Tsongkhapa ('','' meaning: "the man from
Tsongkha
Tsongkha (), also known as Qingtang () and Gusiluo (), was a Tibetan theocracy that ruled northeastern Tibet from 997 to 1104.
History
In 997 the elders of Amdo found a descendant of the Yarlung dynasty in Gaochang by the name of Qinanling Wen ...
" or "the Man from Onion Valley",
c. 1357–1419) was an influential
Tibetan Buddhist
monk
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 dedica ...
,
philosopher and
tantric yogi
A yogi is a practitioner of Yoga, including a sannyasin or practitioner of meditation in Indian religions.A. K. Banerjea (2014), ''Philosophy of Gorakhnath with Goraksha-Vacana-Sangraha'', Motilal Banarsidass, , pp. xxiii, 297-299, 331 Th ...
, whose activities led to the formation of the
Gelug
240px, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Bodhgaya (India).
The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous")Kay, David N. (2007). ''Tibetan and Zen Buddhism in Britain: Transplantati ...
school of
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 ...
.
[Tsong khapa (2006), pp. ix-x.] He is also known by his ordained name Losang Drakpa (,
Skt. Sumatikīrti) or simply as "Je Rinpoche" (, "Precious Lord").
He is also known by Chinese as Zongkapa Lobsang Zhaba or just Zōngkàbā (宗喀巴).
Tsongkhapa was born in
Amdo
Amdo ( am˥˥.to˥˥ ) is one of the three traditional Tibetan regions, the others being U-Tsang in the west and Kham in the east. Ngari (including former Guge kingdom) in the north-west was incorporated into Ü-Tsang. Amdo is also the ...
, the son of a Tibetan Longben Tribal leader who also once served as an official of the
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan dynasty (), officially the Great Yuan (; xng, , , literally "Great Yuan State"), was a Mongol-led imperial dynasty of China and a successor state to the Mongol Empire after its division. It was established by Kublai, the fift ...
.
As a monk, he studied under numerous teachers of the various Tibetan Buddhist traditions which flourished in
central Tibet
Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object.
Central may also refer to:
Directions and generalised locations
* Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...
, including
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 ...
,
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 ...
,
Kagyu and
Kadam.
Tsongkhapa was a prolific author with a broad knowledge of
Buddhist philosophy
Buddhist philosophy refers to the philosophical investigations and systems of inquiry that developed among various schools of Buddhism in India following the parinirvana of The Buddha and later spread throughout Asia. The Buddhist path combin ...
, logic,
hermeneutics
Hermeneutics () is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts. Hermeneutics is more than interpretative principles or methods used when immediate ...
and
practice. He wrote numerous works on
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 Buddhi ...
philosophy (such as ''Ocean of Reasoning,'' a commentary on the ''
Mūlamadhyamakakārikā
The ''Mūlamadhyamakakārikā'' ( sa, मूलमध्यमककारिका, ''Root Verses on the Middle Way''), abbreviated as ''MMK'', is the foundational text of the Madhyamaka school of Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophy. It was compose ...
''),
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 br ...
practice (such as ''
Lamrim Chenmo''), and
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 ...
(''Great Exposition of Secret Mantra''). His philosophical works are mainly a synthesis of the
Buddhist epistemological tradition of
Dignāga
Dignāga (a.k.a. ''Diṅnāga'', c. 480 – c. 540 CE) was an Indian Buddhist scholar and one of the Buddhist founders of Indian logic (''hetu vidyā''). Dignāga's work laid the groundwork for the development of deductive logic in India and ...
and
Dharmakīrti
Dharmakīrti (fl. c. 6th or 7th century; Tibetan: ཆོས་ཀྱི་གྲགས་པ་; Wylie: ''chos kyi grags pa''), was an influential Indian Buddhist philosopher who worked at Nālandā.Tom Tillemans (2011)Dharmakirti Stanfor ...
and the
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 Buddhi ...
philosophy of
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 ...
and
Candrakīrti
Chandrakirti (; ; , meaning "glory of the moon" in Sanskrit) or "Chandra" was a Buddhist scholar of the madhyamaka school and a noted commentator on the works of Nagarjuna () and those of his main disciple, Aryadeva. He wrote two influential w ...
.
[Tsong khapa (2006), pp. ix-xii.][Sparham, Gareth]
"Tsongkhapa"
''The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' (Fall 2017 Edition), Edward N. Zalta (ed.).
According to John Powers, Tsongkhapa's work "contains a comprehensive view of
Buddhist philosophy
Buddhist philosophy refers to the philosophical investigations and systems of inquiry that developed among various schools of Buddhism in India following the parinirvana of The Buddha and later spread throughout Asia. The Buddhist path combin ...
and practice that integrates
sutra and
tantra
Tantra (; sa, तन्त्र, lit=loom, weave, warp) are the esoteric traditions of Hinduism and Buddhism that developed on the Indian subcontinent from the middle of the 1st millennium CE onwards. The term ''tantra'', in the Indian ...
, analytical
reason
Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, ...
ing, and yogic
meditation
Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...
."
Guy Newland
Guy Martin Newland (born 1955) is a scholar of Tibetan Buddhism who has been a professor at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Michigan since 1988. He served as Chairperson of Central Michigan University's Department of Philosophy an ...
describes Tsongkhapa's philosophical approach as one in which combines the existence and validity of
logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...
and
ethics
Ethics or moral philosophy is a branch of philosophy that "involves systematizing, defending, and recommending concepts of right and wrong behavior".''Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' The field of ethics, along with aesthetics, concer ...
(conventionally and contingently) with "a radical view 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 ...
" which sees all phenomena as devoid of
intrinsic nature.
[Newland 2009, p. 8.]
According to
Jay L. Garfield
Jay Lazar Garfield (born 13 November 1955) is an American professor of philosophy who specializes in Tibetan Buddhism. He also specializes on the philosophy of mind, cognitive science, epistemology, metaphysics, philosophy of language, ethics, and ...
, Tsongkhapa also held that it was necessary to develop a
correct view of the true nature of reality, and that to do this one had to engage in rigorous study, reasoned analysis and contemplation (alongside of
meditation
Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique – such as mindfulness, or focusing the mind on a particular object, thought, or activity – to train attention and awareness, and achieve a mentally clear and emotionally calm ...
).
As Garfield notes, this view of emptiness is not a kind of
nihilism or a total denial of existence, instead, it sees phenomena as existing "
interdependently,
relationally, non-
essentially,
conventionally" (which Tsongkhapa terms "mere existence").
Biography
Early years and studies
With a
Mongolian father and a
Tibetan mother, Tsongkhapa was born into a
nomad
A nomad is a member of a community without fixed habitation who regularly moves to and from the same areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and trader nomads. In the twentieth century, the po ...
ic family in the walled city of Tsongkha in
Amdo
Amdo ( am˥˥.to˥˥ ) is one of the three traditional Tibetan regions, the others being U-Tsang in the west and Kham in the east. Ngari (including former Guge kingdom) in the north-west was incorporated into Ü-Tsang. Amdo is also the ...
,
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa, Taman ...
(present-day
Haidong
Haidong (; Wylie: Haitung) is a prefecture-level city of Qinghai province in Western China. Its name literally means "east of the (Qinghai) Lake." On 8 February 2013 Haidong was upgraded from a prefecture () into a prefecture-level city. Haido ...
and
Xining
Xining (; ), alternatively known as Sining, is the capital of Qinghai province in western China and the largest city on the Tibetan Plateau.
The city was a commercial hub along the Northern Silk Road's Hexi Corridor for over 2000 years, and w ...
,
Qinghai
Qinghai (; alternately romanized as Tsinghai, Ch'inghai), also known as Kokonor, is a landlocked province in the northwest of the People's Republic of China. It is the fourth largest province of China by area and has the third smallest po ...
) in 1357.
Tsongkhapa was educated in Buddhism from an early age by his first teacher, the
Kadam monk Choje Dondrub Rinchen. Tsongkhapa became
novice monk at the age of six.
When he was sixteen, Tsongkhapa traveled to
Central Tibet (Ü-Tsang), where he studied at the scholastic institutions of the Sangphu monastery, the
Drikung Kagyu
Drikung Kagyü or Drigung Kagyü ( Wylie: 'bri-gung bka'-brgyud) is one of the eight "minor" lineages of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. "Major" here refers to those Kagyü lineages founded by the immediate disciples of Gampopa (1079-1153) w ...
and 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 ...
tradition of
Sakya paṇḍita (1182–1251).
At the Drikung Thil Monastery he studied under Chenga Chokyi Gyalpo, the great patriarch of
Drikung Kagyu
Drikung Kagyü or Drigung Kagyü ( Wylie: 'bri-gung bka'-brgyud) is one of the eight "minor" lineages of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. "Major" here refers to those Kagyü lineages founded by the immediate disciples of Gampopa (1079-1153) w ...
, and received teachings on numerous topics like
Mahamudra
Mahāmudrā (Sanskrit: महामुद्रा, , contraction of ) literally means "great seal" or "great imprint" and refers to the fact that "all phenomena inevitably are stamped by the fact of wisdom and emptiness inseparable". Mahāmudr ...
and the
Six Dharmas of Naropa
The Six Dharmas of Nāropa (, Skt. ''ṣaḍdharma'', "Naro's six doctrines" or "six teachings"), are a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practices compiled by the Indian mahasiddhas Tilopa and Nāropa (1016-1100 CE) and passed on to t ...
.
Tsongkhapa also studied
Tibetan medicine
Traditional Tibetan medicine (), also known as Sowa-Rigpa medicine, is a centuries-old traditional medical system that employs a complex approach to diagnosis, incorporating techniques such as pulse analysis and urinalysis, and utilizes behavior ...
and then all the great Buddhist scholastic subjects including
abhidharma
The Abhidharma are ancient (third century BCE and later) Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic presentations of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist ''sutras''. It also refers to the scholastic method itself as well as the f ...
, ethics, epistemology (Sk. ''
pramāṇa''),
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 ...
and various lineages of
Buddhist tantra.
Tsongkhapa studied widely under numerous teachers from various Tibetan Buddhist traditions.
[Crystal Mirror VI : 1971, Dharma Publishing, page 464, 0-913546-59-3] His main teachers include: the Sakya masters Rendawa and Rinchen Dorje, the Kagyu master Chenga Rinpoche and 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 ...
masters Bodong Chakleh Namgyal, Khyungpo Hlehpa and Chokyi Pelpa.
Tsongkhapa also received all of the three main Kadampa lineages. He received the Lam-Rim lineage, and the oral guideline lineage from the Nyingma Lama, Lhodrag Namka-gyeltsen; and he received the lineage of textual transmission from Lama Umapa.
Rendawa Zhönnu Lodrö was Tsongkhapa most important teacher. Under Rendawa, Tsongkhapa studied various classic works, including the ''
Pramanavarttika'', the ''
Abhidharmakosha'', the ''
Abhidharmasamuccaya'' and the ''
Madhyamakavatara''.
Tsongkhapa also studied with a
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 ...
teacher, Drupchen Lekyi Dorje (), also known as Namkha Gyaltsen (, 1326–1401).
During his early years, Tsongkhapa also composed a few original works, including the ''Golden Garland'' (), a commentary on the ''
Abhisamayālaṃkāra'' from the perspective of the Yogācāra-svātantrika-madhyamaka tradition 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 ...
which also attempts to refute the
shentong
''Rangtong'' and ''shentong'' are two distinctive views on emptiness ( sunyata) and the two truths doctrine within Tibetan Buddhism.
