Chandragomin
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Chandragomin (Skt. Candragomin; Tib ཙནྡྲ་གོ་མིན་) was an Indian Buddhist lay practitioner (upasaka), scholar and poet.
According to the Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, Chandragomin lived in the 5th century and made substantial contributions to Sanskrit grammar, founding what was known as the Cāndra school.[1] The Princeton Dictionary also states that he was one of the greatest poets of Indian Buddhism, and the author of the play Lokānanda (about the bodhisattva king Maṇicūḍa).[1]
Tibetan sources identify Chandragomin as a scholar-poet who lived in the 7th century and engaged in a famous debate with the Nalanda scholar Chandrakirti.[2] According to contemporary scholar Mark Tatz, "the philosopher–poet Candragomin, who flourished in the latter three quarters of the seventh century, is several centuries later than the grammarian Cāndra. Chandragomin may, as have other poets, done a study of grammar, but this is not the sūtra that has survived as the basis of Cāndra grammar."[3] Tatz suggests that this later Chandragomin came from Eastern Bengal.[3]
According to the Tibetan tradition, Chandragomin and Chandrakirti engaged in a famous debate at Nalanda university that lasted for many years. In this debate, Chandragomin advocated the Vijñānavāda view, and Chandrakirti advocated the Madhyamaka view.[4]
Works attributed to Chandragomin include:
- Twenty Verses on the Bodhisattva Vow
- Letter to a Disciple
- Confessional Praise (Deśanāstava)[5]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Buswell & Lopez 2014, s.v. Candragomin.
- ↑ Nearly all Tibetan sources place Chandragomin in the 7th century. See for example: https://www.lamayeshe.com/glossary/chandragomin
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Tatz, Mark (1982). "The Life of Candragomin in Tibetan Historical Tradition". The Tibet Journal. 7: 3–22.
- ↑ For a traditional description of the debate, see: http://tibetanbuddhistencyclopedia.com/en/index.php/Chandragomin_and_Chandrakirti
- ↑ See Chandragomin: Praise in Confession
Further reading
- Geshe Sonam Rinchen, The Bodhisattva Vow, translated and edited by Ruth Sonam, Snow Lion, 2000
- Candragomin, Difficult Beginnings: Three Works on the Bodhisattva Path, translated, with commentary by Mark Tatz, Shambhala, 1985
- Chandragomin: Praise in Confession
Candragomin, Tsadra Commons
External links
- Candrakiirti's critique of Vijñaanavaada, Robert F. Olson, Philosophy East and West, Volume 24 No. 4, 1977, pp. 405–411
- Candrakiirti's denial of the self, James Duerlinger, Philosophy East and West, Volume 34 No. 3, July 1984, pp. 261–272
- Candrakiirti's refutation of Buddhist idealism, Peter G. Fenner, Philosophy East and West, Volume 33 No. 3, July 1983, pp. 251–261