KLAUS-DIETER MATHES : A DIRECT PATH TO THE BUDDHA WITHIN

Maitreya’s Ratnagotravibhāga, also known as the Uttaratantra, is the main Indian treatise on buddha nature, a concept that is heavily debated in Tibetan Buddhist philosophy. In A Direct Path to the Buddha Within, Klaus-Dieter Mathes looks at a pivotal Tibetan commentary on this text by Gö Lotsāwa Zhönu Pal, best known as the author of the Blue Annals. Gö Lotsāwa, whose teachers spanned the spectrum of Tibetan schools, developed a highly nuanced understanding of buddha nature, tying it in with mainstream Mahāyāna thought while avoiding contested aspects of the so-called empty-of-other (zhentong) approach. In addition to translating key portions of Gö Lotsāwa’s commentary, Mathes provides an in-depth historical context, evaluating Gö’s position against those of other Kagyü, Nyingma, and Jonang masters and examining how Gö Lotsāwa’s view affects his understanding of the buddha qualities, the concept of emptiness, and the practice of mahāmudrā.

Learn more about the Studies in Indian and Tibetan Buddhism series.

Read Go Lotsawa’s biography at the Treasury of Lives.

• Paperback
• 624 pages, 6.00 x 9.00 inches
• ISBN 9780861715282

Klaus-Dieter Mathes earned his doctorate at Marburg University and is a Professor of Buddhist Studies at the University of Hong Kong. He previously worked as a research fellow and lecturer at the Asia Africa Institute at the University of Hamburg, Germany, and as a Professor of Tibetology and Buddhist Studies at the University of Vienna, Austria. His research in progress deals with the Indian origins of Tibetan Mahāmudrā traditions. He is also a regular contributor to the Journal of the International Association of Tibetan Studies.

Other books by Klaus-Dieter Mathes: 
Saraha’s Spontaneous Songs