A Direct Path to the Buddha Within: Gö Lotsawa’s Mahāmudrā Interpretation of the Ratnagotravibhāga

Maitreya’s Ratnagotravibhāga, also known as the Uttaratantra, is the main Indian treatise on buddha nature, a concept that is heavily debated in Tibetan Buddhist philosophy. In A Direct Path to the Buddha Within, Klaus-Dieter Mathes looks at a pivotal Tibetan commentary on this text by Gö Lotsawa Zhönu Pal, best known as the author of the Blue Annals. Gö Lotsawa, whose teachers spanned the spectrum of Tibetan schools, developed a highly nuanced understanding of buddha nature, tying it in with mainstream Mahāyana thought while avoiding contested aspects of the so-called empty-of-other (zhentong) approach. In addition to translating key portions of Gö Lotsawa’s commentary, Mathes provides an in-depth historical context, evaluating Gö’s position against those of Kagyü, Nyingma, and Jonang masters, and examining how Gö Lotsawa’s view affects his understanding of a buddha’s qualities, the concept of emptiness, and the practice of mahāmudrā.