dhātu

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Sanskrit Noun

dhātu

element
धातु
ཁམས་
界

Basic Meaning

A fundamental component or essential constituent.

Read It in the Scriptures

The dhātu of beginningless time

Is the foundation of all phenomena.
Due to its existence, all forms of existence

And also nirvāṇa are obtained.  
~ The Abhidharmamahāyānasūtra, as cited in the Ratnagotravibhāgavyākhyā, Chapter 1, verse 149—152. Translated by Karl Brunnhölzl.
On this topic
Book
Perfect or Perfected? Rongtön on Buddha-Nature
As the most important canonical treatise on Buddha-nature, the Ratnagotravibhaga (also known as Uttaratantrasastra, Tib. rgyud bla ma) established the doctrinal foundations for the Mahayana philosophy of tathāgatagarbha, the doctrine according to which all sentient beings are either inherently buddhas or endowed with the potential for awakening. Among the most prominent Tibetan commentaries on this text figures that of the Sakya master Rongtön Sheja Künrig, a prolific writer who was active during the golden age of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy. Refuting, on one hand, the notion that Buddha-nature is synonymous with mere emptiness, and on the other that the mind is inherently endowed with the Buddha qualities, Rongtön argues for an understanding of Buddha-nature that embraces both aspects of the nature of mind: cognizance and emptiness.



Rongtön Sheja Künrig (1376-1449) figures among the greatest teachers of the Sakya tradition. Particularly renowned for his commentaries on the Five Treatises of Maitreya, his vast erudition, and extensive teaching career made him one of the most influential masters for the scholastic lineages of all schools of Tibetan Buddhism. This volume contains an annotated translation of Rongtön Chenpo’s commentary on the central chapter of this treatise (including the relevant stanzas of the root text), along with an extensive introduction to the historical development of this doctrine and an analysis of Rongtön’s position. (Source: Vajra Publications)
Bernert, Christian, trans. Perfect or Perfected? Rongtön on Buddha-Nature: A Commentary on the Fourth Chapter of the Ratnagotravibhāga (vv.1.27-95[a]). By Rongtön Sheja Künrig (rong ston shes bya kun rig). Kathmandu: Vajra Books, 2018.
Article
Reconsidering the "Essence" of Indian Buddha-Nature Literature
This paper is published in Acta Asiatica no.118, which concerns recent scholarship on tathāgatagarbha, or Buddha-nature thought, in Indian literature. In light of recent reassessments of the development of tathāgatagarbha thought in India, this paper considers instances in which tathāgatagarbha is unpacked to refer to some "essence" (dhātu) of a Buddha present in all sentient beings. My observation is that this articulation of Buddha-nature teaching is found throughout Indian tathāgatagarbha literature, from the Nirvāṇa Sūtra through to supposedly "basic" materials of the Ratnagotravibhāga, but is conspicuously absent where Buddhist authors are invested in (re)interpreting Buddha-nature in terms of the basic nature of the mind: an influential innovation that I believe is first evident in the Śrīmālā Sūtra. (Source Accessed April 3, 2020)
Jones, Christopher V. "Reconsidering the 'Essence' of Indian Buddha-Nature Literature." In "What is Tathāgatagarbha: Buddha-Nature or Buddha Within?" Edited by Saitō Akira. Special issue, Acta Asiatica 118 (2020): 57–78.
Bernert, C.: Rong-ston on Buddha-Nature: A Commentary on the Fourth Chapter of the Ratnagotravibhāga
Set within the broader framework of Buddhist world view, the fundamental concern of the Tathāgatagarbha literature is to show that all sentient beings, without exception, can attain freedom from every kind of suffering and unease, and, ultimately, actualise the state of a fully awakened buddha. According to these scriptures, all sentient beings are by their very nature either empowered to attain buddhahood, or essentially already buddhas (depending on the interpretation). This innate quality of all sentient beings is given the name “buddha-nature” (Skt. tathāgatagarbha; Tib. de bzhin gshegs pa’i snying po).
      This doctrine has played an important role in the history of Buddhism. Although rudimentary elements of this doctrine can be identified already within the Pāli canon,[1] those passages relating to the natural luminosity of the mind, which is said to be temporarily stained by adventitious mental afflictions, required the emergence of the Mahāyāna movement before developing into a fully fledged doctrine in its own right. Since it is supported by a number of sūtras[2] and śāstras (i.e. the Buddhist canon composed of the Buddha’s sermons and the Indian commentarial literature), it can be regarded as a third school of Indian Mahāyāna Buddhist thought, the other two being Madhyamaka and Yogācāra. However, the concept of buddha-nature reached its apogee not in India but in East Asia and Tibet where it became a cornerstone for Buddhist philosophy and religious practice. In Tibet, in particular, this concept was treated diversely by many scholars, all of whom were ambitious to fit it into the philosophical framework of their own respective schools. Rong-ston Shes-bya kun-rig (1367–1449) of the Sa-skya tradition of Tibetan Buddhism figures among the most influential of these scholars. In general, his commentary on the Ratnagotravibhāga, the main Indian śāstra on buddha-nature, and in particular, a translation of his exposition of the subject by means of ten categories, will be the focus of this work.
      In the first chapter I will introduce the doctrine of buddha-nature, giving a brief account of its sources and formation. The second chapter will deal with the main treatise on buddha-nature, the Ratnagotravibhāga. Here, I will present the text itself, discuss the question of its authorship, as well as its transmission in India and early reception in Tibet. This chapter will also include a brief overview of previous studies on the Ratnagotravibhāga and the doctrine of buddha-nature. The third chapter will be devoted to the author of our treatise and his presentation of the subject. The final and main part of the work will consist of an annotated translation of a selected passage of his abovementioned commentary.
      Throughout this work I have used the transliteration system of Turrell Wylie for the Tibetan. (Bernert, introduction, 5–6 )
Notes
  1. For example in AN I.v, 9: “This mind, O monks, is luminous! But it is defiled by adventitious defilements.” (After Mathes 2008: ix.) See also Takasaki 1966: 34–35.
  2. A prevalent doxographical classification of Buddhist sūtras distinguishes between the so called “three turnings of the Dharma-wheel” (a concept introduced in the Sandhinirmocanasūtra). Scriptures of the first turning fundamentally discuss the four noble truths as expounded in Nikāya Buddhism which represents the common ground for all traditions and the basic framework for all Buddhist teachings. Sūtras from second turning emphasise the doctrine of emptiness (śūnyatā) as expounded in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, and those of the third teach the about the three natures (trisvabhāva), the latter two being classified as belonging to the Mahāyāna corpus. The sūtras on buddha-nature are generally regarded as belonging to the third turning.
  3. As Seyfort Ruegg (1969: 2) remarks, the language used in the tathāgatagarbha treatises differs noticeably from that of the other two schools, and even comes suspiciously close to that of the Vedānta. Indeed, a number of modern scholars have accused this doctrine to be alien to Buddhist thought, an accusion refuted by others. For a collection of articles on this topic see Hubbard and Swanson 1997.
  4. Cf. Wylie 1959.
Bernert, Christian. "Rong-ston on Buddha-Nature: A Commentary on the Fourth Chapter of the Ratnagotravibhāga". MA thesis, University of Vienna, 2009.
Book
The Lion's Roar of the Ultimate Non-Dual Buddha Nature
The teaching of the Buddha hinges around the one point that sentient beings, meaning beings having a mind, have within them the potential to become a buddha. If they did not possess that potential, it would not be possible for them to become buddhas and the rest of the Buddhist teaching would be an interesting but useless philosophy. Therefore, the topic of buddha nature is especially important.

