What do you think?
Rate this book
The Practice of Lojong: Cultivating Compassion through Training the Mind
A comprehensive guide to lojong , a Buddhist practice used for centuries to develop lovingkindness and compassion, made popular by Pema Chödrön and Chögyam Trungpa
For many centuries Indian and Tibetan Buddhists have employed this collection of pithy, penetrating Dharma slogans to develop compassion, equanimity, lovingkindness, and joy for others. Known as the lojong —or mind-training—teachings, these slogans have been the subject of deep study, contemplation, and commentary by many great masters.
In this volume, Traleg Kyabgon offers a fresh translation of the slogans as well as in-depth new commentary of each. After living among and teaching Westerners for over twenty years, his approach is uniquely insightful into the ways that the slogans could be misunderstood or misinterpreted within our culture. Here, he presents a refreshing and clarifying view, which seeks to correct points of confusion.
For many centuries Indian and Tibetan Buddhists have employed this collection of pithy, penetrating Dharma slogans to develop compassion, equanimity, lovingkindness, and joy for others. Known as the lojong —or mind-training—teachings, these slogans have been the subject of deep study, contemplation, and commentary by many great masters.
In this volume, Traleg Kyabgon offers a fresh translation of the slogans as well as in-depth new commentary of each. After living among and teaching Westerners for over twenty years, his approach is uniquely insightful into the ways that the slogans could be misunderstood or misinterpreted within our culture. Here, he presents a refreshing and clarifying view, which seeks to correct points of confusion.
320 pages, Paperback
First published April 10, 2007
118 people are currently reading
638 people want to read
About the author
Traleg Kyabgon
39 books46 followersTraleg Kyabgon Rinpoche (1955–2012) was the ninth incarnation of the Traleg tulku line, a line of high lamas in the Kagyu lineage of Vajrayana. He was a pioneer in bringing Tibetan Buddhism to Australia.
Traleg Rinpoche was born in 1955 in Kham (Eastern Tibet), and two years later was recognized by HH 16th Gyalwa Karmapa as the ninth incarnation of the Traleg Tulkus and enthroned as the Abbot of the Thrangu monastery. He was taken to safety in India during the 1959 Chinese Communists invasion of Tibet. There he was given a traditional tulku education, supplemented by five years of schooling at Sanskrit University in Varanasi, India. He lived and studied for several years at Rumtek Monastery in Sikkim, the main seat in exile of the Kagyu Lineage. He died on July 24, 2012 in Melbourne, Australia.
In 1980 Rinpoche transmitted the Dharma in Australia where he established Kagyu E-vam Buddhist Institute in Melbourne. He relinquished his monastic vows, became a lay teacher and married. He earned a Masters degree in Comparative Philosophy from La Trobe University. In 1989, he taught extensively at Karma Triyana Dharmachakra, visiting the North American affiliates of HH Gyalwa Karmapa. In 2004 he established the Evam Institute in New York in Chatham, NY. He also taught extensively in the Karma Thegsum Choling network of the Karmapa's centers and at Shambhala Buddhist centers. His wife, Felicity Lodro, is also an active dharma teacher.
Traleg Rinpoche was born in 1955 in Kham (Eastern Tibet), and two years later was recognized by HH 16th Gyalwa Karmapa as the ninth incarnation of the Traleg Tulkus and enthroned as the Abbot of the Thrangu monastery. He was taken to safety in India during the 1959 Chinese Communists invasion of Tibet. There he was given a traditional tulku education, supplemented by five years of schooling at Sanskrit University in Varanasi, India. He lived and studied for several years at Rumtek Monastery in Sikkim, the main seat in exile of the Kagyu Lineage. He died on July 24, 2012 in Melbourne, Australia.
