Rgya Mtsho Research Articles

Scriptures Cited in Dol po pa’s Commentary on the <i>Abhisamayālaṃkāra</i>

The validity of the hypothesis that the Ri chos nges don rgya mtsho was written previous to Dol po pa’s commentary on the Abhisamayālaṃkāra can be evaluated based on the scriptures cited in the two works. This paper thus examines Dol po pa’s commentary. The cited scriptures are divided into three groups: （A） Prajñāpāramitā sūtras and the associated commentary literature including the Abhisamayālaṃkāra; （B） the five works attributed to Maitreya and their commentaries; and （C） others. Among the scriptures belonging to C, the titles that are cited or referred to multiple times are limited, and among them Mañjuśrīkīrti’s Brief Explanation of His Own Opinion and Nāgārjuna’s Dharmadhātustava are taken up. Compared with the quoted portion in the Ri chos nges don rgya mtsho, there were not many references in common between the two, and no definitive facts were found to support the original hypothesis.

Birth of a Tibetan Buddhist Master, Part 2: Auspicious Signs and Events at the Birth of the Seventh Karma pa, Chos grags rgya mtsho (1454–1506)

This paper deals with accounts of miraculous and auspicious signs and events as an aspect of the secret level in life stories (rnam thar) of Tibetan Buddhist masters and traces these patterns back to the life story of Buddha Śākyamuni, as well as to Vajrayana symbolism. An annotated translation, analysis, and edition of a so-far untranslated section of the rnam thar of the Seventh Karma pa from the Chos ‘byung mkhas pa’i dga’ ston are provided.

Translating the Cult of the Book: Publishing and Performing the Fifth Dalai Lama’s The Wish-Fulfilling King from Lhasa to Beijing

Abstract In 1673 the Fifth Dalai Lama, Ngawang Lobzang Gyatso (Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho, 1617–1682) composed The Wish-Fulfilling King (Yid bzhin dbang rgyal), a ritual manual for the worship of the seven buddhas of healing. In the first hundred years after its composition, the Fifth Dalai Lama’s ritual text was published in the original Tibetan in no less than five different woodblock editions. It had also been translated into Mongolian and Chinese and published in several woodblock editions in those languages. Most of these woodblock editions were produced by imperially sponsored Tibetan Buddhist temples in Beijing. The ritual described in the text was performed in monasteries and temples across central Tibet, Mongolia, and in Beijing. This article examines the history of this text, its transmission, and what those tells us about the culture of Tibetan Buddhist books in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, particularly as they relate to the Mayāyāna ‘cult of the book.’

Incest, Classified

Abstract The prohibition on incest, a topic so key to kinship studies, has not featured prominently in literature on Tibet. This article draws attention to a previously unreported section of writing devoted to the topic of incest, composed by the Tibetan ‘prime minister’ Sangye Gyatso (Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, 1653–1705), one of the principal architects of the Tibetan state. Sangye Gyatso sets out what purports to be a threefold classification of incest, traditional to Tibet, and considers how aspects of it are to be interpreted. The present article focuses on some of the significant issues raised by this piece. Among these are questions about the context and circumstances of its appearance, the status of incest as a category in historical Tibet, and the place of religious and state authority in the social domain.

The first generation of dGe lugs evangelists in Amdo. The case of ’Dan ma Tshul khrims rgya mtsho (1578-1663/65)

This article studies and contextualizes a recently discovered biography of one of the earliest dGe lugs evangelists in Amdo, ’Dan ma Tshul khrims rgya mtsho (1578-1663/65). The life of ’Dan ma exemplifies important aspects of the dGe lugs school during its period of contest with other Buddhist schools (particularly the Karma bKa’ brgyud school) and before the establishment of the Dalai Lama’s dGa’ ldan pho brang government. In particular, it reflects a tendency among dGe lugs pas of this period toward ecumenism, retreat, and tantra, which stands in contrast to the mature dGe lugs school of large-scale institutions, discipline, and philosophy. It also demonstrates the importance of dGe lugs lamas other than the Fifth Dalai Lama (born only in 1617) for the spread of the dGe lugs school in Amdo and beyond.

Tibetan Buddhist masters between two lives: a closer look at the genre of bar do’i rnam thar using the example of the Seventh Karma pa, Chos grags rgya mtsho (1454–1506)

This paper sets out to provide an overview of the little-researched genre of bar do’i rnam thar – an account of the experience of the intermediate state between two incarnations by Tibetan Buddhist masters. Representatives of this genre are identified, and the state of research and translation is summarised. This paper contributes to this field of research by providing an annotated translation, analysis, and critical edition of the so-far untranslated bar do’i rnam thar of the Seventh Karma pa from the mKhas pa’i dga’ ston.

