Beautiful Adornment of Mount Meru: A Presentation of Classical Indian Philosophy, Changkya Rolpai Dorje, Lopez Donald

Beautiful Adornment of Mount Meru by Changkya Rцlpai Dorjй (1717-86) is a work of doxography, presenting the distinctive philosophical tenets of the Indian Buddhist and non-Buddhist schools in a systematic manner that ascends through increasingly more subtle views. It is a Tibetan corollary to contemporary histories of philosophy. The Mount Meru of the title is the Buddhas teachings, and Changkyas work excels in particular in its treatment of the two Mahayana Buddhist schools, the Yogacara (here called the Vijсaptimatra) and the Madhyamaka. Unlike Jamyang Shepas (1648-1722) much longer Great Exposition of Tenets, which was one of the key sources and inspirations for Changkya, Beautiful Adornment is often praised for the clarity of its prose and its economical use of citations from Indian texts. At the same time, like Jamyang Shepas work, Changkyas text is not simply a catalog of assertions; it skillfully examines core philosophical issues, including a number of intriguing ancillary discussions. Also like Jamyang Shepas text, Changkyas is very much a Geluk work, drawing heavily on the works of Tsongkhapa and his disciples.