In 1980 Rinpoche transmitted the Dharma in Australia where he established Kagyu E-vam Buddhist Institute in Melbourne. He relinquished his monastic vows, became a lay teacher and married. He earned a Masters degree in Comparative Philosophy from La Trobe University. In 1989, he taught extensively at Karma Triyana Dharmachakra, visiting the North American affiliates of HH Gyalwa Karmapa. In 2004 he established the Evam Institute in New York in Chatham, NY. He also taught extensively in the Karma Thegsum Choling network of the Karmapa's centers and at Shambhala Buddhist centers. His wife, Felicity Lodro, is also an active dharma teacher.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
September 19, 2018
I really wanted to like this. I’m interested in the Lojong teachings and have found writings and lectures by Pema Chodron on the subject helpful. The more I read of this book, the less I liked it, however. I found his style meandering and hard to follow. I also didn’t relate to a lot of the negative aspects of people that he points out. These things might be true for some people and his advice might be helpful to many, but it didn’t resonate with me very much.
His understanding of western ideas and culture often felt very black and white. Actually, he seemed to have an all or nothing approach in general. He often said things like “the only way to...” and “always.” This seems to miss the nuances of life and also seems closed minded to other, non-Buddhist approaches.
He especially lost me with his talk of psychotherapy. His understanding seems to be based in a very old-school Freudian school of psychoanalysis and cannot be applied to all forms of modern therapy and counseling.
I was looking for real-life application and often got abstract vagueries and (negative) assumptions about human nature and behavior.
I’m a bit disappointed.
His understanding of western ideas and culture often felt very black and white. Actually, he seemed to have an all or nothing approach in general. He often said things like “the only way to...” and “always.” This seems to miss the nuances of life and also seems closed minded to other, non-Buddhist approaches.
He especially lost me with his talk of psychotherapy. His understanding seems to be based in a very old-school Freudian school of psychoanalysis and cannot be applied to all forms of modern therapy and counseling.
I was looking for real-life application and often got abstract vagueries and (negative) assumptions about human nature and behavior.
I’m a bit disappointed.
September 15, 2009
I read Traleg Kyabgon's commentary along with my reading of the actual root text in translation by Ken Wilbur. I love Kyabgon's approach: direct, clear and fully cognizant of the modern Western life-style. Yet Kyabgon does not depart from the intentions of the root teaching. He is adamant about our taking it as it was intended. Every age is one of difficulties, surrounded by Samsara and the mind training here is what is necessary for us to cultivate Bothichitta, for the sake of others.
August 18, 2022
Easy to grasp all of the mind training methods here in this book. I listened to the audiobook and the reader was very clear and made zero mistakes( I had the ebook too.)
At the start I was not impressed as the writer kept telling me the word in Sanskrit and Tibetan as well as English. This was done too much and was completely forgettable anyway so served no purpose.
Anyway he eased off later in the book and it blossomed into a very good guide for basic Buddhist living and controlling your mind. Control of our mind is a tough job and it does not happen overnight so practice each day and progress slowly, so the book says.
A short listen actually just about 6.5 hours.
One of the better books on the topic that can be re-read and absorbed a bit more with pleasure.
I might do that. Will look for more from Traleg Kyabgon
At the start I was not impressed as the writer kept telling me the word in Sanskrit and Tibetan as well as English. This was done too much and was completely forgettable anyway so served no purpose.
Anyway he eased off later in the book and it blossomed into a very good guide for basic Buddhist living and controlling your mind. Control of our mind is a tough job and it does not happen overnight so practice each day and progress slowly, so the book says.
A short listen actually just about 6.5 hours.
One of the better books on the topic that can be re-read and absorbed a bit more with pleasure.
I might do that. Will look for more from Traleg Kyabgon
November 23, 2024
I finished it.
The Lojong practice of taking (suffering) and sending (awakening) is powerful and transformative.
I found this text somewhat helpful. And I’m glad I found and read it. But there are lots of things about this text that I personally experienced as not so useful.
This is a very personal, and context dependent opinion. In other words. For whatever reason. That is hard to articulate. Based on my personal preferences and needs. At this juncture of my life. Some of the reflections shared in this text were a-little less helpful for me. Right here. Right now.
