Tsong-kha-pa’s Revised Presentation of Compatibly Appearing Subjects in The Essence of Eloquence with Jig-me-dam-chö-gya-tsho’s Commentary, 7 Jeffrey Hopkins Dual language edition of Tsong-kha-pa’s text by Jongbok Yi UMA INSTITUTE FOR TIBETAN STUDIES Tsong-kha-pa’s Revised Presentation of Compatibly Appearing Subjects Website for UMA Institute for Tibetan Studies (Union of the Modern and the Ancient: gsar rnying zung `jug khang): uma- tibet.org. UMA stands for “Union of the Modern and the Ancient” and means “Middle Way” in Tibetan. UMA is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. Tsong-kha-pa’s Revised Presentation of Compatibly Appearing Subjects in The Essence of Eloquence with Jig-me-dam-chö-gya-tsho’s Commentary, 7 Jeffrey Hopkins Dual language edition of Tsong-kha-pa’s text by Jongbok Yi UMA Institute for Tibetan Studies uma-tibet.org UMA Great Books Translation Project Expanding Wisdom and Compassion Through Study and Contemplation Supported by generous grants from Venerable Master Bup-an and a Bequest from Daniel E. Perdue Translating texts from the heritage of Tibetan and Inner Asian Bud- dhist systems, the project focuses on Great Indian Books and Ti- betan commentaries from the Go-mang College syllabus as well as a related theme on the fundamental innate mind of clear light in Tantric traditions. A feature of the Project is the usage of consistent vocabulary and format throughout the translations. Publications are available online without cost under a Creative Commons License with the understanding that downloaded material must be distributed for free: http://uma-tibet.org. UMA stands for Union of the Modern and the Ancient (gsar rnying zung ’jug khang). The UMA Institute for Tibetan Studies is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization. Mailing address: UMA Institute for Tibetan Studies 4109 SE Howe St. Milwaukie, Oregon 97222 USA Original printing: April, 2020 ISBN: 978-1-941381-49-6 Library of Congress Control Number: I. Hopkins, Jeffrey, 1940-. II. Tsong-kha-pa’s revised presentation of compatibly appearing subjects in the essence of eloquence with jig-me-dam-chö-gya-tsho’s commentary, 7. Includes bibliographical references. ISBN: 978-1-941381-49-6 1. Tsong-kha-pa Blo-bzang-grags-pa, 1357-1419. Legs bshad snying po. ’Jigs-med-dam-chos-rgya-mtsho, 1898-1946. 2. Śūnyatā. 3. Dge-lugs-pa (Sect)--Doctrines. 4. Phar-phyin: drang nges; dbu ma: chos can mthun snang ba. 5. Wisdom--Religious aspects--Buddhism. I. Lo-zang-gyal-tshan, 1966- II. Ti- tle. Contents (The elements in yellow highlight are added from Jig-me-dam-chö-gya- tsho’s commentary.) Preface 7 The author: Tsong-kha-pa Lo-zang-drag-pa 7 Tsong-kha-pa’s The Essence of Eloquence 15 The commentators: The place of Jig-me-dam-chö-gya-tsho’s Port of Entry 21 Editions consulted 33 Technical Notes 35 Part One: Tsong-kha-pa Lo-zang-drag-pa’s The Essence of Eloquence: on Compatibly Appearing Subjects with Jig-me-dam-chö-gya-tsho’s commentary Port of Entry 37 2' How autonomous signs are not asserted {2 parts} 39 a' Transition 39 b' Actual way autonomous signs are not asserted {3 parts} 40 1" Reasoning refuting autonomy {2 parts} 40 a" Indicating the fallacy of the position in that the basal subject is not established {2 parts} 41 1: Explaining that affixing the qualification “ultimately” is meaningless 41 2: Refuting [Bhāvaviveka’s] response that he holds a mere general subject {2 parts} 58 b" Indicating due to this fallacy [of the position in that the basal subject is not established] the nonestablishment also of the reason 123 2" How even the opponent [Bhāvaviveka] by import has asserted this reasoning 127 3" Evidence why those fallacies expressed are not the same for our own syllogisms {5 parts} 141 a" To refute an opponent’s wrong conceptions, establishment for both disputants is not necessary 141 b" Having explained the meaning of an autonomous sign, indicating that this is not asserted 157 6 Contents c" When, having identified an other-renowned sign, upon its being known the view is found, at which point wrong conceptions discarding the class of behavior are blocked 160 d" Indicating that for a correct other-renowned sign establishment by valid cognition by the opponent is necessary 165 e" Dispelling a qualm about Autonomists not being Proponents of the Middle 170 Part Two: Tsong-kha-pa Lo-zang-drag-pa’s The Essence of Eloquence: on Compatibly Appearing Subjects 175 2' How autonomous signs are not asserted 177 Abbreviations 203 Bibliography 204 1. Tibetan and Sanskrit Works 204 2. Other Works 221 Preface THE AUTHOR: TSONG-KHA-PA LO-ZANG-DRAG-PA The Ge-lug-pa order of Tibetan Buddhism was founded by the