Mahayana Buddhism includes the teachings of Madhyamaka, Yogacara, and Tathagatagarbha - three inseparable systems highlighting its foundation, path, and fruition. Yet, in recent years, there has been an alarming trend of taking one perspective and rejecting the other two, thereby distorting the teaching of Mahayana and making complete understanding difficult. Tam builds on the foundation of generations of Nyingma masters in writing this book, illustrating the framework of the three teachings - the essence, the training, and the realization.

The book begins with The Heart Sutra. Based on commentaries by four masters (Atisa, Vimalamitra, Srisimha, and Kamalasila), it is an overview of Prajnaparamita practice, in that The Heart Sutra is the heart (hridaya) of the Prajna series in the Buddhist canon. Then, according to the Nyingma tradition of the Ultimate (or Yogacaran) Madhyamaka, he uses Fourfold Dependent Arising to spell out the essence of Prajnaparamita. In the final chapter, Tam discusses Tathagatagarbha, the fruition of Mahayana training, free from conceptuality and obscuration, which is also the teaching of Non-duality in the Mahayana scriptures on Manjusri.

To further clarify the umbilical relationship of the three teachings, Tam includes a rendition of Nagarjuna's In Praise of Dharmadhatu (Dharmadhatustava), a translation and a commentary on Vasubandhu's The Treatise on the Three Natures (Trisvabhava-nirdesa), and a commentary on The Seventy Stanzas on Emptiness (Sunyatasaptati), as well as a translation of Atisa's Esoteric Instruction on the Middle Way (Madhyamakopadesa-nama) by his disciple, Henry Shiu, as part of the corresponding chapters for the reader's perusal.

With Tam's attempt to capture the heart of the three systems, it is his hope that the book illuminates the way for future scholars and practitioners alike.


Fourfold Dependent Arising and the Profound Prajnaparamita, Master Tam Shek-wing, Sumeru Press Inc., Paperback, 428 pp, $34.95

Tam Shek-Wing (1935�), also known by his nom de plume Wang Tingzhi, is from Nanhai in Guangdong, China. Tam is a student of His Holiness Dudjom Rinpoche, the leader of the Nyingma School of Buddhism in Tibet. Tam has studied and practiced Buddhism for over forty years, during which he has written, translated (from Sanskrit and Tibetan into Chinese) and edited over 70 books on Buddhism and the related training. His writings are respected by scholars worldwide. Currently, the Sumeru Press in Toronto, Canada is the publisher of English translations of his work, and has published one book, Natural Appearance Natural Liberation, thus far. Currently, he is writing and editing a series called �Beyond Words,� presenting the secret teaching in the Buddhist Canon.

CONTENTS: Fourfold Dependent Arising and the Profound Prajnaparamita
Translator's Preface				5
Preface				15
1	On the Heart Sutra			23
	1.	The Essence, Practice and Realization of Prajna		23
	2.	The Heart Sutra		26
	3.	The Samadhi of Buddhas and Bodhisattvas		28
	4.	The Five Paths, and the Answer in Eleven Parts		31
		i.	The Sharp Mental Faculties and the Dull Faculties	31
		ii.	Four Matters in the Yogacara Meditation	36
		iii.	The Realization on the Path of Merits	38
		iv.	The Realization on the Path of Preparation	42
		v.	The Realization on the Path of Insight	51
		vi.	The Three Doors to Liberation	53
		vii.	The Realization on the Path of Practice	60
		viii.	The Realization on the Path of Non-Learning	67
		ix.	The Realization on the Path of the Secret Mantra	69
	5.	The Meaning of the Prajnaparamita Mantra		74
	6.	The Approval and Rejoicing		75
2	Nagarjuna's Fourfold Dependent Arising			79
	1.	Emptiness and Dependent Arising		79
	2.	The Practice of Fourfold Dependent Arising		89
		i.	Overview	89
		ii.	Dependent Arising Due to Causality	90
		iii.	Dependent Arising Due to Interdependence	93
		iv.	Dependent Arising Due to Relativity	98
		v.	Dependent Arising Due to Mutual Obstruction	106
	3.	Examples Illustrating the Practice		113
		i.	Neither Arising Nor Ceasing	116
		ii.	Neither Continuous Nor Discrete	121
		iii.	Neither One Nor Many	124
		iv.	Neither Coming Nor Going	130
	4.	Conclusion		138
	The Seventy Stanzas on Emptiness			141
	i.	The Preliminary Exposition		141
	ii.	Dependent Arising and Emptiness		144
	iii.	On Dependent Arising as Non-arising		151
	iv.	Emptiness on the Basis of Appearances		158
	v.	Emptiness on the Basis of Karma		180
	vi.	Illustrating Emptiness on the Basis of Skandhas, Ayatanas, Dhatus		191
	vii.	The Practice Along the Path		205
	vii.	Concluding Stanzas		214
	The Esoteric Instruction on the Middle Way			217
		The Path of Merits		217
		The Path of Preparation		217
		The Path of Insight		219
		The Path of Practice		220
		The Path of Non-Learning		220
		On the Chinese Translation		221
3	Maitreya's Yogacara			225
	1.	The Foundation, Path, and Fruition of Yogacara		225
	2.	Dharmalaksana		228
		i.	Introduction	228
		ii.	The Naturelessness of the Appearance of the Three Natures	233
		iii.	The Intrinsic Nature of the Three Non-Natures	259
		iv.	Change of Basis (Fundamental Transformation)	275
	3.	Consciousness-Only ( Vijnaptimatrata)		281
		i.	Dignaga and Modern Vijnaptimatrata	281
		ii.	On the Aspect of Self-Realization	285
		iii.	Four Primary Preparatory Practices	287
		iv.	Vinaptimatrata and Dharmalaksana	294
	A Brief Commentary on Trisvabhava-nirdesa			301
	i.	An Overview		302
	ii.	The Setup		302
	iii.	The Three Natures and Their Appearances		308
	iv.	Apprehending the Three natures		319
	v.	Concluding Verses		327
	Postscript			329
4	Tathagatagarbha			331
	1.	What is Tathagatagarbha?		331
	2.	Tathagatagarbha and Alaya		339
	3.	Nagarjuna on Dharmadhatu		344
	4.	No More, No Less		360
	5.	Nine Metaphors of Tathagatagarbha		369
	6.	The Entrance to Non-Duality		382
	In Praise of Dharmadhatu			389
		Postscript on the Chinese Translation		403
Epilogue				405
Index				411