''Rangtong'' (; "empty of self-nature") is a philosophical term in Tibetan Buddhism that is used to distinguis ...
views of
Dolpopa
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).
[Ngawang Samten/Garfield. ''Ocean of Reasoning''. OUP 2006, page x]
Retreats and visions of Mañjuśrī
250px, A depiction of Tsongkhapa communing with Mañjuśrī bodhisattva
From 1390 to 1398, Tsongkhapa engaged in extended meditation retreats (with a small group of attendants) in various locations (the most well known of which is in the Wölkha Valley).
[Tsong khapa (2006), p. xi.] He also developed a close relationship with a mystic and hermit named Umapa Pawo Dorje, who was known for his connection to
Mañjuśrī
Mañjuśrī (Sanskrit: मञ्जुश्री) is a ''bodhisattva'' associated with '' prajñā'' (wisdom) in Mahāyāna Buddhism. His name means "Gentle Glory" in Sanskrit. Mañjuśrī is also known by the fuller name of Mañjuśrīkumārab ...
bodhisattva and who had frequent visions of black Mañjuśrī with whom he would communicate. Umapa acted as a
medium
Medium may refer to:
Science and technology
Aviation
*Medium bomber, a class of war plane
*Tecma Medium, a French hang glider design
Communication
* Media (communication), tools used to store and deliver information or data
* Medium of ...
for Tsongkhapa, who eventually began having his own visions of Mañjuśrī.
During this period of extensive meditation retreat, Tsongkhapa had numerous visions of guru Mañjuśrī (''Jamyang Lama''). During these visions he would receive teachings from the bodhisattva and ask questions about the right view of emptiness and about Buddhist practice. An important instruction which Tsongkhapa is said to have received about the view from Mañjuśrī is:
"It is inappropriate to be partial either to emptiness or to appearance. In particular, you need to take the appearance aspect seriously."[Jinpa 2019, pp. 103-107.]
Tsongkhapa would also discuss these visions and instructions with his teacher Rendawa (and some record of this correspondence has survived). During this period, Tsongkhapa is also said to have received a series of oral transmissions from Mañjuśrī. These later came be called the Mañjuśrī cycle of teachings.
In 1397 while in intensive meditation retreat at Wölkha Valley, Tsongkhapa writes that he had a “major insight” (''ngeshé chenpo'') into the view of emptiness.
[Jinpa 2019, pp. 157-187] Initially Tsongkhapa had a dream of the great madhyamaka masters (Nagarjuna,
Buddhapalita,
Aryadeva
Āryadeva (fl. 3rd century CE) (; , Chinese: ''Tipo pusa'' 婆 菩薩 = Deva Bodhisattva, was a Mahayana Buddhist monk, a disciple of Nagarjuna and a Madhyamaka philosopher.Silk, Jonathan A. (ed.) (2019). ''Brill’s Encyclopedia of Buddhi ...
and
Candrakirti
Chandrakirti (; ; , meaning "glory of the moon" in Sanskrit) or "Chandra" was a Buddhist scholar of the madhyamaka school and a noted commentator on the works of Nagarjuna () and those of his main disciple, Aryadeva. He wrote two influential w ...
). In this dream, Buddhapālita placed a wrapped text on the top of Tsongkhapa's head. After waking from this dream, Tsongkhapa began to study Buddhapālita's commentary to Nagarjuna's Middle Way Verses. As he was reading chapter 18, his understanding became crystal clear and all his doubts vanished.
According to Thupten Jinpa "at the heart of Tsongkhapa’s breakthrough experience was a profound realization of the equation of emptiness and dependent origination." He then the next spring and summer in deep meditation, experiencing great bliss, devotion and gratitude to the Buddha.
Mature Period
250px, Ganden Monastery, Tibet
In the later period of Tsongkhapa's life, he composed a series of works on Buddhist philosophy and practice. Perhaps his most famous work is the ''Great Exposition of the Stages of the Path'' (''Lam rim chen mo,'' c. 1402).
This ''
lamrim
Lamrim (Tibetan: "stages of the path") is a Tibetan Buddhist textual form for presenting the stages in the complete path to enlightenment as taught by Buddha. In Tibetan Buddhist history there have been many different versions of ''lamrim'', pres ...
'' ("stages of the path) text outlines the Mahayana path to enlightenment and also presents Tsongkhapa's view 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 ...
and the
middle way view (madhyamaka). Also during this period, he wrote his major work on tantric practice, the ''Great Exposition of Tantra'' (''Sngags rim chen mo'').
Tsongkhapa also wrote some other main works during this period, including ''Essence of Eloquence'' (''Legs bshad snying po''), ''Ocean of Reasoning'' (''Rigs pa'i rgya mtsho,'' a commentary on Nagarjuna's classic ''
Mūlamadhyamakakārikā
The ''Mūlamadhyamakakārikā'' ( sa, मूलमध्यमककारिका, ''Root Verses on the Middle Way''), abbreviated as ''MMK'', is the foundational text of the Madhyamaka school of Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophy. It was compose ...
''), the ''Medium-Length Lamrim'', and ''Elucidation of the Intent'' (''dGongs pa rab gsal''), his last major writing.
According to Garfield:
the major philosophical texts composed in the remaining twenty years of his life develop with great precision and sophistication the view he developed during this long retreat period and reflect his realization that while Madhyamaka philosophy involves a relentlessly negative dialectic — a sustained critique both of reification and of nihilism and a rejection of all concepts of essence—the other side of that dialectic is an affirmation of conventional reality, of dependent origination, and of the identity of the two truths, suggesting a positive view of the nature of reality as well.
In 1409, Tsongkhapa worked on a project to renovate the
Jokhang
The Jokhang (, ), also known as the Qoikang Monastery, Jokang, Jokhang Temple, Jokhang Monastery and Zuglagkang ( or Tsuklakang), is a Buddhist temple in Barkhor Square in Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet Autonomous Region of China. Tibetans, in ...
temple, the main temple in
Lhasa
Lhasa (; Lhasa dialect: ; bo, text=ལྷ་ས, translation=Place of Gods) is the urban center of the prefecture-level Lhasa City and the administrative capital of Tibet Autonomous Region in Southwest China. The inner urban area of Lhas ...
and he also promoted a great 15 day prayer festival at Jokhang to celebrate
Sakyamuni Buddha
Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism.
According to Buddhist tradition, he was born in Lu ...
.
In 1409, Tsongkhapa also worked to found
Ganden monastery
Ganden Monastery (also Gaden or Gandain) or Ganden Namgyeling or Monastery of Gahlden is one of the "great three" Gelug university monasteries of Tibet. It is in Dagzê County, Lhasa. The other two are Sera Monastery and Drepung Monastery. Ga ...
, located 25 miles north of
Lhasa
Lhasa (; Lhasa dialect: ; bo, text=ལྷ་ས, translation=Place of Gods) is the urban center of the prefecture-level Lhasa City and the administrative capital of Tibet Autonomous Region in Southwest China. The inner urban area of Lhas ...
. Two of his students, Tashi Palden (1379–1449) and Shakya Yeshey (1354–1435) respectively founded
Drepung monastery
Drepung Monastery (, "Rice Heap Monastery"), located at the foot of Mount Gephel, is one of the "great three" Gelug university gompas (monasteries) of Tibet. The other two are Ganden Monastery and Sera Monastery.
Drepung is the largest of all ...
(1416), and
Sera Monastery
Sera Monastery ( "Wild Roses Monastery"; ) is one of the "great three" Gelug university monasteries of Tibet, located north of Lhasa and about north of the Jokhang. The other two are Ganden Monastery and Drepung Monastery. The origin of its ...
(1419). Together with Ganden, these three would later become the most influential Gelug monasteries in Tibet and also the largest monasteries in the world. These institutions became the center of a new growing school of Tibetan Buddhism, the Ganden or Gelug sect.
Death and Legacy
Tsongkhapa died in 1419 at the age of 62 at Ganden monastery. At the time of his death he was a well known figure in Tibet with a large following.
[Jinpa 2019, pp. 329-365.] Jinpa notes that various sources from other Tibetan Buddhist schools, like Pawo Tsuklak Trengwa and
Shākya Chokden both write about how large numbers of Tibetans in the flocked to Tsongkhapa's new Gelug tradition during the 15th century.
Tsongkhapa's three principal disciples were
Khedrup Gelek Palsang,
Gyaltsap Darma Rinchen and Dülzin Drakpa Gyaltsen.
[Jinpa 2019, p 365.] According to Jinpa, other important students of Tsongkhapa were "Tokden Jampel Gyatso; Jamyang Chöjé and Jamchen Chöjé, the founders of Drepung and Sera monasteries, respectively; and the
First Dalai Lama
Gedun Drupa (; 1391–1474) was considered posthumously to have been the 1st Dalai Lama.
Biography
Gedun Drupa was born in a cow-shed in Gyurmey Rupa near Sakya in the Tsang region of central Tibet, the son of Gonpo Dorjee and Jomo Namkha ...
, Gendün Drup."
After Tsongkhapa's death, his disciples worked to spread his teachings and the Gelug school grew extremely rapidly across the
Tibetan plateau
The Tibetan Plateau (, also known as the Qinghai–Tibet Plateau or the Qing–Zang Plateau () or as the Himalayan Plateau in India, is a vast elevated plateau located at the intersection of Central, South and East Asia covering most of the ...
, founding or converting numerous monasteries.
The new Gelug tradition saw itself as descendants of the Kadam school and emphasized monastic discipline and rigorous study of the Buddhist classics.
[Jamgon Mipham, Padmakara Translation Group (2017). ''The Wisdom Chapter: Jamgön Mipham's Commentary on the Ninth Chapter of The Way of the Bodhisattva.'' p. 30. Shambhala Publications.] According to Jinpa, by the end of the fifteenth century, the "new Ganden tradition had spread through the entire
Tibetan cultural area, with monasteries upholding the tradition located in
western Tibet
The geography of Tibet consists of the high mountains, lakes and rivers lying between Central, East and South Asia. Traditionally, Western (European and American) sources have regarded Tibet as being in Central Asia, though today's maps show a t ...
, in
Tsang, in central and southern Tibet, and in
Kham and
Amdo
Amdo ( am˥˥.to˥˥ ) is one of the three traditional Tibetan regions, the others being U-Tsang in the west and Kham in the east. Ngari (including former Guge kingdom) in the north-west was incorporated into Ü-Tsang. Amdo is also the ...
in the east."
After his death, Tsongkhapa's works also came to be published in woodblock prints, making them much more accessible.
Several biographies and
hagiographies
A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might ...
of Tsongkhapa were also written by Lamas of different traditions.
Tsongkhapa was also held in high regard by key figures of other Tibetan Buddhist traditions.
Mikyö Dorje, 8th Karmapa, in a poem called ''In Praise of the Incomparable Tsong Khapa,'' calls Tsongkhapa “the reformer of Buddha’s doctrine,” “the great charioteer of Madhyamaka philosophy in Tibet,” “supreme among those who propound emptiness,” and “one who had helped spread robe-wearing monastics across Tibet and from China to Kashmir.”
