Maitripa's Writings on the View

Title	Maitripa’s Writings On The View
Sub-title	The Main Indian Source of the Tibetan Views of Other Emptiness and Mahamudra
Author	Translations and extensive commentary to each text by Tony Duff
Details	102 pages, line drawings, 5.5" X 8.5", US$22.50, available on paper and in PDF e-book format
ISBN	paper book 978-9937-903-17-2, e-book 978-9937-572-46-0
Texts	Tibetan texts in Tibetan script included

Maitripa was a great Indian Buddhist master who was a contemporary of Naropa. He was regarded as one of the most knowledgeable people of his time on the Buddhist view. For that reason, Naropa told Marpa the Translator that he should not get the view from him but should go to Maitripa and get it from him. Thus Maitripa became the source of the view for the Kagyu lineage. Maitripa is also famous for having re-discovered the Uttaratantrashastra of Maitreya which had been lost till that time. Having recovered the text from an old stupa, Maitreya appeared to him and transmitted the profound meaning associated with that text. In that way, Maitripa became a central figure in the transmission of what is called “the profound meditation system of Maitreya”. In many ways, he was the source of the Other Emptiness (gzhan stong) style teaching of Maitreya and Asanga that came into Tibet. For all these reasons, he is regarded as an important figure within Tibetan Buddhist history and is particularly important to the Kagyu and Nyingma.

A number of Maitripa’s writings were included in a compilation of important Indian Buddhist texts which is simply called “The Main Texts of India”. It is a very old compilation, dating from the early days of the second wave of dharma that came into Tibet. Maitripa’s writings are mostly very short and pithy and have the quality of oral teaching. These writings always deal with the view and are very important to followers of the Other Emptiness teaching because they definitely show that view.

This book is a compilation of several of these writings. They were selected from the whole set of Maitripa’s writings because they very clearly show his presentation of the Other Emptiness view in both sutra and tantra contexts. There are texts on Madhyamaka, Co-emergence, Chakrasamvara practice, and so on. The book has the texts in translation with a full set of notes and commentary by the author to make the meaning of the very terse writing clear. Kagyu practitioners who are interested in the view will find the book very useful and Chakrasamvara practitioners in general will appreciate the Chakrasamvara text.

This book is one of several that elucidate the topic of "other emptiness". It is an exceptionally important topic for the Kagyus and Nyingmas, since other emptiness is the view of those schools. This book should be read and studied in conjunction with our several other books on other emptiness. These books can all be viewed through the other emptiness item on the main menu of this shop. For example, there are the books Point of Passage Wisdom, A Great Vehicle Sutra and Mipham’s Lion’s Roar that Proclaims Other Emptiness.

The following writings of Maitripa are included in the book:

	Great Bliss Clarified
	Sixty Verses on Co-Emergence
	Utterly Clear Teaching of Unification
	Definitive Teaching on Dreams
	Clear Teaching on Utter Non-Dwelling
	Full Teaching of Suchness
	Six Verses on Madhyamaka

Download Tibetan texts in TibetD format: • available here. The Tibetan language collection of Maitripa’s works are part of a three volume collection of works on Mahamudra by early Indian Masters that were translated into and preserved in Tibetan language called The Indian Texts of Mahamudra.

Introduction
Great Bliss Elucidated
Six Verses on Co-emergence
Utterly Clear Teaching of Unification
Definitive Teaching on Dreams
Clear Teaching on Utter Non-Dwelling
Full Teaching of Suchness
Six Verses on Madhyamaka
Glossary of Terms
Supports for Study
Tibetan Texts
Index