Nagarjuna The Philosophy of the Middle Way |
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| Author:
| Kalupahana, David J. |
| Series title: | SUNY Series in Buddhist Studies |
| ISBN: | 978-0-88706-149-3 |
| Publication Date: | Jan 1986 |
| Publisher: | State University of New York Press
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| Imprint: | Suny Press |
| Book Format: | Paperback |
| List Price: | USD $34.95 |
Book Description:
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This is a completely new translation of Nagarjuna's major work, the Mulamadhyamakakarika, accompanied by a detailed annotation of each of the verses. The annotation identifies the metaphysical theories of the scholastics criticized by Nagarjuna, and traces the source material and the arguments utilized in his refutation back to the early discourses of the Buddha. The Introduction presents a completely new hypothesisthe nature of the treatise. The work is a grand commentary...
More DescriptionThis is a completely new translation of Nagarjuna's major work, the Mulamadhyamakakarika, accompanied by a detailed annotation of each of the verses. The annotation identifies the metaphysical theories of the scholastics criticized by Nagarjuna, and traces the source material and the arguments utilized in his refutation back to the early discourses of the Buddha.
The Introduction presents a completely new hypothesisthe nature of the treatise. The work is a grand commentary on the Buddha's "Discourse to Katyayana" (Kaccayanaqotta-sutta). The concluding part of the Introduction compares the teachings of the Buddha and Nagarjuna in regard to epistemology, ontology, ethics and philosophy of language indicating how the latter was making a determined attempt to reconstruct the Buddha's teachings in a very faithful manner, avoiding the substantialist metaphysics of the scholastics.
The book shows that Nagarjuna's ideas are neither original nor are they an advancement from the early Buddhist period. Nagarjuna is not a Mahayanist.