Wangchuk Dorje, 9th Karmapa Lama
Wangchuk Dorje (1556–1603) was the ninth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.
Wangchuk Dorje was born in Treshod, Kham. According to legend, he said after being born: "I am Karmapa." Other sources say that soon after ...
, praised Tsongkhapa as one "who swept away wrong views with the correct and perfect ones."
Tsongkhapa's works and teachings became central for the Ganden or
Gelug
240px, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Bodhgaya (India).
The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous")Kay, David N. (2007). ''Tibetan and Zen Buddhism in Britain: Transplantati ...
school, where he is seen as a major authoritative figure. Their interpretation and exegesis became a major focus of Gelug scholasticism. They were also very influential on later Tibetan philosophers, who would either defend or criticize Tsongkhapa's views on numerous points.
Tsongkhapa's madhyamaka thought has become widely influential in the western scholarly understanding of madhyamaka, with the majority of books and articles (beginning in the 1980s) initially being based on Gelug explanations.
[Jamgon Mipham, Padmakara Translation Group (2017). ''The Wisdom Chapter: Jamgön Mipham's Commentary on the Ninth Chapter of The Way of the Bodhisattva.'' p. 31. Shambhala Publications.]
Hagiography
After his death, Tsongkhapa came to be seen as a second Buddha in the Gelug tradition. Numerous
hagiographies
A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies might ...
were written by Gelug figures such as Khedrup Je and Tokden Jampel Gyatso. These texts developed the great myths of the Tsongkhapa (and included stories of his previous births). Over time, an extensive collection of myths and stories about Tsongkhapa accumulated.
[Jinpa, Thupten (2019). ''Tsongkhapa: A Buddha in the Land of Snows''. Boulder, CO: Shambhala Publications. pp. 329-365; ISBN 9781611806465]
According to these myths, Tsongkhapa had been a student of Mañjuśrī for numerous past lives. In a former life, he had made the aspiration to spread Vajrayāna and the perfect view of emptiness in front of the Buddha Indraketu. Tsongkhapa then received a prophecy from numerous Buddhas which said that he would become the tathāgata Siṁhasvara (Lion's Roar). Another story tells of how during Śākyamuni's life, Tsongkhapa was a Brahmin boy who offered the Buddha a crystal rosary and generated
bodhicitta
In Mahayana Buddhism, bodhicitta, ("enlightenment-mind" or "the thought of awakening"), is the mind (citta) that is aimed at awakening ( bodhi), with wisdom and compassion for the benefit of all sentient beings. Bodhicitta is the defining qua ...
. The Buddha prophesied that the boy would one day be the reviver of the Buddha's doctrine. Hagiographies such as Khedrup Je's also depict how Tsongkhapa achieved full Buddhahood after his death.
Some hagiographical sources also claim that Tsongkhapa was an emanation of Mañjuśrī as well as a reincarnation of
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 ...
,
Atiśa
( bn, অতীশ দীপংকর শ্রীজ্ঞান, ôtiś dīpôṅkôr śrigyen; 982–1054) was a Buddhist religious leader and master. He is generally associated with his work carried out at the Vikramashila monastery in Biha ...
and of
Padmasambhava
Padmasambhava ("Born from a Lotus"), also known as Guru Rinpoche (Precious Guru) and the Lotus from Oḍḍiyāna, was a tantric Buddhist Vajra master from India who may have taught Vajrayana in Tibet (circa 8th – 9th centuries)... According ...
.
Philosophy
Tsongkhapa's philosophy is mainly based on that of Indian
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 Buddhi ...
philosophers like
Nagarjuna
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 ...
,
Buddhapalita and
Chandrakirti
Chandrakirti (; ; , meaning "glory of the moon" in Sanskrit) or "Chandra" was a Buddhist scholar of the madhyamaka school and a noted commentator on the works of Nagarjuna () and those of his main disciple, Aryadeva. He wrote two influential w ...
. Tsongkhapa also draws on the epistemological tradition of
Dharmakirti
Dharmakīrti (fl. c. 6th or 7th century; Tibetan: ཆོས་ཀྱི་གྲགས་པ་; Wylie: ''chos kyi grags pa''), was an influential Indian Buddhist philosopher who worked at Nālandā.Tom Tillemans (2011)Dharmakirti Stanford ...
in his explanation of
conventional truth. According to
Jay Garfield, Tsongkhapa's philosophy is based on the idea that "a complete understanding of
Buddhist philosophy
Buddhist philosophy refers to the philosophical investigations and systems of inquiry that developed among various schools of Buddhism in India following the parinirvana of The Buddha and later spread throughout Asia. The Buddhist path combin ...
requires a synthesis of the epistemology and logic of Dharmakirti with the metaphysics of Nagarjuna."
According to Thomas Doctor, Tsongkhapa's madhyamaka views were also influenced by 12th-century
Kadam school madhyamaka
Mabja Changchub Tsöndrü (d. 1185).
[Thomas Doctor, ''Exploring the Stuff that Madhyamaka Hermeneutics are Made of: A Note on a Clear Predecessor to Tsongkhapa's Prasangika/Svatantrika Distinction''](_blank)
Tsongkhapa is also known for his emphasis on the importance of philosophical reasoning in the path to liberation. According to Tsongkhapa, meditation must be paired with rigorous reasoning in order "to push the mind and precipitate a breakthrough in cognitive fluency and insight."
According to
Thupten Jinpa
Thupten Jinpa Langri (born 1958) is a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, former monk and an academic of religious studies and both Eastern and Western philosophy. He has been the principal English translator to the Dalai Lama since 1985. He has translated ...
, Tsongkhapa's thought was concerned with three main misinterpretations of madhyamaka philosophy in Tibet:
* a
nihilistic or overly
skeptical
Skepticism, also spelled scepticism, is a questioning attitude or doubt toward knowledge claims that are seen as mere belief or dogma. For example, if a person is skeptical about claims made by their government about an ongoing war then the p ...
reading of prasangika-madhyamaka which denigrates or undermines the everyday world of experience and the validity of
epistemology
Epistemology (; ), or the theory of knowledge, is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. Epistemology is considered a major subfield of philosophy, along with other major subfields such as ethics, logic, and metaphysics.
Epis ...
(
Patsab is one figure who Tsongkhapa sees as associated with this view).
* the so-called "
shentong
''Rangtong'' and ''shentong'' are two distinctive views on emptiness ( sunyata) and the two truths doctrine within Tibetan Buddhism.
''Rangtong'' (; "empty of self-nature") is a philosophical term in Tibetan Buddhism that is used to distinguis ...
madhyamaka" view 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 founder
Dolpopa
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 ...
, which Tsongkhapa sees as absolutist and essentialist.
* a view which held that conceptual analysis and correct views were unnecessary and that what mattered was to get rid of all thought or to get rid of all concepts or to just remain in single pointed concentration (as thoughts arise and pass). Tsongkhapa saw these ideas as being associated with the
Chinese Chan
Chan (; of ), from Sanskrit '' dhyāna'' (meaning "meditation" or "meditative state"), is a Chinese school of Mahāyāna Buddhism. It developed in China from the 6th century CE onwards, becoming especially popular during the Tang and So ...
figure of
Heshang and some Tibetan Buddhists. He held that these
quietist views (which reject study and conceptual analysis) were
soteriological
Soteriology (; el, wikt:σωτηρία, σωτηρία ' "salvation" from wikt:σωτήρ, σωτήρ ' "savior, preserver" and wikt:λόγος, λόγος ' "study" or "word") is the study of Doctrine, religious doctrines of salvation. Salvation ...
dead-ends and could potentially have negative ethical consequences.
According to
Thupten Jinpa
Thupten Jinpa Langri (born 1958) is a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, former monk and an academic of religious studies and both Eastern and Western philosophy. He has been the principal English translator to the Dalai Lama since 1985. He has translated ...
, one of Tsongkhapa's main concerns was "to delineate the parameters of Madhyamaka reasoning in such a way that Madhyamaka dialectics cannot be seen to negate the objects of everyday experience and, more importantly, ethics and religious activity" or as Tsongkhapa put it, one must "correctly identify the object of negation" (which is ''
svabhava
Svabhava ( sa, स्वभाव, svabhāva; pi, सभाव, sabhāva; ; ) literally means "own-being" or "own-becoming". It is the intrinsic nature, essential nature or essence of beings.
The concept and term ''svabhāva'' are frequently enco ...
'').
Thupten Jinpa
Thupten Jinpa Langri (born 1958) is a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, former monk and an academic of religious studies and both Eastern and Western philosophy. He has been the principal English translator to the Dalai Lama since 1985. He has translated ...
(2002). ''Self, Reality and Reason in Tibetan Philosophy - Tsongkhapa's quest for the middle way,'' pp. 37-38. RoutledgeCurzon. Tsongkhapa held that if one did not properly understand what is to be negated in madhyamaka, one was at risk of either negating too much (nihilism) or negating too little (essentialism), and thus one would "miss the mark" of madhyamaka.
Thupten Jinpa
Thupten Jinpa Langri (born 1958) is a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, former monk and an academic of religious studies and both Eastern and Western philosophy. He has been the principal English translator to the Dalai Lama since 1985. He has translated ...
(2002). ''Self, Reality and Reason in Tibetan Philosophy - Tsongkhapa's quest for the middle way,'' p. 49. RoutledgeCurzon. According to Jinpa, the correct object of negation for Tsongkhapa is "our innate apprehension of self-existence" which refers to how even our normal ways of perceiving the world "are effected by a belief in some kind of intrinsic existence of things and events."
Jinpa also writes that the second major aspect of Tsongkhapa's philosophical project "entails developing a systematic theory of reality in the aftermath of an absolute rejection of intrinsic existence."
View of ultimate truth and emptiness
Tsongkhapa follows Nagarjuna and Candrakirti in asserting that all phenomena are empty of inherent existence or essence (''
svabhava
Svabhava ( sa, स्वभाव, svabhāva; pi, सभाव, sabhāva; ; ) literally means "own-being" or "own-becoming". It is the intrinsic nature, essential nature or essence of beings.
The concept and term ''svabhāva'' are frequently enco ...
'') because they are dependently originated. For Tsongkhapa, all phenomena lack inherent existence and come into existence relative to a designating consciousness which co-arises with that phenomenon.
Tsongkhapa 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 ...
(''shūnyatā'') of intrinsic nature as a consequence of ''
pratītyasamutpāda'' (dependent arising), the teaching that no ''dharma'' ("thing", "phenomena") has an existence of its own, but always comes into existence in dependence on other ''dharmas''. According to Tsongkhapa, dependent-arising and emptiness are inseparable. Tsongkhapa's view on "ultimate reality" is condensed in the short text ''In Praise of Dependent Arising'',
[Alexander Berzin, ''In Praise of Dependent Arising''](_blank)
/ref>
/ref>[ ttp://thenonbuddhist.com/2014/01/12/tsongkhapa-in-praise-of-relativity-the-essence-of-eloquence/ Patrick Jennings, ''Tsongkhapa: In Praise of Relativity; The Essence of Eloquence''] which states that phenomena ''do'' exist conventionally, but that, ultimately, everything is dependently arisen, and therefore void of inherent existence or intrinsic nature (''svabhava
Svabhava ( sa, स्वभाव, svabhāva; pi, सभाव, sabhāva; ; ) literally means "own-being" or "own-becoming". It is the intrinsic nature, essential nature or essence of beings.
