Buddhist Epistemology in the Geluk School

“The academic study of Buddhist epistemology and logic (Tibetan: tshad ma, Sanskrit: pramana) is over a century old, but until now there has been nothing like the present study by Jonathan Samuels, who gained the monastic degree of geshé. It is not only the first to take seriously the inception of the Geluk contribution, but it also marks the first time a seminal work fully appears in a fine annotated translation: Khedrup Jé’s Banisher of Ignorance, which occupies the bulk of this volume. Samuels has set a new standard for translation of Tibetan tshad ma literature. The ‘pleasure of the text’ is here in full force!”–Leonard W. J. van der Kuijp, Harvard University“The texts in this volume show that reasoning, for Buddhists, is not just an intellectual pastime or a polemical battle but a crucial condition for meditative experience. Jonathan Samuels’s long involvement in the study and practice of this curriculum has served him well in translating these works and in composing an introduction, all delivered with the great erudition and pleasing manner that the works deserve. Samuels cleverly brings out the flamboyance and pugnacity that is Khedrup’s signature style, while preserving his fine intellect that weaves its way through the forests of contrasting views with the sharp machete of reason.”–Gavin Kilty, translator of Light of Samantabhadra: An Explanation of Dharmakirti’s Commentary on Valid Cognition

Jonathan Samuels (Sherab Gyatso) received his Geluk education as a monk at monasteries in India, beginning at the Institute of Buddhist Dialectics in Dharamsala, and gained the title of geshe at Drepung Loseling Monastery. He also holds a DPhil in Oriental studies from Oxford University. He was the principal teacher for the Lotsawa Rinchen Zangpo Translator Program in Dharamsala, served as interpreter for his teacher Gen Lobsang Gyatso, translated several of his books, including Bodhicitta: Cultivating the Compassionate Mind of Enlightenment, and wrote the Tibetan language guide Colloquial Tibetan: The Complete Course for Beginners. He currently works as an academic and has held posts at Oxford University and Heidelberg University. He presently works for the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Vienna.

Khedrup Gelek Palsang (1385-1438), well known as Khedrup Je, was one of the main disciples of Tsongkhapa (1357-1419), founder of the Geluk school of Tibetan Buddhism. Khedrup was already a learned scholar in the Sakya school when he met Tsongkhapa, having trained with the master Rendawa Shönü Lodrö (1349-1412). His eleven volumes of collected works contain key commentaries on philosophy such as the one here, but also many influential works on tantra. He also composed the main biography of Tsongkhapa. His literary flair and skill in argumentation continue to be emulated in the Geluk school to this day.

Gyaltsab Je (1364-1432) was born in the Tsang province of central Tibet. He was a famous student of Je Tsongkhapa, and became the first Ganden Tripa (throne holder) of the Gelug tradition after Je Tsongkhapa’s death. He also studied with Rendawa Zhonnu Lodro (1349-1412). Gyaltsab Je was a prolific writer; one of his most famous texts is a commentary of Shantideva’s A Guide to the Bodhisattba’s Way of Life. Lodro Tenpa, the seventh Ganden Tripa, was his student.