The Buddhism Of Tibet And The Key To The Middle Way

"The Key to the Middle Way by the Dalai Lama. The Dalai Lama leads the student to the discovery of the true meaning of emptiness. With acute precision, he presents many insights into the nature of emptiness.".

The Dalai Lama lays out the Buddhist approach to matters of faith and devotion that is based on the highest spirit of critical inquiry.

The Buddhism of Tibet consists of four texts, the first two written by the fourteenth Dalai Lama himself and the remaining two chosen by him for Western readers: The Buddhism of Tibet explains the principal topics and central practices of Buddhism. The Key to the Middle Way leads the student to the discovery of the true meaning of emptiness. The Precious Garland by Nagarjuna is famous for its descriptions of the Bodhisattva path of compassion and for its clear, concise analysis of the Buddha`s teaching on emptiness. The Song of the Four Mindfulnesses contains all the essentials of sutra and tantra. It is to be used as a basis for meditations on mindfulness of the guru, altruism, deity yoga and emptiness.

Introduction to the Middle Way presents an adventure into the heart of Buddhist wisdom through the Madhyamika, or "middle way," teachings, which are designed to take the ordinary intellect to the limit of its powers and then show that there is more. This book includes a verse translation of the Madhyamakavatara by the renowned seventh-century Indian master Chandrakirti, an extremely influential text of Mahayana Buddhism, followed by an exhaustive logical explanation of its meaning by the modern Tibetan master Jamgön Mipham, composed approximately twelve centuries later. Chandrakirti's work is an introduction to the Madhyamika teachings of Nagarjuna, which are themselves a systematization of the Prajnaparamita, or "Perfection of Wisdom" literature, the sutras on the crucial but elusive concept of emptiness. Chandrakirti's work has been accepted throughout Tibetan Buddhism as the highest expression of the Buddhist view on the sutra level. With Jamgön Mipham's commentary, it is a definitive presentation of the wisdom of emptiness, a central theme of Buddhist teachings. This book is a core study text for both academic students and practitioners of Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.

The Middle Way is widely accepted to be the pinnacle of the Buddha's profound philosophical approach and the key to understanding the definitive meaning of a vast number of teachings. However, common misconceptions about how emptiness is the ultimate nature of reality can have a significant impact on the degree of profundity that can subsequently be experienced. If our view is limited, our realisation will also be limited. For this reason, as we strive for ultimate freedom, it is vital to clear away both gross and subtle limitations that prevent us from establishing a view capable of penetrating to the deepest levels of truth. In this book, Khentrul Rinpoch shines the vivid light of wisdom on the very subtle distinctions which establish the profound view of the Great Middle Way as propagated within the Jonang tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Rooted in the flawless textual tradition of the Buddha's own teachings and those of the Bodhisattva Kings, this widely misunderstood philosophical system emphasizes the clear distinction between the emptiness of conventional reality and the infinite manifestation of ultimate reality, known as buddha-nature. With this direct and fearless analysis, Rinpoch challenges us to transcend narrow modes of thinking and to discover the limitless potential we each carry within.

Gendun Chopel is considered the most important Tibetan intellectual of the twentieth century. His life spanned the two defining moments in modern Tibetan history: the entry into Lhasa by British troops in 1904 and by Chinese troops in 1951. Recognized as an incarnate lama while he was a child, Gendun Chopel excelled in the traditional monastic curriculum and went on to become expert in fields as diverse as philosophy, history, linguistics, geography, and tantric Buddhism. Near the end of his life, before he was persecuted and imprisoned by the government of the young Dalai Lama, he would dictate the Adornment for Nagarjuna’s Thought, a work on Madhyamaka, or “Middle Way,” philosophy. It sparked controversy immediately upon its publication and continues to do so today. The Madman’s Middle Way presents the first English translation of this major Tibetan Buddhist work, accompanied by an essay on Gendun Chopel’s life liberally interspersed with passages from his writings. Donald S. Lopez Jr. also provides a commentary that sheds light on the doctrinal context of the Adornment and summarizes its key arguments. Ultimately, Lopez examines the long-standing debate over whether Gendun Chopel in fact is the author of the Adornment; the heated critical response to the work by Tibetan monks of the Dalai Lama’s sect; and what the Adornment tells us about Tibetan Buddhism’s encounter with modernity. The result is an insightful glimpse into a provocative and enigmatic workthatwill be of great interest to anyone seriously interested in Buddhism or Asian religions.

Marked by eloquent poetry, vigorous and extensive analysis, and heart instructions on breaking through the veils of confusion to independently experience the true nature of things, The Karmapa’s Middle Way contains the Ninth Karmapa Wangchuk Dorje’s comprehensive commentary on the Indian master Chandrakīrti’s seminal text, the Madhyamakāvatāra, or Entrance to the Middle Way. This commentary, Feast for the Fortunate, is the Ninth Karmapa’s abridgement of the Eighth Karmapa Mikyö Dorje’s masterpiece, the Chariot of the Takpo Kagyü Siddhas. In it, readers will find previously unavailable material on the Karmapas’ Middle Way view and a rare window into a philosophically charged era of Middle Way exposition in Tibetan Buddhism. It includes Chandrakīrti’s root text to the Entrance to the Middle Way and its commentary by the Ninth Karmapa; an introduction detailing the history of the Middle Way, key Middle Way philosophical principles, and the main points of each chapter of the text; an annotated translation of a famous excerpt of Chandrakīrti’s Lucid Words; and other useful appendices and reference materials.