''Rangtong'' and ''shentong'' are two
distinctive views on emptiness (
sunyata) and the
two truths doctrine
The Buddhist doctrine of the two truths (Sanskrit: ''dvasatya,'' ) differentiates between two levels of ''satya'' (Sanskrit; Pali: ''sacca''; word meaning "truth" or "reality") in the teaching of the Śākyamuni Buddha: the "conventional" or "p ...
within
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
.
''Rangtong'' (; "empty of self-nature") is a
philosophical
Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...
term in
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
that is used to distinguish the majority Madhyamaka teaching on the meaning of
śūnyatā
''Śūnyatā'' ( sa, शून्यता, śūnyatā; pi, suññatā; ), translated most often as ''emptiness'', ''vacuity'', and sometimes ''voidness'', is an Indian philosophical concept. Within Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and other p ...
or "emptiness", namely that all phenomena are empty of an enduring and/or unchanging essence or "self," and that this emptiness is not an absolute reality, but a mere nominal characterisation of phenomena. It is related to the ''
prasangika'' approach, which argues that no syllogistic forms of reasoning should be used to debate the notion of inherent existence, but only arguments which show the logical implications and absurdity of positions based upon inherent existence. This position is the mainstream Gelugpa interpretation of
Madhyamaka
Mādhyamaka ("middle way" or "centrism"; ; Tibetan: དབུ་མ་པ ; ''dbu ma pa''), otherwise known as Śūnyavāda ("the emptiness doctrine") and Niḥsvabhāvavāda ("the no ''svabhāva'' doctrine"), refers to a tradition of Buddhist ...
, one of the main
Mahayana
''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhist traditions, texts, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BCE onwards) and is considered one of the three main existing bra ...
schools, which dominates
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna ( sa, वज्रयान, "thunderbolt vehicle", "diamond vehicle", or "indestructible vehicle"), along with Mantrayāna, Guhyamantrayāna, Tantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Tantric Buddhism, and Esoteric Buddhism, are names referring t ...
Buddhism.
''Shentong'' (, also transliterated ''zhäntong'' or ''zhentong''; literally "other-emptiness") is a position within Tibetan Madhyamaka. It applies ''śūnyatā'' in a specific way, agreeing that relative reality is empty of self-nature, but stating that absolute reality (''Paramarthasatya'') is "non-dual
Buddhajnana" and "empty" () only of "other," () relative phenomena, but is itself not empty and "truly existing." This absolute reality is described by positive terms, an approach which helps "to overcome certain residual subtle concepts" and "the habit
..of negating whatever experience arises in his/her mind." It destroys false concepts, as does ''prasangika'', but it also alerts the practitioner "to the presence of a dynamic, positive Reality that is to be experienced once the conceptual mind is defeated."
Shentong was systematized and articulated under that name by
Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen
Dölpopa Shérap Gyeltsen () (1292–1361), known simply as Dölpopa, was a Tibetan Buddhist master. Known as "The Buddha from Dölpo," a region in modern Nepal, he was the principal exponent of the shentong teachings, and an influential memb ...
(1292–1361), who identified absolute reality with the
Buddha-nature
Buddha-nature refers to several related Mahayana Buddhist terms, including '' tathata'' ("suchness") but most notably ''tathāgatagarbha'' and ''buddhadhātu''. ''Tathāgatagarbha'' means "the womb" or "embryo" (''garbha'') of the "thus-gone ...
. Shentong was suppressed by the dominant Gelug school for several hundred years, equally for political reasons as doctrinal reasons. In 1658, the
Gelug
file:DalaiLama0054 tiny.jpg, 240px, 14th Dalai Lama, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Kalachakra ceremony, Bodh Gaya, Bodhgaya (India).
The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous ...
authorities banned the
Jonang
The Jonang () is one of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Its origins in Tibet can be traced to early 12th century master Yumo Mikyo Dorje, but became much wider known with the help of Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen, a monk originally trained in the ...
school for political reasons, forcibly converting its
monks
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedicat ...
and monasteries to the Gelug school, as well as banning shentong philosophy and books, thus making the rangtong position the overwhelmingly majority one in Tibetan Buddhism.
After this suppression various shentong views were propagated mainly by
Karma Kagyu
Karma Kagyu (), or Kamtsang Kagyu (), is a widely practiced and probably the second-largest lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage has long-standing monasteries in Tibet, China, Russia, ...
and
Nyingma
Nyingma (literally 'old school') is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and transl ...
lamas. The 19th century saw a revival of Shentong-views, and continued with the
Rimé movement
The Rimé movement is a movement or tendency in Tibetan Buddhism which promotes non-sectarianism and universalism.Sam van Schaik (2011). ''Tibet: A History'', pp. 161-162. Yale University Press. Teachers from all branches of Tibetan Buddhism - ...
