Mipam Gyatso

PersonType	Category:Classical Tibetan Authors
MainNamePhon	Mipam Gyatso
MainNameTib	མི་ཕམ་རྒྱ་མཚོ་
MainNameWylie	mi pham rgya mtsho
AltNamesTib	མི་ཕམ་འཇམ་དབྱངས་རྣམ་རྒྱལ་རྒྱ་མཚོ་  ·  འཇམ་དཔལ་དགྱེས་པའི་རྡོ་རྗེ་  ·  འཇུ་མི་ཕམ་
AltNamesWylie	mi pham 'jam dbyangs rnam rgyal rgya mtsho  ·  'jam dpal dgyes pa'i rdo rje  ·  'ju mi pham
AltNamesOther	mipham
YearBirth	1846
YearDeath	1912
BornIn	sde dge
TibDateGender	Male
TibDateElement	Fire
TibDateAnimal	Horse
TibDateRabjung	14
ReligiousAffiliation	Nyingma
StudentOf	Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo  ·  Jamgön Kongtrul Lodrö Taye  ·  Patrul Rinpoche  ·  Nyoshul Lungtok Tenpai Nyima  ·  Fourth Dzogchen Drubwang Mingyur Namkhai Dorje
TeacherOf	Lerab Lingpa  ·  The Third Dodrupchen Jigme Tenpai Nyima  ·  The Fourth Shechen Gyaltsap Gyurme Pema Namgyal  ·  Adzom Drukpa Drodul Pawo Dorje  ·  Nyoshul Lungtok Tenpai Nyima  ·  Dil mgo mkhyen brtse bkra shis dpal 'byor  ·  Pad+ma dbang mchog rgyal po  ·  kun bzang dpal ldan
BDRC	https://www.tbrc.org/#!rid=P252
Treasury of Lives	http://treasuryoflives.org/biographies/view/Mipam-Gyatso/4228
IsInGyatsa	No
BnwShortPersonBio	Ju Mipam Gyamtso was a prolific author who brought formal philosophical study, including debate, to the Nyingma tradition. Based in Kham during a period of great inter-sectarian exchange, he trained with the Kagyu lama Jamgön Kongtrul and the Sakya lama Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, among others, even as he preserved a strong Nyingma identity. Among his most celebrated works are the Beacon of Certainty and a commentary on the Ninth Chapter of the Bodhicaryāvatāra. In addition to his considerable literary output he spent decades of his life in retreat.
PosBuNayDefProv	Definitive
PosBuNayDefProvNotes	"Mipam explains that the last wheel’s status as the definitive meaning does not refer to everything taught in the last wheel, but specifically concerns the teaching of Buddha-nature: ...'Although the meaning of the last wheel is praised in the sūtras and commentaries, [this does] not [refer to] everything in the last wheel, but is spoken in this way concerning the definitive meaning position of demonstrating the [Buddha-]nature.' Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, pp. 4-5.
PosAllBuddha	Qualified Yes
PosAllBuddhaNote	For sentient beings, buddha-nature is present, but not yet manifest.
PosAllBuddhaMoreNotes	"The primordial endowment of the qualities of Buddha in sentient beings is a central part of Mipam’s presentation of Buddha-nature. This is an important aspect of his interpretation that he shares in common with the Jonang tradition." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 97. "In his Trilogy of Innate Mind, Mipam also calls this suchness of mind “Buddhanature”: “Existing in the minds of all sentient beings in the manner of suchness on the occasion when obscurations dwell as suitable to be removed, it is called ‘Buddha-nature’ because when this suchness of mind is realized, one becomes a Buddha.”The suchness, or nature, of mind is Buddha-naure. Self-existing wisdom is simply made manifest; it is not produced by a cause." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 100.
PosWheelTurn	Third Turning
PosWheelTurnNotes	Buddha-nature is a third wheel teaching, but he holds both third and second to be of definitive meaning and integrates the two as noncontradictory in his presentation of buddha-nature as the unity of emptiness (in the seceond wheel) and appearance (of kayas and wisdoms in the third wheel). Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, pp. 4-5.
PosYogaMadhya	Madhyamaka
PosZhenRang	Rangtong
PosZhenRangNotes	Though his view is nuanced and he at times wrote from both perspectives. Following are some examples of these variations. He aligns his view with Nāgārjuna, but seems to assert rangtong in terms of the relative and zhentong in terms of the ultimate, as Duckworth quotes Mipam's Lion's Roar: "First it is necessary to ascertain the lack of intrinsic nature of all phenomena in accordance with the scriptures of the protector Nāgārjuna; because if this is not known, one will not be able to ascertain the manner that relative [phenomena] are empty from their own side and the manner that the ultimate is empty of what is other. Therefore, one should first ascertain the freedom from constructs which is what is known reflexively." