Appearing and Empty

This final installment in a three-volume series on emptiness sets out the Prasangika account of the ultimate nature of reality. Its goal is to help readers grasp emptiness accurately, meaning the selflessness of both persons and phenomena, and to give them ways to end their own suffering (duhkha) and that of others.

The Dalai Lama examines what the Sautrantika, Yogacara and Svatantrika schools say about the final nature of reality, then works through the Prasangika responses to each. Along the way he explains why rejecting inherent existence does not leave us with a void, since conventional emptiness is not the same as nothingness.

On the practical side, the book shows how to meditate on this view by developing a clear, untainted wisdom that unites calm abiding and insight, as the Pali, Chinese and Tibetan traditions teach it. Joined with bodhicitta, the aspiration to awaken for the benefit of all beings, this meditation can fully remove the afflictions that cloud the mind. The text also introduces tathagatagarbha, the buddha essence, as it is understood in Tibet and China, and asks whether it is permanent and whether everyone possesses it.

A further section compares sudden and gradual awakening as they are discussed in Zen (Chan) Buddhism and in Tibetan Buddhism.