MAGIC KEY FOR ENTERING KNOWLEDGE (PART III): ‘CONEQUENTIALIST MIDDLE WAY’ SCHOOL. The Consequentialist (Prasangika) Middle Way school and the fault of negating everything into empty-of-self (rang-tong) without asserting the ultimate ‘basis’ and qualities of Buddha Nature, the union of clear awareness-emptiness

“These days in this scriptural tradition people take mere words that appear as ‘no propositions’ as a refuge. They do not accept the presentation of the path and result, and do not even assert the Buddha Nature (Dezheg Nyingpo). Then they focus their mind single-pointedly on the blank, mere emptiness of the lack of elaborations… Whenever such people speak, they repeat “lack of elaborations, lack of elaborations” over and over and consider the Empty-of-Other Middleway, the Shentong school to be barren…So  if one does not realise the nature of reality well, then it is equivalent to the nihilistic view (cherbupa), as the masters of the Empty-of-Other all say unanimously.”

“Generally, grasping at either things or non-things does not transcend fixation on extremes. Also, the nature of some mere empty aspect that is merely free of extremes, because all extremes have been refuted by mentally fabricated suppositions, is not equivalent to the ultimate nature (thar-thug). “–Khenpo Gangshar in Magic Key for Entering Knowledge commentary

“If we want to do meditation, we have to have the view, if we do not have the right view, there is no way that we are actually going to be able to meditate.”

There is the clarity aspect, and there has to be that clarity aspect. If it were just mere emptiness, it would be like empty space. With empty space no matter how long you wait, you can wait months and years, and it will never develop any qualities or any wisdom. But with the nature of the mind the dharma nature expanse, when you really understand it you see that there is the possibility that all the qualities can develop. So, the emptiness of the dharma nature has the potential for the qualities of the buddha path of the Vajrayana. ” –9th Thrangu Rinpoche

Introduction

For the full moon day today, am happy to offer the third section of my overview and transcript on the Magic Key to Entering Knowledge commentary by Nyingma and Dzogchen master, Khenpo Gangshar. from the recently passed 9th Thrangu Rinpoche (links to Part I and Part II)  The subject of the Day Six teaching is the Consequentialist (Prasaṅgika) Middle Way school, the second of the three main Middle Way Schools.

Although this is not taught in the commentary, as a brief explanation here, in contrast to the previously discussed Svātantrika Mādhyamika who use a reasoning technique to make ‘positive’ or ‘autonomous’ assertions, the central technique avowed by the Prasaṅgika Mādhyamika is to show by prasaṅga (or reductio ad absurdum) that any positive assertion (such as “asti” or “nāsti”, “it is”, or “it is not”) or view regarding phenomena must be regarded as merely conventional (saṃvṛti or lokavyavahāra). The prāsaṅgika holds that it is not necessary for the proponent and opponent to use the same kind of valid cognition (pramana) to establish a common subject; indeed it is possible to change the view of an opponent through a reductio argument.   The division itself is exclusively Tibetan. The school is mainly based on Candrakīrti’s critique of Bhāviveka, arguing for a sole reliance on prasaṅga reasoning. Candrakīrti’s works are said to have had no influence on Indian and early Tibetan Mādhayamika, but started to become more influential in Tibet in the 15th century with Je Tsongkhapa (1357–1419), founder of the Gelugpa school and the most outspoken proponent of the distinction, followed Candrakīrti in his rejection of Bhavaviveka’s arguments.

As mentioned in my previous article, Śāntarakṣita established Vajrayana Buddhism in Tibet, and his Yogācāra-Mādhyamika was the primary philosophical viewpoint until the 14th century. While Śāntarakṣita’s synthesis reflects the final development of Indian Madhyamaka and post-dates Candrakīrti, it is asserted that Gelug Tibetan commentators ignored the nuances of Śāntarakṣita’s synthesis, grouping his approach together with Bhāviveka’s, due to their usage of syllogistic reasonings to explain and defend their view. After the 17th century,  when the Mongolian military invasion of Tibet put the Gelugpa/Dalai Lamas into absolute power, Tsongkhapa’s views dominated Tibetan Buddhism until the 20th century. In the 19th and 20th Centuries, the subtleties of Śāntarakṣita’s views were re-introduced by the Rime (non-sectarian) movement in Tibet, mainly by Kagyu and Nyingma teachers such as Je Mipham Rinpoche, Jamgon Kongtrul the Great, Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo and Khenpo Gangshar.

