Tsong-Kha-Pa

Yoga of Tibet describes the profound process of meditation in Action and Performance Tantra. It is an invaluable book for anyone who is practising or interested in Buddhist tantra. It consists of three parts: Heart of Mantra by the Dalai Lama is a lucid exposition of the meditative rites of of deity yoga-the distinctly tantric process in which yogis visualize themselves in the form of a Buddha's divine body as a manifestation of compassionate wisdom. The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra part 2 & 3 by Tsong-ka-pa, details the practices of Action and Performance Tantra. Special deity yoga techniques for the development of the heart, mind and physical form of a Buddha are presented in a coherent series of yogic exercises. The Mudras (hand gestures) that accompany the meditations are clearly illustrated. A Supplement by Jeffrey Hopkins outlines in detail the structure of Action Tantra practices as well as the need for development of special yogic powers.… (mer)

The first complete English translation of renowned scholar-saint Tsongkhapa's Middle-Length Treatise on the Stages of the Path.
Tsongkhapa (1357-1419), the author of the well-known Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment and the teacher of the First Dalai Lama, is renowned as one of the greatest scholar-saints that Tibet has ever produced. A dozen years after writing the Great Treatise, he wrote the Middle-Length Treatise on the Stages of the Path, presented here in its first complete English translation.

Half the length of the well-known Great Treatise, this work similarly presents a systematic overview of the Buddhist path. Tsongkhapa begins by abridging the longer work, distilling its explanations for quicker integration. He presents a series of meditations, beginning with recognizing the rarity of our human existence and the great opportunities it affords, followed by reflections on impermanence, suffering, and the promise of liberation from our past actions, until proceeding to the path of bodhisattvas, whose universal compassion seeks to free every being from suffering. Tsongkhapa gives especially detailed instructions on samatha, the deep meditative concentration that is a precondition for the highest insight into the nature of reality. The final and largest section, on that very insight, is unique to this work, particularly Tsongkhapa's presentation of conventional truth and ultimate truth.

Those new to Tibetan Buddhist teachings will benefit from the approachable style of this classic handbook for enlightenment, and beginners and longtime practitioners alike will cherish the clear guidance from one of Tibet's great luminaries.… (mer)

The Dalai Lama's translator and author of the definitive biography of Tsongkhapa here presents the first translation of one of that master's seminal and best-known works.
This work is perhaps the most influential explanation of Candrakirti's seventh-century classic Entering the Middle Way (Madhyamakavatara).

Written as a supplement to Nagarjuna's Fundamental Verses on the Middle Way, Candrakirti's text integrates the central insight of Nagarjuna's thought--the rejection of any metaphysical notion of intrinsic existence--with the well-known Mahayana framework of the ten levels of the bodhisattva, and it became the most studied presentation of Madhyamaka thought in Tibet.

Completed the year before the author's death, Tsongkhapa's exposition of Candrakirti's text is recognized by the Tibetan tradition as the final standpoint of Tsongkhapa on many philosophical questions, particularly the clear distinctions it draws between the standpoints of the Madhyamaka and Cittamatra schools.… (mer)

The Brilliantly Illuminating Lamp of the Five Stages (rim lnga rab tu gsal ba’i sgron me) is Tsong Khapa’s most important commentary on the perfection-stage practices of the Esoteric Community (Guhyasamaja), the tantra he considered fundamental for the practice of the “father tantra” class of unexcelled yoga tantras. It draws heavily on Nagarjuna’s Five Stages (Pañcakrama) and Aryadeva’s Lamp that Integrates the Practices (Caryamelapaka­pradipa), as well as a vast range of perfection-stage works included in the Tibetan canonical (Kangyur and Tengyur) collections. It is an important work for both scholars and practitioners. A reader of this work will find in it convincing evidence for Tsong Khapa’s own yogic experience and attainment, in coordination with his better-known philosophical and scholarly achievements.

The present revised edition of the work is a cornerstone of the Complete Works of Jey Tsong Khapa and Sons collection, a subset of the Treasury of the Buddhist Sciences series. Comprised of the collected works of Tsong Khapa (1357–1419) and his spiritual sons, Gyaltsap Darma Rinchen (1364–1432) and Khedrup Gelek Pelsang (1385–1438), the numerous works in this set of Tibetan treatises and supercommentaries are based on the thousands of works in the Tibetan Buddhist canon.… (mer)