The (Bitter) Nectar of the Knowledge of Reality: Madhyamakahr.ṛdayakārikā 3.129cd-136 and Tarkajvālā on the Unconditioned Entities (asam.ṃskr.ṛta)

This article provides an annotated English translation and edition of the Sanskrit and Tibetan texts of Bhāviveka’s (490/500-570) Madhyamakahṛdayakārikā 3.129cd-136 and of the Tibetan text of the Tarkajvālā thereon, which focus on the discussion of unconditioned entities (asaṃskṛta). The study is accompanied by an introduction that outlines the general themes of the third chapter, the specific topics within the examined section and various problematic aspects found in the Tarkajvālā exposition of Buddhist (Vaibhāṣika, Yogācāra) and non-Buddhist (Vaiśeṣika, Jain) doctrines and philosophies. The multitude of inaccuracies detected within the examined Tarkajvālā section cast doubt on its authenticity as a genuine work of Bhāviveka. It is hypothesized that the author of at least this portion of the Tarkajvālā might have been a young student who struggled to recall the fundamental doctrines of the schools he attempts to elucidate.