Given all that.
I’m quite sure that this book will open other doors. And I’m grateful to the author for spending the time and effort to write it. It’s a worthwhile read. Please do not let any of this dissuade you from reading it if you are drawn to this text.
The Lojong practice of taking (suffering) and sending (awakening) is powerful and transformative.
I found this text somewhat helpful. And I’m glad I found and read it. But there are lots of things about this text that I personally experienced as not so useful.
This is a very personal, and context dependent opinion. In other words. For whatever reason. That is hard to articulate. Based on my personal preferences and needs. At this juncture of my life. Some of the reflections shared in this text were a-little less helpful for me. Right here. Right now.
Given all that.
I’m quite sure that this book will open other doors. And I’m grateful to the author for spending the time and effort to write it. It’s a worthwhile read. Please do not let any of this dissuade you from reading it if you are drawn to this text.
August 5, 2016
"The lojong teachings use the analogy of an archer to illustrate this point. People often think focusing on the target is the most important thing for hitting git with precision, but any accomplished archer knows it's actually our posture, the way we hold the bow, and how we position the arrow that will determine the accuracy of our shot. We'll never hit the mark if we focus solely on the target and ignore our posture and technique."
January 15, 2026
Traleg Kyabgon’s Practice of Lojong really does come off as unusually hard edged and absolutist, especially if you’ve been reading more modern, therapeutic, or Zen-leaning Buddhist stuff.
And that tension is actually the book doing something… but not necessarily something healthy for everyone.
Lojong is a very specific Tibetan mind-training tradition. It comes out of a monastic culture that was:
• hierarchical
• male
• psychologically austere
• obsessed with uprooting ego at any cost
The slogans were designed for monks who had already renounced ordinary life and were training under strict discipline. They were never meant to be taken as literal life advice for laypeople trying to survive capitalism and modern trauma.
So when the text says things like
“regard all suffering as the path”
“blame yourself”
“destroy self-cherishing”
it is speaking in a ritualised training language, not a mental-health language many of us need and expect.
Traleg Kyabgon, however, presents them in a very literal, moralised way, without enough cultural or psychological buffering. That’s why it feels harsh. He is interpreting a 900 year old ascetic training manual as if it were straightforward ethical truth.
That creates a subtle danger.
Because for people who already tend toward self blame, self erasure, or hyper responsibility, lojong can slide from “ego training” into spiritualised self-punishment.
Here’s the key philosophical problem.
Lojong aims to weaken ego-fixation.
But Kyabgon often frames ego as morally bad rather than cognitively mistaken.
That’s a huge difference.
In classical Buddhism, ego is a perceptual error, like thinking a rope is a snake.
In this book, ego starts to sound like a sin.
Once you make ego a sin, compassion quietly turns into self-policing.
That absolutist flavour comes from Tibetan scholastic moralism, the Vajrayana rhetoric of “cutting through” combined with Wilber’s integrative, slightly guru-ish framing. It creates a vibe of: “Either you are training properly or you are deluded.”
That’s not how most Buddhist psychology usually works (especially not these days).
A more psychologically honest position of lojong could be:
You practice reversing your habitual self-centred interpretations so you can see how suffering arises, not so you can morally condemn yourself.
But the book keeps sliding into:
“If you’re upset, you failed.”
Which is… not dharma. That’s stoicism wearing a Buddhist robe.
Lojong done well builds strength.
Lojong done badly makes you smaller.
This text leans dangerously close to the second.
Read it the way you’d read an ancient martial arts manual, as a set of brutal training heuristics, not a description of how humans should be treated.
And that tension is actually the book doing something… but not necessarily something healthy for everyone.
