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Gradual progress and cultivating bodhicitta

Gradual progress and cultivating bodhicitta

Part of an ongoing series of teachings based on Approaching the Buddhist Path, the first book in “The Library of Wisdom and Compassion” series by His Holiness the Dalai Lama and Venerable Thubten Chodron.

  • Early life, study, practice, and personal experiences of of His Holiness Dalai Lama
  • Differences between understanding, realizing, and strengthening emptiness versus bodhicitta
  • Effects of contemplating on the three types of compassion
  • Emphasis on making efforts to practice consistently to tame our minds
  • How reading and contemplating topics slowly is beneficial
  • Importance of analytical meditation for transforming the mind

58 Approaching the Buddhist Path: Gradual Progress And Cultivating Bodhicitta (download)

Contemplation points

  1. Why does the practice on emptiness make it easier to have love and compassion?
  2. What does it mean to say “Buddha’s tradition is a living tradition?”
  3. What is most important for transforming our mind?
  4. What is important in your life?
Venerable Thubten Chodron

Venerable Chodron emphasizes the practical application of Buddha’s teachings in our daily lives and is especially skilled at explaining them in ways easily understood and practiced by Westerners. She is well known for her warm, humorous, and lucid teachings. She was ordained as a Buddhist nun in 1977 by Kyabje Ling Rinpoche in Dharamsala, India, and in 1986 she received bhikshuni (full) ordination in Taiwan. Read her full bio.