Since the Buddha did not fully explain the theory of persons that underlies his teaching, in later centuries a number of different interpretations were developed. This book presents the interpretation by the celebrated Indian Buddhist philosopher, Candrakīrti (ca. 570–650 C.E.).
CandrakÄ«rti’s fullest statement of the theory is included in his Autocommentary on theIntroduction to the Middle Way (MadhyamakÄvatÄrabhasya), which is, along with his Introduction to the Middle Way (MadhyamakÄvatÄra ), among the central treatises that present the PrÄsavgika account of the Madhyamaka (Middle Way) philosophy. In this book, CandrakÄ«rti’s most complete statement of his theory of persons is translated and provided with an introduction and commentary that present a careful philosophical analysis of CandrakÄ«rti’s account of the selflessness of persons. This analysis is both philologically precise and analytically sophisticated. The book is of interest to scholars of Buddhism generally and especially to scholars of Indian Buddhist philosophy.