Illusion and the lack of inherent existence
This series of teachings with Geshe Tenzin Chodrak is based on Shantideva’s Bodhisattvacharyavatara, a text which is often translated as Engaging in the Bodhisattva’s Deeds.
Additional references include Gyaltsab Dharma Rinchen’s commentary and Abbot Dragpa Gyaltsen’s commentary.
An examination of the objections raised by realists to the Buddhist concept of emptiness is addressed in these verses.
The three criteria for something to exist are discussed, which include the lack of inherent existence, the accumulation of merit, and rebirth.
Verse 9 explains that the lack of inherent existence does not contradict the accumulation of merit, while Verse 10 states that as long as the conditions are present, rebirth occurs.
In Verse 11, it is asserted that the lack of inherent existence does not contradict the Buddha’s teachings on virtue and non-virtue.
Finally, Verse 12 emphasizes that things depend on more than a single cause.
The term “illusion-like” is used to describe the lack of inherent existence.
