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Joyful Path of Good Fortune: The Complete Buddhist Path to Enlightenment

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There are a handful of lamrim texts in English to choose from these days, and this is the best. A serious practitioner of Mahayana Buddhism can hardly speak enough praise for the lamrim approach, for it contains the essence all Buddha's 84,000 teachings in a condensed and logical order that lends itself wonderfully to easy study and practice. The tradition of lamrim began with Atisha, who was invited to Tibet from India in the 11th century. Padmasambhava had first brought Buddhism to Tibet a few generations earlier, but it had quickly begun to degenerate and decline. Atisha rejuvenated it and started the Gelug or Kadam tradition. One of the hallmarks of this tradition is lamrim, a synthesis of the Vast Path (method) teachings and the Profound Path (wisdom) teachings, which Atisha first laid out in his "Lamp on the Path to Enlightenment". Other great teachers within this tradition, such as Je Tsongkhapa and Je Pabonkhapa, have written subsequent lamrim texts, and so this treasure by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso is a part of that tradition. Geshe Kelsang has always sought to bring the Mahayana (sutra) and Vajrayana (tantra) teachings and practices of Tibet to Westerners in a form that is entirely suitable to them, just as Atisha brought these teachings to the Tibetans long ago. He succeeds wonderfully with Joyful Path of Good Fortune. All lamrim texts contain the same essential points, but here these common points are rendered in clear and concise English that is a pleasure to read, and which makes even some of the most difficult points readily understandable to Westerners. The progression flows through the introductory and preliminary teachings, then on to the teachings for a person of Initial Scope, a person working to secure a good rebirth in their next life by practicing pure moral discipline and going for refuge to the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. Next are the teachings for the Intermediate Scope, for people working to gain for themselves permanent liberation from all the sufferings of this world. Then the book proceeds on to the Great Scope teachings of the Mahayana, for those who are motivated to become a completely enlightened Buddha in order to save all beings from their suffering.

Although the Tibetan Vajrayana (tantra) teachings are only mentioned in passing in this book, all the Mahayana (sutra) teachings are so beautifully and helpfully laid out that I cannot think of a better text to guide one's daily study and practice of the basic sutra teachings. In fact, a companion text by Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, Meditation Handbook, is specifically designed to help one put these teachings into a daily meditation practice. You can't go wrong here. Highly recommended.

All of Geshe Kelsang Gyatso's books that I have read are beautiful, pure Dharma, and this book is my favorite among them. As the subtitle of the book proclaims, this is "The Complete Buddhist Path to Enlightenment."

Geshe writes so carefully and precisely in his books, as if each word is precious and none to be wasted. This helped me to slow down and read and study the text with care -- the perfect way to study Lam Rim (the gradual, step-by-step path to enlightenment.) Don't rush through this book; your care will be rewarded!

Before getting to the first step of the path, the author gives us some introductory material. This includes a brief outline of lam rim, the qualities of the author (the original author of the lam rim was Atisha who brought these teachings to Tibet where they were preserved), how to listen properly to dharma teachings, and some introduction to meditation. Then Geshe begins to lead us down the path.

The path begins with reliance on a good spiritual guide. Just as we would rely upon a guide while trying to pass through dangerous mountains, and we would choose a qualified guide that knew the path well, so too should we find a guide along this path to enlightenment, and check out his qualifications before choosing him (or her.) Geshe spells out the proper qualifications we should look for, and then shows us what we should do after finding a proper guide (how we should approach that guide and what respectful behavior we should have.)

Geshe continues through the next steps of the path, giving us meditations on: appreciation for our good fortune in having this human life where we can pursue a spiritual path, how death is certain and may come unexpectedly so we should practice diligently, and why and how to go for refuge in the Buddha, his teachings (the Dharma) and the community of fellow spiritual seekers (the Sangha). After further helpful meditations on karma, the Four Noble Truths, delusions, the path to liberation, Geshe concludes with the heart of the Mahayana Dharma: bodhicitta (the wish to attain enlightenment to benefit all beings, not just ourself.) As Geshe-la says, "[Bodhicitta] is born from great compassion -- a mind that cannot bear others to experience pain and that wants to release all beings from every kind of suffering. ...Seeing how many and how great their sufferings are, we have a spontaneous and continuous wish, 'How wonderful it would be if all living beings were entirely free from every kind of suffering.' Having generated great compassion, when we become determined to attain enlightenment for the sake of others and this determination is spontaneous and continuous all day and all night, we have realized bodhicitta." (p. 382-383)

Geshe-la guides us through each step in generating this most important quality in ourselves, not just in our minds as a wish, but in our actions and activities every day. One of his chapters' titles is "Engaging in a Bodhisattva's Actions" and has subsections such as 'Giving Material Things', 'The Perfection of Moral Discipline' and 'The Moral Discipline of Benefiting Living Beings'. He goes through in detail the six perfections in this chapter, which are: generosity, ethics, patience, joyous effort, meditative concentration, and wisdom.

His concluding chapter describes what the mind and activities of an enlightened Buddha are like, but also acknowledges that this is difficult for us to comprehend: "If a bird flies high in the sky it must eventually come down somewhere, no matter how far it soars. This is not because the bird has arrived at the end of space, but because it has run out of energy to fly. Space is vast and endless and the bird's power is exhausted before it has travelled throughout space. The good qualities of a Buddha are like space and our understanding is like this bird. If we were to try to describe all the good qualities of a Buddha, our wisdom and skill would run out before we could finish describing them. They are beyond our imagination." (p. 552) However, if we study and put into practice this marvelous teaching from Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, eventually we will experience these qualities first hand.

