Key Buddhist Terms

The ultimate awakening mind: the direct realization that all phenomena are empty of inherent existence, like illusions.

The great Indian Buddhist master (982-1054) who brought the lojong teachings to Tibet and whose synthesis of the Mahayana path gave rise to the Kadampa school.

The awakening mind: the altruistic aspiration to attain complete buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings.

The eight mundane preoccupations -- four pairs of attachment and aversion (gain/loss, pleasure/pain, praise/blame, fame/obscurity) -- that trap the mind in reactivity.

The ultimate nature of all phenomena: the absence of inherent, independent, self-sufficient existence.

The illusory or dream-like nature of phenomena: things appear solid and independent but lack inherent existence.

The Tibetan Buddhist school founded by Dromtonpa based on the teachings of Atisha, from which the lojong tradition and the Eight Verses originate.

Destructive emotions or mental afflictions -- such as anger, attachment, jealousy, and pride -- that disturb the mind and cause suffering.

Geshe Langri Tangpa Dorje Senge (1054-1123), the Kadampa master who composed the Eight Verses of Training the Mind.

Mind training: the systematic transformation of mental habits, attitudes, and responses through practices that reverse self-cherishing and cultivate altruism.

The capacity to endure hardship, insult, and injustice without reactive anger -- cultivated especially through verses 5 and 6.

The conventional awakening mind: the compassionate aspiration and practical methods for cherishing others above oneself.

The habitual attitude of prioritizing one's own welfare, comfort, and reputation above the welfare of others -- identified in the lojong tradition as the root of all suffering.

Giving and taking: the meditation practice of visualizing taking on the suffering of others and sending them one's own happiness.

A mythical gem in Buddhist cosmology that can grant any worldly desire, used in verse 1 as a measure of value that sentient beings surpass.