsultrim, which represent an intersection between the works of Maitreya, particularly the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'', and the practical instructions of Mahāmudrā. +
One of a series of short texts by the Kadam scholar Kyotön Mönlam Tsultrim, which represent an intersection between the works of Maitreya, particularly the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'', and the practical instructions of Mahāmudrā. +
One of a series of short texts by the Kadam scholar Kyotön Mönlam Tsultrim, which represent an intersection between the works of Maitreya, particularly the ''Ratnagotravibhāga'', and the practical instructions of Mahāmudrā. +
Written at Dzamtang, a monastic city in southern Amdo that is the primary institutional base of the Jonang school, this work by the famed Kagyu scholar Jamgön Kongtrul is characterized by Brunnhölzl as "an eclectic blend of what could be called "Kagyü Shentong" (primarily based on Maitrīpa, the Third and Seventh Karmapas, and the Eighth and Ninth Situpas) and "Jonang Shentong" (based on Dölpopa and especially Tāranātha), as well as some elements of Śākya Chogden’s Shentong." +
