Toh 3732Untitled

Exposition of Toh 3732 (Tengyur)

The Mahayana Tradition — Northern Transmission

Context

This scripture is preserved in the Tengyur — the collection of treatises (śāstra) of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, compiled in the eighth and ninth centuries at great monastic institutions such as Nalanda and Samye. The scripture number Toh 3732 is found in the Treatise Collection (bhandasala), the section containing commentaries and treatises explaining the basic scriptures of the Mahayana.

In the Northern Transmission tradition, the Tengyur is viewed as secondary teachings, profound reasoning that helps us understand more clearly the intention of the Buddha and the Bodhisattvas. These treatises were composed by supreme Bodhisattvas such as Nagarjuna, Asanga, Vasubandhu, and later authentic scholars, ensuring the authenticity of the theory of the Buddhadharma.

Main Content

Although the title of this scripture has not been fully transmitted, we may understand that, like other treatises in the Tengyur, this scripture aims to explain a profound aspect of Mahayana Buddhism. It may be a theory concerning the nature of mind (citta), the quality of non-self-nature (anātman), or the path of practice of the Bodhisattva (bodhisattva-yāna).

In Northern Transmission thought, especially in the Gelug, Kagyu, and Nyingma schools, the Tengyur treatises all emphasize two foundational principles: (1) all phenomena lack fixed intrinsic nature, and (2) conscious mind has limitless capacity for awakening. This scripture, situated in this context, perhaps explores one of these domains through rigorous reasoning and scriptural evidence.

The treatises in the Tengyur often use methods of comparison (upaniṣad), refutation (dūṣana) of mistaken views, and the establishment of certain conclusions (siddhānta) based on the logic of the Buddhadharma (nyāya). This helps practitioners overcome intellectual difficulties and develop a lucid mind, clear regarding the truths of the Buddhadharma.