Treatise on Pointing Out the Tathāgata Heart

Treatise on Pointing Out the Tathāgata Heart (T. de bzhin gshegs pa'i snying po gtan la dbab pa, or de bzhin gshegs pa'i snying po bstan pa). A treatise on buddha-nature by the 3rd Karmapa, Rangjung Dorje. This text is essentially a synopsis of the Uttaratantra.

According to Schaeffer (1995):

This verse text (de bzhin gshegs pa'i snying po gtan la dbab pa, or de bzhin gshegs pa'i snying po bstan pa) blends scriptural quotations from both sūtra and tantra with Rang byung's own words, creating an evocative picture of the relation between the primordially pure enlightened state - symbolized by the Enlightened Heart (snying po) - human existence, and Buddhahood. While Rang byung has relied heavily on the Ratnagotravibhāgaśāstra, (known in Tibet as the Uttaratantra, or Rgyud bla ma), the syncretism of various strands of Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna apparent in the text is particular to Tibet. Tathāgatagarbha, Madhyamaka, Yogācāra, Mahāmudrā, and Anuttarayogatantra all coalesce in this work, which is a testament to the hundreds of years of appropriation and synthesis of Indian and Tibetan Buddhist thought that preceded it.

Sources

• Schaeffer, Kurtis R. (1995). The Englightened Heart of Buddhahood: A Study and Translation of the Third Karma pa Rang byung rdo rje's Work on Tathagatagarbha. University of Washington.
• The Treatise on Pointing Out the Tathāgata Heart, Buddha Nature: A Tsadra Foundation Initiative

Further reading

• Thrangu Rinpoche. On Buddha Essence: A Commentary on Rangjung Dorje's Treatise. Translated by Peter Alan Roberts. Edited by Clark Johnson. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 2006.