The Magic Key  For Entering Knowledge teaching includes the following topics:

• The Consequentialist Middle Way (Prasaṅgika Mādhyamika) School – not differentiating between the two truths and going directly for  ‘unapproximated’ emptiness of ultimate reality
• The reasons why having both the correct view and meditative experience are essential for developing and realising the nature of mind and Buddha Nature  
• Ultimate reality is not mere nothingness or blankness but a union of clear awareness- emptiness that is indivisible and the same in essence
• The dangers of the Consequentialist view of having ‘no propositions’ and not understanding Empty-of-Other (Zhentong)
• “Clinging to mere emptiness is stupider than an ox” – The Empty-of-Other (Zhentong) lineage masters, Kālacakra Tantra and Mahasiddha Saraha on the ultimate nature and faults with Consequentialist school view
• Longchenpa’s refutation of the Consequentialist Middle Way as not being equivalent to the ultimate nature, the Buddha Nature union of clear awareness -emptiness
• Question and Answer Session

My brief overview/summary of the teaching is below. A full transcript can be downloaded here: Magic Key Commentary Consequentialist Middle Way Thrangu Rinpoche Day 6 Transcript.

In summary, the Magic Key commentary explains and makes it clear why the Consequentialist Middle Way cannot be, and is not the ultimate view of reality and mind, as it does not assert the ‘basis of removal’ of the negated phenomena/emptiness, which is the Buddha Nature/Tathagatagarbha. As I explained in the previous article on the Autonomist Middle Way school, this philosophical difference became in important in Tibet, when the Gelug violently took over Tibet with the Mongolian military, and confiscated not only monasteries of other lineages, but many Zhentong texts and forbid their publication and teaching. It is only recently, that some of these texts have been discovered. Could it be that the Gelug/Dalai Lamas were wrong about the ultimate view though? According to Je Mipham Rinpoche, Khenpo Gangshar and the recently passed Geshe Lharampa, 9th Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, it is mistaken to reduce everything to mere emptiness without anything remaining, as by doing so it fails to recognise and realise the fundamental clarity awareness-emptiness nature of mind that is replete with the Buddha Nature potential and qualities. 

May this overview and transcript be of benefit in helping us all realise the full awakened qualities of our Buddha Nature potential, the union of clear awareness-emptiness!

Music? Dancing in the Dark by Bruce Springsteen, Ignorance is Bliss by Our Last Night and  3 Libras  by Tool.

Written, compiled and transcribed by Adele Tomlin, 3rd July 2023.

The Consequentialist School – not differentiating between the two truths and going directly for  ‘unapproximated’ emptiness

9th Thrangu Rinpoche began the teaching by first re-capping that there are four main schools of tenets in Tibetan Buddhism, and that they had reached the fourth school of the Middle Way/Mādhyamika. Of these there are three main Middle Way schools, and the first is that of the Autonomists (Rang-gyupa). He again explained that they establish that ultimately all phenomena are empty of inherent existence but they assert that they exist in some way conventionally. That there are stages of establishing emptiness and that first it is important to establish emptiness through the logic of inference and why that is helpful practically in reducing the afflictive emotions.

He then reviewed the difference between ‘approximated’ (nam-drang) and ‘unapproximated’ (nam-drang ma-yin) emptiness as termed in Khenpo Gangshar’s commentary and that unlike the Autonomist  Middle Way school, the Consequentialist School go straight for the meditative equipoise and do not differentiate between the two truths, the conventional and ultimate, instead arguing by negation that all phenomena are empty of inherent existence.  Thrangu Rinpoche explains that:

“As it is said here in the ‘Magic Key’ text in the section on the Consequentialists:

“The Consequentialist/Prasangika masters such as Chandrakirti and Shantideva do not differentiate the two truths.”  

Which means that they do not say that everything exists relatively and it is empty ultimately.

“From the very beginning they established that everything is emptiness and that all phenomena are unapproximated emptiness free of elaborations such as existence non-existence, being or non-being.”

 So, it is free of all sorts of elaborations. It is an emptiness that is free of all these extremes and elaborations, and that is the unapproximated emptiness:

“When they establish and come to the certainty of the ‘unapproximated’ emptiness then these Consequentialist masters do not accept any propositions and therefore they are known as having no propositions. They do not propose that things are something or nothing, they are both or neither. They are free of all the extremes, free of all the conceptual elaborations. This is the final view of the empty-of-self (rang-tong) view.”

Why establishing the view through logic and inference is essential for developing and realising the nature of mind and Buddha Nature 

“Having the view but not meditating is like a rich miser. So, you have to actually meditate upon what you establish as the view. Having the view alone does not help you.”

The next section of the teaching is on why the view is essential for meditation and and meditation essential to the view. Thrangu Rinpoche explained: 

“Nowadays, there are many great lamas who come and point out the great nature of the mind and many students who recognize the nature of that mind and have an experience of it, which is wonderful and  very good. But there are some people who have a feeling that they recognize it but are not able to really develop it. They have this feeling that, as they say in English, they get a glimpse of the nature of mind but they are not able to nurture that or to develop and expand that understanding and transform that into the Buddhist path. They have not been able to find the method to do that.”

