Introduction
The Bodhicaryāvatāra, a text by Śāntideva, explores the Bodhisattva ideal by prescribing how an individual should live and providing justifications for this. His close awareness of ethics makes him remarkable among Indian philosophers, whose main concern was theoretical philosophy or metaphysics. Śāntideva’s ethical writings are widely known, cited and respected by Tibetan Buddhists as well as Western thinkers. His accurate insights into human characteristics and behavior are lauded by various philosophers who allude to some of his solutions to common human problems. Śāntideva utilizes various techniques to appeal to specific human characteristics with the goal of inspiring ...