Introduction
Limited beings (sems-can, sentient beings) are all unenlightened beings – those with physical, verbal, and mental limitations in comparison to Buddhas. Buddhas are not limited beings; they are not “sentient beings.”
Limited beings can be divided into mundane beings and liberated beings.
- Mundane beings (‘jig-rten-pa, worldly beings) are those whose mental continuums contain the fleeting stains (glo-bur-gyi dri-ma) of both the emotional obscurations (nyon-sgrib) preventing liberation and the cognitive obscurations (shes-sgrib) preventing omniscience.
- Liberated beings (dgra-bcom-pa; Skt. arhat, foe-destroyer) are those who have attained a true stopping of all the emotional obscurations, but whose mental continuums still contain the cognitive obscurations. Liberated beings may be of the shravaka, pratyekabuddha or bodhisattva class.
- Buddhas are those whose mental continuums have a true stopping of both the emotional and cognitive obscurations.
The emotional obscurations (nyon-sgrib), as formulated in the Gelug Prasangika tenet system, refer to both the doctrinally based (kun-btags) and automatically arising (lhan-skyes) disturbing emotions and attitudes (nyon-mongs, Skt. klesha; afflictive emotions), including unawareness (ma-rig-pa; ignorance), as well as their tendencies (sa-bon; seeds). The disturbing emotions, including unawareness, may be aimed at either persons or at all knowable phenomena. Unawareness, in this system, is equivalent to grasping for truly established existence (bden-‘dzin).
The cognitive obscurations (shes-sgrib) are much more subtle. According to Gelug Prasangika, they refer to the constant habits (bag-chags) of grasping for truly established existence. In order to identify these obscurations more distinctly, let us delineate them as they occur with the mental activity of liberated beings. The following presentation is based on the commentary on the Second Jamyang Zhepa’s (Kun-mkhyen ‘Jam-dbyangs bzhad-pa rdo-rje II, dKon-mchog ‘jigs-med dbang-po) text on tenet systems written by the 20th-century Geshe from Rong-bo Monastery in Amdo, Geshe Jamyang Dragpa (‘Jam-dbyangs grags-pa): A Mirror to Give Rise to the General Meaning of the Tenet Systems: An Explanation of the Manner of Assertions of the Propounders of Tenet Systems, Based on (Jamyang-shepa II’s) “Jewel Garland of Tenet Systems” (Grub-mtha’ rin-chen ‘phreng-ba-la brten-nas grub-mtha’ smra-ba-dag-gi ‘dod-tshul bshad-pa grub-mtha’i spyi-don ‘char-ba’i me-long).