The ''Madhyamakāvatāra'' () is a text by Candrakīrti (600–c. 650) on the Mādhyamaka school of

Buddhist philosophy Buddhist philosophy is the ancient Indian Indian philosophy, philosophical system that developed within the religio-philosophical tradition of Buddhism. It comprises all the Philosophy, philosophical investigations and Buddhist logico-episte ...

. Candrakīrti also wrote an auto-commentary to the work, called the ''Madhyamakāvatārabhasya.'' It is traditionally considered as a commentary on the meaning of

Nagarjuna Nāgārjuna (Sanskrit: नागार्जुन, ''Nāgārjuna''; ) was an Indian monk and Mahayana, Mahāyāna Buddhist Philosophy, philosopher of the Madhyamaka (Centrism, Middle Way) school. He is widely considered one of the most importa ...

's ''

Mūlamadhyamakakārikā The ''Mūlamadhyamakakārikā'' (), abbreviated as ''MMK'', is the foundational text of the Madhyamaka school of Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophy. It was composed by the Indian philosopher Nāgārjuna (around roughly 150 CE).Siderits and Katsura ...

'' and the '' Ten Stages Sutra'' (''Daśabhūmika Sūtra''). As such, within the

Tibetan Buddhist canon The Tibetan Buddhist canon is a compilation of the Buddhist sacred texts recognized by various schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The Canon includes the Kangyur, which is the Buddha's recorded teachings, and the Tengyur, which is commentaries by gr ...

this text is classified as commentarial literature.

The text

The Madhyamakāvatāra relates the Mādhyamaka doctrine of

śūnyatā ''Śūnyatā'' ( ; ; ), translated most often as "emptiness", " vacuity", and sometimes "voidness", or "nothingness" is an Indian philosophical concept. In Buddhism, Jainism, Hinduism, and other Indian philosophical traditions, the concept ...

to the "spiritual discipline" (Sanskrit:

sādhanā ''Sādhanā'' (; ; ) is an ego-transcending spiritual practice in Indian religions. It includes a variety of disciplines in Hindu, Buddhist and Jain traditions that are followed in order to achieve various spiritual or ritual objectives. ...

) of a

bodhisattva In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is a person who has attained, or is striving towards, '' bodhi'' ('awakening', 'enlightenment') or Buddhahood. Often, the term specifically refers to a person who forgoes or delays personal nirvana or ''bodhi'' in ...

. The Madhyamakāvatāra contains eleven chapters, where each addresses one of the ten

pāramitā ''Pāramitā'' (Sanskrit, Pali: पारमिता) or ''pāramī'' (Pāli: पारमी) is a Buddhist term often translated as "perfection". It is described in Buddhist commentaries as a noble character quality generally associated with ...

s or "perfections" fulfilled by bodhisattvas as they traverse the 'ten stages' (Sanskrit:

bhūmi Bhumi (Sanskrit: भूमि, romanized: Bhūmi), also known as Bhudevi, Dharani, and Vasundhara, is a significant goddess in Hinduism, personifying the Earth. Her earliest form is reflected in the Vedic goddess Prithvi, though their roles and de ...

) to

buddhahood In Buddhism, Buddha (, which in classic Indo-Aryan languages, Indic languages means "awakened one") is a title for those who are Enlightenment in Buddhism, spiritually awake or enlightened, and have thus attained the Buddhist paths to liberat ...

, which is the final chapter.

Commentarial literature

*The ''Madhyamakāvatārabhasya'' is Candrakīrti's own auto-commentary to the text''.'' *The ''Madhyamakāvatāraṭīkā'' is an elaborate 11th century commentary by the Indian scholar Jayānanda''.'' * Jamgon Ju Mipham Gyatso (1846–1912) wrote a commentary on the Madhyamakavatara entitled: dbu ma la 'jug pa'i 'grel pa zla ba'i zhal lung dri me shel phreng; the title has been rendered into English by Duckworth (2008: p. 232) as: ''Immaculate Crystal Rosary'' and by Padmakara Translations in it is titled ''The Word of Chandra: The Necklace of Spotless Crystal'' Padmakara Translation Group (2002). ''Introduction to the Middle Way'' (Candrakirti's Madhyamakāvatāra with Mipham Rinpoche's Commentary). Shambhala *Khenpo Shenga, dbu ma la 'jug pa'i 'grel mchan legs par bshad pa zla ba'i 'od zer *Khenpo Ngawang Palzang, dbu ma 'jug pa'i 'bru 'grel blo gsal dga' ba'i me long * Jeffrey Hopkins (1980). ''Compassion in Tibetan Buddhism''. Ithaca: Snow Lion. (first five chapters based on Tsongkhapa’s commentary) *Rendawa Shonnu Lodro (1997). ''Commentary on the Entry into the Middle, Lamp which Elucidates Reality'', translated by Stotter-Tillman & Acharya Tashi Tsering, Sarnath, Varanasi.

English translations

*Fredrik Liland (trans) (2020)
''Madhyamakāvatāra'' (Bibliotheca Polyglotta)
with ''Madhyamakāvatārabhasya'' and translations from Jayānanda's commentary. *Geshe Rabten (translator, commentator) Stephen Batchelor (translator, editor) (1983). ''Echoes of Voidness'', London : Wisdom Publications *Huntington, C. W. (1989). ''The Emptiness of Emptiness''. University of Hawaii Press * Geshe Kelsang Gyatso. ''Ocean of Nectar: Wisdom and Compassion in Mahayana Buddhism''. London: Tharpa Publications, 1995. * Padmakara Translation Group (2002). ''Introduction to the Middle Way'' (Candrakirti's Madhyamakāvatāra with Mipham Rinpoche's Commentary). Shambhala *Introduction to the Middle Way: Chandrakirti's Madhyamakavatara with commentary by Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche, edited by Alex Trisoglio, Khyentse Foundation, 2003
A translation of the Madhyamakavatara and its Auto-Commentary by Chandrakirti with additional commentary by Khenpo Namdrol Rinpoche

The text

Commentarial literature

English translations

See also

References

Further reading