The concept and term ''svabhāva'' are frequently enco ...
''), which is "the object of negation" or that which is to be disproved by madhyamaka reasoning.[Susan Kahn, ''The Two Truths of Buddhism and The Emptiness of Emptiness''](_blank)
/ref> Tsongkhapa writes that "since objects do not exist through their own nature, they are established as existing through the force of convention."
Furthermore, according to Tsongkhapa, emptiness is itself empty of inherent existence and thus only exists nominally and conventionally as dependent arising.[Newland 2009, p. 58.] There is thus no "transcendental ground," and "ultimate reality" that has an existence of its own. Instead, emptiness is the negation of such a transcendental independent reality and an affirmation that all things exist interdependently (even emptiness itself). Emptiness is the ultimate truth (which applies to all possible phenomena, in all possible worlds), but it is not an ultimate phenomenon, thing or a primordial substance (which has always existed, is self-created, and is self-sustaining etc.) like Brahman
In Hinduism, ''Brahman'' ( sa, ब्रह्मन्) connotes the highest universal principle, the ultimate reality in the universe.P. T. Raju (2006), ''Idealistic Thought of India'', Routledge, , page 426 and Conclusion chapter part X ...
. As such, the ultimate truth of emptiness for Tsongkhapa is a negational truth, a non-affirming negation. This ultimate reality is the mere absence of intrinsic nature in all things.
A non-affirming or non-implicative (''prasajya'') negation is a negation which does not leave something in the place of what has been negated. For instance, when one says that a Buddhist should not drink alcohol, they are not affirming that a Buddhist should, in fact, drink something else. According to Tsongkhapa, in negating inherent nature, a madhyamika is not affirming any thing or quality in its place (such as some ultimate void, absolute, or ground of being).
In his works, Tsongkhapa takes pains to refute an alternative interpretation of emptiness which was promoted by the Tibetan philosopher 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). This view (called ''shentong'', "empty of other") held that ultimate reality is not a non-affirming negation, and that it is only empty of conventional things and is not empty of itself. This view thus holds that ultimate reality has a kind of true existence as the ultimate and absolute ground of reality. According to Tsongkhapa, this view is absurd and is not found in the Buddhist scriptures
Buddhist texts are those religious texts which belong to the Buddhist tradition. The earliest Buddhist texts were not committed to writing until some centuries after the death of Gautama Buddha. The oldest surviving Buddhist manuscripts a ...
.
The existence of the conventional
Tsongkhapa's prāsaṅgika madhyamaka affirms the "mere existence" of dependent phenomena on the conventional level. As such, Tsongkhapa argues that conventional truths are true because there is a sense in which they ''exist'' (Tib. ''yod pa'') in some real sense.[Newland, Guy Martin. ''Weighing the Butter, Levels of Explanation, and Falsification: Models of the Conventional in Tsongkhapa's Account of Madhyamaka'' in Cowherds (2010).] For Tsongkhapa, this conventional existence means that phenomena (i.e. dharmas) ''only'' come into existence in a dependent and contingent way, which includes the fact that they arise co-dependently with the minds that perceive them and conceptually impute their existence. In this view, things ''do exist'' in a conventional and nominal sense as conceptual imputations (''rtog pas btags tsam'') which are dependent upon a relationship with a knowing and designating mind. However, all phenomena still lack existence in an independent, self-arising, or self-sustaining manner. That is to say, when one searches for the ultimate nature of any thing, "what the thing really is", nothing can be found under this "ultimate analysis" and thus nothing can withstand ultimate analysis. Unlike other Tibetan madhyamikas, Tsongkhapa argues that this does not mean things do not exist at all or that ultimate analysis undermines conventional existence. Thus for Tsongkhapa, the conventional really is a kind of ''truth'', a way of being real.[Garfield, Jay L. ''Taking Conventional Truth Seriously: Authority regarding Deceptive Reality'' in Cowherds (2010).]
Tsongkhapa cites numerous passages from Nagarjuna which show that 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 ...
(the lack of intrinsic nature) and dependent origination
A dependant is a person who relies on another as a primary source of income. A common-law spouse who is financially supported by their partner may also be included in this definition. In some jurisdictions, supporting a dependant may enabl ...
(the fact that all dharmas arise based on causes and conditions) ultimately have the same intent and meaning and thus they are two ways of discussing one single reality. Tsongkhapa also cites various passages from Chandrakirti to show that even though phenomena do not arise intrinsically, they do arise conventionally. Chandrakirti is quoted by Tsongkhapa as stating "even though all things are empty, from those empty things effects are definitely produced," "because things are not produced causelessly, or from causes such as a divine creator, or from themselves, or from both self and other, they are produced dependently," and "we contend that dependently produced things are, like reflections, not produced intrinsically."
He also cites a passage from Chandrakirti's commentary to Aryadeva's ''Four Hundred'' which states: "Our analysis focuses only on those who search for the intrinsically real referent. What we are refuting here is that things nd eventsare established by means of their own-being. We do not owevernegate he existence ofeyes and so on, which are ausallyconditioned and are dependently originated in that they are the fruits of karma."
In this way, Tsongkhapa argues that the madhyamaka idea that dharmas do not arise or are not found is to be qualified as meaning that they do not arise intrinsically or essentially. He also cites the ''Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra
The ''Laṅkāvatāra Sūtra'' (Sanskrit, "Discourse of the Descent into Laṅka" bo, ལང་ཀར་བཤེགས་པའི་མདོ་, Chinese:入楞伽經) is a prominent Mahayana Buddhist sūtra. This sūtra recounts a teachi ...
'' where the Buddha says, “Mahamati, thinking that they are not produced intrinsically, I said that all phenomena are not produced.”
Because of this, Tsongkhapa holds that while conventional phenomena cannot withstand ultimate analysis (which searches for the true or ultimate nature of anything and is unable to find anything intrinsically), this does not mean that conventional phenomena are invalidated, undermined or negated by this ultimate analysis, since they still exist as dependent arisings. Indeed, for Tsongkhapa, it is ''because'' things are ultimately empty that they can be said to arise and exist at all. Some Tibetan madhyamikas hold that conventional truths are merely the relative conventions of simple everyday people, but that these conventions do not exist for advanced meditators or madhyamika philosophers. Tsongkhapa rejects this as "a great philosophical error" and affirms the pragmatic importance of conventional truths. For Tsongkhapa, the rejection of the dependent reality of the conventional undermines the very possibility of truth and falsehood, and of any epistemic authority and thus, it undermines all Buddhist teachings regarding bondage and liberation as well as undermining itself as a cogent argument. However, like Candrakīrti, Tsonkghapa also accepts that while conventional truths are truths, they also can obscure or veil the ultimate (since for most people, these truths appear as intrinsically true). This is like how a mirage is a real phenomenon, but can also be deceptive (since it appears to be what it is not)
Tsongkhapa also argues that ultimate analysis is not merely a philosophical or intellectual matter, instead it is supposed to negate a deep internal habit that sentient beings have which experiences the world in a false and distorted way. This superimposition is a "pervasive sense that things are real and solid and exist just as they appear" which we have become habituated and addicted to for countless lifetimes. This addiction is what is to be refuted and abandoned. It is ''not'' the idea of "intrinsic existence" as a philosophical concept (equivalent to a non-existent rabbit's horn and thus trivial). Another way of saying this is that for Tsongkhapa, the most subtle object of negation is the perception that phenomena have "their own way of existing without being posited through the force of consciousness". It is an ongoing mental process of imputing objectively independent reality and intrinsic existence to what is perceived.
Tsongkhapa's view that a dependent and conventional reality is not negated by madhyamaka (and that it is just intrinsic nature that is negated) was a subject of much debate among Tibetan madhyamaka philosophers and became a subject of critique for 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 ...
school figures like Gorampa Sonam Senge (1429-1489).[Garfield, Jay L.; Thakchoe, Sonam. ''Identifying the Object of Negation and the Status of Conventional Truth: Why the dGag Bya Matters So Much to Tibetan Madhyamikas in'' Cowherds (2010).] Sakya philosophers like Gorampa and his supporters held that madhyamaka analysis rejects ''all'' conventional phenomena (which he calls "false appearances" and sees as conceptually produced) and so, tables and persons are no more real than dreams or Santa Claus. Thus, for Gorampa (contra Tsongkhapa), conventional truth is "entirely false", "unreal", "a kind of nonexistence" and "truth only from the perspective of fools." But for Tsongkhapa, the two truths (conventional and ultimate) are two facts about the same reality, or "two aspects of one and the same world" according to Thupten Jinpa.Thupten Jinpa
Thupten Jinpa Langri (born 1958) is a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, former monk and an academic of religious studies and both Eastern and Western philosophy. He has been the principal English translator to the Dalai Lama since 1985. He has translated ...
(2002). ''Self, Reality and Reason in Tibetan Philosophy - Tsongkhapa's quest for the middle way,'' p. 158. RoutledgeCurzon. Thus for Tsongkhapa, to totally negate conventional truth (at the level of ultimate truth) would be to negate dependent origination (and so, it is to negate emptiness, the ultimate truth itself). Tsongkhapa sees this as a kind of nihilism.
Epistemology
Tsongkhapa held that a proper defense of madhyamaka required an understanding of pramāṇa (epistemology
Epistemology (; ), or the theory of knowledge, is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. Epistemology is considered a major subfield of philosophy, along with other major subfields such as ethics, logic, and metaphysics.
Epis ...
) on the conventional level and that furthermore, one could make epistemic distinctions about the conventional and know what is conventionally true and what is a falsehood. For example, one can know that a rope on the ground is not a snake (even if one has initially been fooled by it). For Tsongkhapa, it was not enough to just argue for the emptiness of all phenomena (the ultimate truth), madhyamaka also needed proper epistemic instruments or sources of knowledge (Tib. ''tshad ma'', Skt. '' pramāṇa'') to defend Buddhist views about conventional truths (such as Buddhist ethics
Buddhist ethics are traditionally based on what Buddhists view as the enlightened perspective of the Buddha. The term for ethics or morality used in Buddhism is ''Śīla'' or ''sīla'' (Pāli). ''Śīla'' in Buddhism is one of three sections of ...
) and to have a coherent sense of why something is true or false. As Jay Garfield notes, for Tsongkhapa "without an antecedent account of these instruments and their authority, there is no way to distinguish conventional truth from conventional falsity." Furthermore, Thupten Jinpa writes that Tsongkhapa "does not agree with those who claim that the use of the tetralemma in Madhyamaka implies a denial of fundamental logical principles such as the law of the excluded middle
In logic, the law of excluded middle (or the principle of excluded middle) states that for every proposition, either this proposition or its negation is true. It is one of the so-called three laws of thought, along with the law of noncontradi ...
and the principle of contradiction
In logic, the law of non-contradiction (LNC) (also known as the law of contradiction, principle of non-contradiction (PNC), or the principle of contradiction) states that contradictory propositions cannot both be true in the same sense at the sa ...
."
