'In the eleventh century Atisha Dipankara brought the complete bodhichitta teachings from India to Tibet. In particular he emphasized what are called the lojong teachings, the teachings for training the mind. What is so up-do-date about these teachings is that they show us how to transform difficult circumstances into the path of enlightenment; what we most dislike about our lives is the meat and potatoes of the mind-training practices of Atisha. What seem like the greatest obstacles—our anger, our resentment, our uptightness—we use to fuel to awaken bodhichitta.
'For some time after the death of Atisha these teachings were kept secret, passed on only to close disciples. They did not become widely known again until the twelfth century, when the Tibetan Geshe Chekawa organized them into fifty-nine pithy slogans. These saying are now known as the lojong slogans or the slogans of Atisha. Becoming familiar with these slogans and bringing them to mind through our lives is a valuable bodhichitta practice…'
- Pema Chodron
Here follows a sampling of the lojong slogans of Atisha:
When the world is filled with evil, Transform all mishaps into the path of bodhi [enlightenment] (number 11).
Be grateful to everyone (number 13).
Don’t be so predictable (number 30).
Don’t be swayed by external circumstances (number 50).
Train wholeheartedly (number 54).
Don’t expect applause (number 59).
- For a complete list of and a beautiful elaboration on the lojong teachings, take a look in Pema Chodron’s ‘The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times.’
'For some time after the death of Atisha these teachings were kept secret, passed on only to close disciples. They did not become widely known again until the twelfth century, when the Tibetan Geshe Chekawa organized them into fifty-nine pithy slogans. These saying are now known as the lojong slogans or the slogans of Atisha. Becoming familiar with these slogans and bringing them to mind through our lives is a valuable bodhichitta practice…'
- Pema Chodron
Here follows a sampling of the lojong slogans of Atisha:
When the world is filled with evil, Transform all mishaps into the path of bodhi [enlightenment] (number 11).
Be grateful to everyone (number 13).
Don’t be so predictable (number 30).
Don’t be swayed by external circumstances (number 50).
Train wholeheartedly (number 54).
Don’t expect applause (number 59).
- For a complete list of and a beautiful elaboration on the lojong teachings, take a look in Pema Chodron’s ‘The Places That Scare You: A Guide to Fearlessness in Difficult Times.’