yogi- scholar Tsong-kha-pa Lo-zang-drag-paa (1357-1419), the fourth in a fam- ily of six sons in the Tsong-ka region of the northeastern province of Tibet called Am-do.b He took layperson’s vows at the age of three from the Fourth Karma-pa Röl-pay-dor-jec and novice monastic vows at seven. He studied and practiced in Am-do until age sixteen, when he left for central Tibet, never to return to Am-do. There, Chö-je Don-drub-rin-chend ad- vised him to study the Five Great Books of Indian Buddhism, which be- came the basic curriculum of sūtra study in the monasteries that Tsong- kha-pa and his followers established. From childhood, his study and prac- tice were interlaced with tantra, and thus it is only a misimpression outside of Tibetan, Mongolian, and Chinese circles that he was not deeply in- volved with tantrism. He studied a great deal with masters of the Ka-gyue and Sa-kyaf or- ders. As Stephen Batchelor says in The Tibet Guide: g Tsongkhapa was born in 1357 in Amdo, the northeastern province of Tibet. During the time of the Third Dalai Lama his birthplace was marked by the erection of the Kumbum Jampa Ling Monas- tery near Xining. While still very young he was recognized as pos- sessing unusual spiritual qualities and as a young man was sent to Central Tibet to further his understanding of Buddhism in the more cultured region of the country. The first monastery he visited a tsong kha pa blo bzang grags pa. b a mdo. c karma pa rol pa’i rdo rje (1340-1383). d chos rje rin chen don grub. e bka’ brgyud. f sa skya. g Stephen Batchelor, The Tibet Guide: Central and Western Tibet (Boston: Wisdom, 1998), 129-131. For a short biography, see Geshe Ngawang Dhargey, “A Short Biog- raphy,” in Life and Teachings of Tsong Khapa, ed. Robert A. F. Thurman, trans. mainly by Khamlung Tulku (Dharmsala, India: Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, 1982), 4-39. For an inspired and inspiring account, see Robert A. F. Thurman, Tsong Khapa’s Speech of Gold in the Essence of True Eloquence (Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 1984), 65-89. 8 Preface was that of Drigung, where he studied medicine and the doctrines of the Kagyu lineage. From here he proceeded to Netang, Samye, Zhalu, and Sakya monasteries. He met his main teacher Rendawa at Tsechen Monastery just outside Gyantse. For many years he studied the full range of Buddhist philosophy, including the more esoteric tantric systems. He then retreated to Olka, north of the Brahmaputra downstream from Tsetang, and spent the next four years in intense retreat. Upon returning to society he found him- self much in demand as a teacher. One place where he taught was the hill in Lhasa on which the Potala was eventually built. To- gether with Rendawa he stayed for some time at Reting, where he composed his most famous work, The Great Exposition of the Stages on the Path to Enlightenment. After another meditation and writing retreat at Chöding Hermitage (above where Sera monas- tery now is), he founded, in 1409, the famous annual Mönlam (prayer) festival in Lhasa, which, after a twenty-five-year hiatus, was reinaugurated in 1986. (In the political unrest that followed the demonstrations of 1987 and 1988, it was canceled in 1989 and by 1994 had not been resumed.) After the prayer festival Tsongkhapa decided to found his own monastery. He selected Mt. Drokri, a mountain upstream from Lhasa, and called the monastery “Ganden,” Tibetan for “Tushita,” the pure land where the future Buddha Maitreya resides. Within a year seventy buildings had been completed, but it was not until 1417 that the main hall of the monastery was consecrated. Tsongkhapa died at Ganden two years later, in 1419, and shortly before his death passed the mantle of succession to Gyelt- sab Je, one of his two chief disciples. Gyeltsab Je held the position of Ganden Tripa (Throne Holder of Ganden) until his own death twelve years later, when it passed to Tsongkhapa’s other chief dis- ciple Khedrup Je. The post of Ganden Tripa was later given to the senior Dharma Master of one of the two main Ganden Colleges, Jangtse and Shartse. It was a five-year post for which to qualify one must first have obtained a geshe degree with highest honors (lharampa), proceeded to the abbotship of one of the two Lhasa tantric colleges, and from there been appointed Dharma Master of either Jangtse or Shartse college. The tradition has been continued in India. It is the Ganden Tripa, not the Dalai Lama, who heads the Gelukpa order. During his lifetime Tsongkhapa was regarded as a remarkable spiritual figure whose genius and saintliness held him above the Preface 9 sectarian differences of his times.