The Debate Between Wisdom and the Reifying Habit is the principal philosophical work of the renowned first Panchen Lama, Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen (1570-1662). The text is an original Tibetan masterpiece popular among philosophers of the Gelug sect of Tibetan Buddhism and is styled as a sustained debate between shes rabs (wisdom) bdag ‘dzin (the reifying habit). It is a literary tour de force, being structured as a philosophical comedy that exploys the tension between the two protagonists as a dramatic resource. The text represents not only the topics but also the form of Tibetan philosophical culture, and its wit and dynamic literary structure will earn for it a place among the texts of world-class literature.
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