. Nowadays Shentong is present primarily as the main philosophical theory of the
Jonang
The Jonang () is one of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Its origins in Tibet can be traced to early 12th century master Yumo Mikyo Dorje, but became much wider known with the help of Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen, a monk originally trained in the ...
school, although it is also taught by the
Sakya
The ''Sakya'' (, 'pale earth') school is one of four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the others being the Nyingma, Kagyu, and Gelug. It is one of the Red Hat Orders along with the Nyingma and Kagyu.
Origins
Virūpa, 16th century. It depic ...
and
Kagyu
The ''Kagyu'' school, also transliterated as ''Kagyü'', or ''Kagyud'' (), which translates to "Oral Lineage" or "Whispered Transmission" school, is one of the main schools (''chos lugs'') of Tibetan (or Himalayan) Buddhism. The Kagyu lineag ...
schools, where it is identified with centerless awareness.
Etymology
The term ''rangtong'' is not an autonym but rather arose from the shentong theorist
Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen
Dölpopa Shérap Gyeltsen () (1292–1361), known simply as Dölpopa, was a Tibetan Buddhist master. Known as "The Buddha from Dölpo," a region in modern Nepal, he was the principal exponent of the shentong teachings, and an influential memb ...
, who coined the term "shentong" to characterise his own teachings and "rangtong" to refer to the teachings he opposed.
''Shentong'' literally means "other-emptiness", "empty" () of "other" (), i.e., empty of all qualities other than its own inherent existence. Yet, the term ''shentong'' also refers to Yogacara teachings, or ''Yogacara Madhyamaka'', which includes the teachings of
Śāntarakṣita
(Sanskrit; , 725–788),stanford.eduŚāntarakṣita (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)/ref> whose name translates into English as "protected by the One who is at peace" was an important and influential Indian Buddhist philosopher, particul ...
. In the Gelugpa understanding of the
Svatantrika-Prasaṅgika distinction, ''Yogacara Madhyamaka'' is labeled as ''svatantrika'', and set against a strict ''prasaṅgika'' approach which rejects any inherent existence.
Another translation of ''shentong'' is "extrinsic emptiness," a term which is also used to refer to "Great Mādhyamaka" (''dbu ma chen po''), a term which has also been used by
Klong chen pa and
Mipham to refer to Prasaṅgika Madhyamaka, and
Tsongkhapa
Tsongkhapa ('','' meaning: "the man from Tsongkha" or "the Man from Onion Valley", c. 1357–1419) was an influential Tibetan Buddhist monk, philosopher and tantric yogi, whose activities led to the formation of the Gelug school of Tibetan Budd ...
has also used this term.
Rangtong
''Rangtong'' is the majority Tibetan teaching on the nature of
śūnyatā
''Śūnyatā'' ( sa, शून्यता, śūnyatā; pi, suññatā; ), translated most often as ''emptiness'', ''vacuity'', and sometimes ''voidness'', is an Indian philosophical concept. Within Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and other p ...
or "emptiness", namely that all phenomena are empty of a self-nature in both the relative and absolute sense, without positing anything beyond that. This position is the mainstream Tibetan interpretation of
Madhyamaka
Mādhyamaka ("middle way" or "centrism"; ; Tibetan: དབུ་མ་པ ; ''dbu ma pa''), otherwise known as Śūnyavāda ("the emptiness doctrine") and Niḥsvabhāvavāda ("the no ''svabhāva'' doctrine"), refers to a tradition of Buddhist ...
, especially by the followers of
Prasaṅgika Mādhyamaka
Mādhyamaka ("middle way" or "centrism"; ; Tibetan: དབུ་མ་པ ; ''dbu ma pa''), otherwise known as Śūnyavāda ("the emptiness doctrine") and Niḥsvabhāvavāda ("the no ''svabhāva'' doctrine"), refers to a tradition of Buddhist ...
.
Tsongkhapa
Tsongkhapa ('','' meaning: "the man from Tsongkha" or "the Man from Onion Valley", c. 1357–1419) was an influential Tibetan Buddhist monk, philosopher and tantric yogi, whose activities led to the formation of the Gelug school of Tibetan Budd ...