Lojong is a very specific Tibetan mind-training tradition. It comes out of a monastic culture that was:
• hierarchical
• male
• psychologically austere
• obsessed with uprooting ego at any cost
The slogans were designed for monks who had already renounced ordinary life and were training under strict discipline. They were never meant to be taken as literal life advice for laypeople trying to survive capitalism and modern trauma.
So when the text says things like
“regard all suffering as the path”
“blame yourself”
“destroy self-cherishing”
it is speaking in a ritualised training language, not a mental-health language many of us need and expect.
Traleg Kyabgon, however, presents them in a very literal, moralised way, without enough cultural or psychological buffering. That’s why it feels harsh. He is interpreting a 900 year old ascetic training manual as if it were straightforward ethical truth.
That creates a subtle danger.
Because for people who already tend toward self blame, self erasure, or hyper responsibility, lojong can slide from “ego training” into spiritualised self-punishment.
Here’s the key philosophical problem.
Lojong aims to weaken ego-fixation.
But Kyabgon often frames ego as morally bad rather than cognitively mistaken.
That’s a huge difference.
In classical Buddhism, ego is a perceptual error, like thinking a rope is a snake.
In this book, ego starts to sound like a sin.
Once you make ego a sin, compassion quietly turns into self-policing.
That absolutist flavour comes from Tibetan scholastic moralism, the Vajrayana rhetoric of “cutting through” combined with Wilber’s integrative, slightly guru-ish framing. It creates a vibe of: “Either you are training properly or you are deluded.”
That’s not how most Buddhist psychology usually works (especially not these days).
A more psychologically honest position of lojong could be:
You practice reversing your habitual self-centred interpretations so you can see how suffering arises, not so you can morally condemn yourself.
But the book keeps sliding into:
“If you’re upset, you failed.”
Which is… not dharma. That’s stoicism wearing a Buddhist robe.
Lojong done well builds strength.
Lojong done badly makes you smaller.
This text leans dangerously close to the second.
Read it the way you’d read an ancient martial arts manual, as a set of brutal training heuristics, not a description of how humans should be treated.
August 12, 2016
This is a wonderful introduction into a practical system for training the mind, cultivating attitudes that generate auspicious factors for awakening and liberation of personal awareness. The explanations are concise, well-written, and alluding to contemporary terms and understandings. One may enter into a profound state spontaneously just by reading the slogans of the lojong practice and the explanations. Very grounded in literature and complex understanding of the tradition, written by a true master-scholar. This book can be read many times, and now there’s also an audiobook, which can prove to be useful.
November 14, 2008
Couldn't really get into this one. Some practical tips and explanation of the slogans of lojong, but wasn't convincing philosophically. Spent lots of time citing scholars, that wasn't compelling for me. I had the most trouble with the section on regarding "all phenomena as dreams", I'm not convinced that the concept of emptiness leads not to nihlism but to compassion. I'm having an easier time with Start Where You Are by Pema Chodron
July 29, 2018
This is a wonderful book for both novices and experts. Kyabgon does a great job of explaining Buddhist concepts that are notoriously difficult to translate. For me, his explanation of nihilism vs. emptiness was illuminating. This is a book to treasure.
August 19, 2022
Will blow your whole fucking mind!! Definite reread doesn’t matter if you are a practitioner or not…trust me you need this book!!!!
August 18, 2008
great book on meditation but I had to read it three times in order to fully understand it
December 10, 2010
A really great book shows us how everything is great and worth to die for
December 22, 2022
'A wonderful book!'
The Lojong (or "mind training" in Tibetan) teachings here consist of 59 pithy slogans which turn the mind towards the dharma (spiritual truth). They may be a "Tibetan tradition" (rooted in the 11th century), but they are actually both timeless and universal for humanity. And Traleg Kyabgon is a great person to elucidate their meaning since he was trained in the traditional Tibetan ways, but also had been living in the West since 1980 when he wrote this book in 2003, and so deeply fluent with her ways.
What are these slogans like? Simple things we all know we know, but so easily forget, like;
"59 - Don't expect people to make a fuss over what you are doing.