Conceptualization of “Taking the Essence” (bcud len) as Tantric Rituals in the Writings of Sangye Gyatso: A Tradition or Interpretation?

Chülen (bcud len), the practice of “taking the essence”, is an important practice within the Tibetan medical tradition. Through nourishing the body with the so-called depleted “essence”, not only can one extend their lifespan but the practitioner can also restore their physical vitality. In recent years, this practice seems to be shifting away from the traditional religious mode of chülen involving tantric practices and rituals. Among the Tibetan medical literature, chülen is much emphasized in its religious aspects in the two important 17th century Tibetan medical commentaries on the Four Tantras (Rgyud bzhi) by the regent of the Fifth Dalai Lama, Desi Sangye Gyatso (Sde srid sangs rgyas rgya mtsho, 1653–1705): the Blue Beryl (Vaiḍūrya sngon po) and the Extended Commentary on the Instructional Tantra of the Four Tantras (Man ngag lhan thabs). Both texts are considered to be the most significant commentaries to the Four Tantras and have exerted a momentous impact on the interpretation of the Four Tantras even up to recent times. In their chapters on chülen, an assortment of chülen practices can be found. While there are some methods solely involving the extraction of essence in the material sense, there are also some in the spiritual-alchemical sense which are not observed in the Four Tantras. In this paper, I focus on the elaboration of the Four Tantras by Sangye Gyatso via his portrayal of ritualistic chülen in his two commentaries, where the tantric mode of promoting longevity and rekindling vitality is made efficacious by the operative socio-religious factors of his era, and which still exert their effect on our perception of chülen today.

Faeces and the Old Sole of a Shoe: Remedies of the Dreckapotheke

Abstract In Tibetan horse medicine, the so-called Dreckapotheke remedies were very commonly an added ingredient in the preparation of remedies. In traditional Tibetan medicine, the medical ingredients are classified according to their origin. A category called Dreckapotheke however does not exist and there is no direct equivalent in the Tibetan language for this term. Nevertheless, Tibetan medicine identifies many ingredients that can be categorised as such, among these excrement, dirt and filth. Many of these that are introduced here are not used these days, and may never have been at all. The analysis of how this type of medicine is described in the Tibetan texts in this article is divided into several sections. After a general introduction to these types of ingredients, I provide a short description of the manuscripts on Tibetan horse medicine that survey diseases and treatments. This is followed by a survey of the Dreckapotheke remedies as outlined in chapter twenty of the most authoritative Tibetan text on human medicine, the Four Tantras (rGyud bzhi) with its commentary by the regent of the Fifth Dalai Lama Sanggye Gyatso (Sangs rgyas rgya mtsho). The main part of the article describes the use of these substances as found in the texts on horse medicine. I introduce its use in the German tradition, discuss the origin of these remedies and the naming of the ingredients. This article provides the basis for further research on the Dreckapotheke remedies.

ラサン=ハンによる新ダライ=ラマ六世ガワン=イェシェー=ギャムツォ擁立の背景 : ラサン=ハンと青海ホシュート部首長層の抗争との関連から

ラサン=ハンによる新ダライ=ラマ六世ガワン=イェシェー=ギャムツォ擁立の背景 : ラサン=ハンと青海ホシュート部首長層の抗争との関連から

Non-Representational Language in Mipam’s Re-Presentation of Other-Emptiness

This essay probes the discourses of other-emptiness in the Jonang (jo nang) and Nyingma (rnying ma) traditions. After briefly introducing other-emptiness in Jonang, the locus classicus for other-emptiness in Tibet, I contrast the way Mipam (‘ju mi pham rgya mtsho, 1846–1912) positions the discourse of other-emptiness in his interpretative system. I then demonstrate how Mipam’s portrayal of other-emptiness highlights the way he uses a perspectival means to incorporate a diversity of seemingly contradictory claims that he uses to support his view of ultimate reality as indeterminate. It is argued that an implication of his view is a non-representational account of language about the ultimate.