The Buddha taught buddha nature in three steps, each more profound than the previous one. The last step is regarded by most Tibetan Buddhist schools as the most profound teaching of the sutras, the very essence of what the Buddha was trying to communicate to his followers. It is the same teaching as found in Mahamudra and Dzogchen, so is important for all Buddhists to understand, but especially for those who are studying the Mahamudra and Dzogchen teachings.

The very learned Nyingma teacher Ju Mipham Namgyal gave a teaching that clearly showed this ultimate non-dual buddha nature. It was recorded and published by his students in a text called The Lion's Roar that is A Great Thousand Doses of Sugatagarbha which forms the basis of this book. The text needs clarification, so a very extensive explanation has been provided by the author of the book, the well known Western Buddhist teacher and translator, Tony Duff. As with all of our books, and an extensive introduction, glossary, and so on are provided to assist the reader.
Duff, Tony, trans. The Lion's Roar of the Ultimate Non-Dual Buddha Nature: A Text by Ju Mipham Namgyal and Explanation by Tony Duff. Kathmandu: Padma Karpo Translation Committee, 2015.
Term Variations
Key Term dhātu
Topic Variation dhātu
Tibetan ཁམས་  ( kham)
Wylie Tibetan Transliteration khams  ( kham)
Devanagari Sanskrit धातु
Romanized Sanskrit dhātu
Chinese 界
Chinese Pinyin jiè
Buddha-nature Site Standard English element
Karl Brunnhölzl's English Term basic element
Richard Barron's English Term realm, constituent element, fundamental nature, components of ordinary experience, fundamental being
Jeffrey Hopkin's English Term essential constituent
Ives Waldo's English Term region, realm, element, nature, cause and seed
Term Information
Source Language Sanskrit
Basic Meaning A fundamental component or essential constituent.
Did you know? In the Ratnagotravibhāga, dhātu is synonymous with gotra, the final element that enables all beings to become buddhas. (Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism, p 254)
Related Terms gotra, buddhadhātu
Term Type Noun
Definitions
Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism See page 254: In Sanskrit and Pāli, “element”; a polysemous term with wide application in Buddhist contexts.

In epistemology, the dhātus refer to the eighteen elements through which sensory experience is produced: the six sense bases, or sense organs (indriya; viz., eye, ear, nose, tongue, body, and mind); the six corresponding sense objects (ālambana; viz., forms, sounds, odors, tastes, tangible objects, and mental phenomena); and the six sensory consciousnesses that result from contact (sparśa) between the corresponding base and object (vijñāna; viz., visual, auditory, olfactory, gustatory, tactile, and mental consciousnesses). As this list makes clear, the eighteen dhātus also subsume the twelve āyatana (sense-fields). The dhātus represent one of the three major taxonomies of dharmas found in the sūtras (along with skanda and āyatana), and represent a more primitive stage of dharma classification than the elaborate analyses found in much of the mature abhidharma literature (but cf. Dharmaskandha).

In a physical sense, dhātu is used to refer to the constituent elements of the physical world, of which four are usually recognized in Buddhist materials: earth, water, fire, and wind. Sometimes two additional constituents are added to the list: space (ākāśa) and consciousness (vijñāna).

In the Ratnagotravibhāga, dhātu is synonymous with gotra, the final element that enables all beings to become buddhas.



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