"It's very easy to transfer our mundane habitual patterns and delusions onto our spiritual practice when in reality nothing has changed..." (p.232)
And what is Traleg's teaching style like?
"According to Mahayana adepts, however, the potency of compassion can never be diminished by the reality of emptiness. In fact, they maintain that it is only when we have an understanding of emptiness that we can be truly compassionate. We may feel a mundane form of compassion for others, but this will never have a liberating influence on the person it is directed toward. Compassion can only be liberating when it is fused with the wisdom of emptiness. Only this enables us to transcend the dualistic perception that phenomena are composed of discrete and independent subjects and objects. What really prevents us from generating compassion towards others is the fixed notions we have about self and other. Compassion only makes sense when there is a relationship, and a relationship can only exist between mutually dependent, contingently existing beings. Emptiness and compassion are therefore not only compatible, there is an intimate relationship between understanding that everything is a dream and the generation of compassion." (p. 49-50)
The Lojong (or "mind training" in Tibetan) teachings here consist of 59 pithy slogans which turn the mind towards the dharma (spiritual truth). They may be a "Tibetan tradition" (rooted in the 11th century), but they are actually both timeless and universal for humanity. And Traleg Kyabgon is a great person to elucidate their meaning since he was trained in the traditional Tibetan ways, but also had been living in the West since 1980 when he wrote this book in 2003, and so deeply fluent with her ways.
What are these slogans like? Simple things we all know we know, but so easily forget, like;
"59 - Don't expect people to make a fuss over what you are doing.
"It's very easy to transfer our mundane habitual patterns and delusions onto our spiritual practice when in reality nothing has changed..." (p.232)
And what is Traleg's teaching style like?
"According to Mahayana adepts, however, the potency of compassion can never be diminished by the reality of emptiness. In fact, they maintain that it is only when we have an understanding of emptiness that we can be truly compassionate. We may feel a mundane form of compassion for others, but this will never have a liberating influence on the person it is directed toward. Compassion can only be liberating when it is fused with the wisdom of emptiness. Only this enables us to transcend the dualistic perception that phenomena are composed of discrete and independent subjects and objects. What really prevents us from generating compassion towards others is the fixed notions we have about self and other. Compassion only makes sense when there is a relationship, and a relationship can only exist between mutually dependent, contingently existing beings. Emptiness and compassion are therefore not only compatible, there is an intimate relationship between understanding that everything is a dream and the generation of compassion." (p. 49-50)
June 13, 2022
This book is something I desperately needed. The subject is in the title, The Practice of Lojong. I was not familiar with Lojong and found this by "luck" when it was featured in a Kindle sale. It has helped me deal with so many of the issues I am currently dealing with in a manner that ties in much of what I have absorbed in past Buddhist readings. It helped me stay on a peaceful and respectful path during times where I was close to going the other way.
This book is incredibly well written and organized. It is also filled with many footnote references to other works. As a result I have sought out some of these books for further reading due to the numerous references. I already have Shantideva's Way of the Bodhisattva, I have purchased and will next read Words of My Perfect Teacher by Patrul Rinpoche and likely will soon purchase Mind Training by Thupten Jinpa Ph.D. There are also many other great works referenced.
In short if you need an introduction to Lojong this book is it. Even if you are not someone who would likely practice Lojong but sometimes require reassurance that working through angry or painful thoughts and situations without resorting to harmful actions will find a path to being a better person a path is drawn out for you. Just remember, like with everything, it involves work, often hard work and perseverance. This book is a top 5 in personal Spiritual works for me, and I give it much more than 5 stars.
This book is incredibly well written and organized. It is also filled with many footnote references to other works. As a result I have sought out some of these books for further reading due to the numerous references. I already have Shantideva's Way of the Bodhisattva, I have purchased and will next read Words of My Perfect Teacher by Patrul Rinpoche and likely will soon purchase Mind Training by Thupten Jinpa Ph.D. There are also many other great works referenced.
