“This new translation of Nagarjuna’s Precious Garland is a wonderful book, with not only a new English translation but also comprehensive research on the text and the biography of the most celebrated Buddhist master Nagarjuna that is insightful, leaving no aspect uncovered, and is certain to benefit readers and researchers. Since the treatise’s rich content addresses areas like spirituality, philosophy, and social and political governance, this book is particularly pertinent to society today.”
Description
Discover the eloquence and insight of the philosopher Nagarjuna, held by tradition to be a second Buddha, in this concise instruction for a king that is considered a masterpiece of Buddhist literature.
In this profound work of five hundred verses, we encounter a presentation of Buddhism that integrates both the worldly and the transcendent. The clear and sagacious advice laid out on every page serves as a road map to one’s highest goal—whether that goal is a better life, here called the Dharma of ascendance, or the ultimate one of spiritual freedom, the Dharma of the highest good. The verses, written for an unnamed ruler, touch on questions of statecraft, but their broader themes speak to us today because they tackle the difficulty of integrating one’s spiritual journey with the social and political demands of daily life.
Nagarjuna was an Indian Buddhist teacher, probably of the second century CE, who was renowned for his astute articulation of the philosophy of the Middle Way (Madhyamaka). His thoroughgoing critique of all forms of essentialism became a touchstone for Mahayana Buddhism in India, Tibet, and throughout East Asia, and his importance for the development of the Mahayana tradition can scarcely be exaggerated.
The translators here first rendered Nagarjuna’s letter for the Dalai Lama’s teachings on the work in Los Angeles in 1997. While that commemorative edition was translated from the Tibetan, the present volume prioritizes the surviving Sanskrit verses along with the only known Indian commentary, by the eleventh-century scholar Ajitamitra. This is the first complete translation in English of the Precious Garland that takes the Indian text and commentary as its primary authorities. In addition, the translators provide rigorous working editions of the Sanskrit and Tibetan verses they translate.
This elegant and precise rendering of Nagarjuna’s work is certain to become the touchstone translation of this celebrated Buddhist text.
Reviews
“This book is a must for everyone who is interested in understanding how one of the greatest Buddhist masters envisions the integration of wisdom, compassion, and ethical action.”
“In addition to the beautiful and philosophically precise translation of the original text, McClintock and Dunne also masterfully introduce the modern reader to the structure of this ancient text and the complex philosophical arguments it makes, managing to convey at times highly specialized discussions in engaging and effortless prose. They also helpfully include both the Sanskrit and Tibetan working editions of the text. I highly recommend this translation to anyone interested in the history, philosophy, or literature of South Asian Buddhism.”
“If it’s true, as Nagarjuna says, that ‘rare are those who speak well’ and ‘rarer those who listen,’ I am moved to consider how rare it is to hear an ancient Buddhist voice sound as vital, as urgent, and as transformatively present in English as Nagarjuna’s does here. Sara McClintock and John Dunne have given us an unsurpassable gift—the opportunity to really listen to something truly worth hearing.”