Toh 1139Untitled

An Exposition of Scripture Toh 1139 from the Tengyur

Background

This scripture belongs to the commentarial canon (Abhidharmakośa) in the Tengyur, the section of treatises on the Buddha Dharma in the Northern Tibetan tradition. The Tengyur is a collection of treatises translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan, compiled in the eighth and ninth centuries, a period when Buddhism developed vigorously in the Himalayan region. The works in the Tengyur are intended to explain, develop, and defend the core teachings of Mahayana Buddhism.

Although the original title has not been fully transmitted into Vietnamese, in the context of the Northern tradition the treatises in the Tengyur often focus on theories concerning Tathatā (suchness), the nature of mind, or profound analytic categories of the Dharma. This scripture may address one of the central issues of Mahayana: the relation between phenomena and ultimate nature, or the qualities of buddha-nature present in all beings.

Main Content

In the Northern Tibetan tradition, Tengyur treatises always begin from the fundamental principle that all phenomena (dharma) lack self-nature (anātman, bdag med). From this principle, scholars such as Vasubandhu, Asaṅga, and Nāgārjuna developed systems of thought to help practitioners clearly understand the nature of reality.

This scripture, if following the usual structure of the commentarial canon, may discuss some aspect of the bodhisattva method of practice or teachings on mind. Mahayana emphasizes that buddha-nature is not something remote, but an innate nature, and that practice is the process of opening this understanding through the expanded Four Noble Truths and skillful means (upāya). Tengyur treatises often use the method of refuting each factor in turn to demonstrate the unreal, unborn, and unceasing nature of phenomena.

The Northern Tibetan tradition especially emphasizes the role of the bodhisattva and the boundless path of practice for liberating all beings. These treatises provide the theoretical framework for Buddhist meditation (dhyāna) and prajnaparamita (Prajñāpāramitā).