Lamrim Quotes

“We have gained the optimum human rebirth, and this is the most advantageous physical form to have for the practice of Dharma. We are free from adverse conditions—we have met with the Buddha’s teachings, and so forth. We have all the right conditions, and so if we cannot achieve liberation now, when shall we ever achieve it?” From Liberation in […]

“Extreme attachment to sensual pleasures, in short, is like constantly drinking salt water: with no satisfaction, you’re always in torment, so what chance of happiness is there in it? Since the elephant, mind, is hopelessly drunk with the maddening liquor of sensual desire, there’s minimal chance of taming it with the soothing hook of the […]

“‘All the Ganges Rivers of the vows of the Bodhisattvas Are contained within the vow to uphold the Holy Dharma’ Thus whatever base of virtue I accumulated, All was dedicated to the spread of Buddha’s Teaching! When I think this over, how well my destiny was fulfilled! Thank you so very much, O Holy Wisdom […]

“I request inspiration quickly to develop on my mind-stream a path That combines the pair: a stilled, settled mind and an exceptionally perceptive mind, By stilling mental wandering toward objects of distortion And properly discerning the correct meaning (of voidness).” From Foundation of All Good Qualities by Tsongkhhapa. Translated by Alex Berzin. PDF available from The Berzin Archives.

“One who sees the cause and effect of all phenomena Of both cyclic existence and the state beyond sorrow as forever unbetraying, And for whom any object trusted in by the grasping mind has completely disappeared, Has at that time entered the path pleasing the Buddhas.” From The Three Principles of the Path by Lama Tsong […]

“Just as suffering torments oneself, likewise does suffering torment all sentient beings. All sentient beings tormented by suffering are exclusively one’s benevolent mothers. Not even one has not performed the deed of becoming [our] mother, [while] those who have become [our] mothers are innumerable. Each one when having become [our] mother protected [us] with a […]

“One has had infinite previous lives in higher, lower and intermediate realms, but the Lord of Death, like a thief in a rich market place, has stolen them all indiscriminately. How fortunate that he has let one live this long! Generate a mind so filled with awareness of death that you sit like a man […]

“Mental stability is the king wielding power over the mind. Fix it and it remains immovable like the Powerful Lord of Mountains. Project it and it engages in all constructive aims. It induces an exhilarating sense of feeling physically and mentally fit. Realizing this, the yogis with powerful command Continuously devote themselves to absorbed concentration, […]

“As all goodness, starting from the development of a single positive quality and the decrease of a single fault in the mind of the disciple, has its root in the sublime friend, right from the beginning the way to rely on him is important.” From Middle Length Lam-Rim with Trijang Rinpoche’s Additional Outlines by Lama Tsongkhapa (and Trijang Rinpoche). […]

“When people fight with others — something that yields only sins and suffering both in this and in other lives — they endure all manner of suffering for however long it takes, even at the cost of their lives. Then they show off their wounds, etc., and boast, “I received this one at that time.” […]