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Emptiness in the Mind-Only School of Buddhism: Dynamic Responses to Dzong-ka-ba's The Essence of Eloquence: Volume 1 (Philip E. Lilienthal Books) (v. 1)

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This critical analysis and translation of the Cittamatra portion of Dzong-ka-ba's Essence of Elloquence is an astonishing work both for its depth and the skill with which Professor Hopkins negotiates this extremely difficult material. The material, while difficult, repays the effort of engagement richly. The root text is reknown in the Ge-lug school of Tibetan Buddhism as the most important text for understanding the key doctrine of emptiness as well as being crucial to understanding the interpretation of sutra and Ge-lug presentations of tenets. Yet few can master it for its cryptic brevity and the multitude of interpretive dilemas it poses. This work includes a translation of the Cittamatra section of the Essence of Eloquence along with a commentary by Professor Hopkins, reflecting the opinions of western scholars and nearly two dozen Tibetan commentaries. Also included is an emmended edition of the translated portion of the text. The portion translated presents Dzong-ka-ba's view of the Mind-Only school, based on a careful reading of the seventh chapter of the Samdhinirmocana Sutra. Dzong-ka-ba also considers other interpretations of the same sutra, especially those of the Indian proponent of Cittamatra, Asanga, and the Tibetan founder of the Jo-nang sect, Shey-rap-gyel-tsen. Dzong-ka-ba's text thus becomes the doorway to a lively, complex, and compelling debate with voices speaking from Sutra, the Indian and Tibetan commentarial traditions, the current Tibetan scholarship, and western scholarship. Professor Hopkins begins to make sense of the complex material, which will be examined in further detail in the forthcoming two volumes of this series. For those who wish to find a technical discussion of the philosophical issues raised by this text, this translation will be of greater service than that published already by Robert Thurman in The Central Philosophy of Tibet. Due to the difficulty involved in reading this material, this is something that I certainly welcome.

The first volume is in four parts:

A historical and doctrinal introduction
A translation of the General Explanation and the Section on the Mind-Only School in The Essence of Eloquence with frequent annotations in the brackets, footnotes, and backnotes
A detailed synopsis of the translation
A critical edition in Tibetan script of these sections in The Essence of Eloquence

The second volume, Reflections on Reality, will:

Place reactions to Tsongkhapa's text in historical and social context by examining the tension between allegiance and rational inquirer in monastic colleges
Expand on the religious significance of the three natures of phenomena
Present Jonangpa views on the thoroughly established nature and Gelukpa criticisms
Explain the reasonings establishing mind-only as means to overcome basic dread of reality, and
Consider how Tsongkhapa and his commentators present the provocative issue of the relationship between the two types of emptiness in the Mind-Only School and compare how the topic of two emptinesses is debated today in America, Europe, and Japan, thereby demonstrating how the two forms of scholarship refine and enhance each other.

The third volume, Absorption in No External World, will examine a plethora of fascinating points on the three natures raised in six centuries of commentary through:

Identifying the teachings in the first wheel of doctrine,
Probing the meaning of "own-character" and "established by way of its own character,"
Untangling the implications of Tsongkhapa's criticisms of Wongchuk, and treating many engaging points on the three natures and the three non-natures, including 1) how to apply these two grids to uncompounded space; 2) whether the selflessness of persons is a thoroughly established nature; 3) how to consider the emptiness of emptiness; and 4) the ways the Great Vehicle schools delineate the three natures and the three non-natures.

Hopkins guides us through difficult terrain with an expertise that confers a clear sense of direction and a deeper understanding of The Essence of Eloquence.

See the companion volumes: Reflections on Reality: The Three Natures and Non-Natures in the Mind-Only School: Dynamic Responses to Dzong-ka-ba's The Essence of Eloquence, Volume 2 and Absorption in No External World: 170 Issues in Mind Only Buddhism (Dynamic Responses to Dzong-Ka-Ba's the Essence of Eloquence)