Always Maintain a Joyful Mind: And Other Lojong Teachings on Awakening Compassion and Fearlessness [With CD]

The Lojong teachings are translated here by an English speaker with great feeling for nuance. Her explanations are pithy and insightful. I'm copying them onto pages of my datebook so I have them to reference.

I read all of the sayings in this book and listened to the C.D. a few times. This is really good if your interested in helping others and making the world a better place.

Small book of 59 Lojong "mind training" slogans from Chekawa Yeshe Dorje's "The Root Text of the 7 Points of Training the Mind" (#21 is the title) + "Opening the Heart" CD on Tonglen. Left hand pages are aphorisms; right-hand are Pema's pithy commentary ~Start Where You Are: A Guide to Compassionate Living (Shambhala Classics). 42:57 CD w/4 tracks: Intro=0:23, Tonglen Purpose/Practice=16:09, 3 stages=9:50, guided meditation=16:35; recorded during 11/99 Berkeley CA retreat ~Tonglen, the Path of Transformation. p. vii: "The primary focus of my personal practice & teaching," randomly focuses on one/day; p. viii: "The basic notion of lojong is that we make friends with what we reject, what we see as `bad' in ourselves & in other people" [~Jungian shadow integration] & p. xi: the slogans always introduce me to a bigger perspective...to transform all circumstances into the path of enlightenment"=practical application ~The Compassion Box: Book, CD, and Card Deck. Causes of Suffering: p. 25: "Your own self-righteousness causes you to get all worked up and to suffer; p. 35: Ego-clinging causes you to suffer; pp. 112-3: self pity...increases your suffering (and that of others)." Transformation of Poison into Elixir [lemons to lemonade]: p. 29: Shunyata or "complete openness" p. 39: The entire Buddhist teachings (dharmas) are about lessening one's self absorption, one's ego-clinging. This is what brings happiness to you & all beings. p. 45: [train so emotions] perk you up & your awareness increases. p. 89: Recognize your neurosis as neurosis...not to do the habitual thing, but to do something different to interrupt the neurotic habit...a way of life. [dealing with complexes] p. 110: #55=liberate yourself by examining & analyzing. [discriminating knowledge/wisdom] Avoiding Transforming Elixir into Poison: pp. 58-9: #29=Abandon poisonous food. You can use these slogans to build up your ego & p. 72: #36=Don't act with a twist." [sneaky, underhanded, or manipulative] Tonglen Practice: p. 14: #7; p. 81: #40; pp. 98-9: #49="Always meditate on whatever provokes resentment. Do tonglen practice whenever you feel resentment;" & the entire CD--Track 2: Tonglen="exchanging yourself for others to get in touch with our pain; dissolving barriers between self & others; developing empathy--stretching ourselves [like Olympic training], overcoming resistance to pain, & opening the heart." [reminds me of Frank Herbert's Dune series "Bene Besserit Litany Against Fear"] Some are even quite Dzogchen-like a la Longchenpa Buddha Mind: An Anthology of Longchen Rabjam's Writings on Dzogpa Chenpo, The Precious Treasury of Pith Instructions, & Old Man Basking in the Sun; Longchenpa's Treasury of Natural Perfection: p. 4: #2=Regard all dharmas as dreams; p. 6: #3=Examine the nature of unborn awareness; p. 8: #4=Self-liberate even the antidote; p. 10: #5=Rest in the nature of alaya, the essence; & p. 12: #6=In post-meditation, be a child of ill