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 71. However, Mipam is also quoted as stating: "In the tradition of self-emptiness, since there is only the ultimately nonexistent, an ultimately existing phenomenon is impossible. In the tradition of other-emptiness, what is ultimately nonexistent is the relative, and what is ultimately existent is the ultimate itself. My tradition is clear in the Rapsel Rejoinder, the tradition propounding self-emptiness." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 74. Mipam's position depends on the definitions used for these terms, as Duckworth points out: "When we consider Mipam’s depiction of emptiness in light of the categories of “self-emptiness” and “other-emptiness,” we can see that according to Khenpo Lodrö Drakpa’s definitions of a proponent of self-emptiness (claiming a non-implicative negation as the consummate ultimate) and other-emptiness (claiming wisdom as not empty of its own essence), Mipam is a proponent of neither self-emptiness nor other-emptiness. However, according to Lochen’s definitions of self-emptiness and other-emptiness, we see how Mipam can be said to be a proponent of both self-emptiness and other-emptiness!" And, later on, "It is clear that Mipam defines himself as a proponent of self-emptiness—as one who propounds that there is nothing ultimately existent—in accord with his definition of the term. Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 74.
PosEmptyLumin	Tathāgatagarbha as the Unity of Emptiness and Luminosity
PosEmptyLuminNotes	Though Mipam clearly presents several different perspectives on this issue: "Mipam states that the basic element (Buddha-nature) is empty of adventitious defilements, yet not empty of consummate qualities. These consummate qualities are inseparable from the suchness of phenomena that is luminous clarity and self-existing wisdom." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 18. "Mipam’s two models of two truths support his interpretation of the compatibility of emptiness and Buddha-nature. The indivisibility of the two truths, empty appearance, is Buddha-nature; and the unity of appearance and emptiness is what is known in authentic experience." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 26. "In his Trilogy of Innate Mind, Mipam also calls this suchness of mind “Buddhanature”: “Existing in the minds of all sentient beings in the manner of suchness on the occasion when obscurations dwell as suitable to be removed, it is called ‘Buddha-nature’ because when this suchness of mind is realized, one becomes a Buddha.” The suchness, or nature, of mind is Buddha-naure. Self-existing wisdom is simply made manifest; it is not produced by a cause." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 100. "Mipam also refers to Buddha-nature as the abiding reality of the “ground of the primeval beginning” (ye thog gi gzhi) in his Trilogy of Innate Mind: Buddha-nature is not a mere absence; it is emptiness and luminous clarity. It is the abiding reality of the ground of the primeval beginning of all phenomena, the abiding reality that is the indivisible truth of unity—emptiness endowed with all supreme aspects (rnam kun mchog ldan gyi stong nyid)." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 105. "In his Lion’s Roar: Exposition of Buddha-Nature, Mipam describes the essence of the Buddha-nature as follows: “The essence of the Buddha-nature itself is free from all conceptual constructs such as existence and nonexistence, permanence and annihilation; it is the equality of the single sphere of indivisible truth.” Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 107. In conclusion Duckworth sums up Mipam's view as such, "Since he depicts Buddha-nature with the qualities of the Buddha present at the time of a sentient being, his presentation shares an important feature with the Jonang tradition. His interpretation also shares a quality with the Geluk tradition, given that he equates Buddha-nature with emptiness. However, Mipam’s integration of Buddha-nature and emptiness most directly reflects Longchenpa’s description of the ground of the Great Perfection, the pinnacle of Buddhist vehicles in his Nyingma tradition, where Buddha-nature represents the unity of primordial purity and spontaneous presence." Douglas Duckworth, Mipam on Buddha-Nature, p. 115.
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The Nyingma, which is often described as the oldest tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, traces its origin to Padmasambhava, who is said to have visited Tibet in the eighth century.

