A new era for research on the history of in India was ushered in with the January 2004 signing of a general agreement between the Austrian Academy of Sciences and the China Tibetology Research Center (CTRC) in Beijing for the joint editing of texts on the basis of the CTRC’s copies of manuscripts from the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR). Religious and philosophical works, all of which had previously only been available in Tibetan or Chinese translations and their original Sanskrit texts considered lost, are taken up first for critical editing. It is essential that diplomatic (in the case of codices unici) and critical editions of the original texts be made available to the international scholarly community as quickly as possible. The editions will be supplemented with translations and studies dealing with the development of ideas, with the latter based on the new editions and other primary sources, for which manuscripts of any other provenance (Patna, Rome, London, Nepal, etc.) will also be considered. Both the translations and the studies will take into account, to the extent possible, a broad contextual background: they will consider, on the one hand, specific concepts that developed within the religiously influenced Buddhist philosophical traditions and as a result of intra-Buddhist debates and, on the other hand, the polemic reactions of Brahmanical religio-philosophical traditions, as well as the later appropriation of the various Buddhist traditions in . The studies will deal not only with fundamental Buddhist theories such as the theory of the fallacious reasons or key concepts such as those of induction or concept formation (apoha), but will also include new materials on the topic of the dialectical and philosophical training of junior monks in the Indian Buddhist monastic environment.

The most important text editions (some with translations) include: Jinendrabuddhi’s Pramana- samuccayatika (chapters 3–6) – Dharmakirti’s Hetubindu – Dharmottara’s Pramanaviniscayatika (chapters 2 and 3) – Candrakirti’s Madhyamakavatara (chapters 1–5) – Bhaviveka’s Prajña- pradipa – Ratnakarasanti’s Suddhamati on ’s – Sthiramati’s Abhidharmakosatika Tattvarthavyakhya – Samayavajra’s Pañcakramapañjika – ’s Pañcakramatatparyapañjika – Santaraksita’s Tattvasiddhi with translation.

The following works will be translated: Dharmakirti’s Pramanavarttikasvavrtti (pp. 24,16–93,5) – Dharmottara’s Pramanaviniscayatika (chapter 3, fols. 61–111, explaining Dignaga’s hetucakra in PVin 3.33–66).

The translations will be accompanied by studies which present the relevant topics in a historical, philosophical and religious context.