So, what is the reason that we are unable to do this? The reason is that first we need to really establish this view properly. First, we must establish the view, we have to have real certainty in it and then once we have an experience of the nature of the mind, we will be able to maintain it and develop it.”

Rinpoche then compares having the view without meditation to a rich miser who has lots of wealth, and the meditation without the view to someone without arms trying to climb a cliff, The point being that a person cannot make much progress in either without both the view and meditative experience. Finally,  Rinpoche gives the example of like building a house without a good foundation or plans, not understanding the Consequentialist view could lead to a disaster and collapse of any lasting and authentic realisations:

“If we want to do meditation, we have to have the view, if we do not have the right view, there is no way that we are actually going to be able to meditate.”

Ultimate reality is not mere nothingness or blankness but a union of clarity awareness- emptiness that is indivisible and the same in essence

The next section is why after comprehending that Empty-of Self view, we can then comprehend that the ultimate reality and nature of mind is not some blank, inanimate emptiness or nothingness:

“When we look at the nature of the mind and we see this emptiness that the self-empty school teaches…but is that emptiness that we see when we meditate is that just blank, like some sort of a rock, is it nothingness, blackness? it is not like that as it has the clarity, it can know everything and it can understand and think everything. When we see the nature of the mind in our meditation that is the feeling that we have. That is the feeling of the clear aspect of awareness aspect. So that is what we really come to understand and internalize through developing the view of the other empty. That is the clear and knowing aspect. It is the union of the clarity and emptiness it is not as if emptiness is one thing and clarity is another thing and they are sort of mushed together somehow. We have to understand that the clarity and the emptiness are the same in essence.”

The dangers of the Consequentialist view of having ‘no propositions’ and not understanding Empty-of-Other – a nihilist, non-Buddhist view

The next part of the teaching is on the dangers and faults of asserting the empty-of-self view of the Prasangika. Consequentialists, without realising ‘the basis of removal (or separation)’ (Drel Zhi) of all those empty-of-self phenonema, the basis that is Buddha Nature (Dezheg Nyingpo). 

Thrangu Rinpoche explains that:

“If we do not also have the view of the Empty-of-Other there are problems that can happen, as it says here in Khenpo Gangshar’s commentary:

“These days in this scriptural tradition people take mere words that appear such as no propositions as a refuge. They do not accept the presentation of the path and result and do not even assert the Buddha Nature (Dezheg Nyingpo). Then they focus their mind single-pointedly on the blank, mere emptiness of the lack of elaborations.”

So, they just say that it is just blind emptiness, there is nothing but a blank emptiness and do not accept the presentation of path, result or buddha nature. They say that everything is just plain emptiness and there is no need to worry about paths and levels bodhisattva levels or about any result or about buddha nature it is all it is all emptiness and so this is what some people say. The text says: 

“Whenever such people speak, they repeat “lack of elaborations, lack of elaborations’ over and over and consider the Empty-of-Other Middleway the Shentong school to be barren.”

 As the Consequentialists do not assert any propositions, Gangshar says that people take that to mean some mere, blank emptiness without the Buddha Nature qualities of love, wisdom and power. Yet, this is a mistake because the Buddha Nature potential and those qualities is always present. That is the view of the Empty-of-Other school. The text then says:

“If you do not realise this well, then it is equivalent to the nihilistic view (cherbupa). As the masters of the Empty-of-Other say unanimously.”

Then the text says:

“all these exponents [of Empty-of-Self] should really examine again their accepted view reached at with scriptures and logic with unbiased intelligence. Generally grasping at either things or non-things does not transcend fixation on extremes. The nature of some mere empty aspect that is merely free of extremes, because all extremes have been refuted by mentally fabricated suppositions, is not equivalent to the ultimate nature(thar-thug). “

“Clinging to Mere Emptiness is stupider than an ox” – The Zhentong lineage masters, Kālacakra Tantra and Mahasiddha Saraha’s refutations of the Consequentialist school view

Although this is not mentioned in Thrangu Rinpoche’s teaching, at this section of Khenpo Gangshar’s text, there is a list the lineage of the Zhentong with several Jonang and Kālacakra masters, such as Dolpopa and Taranatha and the Nyingma master, Longchenpa and explains that:

“In particular, their (Zhentong) view is like it is taught in the Kālacakra tantra, which says that ‘since beginningless time, all sentient beings have the nature of Buddha. Since the basis of Dharmatā (Cho-nyi) is stainless and uncorrupted, that which is called samsara is unestablished other than merely a name. All the phenomena of nirvana are devoid of changing and everlasting and from beginning lessness is the nature of mind abiding intrinsically/naturally. However, past or present it is the unchanging Dharmata that is innately present.”

