Toh 1383Untitled

Exposition of Toh 1383 (Tengyur)

Background

Toh 1383 is a treatise in the Tengyur of the Northern Tibetan canon, belonging to the tradition of Mahāyāna Buddhism. The Tengyur (Bka' 'gyur) is a collection of commentaries, treatises, and annotations by great masters on the scriptures taught by the Buddha. The Tengyur was compiled from the tenth century onward, based on teachings transmitted from India into Tibet, especially through Buddhist scholastic schools such as Madhyamaka, Yogācāra, and the schools of Vajrayāna.

Although the original title and specific content have not been fully provided, treatises in the Tengyur often explain the principles of the Middle Way (Madhyamaka), consciousness and representation (Yogācāra), or methods of practice belonging to the Vajrayāna system. These works were composed by bodhisattvas and masters possessing deep insight into the teachings.

Main Content

Treatises in the Tengyur generally aim to clarify three main points: first, the nature of consciousness and the way it functions within saṃsāra; second, the characteristic of emptiness (śūnyatā), the selfless nature of all phenomena; and third, the path of practice leading to awakening.

In the Mahāyāna tradition, especially in the Northern Tibetan tradition, practitioners are encouraged to understand that all experiences and material things lack any independently existing essence. Consciousness and phenomena (dharma) are not separate; they arise in dependence upon one another (pratītyasamutpāda). Through this profound understanding, practitioners gradually free themselves from what are called the “three poisons”: attachment, aversion, and delusion (lobha, dosa, moha).

Treatises such as Toh 1383 also often discuss the path of the bodhisattva (bodhisattva-yāna), in which practitioners seek awakening not only for themselves but for the benefit of all sentient beings. This is boundless compassion (mahākaruṇā), the heart of the Mahāyāna path.