In order to explain how conventional reality is perceived in a valid way, Tsongkhapa draw on Buddhist pramāṇa philosophy in order to develop his own Buddhist epistemological theory. From Tsongkhapa's perspective, in order for something to exist (conventionally, since nothing exists ultimately), it must be validly designated by a non-impaired functioning consciousness. To talk about an object that does not exist in relation to a subject is incoherent. According to Tsongkhapa, something is validly designated (i.e. it exists conventionally and dependently) if it meets all of the following three conditions:
# The thing known (''prameya'') is known to a conventional unimpaired consciousness (whether this consciousness is analytical or not);
# No other conventional cognition contradicts that which is known from being known in that way;
# Reason that accurately analyzes whether something intrinsically exists does not contradict that which is known.
Whatever fails to meet those criteria does not exist at all (like a flat earth
The flat-Earth model is an archaic and scientifically disproven conception of Earth's shape as a plane or disk. Many ancient cultures subscribed to a flat-Earth cosmography, including Greece until the classical period (5th century BC), t ...
), and relationships between objects cannot exist without being validly designated into existence.
Thus, according to Tsongkhapa, when Candrakīrti states that “the world is not valid in any way”, he is referring to how ordinary worldly consciousnesses are not valid sources of knowledge with regard to ultimate reality. However, Tsongkhapa argues that Candrakīrti does accept pramāṇas conventionally, since he also states “the world knows objects with four valid cognitions.” As such, while Tsongkhapa reads Candrakīrti as not accepting that conventional sources of knowledge know the intrinsic nature of things (since there are none), he also argues that Candrakīrti affirms that pramāṇas can give us knowledge about conventional reality (even while our sense faculties are also deceptive, in that they also superimpose intrinsic nature).[Newland 2009, pp. 49-50.]
For Tsongkhapa, there are two valid ways of understanding the world, two levels of explanation: one way which understands conventional phenomena (which are real but also deceptive, like a magic trick
Magic, which encompasses the subgenres of illusion, stage magic, and close up magic, among others, is a performing art in which audiences are entertained by tricks, effects, or illusions of seemingly impossible feats, using natural means. It ...
) and another way which sees the profound ultimate truth of things, which is the sheer fact that they lack intrinsic nature. As Newland explains, each one of these epistemic points of view provides a different lens or perspective on reality, which Tsongkhapa illustrates by discussing how "we do not see sounds no matter how carefully we look." In the same way, while conventional truths are not found by an ultimate analysis that searches for their intrinsic nature, they are still functional conventionally and this is not discredited by the ultimate truth of emptiness. Tsongkhapa thinks that if we only relied on the ultimate epistemological point of view, we would not be able to distinguish between virtue
Virtue ( la, virtus) is moral excellence. A virtue is a trait or quality that is deemed to be morally good and thus is valued as a foundation of principle and good moral being. In other words, it is a behavior that shows high moral standards ...
from non-virtue, or enlightenment from samsara (since ultimate analysis only tells us that they are equally empty). Instead, Tsongkhapa holds that the emptiness must complement, rather than undermine, conventional Buddhist truths.
This is a different interpretation of Candrakīrti's epistemic theory than that adopted by Tibetan figures like Gorampa
Gorampa Sonam Senge (, 1429–1489Dreyfus (2003) p.301) was an important philosopher in the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the author of a vast collection of commentaries on sutra and tantra whose work was influential throughout Tibetan ...
and Taktsang Lotsawa, who argue that Candrakīrti's prāsaṅgika mādhyamika rejects all epistemic sources of knowledge since all conventional cognitions are flawed.
The prāsaṅgika–svātantrika distinction
250px, The Indian philosopher , whom Tsongkhapa takes as his major authority on Nagarjuna's madhyamaka">Candrakīrti, whom Tsongkhapa takes as his major authority on Nagarjuna's madhyamaka
Like his teacher Rendawa, Tsongkhapa was a proponent of Candrakīrti
Chandrakirti (; ; , meaning "glory of the moon" in Sanskrit) or "Chandra" was a Buddhist scholar of the madhyamaka school and a noted commentator on the works of Nagarjuna () and those of his main disciple, Aryadeva. He wrote two influential w ...
's interpretation of the 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 Buddhi ...
philosophy (which he termed prāsaṅgika, "consequentialist").[Dreyfus, Georges B.J.; McClintock, Sara (2015). ''Svatantrika-Prasangika Distinction: What Difference Does a Difference Make?'' pp. 295-296. Simon and Schuster.] According to Tsongkhapa, the prāsaṅgika-approach (which is based mainly on using reductio ad absurdum
In logic, (Latin for "reduction to absurdity"), also known as (Latin for "argument to absurdity") or ''apagogical arguments'', is the form of argument that attempts to establish a claim by showing that the opposite scenario would lead to absu ...
arguments) is the superior approach to madhyamaka. This is a position which, according to José Cabezón, may be traced back to 11th century figures like the Kashmiri scholar Jayananda and the Tibetan Patsab.
Tsongkhapa held that the alternative svātantrika approach to madhyamaka (defended by figures like 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 ...
or Bhāviveka
Bhāviveka, also called Bhāvaviveka (; ), and Bhavya was a sixth-century (c. 500 – c. 570) madhyamaka Buddhist philosopher.Qvarnström 1989 p. 14. Alternative names for this figure also include Bhavyaviveka, Bhāvin, Bhāviviveka, Bhagavadviv ...
) was inferior. Tsongkhapa argued that the svātantrika approach holds that one had to posit autonomous syllogisms (''svatantrānumāna'') in order to defend madhyamaka and that this insistence implies that phenomena (''dharmas
The Abhidharma are ancient (third century BCE and later) Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic presentations of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist ''sutras''. It also refers to the scholastic method itself as well as the f ...
'') or at least logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...
itself, has intrinsic nature (''svabhava
Svabhava ( sa, स्वभाव, svabhāva; pi, सभाव, sabhāva; ; ) literally means "own-being" or "own-becoming". It is the intrinsic nature, essential nature or essence of beings.
The concept and term ''svabhāva'' are frequently enco ...
'') conventionally.Thupten Jinpa
Thupten Jinpa Langri (born 1958) is a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, former monk and an academic of religious studies and both Eastern and Western philosophy. He has been the principal English translator to the Dalai Lama since 1985. He has translated ...
(2002). ''Self, Reality and Reason in Tibetan Philosophy - Tsongkhapa's quest for the middle way,'' pp. 63-64. RoutledgeCurzon. Bhāviveka (the main target of Tsongkhapa's critique) does not actually affirm the existence of intrinsic natures conventionally or that conventional reality is "established with its own identity," in any of his texts, and Tsongkhapa's interpretation of the implications of Bhāviveka's thought is a topic of much debate among Tibetan and modern western authors on madhyamaka.
Regarding autonomous syllogistic arguments, Tsongkhapa (like Candrakirti) argues that they are not always necessary and that ''prāsaṅga'' arguments (i.e. reductios) are often enough to prove the madhyamaka view of emptiness by "demonstrating the unwelcome consequences (in any given position that presupposes intrinsic existence)."[Newland 2009, p. 22.] Tsongkhapa does not reject that madhyamikas can make use of autonomous syllogisms, but he disagrees with Bhāviveka's insistence that they ''must'' use them. According to Jinpa, Tsongkhapa here is critiquing what contemporary philosophy would call "the autonomy of reason", "that is, that reason
Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, ...
, or logic
Logic is the study of correct reasoning. It includes both formal and informal logic. Formal logic is the science of deductively valid inferences or of logical truths. It is a formal science investigating how conclusions follow from premise ...
, possesses its own ontological
In metaphysics, ontology is the philosophical study of being, as well as related concepts such as existence, becoming, and reality.
Ontology addresses questions like how entities are grouped into categories and which of these entities exi ...
status as an independent, ultimate reality."
For Tsongkhapa, these key differences reveal that the understanding of emptiness of the svātantrika philosophers is inferior to the prāsaṅgikas, since the svātantrika insistence on the use of autonomous syllogisms implies that they accept intrinsic nature conventionally (and since they think their syllogisms are established on this basis, they hold that their conclusions are certain). Tsongkhapa strongly rejects that either phenomena or reasoning have intrinsic natures or characteristics in any way. Instead, Tsongkhapa holds that all phenomena are dependent and "simply labeled by thought construction" (Tib. ''rtog pas btags tsam'') and thus they are empty of intrinsic nature ''even conventionally''. While Tsongkhapa holds that the insistence on the use of syllogisms (and the idea that they provide certainty) reveals a shortcoming in the thought of svātantrika, nevertheless, he thinks that prāsaṅgikas may make use of syllogistic arguments, as long as they do not rely on (conventional) intrinsic characteristics when making use of these syllogisms.
Prāsaṅgikas have a thesis
Tsongkhapa also argues that prāsaṅgikas do not just reject all theses or views. Instead, Tsongkhapa holds that while prāsaṅgikas focus on refuting those views which presuppose or posit intrinsic natures (''svabhava''), they ''do'' have a thesis (Skt. ''darśana,'' Tib. ''lta ba'') of their own. This is the view that all phenomena lack intrinsic nature (''niḥsvabhāvavāda''), which is not a dogmatic or false view ('' dṛṣṭi'') to be rejected, but is the rare and correct understanding of emptiness (''śūnyatā''-''darśana'') and dependent origination which allows us to be liberated. Tsongkhapa thus affirms that prāsaṅgikas may use syllogisms, make positive assertions, hold positions (which they consider to be true) and argue for them. Tsongkhapa also distinguishes between two closely related (and overlapping) but also distinct senses of the term "ultimate" ( Skt. ''paramārtha''): (1) a "substantially real mode of being" (i.e. intrinsic nature) and (2) the ultimate truth or fact about the world (as opposed to the conventional truths), which is emptiness. It is due to this distinction that Tsongkhapa is able to state that even though nothing is ultimate in the first sense, madhyamakas do hold a thesis, mainly that emptiness (in the second sense) is a true fact about reality.
While some Tibetan thinkers argued that Nagarjuna's refutation of existence, non-existence, both or neither (called the ''catuṣkoṭi
''Catuṣkoṭi'' (Sanskrit; Devanagari: चतुष्कोटि, , Sinhalese:චතුස්කෝටිකය) is a logical argument(s) of a 'suite of four discrete functions' or 'an indivisible quaternity' that has multiple applications an ...
,'' "four corners") meant that he rejected all philosophical views (and all existence) completely, Tsongkhapa disagrees with this interpretation. Instead, Tsongkhapa understands Nagarjuna's negation of the ''catuṣkoṭi'' to refer to the lack of intrinsic existence, intrinsic non-existence etc. Thus, as Guy Newland explains, Tsongkhapa interprets the negation of the ''catuṣkoṭi'' to mean that "we refute the reifying view that things exist ultimately; we refute the nihilistic view that things do not exist even conventionally; we refute that there is any single sense in which things both exist and do not exist; we refute that there is any single sense in which things neither exist nor do not exist." As Thupten Jinpa notes, this interpretation of the negative ''catuṣkoṭi'' is based on Tsongkhapa's view that the Sanskrit term ''bhāva'' (existence) has a dual meaning in madhyamaka: one refers to a reified sense of intrinsic existence (which is to be negated) and a conventionally existent actuality, functional thing or event (which is not negated).Thupten Jinpa
Thupten Jinpa Langri (born 1958) is a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, former monk and an academic of religious studies and both Eastern and Western philosophy. He has been the principal English translator to the Dalai Lama since 1985. He has translated ...
