Mind Training: Bringing the Dharma to Your Own Mind

What is mind training?

In Tibetan, mind training is called lojong (blo sbyong), literally "training the mind." It is not about lofty theory. It deals with very practical questions: What do you do when you are misunderstood? How do you deal with a difficult person? When things go wrong, how do you keep the mind from being carried away?

The heart of mind training fits in one line: think less of yourself, and more of others. The tradition calls the self-centred attitude "self-cherishing" and sees it as the root of every affliction and every sorrow. It calls the wish for all beings to be free from suffering and to find happiness bodhichitta, the mind of awakening, and sees it as the source of all happiness and goodness.

You don't need to choose a school or perform a special ritual. The tone you use with your family today, a little patience in traffic, a kind word to a colleague: these are all places to train the mind.

Where mind training comes from

• Atisha (982–1054) came from India to Tibet and passed the instructions on mind training to his students. He had received them from the master Serlingpa of Suvarnadvipa, in present-day Sumatra.
• The Kadampa tradition was founded by Atisha's student Dromtonpa. Kadampa teachers made mind training their daily practice and left many short, memorable instructions.
• Geshe Langri Thangpa (1054–1123) wrote the Eight Verses for Training the Mind, which cover the essentials in eight short stanzas.
• Geshe Chekawa (1101–1175) gathered Atisha's instructions into the Seven-Point Mind Training.
• Je Tsongkhapa (1357–1419) wove Kadampa mind training and the stages of the path into his Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path. This is why the Gelug school was also called the "New Kadampa."

Mind training does not belong to the Gelug school alone. Sakya, Kagyu and Nyingma teachers also teach the Seven Points and the Eight Verses. It is a shared treasure of all Tibetan Buddhist traditions.

The Eight Verses in plain language

These are plain-language summaries prepared by BlessFu to help beginners. They are not the full original text or a formal translation.

1. Hold all beings as more precious than a wish-fulfilling jewel. Every good quality on the path is gained through other beings, so cherish them at all times.
   In daily life: everyone you meet today is helping you train your mind.
2. Whoever you are with, see yourself as the lowest. Respect the other person from the heart, and hold them as more important than yourself.
   In daily life: in meetings and conversations, listen fully before you speak.
3. Watch your mind in every action. As soon as a disturbing emotion arises and you see it will harm yourself and others, face it and counter it before it spreads.
   In daily life: when anger rises, pause for three seconds and take one deep breath.
4. When you meet people who are ill-tempered and weighed down by suffering, cherish them like a rare treasure. They are the ones who teach patience and compassion best.
   In daily life: difficult people are often suffering themselves.
5. When others, out of envy, insult you, slander you or treat you unfairly, accept the loss and offer them the victory.
   In daily life: you don't need to win every argument; peace of mind matters more.
6. When someone you have helped and placed great hope in hurts you without reason, see them as your teacher.
   In daily life: being let down is a chance to see your own clinging and to practise forgiveness.
7. Give all benefit and happiness to beings, who have been like mothers to you, and quietly take their harm and pain upon yourself. This is "exchanging self and others."
   In daily life: as you breathe in, imagine taking in others' hardship; as you breathe out, send them peace.
8. Keep all of this free from the wish for praise or reward; seeing that everything is like an illusion, let the mind be free of bondage.
   In daily life: do good without needing anyone to know.

The Seven Points

1. The preliminaries: value this precious human life, remember impermanence, trust that actions have results, and see the suffering of samsara.
2. Training in bodhichitta: practise exchanging self and others, and learn to see that nothing has a fixed, independent essence.
3. Turning difficulties into the path: when things go wrong, don't rush to blame others; first recognize your own self-cherishing.
4. A lifetime's practice in brief: meet daily life, and the time of death, with bodhichitta.
5. Signs of progress: all practice comes down to reducing self-grasping; your own honest awareness is the best witness; keep a joyful mind.
6. Commitments: for example, don't speak of others' faults, don't dwell on old grievances, and don't expect anything in return.
7. Advice: for example, "two things, at the beginning and the end": set your intention in the morning, and review your day at night.

For a guide to each point, see Scripture guides · The Seven-Point Mind Training.

Daily practice: morning, day and evening

• Morning intention (one or two minutes): when you wake, resolve not to harm anyone today, and to help where you can. You can follow the morning intention guided audio.
• Awareness during the day: when a disturbing emotion comes, recognize it, take a breath, and recall one line of the Eight Verses.
• Evening review (two or three minutes): rejoice in what went well; where you hurt someone, regret it sincerely and resolve to do better tomorrow. No self-blame, and no excuses.

To settle the mind first, begin with the breath-counting practice in Guided meditation.

The big picture: the stages of the path

Je Tsongkhapa's Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path arranges the whole journey, from beginner to Buddhahood, in three scopes:

• Initial scope: value this human life, remember death, trust in karma and take refuge, so as to secure a good future life.
• Intermediate scope: see the suffering of samsara and its causes, develop renunciation, and seek liberation.
• Great scope: generate bodhichitta and practise the six perfections, to become a Buddha for the sake of all beings. This is where mind training mainly belongs.

See Scripture guides · A map of the Great Treatise.

A few cautions

Mind training is something to apply to yourself, not a rule to impose on others. Don't use the Eight Verses to tell someone else they ought to give in.

"Accepting the loss" is a training of the mind; it does not mean staying in a situation that harms you. If you face violence or abuse, protect yourself first and seek help.

To study more deeply, look for a qualified teacher or a Buddhist centre near you. Every tradition offers excellent mind-training courses.