(1357–1419), who also wrote in response to ''shentong'', is the most outspoken defendant of ''rangtong''. He saw
emptiness
Emptiness as a human condition is a sense of generalized boredom, social alienation and apathy. Feelings of emptiness often accompany dysthymia, depression, loneliness, anhedonia,
despair, or other mental/emotional disorders, including schizoid ...
as a consequence of dependent designation, the teaching that no ''thing or phenomenon'' has an existence of its own, but always comes into existence in dependence upon conceptual designation by a conscious mind. (See
Designation & "Conventional Truth".)
Tsongkhapa's view on "ultimate reality" is condensed in the sort text ''In Praise of Dependent Arising''
[Alexander Berzin, ''In Praise of Dependent Arising''](_blank)
/ref> c.q. ''In Praise of Relativity''
/ref> c.q. ''The Essence of Eloquency''. It states that "things" ''do'' exist conventionally, but ultimately everything is dependently arisen, and therefore void of inherent existence:
This means that conventionally things ''do'' exist, and that there is no use in denying that. But it also means that ultimately those things have no 'existence of their own', and that cognizing them as such results from cognitive operations, not from some unchangeable essence. Tsongkhapa:
It also means that there is no "transcendental ground," and that "ultimate reality" has no existence of its own, but is the negation of such a transcendental reality, and the impossibility of any statement on such an ultimately existing transcendental reality: it is no more than a fabrication of the mind. Susan Kahn further explains:
Shentong
Philosophy
''Shentong'' views the two truths doctrine
The Buddhist doctrine of the two truths (Sanskrit: ''dvasatya,'' ) differentiates between two levels of ''satya'' (Sanskrit; Pali: ''sacca''; word meaning "truth" or "reality") in the teaching of the Śākyamuni Buddha: the "conventional" or "p ...
as distinguishing between relative and absolute reality, agreeing that relative reality is empty of self-nature, but stating that absolute reality is "empty" () only of "other" () relative phenomena, but is itself not empty. This absolute reality is the "ground or substratum" which is "uncreated and indestructible, noncomposite and beyond the chain of dependent origination." Dolpopa identified this absolute reality with the Buddha-nature.
The shentong-view is related to the Ratnagotravibhāga
The ''Ratnagotravibhāga'' (Sanskrit, abbreviated as RGV, meaning: ''Analysis of the Jeweled Lineage, Investigating the Jewel Disposition'') and its ''vyākhyā'' commentary (abbreviated RGVV to refer to the RGV verses along with the embedded comm ...
sutra and the Yogacara-Madhyamaka synthesis of Śāntarakṣita
(Sanskrit; , 725–788),stanford.eduŚāntarakṣita (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)/ref> whose name translates into English as "protected by the One who is at peace" was an important and influential Indian Buddhist philosopher, particul ...
. The truth of sunyata is acknowledged, but not considered to be the highest truth, which is the empty nature of mind. Insight into sunyata is preparatory for the recognition of the nature of mind.
Hookham explains the Shentong position, referring to her Kagyu teacher Khenpo Tsultrim's ''Progressive Stages of Meditation on Emptiness''. Khenpo Tsultrim presents five stages of meditation, which he relates to five different schools or approaches:
* "Sravaka meditation on non-self" - meditation on the emptiness of the skandhas and the non-existence of a personal self;
* "Cittamatra-approach" - meditation on the mind-stream, the ever-continuing process of perception, and the non-duality of perceived and perceiver;
* "Svatantrika-Madhyamaka approach" - meditation on all dhammas, which are empty of self-nature, and the negation of any "substance";
* "Prasangika-Madhyamaka approach" - meditation on "the non-conceptual (nisprapanca) nature of both the appearance of phenomena and their self-emptiness." In this approach, all concepts are to be abandoned;
* Shentong (Yogacara Madhyamaka) - meditation on ''Paramarthasatya'' ("Absolute Reality"), ''Buddhajnana'', which is beyond concepts, and described by terms as "truly existing." This approach helps "to overcome certain residual subtle concepts," and "the habit - fostered on the earlier stages of the path - of negating whatever experience arises in his/her mind." It destroys false concepts, as does prasangika, but it also alerts the practitioner "to the presence of a dynamic, positive Reality that is to be experienced once the conceptual mind is defeated."
