Section 3: Everything is in a Limitless and Centerless Cycle – No Beginning, No Ending, No Middle to Anything (Verses 13-23)
(This section critiques the Abhidharma’s reification of saṃsāra and causality, particularly the notions of inherent beginning/ending and origination/cessation, showing that these junctions are mere conditioned designations [T1] [U2T]. Nāgārjuna transcends these by revealing their conventional functionality [T1] ⇐⇒ and ultimate absurdity [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ like illusions in a centerless cycle ⇐⇒ guiding practitioners to liberation through the non-dual Middle Way: not accepting, not rejecting.)
(The question is: Do composites (things, beings, processes or cycles like the karmic cycle / saṃsāra) have real origination / beginning / coming into being, duration / lasting, and cessation / ending / going into non-being? At the junctions, do the effect really arise / begin / come into being; do the cause really cease / end / go into non-being; and how to explain the continuity or discontinuity at the junctions. Do saṃsāra really cease (go into non-being), and do nirvāṇa really begin (come into being).
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So this section #3 is not only about the extreme limits of saṃsāra, or the junction between saṃsāra and nirvāṇa, but about the extreme limits of anything, any composite, the world. Because there is no real origination, duration and cessation for any composite, because the junction between cause and effect is impossible, because everything is both cause and effect, having an infinity of causes and conditions in space and time, and an infinity of effects in space and time. We can never pinpoint the beginning or ending of anything in space and time.
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For each verse: “Causality is not what we think it is: At the junctions between cause and effect, or between two consecutive moments of consciousness, or between two consecutive links of Dependent Origination, or between saṃsāra and nirvāṇa, there is no inherent continuity or discontinuity, there is no real origination / beginning (coming into being and duration) of the effect or nirvāṇa, and no real cessation (going into non-being / annihilation) of the cause or saṃsāra; cause and effect, or saṃsāra and nirvāṇa, are not different/separate/two, not identical/overlapping/one, not both, not neither. They are interdependent, co-defined, co-imputed [T1] ⇐⇒ and empty of inherent existence, never absolute [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ like illusions, reflections, mirages, dreams, echos, ‘there, yet not there’ ⇐⇒ pointing to the Middle Way free from all extremes and middle(s), with nothing to accept / seek / do / add, nothing to reject / abandon / not-do / subtract, nothing to change / improve/ purify in absolute terms, just conventionally, relatively. We can use these concepts conventionally when they are relatively useful enough, but never think they represent reality as it is, and become slaves to them.”
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Reification, discrimination, dogmatism, extremism, realism/nihilism, dualism/monism... based on ignorance perpetuates the karmic cycle, saṃsāra, and suffering.
Nirvāṇa / liberation is transcending (without accepting / rejecting) appearances / conditioning / karma by realizing the true nature & dynamic of all phenomena, of the karmic cycle / saṃsāra, of the junctions, of opposites like existence & non-existence, being and non-being, beginning and middle and ending, origination, duration and cessation: that is the Union of the Two Truths about everything [U2T] or the Union of opposites [Uopp / U2T-opp].)
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Verses: 13–23 – There is no extreme limits to anything, no inherent beginning, ending or middle
(Overview: This section critiques the reification of extreme limits (beginning/end, origination/duration/cessation) for any compounded phenomenon — the world — showing that causal junctions are impossible due to the infinite interdependence of causes and effects in space and time. All phenomena are mere conditioned designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty of inherent existence [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ like illusions ⇐⇒ in a limitless and centerless cycle ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].
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13. Opponent: (there must be a beginning since there is an ending of saṃsāra with liberation)
If saṃsāra has stopped for a monk whose klesas are exhausted,
then why would the Perfect Buddhas deny that it has a beginning?
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(An opponent reifies saṃsāra (karmic cycle) as truly arising with a beginning, arguing that its cessation for a monk implies a real junction of arising/ceasing. Saṃsāra and nirvāṇa are mere conditioned designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ neither different/separate/diverse nor identical/united/one to each other, and to their emptiness ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute).
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The opponent, likely reflecting an Abhidharma view, reifies saṃsāra as a truly arising cycle with a beginning, assuming its cessation (for a monk free of kleśas, defilements) implies a real junction of arising and ceasing between cause/effect, previous/next-step, previous/next-rebirth, and between saṃsāra/nirvāṇa. This mistakes the conventional appearance of saṃsāra [T1] for inherent reality.
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Conventionally, saṃsāra appears to arise and cease [T1] ⇐⇒ but scrutiny reveals no inherent beginning or end [T2] ⇐⇒ as it’s a mere designation in the karmic cycle [T1] [U2T].
Transcending all extremes (without accepting / rejecting), Nāgārjuna’s reply (verse 14) will clarify the absurdity of a beginning and ending.
