Buddhist Ethics

Jamgon Kongtrul Lordro Taye

Snow Lion

564

1998

9781559390668

Ethics/Vinaya

1 total

Jamgön Kongtrul's monumental Encyclopedia of Buddhism (Treasury of Knowledge) contains a complete account of the major lines of thought and practice that comprise Tibetan Buddhism. Buddhist Ethics is the fifth part of that work and considered by many scholars to be its heart. Spiritual growth in a Buddhist context is a process of discovering a perfect quality that is already within ourselves. Ethical discipline—the essence of which is the commitment to a life of non-violence and service to others—is regarded as the indispensable foundation for this process. Buddhist ethics are not regarded as prohibitory rules, but rather the source of freedom. This text presents the three major systems of ethics found in the Tibetan tradition. Widely known simply as the "three vows," these are the vows of personal liberation (pratimoksa), universal liberation (bodhisattva), and secret mantra (tantra). Jamgön Kongtrul explains the need for and nature of an authentic teacher-student relationship as the support for one's training in each system. He then provides the complete code of personal liberation as it applies to both monastic and lay persons, the precepts for those aspiring to the life of a bodhisattva, and the exceptional pledges for practitioners on the tantric path of pure perception.