Toh 2083Untitled

Exposition of Scripture Toh 2083 — Tengyur Treatise Collection

Context

Toh 2083 is a treatise belonging to the Tengyur, the corpus of scholastic texts of Northern Tibetan Buddhism. The Tengyur (Bstan-'gyur) is a collection of commentaries and treatises by saints and eminent masters on the scriptures of the Buddha Dharma, compiled and translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan from approximately the eighth to the thirteenth century.

In the Northern Tibetan Mahayana tradition, these treatises play an extremely important role. They are not only explanations, but also methods for transmitting the Dharma with depth and rigor. The authors of these treatises were great masters who had attained high realization and understood the spirit of the Buddha Dharma through long practice.

The Tengyur is divided into many sections, including treatises on Vinaya, Sutra studies, Abhidharma, logical thought (Pramana), and especially treatises on the unsurpassed path of Tantra. Preserving and studying the Tengyur is an effort to protect the priceless heritage of the Buddha Dharma for humanity.

Main Content

Although this scripture's title has not yet been fully translated, based on the context of the Tengyur Treatise Collection, the content of Toh 2083 is likely to be a commentary or treatise explaining one or more aspects of the Buddha Dharma from the Mahayana perspective.

In the Northern Tibetan tradition, treatises often focus on clarifying:

First, the nature of mind (chitta) and the understanding of emptiness (śūnyatā), especially according to the Madhyamaka or Yogācāra schools. The authors of treatises explain how the mind removes mistaken notions about self, and directly realizes the Buddha-nature of all beings.

Second, the bodhisattva path, especially the development of bodhicitta and the practice of the Six Perfections (Pāramitā) — generosity, discipline, patience, diligence, meditation, and wisdom.