Origins and development
The notion of ''sentong'' grew out the Tibetan attempts to reconcile the contradiction between the Madhyama stance on the emptiness of phenomena, and the later notion of an eternal Buddha-nature
Buddha-nature refers to several related Mahayana Buddhist terms, including '' tathata'' ("suchness") but most notably ''tathāgatagarbha'' and ''buddhadhātu''. ''Tathāgatagarbha'' means "the womb" or "embryo" (''garbha'') of the "thus-gone ...
.
The earliest shentong views are usually asserted to have been presented in a group of treatises variously attributed jointly to Asanga
Asaṅga (, ; Romaji: ''Mujaku'') ( fl. 4th century C.E.) was "one of the most important spiritual figures" of Mahayana Buddhism and the "founder of the Yogachara school".Engle, Artemus (translator), Asanga, ''The Bodhisattva Path to Unsurpassed ...
and Maitreyanātha, especially in the treatise known as the '' Unsurpassed Continuum'' (''Uttaratantraśāstra'', also called the ''Ratnagotravibhāga''), and in a body of Mādhyamaka treatises attributed to Nāgārjuna
Nāgārjuna . 150 – c. 250 CE (disputed)was an Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thinker, scholar-saint and philosopher. He is widely considered one of the most important Buddhist philosophers.Garfield, Jay L. (1995), ''The Fundamental Wisdom of ...
(e.g., the '' Dharmadhātustava'', "In praise of the Dharmadhatu
Dharmadhatu (Sanskrit) is the 'dimension', 'realm' or 'sphere' (dhātu) of the Dharma or Absolute Reality.
Definition
In Mahayana Buddhism, dharmadhātu ( bo, chos kyi dbyings; ) means "realm of phenomena", "realm of truth", and of the noumen ...
").
The first exposition of a shentong view is sometimes attributed to Śāntarakṣita
(Sanskrit; , 725–788),stanford.eduŚāntarakṣita (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)/ref> whose name translates into English as "protected by the One who is at peace" was an important and influential Indian Buddhist philosopher, particul ...
( 725–788), but most scholars argue that his presentation of Madhyamaka thought is more accurately labeled ''Yogācāra-Svātantrika-Madhyamaka''. The eleventh-century Tibetan master Yumo Mikyo Dorje, a student of the Kashmiri scholar Somanatha, was possibly the first Tibetan master to articulate a shentong view, after his experiences during a Kālacakra retreat.
Shentong was systematized and articulated under that name by Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen
Dölpopa Shérap Gyeltsen () (1292–1361), known simply as Dölpopa, was a Tibetan Buddhist master. Known as "The Buddha from Dölpo," a region in modern Nepal, he was the principal exponent of the shentong teachings, and an influential memb ...
(1292–1361), who was originally a Sakya
The ''Sakya'' (, 'pale earth') school is one of four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the others being the Nyingma, Kagyu, and Gelug. It is one of the Red Hat Orders along with the Nyingma and Kagyu.
Origins
Virūpa, 16th century. It depic ...
-trained lama
Lama (; "chief") is a title for a teacher of the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism. The name is similar to the Sanskrit term ''guru'', meaning "heavy one", endowed with qualities the student will eventually embody. The Tibetan word "lama" means "hi ...
, and joined the Jonang
The Jonang () is one of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Its origins in Tibet can be traced to early 12th century master Yumo Mikyo Dorje, but became much wider known with the help of Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen, a monk originally trained in the ...
school with which ''shentong'' is strongly associated. In 1321 Dolpopa visited Tsurphu
Tsurphu Monastery ( or Tölung Tsurphu (, "Tsurphu of Tölong") is a gompa which serves as the traditional seat of the Karmapa, the head of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. It is located in Gurum in Doilungdêqên District, Tibet Auto ...
Monastery for the first time, and had extensive discussions with Rangjung Dorje
Rangjung Dorje () (1284–1339) was the third Karmapa (head of the Karma Kagyu, the largest sub-school of the Kagyu) and an important figure in the history of Tibetan Buddhism, who helped to spread Buddha-nature teachings in Tibetan Buddhism.
Bi ...
(1284–1339) about doctrinal issues. It appears that Rangjung Dorje almost certainly influenced the development of some of Dolpopa's theories, possibly including his shentong method. Dolpopa claimed to have extraordinary insights, and his meditational experience seems to have played a great role in the development of his ''shentong''-stance. Dolpopa developed a new philosophical vocabulary, based on Sanskrit and Tibetan, to express his insights, presenting provisional statements on absolute reality and Buddha-nature as statements of definitive meaning, which didn't require further interpretation.
