Customer Reviews

The Great Perfection (Rdzogs Chen): A Philosophical and Meditative Teaching of Tibetan Buddhism (Asian Studies)

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

If you are looking for a book on how to implement Dzogchen, look elsewhere. This book is very scholarly and takes an historical perspective. It also includes some translations of short ancient texts supporting the Dzogchen claims of antiquity and association with Tibetan Buddhism. But it DOES have some very interesting observations. For instance, you might accept the much repeated views of the Buddhist Kings of Tibet regarding religion as well as the claim that Buddhism is a peaceful and tolerant religion. Not the case points out this author. He backs up his assertions with lots of reference material too. Apparently, for example, one of the much touted Buddhist kings fanatically persecuted the Bonpos. I think this book is worth ploughing through to rectify some of the highly colored views one can easily reach after reading lots of Tibetan authors. You can also read Donatella Rossi's wonderful "The Philosophical View of the Great Perfection in the Tibetan Bon Religion (1559391294) which is presented somewhat similarly and references this work by Karmay.

The Great Perfection (rDzogs chen in Tibetan) is a philosophical and meditative teaching. Its inception is attributed to Vairocana, one of the first seven Tibetan Buddhist monks ordained at Samye in the eight century A.D. The doctrine is regarded among Buddhists as the core of the teachings adhered to by the Nyingmapa school whilst similarly it is held to be the fundamental teaching among the Bonpos, the non-Buddhist school in Tibet.

After a historical introduction to Tibetan Buddhism and the Bon, the author deals with the legends of Vairocana (Part I), analysing early documents containing essential elements of the doctrine and comparing them with the Ch'an tradition. He goes on to explore in detail the development of the doctrine in the tenth and eleventh centuries A.D. (Part II). The Tantric doctrines that play an important role are dealt with, as are the rDzogs chen theories in relation to the other major Buddhist doctrines. Different trends in the rDzogs chen tradition are described in Part III. The author has drawn his sources mainly from early unpublished documents which throw light on the origins and development, at the same time also using a variety of sources which enabled him to explicate the crucial position which the doctrine occupies in Tibetan religions.