An Early Tibetan Commentary on Atiśa’s Satyadvayāvatāra

Abstract

Dīpaṁ karaśrījñāna (982-1054 C.E.), more commonly known under his honorific title of Atiśa, is a renowned figure in Tibetan Buddhist cultural memory. He is famous for coming to Tibet and revitalizing Buddhism there during the early eleventh century. Of the many works that Atiśa composed, translated, and brought to Tibet one of the most well-known was his "Entry to the Two Realities" (Satyadvayāvatāra). Recent scholarship has provided translations and Tibetan editions of this work, including Lindtner's English translation (1981) and Ejima's Japanese translation (1983). However, previously there was no known Indian or Tibetan commentary to this work. This article identifies for the first time a brief commentary to the Satyadvayāvatāra and discusses its content and purport in relation to early Madhyamaka philosophy in Tibet, and provides an annotated translation of the work. This early Tibetan commentary on the two realities (satyadvaya) provides important insight into how late eleventh century or early twelfth centuries Tibetan followers of Atiśa understood the tenets of Buddhist philosophy, the nature of valid cognition (tshad ma), and the importance of spiritual authority. The early Tibetan commentary to Atiśa's Satyadvayāvatāra provides direct textual evidence of the beginnings of scholasticism in Tibet and offers an early perspective on the formative developments in the intellectual history of Tibetan Madhyamaka.

Atiśa’s Satyadvayāvatāra (Bden pa gnyis la ’jug pa) in the Tangut Translation: A Preliminary Study

“…This early Bka' gdams literature is starting to emerge as the subject of scholarly scrutiny, e.g. : Apple (2013). This paper also contains the translation of Atiśa's root text which we also consulted.…”

An Early Bka’-gdams-pa Madhyamaka Work Attributed to Atiśa Dīpaṃkaraśrījñāna

“…Moreover, the two realities are not discussed in the BMPP. 3 Rather, they are briefly articulated in the condensed twenty-eight verses of the SDA (Apple 2013). The General Explanation furnishes previously unknown details to Atiśa's Madhyamaka thought.…”

“…The text unpacks detailed characteristics of the two realities while 1 This situation may change with future research on the works contained in the Bka'-gdams gsung 'bum. See, for instance, a recent anonymous Bka'-dams-pa commentary on Atiśa's Satyadvayāvatāra (Apple 2013). 2 Atiśa as a Madhyamaka thinker is not mentioned in Hayes (2014), Williams (2009), nor discussed in Edelglass and Garfield (2009).…”