Nagarjuna

Mulamadhyamakakarika

1. IDEA 1

   Nothing exists entirely by itself

   Nagarjuna, founder of the Madhyamaka school of Buddhism, argues that no thing has svabhava, an independent and unchanging essence of its own. Everything exists only in relation to causes, conditions and parts, so nothing stands entirely on its own.

2. IDEA 2

   Emptiness means dependence

   Nagarjuna calls this lack of independent essence shunyata, or emptiness. He links emptiness directly to dependent origination, the Buddhist teaching that all things arise through conditions. To be empty is simply to be dependently arisen, not to be nothing at all.

3. IDEA 3

   Two levels of truth

   Nagarjuna distinguishes conventional truth, the everyday way we speak about tables, people and causes, from ultimate truth, which is emptiness. Conventional truth is useful and valid, but it must not be mistaken for the final nature of things.

All 8 ideas from Mulamadhyamakakarika →