Nagarjuna realised that very few people understand the true nature of reality taught by the Buddha in the Perfection of Wisdom sutras. He knew that if this is not understood there is no way to leave samsara (uncontrolled rebirth in cyclic existence) and attain liberation. So Nagarjuna composed the Five Treatises on Reason that elucidate the Madhyamika doctrine, also known as The Middle Way.
This doctrine states that ultimate truth and conventional truth are not contradictory, but are complementary. Nagarjuna demonstrated that although even the smallest imaginable part of an atom does not exist unconditionally (which refers to the ultimate truth), the conventional truth of karmic law (cause and effect) is incontrovertible.
The law of karma means that unwholesome actions will result in suffering just as wholesome actions result in happiness.
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