The Kagyu school traces its origin to the eleventh-century translator Marpa, who studied in India with Nāropa. Marpa's student Milarepa trained Gampopa, who founded the first monastery of the Kagyu order. As many as twelve subtraditions grew out from there, the best known being the Karma Kagyu, the Drikung, and the Drukpa.

The Sakya tradition developed in the eleventh century in the Khön family of Tsang, which maintained an imperial-era lineage of Vajrakīla and which adopted a new teaching from India known as Lamdre.

Refers to a teaching that is literally true.

Suchness itself, absolute reality, or thusness, as in the ultimate state of being of phenomena.

Literally, that which obscures or conceals. Often listed as a set of two obscurations (sgrib gnyis): the afflictive emotional obscurations (Skt. kleśāvaraṇa, Tib. nyon mongs pa'i sgrib pa) and the cognitive obscurations (Skt. jñeyāvaraṇa, Tib. shes bya'i sgrib pa). By removing the first, one becomes free of suffering, and by removing the second, one becomes omniscient.

Along with Yogācāra, it is one of the two major philosophical schools of Mahāyāna Buddhism. Founded by Nāgārjuna around the second century CE, it is rooted in the Prajñāpāramitā Sūtras, though its initial exposition was presented in Nāgārjuna's Mūlamadhyamakakārikā.

The state of being empty of self, which references the lack of inherent existence in relative phenomena.

The state of being empty of self, which references the lack of inherent existence in relative phenomena.

The state of being devoid of that which is wholly different rather than being void of its own nature. The term is generally used to refer to the ultimate, or buddha-nature, being empty of other phenomena such as adventitious defiling emotions but not empty of its true nature.

The nature or essence of a thing, which originates only from itself and is not dependent on any external entities, causes, or conditions.

The state of being empty of self, which references the lack of inherent existence in relative phenomena.

The state of being devoid of that which is wholly different rather than being void of its own nature. The term is generally used to refer to the ultimate, or buddha-nature, being empty of other phenomena such as adventitious defiling emotions but not empty of its true nature.

A negation that merely denies the existence of something without implicitly suggesting an alternative.

In a general sense, that which clears away darkness, though it often appears in Buddhist literature in reference to the mind or its nature. It is a particularly salient feature of Tantric literature, especially in regard to the advanced meditation techniques of the completion-stage yogas.

A fundamental component or essential constituent.

Mental stains that are not inherent to the nature of the mind but are temporarily present as the residue of past actions or habitual tendencies. It is sometimes iterated as adventitious defilements (Skt. āgantukakleśa, Tib. glo bur gyi nyon mongs), which references the fickle and temporary nature of disturbing emotions that lack an ultimately established basis for existence.

As opposed to a mere voidness, this phrase refers to an emptiness that is endowed with enlightened qualities and attributes.

The state of being empty of an innate nature due to a lack of independently existing characteristics.

Dzogchen is an advanced system of meditation techniques to reveal the innate state of perfection primarily, but not exclusively, espoused by the Nyingma Buddhist tradition and the Tibetan Bön tradition.

Primordial purity is a term found in the Dzogchen tradition and refers to the empty nature of phenomena which is experienced through the practice of cutting-through meditation (khregs chod). It is often juxtaposed with spontaneous presence (lhun grub).