Bianba Deji

This dissertation elucidates the doctrinal development of the Parting from the Four Attachments, a Lojong (mind training) teaching formulated by the founding figure of the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism—Sachen Kunga Nyingpo (1092–1158), through its commentarial infrastructure over the last millennium. By uncovering the socio-historical context of the different masters who elaborated this teaching and by tracing the evolution of this teaching through its commentaries since the twelfth century, this study will reveal the critical role Lojong literature has played in the development of the Sakya school’s doctrinal system, contrasting this historical role with how Lojong teachings and literature are used in contemporary Tibetan textual and praxis-oriented communities.