(2002). ''Self, Reality and Reason in Tibetan Philosophy - Tsongkhapa's quest for the middle way,'' p. 40. RoutledgeCurzon. Jinpa notes that Tsongkhapa interprets the madhyamaka argument called 'diamond splinters' (''rdo rje gzegs ma''), which refutes the intrinsic arising of dharmas, in a similar manner.
This is also why Tsongkhapa holds that reasoning about means of knowledge or epistemological tools (Skt. '' pramāṇa'') is central to the madhyamaka project, since he thinks that prāsaṅgika-madhyamikas make use of reasoning in order to establish their view of the lack of intrinsic nature conventionally. However, this reasoning derives its efficacy through dependent origination, not through some intrinsic nature or power (whether conventional or otherwise).
Eight difficult points of Tsongkhapa's madhyamaka
The unique aspects of Tsongkhapa's prāsaṅgika madhyamaka philosophy are also often outlined through the "eight difficult points" (''dka' gnad brgyad''), which were set by Tsongkhapa in a series of lecture notes which were later edited by his disciple Gyaltsap Je.[Lobsang Dargyay. ''Tsong-Kha-pa's Understanding of Prasangika Thought.'' Journal of the International Association of Buddhist Studies, Volume 10, 1987, Number 1.]
According to Tsongkhapa and Gyaltsap, three of these main ideas relate to ontology and are:
* prāsaṅgika rejects intrinsic characteristics (''sva-lakṣaṇa'') or intrinsic nature ('' svabhāva''), ultimately and conventionally.
* the rejection the storehouse consciousness (''ālāyavijñāna''), ultimately and conventionally.
* the conventional acceptance of external objects (outside the mind), contra Yogacara
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 ...
idealism
In philosophy, the term idealism identifies and describes metaphysical perspectives which assert that reality is indistinguishable and inseparable from perception and understanding; that reality is a mental construct closely connected t ...
Four other key points of Tsongkhapa's madhyamaka concern the path to enlightenment and are:
* the nonacceptance of autonomous syllogisms or independent proofs (''rang rgyud'', ''svatantra'') as being a means for developing arguments or establishing the truth. Instead, Tsongkhapa's madhyamaka uses a "presupposition or reason which is well known by opponents" (''gzhan grags'', ''paraprasiddha'') in order to illustrate the errors in the views of one's opponents.
* the rejection of self-awareness (Sk. ''sva-saṃvitti'', ''sva-saṃvedana''), even conventionally. Tsongkhapa thinks that to posit a consciousness that can operate on itself introduces a kind of essentialism. Like Shantideva
Shantideva (Sanskrit: Śāntideva; ; ; mn, Шантидэва гэгээн; vi, Tịch Thiên) was an 8th-century CE Indian philosopher, Buddhist monk, poet, and scholar at the mahavihara of Nalanda. He was an adherent of the Mādhyamaka phil ...
, he also argues that this idea is logically incoherent. Following Shantideva, Tsongkhapa cites the '' Lankavatara'' which says "just as the blade of a sword cannot cut itself, and just as a fingernail cannot touch itself, so too is it true of one's mind."
* the way in which the two obscurations exist;
* the acceptance that the disciples and solitary Buddhas realize the emptiness of phenomena. This means that for Tsongkhapa, hīnayāna arhat
In Buddhism, an ''arhat'' (Sanskrit: अर्हत्) or ''arahant'' (Pali: अरहन्त्, 𑀅𑀭𑀳𑀦𑁆𑀢𑁆) is one who has gained insight into the true nature of existence and has achieved ''Nirvana'' and liberated ...
s also realize the same emptiness that Mahayanists realize, since both the emptiness of persons and the emptiness of phenomena are intertwined and one logically entails the other.
One final point concerns the result or fruit (of the path) i.e. Buddhahood. For Tsongkhapa, fully awakened Buddhas ''do'' perceive all of conventional reality in their fullest extent (even impure things).
Regarding the storehouse consciousness (''ālāyavijñāna''), Tsongkhapa holds that this theory is rejected by the ultimate view of prāsaṅgika madhyamaka. However, he agrees that this teaching may be of provisional use for some individuals (since it was taught by the Buddha in some sutras) who hold to a lower view, are not able to fully understand emptiness and have a "fear of annihilation."[Cozart, Daniel. "Unique Tenets of The Middle Way Consequence School" Pg 236-7] Tsongkhapa relies on Chandrakirti's refutation of the storehouse consciousness, particularly in ''Madhyamakāvatāra
The ''Madhyamakāvatāra'' () is a text by Candrakīrti (600–c. 650) on the Mādhyamaka school of Buddhist philosophy. Candrakīrti also wrote an auto-commentary to the work, called the ''Madhyamakāvatārabhasya.''
It is traditionally conside ...
'' VI, 39.
Tsongkhapa also presents an alternative view of explaining personal identity
Personal identity is the unique numerical identity of a person over time. Discussions regarding personal identity typically aim to determine the necessary and sufficient conditions under which a person at one time and a person at another time ca ...
, rebirth
Rebirth may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Film
* ''Rebirth'' (2011 film), a 2011 Japanese drama film
* ''Rebirth'' (2016 film), a 2016 American thriller film
* ''Rebirth'', a documentary film produced by Project Rebirth
* ''The Re ...
and karma
Karma (; sa, कर्म}, ; pi, kamma, italic=yes) in Sanskrit means an action, work, or deed, and its effect or consequences. In Indian religions, the term more specifically refers to a principle of cause and effect, often descriptivel ...
. These are explained through a "mere I" (''nga tsam'') that is dependently designated on the basis of the five aggregates. Tsongkhapa states that "we should maintain that the object of our innate I-consciousness is the mere person - i.e., the mere I - which is the focus of our natural sense of self." This conventional and dependent sense of self or I-consciousness is a pre-linguistic and pre-conceptual instinctive process. When rebirth occurs, an individual's mental continuum (''rgyun'') moves from one life to another, just like a river or stream moves along. The continuum's "mere I" carries the past life karmic imprints to the next life and there is thus no need to posit a separate kind of "storehouse" consciousness for karmic imprints.
Tsongkhapa also rejects Buddhist idealism
In philosophy, the term idealism identifies and describes metaphysical perspectives which assert that reality is indistinguishable and inseparable from perception and understanding; that reality is a mental construct closely connected t ...
(which was associated with the 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 ...
school and various Tibetan madhyamaka authors) and thus affirms the conventional existence of an external world (like Bhaviveka). As Newland writes, Tsongkhapa's madhyamaka "does assert that there is a fully functioning external world, a world that exists outside of our minds. However, in the same breath it emphasizes that this external world is utterly dependent upon consciousness." In his rejection of Yogācāra idealism, Tsongkhapa follows Chandrakirti's refutation of Yogacara in the ''Madhyamakāvatāra
The ''Madhyamakāvatāra'' () is a text by Candrakīrti (600–c. 650) on the Mādhyamaka school of Buddhist philosophy. Candrakīrti also wrote an auto-commentary to the work, called the ''Madhyamakāvatārabhasya.''
It is traditionally conside ...
''.
Hermeneutics
Tsongkhapa also wrote on Buddhist hermeneutics
Buddhist hermeneutics refers to the interpretative frameworks historical Buddhists have used to interpret and understand Buddhist texts and to the interpretative instructions that Buddhists texts themselves impart upon the reader. Because of the ...
, which is a major subject of his ''Essence of Eloquence.'' Tsongkhapa held that it was important to have a proper understanding of hermeneutics
Hermeneutics () is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts. Hermeneutics is more than interpretative principles or methods used when immediate ...
in order to properly interpret the many seemingly contradictory statements found in the Buddhist sutras and scholastic treatises. According to Tsongkhapa, the main criteria for interpreting the various statements attributed to the Buddha is human reason
Reason is the capacity of consciously applying logic by drawing conclusions from new or existing information, with the aim of seeking the truth. It is closely associated with such characteristically human activities as philosophy, science, ...
(Sk. ''yukti'', Tib. ''rigs pa''), particularly the kind of reasoning which analyzes phenomena to find their ultimate nature (which is emptiness, the lack of intrinsic nature itself). Furthermore, Tsongkhapa relies on the '' Teachings of Akshayamati Sutra'' (Skt. ''Akṣayamatinirdeśa''; Wyl. ''blo gros mi zad pas bstan pa'') which states that the sutras of definitive meaning are those sutras which teach emptiness (such as the ''Prajñāpāramitā'' sutras).[Newland 2009, p. 20.]
Because of this, for Tsongkhapa, all statements and passages in the various sutras or treatises which do not express this lack of intrinsic nature are not definitive or ultimate statements (Skt. ''nitartha'') and are thus statements which "require further interpretation" or "need to be fully drawn out" (''neyartha''). This includes all texts belonging to the ''Śrāvaka
Śrāvaka (Sanskrit) or Sāvaka (Pali) means "hearer" or, more generally, "disciple". This term is used in Buddhism and Jainism. In Jainism, a śrāvaka is any lay Jain so the term śrāvaka has been used for the Jain community itself (for example ...
'' schools, all 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 ...
works as well as non-prāsaṅgika madhyamaka philosophy (like Bhāviveka and Śāntarakṣita). This also includes all sutras and statements regarding the important concept of ''tathāgatagarbha'' (i.e. Buddha-nature) or the luminous mind
Luminous mind ( Skt: or , Pali: ; Tib: ; Ch: ; Jpn: ; Kor: ) is a Buddhist term which appears only rarely in the Pali Canon, but is common in the Mahayana sūtras and central to the Buddhist tantras. It is variously translated as "bright ...
, which for Tsongkhapa, are just an expedient way of describing the emptiness of the mind and its defilements, as well as the potential for Buddhahood which all beings have. In this he follows Indian madhyamikas like Bhaviveka and Candrakirti
Chandrakirti (; ; , meaning "glory of the moon" in Sanskrit) or "Chandra" was a Buddhist scholar of the madhyamaka school and a noted commentator on the works of Nagarjuna () and those of his main disciple, Aryadeva. He wrote two influential w ...
as well as Kadam scholars such as Ngog Loden Sherab and Chaba Chokyi Senge.[Brunnholzl, Karl (2014). ''When the Clouds Part, The Uttaratantra and Its Meditative Tradition as a Bridge between Sutra and Tantra,'' pp. 55, 66. Boston & London: Snow Lion.]
For Tsongkhapa, only the madhyamaka view of Nagarjuna (as understood by prāsaṅgikas like Aryadeva
Āryadeva (fl. 3rd century CE) (; , Chinese: ''Tipo pusa'' 婆 菩薩 = Deva Bodhisattva, was a Mahayana Buddhist monk, a disciple of Nagarjuna and a Madhyamaka philosopher.Silk, Jonathan A. (ed.) (2019). ''Brill’s Encyclopedia of Buddhi ...
, Buddhapalita, Candrakīrti and Shantideva
Shantideva (Sanskrit: Śāntideva; ; ; mn, Шантидэва гэгээн; vi, Tịch Thiên) was an 8th-century CE Indian philosopher, Buddhist monk, poet, and scholar at the mahavihara of Nalanda. He was an adherent of the Mādhyamaka phil ...
) is a definitive interpretation of the final intent of the Buddha. However, because of the Buddha's bodhicitta
In Mahayana Buddhism, bodhicitta, ("enlightenment-mind" or "the thought of awakening"), is the mind (citta) that is aimed at awakening ( bodhi), with wisdom and compassion for the benefit of all sentient beings. Bodhicitta is the defining qua ...