Which is interesting as the current 14^th Dalai Lama and Gelug lineage (who espouse the Rangtong/Empty-of-Self view) has bestowed and participated in many Kālacakra empowerments, as bestowed to them by the Dro Kālacakra lineage holders, which include Jonang. So, the Empty-of-Other view is crucial to the Kālacakra practice, which is often referred to as tantric Zhentong. For more on the Dro Kālacakra lineage see here.

Thrangu Rinpoche also cites a song by the Indian Mahasiddha Saraha about how clinging to objects is as stupid as an ox, but clinging to no-objects/nothingness is even more stupid. He says:

“Not only that it is as the great master Saraha said in the song ‘Clinging to Objects”: “Clinging to things is as stupid as an ox.” So, if you cling to things as trully existing then that is as stupid as an ox. Now an ox here is used as a metaphor, or an analogy for something being stupid. Oxes are stupid if you say to an ox everything is empty, then the ox is not going to understand you.  So, in the same way if you do not accept that things are empty then it is like being as stupid as that ox.

But Saraha continues, however, if you cling to nothing, then it is even more idiotic than that ox. So, if you cling to there being nothing just non-existence then that is even stupider than that ox. That is because it is not at all in accord with the nature of how things are, the actual nature of how things are transcends all ideas of something, or of nothing, or existence or non-existence. This is the emptiness; it is the union of clarity and emptiness. This is the emptiness indivisible from the clarity that is taught by the masters of the Shentong school. In order to see this, we have to turn our minds inward, turn our attention inwards and meditate. When we do that, then we will see “Ah that’s what the clear awareness and emptiness is!” We can see this in in our mind and really get to the bottom of what it really means to have this union of clear awareness-emptiness. This is really important.”

Thrangu Rinpoche explains why such a view could lead one into a similar view or nihilism, or that of the Jains (Cherbupa). That without the empty-of-other view of the ultimate Buddha nature ‘basis of removal’ of conditioned phenomena, then it is a non-Buddhist view that nothing exists. However, the Buddha Nature is the indivisible and timeless union of clear awareness and emptiness, that is replate with the Buddha Nature qualities of full awakening. He states that to cling to there being nothing inherently existent and nothing remaining, or other than that,  is like trying to throw dust on space.

Longchenpa’s refutation of the Consequentialist Middle Way School as not being equivalent to the ultimate nature and the union of clear awareness -emptiness

The commentary then quotes the Nyingma master, Longchenpa’s refutation of the Consequentialist School as being incomplete, he says:

“Generally, grasping at either things or non-things does not transcend fixation on the extremes. But the nature of some mere empty aspect that is merely free of extremes, because all extremes have been refuted by mentally fabricated supposition, is not equivalent to the ultimate.” 

Thrangu Rinpoche explains that the nature is a union of clarity emptiness (Sel-tong Zung-jug in Tibetan) that is full of potential and the Buddha Nature qualities of love, power and wisdom:

“So, this is something that we need to experience in our mind. When we experience our mind and we see that it is not something, it is not anything, it is free of all the extremes but also, it is not just mere emptiness, an inanimate emptiness. The mere emptiness is not the ultimate emptiness.

So, when we talk about emptiness in the path of the sutras this is what is called and established through inference as being the dharma expanse, the dharmadhatu. The dharma expanse is that all the external appearances, the internal mind all of these things are emptiness. There is the expanse of emptiness out of which all internal and external things in our mind can arise, that is free of all the extremes and free of all conceptual elaborations, that is the dharma expanse. It is the basis which allows all appearances to happen or the expanse where all appearances can happen that is the dharma expanse. But is that dharma expanse just mere emptiness and blank nothingness? It is not that.

There is the clarity aspect and there has to be that clarity aspect. If it were just mere emptiness, it would be like empty space. With empty space no matter how long you wait, you can wait months, years, and it will never develop any qualities or any wisdom. But with the nature of the mind the dharma nature, the dharma expanse, when you really understand it you see that there is the possibility that all the qualities can develop. So, the emptiness of the dharma nature has the potential for the qualities of the buddha path of the Vajrayana. “

Also, Khenpo Gangshar writes in the Magic Key commentary that:

“If you say that everything is emptiness without understanding that the basis of that emptiness is the Buddha Nature, then you do not understand the view well. If you understand the basis of removal, the Buddha Nature well, you realize that it is the union of the clear primordial awareness, and emptiness. There is the clear awareness aspect and the empty aspect and they are joined. These two are indivisible this is the nature of how it is, and we need to understand it well.

Otherwise, if you do not understand this and you say it is just merely emptiness then your view is like that of the Peak of Existence. The view of the Peak of Existence is the view of the highest formless realm so the four formless realms, the highest of these is the is the realm of neither conception or non-conception. It is also called the peak of existence. So, your meditation is just like the meditation that will lead you to be reborn there in that highest of the formless realms.”

Full video teaching here: