Mind in Comfort and Ease: The Vision of Enlightenment in the Great Perfection [Hardcover]

Dalai Lama XIV (Author), Patrick Gaffney (Editor), Matthieu Ricard (Translator), Richard Barron (Chökyi Nyima) (Translator), Adam Pearcey (Translator), Sogyal Rinpoche (Foreword)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Wisdom Publications; 1St Edition edition (May 18, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0861714938
• ISBN-13: 978-0861714933
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 7.1 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #77,012 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Some reviews and endorsements, January 8, 2008

By 

A. S. Pearcey (France) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mind in Comfort and Ease: The Vision of Enlightenment in the Great Perfection (Hardcover)

"This is one of the absolutely best and richest books on meditation practice that I have ever read. Here are finely nuanced Dzogchen teachings, offered by His Holiness with remarkable precision and clarity, and with astonishing humility and candor. A precious resource for anyone who loves the Dharma and is committed to its embodiment. This book has it all."--Jon Kabat-Zinn, author of and Vice Chair of the Mind and Life Institute

"This book records the teachings that the Dalai Lama offered to over 10,000 attendees at Sogyal Rinpoche's center in the south of France. The teachings consisted of an extensive commentary on one of the classic texts of the Dzogchen tradition, Longchen Rabjam's fourteenth-century masterpiece, 'Finding Comfort and Ease in Meditation on the Great Perfection.' This is the first oral commentary on this work to be published in English, and a major contribution to Western literature on Dzogchen."--Buddhadharma

"All who wish to be at ease in the awakened, boundless, sublime nature of their own minds--buddhahood--should cherish/read this book."--Tulku Thondup Rinpoche, author of The Practice of Dzogchen and Hidden Teachings of Tibet

"Tibetan Buddhism's sublime science of consciousness finds it highest expression in the teachings on the Great Perfection. In this book, His Holiness the Dalai Lama draws on his vast learning and insight to reveal both the meaning of the Great Perfection and its place within Buddhism as a whole. He also illuminates the interface between Buddhism and modern science, highlighting the materialistic assumptions that hinder the scientific study of consciousness. This beautifully translated book is a treasure, of great value to all who are interested in fathoming the secrets and possibilities of the mind."--B. Alan Wallace, author of The Attention Revolution

"All of us were moved by the depth, relevance, and accessibility of these teachings; there were those who said that they were among the most remarkable they had ever heard him give. In a wholly original, but always authentic, way, His Holiness brought a sense of his own personal quest, as he explored the whole Buddhist path, and particularly the pith instructions of the great masters of the Great Perfection."--Sogyal Rinpoche, from his foreword

"A unique overview of all the vehicles and teachings of Buddha Dharma as explained from personal experience by the eminent nonsectarian master of masters, the Dalai Lama of Tibet, including his own stories and anecdotes, augmented by freshly translated traditional texts and commentaries by the seminal master Longchenpa and other authoritative sources. This extraordinary and essential book of live oral teachings, transmitting the sublime View, Meditation, Action & Result of the direct-access Dzogchen approach to incandescent awareess and the natural state of spiritual living, provides us with the basis for meaningful study and meditation practice for years and generations to come."--Lama Surya Das, author of Awakening the Buddha Within

"This attractive volume should delight both scholar and practitioner, and can now take its place as an experientially based and intellectually solid contribution to the living study and practice of the Buddhadharma."--Steven D. Goodman, Asian and Comparative Studies, California Institute of Integral Studies

"In 2000, Sogyal Rinpoche requested His Holiness the Dalai Lama to give teachings on the path to enlightenment. His Holiness accepted and spontaneously decided to teach [about a classic text], setting the teachings of Dzogchen within the context of the other traditions of Tibetan Buddhism. Over 10,000 people coverged in the South of France to attend the five-day teaching. This book faitfhully retains the direct quality of the original teaching."--Mandala

"This is an outstanding introduction to the Great Perfection tradition of Tibetan Buddhism, and it includes His Holiness's oral commentary on a major text by Longchen Rabjam. His Holiness places the Great Perfection within the broader context of Buddhism as a whole and also elucidates areas of inquiry that are relevant to science and Buddhism."-B. Alan Wallace, in Buddhadharma

13 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great Teacher, Graduate Class, April 6, 2008

By 

Calvin Porter "Dharma bum" (Pleasant Hill, MO) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Mind in Comfort and Ease: The Vision of Enlightenment in the Great Perfection (Hardcover)

A cautionary note to perspective readers: As with all of his writings, "Mind in Comfort and Ease" contains a wealth of wisdom and compassion. However, those new to Buddhism, and Vajrayana in particular might want to consider something somewhat less advanced. This book was compiled from a multi-day teaching on Dzogchen given in France in 2000. The "great perfection" (Dzogchen) is considered the highest of Vajrayana teachings. So, if you haven't learned to swim in the Dharma, you might not want to jump in the deep end. Otherwise, a great read. Too often the Dalai Lama's great erudition is lost in his role as spokesperson for his people and champion of peace. This book demonstrates the excellence of his scholarshipl

9 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Advanced Buddhist teachings, September 5, 2008

By 

Steve Burns (Nashville, TN) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Mind in Comfort and Ease: The Vision of Enlightenment in the Great Perfection (Hardcover)

This book presents the teachings that the Dalai Lama gave in France in 2000.He delves deeply into the great Dzogchen master Longchen Rabjam's writing: Finding comfort and ease in meditation on the Great Perfection.

This book is not for beginners in Buddhism, it is for those that are ready to comprehend the nature of consciousness and be able to see the path that leads to enlightenment.

Seeing lust, ignorance, and hate not as something to indulge in but something to overcome is the hallmarks of the Buddadharma. Some one who does not consider them as an enemy but indulges in them can not be counted as a Buddhist.

"And sever at its root the mind that clings to an "I" or a self".

"It is this strong belief--that both things and the self are real-which is triggering the responses of attachment and aversion."

"All phenomena are devoid of true existence;clinging to them as real is the ignorance that lies at the root of samsara and keeps us circling with in cyclic existence".

"Emotional unhappiness that comes from deep inside, as a result of our thinking, cannot be overturned by the kind of happiness that is provided by external things. But we can turn things around. If we can discover a sense of well-being, fulfillment, and satisfaction within our minds".

"There is some pleasure to be had by scratching an itch,

But it is even more pleasurable to have no itches at all.

Likewise there are pleasures to be had from worldly desires.

But with freedom from desire comes pleasure greater still".

That my friends is Buddhism, the Dalai Lama is the closest we will get to the living Buddha among us. Read this book if you are ready to come out of the illusion of this world and the slavery of the Ego.