Chödrak Gyatso, 7th Karmapa Lama (1454–1506), and the Sakya scholar Shakya Chokden (, 1428–1507) were also important proponents of a shentong view. In the Jonang
The Jonang () is one of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Its origins in Tibet can be traced to early 12th century master Yumo Mikyo Dorje, but became much wider known with the help of Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen, a monk originally trained in the ...
tradition, Tāranātha
Tāranātha (1575–1634) was a Lama of the Jonang school of Tibetan Buddhism. He is widely considered its most remarkable scholar and exponent.
Taranatha was born in Tibet, supposedly on the birthday of Padmasambhava. His original name was Ku ...
575–1635is second in importance only to Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen himself. He was responsible for the short-lived renaissance of the school as a whole in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, and of the widespread revitalization of the shentong theory in particular. Tāranātha wrote a commentary on the Heart Sutra which asserts that the Sutra, and prajñāpāramitā, teaches the Shentong view.
After the suppression of the Jonang
The Jonang () is one of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Its origins in Tibet can be traced to early 12th century master Yumo Mikyo Dorje, but became much wider known with the help of Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen, a monk originally trained in the ...
school and its texts and the texts of Shakya Chokden by the Tibetan government in the seventeenth century, various shentong views were propagated mainly by Karma Kagyu
Karma Kagyu (), or Kamtsang Kagyu (), is a widely practiced and probably the second-largest lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage has long-standing monasteries in Tibet, China, Russia, ...
and Nyingma
Nyingma (literally 'old school') is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and transl ...
lamas. In particular, the eighth Tai Situpa
Tai Situpa (; from ) is one of the oldest lineages of tulkus (reincarnated lamas) in the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism In Tibetan Buddhism tradition, Kenting Tai Situpa is considered as emanation of Bodhisattva Maitreya and Guru Padmasambhava ...
(1700–1774) and Katok Tsewang Norbu
Katok Tsewang Norbu (, 1698–1755) was a teacher of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism who notably championed the shentong () or "empty of other" view first popularised by the Jonang school as well as examining the Chan Buddhist teachings of ...
(1698–1755)—Karma Kagyu and Nyingma lamas, respectively, and close colleagues—were very instrumental in reviving shentong among their sects.
Also instrumental was Situ Panchen
Situ Panchen (full name Situ Panchen Chögyi Jungney) (1700–1774), also known as the 8th Tai Situ Rinpoche, was an influential Tibetan painter, writer and medical innovator as well as a notable figure in the histories of Karma Kagyu and the ...
(1700–1774), senior court chaplain in the Kingdom of Derge
The Kingdom of Derge was an important Monarchy, kingdom in Kham from the 15th to the 19th century. It was a center of industry, religion and politics, with the seat of its kingdom in the town of Dêgê County, Degé. The kings of Derge followed a ...
, a student of Katok Tsewang Norbu. "In the end it would be Situ more than anyone who would create the environment for the widespread acceptance of the Shentong theories in the next century. This revival was continued by Jamgon Kongtrul
Jamgön Kongtrül Lodrö Thayé (, 1813–1899), also known as Jamgön Kongtrül the Great, was a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, poet, artist, physician, tertön and polymath.Jackson, Roger R. The Tibetan Leonardo, 2012, https://www.lionsroar.com/the ...
, a nineteenth-century ecumenical
Ecumenism (), also spelled oecumenism, is the concept and principle that Christians who belong to different Christian denominations should work together to develop closer relationships among their churches and promote Christian unity. The adjec ...
(''rimé'') scholar and forceful exponent of shentong. shentong views were also advanced recently by the eminent Kagyu Lamas Kalu Rinpoche
Kalu Rinpoche (1905 – May 10, 1989) was a Buddhist lama, meditation master, scholar and teacher. He was one of the first Tibetan masters to teach in the West.
Early life and teachers
Kalu Rinpoche was born in 1905 during the Female Woo ...
and Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso Rinpoche
Khenpo Tsültrim Gyamtso Rinpoche () is a prominent scholar yogi in the Kagyu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. He teaches widely in the West, often through songs of realization, his own as well as those composed by Milarepa and other masters of the ...
.
Criticisms and repression
Shentong views have often come under criticism by followers of all four of the main Tibetan Buddhist schools, but particularly by the Gelug
file:DalaiLama0054 tiny.jpg, 240px, 14th Dalai Lama, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Kalachakra ceremony, Bodh Gaya, Bodhgaya (India).
The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous ...
