Mūlamadhyamakakārikā

Origin

The Mūlamadhyamakakārikā is Nagarjuna's best known work. According to Kalupahanna, it is

[N]ot only a grand commentary on the Buddha's discourse to Kaccayana, the only discourse cited by name, but also a detailed and careful analysis of most of the important discourses included in the Nikayas and the agamas, especially those of the Atthakavagga of the Sutta-nipata.

According to Kalupahanna, in this work,

Utilizing the Buddha's theory of "dependent arising"(pratitya-samutpada), Nagarjuna demonstrated the futility of [...] metaphysical speculations. His method of dealing with such metaphysics is referred to as "middle way" (madhyama pratipad). It is the middle way that avoided the substantialism of the Sarvastivadins as well as the nominalism of the Sautrantikas.

According to Kalupahanna, Nagarjuna insisted that...

[A]ll experienced phenomena are empty (sunya). This did not mean that they are not experienced and, therefore, non-existent; only that they are devoid of a permanent and eternal substance (svabhava). Since they are experienced, they are not mere names (prajnapti).

Exegesis and commentarial literature

The Akutobhayā, whose authorship is unknown, though is attributed to Nagarjuna in the tradition, is held by Ames to be the first commentary on the MMK.

The earliest known commentary by another author is now preserved within the first Chinese translation of the Kārikā, known as the "Middle Treatise" (中論 Zhong Lun), translated by Kumarajiva in 409. The author of this commentary is given as either "Blue Eyes" (青目; back translated as *Vimalākṣa) or *Piṅgala (賓伽羅). This is by far the best known commentary in East Asian Mādhyamaka, forming one of the three commentaries that make up the San Lun School.

The best-known commentary in later Indian and Tibetan Buddhism is Candrakirti's Prasannapadā (Clear Words), which survives in Sanskrit and Tibetan translation.

The early chapters

1. Pratyayaparīkṣā: Analysis of conditions
2. Gatāgataparīkṣā: Analysis of going and not going
3. Cakṣurādīndriyaparīkṣā: Analysis of the eye and the other sense-organs
4. Skandhaparīkṣā: Analysis of the skandhas ((mental) "aggregates")
5. Dhātuparīkṣā: Analysis of the dhatūs ("constituents" or "strata" (in the sense of metaphysical substrata))
6. Rāgaraktaparīkṣā: Analysis of passion and the impassioned
7. Saṃskṛtaparīkṣā: Analysis of the conditioned
8. Karmakārakaparīkṣā: Analysis of action and actor
9. Pūrvaparīkṣā: Analysis of the past
10. Agnīndhanaparīkṣā: Analysis of fire and fuel
11. Pūrvaparakoṭiparīkṣā: Analysis of past and future limits
12. Duḥkhaparīkṣā: Analysis of suffering

The later chapters

The emptiness of all things (i.e., all things, including the Buddha) (Mūlamadhyamakakārikā#22:26)

The identity of pratītyasamutpāda with śunyatā (Mūlamadhyamakakārikā#24:18)

The indifferentiability of nirvāṇa from saṃsāra (Mūlamadhyamakakārikā#16:10)(Mūlamadhyamakakārikā#25:19-20)

The tentative or merely conventional nature of all truth (Mūlamadhyamakakārikā#22:11).

These chapters are as follows; note the clustering of 24-26, and also the nature of the last chapter:

13. Saṃskāraparīkṣā: Analysis of disposition

14. Saṃsargaparīkṣā: Analysis of admixture

15. Svabhāvaparīkṣā: Analysis of being or essence

16. Bandhanamokṣaparīkṣā: Analysis of bondage and liberation

17. Karmaphalaparīkṣa: Analysis of action and its fruit

18. Ātmaparīkṣā: Analysis of the soul.

19. Kālaparīkṣā: Analysis of time

20. Sāmagrīparīkṣā: Analysis of holism

21. Saṃbhavavibhavaparīkṣā: Analysis of becoming and un-becoming

22. Tathāgataparīkṣā: Analysis of the Tathāgata

23. Viparyāsaparīkṣā: Analysis of Error

24. Āryasatyaparīkṣā: Analysis of the Noble Truths

25. Nirvānaparīkṣā: Analysis of nirvāṇa

26. Dvādaśāṅgaparīkṣā: Analysis of the twelvefold chain (of dependent origination)

27. Dṛṣṭiparīkṣā: Analysis of views

1:1

Neither from itself nor from another, Nor from both, Nor without a cause, Does anything whatever, anywhere arise.

15:9

If intrinsic nature does not exist, of what will there be alteration? If intrinsic nature does exist, of what will there be alteration?