In short if you need an introduction to Lojong this book is it. Even if you are not someone who would likely practice Lojong but sometimes require reassurance that working through angry or painful thoughts and situations without resorting to harmful actions will find a path to being a better person a path is drawn out for you. Just remember, like with everything, it involves work, often hard work and perseverance. This book is a top 5 in personal Spiritual works for me, and I give it much more than 5 stars.
September 18, 2020
2020.09.15–2020.09.15
Contents
Traleg Kyabgon (2007) (06:28) Practice of Lojong, The - Cultivating Compassion through Training the Mind
Introduction
1. The Preliminaries
2. The Actual Practice: The Cultivation of Bodhichitta
3. Transforming Adversity into the Path of Awakening
4. Maintaining the Practice for the Duration of Our Lives
5. Measuring the Success of Mind Training
6. The Commitments of Mind Training
7. Guidelines for Mind Training
Conclusion
Jamgon Kongtrul’s Lojong Prayer
Notes
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
Contents
Traleg Kyabgon (2007) (06:28) Practice of Lojong, The - Cultivating Compassion through Training the Mind
Introduction
1. The Preliminaries
2. The Actual Practice: The Cultivation of Bodhichitta
3. Transforming Adversity into the Path of Awakening
4. Maintaining the Practice for the Duration of Our Lives
5. Measuring the Success of Mind Training
6. The Commitments of Mind Training
7. Guidelines for Mind Training
Conclusion
Jamgon Kongtrul’s Lojong Prayer
Notes
Glossary
Bibliography
Index
May 12, 2025
It's really shame. This is the kind of books I love and short of enjoyed the book, but I found the author a bit hypocritical and egotistic the way. Mainly when he criticised the methods of healing that use Therapists by telling by asking their patients about their past and how it hurts them at the present moment. He says that kind of approach is not useful.
While in another part of the book, talk about confronting yourself and don't be afraid to think about your traumas and past. And what made me laugh was when he said don't criticise it.
While in another part of the book, talk about confronting yourself and don't be afraid to think about your traumas and past. And what made me laugh was when he said don't criticise it.
November 14, 2020
A straightforward guide/tips on how to practice meditation. This book touches on the fundamental attitudes and knowledge about meditation which leads to greater compassion for others and a wiser way of living. I will definitely reread this from time to time.
This book cost no additional credits on audible for subscribers.
This book cost no additional credits on audible for subscribers.
January 28, 2025
I really enjoyed this book. I found it extremely helpful for my spiritual development. Developing more compassion has already started to change my mental processes after a short time of practicing Lojong. I believe this type of mind training can be very effective if taken seriously.
July 25, 2017
One of the few books I am drawn to read again, and again.
July 3, 2019
This is the quintessential resource for Westerners to study and practice Lojong, and is what I use as a companion text for my book, Seven-pointed Mind Training.
October 7, 2021
A nice exposition of the slogans combined with helpful interpretations in layman's terms.
October 22, 2021
Nice read with Robert Greene
May 23, 2024
Beautiful and easy read
June 4, 2024
A book about finding inner peace and our essential roll of creating a peaceful world through the examples and lives of others.
March 21, 2017
A beautifully written book about the practice of lojong. A very intelligent, insightful, and easy to read book about this important and powerful Buddhist practice.
January 6, 2011
Classic Tibetan Buddhist Philosophy and practice text. It's a great resource for training in 'Giving and Taking'. Draws on Atisha, Shantideva and others.
January 16, 2012
This is a great book on Lojong, it is one I will reread often. A friend loaned me his copy but I bought my own before finishing.
February 25, 2013
We are doing this book for the KTC book club study. Just started last week, we meet on Monday at 7:00 p. m. at Traviana coffee house at 5th and High st in Columbus, OH.
Join Us!
Join Us!
February 11, 2016
I am reconsidering my review of this
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews