Practical Ethics and Profound Emptiness

A Commentary on Nagarjuna's Precious Garland

Jampa Tegchok, Thubten Chodron, Thubten Chodron

• Publisher: Wisdom Publications
• Year: 2017
• ISBN:
  9781614293354
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Buddhism

Let a great Tibetan scholar guide you through one of Nagarjuna's masterworks. In Practical Ethics and Profound Emptiness Khensur Jampa Tegchok walks us carefully through a classic of Indian Buddhist philosophy, explaining the implications of its philosophical arguments and grounding its advice in a recognizable day-to-day world. In Precious Garland, the source text for this commentary, Nagarjuna advises his patron king on how best to take advantage of human life to secure a happy rebirth in the next life while making progress toward the goal of enlightenment. Known primarily for his incisive presentation of emptiness, here Nagarjuna shows his wise understanding of how to navigate the intricacies of worldly life to balance everyday needs with spiritual practice. Loaded with equal measures of penetrating explanations of the highest reality and inspiring encouragement towards the bodhisattva practices, Practical Ethics and Profound Emptiness makes the case for living a thoughtful, morally upright life in the world to achieve immediate and ultimate spiritual goals.

Index

A

Abhidharma, 9, 125–26, 330

Abhidharma Sutra, 334

Abhidharmakosha. See Treasury of Knowledge (Vasubandhu)

Abhidharmasamucchaya. See Compendium of Knowledge (Asanga)

Abhisamayalamkara. See Ornament of Clear Realization (Maitreya)

absolutism, 69, 77, 80–81, 86–87, 140, 154

accumulation, path of, 188, 270, 349, 354, 356, 357, 363, 367

adultery, 28, 34–35

adventitious stains, 73–74, 143

affirming negatives, 73

afflictions

cessation of, 68, 74

eliminating, 218–19

I-grasping and, 52

at nirvana, views on, 71–72

nonvirtue as, 28

rebirth and, 223

of sentient beings, 103

in twelve links, 63–64

afflictive obscurations, 14, 19–20, 57, 76, 109, 367

agent and action, 5, 92–93, 126, 127

aggregates, mental and physical, 102–3

arising of, 51–52

bondage to, 109

conceit of apprehending as I, 333–34

conventional existence of, 108

duhkha of, 64–65

emptiness of, 52

fear of emptiness and, 46

I as dependent on, 58–60

investigating, 47–48, 54, 55–56, 134

lack of inherent existence of, 82, 83

at nirvana, views on, 71–72

refuting inherent existence of, 91, 92, 298–99

self and, 111

self-grasping of, 61–62

selflessness of, 114–19

views on, 70

Akanishta, 221, 369

Akshayamati Sutra, 386

analogies and examples

for aggregates, 304

for birth in cyclic existence, 21–22

bitter medicine, 310

cow leading herd, 33, 94

cows wandering in jungle, 33, 34

eczema, 181

fire and fuel, 118, 123, 132, 298

fireflies and sunlight, 200

grand fruit tree, 287

handling snakes, 154

illusory elephant, 145–47

lamp’s fla...