. Shentong was suppressed by the dominant Gelug school for several hundred years, equally for political reasons as doctrinal reasons. In 1658, the Gelug
file:DalaiLama0054 tiny.jpg, 240px, 14th Dalai Lama, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Kalachakra ceremony, Bodh Gaya, Bodhgaya (India).
The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous ...
authorities banned the Jonang school for political reasons, forcibly converting its monks
A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedicat ...
and monasteries to the Gelug school, as well as banning shentong philosophy and books, thus making the rangtong position the overwhelmingly majority one in Tibetan Buddhism.
"Exclusive Rangtongpas", as the contemporary western Kagyu
The ''Kagyu'' school, also transliterated as ''Kagyü'', or ''Kagyud'' (), which translates to "Oral Lineage" or "Whispered Transmission" school, is one of the main schools (''chos lugs'') of Tibetan (or Himalayan) Buddhism. The Kagyu lineag ...
scholar S. K. Hookham would call them, have claimed that shentong views are inconsistent with the basic Mahāyāna
''Mahāyāna'' (; "Great Vehicle") is a term for a broad group of Buddhism, Buddhist traditions, Buddhist texts#Mahāyāna texts, texts, Buddhist philosophy, philosophies, and practices. Mahāyāna Buddhism developed in India (c. 1st century BC ...
teaching of emptiness
Emptiness as a human condition is a sense of generalized boredom, social alienation and apathy. Feelings of emptiness often accompany dysthymia, depression, loneliness, anhedonia,
despair, or other mental/emotional disorders, including schizoid ...
, because Shentongpas posit an absolute. They sometimes label ''shentong'' Madhyamaka "eternalistic Madhyamaka."
The great fourteenth-century Sakya master Buton Rinchen Drub (1290–1364) was very critical of shentong views. Gyaltsab Je
Gyaltsab Je () (1364 – 1432) or more elaborately, Gyaltsab Dharma Rinchen was born in the Tsang province of central Tibet. He was a famous student of Je Tsongkhapa, and actually became the first Ganden Tripa (throne holder) of the Gelug tradition ...
and Khedrup Gelek Pelzang, 1st Panchen Lama
Khedrup Gelek Pelzang, 1st Panchen Lama (1385–1438 CE) – better known as Khedrup Je – was one of the main disciples of Je Tsongkhapa, whose reforms to Atiśa's Kadam tradition are considered the beginnings of the Gelug ...
, two of Gelug founder Je Tsongkhapa's primary disciples, were also particularly critical of the shentong views of their time.
Among Kagyupas and Nyingma
Nyingma (literally 'old school') is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and transl ...
pas, the noted nineteenth-century Nyingma lama Jamgon Ju Mipham Gyatso wrote works both supportive and critical of shentong positions, as did Mikyö Dorje, 8th Karmapa Lama
Mikyö Dorje (, 1507–1554) was the eighth Karmapa, head of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism.
Biography
Mikyö Dorje was born in Satam, Kham. According to the legend, he said after being born: "I am Karmapa." and was recognized by Tai Sit ...
.
Scholarly studies
According to Burchardi, limited attention is given in academic studies to the various interpretations of ''gzhan stong''.
The contemporary western Kagyu scholar Karl Brunnhölzl argues that there is no such thing as "shentong Madhyamaka," but rather that orthodox Yogācāra
Yogachara ( sa, योगाचार, IAST: '; literally "yoga practice"; "one whose practice is yoga") is an influential tradition of Buddhist philosophy and psychology emphasizing the study of cognition, perception, and consciousness through t ...
philosophy (when understood properly) is entirely compatible with Madhyamaka, and therefore shentong is not a novel position. He argues that Yogācāra has often been mischaracterized and unfairly marginalized in Tibetan Buddhist curricula.
See also
* Nondualism
Nondualism, also called nonduality and nondual awareness, is a fuzzy concept originating in Indian philosophy and religion for which many definitions can be found, including: nondual awareness, the nonduality of seer and seen or nondiffer ...
Notes
References
Citations
Works cited
*
*
*
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Further reading
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External links
{{external links, date=October 2022
* Nigel Wellings (2009),
Is there anything there? – the Tibetan Rangtong Shentong debate
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* Adele Tomlin (2018),
The Shentong View of Emptiness – A Short Introduction and Reader
*Alexander Berzin
''Self-Voidness and Other Voidness''
* ttp://ccbs.ntu.edu.tw/FULLTEXT/JR-PHIL/need.htm Scholarly disquisition on ''The Buddha Within''
Buddha-nature
Jonang
Tibetan Buddhist philosophical concepts