Saṃsāra and nirvāṇa are co-imputed designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ like an illusions [Illusory].)
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14. Reply: (Everything is both cause-effect with no beginning or ending, because its own causes-effects go to infinity in space and time. There is no first cause, no final effect, no real cause, effect, causal relation / production in the middle.)
To say there was a beginning (to any thing, being, process or cycle)
would clearly be holding on to a dogma.
How can that which is dependently co-arisen [T1]
have a first and a last? (or a before and after)
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(Nāgārjuna critiques reifying saṃsāra with a beginning or end, as dependently co-arisen phenomena are mere conditioned designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ neither different/separate/diverse nor identical/united/one to their conceptual opposites, or to their emptiness ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].
Nāgārjuna responds that positing a beginning and/or ending for saṃsāra (or for anything) is dogmatic, reifying the junction of its arising/ceasing. Dependently co-arisen phenomena are designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] ⇐⇒ like mirages [U2T]. A beginning or end implies inherent existence, contradicting dependent arising, which lacks a “first and last” due to interdependence.)
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15. How could what has previously been generated (originated)
later be negated (ceased) again?
No, actually the world [everything],
devoid of an initial and a final limit,
appears like an illusion.
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(Nothing (things, beings, processes or cycles like the karmic cycle / saṃsāra) truly arise / begin / come into being or cease / end / go into non-being, as everything is a mere pairs of conditioned designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ neither different/separate/diverse nor identical/united/one to each other, or to their emptiness ⇐⇒ appearing like an illusion ⇐⇒ without beginning or end ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute).
This verse elaborates that everything (things, beings, processes or cycles like the karmic cycle / saṃsāra) lacks inherent origination / beginning or cessation / ending ⇐⇒ as reifying a beginning implies a later negation, an absurdity.
Saṃsāra is a co-imputed designation [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ like an illusion, devoid of inherent limits.
Conventionally, saṃsāra appears with duration [T1] ⇐⇒ but scrutiny reveals no inherent boundaries [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ like a dream [Illusory] ⇐⇒ in the cycle. Transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute).
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16. [The wise]
When one thinks
something illusory arises or is destroyed,
one who recognizes the illusion
is not bewildered by it,
[The Ignorant]
but one who does not recognize it longs for it.
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(Reifying the junction of arising/cessation as real bewilders the ignorant, but the wise, recognizing phenomena as illusory ⇐⇒ designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ neither different/separate/diverse nor identical/united/one to each other, and to their emptiness, transcend longing, transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].
This verse contrasts the ignorant, who reify the causal junction of arising/cessation, with the wise, who see phenomena as illusory. Conventionally, arising/cessation functions [T1] ⇐⇒ but scrutiny reveals their absurdity, as no inherent process exists [T2] [U2T]. The ignorant long for phenomena, perpetuating saṃsāra, while the wise transcend via the [U2T] / [Uopp], free from bewilderment. Transcending all extremes, the Middle Way engages the junction conventionally without clinging.)
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17. [The wise]
One who comes to see by means of his understanding
that existence is like a mirage and an illusion
is not corrupted by dogmas based on an initial or a final limit.
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(Understanding saṃsāra as an illusory ⇐⇒ designation [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ neither different/separate/diverse nor identical/united/one to each other, and to their emptiness ⇐⇒ transcends dogmas of beginning/ending ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].
This verse emphasizes insight into saṃsāra’s illusory nature, avoiding dogmas of inherent limits. Conventionally, saṃsāra appears with limits [T1] ⇐⇒ but scrutiny reveals their absurdity [T2] [U2T], as no inherent boundaries exist in the cycle.)
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18. [The Ignorant]
Those who imagine that something compounded
possesses origination or cessation
do not understand the movement of
the wheel of dependent origination.
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(Reifying the causal junction of compounded phenomena as truly arising or ceasing reflects ignorance, failing to see it as a mere conditioned designation [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T], neither different/separate/diverse nor identical/united/one to each other, and to their emptiness, transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].
This verse critiques reifying the junction of origination/cessation for compounded dharmas (Abhidharma’s view).)
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19. Whatever arises depending on this and that [T1]
has not arisen substantially [T2].
That which has not arisen substantially:
How can it literally be called 'arisen'?
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(The causal junction of arising is a mere conditioned designation [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] U2T] ⇐⇒ neither different/separate/diverse nor identical/united/one to each other, and to their emptiness ⇐⇒ not truly arising ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute).
This verse emphasizes that dependent arising ⇐⇒ lacks substantial origination.)
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20. A compound thing quieted (cessation) due to a spent cause
(when the cause is exhausted, used up, or depleted)
is understood to be spent.
