Patience

Lama Zopa Rinpoche, one of the great living masters of Tibetan Buddhism, guides us through one of the core practices of the bodhisattvas, using a classic, revered text as a guide. “Shantideva was like us, but he worked on his mind until he became completely free from delusions . . . A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life has inspired countless people since it was written over thirteen hundred years ago. It tells us that we too can develop our mind to the levels of realizations that the great masters have attained—and it shows us how to do it.” —Lama Zopa Rinpoche The sixth chapter of Shantideva’s classic A Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life is a beacon of inspiration that shows what patience—one of the essential actions of the bodhisattvas—can really mean, challenging the reader to great depths of self-reflection and to great heights of awakened action in the world.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche—a teacher whose very name means “patience”—explores Shantideva’s teachings verse by verse, unpacking its lessons for the modern reader:

• •Overcoming anger
• •Accepting suffering
• •Respecting others and finding happiness in their happiness In this guide, Rinpoche shows us the profundity and relevance of this incredible bodhisattva’s practice for us ordinary beings in our ordinary lives.