four treatises ［四論］ ( shi-ron): Four Buddhist treatises; usually a reference to Nāgārjuna’s three treatises, The Treatise on the Middle Way, The Treatise on the Twelve Gates, and The Treatise on the Great Perfection of Wisdom, plus The One-Hundred-Verse Treatise by Āryadeva, Nāgārjuna’s disciple and successor. The Profound Meaning of the Four Mahayana Treatises by Hui-chün of the early T’ang dynasty (618–907) in China is an exposition of the essential meanings of these four treatises.