But how can what is not spent by nature be spoken of as spent?
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(The causal junction of apparent cessation, where a compounded phenomenon seems “spent” due to a “spent cause,” is a mere conditioned designation [T1] ⇐⇒ empty of inherent existence [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ neither different/separate/diverse nor identical/united/one. No inherent cessation exists, as phenomena are not “spent by nature,” ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].)
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21. So to conclude:
There is no [inherent] origination;
there is no [inherent] cessation [T2].
The path of origination and cessation
has however been expounded by the Buddhas
for a practical purpose [T1] [U2T]:
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(No real origination or cessation exists for any phenomenon ⇐⇒ mere conditioned designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ with infinite causes and effects. The Buddhas teach them conventionally [T1] ⇐⇒ not in absolute terms [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].
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Causal junctions lack real limits and center [T2] ⇐⇒ due to infinite interdependence [T1] [U2T].)
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22. By knowing origination, cessation is known;
by knowing cessation, impermanence is known;
by knowing impermanence the Holy Dharma is understood.
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(Conventionally, the junction of origination/cessation teaches impermanence and the Dharma, but these are mere conditioned designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ with infinite causes and effects ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].)
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The conventional junction, despite infinite interdependence, teaches impermanence.
They (origination, duration, cessation, impermanence...) are designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] ⇐⇒ like reflections.
Conventionally, they teach impermanence and the Dharma [T1] ⇐⇒ but scrutiny reveals their absurdity [T2] [U2T].)
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23. [The wise]
Those who have come to understand that
dependent co-origination [T1]
is devoid of [inherent] origination and cessation [T2]
have crossed the ocean of existence,
consisting of dogmas.
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(Understanding dependent co-origination as devoid of real origination/cessation ⇐⇒ a mere conditioned designation [T1] ⇐⇒ empty [T2] [U2T] ⇐⇒ with infinite causes and effects, liberates from saṃsāra’s dogmas ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].)
Insight into the infinite web transcends dogmas.
Transcending all extremes, the Middle Way realizes the ineffable reality.
This verse celebrates liberation through insight into dependent co-origination’s [U2T].)
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Summary for section 3:
Verses 13–23 critique the reification of extreme limits for any compounded phenomenon—the world—showing that junctions like cause/effect, beginning/end, and origination/duration/cessation are impossible due to the infinite interdependence of causes and effects in space and time, and unexplainable junctions.
These are mere conditioned designations [T1] ⇐⇒ empty of inherent existence [T2] ⇐⇒ [U2T] ⇐⇒ like illusions in a limitless and centerless cycle, unpinpointable as beginnings, middles or ends. The section refutes saṃsāra’s limits (verses 13–15), portrays existence as illusory (verses 16–17), denies real causal junctions (verses 18–20), and concludes with the conventional utility and ultimate transcendence of dependent co-origination (or the 12 links, or the karmic cycle) (verses 21–23). Reification perpetuates saṃsāra, while liberation transcends via the [U2T] [Uopp], realizing the non-dual Middle Way (not accepting, not rejecting conventional truths).
Conclusion for section 3:
Your insight that Section 3 addresses the extreme limits of anything, not just saṃsāra, due to the impossibility of causal junctions and infinite interdependence, perfectly captures Nāgārjuna’s Madhyamaka vision. The infinite web of causes and effects — where everything is both cause and effect — renders beginnings and ends unpinpointable, revealing all phenomena as mere conditioned designations [U2T]. Nāgārjuna’s framework — dependent origination ⇐⇒ emptiness ⇐⇒ [U2T] ⇐⇒ illusory ⇐⇒ tetralemma ⇐⇒ Middle Way ⇐⇒ One ⇐⇒ Limitless and centerless Cycle — shows that origination, duration, and cessation are illusory, guiding practitioners to nirvāṇa as the non-dual insight into this ineffable reality, free from all extremes and middle. This section’s soteriological vision aligns with your emphasis on the world’s infinite interdependence, ⇐⇒ transcending reification, all extremes, all spheres, all conventional truths, karmic cycle, 12 links, opposites, dualities, triads (without accepting / rejecting them, the Middle Way, revealing their non-dual nature [U2T / U3S / Uopp]. – Acting conventionally / relatively without acting in absolute terms, without attachment, reification, effort or absolute). The Middle Way engages the conventional truths / methods / tools, opposites, dualities, triads, karmic cycle, 12 links, junctions, origination/coming, duration, cessation/going, saṃsāra ... conventionally / relatively (e.g., for practice) [T1] ⇐⇒ without absolute belief or attachment [T2] ⇐⇒ aware of their ineffable / illusory true nature, the Union of the Two Truths [U2T / U3S / Uopp].)