, he explains the teaching in a wide variety of (''neyartha'') ways, all of which are ultimately based in and lead to the final insight into emptiness.
Critiques against Tsongkhapa
According to Thupten Jinpa, the main critics of Tsongkhapa's thought were Sakya scholars. The first Sakya scholar to openly critique Tsongkhapa was Rongton Shakya Gyaltsen (1367-1449) and his critiques were met by responses written by Khedrup Je. The philosophical critique of Tsongkhapa was later continued by a trio of Sakya school thinkers: Taktsang Lotsawa, Gorampa
Gorampa Sonam Senge (, 1429–1489Dreyfus (2003) p.301) was an important philosopher in the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the author of a vast collection of commentaries on sutra and tantra whose work was influential throughout Tibetan ...
, and Shākya Chokden, all followers of Rongton.
According to Jinpa, Taktsang's critique focuses on "Tsongkhapa’s insistence on the need to maintain a robust notion of conventional truth grounded in some verifiable criteria of validity." For Taktsang, epistemology is faulty and thus Tsongkhapa's attempt at a synthesis of madhyamaka and pramana leads to serious problems.[Jinpa 2019, pp. 329-365.] Gorampa meanwhile argued that Tsongkhapa's definition of emptiness as an absolute negation of intrinsic existence was a form of nihilism. He also took issue with Tsongkhapa's characterization of conventional truth as a kind of existence.
Later Kagyu figures also penned critiques of some of Tsongkhapa's views, such as Mikyö Dorje. Gelug scholars like Lekpa Chöjor (a.k.a. Jamyang Galo, 1429–1503), the first Panchen Lama
The Panchen Lama () is a tulku of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. Panchen Lama is one of the most important figures in the Gelug tradition, with its spiritual authority second only to Dalai Lama. Along with the council of high lamas, h ...
, Lozang Chökyi Gyaltsen (1507-1662), Jetsun Chökyi Gyaltsen (1469-1544/46), Sera Jetsun Chökyi Gyaltsen, Panchen Delek Nyima and Jamyang Zhepa
The Jamyang Zhepas () are a lineage of tulkus of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. They have traditionally been the most prestigious teachers at Labrang Monastery in Amdo, Tibet (modern Gansu, China). (1648-1751) penned various responses to these various critiques in defense of Tsongkhapa's views.
Teachings on Buddhist practice
250px, Statue of Tsongkhapa, Linden-Museum, ">Stuttgart
Mahayana Sutra Teachings
Tsongkhapa was acquainted with all Tibetan Buddhist traditions of his time, and received teachings and transmission in all major Sarma schools of Tibetan Buddhism. His main source of inspiration was the Kadam school of Atiśa
( bn, অতীশ দীপংকর শ্রীজ্ঞান, ôtiś dīpôṅkôr śrigyen; 982–1054) was a Buddhist religious leader and master. He is generally associated with his work carried out at the Vikramashila monastery in Biha ...
(982–1054), especially the Kadampa Lamrim
Lamrim (Tibetan: "stages of the path") is a Tibetan Buddhist textual form for presenting the stages in the complete path to enlightenment as taught by Buddha. In Tibetan Buddhist history there have been many different versions of ''lamrim'', pres ...
("Stages of the Path") teachings. Another important source for Tsongkhapa are the works of Asanga, including the '' Yogacarabhumi'' and ''Abhidharma-samuccaya
The Abhidharma-samuccaya (Sanskrit; ; English: "Compendium of Abhidharma") is a Buddhist text composed by Asaṅga. The ''Abhidharma-samuccaya'' is a systematic account of Abhidharma. According to J. W. de Jong it is also "one of the most importa ...
''. He also draws on Kamalashila's '' Stages of Meditation'' and on Shantideva's works.
The most popular source for Tsongkhapa's teachings on the Mahayana sutra path is his ''Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment'' (''Lamrim Chenmo'').[Tsong Khapa (2014) Volume 1, Introduction.] He also wrote a Middle Length Lamrim Treatise and a Small Lamrim Treatise. Tsongkhapa's presentation generally follows the classic Kadam Lamrim system, which is divided into three main scopes or motivations (modest, medium and higher i.e. 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 br ...
).
Tsongkhapa's presentation of the Mahayana bodhisattva path focuses on the six perfections
6 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
6 or six may also refer to:
* AD 6, the sixth year of the AD era
* 6 BC, the sixth year before the AD era
* The month of June
Science
* Carbon, the element with atomic number 6
* 6 Hebe, an asteroid
Peop ...
. Regarding the perfection of wisdom
A Tibetan painting with a Prajñāpāramitā sūtra at the center of the mandala
Prajñāpāramitā ( sa, प्रज्ञापारमिता) means "the Perfection of Wisdom" or "Transcendental Knowledge" in Mahāyāna and Theravāda B ...
(''prajñāpāramitā''), Tsongkhapa emphasizes the importance of reasoning, analytical investigation as well as the close study and contemplation of the Buddhist scriptures
Buddhist texts are those religious texts which belong to the Buddhist tradition. The earliest Buddhist texts were not committed to writing until some centuries after the death of Gautama Buddha. The oldest surviving Buddhist manuscripts a ...
. Indeed, according to Tsongkhapa, the broad study of the Buddhist texts is the “sacred life force of the path,” which is a necessary complement to the practice of meditation.[Newland 2009, p. 14]
Insight meditation and the object of negation
For Tsongkhapa, all Buddhist forms of meditation can fall into two broad categories which must be balanced and fully developed together: calming meditation (''śamatha
''Samatha'' (Pāli; sa, शमथ ''śamatha''; ), "calm," "serenity," "tranquillity of awareness," and ''vipassanā'' (Pāli; Sanskrit ''vipaśyanā''), literally "special, super (''vi-''), seeing (''-passanā'')", are two qualities of the ...
''), which are "meditations that engage and strengthen our capacity to focus and to stabilize the mind without distraction—culminating in perfect serenity" and insight meditations which "use and develop the capacity to discern and to analyze the qualities of an object—culminating in meditative wisdom."
In his Lamrim works, Tsongkhapa presents a unique way of mediation for the development of insight (Skt. ''vipaśyanā'', Tib. ''lhag mthong''). As Newland explains, for Tsongkhapa, the root of suffering and samsara is an "innate tendency to hold a distorted, reifying view of ourselves" (as well as of other phenomena). To develop the wisdom to see through this habit requires using reasoned analysis or analytical investigation (''so sor rtog pa'') to arrive at the right view of emptiness (the lack of intrinsic nature). Establishing the correct view of emptiness initially requires us to 'identify the object of negation', which according to Tsongkhapa (quoting Chandrakirti) is "a consciousness that superimposes an essence of things." If we do not do this correctly, we may end up either negating too much (which could lead nihilism, with negative consequences for our ethics) or negating too little (and thus leaving some subtle sense of reification untouched). Thus, for Tsongkhapa, we first need to properly identify and understand our own inner sense of reification. It is only after we have identified this in ourselves that we can refute and eliminate this error through introspective analysis, contemplation and meditation.[Newland 2009, p. 17.]
At the same time, we also must avoid the trap of a nihilistic view that invalidates the dependently arisen nature of things (i.e. mere existence or seeming reality) and confuses the lack of intrinsic nature with totally negating the existence of a relative and conventional self. This is because, for Tsongkhapa, the "I" or self is accepted as nominally existing in a dependent and conventional way, while the object to be negated is the inner fiction of intrinsic nature which is "erroneously reified" by our cognition. Tsongkhapa explains this mistaken inner reification which is to be negated as "a natural belief, naive, normal, pre-philosophical way of seeing the world which leads us to perceive things and events as possessing some kind of intrinsic existence and identity."
The process of refuting the intrinsic existence of the self is described in chapter 23 of ''Lamrim Chenmo'' vol. 3, and entails four steps:
* The refutation of the position that the self is one with the aggregates
* The refutation of the position that the self is different from the aggregates
* How those arguments also refute each of the remaining positions
* How the person appears like an illusion based on that refutation
According to Tsongkhapa, Buddhist essentialists (like Vaibhasikas) and non-Buddhist essentialists ( atmavadins) are not negating the correct object, but are only negating "imaginary constructs" and "acquired ignorance" and thus they only realize a coarse selflessness which only suppresses, but not removes, the obstructions to liberation
Liberation or liberate may refer to:
Film and television
* ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War
* "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode
* "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode
Gaming
* '' Liberati ...
from samsara. According to Tsongkhapa, only a negation which undercuts the innate perception of an inherently existing self is truly liberating.
Tsongkhapa rejects the idea that meditation is only about throwing away all concepts, instead, we need to gradually refine our understanding until it becomes non-conceptual wisdom. While Tsongkhapa emphasizes the importance of attaining the correct conceptual understanding of emptiness through this analytical contemplation, he also understands that this knowledge is not the actual realization of emptiness itself (which is non-conceptual and non-dualistic). As such, according to Tsongkhapa, after one has attained the correct conceptual understanding of emptiness, this insight needs to be refined through repeated calming meditation practice (and the samadhi
''Samadhi'' (Pali and sa, समाधि), in Buddhism, Hinduism, Jainism, Sikhism and yogic schools, is a state of meditative consciousness. In Buddhism, it is the last of the eight elements of the Noble Eightfold Path. In the Ashtanga Yoga ...
which it produces) and continued familiarization with insight meditation. Over time, one's insight is transformed into a nondualistic and non-conceptual experience of emptiness.
Vajrayana (Secret Mantra)
Tsongkhapa also practised and taught extensively on 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 ...
(i.e. Secret Mantra) Buddhism. He wrote commentaries on some of the main Sarma tantras, including the '' Vajrabhairava'', '' Cakrasaṃvara'', '' Kālacakra'' and '' Guhyasamāja'' tantras. He also wrote a grand summary of tantric thought and practice, ''The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra''. Tsongkhapa's tantric theory draws extensively on the two main commentarial traditions of the'' Guhyasamāja Tantra''. Tsongkhapa also heavily relies on the works of Marpa Lotsawa
Marpa Lotsāwa (, 1012–1097), sometimes known fully as Marpa Chökyi Lodrö ( Wylie: mar pa chos kyi blo gros) or commonly as Marpa the Translator (Marpa Lotsāwa), was a Tibetan Buddhist teacher credited with the transmission of many Vajraya ...
(1012–1097) and Butön Rinchendrub (1290–1364), both of whom passed down lineages of the ''Guhyasamāja tantra'', a text which Tsongkhapa considered to be the "king of tantras". His close connection to the ''Guhyasamāja'' tradition was such that he referred to himself as a "''Guhyasamāja'' yogi" and saw himself as a reviver and reformer of the tradition (and thus he composed various works on this tantric tradition).
For Tsongkhapa, Buddhist tantra is based on the same madhyamaka view of emptiness as sutra (non-tantric) Mahāyāna and that they both also share the same goal (Buddhahood
In Buddhism, Buddha (; Pali, Sanskrit: 𑀩𑀼𑀤𑁆𑀥, बुद्ध), "awakened one", is a title for those who are awake, and have attained nirvana and Buddhahood through their own efforts and insight, without a teacher to point ...
