Customer Reviews

The Seven-Point Mind Training

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Realize they are two very different books! If you are looking for something to benefit your practice then "Buddhism with an Attitude" is the way to go. Although repetitive at times, this itself is helpful, and it is written in a more instructional tone. If you feel your practice has fully matured (lucky you) and you are simply interested in a concise, more academic exposition of the seven point mind training, then "The Seven-Point Mind Training" is the one for you. Also, for being more condensed, the "The Seven-Point Mind Training", will be the book you will want to carry around once you are familiar with Lojong practice.

B Alan Wallace's background, having undergone monastic training and having also had the good fortune to meet with deeply realised masters such as Geshe Rabten, is ideal for presenting these teachings.

This is a very readable and rewarding book. The seven-point mind training is not for those who enjoy a 'comfortable' spiritual path. This book is all about giving up self-cherishing, the source of most of our suffering and putting others before ourselves - not an easy task in a society that tends towards self-gratification. The Buddhist path is not an easy one and these teachings don't allow us to rest easy in a warm and fluffy spiritual materialism, which is a trap for the unwary Dharma practitioner. BAW hammers this message home throughout the book.

The best thing about this book is that it brings to life these pearls of wisdom and very skilfully points the way to integration of them into our everyday lives. BAW exhorts us to bring these 7 points and their underlying Dharmic message into every aspect of our lives. These are teachings to apply to our meditation, our study, contemplation and even our mundane activities. On the meditation mat, or throughout the rest of our days and nights, there are no excuses. We can apply them equally well when we are happy, sad or indifferent.

This is definitely one of the most readable commentaries on the Seven-point Mind Training and well worth buying for your Dharma library. Buy, enjoy, but make sure you also bring it to bear on your life!

I have had mixed reactions to this author's material in the past and so have others. However, I found this book to be extremely practical, well-written, balanced and applicable to a modern context.

B. Alan Wallace has very impressive credentials, but for some reason, I feel he missed the mark with some of his earlier books or at least didn't hit a homerun. This book is one that I can wholeheartedly endorse.

In short, what the intention of the book is to make the teachings and slogans of Atisha accessible to the average aspirant living in the world. It provides a good interpretation of the teachings on training the mind to be more compassionate and provides a context for these teachings.

There is good commentary on various slogans that are the central point of the Lojong teachings and some good direction for performing Tonglen meditation. Tonglen is called "taking a receiving." The essence of it is to experience a flash of absolute bodhichitta (unconditional love, infinite space, emptiness).... and then commence taking in suffering and breathing out light, compassion, love, etc. This is a very crude description, but it's a type of meditation where you focus on particular and specific pain that you can identify with and increasingly make it more universal in order to develop your mind in the direction of compassion.

This is also a very manageable book and fortunately, Mr. Wallace does a better job of explaining Tonglen meditation than I did above! As a companion to this book, I would also purchase Good Medicine: How to Turn Pain into Compassion with Tonglen Meditation or even better The Pema Chodron Collection: Pure Meditation:Good Medicine:From Fear to Fearlessness.

The resources above provide additional information on Tonglen, guided Tonglen practice, lots of useful practical information on developing the mind, compassion and using everyday events as the stuff for a meaningful spiritiual practice. Mr. Wallace's book compliments this material and brings additional depth to it. You can also find additional resources under my listmania lists.

Alan Wallace's book is full of insight for anyone seeking to understand and cultivate bodhichitta. The book is a wonderful resource for all practitioners seeking to walk the bodhisattva path.

This book is so fantastically written - B. Allan Wallace sheds light on the Seven Point Mind Training like no-one else. He uses modern language to explain this ancient wisdom, and shows how the dharma really can be brought into every part of our day, not just the moments when we are sitting quietly in a cushion. Having seen on Amazon how many other books he has written (does this man ever sleep?!)now my biggest problem is deciding which of his books I should buy next...

All Wallace books are good Buddhist books. This book is good but its not a starter book. However it is easy reading. The material is covered rather well.

The Seven Point Mind Training is supposed to be one of the most exhilarating teaching in Buddhism, but after reading this book I was greatly disappointed and wish that the author had not chosen the name of the training as the title of this book. It is shallow compared to the seven point mind training taught by the lamas at the Kagyu Institute. If you are one of the readers who seek such a training, don't be put off by this book and continue pursuing this training. This is just like one of the many confusing work borrowing the title of Buddhist teaching and as mentioned by HH Dalai Lama, indeed Alan Wallace is a Buddhist thinker (mind you, not teacher). The book is like an essay of his thought rather than a guide from a teacher to a student. I will not recommend this book for serious Buddhists seeking mind training.