Path of Good Fortune is a book you need to own. It outlines Buddhist psychology and philosophy in a clear and concise manner. What is most important about this book to me is that the advice found within its pages has helped me to bridge the gap between the meditation bench and the real world. I read it as part of a regular practice of meditation and yoga. I am on my third 'read', but each day it seems as if I find something fresh, new, and meaningful in this book. It is one of those books that seems to know what you need to hear, it seems to answer your questions as if it could hear your heart speak.

This book (as do all GKG's books)is easy to read, easy to undrestand and easy to use. I've read dozens of books on Buhddism and meditaion, and athough many were quite good, none were as useful as this one book. It spells everything out in plain English and offers a realistic working guide apply theese concepts to anyones life of any already existing faith. I see thing s so much differently now. And as a result I don't get so frustrated with people or situations that only a few short months ago would made me completely NUTS. The more I put to use what I've read, the more relaxed and peaceful my mind gets! And ALL of my relationships, both personal and professional, have benefited greatly as a direct result.

You will probably never need another book to learn about even the most intricate thoughts and concepts of Mahayana Buddhism. Yes, you may use other books to digg further in particular areas, but you will always come back to this one.

The basis for any Buddhist studies.

I have read many other books from other authors (including the famous ones), but none live up to the purity of this author. His teachings are uniquely pure with no self-interest.

Prior to becoming interested in Buddhism I did not know how to contemplate on my actions and thus, did not know their effects on other people and also myself. After learning how to meditate and live a conscious life according to the methods found in "The Joyful Path," I have not slept, or lived unconsciously. I know what people now mean by the word enlightenment. I think that there are many steps or levels to enlightenment, besides the enlightment of Buddha, which are subtly explained in "The Joyful Path." My first enlightenment came at a sudden moment when I realized there was no other way to live happily and beneficially other than to actively, not passively practice the joyful path. Hence the name of Geshe Kelsang Gyatso's book. I call it enlightenment because it was a moment in which a new world opened before my eyes. Nothing has been the same since. I have become fully awake in all my actions. The lesson on practicing the kindness of mothers opened my eyes to treat everyone with respect and joy. I agree with the person who stated that he almost quit his job because of his boss and then learned to live with him peacefully. Working in an everyday fast paced job, I can sympathize with the hardship of people's attitudes and tempers. I believe that reading evan a small part of this text everyday keeps me in balance. It brings me back to the center where all goodness resides and allows me to bring that light forward towards others. I now know how to contemplate on how I say things, what the expression was when I say it, how the other person must feel as they hear the tone of my voice with which I used to conveyed it. And at the end of the day, if I had to do it again, would I do it the same or how could I have improved it.
Although I miss opportunities to practice these acts out of frustration, anger or sadness, I am fully conscious enough to realize the impact, and then tell myself that I will try again. There are a million self-help books on the market. But none that I have encountered discuss how to help yourself at the same time as helping others. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wishes to improve their lives and that of others by living in the moment with regard to humanity by expressing pure love and compassion in every action.

There are a number of Lam Rim texts available. For those who do not study Vajrayana Buddhism, this might be confusing. It is said that the historical Buddha (aka Lord Buddha Shakyamuni) gave 84,000 teachings. They were given to different people at different times, and were focused on where that person or people were in their process, and what those particular person/s needed to know in next step towards enlightenment. So what might be the needed instruction at one part of the path, might be detrimental at another part of the path. At some point, you might need to go east, but at another west. This can leave a Buddhist quite confused. So the great accomplished master we now know as Atisha, organized the teaching of the Buddha into a method called the Lam Rim, or graduated path. You follow the path in the correct order, and it makes accomplishment much easier.

Many spiritual masters since, primarily Tibetan, have expanded on Atisha's short work with more extensive commentary. The difficulty in reading them, is that even with good translations, they are focused on a culture and time that is very foreign to modern westerners. The cultural dismissal of women is easily seen in many Lam Rim texts.

Now this commentary comes on the scene. The author has taken the Lam Rim teachings that he received from his own teacher, and taught them in a way that is accessible to westerners. And it is respectful of both men and women. I can read this Lam Rim so much easier than other Lam Rims I have read. Even though the author is not my teacher, I appreciate the care that went into this work. I highly recommend it.

This book brought alive Buddha's teachings for me. It is really clearly written. A perfect translation of Buddha's teachings. Has meditations throughout the book that guide you through the section you have just read. Beautiful. I can't recommend it enough!

An enlightenment is a liberation and a true cessation. this book help as how to know the correct path. examples of the this path are thouse stages of the path that lead to liberation and enlightenment. Also we can learn a short practice consisting of prayers for the six preparatory practices.

This excellent and complete work by one of our times most prolific writers on the subject of Buddhism takes the reader from Buddhism 101 through the Intermediate Steps to the meaning of Full Enlightenment.

Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, in "Joy Path of Good Fortune" teaches the reader the "Stages of the Path" (known in Tibet as the Lamrim) He uses terms that will guide as he gives the reader the feeling that the dharma is being provided them by a true "enlighten being."

I found the book to a single source for the new student of Buddhism and a necessary reference book for the Buddhist Teacher. It's appendixes and glossary would be reason enough for a Buddhist to purchase this valuable book.

As a long time practicing Zen Buddhist that is just beginning to study Tibetan Buddhism, I recommend this book for those that want to live in the eternal now as they walk their own joyful path.