15:10

अस्तीति शाश्वतग्राहो नास्तीत्युच्चेददर्शनं astīti śāśvatagrāho nāstītyuccedadarśanaṁ To say "it is" is to grasp for permanence. To say "it is not" is to adopt the view of nihilism. तस्माद् अस्तित्वनास्तित्वे नाश्रीयेत विचक्षणः। tasmād astitvanāstitve nāśrīyeta vicakṣaṇaḥ Therefore a wise person does not say "exists" or "does not exist".

16:10

न निर्वाणसमारोपो न संसारापकषणम् na nirvāṇasamāropo na saṁsārāpakaṣaṇam यत्र कस्तत्र संसारो निर्वाणं किं विकल्प्यते yatra kastatra saṁsāro nirvāṇaṁ kiṁ vikalpyate Where there is neither an addition of nirvana nor a removal of samsara; There, what samsara is discriminated from what nirvana?

18:6-12

ātmetya api prajñapitam anātmetyapi deśitam buddhair nātmā na cānātmā kaścid ity api deśitaṁ| 6 No "self" or any "nonself" whatsoever has been taught by the Buddhas. nivṛtam abhidhātavyaṁ nivṛtte cittagocare The designable is ceased when/where the range of thought is ceased, anutpannāniruddhā hi nirvāṇam iva dharmatā| 7 Nirvana is like phenomenality, unarisen and unstopping. sarvaṁ tathyaṁ na vā tathyaṁ tathyaṁ cātathyam eva ca Everything is actual, or not actual, or actual and not actual naivātathyaṁ naiva tathyam etad buddhānuśāsanaṁ| 8 Or neither actual nor not actual; this is the Buddha's teaching. aparapratyayaṁ śāntaṁ prapañcair aprapañcitaṁ Independent, peaceful, not delusionally diversified by delusional diversification nirvikalpam anānārtham etat tattvasya lakśaṇaṁ| 9 Devoid of mental construction, without variation, this is the mark of thatness. pratītya yad yad bhavati na hi tāvat tad eva tad na cānyad api tat tasmān noccinnaṁ nāpi śāśvataṁ| 10 Nor is it the other; therefore, it is neither exterminated nor eternal. anekārtham anānārtham anuccedam aśāśvatam etat tal lokanāthānāṁ bhuddhānāṁ śāsanāmṛtaṁ| 11 This is the immortal teaching of the Buddhas, lords of the world. sambhuddhānām anutpāde śrāvakāṇāṁ punaḥ kśaye And again, when the disciples are destroyed and full Buddhas do not arrive, jñānaṁ pratyekabuddhānām asamsargāt pravartate|12 The gnosis (knowledge, etc.) of the independently enlightened Buddhas proceeds without association (with teachings).

22:11

"Empty" should not be asserted."Nonempty" should not be asserted. Neither both nor neither should be asserted. They are only used nominally.

22:16

तथागतो यत्स्वभावस्तत्स्वभावमिदं जगत tathāgato yat svabhāvas tat svabhāvam idam jagat तथागतो निःस्वभावो निःस्वभावम् इदं जगत्। १६ tathāgato niḥsvabhāvo niḥsvabhāvam idaṁ jagat| 16 The thus-gone one is devoid of nature; the world is devoid of nature.

24:18, 24:19

Whatever is dependently co-arisen / That is explained to be emptiness. That, being a dependent designation, / Is itself the middle way. Something that is not dependently arisen / Such a thing does not exist. Therefore a non-empty thing / Does not exist.

25:19-20

न संसारस्य निर्वाणात् किं चिद् अस्ति विशेषणं na saṁsārasya nirvāṇāt kiṁ cid asti viśeṣaṇaṁ There is nothing whatsoever of samsara distinguishing (it) from nirvana. न निर्वाणस्य संसारात् किं चिद् अस्ति विशेषणं। १९ na nirvāṇasya saṁsārāt kiṁ cid asti viśeṣaṇaṁ| 19 There is nothing whatsoever of nirvana distinguishing it from samsara. निर्वाणस्य च या कोटिः।कोटिः। संसरणस्य च nirvāṇasya ca yā koṭiḥ koṭiḥ (That?) is the limit which is the limit of nirvana and the limit of samsara; न तयोर् अन्तरं किंचित् सुसूक्ष्मम् अपि विद्यते। २० na tayor antaraṁ kiñcit susūkśmam api vidyate| 20 Even a very subtle interval is not found of (between) them.

25:22-24

śūnyeṣu sarvadharmeṣu kim anantaṁ kimantavat kim anantam antavac ca nānantaṁ nāntavacca kiṁ| 22 kiṁ tad eva kim anyat kiṁ śāśvataṁ kim aśāśvataṁ aśāśvataṁ śāśvataṁ ca kiṁ vā nobhayam apyataḥ 'tha| 23 sarvopalambhpaśamaḥ prapañcopaśamaḥ śivaḥ na kva cit kasyacit kaścid dharmo buddhena deśitaḥ|