). As such, Tsongkhapa sees Secret Mantra as being a subset of Mahāyāna Buddhism, and thus it also requires bodhicitta
In Mahayana Buddhism, bodhicitta, ("enlightenment-mind" or "the thought of awakening"), is the mind (citta) that is aimed at awakening ( bodhi), with wisdom and compassion for the benefit of all sentient beings. Bodhicitta is the defining qua ...
and insight into emptiness (through ''vipaśyanā'' meditation) as a foundation. Secret Mantra is only differentiated from sutra by its special method, the esoteric practice of deity yoga
The fundamental practice of Vajrayana and Tibetan tantra is deity yoga (''devatayoga''), meditation on a chosen deity or "cherished divinity" (Skt. ''Iṣṭa-devatā,'' Tib. ''yidam''), which involves the recitation of mantras, prayers and vi ...
(Tib. ''lha'i rnal 'byor''), which is a much faster method than the practice of the six perfections alone.[Tsongkhapa, The Dalai Lama, Hopkins, Jeffrey (2016), pp. viii, 189-194.] Tsongkhapa also argues that complete Buddhahood can ultimately only be attained through the practice of Highest Yoga Tantra
Classes of Tantra in Tibetan Buddhism refers to the categorization of Buddhist tantric scriptures in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism. Tibetan Buddhism inherited numerous tantras and forms of tantric practice from medieval Indian Buddhist Tantra. There were ...
(while the lower practices of the perfections and the other tantras aid one in advancing on the path). However, Tsongkhapa also holds that non-tantric Mahāyāna practices are indispensable the practice of Secret Mantra and that bodhicitta is the basis for the practice of both sutra Mahāyāna and Secret Mantra.
Thus, for Tsongkhapa, the sutra bodhisattva path (and its three principal aspects of renunciation, bodhicitta and insight into emptiness) must precede the practice of Secret Mantra. Indeed, according to Tsongkhapa, without having ascertained emptiness, one cannot practice the tantric yogas of Vajrayana. As Tsongkhapa states in ''A Lamp to Illuminate the Five Stages:''for those who enter the Vajra Vehicle, it is necessary to search for an understanding of the view that has insight into the no-self emptiness and then to meditate upon its significance in order to abandon holding to reality, the root of samsara.[Tsongkhapa (translated by Gavin Kilty) (2012), ''A Lamp to Illuminate the Five Stages: Teachings on Guhyasamaja Tantra'', pp. 98. Simon and Schuster]
Works
Tsongkhapa promoted the study of pramana
''Pramana'' (Sanskrit: प्रमाण, ) literally means "proof" and "means of knowledge".[epistemology
Epistemology (; ), or the theory of knowledge, is the branch of philosophy concerned with knowledge. Epistemology is considered a major subfield of philosophy, along with other major subfields such as ethics, logic, and metaphysics.
Epis ...]
), encouraged formal debates as part of Dharma studies,[ and instructed disciples in the Guhyasamāja, ]Kalacakra
Kalacakra was a 1970s German psychedelic underground band formed by the duo Claus Rauschenbach and Heinz Martin. Their sound carried a heavily eastern influence, with a lot of flute, sitar and percussions, and their style has been described as ...
, and Hevajra
Hevajra ( Tibetan: kye'i rdo rje / kye rdo rje; Chinese: 喜金剛 Xǐ jīngāng /
呼金剛 Hū jīngāng;) is one of the main yidams (enlightened beings) in Tantric, or Vajrayana Buddhism. Hevajra's consort is Nairātmyā (Tibetan: bdag me ...
Tantras.[ Tsongkhapa's writings comprise eighteen volumes, with the largest amount being on '']Guhyasamāja tantra
The ''Guhyasamāja Tantra'' (Sanskrit: ''Guhyasamājatantra''; Tibetan: ''Gsang ’dus rtsa rgyud'', Toh 442; ''Tantra of the Secret Society or Community''), also known as the ''Tathāgataguhyaka (Secrets of the Tathagata),'' is one of the most ...
''. These 18 volumes contain hundreds of titles relating to all aspects of Buddhist teachings and clarify some of the most difficult topics of Sutrayana
Sūtrayāna ( sa, सूत्रयान) is the Indo-Tibetan three-fold classification of yanas. A yana is a Buddhist mode of practice that leads to the realization of emptiness. The three yanas of the Sutrayana are Sravakayana or Pratyeka ...
and 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 ...
teachings. Tsongkhapa's main treatises and commentaries on Madhyamaka are based on the tradition descended from Nagarjuna
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 ...
as elucidated by Buddhapālita and Candrakīrti
Chandrakirti (; ; , meaning "glory of the moon" in Sanskrit) or "Chandra" was a Buddhist scholar of the madhyamaka school and a noted commentator on the works of Nagarjuna () and those of his main disciple, Aryadeva. He wrote two influential w ...
.
Major works
Some of the major works of Tsongkhapa are:
* ''The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment'' (''lam rim chen mo''),
* ''The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra'' (''sngags rim chen mo''),
* ''Essence of True Eloquence'' (''drang nges legs bshad snying po''; full title: ''gsung rab kyi drang ba dang nges pai don rnam par phye ba gsal bar byed pa legs par bshad pai snying po''),
* ''Ocean of Reasoning: A Great Commentary on Nagarjuna's Mulamadhyamakakarika'' (''dbu ma rtsa ba'i tshig le'ur byas pa shes rab ces bya ba'i rnam bshad rigs pa'i rgya mtsho''),
*''Illumination of the Meaning of the Middle Path'' (''dbu ma dgongs pa rab gsal'')'','' a commentary on Candrakirti's '' Madhyamakavatara''
* ''Brilliant Illumination of the Lamp of the Five Stages / A Lamp to Illuminate the Five Stages'' (''gsang 'dus rim lnga gsal sgron''), a commentary on '' Guhyasamaja''
* ''Golden Garland of Eloquence'' (''gser phreng''), a commentary to the ''Ornament for the Clear Realizations'' ('' Abhisamayālaṃkāra'')
* ''The Praise of Relativity'' (''rten 'brel bstod pa'').
English translations
;Biography
*''Life and Teachings of Tsongkhapa'', Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 2006,
;Lam Rim Chenmo
*''The Great Treatise On The Stages Of The Path To Enlightenment'', Vol. 1, Snow Lion,
*''The Great Treatise On The Stages Of The Path To Enlightenment'', Vol. 2, Snow Lion,
*''The Great Treatise On The Stages Of The Path To Enlightenment'', Vol. 3, Snow Lion,
*''Calming the Mind and Discerning the Real: From the Lam rim chen mo of Tson-kha-pa'', trans. Alex Wayman, Columbia University Press,
*''Dependent-Arising and Emptiness: A Tibetan Buddhist Interpretation of Mādhyamika Philosophy'', trans. Elizabeth Napper, Wisdom Publications, : this volume "considers the special insight section of" the Lam Rim (p. 8).
;Medium Lam Rim
*''The Medium Treatise On The Stages Of The Path To Enlightenment - Calm Abiding Section'' translated in "Balancing The Mind: A Tibetan Buddhist Approach To Refining Attention", Shambhala Publications, 2005,
*''The Medium Treatise On The Stages Of The Path To Enlightenment - Insight Section'' translated in "Life and Teachings of Tsongkhapa", Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 2006,
*''The Medium Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment'' (Calm Abiding Section) translated in B. Alan Wallace, Dissertation, 1995, (Wylie: byang chub lam gyi rim pa chung ba)
;Small Lam Rim
*
;Golden Garland of Eloquence
*''Golden Garland of Eloquence - Volume 1 of 4: First Abhisamaya'', Jain Pub Co, 2008,
*''Golden Garland of Eloquence - Volume 2 of 4: Second and Third Abhisamayas'', Jain Pub Co, 2008,
*''Golden Garland of Eloquence - Volume 3 of 4: Fourth Abhisamaya'', Jain Pub Co, 2010,
*''Golden Garland of Eloquence - Volume 4 of 4: Fourth Abhisamaya'', Jain Pub Co, 2013,
;Madhyamaka
*''Ocean of Reasoning: A Great Commentary on Nagarjuna's Mulamadhyamakakarika'', Oxford University Press,
*''Essence of True Eloquence'', translated in ''The Central Philosophy of Tibet'', Princeton University Press,
*''Guided Tour Through the Seven Books of Dharmakirti'', translated in ''A Millennium of Buddhist Logic'', Motilal Barnasidass, 1999,
;Tantra
*''The Fulfillment of All Hopes: Guru Devotion in Tibetan Buddhism'', Wisdom Publications,
*''Tantric Ethics: An Explanation of the Precepts for Buddhist Vajrayana Practice'', Wisdom Publications,
*''The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra - Chapter 1 of 13'', translated in ''Tantra in Tibet'', Shambhala Publications, 1987,
*''The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra - Chapter 2 & 3 of 13'', translated in ''Deity Yoga'', Shambhala Publications, 1987,
*''The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra - Chapter 4 of 13'', translated in ''Yoga Tantra'', Shambhala Publications, 2012,
*''The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra - Chapter 11 & 12 of 13'', translated in ''Great Treatise on the Stages of Mantra: Chapters XI–XII (The Creation Stage)'', Columbia University Press, 2013,
*''The Six Yogas of Naropa: Tsongkhapa's Commentary'', Snow Lion Publications,
;Lamp of the Five Stages
*''Brilliant Illumination of the Lamp of the Five Stages'', Columbia University Press, 2011,
*''A Lamp to Illuminate the Five Stages'', Library of Tibetan Classics, 2013,
;Yogacara
*''Ocean of Eloquence: Tsong Kha Pa's Commentary on the Yogacara Doctrine of Mind'', State University of New York Press,
;Other
*''The Splendor of an Autumn Moon: The Devotional Verse of Tsongkhapa'' Wisdom Publications,
*''Three Principal Aspects of the Path'', Tharpa Publications
*''Stairway to Nirvāṇa: A Study of the Twenty Saṃghas based on the works of Tsong-kha-pa'', James B. Apple, State University of New York Press, 2008,
See also
*Galdan Namchot
Galdan Namchot is a festival celebrated in Tibet, Nepal, Mongolia and many regions of Himalaya, particularly in Ladakh, India. It is to commemorate the birth as well as parinirvana (death) and the Buddhahood of Je Tsongkhapa (1357–1419 AD), ...
Notes
;Subnotes
References
Sources
;Primary (in English Translation):
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;Secondary:
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Further reading
* Thupten Jinpa (2013), ''Self, Reality and Reason in Tibetan Philosophy: Tsongkhapa's Quest for the Middle Way'', Routledge
*
External links
;Primary
*Biography o
Tsongkhapa Lobzang Drakpa by Joona Repo
Tsongkhapa: A Buddha in the Land of Snows
by Thupten Jinpa
Thupten Jinpa Langri (born 1958) is a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, former monk and an academic of religious studies and both Eastern and Western philosophy. He has been the principal English translator to the Dalai Lama since 1985. He has translated ...
Biography of Lama Tsong Khapa
by Sonam Rinchen
;Secondary
Tsongkhapa
at the Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tsongkhapa, Je
1357 births
1419 deaths
Scholars of Buddhism from Tibet
Tibetan philosophers
Ganden Tripas
Lamas
Rinpoches
Madhyamaka
Tibetan Buddhists from Tibet
14th-century Tibetan people
15th-century Tibetan people
Buddhist reformers
Rangtong
Founders of Buddhist sects
14th-century Buddhist monks
15th-century Buddhist monks