School of thought
Madhyamaka
School
Classification
- Period
- c. 150 CE onward
- Regions
- south asia
- Domains
- Epistemology , Metaphysics
Overview
Madhyamaka, founded by Nagarjuna, is the philosophy of the 'Middle Way' between the extremes of existence and non-existence. Through rigorous dialectical analysis, Nagarjuna demonstrates that all phenomena are empty (sunya) of inherent existence — they exist only dependently and conventionally. This emptiness is itself empty, avoiding even the reification of emptiness.
Key ideas
- Emptiness of Emptiness: Nagarjuna insists that emptiness itself is not a thing or a substance — it is simply the absence of inherent existence. Even emptiness is empty.
- Two Truths: Conventional truth (samvriti-satya) operates at the everyday level; ultimate truth (paramartha-satya) reveals the emptiness of all things. Both are necessary; neither is discarded.
- Tetralemma: Nagarjuna systematically negates four possible positions on any claim: it is, it is not, it both is and is not, it neither is nor is not — dissolving all conceptual fixation.
Key figures
Nagarjuna · Aryadeva · Chandrakirti · Buddhapalita
Methods used
Influenced by
Later connections
- Tibetan Buddhism Influenced by this tradition
- Zen (Chan) Influenced by this tradition
Absorbed Madhyamaka's teaching of emptiness (śūnyatā) indirectly through Prajñāpāramitā literature rather than through Nāgārjuna's dialectical method.
References
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Nāgārjuna
- Paul Williams, Mahāyāna Buddhism: The Doctrinal Foundations (2nd ed., Routledge, 2009)
- Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Madhyamaka, §§4.2–4.3
- Mulamadhyamakakarika (Fundamental Verses) — Nagarjuna (trans. Jay Garfield)
- The Sun of Wisdom — Khenpo Tsultrim Gyamtso