This text is a translation of chapters 17-30 of Arya Nagarjuna's immense "Exegesis on the Great Perfection of Wisdom Sutra" (Mahaprajnaparamita-upadesa). It is a free-standing section of that commentary exclusively devoted to analyzing and explaining the various levels of practice of the bodhisattva's six perfections.

In it, Nagarjuna sets forth numerous stories, analogies, and analyses as he reveals the deepest meaning of giving, moral virtue, patience, vigor, meditative discipline, and transcendent wisdom, the six primary qualities cultivated by a bodhisattva in progressing toward buddhahood. The translation is by the American monk, Bhikshu Dharmamitra.