Two Models of the Two Truths: Ontological and Phenomenological Approaches

Mipam (‘ju mi pham rgya mtsho, 1846–1912), an architect of the Nyingma (rnying ma) tradition of Tibet in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, articulates two distinct models of the two truths that are respectively reflected in Madhyamaka and Yogācāra Buddhist traditions. The way he positions these two models sheds light on how levels of description are at play in his integration of these traditions. Mipam positions one kind of two-truth model as the product of an ontological analysis while another model can be seen as resulting from a phenomenological reduction. He accommodates both models into his systematic interpretation, and for him, each one has an important role to play in coming to understand the nature of the Buddhist truths of emptiness and Buddha-nature. Since each model reflects a different style of analysis, or a different perspective on truth, his presentation reveals how neither model alone has the last word on the nature of what is and how it is experienced. This paper analyzes the means by which he lays out these two models of the two truths, and explores the implications of their integration in his philosophical works. A primary concern for Mipam, and a factor that guides his attempt to integrate these two approaches to truth, is his aim to both induce authentic experience and true knowledge on the one hand, and represent reality and the experience of it on the other. These competing and complimentary objectives are a central focus around which both styles of critical reflection, and both models of the two truths, revolve.

The Rhetoric of War in Tibet: Toward a Buddhist Just War Theory

This article analyzes the rhetoric that the Fifth Dalai Lama Ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho (1617-1682) employs to describe various forms of violence. In particular, I explore the justifications he offers or implies for various types of violence to which he seems to grant his approval. I focus on his 1643 Song of the Queen of Spring, written immediately after a broad-ranging war that culminated in his own ascent to political rule over Tibet. Concentrating on his assessment of Gushri Khan, the Mongolian strongman responsible for installing the Dalai Lama in power, I conclude that the Dalai Lama attempts to legitimize Gushri Khan's violence by representing the khan as a transcendent agent of benefit, a bodhisattva whose own goodness permits him to perform actions that would be condemned if performed by a less exalted actor.

Review of Jeffrey Hopkins’, Mountain Doctrine: Tibet’s Fundamental Treatise on Other-Emptiness and the Buddha Matrix

Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsan (Dolpopa shes rab rgyal mtshan) (1292–1361), known simply as Dolpopa, was the main proponent of the other-empty (gzhan stong) doctrine in Tibet. He was an extraordinary scholar and had multiple high-level realisations during his meditation practice, including the realization of four branches from the six-branch yoga of the Kālacakra-tantra. The seminal text for which Dolpopa is best known is his fundamental treatise called the ‘Mountain Doctrine’ (Ri chos nges don rgya mtsho), which for the first time is now translated into English by Jeffrey Hopkins. This translation of Dolpopa’s Mountain Doctrine is a significant contribution to the field of other-emptiness studies since the available translated literature is minimal. Dolpopa was also an extremely important commentator in the Tibetan tradition because he was one of the few figures who really investigated and commented upon this doctrine. The study of Dolpopa’s life and prolific and influential writing has the potential to dramatically expand the doctrine of other-emptiness in the field of Madhyamaka philosophy. Furthermore, this translation provides a significant explanation of Dolpopa’s controversial philosophical views. In differentiating his view of emptiness from that of the self-empty school, Dolpopa says that there are two types of emptiness, self and other. He states that other-emptiness is the ultimate truth that comes from the final and most definitive of the Buddha’s three cycles of teachings. The teachings of the self-empty school, which are from the second turning, are SOPHIA (2008) 47:71–74 DOI 10.1007/s11841-008-0045-8

Pratityasamutpada as Explained by Tsong kha pa in the Rigs Pa'i rgya mtsho, chapter I

Pratityasamutpada as Explained by Tsong kha pa in the Rigs Pa'i rgya mtsho, chapter I

The Fifth Dalai Lama's Decree Appointing Sangs-Rgyas Rgya-Mtsho as Regent

In 1679 the Fifth Dalai Lama issued a decree appointing Sangs-rgyas rgya mtsho to conduct the administration of secular affairs on his behalf in the post usually known as that of regent. The decree, sealed with the imprint of the Dalai Lama's hands, is inscribed in the Potala on a wall opposite the steep triple stair leading down to the great eastern courtyard called Bde-yangs-shar. It is referred to in the third volume of the autobiography of the Dalai Lama (Du-ku-la III, fol. 128a) and in the Vaidurya ser-po composed by Sangs-rgyas rgya-mtsho in 1698 (VSP, p. 360); but the complete text does not appear to have been published in any Tibetan or western work. The copy transcribed below is derived mainly from a photograph kindly given me by Ernst Krause who accompanied Dr. Ernst Schaefer to Lhasa in 1939. As can be seen in the reproduction in plate I the last two lines are obscured by a wooden frame protecting the Dalai Lama's hand-prints and for that passage I am indebted to the Tibetan scholar and author, Tsipon W. D. Shakabpa.