The Great Hum - by Minyak Kunzang Sonam (Hardcover)

About the Book

"The text translated below is by the nineteenth-century Tibetan Buddhist monk Kunzang Sèonam (a.k.a. Minyak Kunsèo and Tupten Chèokyi Drakpa). It is a commentary on âSåantideva's masterwork the Way of the Bodhisattva, showing how the verses of this text are embedded in a vast Buddhist literature. Kunzang Sèonam's text is nothing less than a comprehensive introduction to the Mahåayåana. He not only explains âSåantideva's verses but shows their connection to a network of many other texts, drawing on his teacher's words and citing hundreds of såutras to show how the verses are beautifully integrated within, and express, a Buddhist textual universe. The extensive commentary translated here covers the first eight chapters of âSåantideva's text and fills the entire third volume (håuòm) of Kunzang Sèonam's collected works. Kunzang Sèonam wrote two other commentaries on the Way of the Bodhisattva, a commentary on the words of the ninth chapter, "Wisdom," and an overview of this chapter that is an introduction to Pråasaçngika Madhyamaka philosophy, which I translated in The Profound Reality of Interdependence. Kunzang Sèonam was a student of Paltrul Rinpochâe, who revived the study and practice of the Way of the Bodhisattva in eastern Tibet in the nineteenth century. His text exemplifies a rich tradition of Buddhist scholarship and practical instruction"--

Book Synopsis

Dive into an ocean of Buddhist wisdom with this masterful immersion in Shantideva's well-known guide to the boundless spirit of the bodhisattva.

Shantideva's Way of the Bodhisattva (Bodhicaryavatara) is without a doubt one of the greatest masterpieces of Indian Buddhism and the single most influential text on Mahayana ethical theory. Since it was composed in the eighth century, it has continuously animated the living tradition--especially in Tibet, but now in the West as well--as more translations have become available. Its poetic evocations of the spirit of awakening allow readers to enter the mind of the bodhisattva.

Nineteenth-century master Minyak Kunzang Sonam composed what came to be the most extensive commentary in any language on Shantideva's masterpiece. This commentary came to be known as the Great Hum because it fills the entirety of the third or hum volume of the author's collected works. Citing hundreds of sutras, he shows how Shantideva's verses are beautifully integrated within, and express, the Buddhist textual universe. In particular he ties Shantideva's verses with the Anthology of Training, the thematic collection of scriptural citations also compiled by Shantideva, creating a detailed tapestry of Mahayana thought and practice. Kunzang Sonam's commentary on the philosophically rich ninth "Wisdom" chapter was published previously as The Profound Reality of Interdependence, and this volume presents his commentary on the first eight chapters, detailing the generation of the spirit of awakening, the cultivation of positive qualities, and the practice of meditation. Embedded in the commentary is a fresh translation of Shantideva's verses, making this an unparalleled guide to appreciating their layers of meaning and applying them in one's practice and life.

Review Quotes

"A lucid and inspiring translation of a major commentary on the Way of the Bodhisattva by one of the great luminaries of the nineteenth century."--Matthieu Ricard, author of The Enlightened Vagabond

"I rejoice again and again that the famous commentary of the Way of the Bodhisattva known as the Great Hum has been translated into English and is available to great scholars, East and West, around the world. Kunzang Sönam received teachings on the Way of the Bodhisattva from Patrul Rinpoché many times, and there are unsurpassed benefits for those who read this."--Tudeng Nima (Alak Zenkar Rinpoché)

"I rejoice and offer flowers of praise that this has been translated into English by Professor Douglas Duckworth. I pray that this will help spread the wings of study and contemplation, by which the practice of meditation can reach the kingdom of previous victors."--Chokyi Nyima Rinpoché

"Santideva's Way of the Bodhisattva is venerated by teachers of all the Tibetan schools, and many scholars have written commentaries on it. When I received teachings on the Way of the Bodhisattva from Khunu Rinpoché, he often mentioned the excellent commentary by Minyak Kunzang Sönam, a disciple of Jamyang Khyentsé Wangpo. I welcome this translation of that text into English."

--His Holiness the Dalai Lama

"This volume provides an easily accessible way for any of us, no matter our level of practice or study, to immerse ourselves in Santideva's precious teachings. You can read this from cover to cover or, as I often suggest, just open it to any page and start reading a few paragraphs. This is scholarship at its best: a thoroughly researched and highly readable book."

--Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse

About the Author

Douglas Duckworth is a professor of religion at Temple University in Philadelphia. He received his PhD in religious studies (Indo-Tibetan Buddhism) from the University of Virginia in 2005, and he previously taught at Kathmandu University. He is the author of Mipam on Buddha-Nature: The Ground of the Nyingma Tradition (SUNY 2008), Jamgon Mipam: His Life and Teachings (Shambhala 2011), and Tibetan Buddhist Philosophy of Mind and Nature (Oxford 2019). He has translated Kunzang Sonam's overview of the ninth chapter of Shantideva's Way of the Bodhisattva, entitled The Profound Reality of Interdependence (Oxford 2019), and Botrul's Distinguishing the Views and Philosophies: Illuminating Emptiness in a Twentieth-Century Tibetan Buddhist Classic (SUNY 2011). He is a coauthor of Dignaga's Investigation of the Percept (Oxford 2016) and Knowing Illusion (2 vols., Oxford 2021). In addition to publishing numerous scholarly articles, Duckworth has coedited (with A. Velez and E. Harris) Buddhist Responses to Religious Diversity: Theravada and Tibetan Perspectives (Equinox 2020) and (with Jonathan Gold) Readings of Shantideva's Guide to Bodhisattva Practice (Columbia 2019).

Minyak Kunzang Sonam, a.k.a. Tupten Chökyi Drakpa (1823-1905), hailed from eastern Tibet and was a prominent student of the celebrated Patrul Rinpoche (1808-87) and a great scholar in his own right. He was a truly nonsectarian figure, drawing on the wisdom of all the Tibetan Buddhist traditions. A translation of his commentary on Tokme Zangpo's Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas was published as Uniting Wisdom and Compassion.