In the vast galaxy of Tibetan Buddhism, each star tells of a possible path to awakening. The Gelug school points the way like the North Star with its system, the Nyingma school is ancient and profound like the Milky Way, and the Kagyu school emphasizes direct experience like a shooting star. Yet at the edge of this celestial map, there is a star once obscured by clouds—the Jonang School. It does not harmonize with the mainstream symphony but sings a unique philosophical tune: What if becoming a Buddha is not about "creating" light, but about "clearing away" the mist to reveal the sun that has always been present?

This is the heart of the Jonang School: The View of Other-Emptiness (གཞན་སྟོང་, shentong). It is the idea that what we need to "empty" is not the nature of mind itself, but the "other" dust upon it. Together with its scientific-precise practice system centered on Kalachakra (The Wheel of Time), it constitutes one of the most underrated and intellectually fascinating traditions within Tibetan Buddhism.

Part I: A Philosophical Revolution—"Other-Emptiness," A Redefinition of "Emptiness"

"Emptiness" is the cornerstone of Buddhist wisdom. But what is empty? How is it empty? The Jonang School offers a revolutionary answer.

The mainstream view (Self-Emptiness) says: "All phenomena are empty of themselves." Just like disassembling a car, you find an engine, tires, screws... but you cannot find an independent entity called "car." Therefore, the "car" is empty, and so is everything else.

The Jonang School (Other-Emptiness) says: That's right, at the phenomenal level (the car), things are "empty of themselves." But at the ultimate level, our mind's nature, that primordial awareness that can cognize and perceive, is not a void. What needs to be "emptied" are the ignorance, afflictions, and dualistic concepts that cover this primordial awareness—these are the "other," the adventitious stains. It is like gold and ore dross:

Mind's Nature = Pure Gold (not empty)
Afflictions = Ore Dross (needs to be "otheremptied")
Practice = Smelting (the process of emptying)

This "Other-Emptiness" view draws three clear boundaries for practice:

1. Identify the Enemy (False Imputation): Clearly know that your suffering, anxiety, and attachments are not your essence but "squatters" that can and must be cleared away.
2. Initiate Purification (The Process of Emptiness): This is not passive waiting but actively "smelting" oneself through meditation and wisdom, stripping away that dross.
3. Return Home (The Non-Empty Essence): When the impurities fall away, you do not become a "new me," but return to that primordial awareness (Tathagatagarbha) which has always been luminous, perfect, and unchanging.

This fosters a fundamentally different mindset for practice: You are not building a castle in the sky; you are cleaning an ancient and magnificent palace so it can see the light of day again. Practice shifts from an effort of "external construction" to a discovery of "internal revelation." This gives the practitioner unshakable confidence: Buddhahood is not a distant, bestowed grace but the truth of who you inherently are, awaiting awakening.

Part II: The Life Science—Kalachakra, Practicing the Cosmos Within the Body

Such profound philosophy requires a practice potent enough to transform the very roots of body and mind. The Jonang School's choice is the tantra known as the king of tantras: Kalachakra, The Wheel of Time.

Kalachakra is not merely a fierce deity image; it is an ultimate practice model that precisely correlates the human microcosm with the external macrocosm.

• The Outer Wheel of Time: The movement of sun, moon, and stars; the cycle of seasons. The Jonang School even developed its own unique system of astronomy and calendrical calculation ("Jonang Calendar"). They believe the rhythms of the universe are not irrelevant to practice but the grand backdrop for enlightenment.
• The Inner Wheel of Time: The flow of energies and channels within your body, the rhythm of life, and the perception of time (why do some days drag and others fly?).
• The Alternative Wheel of Time: The "present moment" beyond inner and outer, instant and eternity—the true nature of time itself.

The ultimate goal of Kalachakra practice is to synchronize the operation of your "Inner Wheel of Time" completely with the eternal present of the "Alternative Wheel of Time." Then, linear time dissolves, the shackles of birth, aging, sickness, and death fall away, and you realize the freedom beyond time within the fullness of the present.

How is this done? This leads to the core technique of Kalachakra—the Six Yogas (or Six-Branch Yoga). This is a sequential, rigorously precise "operating manual for the human cosmic vehicle":

1. Withdrawal: Recall the mind scattered across Weibo, WeChat, and short videos. Like closing all background apps.
2. Meditative Stabilization: Make the withdrawn mind stable and clear as a mirror. This is the stable foundation for the operating system.
3. Vitality Control: Begin to manipulate the core life energy (prana), guiding it into the central channel, the superhighway. This is igniting the engine.
4. Retention: Stabilize and intensify the energy, generating powerful inner heat ("tummo") that melts the solid sense of self.
5. Recollection: Maintain clear awareness within wondrous energy experiences, not forgetting the view of emptiness, not becoming intoxicated by illusions.
6. Samadhi: When energy and mind perfectly merge, one abides in the ultimate awareness of bliss and emptiness inseparable—you finally pilot the craft out of linear time's trajectory.

From controlling the mind to harnessing energy, to the non-duality of mind and matter, the Six Yogas are a rigorous technical roadmap for psychophysical transformation.

Part III: A Marginal Legacy and Its Contemporary Resonance

With such an exquisite system, why was the Jonang School marginalized for so long? History is filled with political constraints and philosophical debates. Its "Other-Emptiness" view, for emphasizing that the Tathagatagarbha is "not empty," was once challenged by mainstream Madhyamaka scholars as being close to the heresy of "eternal substantialism." Its transmission was nearly severed in Central Tibet but, like a precious terma, was silently guarded for generations by monks in the remote mountains of Zamtang (Rangtang) in Sichuan's Ngaba region.

Today, this marginal star is being rediscovered.

• In Dzong-wo Monastery (Zangwa Si) in Zamtang, the complete three-year retreat tradition is still strictly maintained.
• In international academia, the philosophical value of Jonang is being reassessed; Taranatha's History of Buddhism in India has become essential reading for studying late Indian Buddhism.
• For modern practitioners, the Other-Emptiness view offers a powerful intellectual resource to counter nihilism—after deconstructing all illusions, we do not land in a void but return to a genuine reality of life that is inherently luminous and meaningful.

Conclusion: For Those Who Ask, "What Comes After Emptiness?"

The Jonang path may not be for everyone. It demands high intellectual discernment and rigorous commitment to practice. But it lights a beacon for a specific kind of seeker: Those who are not satisfied with merely "seeing through worldly illusions" but yearn to find something solid, warm, and inherently luminous at the far end of "emptiness."

It whispers: Afflictions are removable dust, and your nature is the pure gold beneath that dust—forever unpollutable, uncreatable, and inherently perfect. This road less traveled is arduous but points clearly. It promises not to construct a fantasy paradise but to return home—to that luminous source of mind you have never truly left.

In an age chasing quick achievements, the Jonang School's ancient wisdom about "slowing down, digging deep, and revealing what is inherently present" may be precisely the kind of sobering and invigorating antidote we need.